Idols and the Living God
1Hear the word that the Lord speaks to you, O house of Israel. 2Thus says the Lord:
“Learn not the way of the nations,
nor be dismayed at the signs of the heavens
because the nations are dismayed at them,
3ffor the customs of the peoples are vanity.1
gA tree from the forest is cut down
and worked with an axe by the hands of a craftsman.
4hThey decorate it with silver and gold;
ithey fasten it with hammer and nails
so that it cannot move.
5Their idols2 are like scarecrows in a cucumber field,
and jthey cannot speak;
kthey have to be carried,
for they cannot walk.
Do not be afraid of them,
lfor they cannot do evil,
neither is it in them to do good.”
6mThere is none like you, O Lord;
you are great, and your name is great in might.
7nWho would not fear you, O King of the nations?
For this is your due;
for among all the wise ones of the nations
and in all their kingdoms
there is none like you.
8oThey are both pstupid and foolish;
the instruction of idols is but wood!
9qBeaten silver is brought from rTarshish,
and gold from sUphaz.
qThey are the work of the craftsman and of the hands of the goldsmith;
their clothing is violet and purple;
tthey are all the work of skilled men.
10uBut the Lord is the true God;
vhe is the living God and the everlasting King.
At his wrath the earth quakes,
and the nations cannot endure his indignation.
11Thus shall you say to them: w“The gods who did not make the heavens and the earth xshall perish from the earth and from under the heavens.”3
12yIt is he who zmade the earth by his power,
zwho established the world by his wisdom,
and aby his understanding stretched out the heavens.
13bWhen he utters his voice, there is a tumult of waters in the heavens,
cand he makes the mist rise from the ends of the earth.
cHe makes lightning dfor the rain,
cand he brings forth the wind efrom his storehouses.
14fEvery man is stupid and without knowledge;
gevery goldsmith is put to shame by his idols,
for his images are false,
hand there is no breath in them.
15They are worthless, a work of delusion;
at the time of their punishment they shall perish.
16Not like these is he who is ithe portion of Jacob,
for he is the one who formed all things,
jand Israel is the tribe of his inheritance;
kthe Lord of hosts is his name.
17lGather up your bundle from the ground,
O you who dwell under siege!
18For thus says the Lord:
m“Behold, I am slinging out the inhabitants of the land
at this time,
nand I will bring distress on them,
that they may feel it.”
19Woe is me because of my hurt!
oMy wound is grievous.
But I said, “Truly this is an affliction,
and I must bear it.”
20pMy tent is destroyed,
and all my cords are broken;
my children have gone from me,
qand they are not;
there is no one to spread my tent again
and pto set up my curtains.
21rFor the shepherds sare stupid
and do not inquire of the Lord;
therefore they have not prospered,
tand all their flock is scattered.
22A voice, a rumor! Behold, it comes!—
ua great commotion out of the north country
to make vthe cities of Judah a desolation,
va lair of jackals.
23wI know, O Lord, that the way of man is not in himself,
that it is not in man who walks to direct his steps.
24xCorrect me, O Lord, but in justice;
not in your anger, lest you bring me to nothing.
25yPour out your wrath on the nations that know you not,
and on the peoples that call not on your name,
zfor they have devoured Jacob;
they have devoured him and consumed him,
and have laid waste his habitation.
The Prophesied Kingdom — Part One
Ezra 1:1 – Malachi 4:6 Sermon • Includes Transcript • 36:31 • ID: 2390The Prophesied Kingdom — Part Two
Ezra 1:1 – Malachi 4:6 Sermon • Includes Transcript • 43:38 • ID: 2391Scripture quotations are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. The ESV text may not be quoted in any publication made available to the public by a Creative Commons license. The ESV may not be translated in whole or in part into any other language.