Uttering Names Of Other Gods

I was told several days ago that a certain verse of the Bible, Exodus 23:13, condemns the very mention of a pagan god or goddess by human beings.  Here I will refute this understanding of the verse, demonstrating that it cannot mean this because of what other passages state.  I will first present the verse below:


Exodus 23:13--"Be careful to do everything I have said to you.  Do not invoke the names of other gods; do not let them be heard on your lips."


First of all, in context, this verse seems to be warning against uttering the names of other gods in the sense of calling upon them for aid or treating them as real entities.  This is established by the use of the word "invoke" in Exodus 23:13, which means to call upon something.  Certainly this would amount to a dilution of commitment to God, since, in order to seek the power of some pagan deity, one must either treat Yahweh as if he does not have the ability to act or seek another deity despite acknowledging Yahweh's sufficiency.

Poseidon.

Secondly, and far more significantly, the Bible itself mentions the names of other deities like Baal (Numbers 25:3-5, Deuteronomy 4:3-4), Molech (Leviticus 20:1-5, 1 Kings 11:7), Ashtoreth (1 Kings 11:5)--should we not read these passages aloud?  Moses, who received the Law from Yahweh, mentions the name of Baal in Numbers 25:3-5 on God's behalf.  God also clearly speaks the names of other deities throughout Scripture (for instance, see Leviticus 20:2-5 again), meaning that if it truly is sinful to utter the names of other gods or goddesses, then God himself sins by doing this, and yet God cannot sin (James 1:13).  So it cannot be inherently sinful to simply refer by name to false deities like Baal, Ares, Odin, Zeus, or Molech.  What is certainly sinful is to call upon these deities as if they have legitimate existence or authority, as if they can come to one's aid or uproot Yahweh's power.

Also, the translation of Exodus 23:13 is questioned by some, with the claim arising that the verse does not condemn forming the sounds of names but remembering other deities with reverence.  This, if true, means that these arguments of mine are not even necessary to show that it is a misinterpretation to universally condemn human reference to gods besides Yahweh.  However, I do not often seek out proofs beyond purely logic-based ones whenever I do not need to, since no additional inquiry is necessary if logic alone establishes or disproves a position.  Thus even if the verse has not been mistranslated, all of my previous points hold by necessity and my conclusion is still correct.

Ishtar.

Does someone sin when he or she refers to pagan gods and goddesses?  Not necessarily!  The answer strictly hinges on the intent behind the words, for merely acknowledging a name does not mean that one actually believes in a deity or betrays God.  Since this is the case, and since God himself mentions names of pagan deities, one can objectively refute the claim that saying a name is sinful in itself, without even consulting the original Hebrew wording.

Athena.