Jeremiah 10:2–16

²He says,

“Do not follow the practices of other nations.

Do not be terrified by warnings in the sky.

Do not be afraid, even though the nations are terrified by them.

³The practices of those nations are worthless.

People cut a tree out of the forest.

A skilled worker shapes the wood with a sharp tool.

⁴Others decorate it with silver and gold.

They use a hammer to nail it to the floor.

They want to keep it from falling down.

⁵The statues of their gods can’t speak.

They are like scarecrows in a field of melons.

They have to be carried around

because they can’t walk.

So do not worship them.

They can’t do you any harm.

And they can’t do you any good either.”

⁶Lord, no one is like you.

You are great.

You are mighty and powerful.

⁷King of the nations,

everyone should have respect for you.

That’s what people should give you.

Among all of the wise people in the nations

there is no one like you.

No one can compare with you in all of their kingdoms.

⁸All of them are foolish. They don’t have any sense.

They think they are taught by worthless wooden gods.

⁹Hammered silver is brought from Tarshish.

Gold is brought from Uphaz.

People who are skilled in working with wood and gold make a statue.

Then they put blue and purple clothes on it.

The whole thing is made by skilled workers.

¹⁰But you are the only true God.

You are the only living God.

You are the King who rules forever.

When you are angry, the earth trembles with fear.

The nations can’t stand up under your anger.

¹¹The Lord says to the Jews who are living in Babylonia, “Tell the people of the nations, ‘Your gods did not make the heavens and the earth. In fact, those gods will disappear from the earth. They will vanish from under the heavens.’ ”

¹²But God used his power to make the earth.

His wisdom set the world in place.

His understanding spread the heavens out.

¹³When he thunders, the waters in the heavens roar.

He makes clouds rise from one end of the earth to the other.

He sends lightning along with the rain.

He brings the wind out from his storerooms.

¹⁴No one has any sense. No one knows anything at all.

Everyone who works with gold is put to shame by his wooden gods.

The metal gods he worships are fakes.

They can’t even breathe.

¹⁵They are worthless. People make fun of them.

When the Lord judges them, they will be destroyed.

¹⁶The God of Jacob is not like them.

He gives his people everything they need.

He made everything that exists.

And that includes Israel.

It’s the nation that belongs to him.

His name is The Lord Who Rules Over All.