Those who make statues of gods don’t amount to anything. And the statues they think so much of are worthless. Those who would speak up for them are blind. They don’t know anything. So they will be put to shame.

制造雕刻偶像的尽都虚空；他们所喜悦的都无益处；他们的见证无所看见，无所知晓，他们便觉羞愧。

制造偶像的人尽都虚空，他们所喜悦的全无益处；偶像的见证人毫无所见，毫无所知，以致他们羞愧。

制造偶像的人尽都虚空，他们所喜悦的全无益处；偶像的见证人毫无所见，毫无所知，以致他们羞愧。

制造偶像的真是无用，他们珍爱的偶像毫无价值。拜神像的人目盲眼瞎，愚昧无知，自找羞辱。

制造偶像的人，尽都是虚空的，他们所喜爱的，都没有益处。他们的见证人，一无所见，一无所知，以致他们蒙羞。

塑造偶像的全都虚空，他们所喜爱的毫无益处；为偶像本身作见证的，一无所见，一无所知，他们都必蒙羞。

製造雕刻偶像的盡都虛空；他們所喜悅的都無益處；他們的見證無所看見，無所知曉，他們便覺羞愧。

製造偶像的人盡都虛空，他們所喜悅的全無益處；偶像的見證人毫無所見，毫無所知，以致他們羞愧。

製造偶像的人盡都虛空，他們所喜悅的全無益處；偶像的見證人毫無所見，毫無所知，以致他們羞愧。

製造偶像的真是無用，他們珍愛的偶像毫無價值。拜神像的人目盲眼瞎，愚昧無知，自找羞辱。

製造偶像的人，盡都是虛空的，他們所喜愛的，都沒有益處。他們的見證人，一無所見，一無所知，以致他們蒙羞。

製造雕像的盡都虛空；他們所喜愛的都沒有用處；他們的見證人毫無所見，毫無所知，以致自己失望。

塑造偶像的全都虛空，他們所喜愛的毫無益處；為偶像本身作見證的，一無所見，一無所知，他們都必蒙羞。

造雕像者、悉為虛妄、其所悅者無益、彼之證者不見不知、必致愧怍、

作偶像者、悉為虛妄、其所慕者無益、彼明知其不見不聞、當生愧怍。

作偶像者悉為虛妄、其所慕者無益、可自為證、彼不見不知、必致羞愧、

All who make idols are nothing, and the things they treasure are worthless. Those who would speak up for them are blind; they are ignorant, to their own shame.

All who fashion idols are nothing, and the things they delight in do not profit. Their witnesses neither see nor know, that they may be put to shame.

How 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.

All who make idols are nothing, and what they treasure benefits no one. Their witnesses do not see or know anything, so they will be put to shame.

Those who fashion an idol are all futile, and their treasured things are of no benefit; even their own witnesses fail to see or know, so that they will be put to shame.

Those who make an image, all of them are useless, And their precious things shall not profit; They are their own witnesses; They neither see nor know, that they may be ashamed.

They that fashion a graven image are all of them vanity; and the things that they delight in shall not profit; and their own witnesses see not, nor know: that they may be put to shame.

All who make idols are nothing, and what they treasure does not profit. Their witnesses do not see or know anything, so they will be put to shame.

They that make a graven image[ are] all of them vanity; and their delectable things shall not profit; and they[ are] their own witnesses; they see not, nor know; that they may be ashamed.

All who form idols are nothing; the things in which they delight are worthless. Their witnesses cannot see; they recognize nothing, so they are put to shame.

Everyone who makes a carved image is vain. The things that they delight in will not profit. Their own witnesses don’t see, nor know, that they may be disappointed.

No one has any sense or knows anything at all. Everyone who works with gold is put to shame by his gods. The metal gods he has made are fakes. They can’t even breathe.They are worthless things that people make fun of. When the Lord judges them, they will be destroyed.

But you false gods are less than nothing. Your actions are completely worthless. I hate it when people worship you.

So they are not really gods at all. What they do does not amount to anything. They are as useless as wind.

All who worship statues of gods or brag about them are put to shame. All you gods, worship the Lord!

The practices of these nations are worthless. People cut a tree out of the forest. A skilled worker shapes the wood with a sharp tool.Others decorate it with silver and gold. They use a hammer to nail it to the floor. They want to keep it from falling down.The statues of their gods can’t speak. They are like scarecrows in a field of cucumbers. Their statues have to be carried around because they can’t walk. So do not be afraid of their gods. They can’t do you any harm. And they can’t do you any good either.”Lord, no one is like you. You are great. You are mighty and powerful.King of the nations, everyone should have respect for you. That’s what people should give you. Among all the wise leaders of the nations there is no one like you. No one can compare with you in all their kingdoms.All of them are foolish. They don’t have any sense. They think they are taught by worthless wooden gods.

They can’t understand the truth. They are separated from the life of God. That’s because they don’t know him. And they don’t know him because their hearts are stubborn.

So then, here is what I say about eating food sacrificed to statues of gods. We know that“ a god made by human hands is really nothing at all in the world.” We know that“ there is only one God.”

Lord, you give me strength. You are like a fort to me. When I’m in trouble, I go to you for safety. The nations will come to you from one end of the earth to the other. They will gather together and say,“ Our people of long ago didn’t own anything except statues of gods. The statues were worthless. They didn’t do them any good.Do human beings really make their own gods? Yes. But they aren’t really gods at all!”

People like that don’t even know what they are doing. Their eyes are shut so that they can’t see the truth. Their minds are closed so that they can’t understand it.

“ Come together, you people of the nations who escaped from Babylon. Gather together and come into court. Only people who do not know anything would carry around gods that are made out of wood. They pray to false gods that can’t save them.

So they prepared the bull they had been given. They prayed to Baal from morning until noon.“ Baal! Answer us!” they shouted. But there wasn’t any reply. No one answered. Then they danced around the altar they had made.At noon Elijah began to tease them.“ Shout louder!” he said.“ I’m sure Baal is a god! Perhaps he has too much to think about. Or maybe he has gone to the toilet. Or perhaps he’s away on a trip. Maybe he’s sleeping. You might have to wake him up.”So they shouted louder. They cut themselves with swords and spears until their blood flowed. That’s what they usually did when things really looked hopeless.It was now past noon. The prophets of Baal continued to prophesy with all their might. They did it until the time came to offer the evening sacrifice. But there wasn’t any reply. No one answered. No one paid any attention.Then Elijah said to all the people,“ Come here to me.” So they went to him. He rebuilt the altar of the Lord. It had been torn down.Elijah got 12 stones. There was one for each tribe in the family line of Jacob. The Lord’ s message had come to Jacob. It had said,“ Your name will be Israel.”Elijah used the stones to build an altar to honor the Lord. He dug a ditch around it. The ditch was large enough to hold 24 pounds of seeds.He arranged the wood for the fire. He cut the bull into pieces. He placed the pieces on the wood. Then he said to some of the people,“ Fill four large jars with water. Pour it on the offering and the wood.” So they did.“ Do it again,” he said. So they did it again.“ Do it a third time,” he ordered. And they did it the third time.The water ran down around the altar. It even filled the ditch.When it was time to offer the evening sacrifice, the prophet Elijah stepped forward. He prayed,“ Lord, you are the God of Abraham, Isaac and Israel. Today let everyone know that you are God in Israel. Let them know I’m your servant. Let them know I’ve done all these things because you commanded me to.Answer me. Lord, answer me. Then these people will know that you are the one and only God. They’ll know that you are turning their hearts back to you again.”The fire of the Lord came down. It burned up the sacrifice. It burned up the wood and the stones and the soil. It even dried up the water in the ditch.All the people saw it. Then they fell down flat with their faces toward the ground. They cried out,“ The Lord is the one and only God! The Lord is the one and only God!”Then Elijah commanded them,“ Grab the prophets of Baal. Don’t let a single one of them get away!” So they grabbed them. Elijah had them brought down to the Kishon Valley. There he had them put to death.

“ Lord, it’s true that the kings of Assyria have completely destroyed many nations and their lands.They have thrown the statues of the gods of those nations into the fire. And they have destroyed them. That’s because they weren’t really gods at all. They were nothing but statues made out of wood and stone. They were made by human hands.Lord our God, save us from the power of Sennacherib. Then all the kingdoms of the earth will know that you are the only God.”

Some people pour out gold from their bags. They weigh out silver on the scales. They hire someone who works with gold to make it into a god. They bow down to it and worship it.They lift it up on their shoulders and carry it. They set it up in its place, and there it stands. It can’t move from that spot. Someone might cry out to it. But it does not answer. It can’t save them from their troubles.

People had made some statues of gods out of silver. They had made others out of gold. Then they worshiped them. But when the Lord comes, they will throw the statues away to the moles and bats.Those people will run and hide in caves in the rocks. They will go into holes in the cliffs. They will run away from the terrifying presence of the Lord. They will run when he comes in glory and majesty. When he comes, he will shake the earth.

The god of this world has blinded the minds of those who don’t believe. They can’t see the light of the good news that makes Christ’s glory clear. Christ is the likeness of God.

“ May anyone who makes a statue of a god and sets it up in secret be under the Lord’ s curse. That statue is made by a skilled worker. And the Lord hates it.” Then all the people will say,“ Amen!”

In place of them, he will worship a god of war. He will honor a god his people have not known before. He will give gold and silver to that god. He will bring jewels and expensive gifts to it.

Lead my people into court. They have eyes but can’t see. Bring those who have ears but can’t hear.

You say to a piece of wood,‘ You are my father.’ You say to a stone,‘ You are my mother.’ You have turned your backs to me. You refuse to look at me. But when you are in trouble, you say,‘ Come and save us!’Then where are the gods you made for yourselves? Let them come when you are in trouble! Let them save you if they can! Judah, you have as many gods as you have towns.

Go and cry out to the gods you have chosen. Let them save you when you get into trouble!”

Do any of the worthless gods of the nations bring rain? Do the skies send down showers all by themselves? No. Lord our God, you send the rain. So we put our hope in you. You are the one who does all these things.

They claimed to be wise. But they made fools of themselves.

At one time you were in the dark. But now you are in the light because of what the Lord has done. Live like children of the light.

“ Israel, listen to me! You can hear, but you do not understand. Look to me! You can see, but you do not know what you are seeing.

“ If someone carves a statue of a god, what is it worth? What value is there in a god that teaches lies? The one who trusts in this kind of god worships his own creation. He makes statues of gods that can’t speak.How terrible it will be for the Babylonians! They say to a wooden god,‘ Come to life!’ They say to a stone god,‘ Wake up!’ Can those gods give advice? They are covered with gold and silver. They can’t even breathe.”The Lord is in his holy temple. Let the whole earth be silent in front of him.

That’s as foolish as eating ashes! The mind of someone like that has led him astray. He can’t save himself. He can’t bring himself to say,“ This thing I’m holding in my right hand isn’t really a god at all.”

The gods named Bel and Nebo are brought down in shame. The statues of them are being carried away on the backs of animals. They used to be carried around by the people who worshiped them. But now they’ve become a heavy load for tired animals.The gods named Bel and Nebo are brought down in shame together. They aren’t able to save their own statues. They themselves are carried off as prisoners.

Those who make statues of gods will be like them. So will all those who trust in them.

Those who make statues of gods will be like them. So will all those who trust in them.

Has a nation ever changed its gods? Actually, they are not even gods at all. But my people have traded away their glorious God. They have traded me for worthless statues of gods.

My people appoint kings I do not want. They choose princes without my permission. They use their silver and gold to make statues of gods. That is how they destroy themselves.”The Lord says,“ People of Samaria, throw out your god that looks like a calf! I am very angry with them. How long will it be until they are able to remain faithful to me?Their calf is not God. A skilled worker from Israel made it. But that calf of Samaria will be broken to pieces.”

You have taken your stand against the Lord of heaven. You had your servants bring cups from his temple to you. You and your nobles drank wine from them. So did your wives and concubines. You praised your gods. The statues of those gods are made out of silver, gold, bronze, iron, wood or stone. They can’t see or hear or understand anything. But you didn’t honor God. He holds in his hand your very life and everything you do.