The Folly of Idols and God's Uniqueness
Isaiah 44:6-23
Isa.44.6 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- כה: ADV
- אמר: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- יהוה: NOUN,prop,m,sg,abs
- מלך: NOUN,m,sg,cons
- ישראל: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- וגאלו: CONJ+NOUN,m,sg,abs+PRON,3,m,sg
- יהוה: NOUN,prop,m,sg,abs
- צבאות: NOUN,m,pl,abs
- אני: PRON,1,sg
- ראשון: ADJ,m,sg
- ואני: PRON,1,sg
- אחרון: ADJ,m,sg,abs
- ומבלעדי: CONJ+PREP+PRON,1,sg
- אין: PART,neg
- אלהים: NOUN,m,pl,abs
Parallels
- Isaiah 48:12 (verbal): Same language of divine self-identification: 'I am the first and I am the last,' repeated within Isaiah to assert God's eternal sovereignty.
- Revelation 1:8 (allusion): New Testament appropriation of the divine title (Alpha and Omega) and the eternal existence of God—echoes Isaiah's 'first and last' formula to identify the Lord of history.
- Revelation 22:13 (verbal): Direct verbal parallel: 'I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end,' explicitly applying Isaiah's language to Christ in the apocalypse.
- Isaiah 43:10-11 (thematic): Affirms God's uniqueness and exclusive role as Savior: 'Before me no god was formed... I, even I, am the LORD, and besides me there is no savior,' which parallels Isaiah 44:6's denial of other gods.
- Deuteronomy 32:39 (thematic): Declaration of God's singular sovereignty—'See now that I, even I, am he, and there is no god with me'—resonates with Isaiah's claim that there is no other god besides the LORD.
Alternative generated candidates
- Thus says the LORD, King of Israel and his Redeemer, the LORD of hosts: I am the first and I am the last, and besides me there is no god.
- Thus says the LORD, the King of Israel and his Redeemer: I am the first and I am the last; besides me there is no God.
Isa.44.7 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- ומי: PRON,interr
- כמוני: PREP+PRON,1,sg
- יקרא: VERB,niphal,impf,3,m,sg
- ויגידה: CONJ+VERB,qal,perf,3,f,sg
- ויערכה: CONJ+VERB,qal,impf,3,m,sg
- לי: PREP+PRON,1,sg
- משומי: PREP+PRON,1,sg
- עם: PREP
- עולם: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- ואתיות: CONJ+NOUN,f,pl,abs
- ואשר: CONJ+PRON,rel
- תבאנה: VERB,qal,impf,3,f,pl
- יגידו: VERB,qal,impf,3,m,pl
- למו: PREP+PRON,3,m,pl
Parallels
- Isaiah 41:21-23 (verbal): A direct challenge to idols and false diviners to present a prediction or prove themselves—same judicial taunt to 'call and declare' and show the future.
- Isaiah 46:9-10 (allusion): God's claim to 'declare the end from the beginning' echoes the Isaiah 44 theme of divine foreknowledge and revealing future events.
- Isaiah 43:9-13 (thematic): Asserts there is no god besides Yahweh and emphasizes Israel as witness to God's unique role in salvation and history—parallels the refusal to share deity with idols and the claim to reveal the future.
- Isaiah 44:6 (structural): Immediate contextal parallel: the proclamation 'I am the first and I am the last' and 'there is no God beside me' reinforces the same exclusivist claim to sovereignty and knowledge of events found in v.7.
- Deuteronomy 32:39 (thematic): God's assertion 'see now that I, even I, am he; there is no god with me' and his control over life and death serve the same polemical purpose of proving Yahweh's uniqueness against other gods.
Alternative generated candidates
- Who is like me? Let him call and declare it; let him set it in order for me from the time long past—let them recount to us what is to come.
- Who is like me? Let him call and proclaim it; let him set it forth before me—since long ago I established it; let them declare the signs and what is to come.
Isa.44.8 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- אל: NEG
- תפחדו: VERB,qal,impf,2,m,pl
- ואל: CONJ+PREP
- תרהו: VERB,qal,impf,2,m,pl
- הלא: PART
- מאז: ADV
- השמעתיך: VERB,hiph,perf,1,_,sg
- והגדתי: VERB,hiphil,perf,1,_,sg
- ואתם: CONJ+PRON,2,pl
- עדי: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- היש: PART,exist
- אלוה: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- מבלעדי: PREP
- ואין: CONJ+PART,exist
- צור: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- בל: PART
- ידעתי: VERB,qal,perf,1,?,sg
Parallels
- Isaiah 43:10-12 (verbal): Directly echoes 'you are my witnesses' and the claim that there is no God besides YHWH; shares the courtroom/witness motif and divine uniqueness language.
- Isaiah 44:6 (thematic): Affirms the exclusive deity of Israel's God ('there is no God besides me') and the self-identification of God, reinforcing the monotheistic claim in 44:8.
- Deuteronomy 4:35 (cf. 4:39) (verbal): Early Deuteronomic confession—'there is no God besides him'—parallels Isaiah's assertion of YHWH's sole divinity and underscores covenantal revelation as the basis for not fearing.
- Isaiah 41:10 (thematic): Shares the command 'Fear not' and God's assurance of presence and help; both passages address Israel's need for confidence in YHWH rather than fear of other powers.
- Isaiah 45:21-22 (thematic): Reiterates the exclusive sovereignty of God ('there is no God besides me') and invites reliance on YHWH alone, linking divine uniqueness with a call to trust and salvation.
Alternative generated candidates
- Do not fear and do not be dismayed. Have I not told you from of old and declared it? And you are my witnesses—Is there any god besides me? There is no Rock; I know none.
- Do not tremble and do not be afraid. Have I not told you from of old and declared it? And you are my witnesses—Is there a God besides me? There is no Rock; I know none.
Isa.44.9 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- יצרי: VERB,qal,ptcp,-,m,pl
- פסל: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- כלם: PRON,3,m,pl
- תהו: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- וחמודיהם: CONJ+NOUN,m,pl,suff(3,m,pl)
- בל: PART
- יועילו: VERB,qal,impf,3,m,pl
- ועדיהם: CONJ+NOUN,m,pl,suff(3,m,pl)
- המה: PRON,3,m,pl
- בל: PART
- יראו: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,pl
- ובל: CONJ+PART
- ידעו: VERB,qal,perf,3,pl
- למען: PREP
- יבשו: VERB,qal,imprf,3,m,pl
Parallels
- Psalm 115:4-8 (verbal): Denounces idols as lifeless and powerless—'they have mouths but cannot speak... those who make them will become like them'—echoing Isaiah's claim that idol-makers and their works are futile and will be put to shame.
- Jeremiah 10:3-5 (thematic): Describes the making and decoration of wooden idols and their inability to move or speak, paralleling Isaiah's critique of the craftsmen and the uselessness of their creations.
- Habakkuk 2:18-20 (verbal): Asks rhetorically what profit an idol has and denounces the silent, useless nature of carved images—closely related in rhetoric and theme to Isaiah's declaration of the worthlessness of idols and their makers.
- Isaiah 40:19-20 (structural): Within the same prophetic corpus, contrasts idols—made by hands, blind and mute—with the incomparable living God, reinforcing Isaiah 44:9's polemic against idolatry by structural juxtaposition.
- 1 Corinthians 8:4 (thematic): New Testament reflection on idols as 'nothing' (i.e., having no real existence), echoing the theological point that idols and their makers are ultimately powerless and without true being.
Alternative generated candidates
- All who fashion idols are vanity, and their precious things are of no profit; their witnesses are mute—they do not see or know, and they shall be put to shame.
- All who fashion images are nothing, and their glorious things are of no profit; their witnesses do not see nor know, that they may be put to shame.
Isa.44.10 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- מי: PRON,interr,sg
- יצר: VERB,qal,impf,3,m,sg
- אל: NEG
- ופסל: CONJ+VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- נסך: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- לבלתי: PART,neg
- הועיל: VERB,hifil,perf,3,m,sg
Parallels
- Isaiah 44:9-20 (structural): Immediate context: a sustained polemic against idols and their makers, repeating the same argument about the futility of fashioned gods and the irony of craftsmen worshiping their own work.
- Isaiah 40:19-20 (verbal): Uses similar imagery of metalworking and the impotence of man‑made idols (hands fashioning a god that cannot speak or save), echoing the rhetorical denigration of crafted images.
- Psalm 115:4-8 (thematic): Declares that idols are the work of hands—having mouths but speaking not, eyes but seeing not—underscoring the same theme of idolatry’s worthlessness.
- Jeremiah 10:3-5 (verbal): Explicitly condemns idolatrous customs and describes carved images unable to speak, paralleling the critique of manufactured gods as powerless and absurd.
- Habakkuk 2:18-19 (verbal): Rhetorically asks what profit an idol or its maker has and calls them mute/worthless—language closely parallel to Isaiah’s questioning of who fashions a god that is of no use.
Alternative generated candidates
- Who forms a god or casts an image that is of no profit?
- Who fashions a god or casts an idol that is of no profit?
Isa.44.11 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- הן: PART
- כל: DET
- חבריו: NOUN,m,pl,abs+3ms
- יבשו: VERB,qal,imprf,3,m,pl
- וחרשים: CONJ+NOUN,m,pl,abs
- המה: PRON,3,m,pl
- מאדם: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- יתקבצו: VERB,hitp,impf,3,m,pl
- כלם: PRON,3,m,pl
- יעמדו: VERB,qal,impf,3,m,pl
- יפחדו: VERB,qal,impf,3,m,pl
- יבשו: VERB,qal,imprf,3,m,pl
- יחד: ADV
Parallels
- Isaiah 44:9 (verbal): Same prophetic context condemning idol-makers — language and idea that those who fashion idols are worthless and brought to shame.
- Isaiah 44:12 (verbal): Immediate context describing the craftsman who fashions the idol (carpenter/measurer), directly linked to the shame of the makers in v.11.
- Isaiah 45:16 (verbal): Parallel verdict: makers of idols are ashamed and confounded — nearly identical wording about the disgrace of idol-makers.
- Psalm 115:4-8 (thematic): Speaks of idols made by human hands and concludes that those who make or trust them become like them — similar theme of the impotence and shame of idol-makers.
- Jeremiah 10:14-16 (thematic): Describes craftsmen fashioning images and the folly/filing shame of such works; emphasizes human creators’ ignorance and the idols’ powerlessness, echoing Isaiah’s condemnation.
Alternative generated candidates
- Behold, all his companions shall be ashamed; craftsmen are mere men—let them assemble, let them stand up; they shall tremble and be put to shame together.
- Behold, all his companions shall be ashamed; craftsmen—each of them a mere man—assemble; they stand up, they are terrified, they are confounded together.
Isa.44.12 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- חרש: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- ברזל: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- מעצד: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- ופעל: VERB,qal,impf,3,m,sg
- בפחם: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- ובמקבות: CONJ+PREP+NOUN,f,pl,abs
- יצרהו: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- ויפעלהו: CONJ+VERB,qal,impf,3,pl
- בזרוע: PREP+NOUN,f,sg,abs
- כחו: NOUN,m,sg,abs+SUFF:3,m,sg
- גם: ADV
- רעב: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- ואין: CONJ+PART,exist
- כח: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- לא: PART_NEG
- שתה: VERB,qal,impv,2,sg
- מים: NOUN,m,pl,abs
- וייעף: CONJ+VERB,qal,impf,3,m,sg
Parallels
- Isaiah 44:13 (verbal): Continues the same prophetic scene of craftsmen shaping wood and metal into idols (carpenter/smith imagery), closely paralleling the trade-details and human effort in 44:12.
- Jeremiah 10:3-5 (verbal): Describes a craftsman cutting and fashioning a tree with an axe and tools to make an idol — very similar language and imagery of human workmanship producing lifeless objects.
- Psalm 115:4-8 (thematic): Speaks of idols made of silver and gold that cannot speak or act, and notes that those who make or trust in them become like them — thematically linked to the futility of the artisan and idol.
- Romans 1:22-23 (allusion): New Testament critique echoes the prophetic indictment: humans who claim wisdom become foolish and exchange the glory of God for images made like mortal man — theological parallel to Isaiah’s denunciation of man-made idols.
Alternative generated candidates
- A blacksmith measures with the anvil, works it in the coals and fashions it with hammers; he works it with his strong arm. Yet he grows hungry and weak; he drinks no water and is faint.
- The smith with the hammer works the coals and the forge; he forms it with his strong arm—yet he is hungry and has no strength; he drinks no water and is faint.
Isa.44.13 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- חרש: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- עצים: NOUN,m,pl,abs
- נטה: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- קו: INTJ
- יתארהו: VERB,qal,impf,3,m,sg
- בשרד: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- יעשהו: VERB,qal,impf,3,m,sg
- במקצעות: PREP+NOUN,f,pl,abs
- ובמחוגה: CONJ+PREP+NOUN,f,sg,abs
- יתארהו: VERB,qal,impf,3,m,sg
- ויעשהו: CONJ+VERB,qal,impf,3,m,sg
- כתבנית: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- איש: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- כתפארת: PREP+NOUN,f,sg,abs
- אדם: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- לשבת: PREP+VERB,qal,inf
- בית: NOUN,m,sg,abs
Parallels
- Isaiah 44:12 (structural): Immediate context in the same chapter: the craftsman who lays a line and fashions an image — verse 13 continues and completes the depiction of the maker and the made.
- Jeremiah 10:3-5 (verbal): Describes cutting down a tree, shaping it with tools and adorning it with silver/gold before worship — closely parallels the imagery of measuring and fashioning a wooden idol.
- Psalm 115:4-8 (verbal): Speaks of idols carved by hands that have mouths but cannot speak, eyes but cannot see — echoes the motif of human-made images and their impotence.
- Psalm 135:15-18 (thematic): Catalogues the crafted nature and powerlessness of idols and the folly of worshiping them, thematically paralleling Isaiah’s critique of idol-making.
- Romans 1:23 (thematic): New Testament critique that people exchanged the glory of God for images 'made like to corruptible man' — echoes Isaiah’s observation that artisans fashion idols in the form of a man.
Alternative generated candidates
- A carpenter stretches a line; he traces it out with a stylus, fashions it with planes and makes it like the figure of a man, like the beauty of a man, to dwell in a house.
- The woodworker stretches a line and sketches it with a stylus; he fashions it with plane and compass; he makes it in the likeness of a man, to dwell in a house.
Isa.44.14 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- לכרת: PREP+VERB,qal,infc
- לו: PRON,3,m,sg
- ארזים: NOUN,m,pl,abs
- ויקח: VERB,qal,impf,3,m,sg
- תרזה: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- ואלון: CONJ+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- ויאמץ: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- לו: PRON,3,m,sg
- בעצי: PREP+NOUN,m,pl,cons
- יער: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- נטע: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- אר: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- וגשם: CONJ+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- יגדל: VERB,qal,impf,3,m,sg
Parallels
- Isaiah 44:13 (structural): Immediate context: continues the satire of the woodcutter who fashions an idol from cedar, cypress and oak and then uses part of the tree for fire—same imagery and argument continued across vv.13–20.
- Jeremiah 10:3-4 (verbal): Denounces the making of idols from wood and the practices surrounding them (cutting and decorating trees), echoing the description of felling and fashioning trees into images.
- Psalm 115:4-8 (thematic): Contrasts living God with lifeless wooden idols fashioned by humans; similar critique of trusting objects made from trees.
- Isaiah 40:19-20 (thematic): Mocks idols made of wood—some of whose makers take a portion to burn and use the rest to make a god—paralleling the irony in 44:14 of using forest trees both for utility and for deity.
- Habakkuk 2:18-19 (thematic): Ridicules the craftsperson who shapes an object that becomes an object of worship, emphasizing the futility of making a god from perishable material like wood.
Alternative generated candidates
- He cuts down cedars, takes cypress and oak; he chooses a tree in the forest, plants a sapling and the rain makes it grow.
- He cuts cedars for himself, takes cypress and oak; he sets them among the trees of the forest—he plants a sapling and the rain makes it grow.
Isa.44.15 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- והיה: VERB,qal,imperfect,3,m,sg
- לאדם: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- לבער: PREP+VERB,qal,inf
- ויקח: VERB,qal,impf,3,m,sg
- מהם: PREP+PRON,3,m,pl
- ויחם: VERB,qal,impf,3,m,sg
- אף: ADV
- ישיק: VERB,qal,impf,3,m,sg
- ואפה: VERB,qal,impf,3,m,sg
- לחם: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- אף: ADV
- יפעל: VERB,qal,impf,3,m,sg
- אל: NEG
- וישתחו: VERB,qal,impf,3,m,pl
- עשהו: VERB,qal,ptc,ms,sg+3,m,sg
- פסל: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- ויסגד: VERB,qal,impf,3,m,sg
- למו: PREP+PRON,3,m,pl
Parallels
- Jeremiah 10:3-5 (verbal): Both passages picture a tree being cut and partly burned for fuel while the remainder is fashioned by a craftsman into an idol that is then worshiped—very close verbal and thematic parallel to Isaiah's image.
- Psalm 115:4-8 (thematic): Depicts idols made of wood and metal that cannot speak, see, or help, and people who bow down to them—echoes Isaiah's critique of those who make and worship carved images.
- Habakkuk 2:18-19 (thematic): Mocks the value and efficacy of idols and the folly of addressing a block of wood as if it could answer—resonates with Isaiah's portrayal of making and worshiping a powerless wooden god.
- Romans 1:23-25 (allusion): Paul summarizes idolatry as exchanging the glory of God for images and worshiping creation rather than the Creator, reflecting Isaiah's condemnation of using created things (wood) to fashion objects of worship.
Alternative generated candidates
- Then he uses part of it for fuel—he takes of it and warms himself, he kindles a fire and bakes bread; with part of it he makes a god and bows down to it; he fashions an idol and worships it.
- He uses part of it for fuel—he takes some of it and warms himself; yes, he lights a fire and bakes bread; from it he also makes a god and bows down—he forms an idol and worships it.
Isa.44.16 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- חציו: NOUN,m,sg,abs,poss:3ms
- שרף: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- במו: PREP+PRON,3,m,sg
- אש: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- על: PREP
- חציו: NOUN,m,sg,abs,poss:3ms
- בשר: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- יאכל: VERB,qal,impf,3,m,sg
- יצלה: VERB,qal,impf,3,m,sg
- צלי: NOUN,m,sg,abs+1cs
- וישבע: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- אף: ADV
- יחם: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- ויאמר: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- האח: NOUN,m,sg,def
- חמותי: NOUN,f,sg,abs+1cs
- ראיתי: VERB,qal,perf,1,_,sg
- אור: NOUN,m,sg,abs
Parallels
- Isaiah 44:17 (structural): Immediate context/continuation: develops the same image of splitting wood, using part for fuel/food and fashioning the rest into an object of worship.
- Jeremiah 10:3-5 (thematic): Describes cutting down a tree and fashioning it into an idol—paralleling the motif of humans making and then worshiping what they themselves have prepared.
- Habakkuk 2:18-19 (verbal): Condemns idols and their makers—‘What profit is an idol…’—echoing Isaiah’s critique of the folly of worshiping what one has shaped or burned.
- Psalm 135:15-18 (thematic): Mocks the impotence of idols made by human hands (they cannot speak, see, or save), aligning with Isaiah’s depiction of an idol-maker who uses wood for fuel and then worships the remainder.
Alternative generated candidates
- Half of it he burns in the fire; with half he eats flesh; he roasts and is satisfied; he also warms himself and says, “Ah! I am warm; I have seen the fire.”
- Half of it he burns in the fire; on the other half he eats meat—he roasts and is satisfied; he also warms himself and says, 'Ah! I am warm; I have seen the fire.'
Isa.44.17 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- ושאריתו: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- לאל: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- עשה: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- לפסלו: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- יסגד: VERB,qal,impf,3,m,sg
- לו: PRON,3,m,sg
- וישתחו: VERB,qal,impf,3,m,pl
- ויתפלל: VERB,hitpael,imperfect,3,m,sg
- אליו: PREP+PRON,3,m,sg
- ויאמר: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- הצילני: VERB,hif,impv,2,m,sg
- כי: CONJ
- אלי: PREP+PRON,1,sg
- אתה: PRON,2,m,sg
Parallels
- Psalm 115:4-8 (verbal): Describes idols made by human hands that cannot speak or save, and concludes that those who make and trust them are like them—directly parallels the fool praying to his carved image in Isa 44:17.
- Psalm 135:15-18 (verbal): Similar depiction of lifeless, man-made images and the futility of worshiping them; contrasts the impotence of idols with the living God, echoing Isaiah's critique.
- Habakkuk 2:18-19 (verbal): Denounces the making and worship of graven images and scorns those who cry to wood to ‘awake,’ closely mirroring the image of a person beseeching his idol in Isa 44:17.
- Romans 1:23-25 (thematic): New Testament summary of the same phenomenon: people exchanging the glory of God for images and worshipping the creature rather than the Creator—the theological counterpart to Isaiah's indictment.
- Jeremiah 10:3-5 (verbal): Describes craftsmen cutting and decorating a tree to make an idol and then bowing down to it; parallels Isaiah’s scene of a man fashioning and praying to his carved god.
Alternative generated candidates
- And the rest of it he makes into a god, his graven image; he bows down to it and worships, prays to it and says, “Deliver me, for you are my god!”
- And the rest of it he makes into a god, his idol; to it he bows down and worships; he prays to it and says, 'Deliver me, for you are my god.'
Isa.44.18 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- לא: PART_NEG
- ידעו: VERB,qal,perf,3,pl
- ולא: CONJ
- יבינו: VERB,qal,impf,3,m,pl
- כי: CONJ
- טח: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- מראות: NOUN,f,pl,abs
- עיניהם: NOUN,f,pl,abs+3mp
- מהשכיל: VERB,hifil,perf,3,m,sg
- לבתם: NOUN,m,sg,abs,poss3,m,pl
Parallels
- Isaiah 6:9-10 (verbal): Same prophetic motif of God causing spiritual blindness and dulling of understanding—'hear and not understand, see and not perceive.'
- Matthew 13:14-15 (quotation): Jesus cites the Isaiah passage about hearing without understanding and seeing without perceiving, applying the theme of divinely permitted blindness to his audience.
- Romans 1:21-23 (thematic): Paul describes how knowledge of God is frustrated by idolatry and futile thinking, resulting in darkened understanding—echoing Isaiah’s link between idolatry and spiritual blindness.
- Jeremiah 5:21 (verbal): Uses similar language—'have eyes and see not, ears and hear not'—criticizing a people who do not perceive God's truth.
- Psalm 115:5-8 (thematic): Contrasts the impotence and blindness of idols with the living God, underscoring the folly and lack of true insight among idolaters, a theme present in Isaiah 44:18.
Alternative generated candidates
- They do not know nor do they understand—for he has blinded their eyes and hardened their hearts from understanding.
- They do not know nor understand; for he has shut their eyes so that they cannot see, and has stopped their heart from understanding.
Isa.44.19 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- ולא: CONJ
- ישיב: VERB,hifil,imperfect,3,m,sg
- אל: NEG
- לבו: NOUN,m,sg,abs+PRON,3,m,sg
- ולא: CONJ
- דעת: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- ולא: CONJ
- תבונה: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- לאמר: INF,qal,infc
- חציו: NOUN,m,sg,abs,poss:3ms
- שרפתי: VERB,qal,perf,1,_,sg
- במו: PREP+PRON,3,m,sg
- אש: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- ואף: CONJ+ADV
- אפיתי: VERB,qal,perf,1,_,sg
- על: PREP
- גחליו: NOUN,m,sg,abs+3ms
- לחם: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- אצלה: PREP+3fs
- בשר: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- ואכל: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- ויתרו: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,pl
- לתועבה: PREP+NOUN,f,sg,abs
- אעשה: VERB,qal,impf,1,_,sg
- לבול: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- עץ: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- אסגוד: VERB,qal,impf,1,_,sg
Parallels
- Isaiah 44:17 (verbal): Immediate context describing the same sequence: the idol‑maker burns part of the wood for fuel, eats meat roasted on the coals, and fashions the remainder into a god—shared wording and imagery.
- Isaiah 44:20 (thematic): Continues the critique: the idol‑worshipper feeds on ashes and is deluded—same theme of self‑deception and the futility of idols made from what one has burned and eaten.
- Psalm 115:4–8 (thematic): Psalm mocks idols and their makers (images of wood/metal that cannot speak or save); parallels Isaiah's portrayal of the absurdity and powerlessness of man‑made gods.
- Isaiah 46:6–7 (thematic): Describes people carrying and setting up crafted idols that cannot move or save—similar indictment of making and trusting objects of wood and metal instead of the true God.
- Romans 1:22–25 (thematic): Paul's New Testament critique: claimed wisdom becomes folly when people exchange the Creator for creatures and serve the created—echoes Isaiah's theme of folly in idol‑making and worship.
Alternative generated candidates
- They do not call these things to mind, nor have they knowledge or understanding: “Half I burned in the fire; yes, on its coals I baked bread, I roasted meat and ate; and the rest I made into an abomination— a graven image, and I will bow down to a block of wood.”
- They do not reflect and have no knowledge or understanding to say, 'Half of it I burned in the fire; yes, on its coals I baked bread; I roasted meat and ate. Shall I make the rest an abomination? Shall I bow down to a block of wood?'
Isa.44.20 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- רעה: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- אפר: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- לב: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- הותל: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- הטהו: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,pl
- ולא: CONJ
- יציל: VERB,hiphil,impf,3,m,sg
- את: PRT,acc
- נפשו: NOUN,f,sg,abs+PRON,3,m,sg
- ולא: CONJ
- יאמר: VERB,qal,imperfect,3,m,sg
- הלוא: PART
- שקר: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- בימיני: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,pr-1cs
Parallels
- Psalm 115:4-8 (thematic): Describes the impotence and silence of idols and the futility of those who trust them—paralleling Isaiah's depiction of the idol-worshiper deluded and unable to save himself.
- Psalm 135:15-18 (thematic): Similarly contrasts living God with lifeless idols that cannot speak or act; underscores the same point that idols and their makers are helpless and deluded.
- Jeremiah 10:14-15 (verbal): Calls idol-makers and worshipers senseless and without salvation, noting how wood is used for fire and an image—echoing Isaiah's language about being led astray and unable to deliver oneself.
- Habakkuk 2:18-19 (thematic): Denounces the profitlessness of idols and those who speak to carved images, resonating with Isaiah's portrayal of the worshiper who cannot acknowledge the futility of his 'right hand' idol.
- Romans 1:22-25 (allusion): New Testament summary of the same reality: people claim wisdom but are foolish, exchanging truth for lies and worshiping created things—a theological echo of Isaiah's critique of idolatry and self-deception.
Alternative generated candidates
- He feeds on ashes; a deluded heart has led him astray. He cannot save his life, nor can he say, “Is there not a lie in my right hand?”
- He feeds on ashes; a deluded heart has turned him aside. He cannot save his life, nor can he say, 'Is there not a lie in my right hand?'
Isa.44.21 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- זכר: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- אלה: DEM,pl,abs
- יעקב: NOUN,prop,m,sg,abs
- וישראל: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- כי: CONJ
- עבדי: NOUN,m,pl,cons
- אתה: PRON,2,m,sg
- יצרתיך: VERB,qal,perf,1,m,sg,obj:2,m,sg
- עבד: NOUN,m,sg,cons
- לי: PREP+PRON,1,sg
- אתה: PRON,2,m,sg
- ישראל: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- לא: PART_NEG
- תנשני: VERB,qal,impf,2,f,sg
Parallels
- Isaiah 43:7 (verbal): Speaks of those God formed and called (’whom I formed for my glory’); echoes the language of being formed/created by God and belonging to him.
- Isaiah 41:8-10 (thematic): Addresses Israel as ‘my servant’ and contains the reassurance ‘do not fear/I am with you,’ paralleling the servant‑address and exhortation not to fear.
- Isaiah 44:2 (structural): Immediate parallel in the same oracle: repeats ‘I made you/formed you’ and ‘my servant…do not fear’—near‑duplicate wording and theme.
- Isaiah 45:4 (allusion): Refers to ‘Jacob my servant, Israel my chosen,’ linking the servant identity and divine calling that 44:21 affirms.
Alternative generated candidates
- Remember these things, O Jacob and Israel; for you are my servant—I formed you; you are my servant—Israel, you shall not be forgotten by me.
- Remember these things, Jacob and Israel; for you are my servant—I formed you; you are my servant—Israel, you shall not be forsaken.
Isa.44.22 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- מחיתי: VERB,qal,perf,1,?,sg
- כעב: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- פשעיך: NOUN,m,pl,cs,2,m,sg
- וכענן: CONJ+PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- חטאותיך: NOUN,m,pl,pronom,2,m,sg
- שובה: VERB,qal,imp,2,f,sg
- אלי: PREP+PRON,1,sg
- כי: CONJ
- גאלתיך: VERB,qal,perf,1,_,sg
Parallels
- Isaiah 43:25 (verbal): Same book and similar language about God blotting out transgressions — 'I, even I, am he who blots out your transgressions,' echoing the motif of divine removal of sin.
- Isaiah 43:1 (verbal): Close thematic and verbal connection in the phrase 'I have redeemed you' (ישעיתי/גאלתיך), linking divine redemption and the summons to return to God.
- Micah 7:19 (thematic): Both passages emphasize God's forgiveness and removal of sin (Micah: 'he will tread our iniquities underfoot... cast all their sins into the depths of the sea'), portraying pardon as decisive eradication.
- Psalm 103:12 (thematic): Similar theme of God removing sin from the forgiven person — 'as far as the east is from the west,' underscoring complete and irretrievable removal of transgressions.
- Jeremiah 31:34 (thematic): God's promise to forgive and 'remember no more' their sins resonates with Isaiah's language of blotting out sins and calling the people to return because he has redeemed them.
Alternative generated candidates
- I have blotted out your transgressions like a cloud and your sins like mist. Return to me, for I have redeemed you.
- I have swept away your transgressions like a cloud and your sins like mist—return to me, for I have redeemed you.
Isa.44.23 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- רנו: VERB,qal,imp,2,mp
- שמים: NOUN,m,pl,abs
- כי: CONJ
- עשה: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- יהוה: NOUN,prop,m,sg,abs
- הריעו: VERB,qal,impv,2,pl
- תחתיות: NOUN,f,pl,abs
- ארץ: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- פצחו: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,pl
- הרים: NOUN,m,pl,cons
- רנה: NOUN,m,pl,abs
- יער: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- וכל: CONJ+PRON,indef
- עץ: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- בו: PREP+PRON,3,m,sg
- כי: CONJ
- גאל: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- יהוה: NOUN,prop,m,sg,abs
- יעקב: NOUN,prop,m,sg,abs
- ובישראל: CONJ+PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- יתפאר: VERB,hitp,impf,3,m,sg
Parallels
- Isaiah 49:13 (verbal): Closely parallels the summons to creation to sing and rejoice—'Sing, O heavens; and be joyful, O earth; and break forth into singing, O mountains'—and links cosmic rejoicing to the LORD's comfort/redemption of his people.
- Isaiah 52:9-10 (verbal): Uses almost the same language of breaking forth into joy and singing because the LORD has redeemed/comforted his people; ties national redemption to worldwide/cosmic praise.
- Isaiah 42:10-12 (verbal): Calls on the heavens, sea, fields, and trees to sing for the LORD—similar motif of all creation praising God in response to his saving action and vindication.
- Psalm 96:11-13 (verbal): Parallel imagery—'Let the heavens be glad, and the earth rejoice... then shall all the trees of the wood rejoice'—linking cosmic rejoicing and the eschatological rule/coming of the LORD.
- Zephaniah 3:14-17 (thematic): The prophet calls Israel to sing and rejoice because the LORD is in their midst and will save/restore them; shares the theme of communal/cosmic rejoicing grounded in divine redemption.
Alternative generated candidates
- Rejoice, O heavens, for the LORD has done it; shout, O depths of the earth; break forth, O mountains, with singing, O forest and every tree in it— for the LORD has redeemed Jacob, and Israel will glory.
- Sing, O heavens, for the LORD has done it; shout, O depths of the earth; break forth, O mountains, into singing, O forest and every tree in it—for the LORD has redeemed Jacob and in Israel he will be glorified.
Thus says the LORD, the King of Israel and his Redeemer, the LORD of hosts: I am the first and I am the last; besides me there is no God.
Who is like me? Let him call and make it known; let him set it in order before me—since the time I established the people, from ancient days—let them recount what is to come.
Do not fear, and do not be dismayed; did I not tell you long ago and declare it? You are my witnesses— is there any god besides me? There is no Rock; I know of none.
All who fashion idols are nothing, and the things they delight in are of no profit; their witnesses do not see, nor understand, and so they shall be put to shame.
Who fashions a god or casts an image that profits nothing?
Behold, all his companions shall be put to shame; craftsmen are but men—let them gather together, let them stand up; they will be terrified and ashamed together.
A smith works the iron, he makes it hot with coals and hammers it; he strengthens it with his arms. He grows hungry and has no strength; he drinks no water and is faint.
A craftsman fashions wood; he measures it out with line and marks it with a compass; he fashions it with planes and makes it like the form of a man, the beauty of a human to dwell in a house.
He cuts down cedars for himself, takes cypress and oak and strengthens himself with trees of the forest; he plants a sapling and the rain makes it grow.
Then it becomes fuel for a man; he takes part of it and warms himself; he kindles a fire and bakes bread; and with the rest he makes a god and bows down to it—he makes a carved image and worships it.
Half of it he burns in the fire; with half he eats flesh; he roasts meat and is satisfied; he warms himself and says, 'Aha! I am warm; I have seen the fire.' And the rest he makes into a god, his carved image; he bows down to it and worships, he prays to it and says, 'Deliver me, for you are my god.'
They do not know nor understand; for he has shut their eyes so they cannot see, and their hearts so they cannot understand.
They do not consider or reflect, nor is there knowledge in their hearts to say, 'Half of it I burned in the fire; I baked bread on its coals; I roasted meat and ate. Shall I make the rest an abomination? Shall I bow down to a block of wood?'
They feed on ashes; a deluded heart has led them astray. They cannot save their lives, nor say, 'Is there not a lie in my right hand?'
Remember these things, Jacob and Israel; for you are my servant—I have formed you; you are my servant. O Israel, do not be forsaken.
I have swept away your transgressions like a cloud and your sins like mist; return to me, for I have redeemed you.
Sing for joy, O heavens, for the LORD has done it; shout, you depths of the earth; break forth into song, you mountains, and every tree in the forest— for the LORD has redeemed Jacob, and in Israel he will be glorified.