Isaiah 46:1–9

This Is Serious Business, Rebels

^1–246The god Bel falls down, god Nebo slumps.

The no-god hunks of wood are loaded on mules

And have to be hauled off,

wearing out the poor mules—

Dead weight, burdens who can’t bear burdens,

hauled off to captivity.

^3–4“Listen to me, family of Jacob,

everyone that’s left of the family of Israel.

I’ve been carrying you on my back

from the day you were born,

And I’ll keep on carrying you when you’re old.

I’ll be there, bearing you when you’re old and gray.

I’ve done it and will keep on doing it,

carrying you on my back, saving you.

^5–7“So to whom will you compare me, the Incomparable?

Can you picture me without reducing me?

People with a lot of money

hire craftsmen to make them gods.

The artisan delivers the god,

and they kneel and worship it!

They carry it around in holy parades,

then take it home and put it on a shelf.

And there it sits, day in and day out,

a dependable god, always right where you put it.

Say anything you want to it, it never talks back.

Of course, it never does anything either!

^8–11“Think about this. Wrap your minds around it.

This is serious business, rebels. Take it to heart.

Remember your history,

your long and rich history.

I am God, the only God you’ve had or ever will have—

incomparable, irreplaceable—