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Idolatry Is Ridiculous

All those who form an idol are nothing,
    and their delightful things do not profit.
And their witnesses do not see or know,
    so they will be ashamed.
10     Who would form a god
    and cast an image of which he cannot profit?
11 Look! all his companions shall be ashamed,
    and the artisans are human!
Let all of them assemble;
    let them stand up.
They shall tremble;[a]
    they shall be ashamed together.
12 The ironsmith[b] works in the coals with his tool
    and forms it with hammers.
And he makes it with his strong arm;[c]
    indeed, he becomes hungry, and he lacks[d] strength;
    he does not drink water, and he is faint.
13 The woodworker[e] stretches out a line;
    he makes an outline of it with a marker.
He makes it with a knife
    and makes an outline of it with a compass.
He makes it like the image of a man,
    like the beauty of a human, to dwell in a temple.[f]
14 Cutting down cedars for himself,
    he chooses[g] a holm tree and an oak,
and he lets it grow strong for him among the trees of the forest.
    He plants a cedar, and the rain makes it grow.
15 And it becomes fuel for a human,[h]
    and he takes some of it and grows warm;
    also, he kindles a fire and bakes bread.
Also, he makes a god and bows in worship;
    he makes himself an image and bows down to it!
16 He burns half of it in the fire;
    he eats meat over half of it;
    he roasts a roast and is satisfied.
Also he grows warm and says, “Ah!
    I am warm! I see the fire!”
17 And he makes the remainder of it into a god!
    He bows down to his idol,
and he bows in worship and prays to him,
    and he says, “Save me, for you are my god!”
18 They do not know,
    and they do not understand,
for their eyes are besmeared so that they cannot see,[i]
    their minds[j] so that they have no insight.[k]
19 And no one takes it to heart,[l] and there is no knowledge
    and no understanding to say, “I burned half of it in the fire
and also I baked bread on its coals;
    I roasted meat, and I have eaten.
And I shall make the rest of it into an abomination!
    I shall bow down to a block of wood!”
20 He feeds on ashes; a deceived mind[m] misleads him.
    And he cannot save himself,[n] and he cannot say,
        “Is this not an illusion in my right hand?”

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Footnotes

  1. Isaiah 44:11 Or “be startled”
  2. Isaiah 44:12 Literally “craftsman of iron”
  3. Isaiah 44:12 Literally “the arm of his strength”
  4. Isaiah 44:12 Literally “there is no”
  5. Isaiah 44:13 Literally “craftsman of wood”
  6. Isaiah 44:13 Or “house”
  7. Isaiah 44:14 Literally “takes”
  8. Isaiah 44:15 Literally “will become for a man as burning”
  9. Isaiah 44:18 Literally “from seeing”
  10. Isaiah 44:18 Literally “hearts”
  11. Isaiah 44:18 Literally “from having insight”
  12. Isaiah 44:19 Literally “he does not bring back to his heart”
  13. Isaiah 44:20 Literally “heart deceived”
  14. Isaiah 44:20 Literally “his soul”

All who make idols(A) are nothing,
    and the things they treasure are worthless.(B)
Those who would speak up for them are blind;(C)
    they are ignorant, to their own shame.(D)
10 Who shapes a god and casts an idol,(E)
    which can profit nothing?(F)
11 People who do that will be put to shame;(G)
    such craftsmen are only human beings.
Let them all come together and take their stand;
    they will be brought down to terror and shame.(H)

12 The blacksmith(I) takes a tool
    and works with it in the coals;
he shapes an idol with hammers,
    he forges it with the might of his arm.(J)
He gets hungry and loses his strength;
    he drinks no water and grows faint.(K)
13 The carpenter(L) measures with a line
    and makes an outline with a marker;
he roughs it out with chisels
    and marks it with compasses.
He shapes it in human form,(M)
    human form in all its glory,
    that it may dwell in a shrine.(N)
14 He cut down cedars,
    or perhaps took a cypress or oak.
He let it grow among the trees of the forest,
    or planted a pine,(O) and the rain made it grow.
15 It is used as fuel(P) for burning;
    some of it he takes and warms himself,
    he kindles a fire and bakes bread.
But he also fashions a god and worships(Q) it;
    he makes an idol and bows(R) down to it.
16 Half of the wood he burns in the fire;
    over it he prepares his meal,
    he roasts his meat and eats his fill.
He also warms himself and says,
    “Ah! I am warm; I see the fire.(S)
17 From the rest he makes a god, his idol;
    he bows down to it and worships.(T)
He prays(U) to it and says,
    “Save(V) me! You are my god!”
18 They know nothing, they understand(W) nothing;
    their eyes(X) are plastered over so they cannot see,
    and their minds closed so they cannot understand.
19 No one stops to think,
    no one has the knowledge or understanding(Y) to say,
“Half of it I used for fuel;(Z)
    I even baked bread over its coals,
    I roasted meat and I ate.
Shall I make a detestable(AA) thing from what is left?
    Shall I bow down to a block of wood?”(AB)
20 Such a person feeds on ashes;(AC) a deluded(AD) heart misleads him;
    he cannot save himself, or say,
    “Is not this thing in my right hand a lie?(AE)

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