12 The blacksmith 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.

He gets hungry and loses his strength;

he drinks no water and grows faint.

13 The carpenter 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,

human form in all its glory,

that it may dwell in a shrine.

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, and the rain made it grow.

15 It is used as fuel 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 it;

he makes an idol and bows down to it.

12 The smith with the tongs both worketh in the coals,

And fashioneth it with hammers,

And worketh it with the strength of his arms:

Yea, he is hungry, and his strength faileth:

He drinketh no water, and is faint.

13 The carpenter stretcheth out his rule; he marketh it out with a line;

He fitteth it with planes, and he marketh it out with the compass,

And maketh it after the figure of a man, according to the beauty of a man;

That it may remain in the house.

14 He heweth him down cedars, and taketh the cypress and the oak,

Which he strengtheneth for himself among the trees of the forest:

He planteth an ash, and the rain doth nourish it.

15 Then shall it be for a man to burn:

For he will take thereof, and warm 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.

12 The blacksmith stands at his forge to make a sharp tool,

pounding and shaping it with all his might.

His work makes him hungry and weak.

It makes him thirsty and faint.

13 Then the wood-carver measures a block of wood

and draws a pattern on it.

He works with chisel and plane

and carves it into a human figure.

He gives it human beauty

and puts it in a little shrine.

14 He cuts down cedars;

he selects the cypress and the oak;

he plants the pine in the forest

to be nourished by the rain.

15 Then he uses part of the wood to make a fire.

With it he warms himself and bakes his bread.

Then—yes, it’s true—he takes the rest of it

and makes himself a god to worship!

He makes an idol

and bows down in front of it!

12 The blacksmith with the tongs works one in the coals,

Fashions it with hammers,

And works it with the strength of his arms.

Even so, he is hungry, and his strength fails;

He drinks no water and is faint.

13 The craftsman stretches out his rule,

He marks one out with chalk;

He fashions it with a plane,

He marks it out with the compass,

And makes it like the figure of a man,

According to the beauty of a man, that it may remain in the house.

14 He cuts down cedars for himself,

And takes the cypress and the oak;

He secures it for himself among the trees of the forest.

He plants a pine, and the rain nourishes it.

15 Then it shall be for a man to burn,

For he will take some of it and warm himself;

Yes, he kindles it and bakes bread;

Indeed he makes a god and worships it;

He makes it a carved image, and falls down to it.

12 One workman uses tools to heat iron,

and he works over hot coals.

With his hammer he beats the metal and makes a statue,

using his powerful arms.

But when he becomes hungry, he loses his power.

If he does not drink water, he becomes tired.

13 Another workman uses a line and a compass

to draw on the wood.

Then he uses his chisels to cut a statue

and his calipers to measure the statue.

In this way, the workman makes the wood look exactly like a person,

and this statue of a person sits in the house.

14 He cuts down cedars

or cypress or oak trees.

Those trees grew by their own power in the forest.

Or he plants a pine tree, and the rain makes it grow.

15 Then he burns the tree.

He uses some of the wood for a fire to keep himself warm.

He also starts a fire to bake his bread.

But he uses part of the wood to make a god, and then he worships it!

He makes the idol and bows down to it!

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 shapeth it with planes, and he marketh it out with the compasses, and shapeth it after the figure of a man, according to the beauty of a man, to dwell in a house. 14 He heweth him down cedars, and taketh the holm-tree and the oak, and strengtheneth for himself one among the trees of the forest: he planteth a fir-tree, and the rain doth nourish it. 15 Then shall it be for a man to burn; 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.

12 The iron-smith hath a chisel, and he worketh in the coals, and he fashioneth it with hammers, and worketh it with his strong arm; —but he is hungry, and his strength faileth; he hath not drunk water, and he is faint. 13 The worker in wood stretcheth out a line; he marketh it out with red chalk; he formeth it with sharp tools, and he marketh it out with the compass, and maketh it after the figure of a man, according to the beauty of man: that it may remain in the house. 14 When he heweth him down cedars, he taketh also a holm-oak and a terebinth—he chooseth for himself among the trees of the forest: he planteth a pine, and the rain maketh it grow. 15 And it shall be for a man to burn, and he taketh thereof, and warmeth himself; he kindleth it also, and baketh bread; he maketh also a •god, and worshippeth it; he maketh it a graven image, and falleth down thereto.

12 Blacksmiths shape iron into tools. They work them over the coals and shape them with hammers, working them with their strong arms. They get hungry, and their strength fails. If they don’t drink water, they will faint. 

13 Carpenters measure blocks of wood with ⸤chalk⸥ lines. They mark them with pens. They carve them with chisels and mark them with compasses. They carve them into forms of people, beautiful people, so the idols can live in shrines. 

14 They cut down cedars for themselves. Then they choose fir trees or oaks. They let them grow strong among the trees in the forest. Then they plant cedars, and the rain makes them grow. 15 These trees become ⸤fuel⸥ for people to burn. So they take some of them and warm themselves with them. They start fires and bake bread. They also make gods from these trees and worship them. They make them into carved statues and bow in front of them.

12 The ironworker labors over the coals,

shapes the idol with hammers,

and works it with his strong arm.

Also he grows hungry and his strength fails;

he doesn’t drink water and is faint.

13 The woodworker stretches out a measuring line,

he outlines it with a stylus;

he shapes it with chisels

and outlines it with a compass.

He makes it according to a human likeness,

like a beautiful person,

to dwell in a temple.

14 He cuts down cedars for his use,

or he takes a cypress or an oak.

He lets it grow strong among the trees of the forest.

He plants a laurel, and the rain makes it grow.

15 It serves as fuel for man.

He takes some of it and warms himself;

also he kindles a fire and bakes bread;

he even makes it into a god and worships it;

he makes an idol from it and bows down to it.

12 The ironsmith fashions it and works it over the coals, shaping it with hammers, and forging it with his strong arm; he becomes hungry and his strength fails, he drinks no water and is faint. 13 The carpenter stretches a line, marks it out with a stylus, fashions it with planes, and marks it with a compass; he makes it in human form, with human beauty, to be set up in a shrine. 14 He cuts down cedars or chooses a holm tree or an oak and lets it grow strong among the trees of the forest. He plants a cedar and the rain nourishes it. 15 Then it can be used as fuel. Part of it he takes and warms himself; he kindles a fire and bakes bread. Then he makes a god and worships it, makes it a carved image and bows down before it.

12 The ironsmith works in the coals with his tool

and forms it with hammers.

And he makes it with his strong arm;

indeed, he becomes hungry, and he lacks strength;

he does not drink water, and he is faint.

13 The woodworker 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.

14 Cutting down cedars for himself,

he chooses 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,

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!

12 A blacksmith gets his tool.

He uses it to shape metal over the burning coals.

He uses his hammers to make a statue of a god.

He forms it with his powerful arm.

He gets hungry and loses his strength.

He doesn’t drink any water.

He gets weaker and weaker.

13 A carpenter measures a piece of wood with a line.

He draws a pattern on it with a marker.

He cuts out a statue with sharp tools.

He marks it with compasses.

He shapes it into the form of a handsome man.

He does all of that so he can put it in a temple.

14 He cuts down a cedar tree.

Or perhaps he takes a cypress or an oak tree.

It might be a tree that grew in the forest.

Or it might be a pine tree he planted.

And the rain made it grow.

15 Man gets wood from trees for fuel.

He uses some of it to warm himself.

He starts a fire and bakes bread.

But he also uses some of it to make a god and worship it.

He makes a statue of a god and bows down to it.

12 The man shapes iron into a cutting tool and does his work over the coals, fashioning it with hammers and working it with his strong arm. He also gets hungry and his strength fails; he drinks no water and becomes weary.

13 Another shapes wood, he extends a measuring line; he outlines it with red chalk. He works it with planes and outlines it with a compass, and makes it like the form of a man, like the beauty of man, so that it may sit in a house.

14 Surely he cuts cedars for himself, and takes a cypress or an oak and raises it for himself among the trees of the forest. He plants a fir, and the rain makes it grow.

15 Then it becomes something for a man to burn, so he takes one of them and warms himself; he also makes a fire to bake bread. He also makes a god and worships it; he makes it a graven image and falls down before it.