What is this image anyway?

The image of God as an Old Testament concept can be understood in four categories. It pertains to the role and function that God has given humanity (found, for example, in “subdue” and “rule,” Gen 1:28), to the identity that he has bequeathed on us (i.e., it is, by definition, who we are as human beings), and to the way that we serve as his substitute by representing his presence in the world. When Assyrian kings made images of themselves to be placed in conquered cities or at important borders, they were communicating that they were, in effect, continually present in that place. Finally, it is indicative of the relationship that God intends to have with us.—The Lost World of Adam and Eve, p. 42