False Gods Contrasted with the Creator

10 Hear the word that the Lord has spoken to[a] you, house of Israel. This is what the Lord says:

Do not learn the way of the nations(A)
or be terrified by signs in the heavens,
although the nations are terrified by them,
for the customs of the peoples are worthless.
Someone cuts down a tree from the forest;
it is worked by the hands of a craftsman with a chisel.
He decorates it with silver and gold.(B)
It is fastened with hammer and nails,(C)
so it won’t totter.
Like scarecrows in a cucumber patch,
their idols cannot speak.(D)
They must be carried(E) because they cannot walk.
Do not fear them for they can do no harm(F)
and they cannot do any good.(G)

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Footnotes

  1. 10:1 Or against

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.

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