Isaiah 44:9-20 ▼

9 They that fashion a graven image are all of them vanity, And their delectable things shall not profit; And their own witnesses see not, nor know; That they may be ashamed.

10 Who hath fashioned a god, or molten an image That is profitable for nothing?

11 Behold, all the fellows thereof shall be ashamed; And the craftsmen skilled above men; Let them all be gathered together, let them stand up; They shall fear, they shall be ashamed together.

12 The smith maketh an axe, And worketh in the coals, and fashioneth it with hammers, And worketh it with his strong arm; Yea, he is hungry, and his strength faileth; He drinketh no water, and is faint.

13 The carpenter stretcheth out a line; He marketh it out with a pencil; He fitteth it with planes, And he marketh it out with the compasses, And maketh it after the figure of a man, According to the beauty of a man, to dwell in the house.

14 He heweth him down cedars, And taketh the ilex and the oak, And strengtheneth for himself one among the trees of the forest; He planteth a bay-tree, and the rain doth nourish it.

15 Then a man useth it for fuel; And he taketh thereof, and warmeth himself; Yea, he kindleth it, and baketh bread; Yea, he maketh a god, and worshippeth it; He maketh it a graven image, and falleth down thereto.

16 He burneth the half thereof in the fire; With the half thereof he eateth flesh; He roasteth roast, and is satisfied; Yea, he warmeth himself, and saith: 'Aha, I am warm, I have seen the fire';

17 And the residue thereof he maketh a god, even his graven image; He falleth down unto it and worshippeth, and prayeth unto it, And saith: 'Deliver me, for thou art my god.'

18 They know not, neither do they understand; For their eyes are bedaubed, that they cannot see, And their hearts, that they cannot understand.

19 And none considereth in his heart, Neither is there knowledge nor understanding to say: 'I have burned the half of it in the fire; Yea, also I have baked bread upon the coals thereof; I have roasted flesh and eaten it; And shall I make the residue thereof an abomination? Shall I fall down to the stock of a tree?'

20 He striveth after ashes, A deceived heart hath turned him aside, That he cannot deliver his soul, nor say: 'Is there not a lie in my right hand?'