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Commentary Index | Return to PrayerRequest.com | DownloadPaul Kretzmann Commentary - Isaiah 44:9 - 44:23
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The Vanity of Idolatry over against Jehovah
v. 9. They that make a graven image, those who manufacture idols, are all of them vanity, nothingness, desolation; and their delectable things, the idols for which they profess such a deep affection, shall not profit, not being able to help them in any way; and they are their own witnesses; they see not nor know, the idol-worshipers themselves testifying that their gods are both blind and ignorant, that they, the idolaters, may be ashamed, for their attitude condemns them.
v. 10. Who hath formed a god or molten a graven image that is profitable for nothing? The answer which is implied would clearly state: No one while he is in his right mind.
v. 11. Behold, all his fellows, the entire guild of idol-makers, shall be ashamed, and the workmen, those who direct the work, they are of men, themselves creatures and therefore unable to make a real god. Let them all be gathered together, let them stand up, to make an issue of their claim to recognition before the true God; yet they shall fear, and they shall be ashamed together, the hollowness and emptiness of their doing will be exposed before all witnesses. This is followed by a concrete, detailed description of idol-manufacture as practiced in those days, full of the keenest ironical allusions.
v. 12. The smith with the tongs both worketh in the coals and fashioneth it with hammers, rather, in the impersonal form of the original, "One fashioneth iron with the cold-chisel, and causeth it to glow in coals, and with hammers formeth it," and worketh it with the strength of his arms; yea, he is hungry, and his strength falleth; he drinketh no water and is faint. He is so busily engaged that he neglects even eating and drinking, until he becomes utterly exhausted. A similar energy is shown in the case of wooden idols.
v. 13. The carpenter stretcheth out his rule, again impersonal, "One felleth trees, draweth his line," in order to cut a piece of wood of the required size; he marketh it out with a line, he fitteth it with planes, marking off the figure with a stylus, and he marketh it out with the compass, so that the outside wood may be removed exactly, and maketh it after the figure of a man, according to the beauty of a man, for the idols were given the most handsome appearance, in many instances, that it may remain in the house, be enclosed permanently in a small place, whereas the true God does not live in houses made by men.
v. 14. He heweth him down cedars and taketh the cypress and the oat, rather, "In order to have the finest wood, he chooseth the helm-oak and the common oak," both of them distinguished for the excellence of their wood, which he strengtheneth for himself among the trees of the forest, carefully nurturing such a tree among the giants of the forest; he planteth an ash, a fir or cedar, and the rain doth nourish it, so that, in the course of years, it reaches its proper size, the description of the long wait tending to show the ridiculous aspect of the idolater's activity.
v. 15. Then shall it be for a man to burn, that is, ordinarily such a tree will yield fuel; for he will take thereof and warm himself; yea, he kindleth it and baketh bread; yea, he maketh a god and worshipeth it; as he does the one thing, so he does the other, not realizing how utterly foolish the latter act is in comparison with the former; he maketh it a graven image and falleth down thereto, in the usual act of adoration. The contrast is brought out still more emphatically in the next sentences.
v. 16. He burneth part thereof in the fire, for fuel to keep him warm; with part thereof he eateth flesh, using it for cooking; he roasteth roast and is satisfied, feeling perfectly content; yea, he warmeth himself and saith, Aha! an exclamation expressing the height of comfort, I am warm, I have seen the fire, felt its pleasant effect;
v. 17. and the residue thereof he maketh a god, even his graven image, what he calls his god; he falleth down unto it, and worshipeth it, and prayeth unto it, and saith, Deliver me, for thou art my god, this prayer being the very climax of foolish behavior, which, however, the idoiaters do not realize.
v. 18. They have not known nor understood, they do not realize the inconsistency of their conduct; for He hath shut their eyes, rather, their eyes are daubed shut, that they cannot see, and their hearts that they cannot understand, that they do not learn true wisdom. Cf Rom_1:18-21.
v. 19. And none considereth in his heart, so much as thinks over his act, neither is there knowledge nor understanding to say, in reflecting upon his own conduct, I have burned part of it in the fire; yea, also, I have baked bread upon the coals thereof, upon the glowing bed of coals; 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? to the figure which the tree yielded, the idol which it, in a manner of speaking, produces. The idolaters become utterly callous to the rank inconsistency of their behavior, to the unreasonableness of their worship.
v. 20. He feedeth on ashes; a deceived heart hath turned him aside, or, more emphatically, "He who watcheth over ashes—a foolish heart has led him astray," that he cannot deliver his soul, his idolatry leads him into eternal damnation, nor say, Is there not a lie in my right hand? Spiritual blindness is always, in the first instance, self-inflicted; he that persists in it is eternally lost. On the other hand, the believers, the children of God, the true members of the spiritual Israel, are in happy possession of their deliverance, of the forgiveness of their sins.
v. 21. Remember these, namely, what the Lord is about to say, O Jacob and Israel, His people, for thou art My servant, not a foolish idol-manufacturer; I have formed thee, thou art My servant, by virtue of his having been chosen by Jehovah. O Israel, thou shalt not be forgotten of Me, the admonition, Forget Me not! coming with emphasis at the end of this sentence.
v. 22. I have blotted out, as a thick cloud, so that they are completely erased, thy transgressions, even such as meant a severing of the covenant relations, and, as a cloud, thy sins, that is, in the same way as the sun dissolves and drives away the darkness of a heavy cloud. Return unto Me, for I have redeemed thee; with him, in his redemption, is life and salvation. This promise causes the prophet to address a rousing admonition to the entire creation.
v. 23. Sing, O ye heavens, for the Lord hath done it, the deliverance has been gained; shout, ye lower parts of the earth, everything beneath the skies; break forth into singing, ye mountains, as the most prominent parts of the landscape, O forest and every tree therein; for the Lord hath redeemed Jacob and glorified Himself in Israel, wherefore all the creatures of the universe should sing praises to this miracle of His redemption. To the believing heart there is no limit to the songs of praise and adoration arising to the throne of grace.