Isaiah 44:9–15

⁹How foolish are those who manufacture idols.

These prized objects are really worthless.

The people who worship idols don’t know this,

so they are all put to shame.

¹⁰Who but a fool would make his own god—

an idol that cannot help him one bit?

¹¹All who worship idols will be disgraced

along with all these craftsmen—mere humans—

who claim they can make a god.

They may all stand together,

but they will stand in terror and shame.

¹²The 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.

¹³Then 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.

¹⁴He cuts down cedars;

he selects the cypress and the oak;

he plants the pine in the forest

to be nourished by the rain.

¹⁵Then 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!