The prohibition against worshipping idols appears several times in the Torah, among them in the Torah portion of Re’eh. Why does God enable the continued existence of idol worship and not destroy the objects of that worship? The fundamental answer of the Sages is that He will not alter the laws of nature in order to discourage the sinners.

Some philosophers asked the Jewish elders who were in Rome: If it is not your God’s will that people engage in idol worship, why does He not eliminate it? The Jewish elders said to them: If people were worshipping only objects for which the world has no need, He would eliminate it. But they worship the sun, the moon, the stars, and the constellations. Should He destroy the world because of the fools? Rather, the world follows its course, and the fools who sinned will be judged in the future.

Similarly, if one stole a se’a of wheat and planted it in the ground, by right it should not grow. But the world follows its course and the fools who sinned will be judged in the future. (Avoda Zara 54b)