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A Satire on Idolatry

10 Hear the word which the Lord speaks to you, O house of Israel. Thus says the Lord,

“Do not learn the way of the [pagan] nations,
And do not be terrified and distressed by the signs of the heavens
Although the pagans are terrified by them;

For the customs and decrees of the peoples are [mere] delusion [exercises in futility];
It is only wood which one cuts from the forest [to make a god],
The work of the hands of the craftsman with the axe or cutting tool.

“They adorn the idol with silver and with gold;
They fasten it with hammers and nails
So that it will not fall apart.

“They are like scarecrows in a cucumber field;
They cannot speak;
They have to be carried,
Because they cannot walk!
Do not be afraid of them,
For they can do no harm or evil,
Nor can they do any good.”


There is none like You, O Lord;
You are great, and great is Your mighty and powerful name.

Who would not fear You, O King of the nations?
For it is appropriate and it is Your due!
For among all the wise men of the nations
And in all their kingdoms,
There is none like You.

But they are altogether irrational and stupid and foolish
In their discipline of delusion—their idol is [only] wood [it is ridiculous, empty and worthless]!

Silver that has been beaten [into plates] is brought from [a]Tarshish,
And gold from [b]Uphaz,
The work of the craftsman and of the hand of the goldsmith;
Violet and purple are their clothing;
They are all the work of skilled men.
10 
But the Lord is the true God and the God who is Truth;
He is the living God and the everlasting King.
The earth quakes and shudders at His wrath,
And the nations are not able to endure His indignation.

11 In this manner you shall say to them, “The gods that did not make the heavens and the earth will perish from the earth and from under the heavens.”

12 
God made the earth by His power;
He established the world by His wisdom
And by His understanding and skill He has stretched out the heavens.
13 
When He utters His voice, there is a tumult of [c]waters in the heavens,
And He causes the clouds and the mist to ascend from the end of the earth;
He makes lightning for the rain,
And brings out the wind from His treasuries and from His storehouses.
14 
Every man has become [like a brute] irrational and stupid, without knowledge [of God];
Every goldsmith is shamed by his carved idols;
For his molten images are frauds and lies,
And there is no breath in them.
15 
They are worthless and devoid of promise, a work of delusion and mockery;
In their time of [trial and] punishment they will perish [without hope].
16 
The Portion of Jacob [the true God on whom Israel has a claim] is not like these;
For He is the Designer and Maker of all things,
And Israel is the tribe of His inheritance [and He will not fail them]—
The Lord of hosts is His name.

17 
Gather up your bundle [of goods] from the ground,
You who live under siege.
18 
For thus says the Lord;
“Behold, I am slinging out at this time the people of this land,
And will cause them [great] distress,
That they may find it [to be as I have said].”

19 
“Woe to me because of my [spiritual] brokenness!” [says Jeremiah, speaking for the nation.]
“My wound is incurable.”
But I said, “Surely this sickness and suffering and grief are mine,
And I must bear it.”
20 
My tent is destroyed,
And all my [tent] cords are broken;
My children have been taken from me [as captives] and are no more.
There is no one to stretch out my tent again
And to set up my [tent] curtains.
21 
For the shepherds [of the people] have become [like brutes,] irrational and stupid,
And have not searched for the Lord or asked about Him or realized their need for Him;
Therefore they have not been wise and have not prospered,
And all their flocks are scattered.
22 
The sound of a report! Behold, [the invader] comes—
A great commotion from the country of the north (Babylonia)—
To make the cities of Judah
A desolation, a haunt and dwelling place of jackals.

23 
O Lord, I know that the path of [life of] a man is not in himself;
It is not within [the limited ability of] man [even one at his best] to choose and direct his steps [in life].(A)
24 
O Lord, correct me [along with Your people], but with mercy and in just measure—
Not in Your anger, or You will crush me and bring me to nothing.
25 
Pour out Your wrath on the nations that do not know nor recognize You
And on the families that do not call Your name.
For they have devoured Jacob;
They have devoured him and consumed him
And made his land a desolate waste.

Notas al pie

  1. Jeremiah 10:9 Perhaps a reference to an ancient refinery located on the island of Sardinia.
  2. Jeremiah 10:9 The location of this gold mining region is unknown.
  3. Jeremiah 10:13 Some ancient people believed that the sky was a canopy over the earth and that God stored rainwater behind it. Therefore, it rained only when God opened the windows of heaven.

Living God or human handiwork

10 Listen to the word that the Lord has spoken to you, people of Israel!
The Lord proclaims:
Don’t follow the ways of the nations
    or be troubled by signs in the sky,
        even though the nations are troubled by them.
The rituals of the nations are hollow:
    a tree from the forest is chopped down
        and shaped by the craftsman’s tools.
It’s overlaid with silver and gold,
    and fastened securely with hammer and nails
        so it won’t fall over.
They are no different than a scarecrow
    in a cucumber patch:
    they can’t speak;
    they must be carried
        because they can’t walk.
Don’t be afraid of them,
    because they can’t do harm or good.
Lord, no one is like you!
    You are great,
    and great is your mighty name.
Who wouldn’t fear you,
    king of the nations?
That is your due;
    among all the wise of the nations
    and in all their countries,
        there is no one like you!
But they are both foolish and silly;
    they offer nothing
        because they are mere wood.
Covered with silver from Tarshish
    and gold from Uphaz,
        they are the work of a craftsman
        and the hands of a goldsmith.
Clothed in blue and purple,
    all of them nothing more than the work of artisans.
10 But the Lord is the true God!
    He’s the living God and the everlasting king!
When he’s angry, the earth quakes;
    the nations can’t endure his rage.

11 Tell them this: The gods who didn’t make the heavens and the earth will perish from the earth and from under the heavens.[a]

12 But God made the earth by his might;
    he shaped the world by his wisdom,
    crafted the skies by his knowledge.
13 At the sound of his voice,
    the heavenly waters roar.
    He raises the clouds from the ends of the earth.
He sends the lightning with the rain,
    the wind from his treasuries.
14 Everyone is too foolish to understand;
    every goldsmith is dishonored by his idols,
        for their images are shams;
        they aren’t alive.
15 They are a delusion, a charade;
        at the appointed time they will vanish!
16 Jacob’s portion is utterly different
    because God has formed all things,
        including Israel, his very own people—
        the Lord of heavenly forces is his name!

Get ready for exile!

17 Pack your bags and get ready to leave,
    you who live under siege.[b]
18 The Lord proclaims:
I’m going to eject those who live in the land at this time;
    I will badger them until they leave.[c]

19 How terrible for me, due to my injury;
    my wound is terrible.
Yet I said to myself:
    This is my sickness,
        and I must bear it.
20 But now my tent is destroyed;
    all its ropes are cut,
        and my children are gone for good.
    There’s no one left to set up my tent frame
        and to attach the fabric.
21 The shepherd kings have lost their senses
    and don’t seek answers from the Lord.
That is why they have failed
    and their flock is scattered.
22 Listen! The sound is getting louder,
    a mighty uproar from the land of the north;
    it will reduce the towns of Judah to ruins,
        a den for wild dogs.
23 I know, Lord, that our lives are not our own,
    that we’re not able to direct our paths.
24 So correct me, Lord, but with justice,
    not in your anger,
        or else you will reduce me to nothing.
25 Pour out your wrath on the nations
        that ignore you
    and on the people
        who don’t call on you,
        since they have devoured Jacob;
        they have devoured him completely
            and ruined his country.

Notas al pie

  1. Jeremiah 10:11 10:11 is written in Aramaic.
  2. Jeremiah 10:17 Heb uncertain
  3. Jeremiah 10:18 Or find it

The Stick Gods

10 1-5 Listen to the Message that God is sending your way, House of Israel. Listen most carefully:

“Don’t take the godless nations as your models.
    Don’t be impressed by their glamour and glitz,
    no matter how much they’re impressed.
The religion of these peoples
    is nothing but smoke.
An idol is nothing but a tree chopped down,
    then shaped by a woodsman’s ax.
They trim it with tinsel and balls,
    use hammer and nails to keep it upright.
It’s like a scarecrow in a cabbage patch—can’t talk!
    Deadwood that has to be carried—can’t walk!
Don’t be impressed by such stuff.
    It’s useless for either good or evil.”

6-9 All this is nothing compared to you, O God.
    You’re wondrously great, famously great.
Who can fail to be impressed by you, King of the nations?
    It’s your very nature to be worshiped!
Look far and wide among the elite of the nations.
    The best they can come up with is nothing compared to you.
Stupidly, they line them up—a lineup of sticks,
    good for nothing but making smoke.
Gilded with silver foil from Tarshish,
    covered with gold from Uphaz,
Hung with violet and purple fabrics—
    no matter how fancy the sticks, they’re still sticks.

10 But God is the real thing—
    the living God, the eternal King.
When he’s angry, Earth shakes.
    Yes, and the godless nations quake.

11-15 “Tell them this, ‘The stick gods
    who made nothing, neither sky nor earth,
Will come to nothing
    on the earth and under the sky.’”
But it is God whose power made the earth,
    whose wisdom gave shape to the world,
    who crafted the cosmos.
He thunders, and rain pours down.
    He sends the clouds soaring.
He embellishes the storm with lightnings,
    launches wind from his warehouse.
Stick-god worshipers looking mighty foolish,
    god-makers embarrassed by their handmade gods!
Their gods are frauds—dead sticks,
    deadwood gods, tasteless jokes.
    When the fires of judgment come, they’ll be ashes.

16 But the Portion-of-Jacob is the real thing.
    He put the whole universe together
And pays special attention to Israel.
    His name? God-of-the-Angel-Armies!

* * *

17-18 Grab your bags,
    all you who are under attack.
God has given notice:
    “Attention! I’m evicting
Everyone who lives here,
    And right now—yes, right now!
I’m going to press them to the limit,
    squeeze the life right out of them.”

* * *

19-20 But it’s a black day for me!
    Hopelessly wounded,
I said, “Why, oh why
    did I think I could bear it?”
My house is ruined—
    the roof caved in.
Our children are gone—
    we’ll never see them again.
No one left to help in rebuilding,
    no one to make a new start!

21 It’s because our leaders are stupid.
    They never asked God for counsel,
And so nothing worked right.
    The people are scattered all over.

22 But listen! Something’s coming!
    A big commotion from the northern borders!
Judah’s towns about to be smashed,
    left to all the stray dogs and cats!

23-25 I know, God, that mere mortals
    can’t run their own lives,
That men and women
    don’t have what it takes to take charge of life.
So correct us, God, as you see best.
    Don’t lose your temper. That would be the end of us.
Vent your anger on the godless nations,
    who refuse to acknowledge you,
And on the people
    who won’t pray to you—
The very ones who’ve made a meal out of Jacob,
    yes, made a meal
And devoured him whole,
    people and pastures alike.

Idols and the Living God

10 Hear the word that the Lord speaks to you, O house of Israel. Thus says the Lord:

“Learn not the way of the nations,
    nor be dismayed at the signs of the heavens
    because the nations are dismayed at them,
(A)for the customs of the peoples are vanity.[a]
(B)A tree from the forest is cut down
    and worked with an axe by the hands of a craftsman.
(C)They decorate it with silver and gold;
    (D)they fasten it with hammer and nails
    so that it cannot move.
Their idols[b] are like scarecrows in a cucumber field,
    and (E)they cannot speak;
(F)they have to be carried,
    for they cannot walk.
Do not be afraid of them,
    (G)for they cannot do evil,
    neither is it in them to do good.”

(H)There is none like you, O Lord;
    you are great, and your name is great in might.
(I)Who would not fear you, O King of the nations?
    For this is your due;
for among all the wise ones of the nations
    and in all their kingdoms
    there is none like you.
(J)They are both (K)stupid and foolish;
    the instruction of idols is but wood!
(L)Beaten silver is brought from (M)Tarshish,
    and gold from (N)Uphaz.
(O)They are the work of the craftsman and of the hands of the goldsmith;
    their clothing is violet and purple;
    (P)they are all the work of skilled men.
10 (Q)But the Lord is the true God;
    (R)he is the living God and the everlasting King.
At his wrath the earth quakes,
    and the nations cannot endure his indignation.

11 Thus shall you say to them: (S)“The gods who did not make the heavens and the earth (T)shall perish from the earth and from under the heavens.”[c]

12 (U)It is he who (V)made the earth by his power,
    (W)who established the world by his wisdom,
    and (X)by his understanding stretched out the heavens.
13 (Y)When he utters his voice, there is a tumult of waters in the heavens,
    (Z)and he makes the mist rise from the ends of the earth.
(AA)He makes lightning (AB)for the rain,
    (AC)and he brings forth the wind (AD)from his storehouses.
14 (AE)Every man is stupid and without knowledge;
    (AF)every goldsmith is put to shame by his idols,
for his images are false,
    (AG)and there is no breath in them.
15 They are worthless, a work of delusion;
    at the time of their punishment they shall perish.
16 Not like these is he who is (AH)the portion of Jacob,
    for he is the one who formed all things,
(AI)and Israel is the tribe of his inheritance;
    (AJ)the Lord of hosts is his name.

17 (AK)Gather up your bundle from the ground,
    O you who dwell under siege!
18 For thus says the Lord:
(AL)“Behold, I am slinging out the inhabitants of the land
    at this time,
(AM)and I will bring distress on them,
    that they may feel it.”

19 Woe is me because of my hurt!
    (AN)My wound is grievous.
But I said, “Truly this is an affliction,
    and I must bear it.”
20 (AO)My tent is destroyed,
    and all my cords are broken;
my children have gone from me,
    (AP)and they are not;
there is no one to spread my tent again
    and (AQ)to set up my curtains.
21 (AR)For the shepherds (AS)are stupid
    and do not inquire of the Lord;
therefore they have not prospered,
    (AT)and all their flock is scattered.

22 A voice, a rumor! Behold, it comes!—
    (AU)a great commotion out of the north country
to make (AV)the cities of Judah a desolation,
    (AW)a lair of jackals.

23 (AX)I know, O Lord, that the way of man is not in himself,
    that it is not in man who walks to direct his steps.
24 (AY)Correct me, O Lord, but in justice;
    not in your anger, lest you bring me to nothing.

25 (AZ)Pour out your wrath on the nations that know you not,
    and on the peoples that call not on your name,
(BA)for they have devoured Jacob;
    they have devoured him and consumed him,
    and have laid waste his habitation.

Notas al pie

  1. Jeremiah 10:3 Or vapor, or mist
  2. Jeremiah 10:5 Hebrew They
  3. Jeremiah 10:11 This verse is in Aramaic

God and Idols(A)

10 Hear what the Lord says to you, people of Israel. This is what the Lord says:

“Do not learn the ways of the nations(B)
    or be terrified by signs(C) in the heavens,
    though the nations are terrified by them.
For the practices of the peoples are worthless;
    they cut a tree out of the forest,
    and a craftsman(D) shapes it with his chisel.(E)
They adorn it with silver(F) and gold;
    they fasten it with hammer and nails
    so it will not totter.(G)
Like a scarecrow in a cucumber field,
    their idols cannot speak;(H)
they must be carried
    because they cannot walk.(I)
Do not fear them;
    they can do no harm(J)
    nor can they do any good.”(K)

No one is like you,(L) Lord;
    you are great,(M)
    and your name is mighty in power.
Who should not fear(N) you,
    King of the nations?(O)
    This is your due.
Among all the wise leaders of the nations
    and in all their kingdoms,
    there is no one like you.

They are all senseless(P) and foolish;(Q)
    they are taught by worthless wooden idols.(R)
Hammered silver is brought from Tarshish(S)
    and gold from Uphaz.
What the craftsman and goldsmith have made(T)
    is then dressed in blue and purple—
    all made by skilled workers.
10 But the Lord is the true God;
    he is the living God,(U) the eternal King.(V)
When he is angry,(W) the earth trembles;(X)
    the nations cannot endure his wrath.(Y)

11 “Tell them this: ‘These gods, who did not make the heavens and the earth, will perish(Z) from the earth and from under the heavens.’”[a]

12 But God made(AA) the earth(AB) by his power;
    he founded the world by his wisdom(AC)
    and stretched out the heavens(AD) by his understanding.
13 When he thunders,(AE) the waters in the heavens roar;
    he makes clouds rise from the ends of the earth.
He sends lightning(AF) with the rain(AG)
    and brings out the wind from his storehouses.(AH)

14 Everyone is senseless and without knowledge;
    every goldsmith is shamed(AI) by his idols.
The images he makes are a fraud;(AJ)
    they have no breath in them.
15 They are worthless,(AK) the objects of mockery;
    when their judgment comes, they will perish.
16 He who is the Portion(AL) of Jacob is not like these,
    for he is the Maker of all things,(AM)
including Israel, the people of his inheritance(AN)
    the Lord Almighty is his name.(AO)

Coming Destruction

17 Gather up your belongings(AP) to leave the land,
    you who live under siege.
18 For this is what the Lord says:
    “At this time I will hurl(AQ) out
    those who live in this land;
I will bring distress(AR) on them
    so that they may be captured.”

19 Woe to me because of my injury!
    My wound(AS) is incurable!
Yet I said to myself,
    “This is my sickness, and I must endure(AT) it.”
20 My tent(AU) is destroyed;
    all its ropes are snapped.
My children are gone from me and are no more;(AV)
    no one is left now to pitch my tent
    or to set up my shelter.
21 The shepherds(AW) are senseless(AX)
    and do not inquire of the Lord;(AY)
so they do not prosper(AZ)
    and all their flock is scattered.(BA)
22 Listen! The report is coming—
    a great commotion from the land of the north!(BB)
It will make the towns of Judah desolate,(BC)
    a haunt of jackals.(BD)

Jeremiah’s Prayer

23 Lord, I know that people’s lives are not their own;
    it is not for them to direct their steps.(BE)
24 Discipline me, Lord, but only in due measure—
    not in your anger,(BF)
    or you will reduce me to nothing.(BG)
25 Pour out your wrath on the nations(BH)
    that do not acknowledge you,
    on the peoples who do not call on your name.(BI)
For they have devoured(BJ) Jacob;
    they have devoured him completely
    and destroyed his homeland.(BK)

Notas al pie

  1. Jeremiah 10:11 The text of this verse is in Aramaic.