Isaiah 44 16

Isaiah 44:16 kjv

He burneth part thereof in the fire; with part thereof he eateth flesh; he roasteth roast, and is satisfied: yea, he warmeth himself, and saith, Aha, I am warm, I have seen the fire:

Isaiah 44:16 nkjv

He burns half of it in the fire; With this half he eats meat; He roasts a roast, and is satisfied. He even warms himself and says, "Ah! I am warm, I have seen the fire."

Isaiah 44:16 niv

Half of the wood he burns in the fire; over it he prepares his meal, he roasts his meat and eats his fill. He also warms himself and says, "Ah! I am warm; I see the fire."

Isaiah 44:16 esv

Half of it he burns in the fire. Over the half he eats meat; he roasts it and is satisfied. Also he warms himself and says, "Aha, I am warm, I have seen the fire!"

Isaiah 44:16 nlt

He burns part of the tree to roast his meat
and to keep himself warm.
He says, "Ah, that fire feels good."

Isaiah 44 verses

Isaiah 44 16 Meaning

Isaiah 44:16 describes the mundane, practical uses of a single piece of wood by a person. Half of the wood is consumed by fire to provide heat, over which food (meat) is roasted to provide sustenance, leading to satisfaction. The same fire is also used for personal comfort and warmth, eliciting an expression of contentment from the person. The verse vividly portrays the utilitarian value of the material for basic human needs, setting the stage for the striking contrast in the following verse where a portion of the very same wood is fashioned into an object of worship.

Isaiah 44 16 Context

Isaiah 44:16 is nestled within one of the most powerful and sustained satirical attacks on idolatry in the Old Testament, spanning from Isaiah 44:9-20. The immediate context of verses 15-17 portrays the full life cycle of a piece of wood: from providing fuel for warmth and cooking (v.15-16), to being carved into an idol for worship (v.17). This specific verse, 44:16, details the pragmatic, everyday uses of the wood – burning it for fire, using that fire to cook a meal and for personal warmth. This carefully constructed description serves to heighten the absurdity that in the very next verse, a part of the same material is revered as a god.

The broader chapter (Isa 44) focuses on Yahweh's uniqueness as the only God, the Creator, and Redeemer of Israel, promising His people a renewed future. The polemic against idols (44:9-20) acts as a sharp contrast, demonstrating the foolishness of relying on created things instead of the omnipotent God. Historically, during Isaiah's time in the 8th century BC, idolatry was rampant among the Israelites, influenced by surrounding Canaanite and Assyrian cultures. This passage is a direct challenge to the popular beliefs in and practices of idol worship, urging a return to exclusive devotion to Yahweh, who alone holds genuine power and delivers.

Isaiah 44 16 Word analysis

• "Half": (Heb. chetzyo חֶצְיוֹ) Signifies the literal division of a single resource. It underlines that the same origin material is split for entirely disparate functions, one for survival, the other for supposed divinity, highlighting the absurdity.
• "burns": (Heb. yisrop יִשְׂרֹף) Indicates destruction by fire, a common and transient act. This highlights the idol's foundational material as destructible, unlike the eternal God.
• "fire": (Heb. ’ēš אֵשׁ) A fundamental human necessity for survival (warmth, cooking). Its utility here is purely practical, serving physical comfort, not spiritual veneration.
• "over the half he eats meat": (Heb. ‘al chetzyo basar yokel עַל־חֶצְיוֹ בָּשָׂר יֹאכֵל) This further clarifies the practical, life-sustaining use of the divided wood, emphasizing sustenance derived from the wood's energy.
• "roasts it and is satisfied": (Heb. ya‘as tzali vayyisbaʿ יַעַשׂ צְלִי וַיִּשְׂבַּע) Details the cooking method and the resulting physical contentment. "Satisfied" (vayyisbaʿ) refers to a tangible, physical fulfillment of hunger, demonstrating the direct and immediate benefit derived from the wood's practical application.
• "Also he warms himself": (Heb. gam yiḥām גַּם־יֵחָם) Provides another immediate, sensory, and essential benefit of the wood—protection from cold—linking the wood directly to basic human comfort.
• "says, “Aha, I am warm, I have seen the fire!”": (Heb. vayyo·mer heichom ra’iti ur וַיֹּאמֶר הֶחָם רָאִיתִי אֽוּר) An exclamation of personal contentment and sensory confirmation. The "Aha" (or "Heichom!") expresses genuine physical comfort, illustrating a natural human reaction to having basic needs met by a material object. "I have seen the fire!" emphasizes the direct, visible benefit, further solidifying the wood's common, creaturely role.

Words-group analysis:

• "Half of it he burns... over the half he eats meat": This striking parallelism emphasizes the division of a single raw material for wholly secular purposes—sustaining life. It lays the groundwork for the ensuing absurdity of carving a god from the remainder of the very same source. The initial utility underscores the material's utter lack of divine essence.
• "he roasts it and is satisfied. Also he warms himself and says, 'Aha, I am warm, I have seen the fire!'": This sequence thoroughly delineates the immediate, physical, and profoundly ordinary benefits obtained from the wood. The contentment expressed ("satisfied," "Aha, I am warm") is purely physical, arising from the fulfillment of basic needs like food and warmth. This meticulous focus on tangible, worldly satisfaction from a simple resource renders the subsequent veneration of that resource as a god illogical and deluded, highlighting a failure to distinguish the Creator from the creation.

Isaiah 44 16 Bonus section

The passage's vivid, descriptive style is not merely descriptive but polemical, crafted to dismantle the idolater's false logic and highlight the supreme uniqueness of Yahweh. The focus on everyday activities like cooking and warming acts as a rhetorical strategy, forcing the audience to consider the inherent unsuitability of such a mundane resource to be a divine entity. The underlying message extends beyond the literal wooden idol, cautioning against any form of misplaced worship or ultimate reliance on created things—whether wealth, status, or human ingenuity—as sources of security or meaning apart from the Creator. The human action described is reasonable and beneficial when the wood is used as a resource; the folly lies in assigning it deity.

Isaiah 44 16 Commentary

Isaiah 44:16 delivers a masterstroke of satirical commentary on idolatry by meticulously detailing the mundane and entirely utilitarian purposes of a piece of wood. The prophet draws attention to the simple reality: the very material providing essential warmth and food, thus fulfilling basic human needs and bringing tangible physical satisfaction, is inherently limited and perishable. The individual’s genuine expression of contentment ("Aha, I am warm!") from these practical uses starkly contrasts with the profound spiritual blindness of later prostrating before another portion of that identical, inert wood. This verse functions as a pre-emptive expose, demonstrating the material's un-divine nature through its capacity only for creaturely service, underscoring the foundational illogic of seeking divinity in something so patently derived, used, and limited. It compels reflection on what truly sustains and satisfies, drawing a clear line between the transient comfort of creation and the enduring provision of the Creator.