Isaiah 44:19 kjv
And none considereth in his heart, neither is there knowledge nor understanding to say, I have burned part of it in the fire; yea, also I have baked bread upon the coals thereof; I have roasted flesh, and eaten it: and shall I make the residue thereof an abomination? shall I fall down to the stock of a tree?
Isaiah 44:19 nkjv
And no one considers in his heart, Nor is there knowledge nor understanding to say, "I have burned half of it in the fire, Yes, I have also baked bread on its coals; I have roasted meat and eaten it; And shall I make the rest of it an abomination? Shall I fall down before a block of wood?"
Isaiah 44:19 niv
No one stops to think, no one has the knowledge or understanding to say, "Half of it I used for fuel; I even baked bread over its coals, I roasted meat and I ate. Shall I make a detestable thing from what is left? Shall I bow down to a block of wood?"
Isaiah 44:19 esv
No one considers, nor is there knowledge or discernment to say, "Half of it I burned in the fire; I also baked bread on its coals; I roasted meat and have eaten. And shall I make the rest of it an abomination? Shall I fall down before a block of wood?"
Isaiah 44:19 nlt
The person who made the idol never stops to reflect,
"Why, it's just a block of wood!
I burned half of it for heat
and used it to bake my bread and roast my meat.
How can the rest of it be a god?
Should I bow down to worship a piece of wood?"
Isaiah 44 19 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Isa 44:18 | "They know not, nor doth it discern: for he hath shut their eyes, that they cannot see, and their hearts, that they cannot understand." | Immediately preceding verse, reinforcing the theme. |
| Ps 115:4-7 | "Their idols are silver and gold, the work of men’s hands. They have mouths, but speak not: eyes have they, but see not: … They that make them are like unto them; so is every one that trusteth in them." | Compares idol makers to idols, mirroring Isa 44:19. |
| Jer 10:3-5 | "For the customs of the peoples are vain: for one cutteth a tree out of the forest, the work of the craftsman’s hands, with the axe. They deck it with silver and with gold; they fasten it with nails and hammers, that it move not… they are altogether brutish and foolish: the stock is a reproof of idols." | Details the crafting of idols and their worthlessness. |
| Rom 1:22-23 | "Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools, And changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things." | Describes humanity exchanging God's truth for falsehoods. |
| 1 Cor 10:14 | "Wherefore, my dearly beloved, flee from idolatry." | Exhortation against idolatry, stemming from its deceit. |
| Gal 5:19-20 | "Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these;... idolatry." | Lists idolatry as a work of the flesh. |
| Rev 21:8 | "But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death." | Identifies idolaters with other sinners facing judgment. |
| Deut 4:28 | "And there ye shall serve gods, the work of men’s hands, wood and stone, which neither see, nor hear, nor eat, nor smell." | Warns against serving idols, highlighting their impotence. |
| Isa 40:18 | "To whom then will ye liken God? or what likeness will ye compare unto him?" | Rhetorical questions emphasizing God's uniqueness. |
| Isa 40:25 | "To whom then will ye liken me, or shall I be equal? saith the Holy One." | God asserts His incomparability. |
| Isa 46:5-7 | "To whom will ye liken me, and make him equal, and compare me, that he may be like me? They lavish gold out of the bag, and weigh silver in the balance, and hire a goldsmith; and he maketh it a god; they fall down, yea, they worship." | Depicts idol worship, paralleling human effort for false gods. |
| Acts 17:29 | "Forasmuch then as we are the offspring of God, we ought not to think that the Godhead is like unto gold, or silver, or stone, graven by art and man’s device." | Addresses the Athenian belief in images, countering it. |
| John 4:24 | "God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth." | Emphasizes true worship not bound by physical images. |
| Ps 135:15-18 | "The idols of the nations are silver and gold, the work of men’s hands. They have mouths, but they speak not: eyes have they, but they see not: They have ears, but they hear not; neither is there any breath in their mouths. They that make them are like unto them: so is every one that trusteth in them." | Detailed description of idols and their makers' similarity. |
| Isa 42:17 | "But they shall be turned back, they shall be greatly ashamed, that trust in graven images, that say to the molten images, Ye are our gods." | Describes shame upon those trusting in idols. |
| Ps 97:7 | "Confounded be all they that serve graven images, that boast themselves of idols: worship him, all ye gods." | Calls for confusion upon idol worshippers. |
| Ezek 6:4 | "And I will lay your high places desolate, and cut down your images, and cast your carcasses upon the carcases of your idols; and I will lothe them." | God's judgment against idolatry and idol sanctuaries. |
| Isa 19:1-3 | "The burden of Egypt. Behold, the LORD will ride on a swift cloud, and will come into Egypt: and the idols of Egypt shall be moved at his presence, and the heart of Egypt shall melt within it." | God's power over the idols of other nations. |
| Deut 11:16 | "Take heed to yourselves, that your heart be not deceived, and ye turn aside, and serve other gods, and worship them;" | Warning against deception leading to false worship. |
| 2 Thes 2:10-11 | "And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved. And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie:" | God sending delusion to those who reject truth. |
Isaiah 44 verses
Isaiah 44 19 Meaning
The verse describes the profound and unwavering understanding possessed by someone, specifically the prophet, regarding the manufactured nature and inherent powerlessness of idols. This knowledge is so deeply ingrained that the person cannot recall or acknowledge the falsity of these man-made gods.
Isaiah 44 19 Context
Chapter 44 of Isaiah continues the message of restoration and hope for Israel. The preceding verses (44:12-17) meticulously detail the foolishness of idol makers and the resulting powerless idols they create. They describe the entire process from felling trees to shaping the wood and adorning the idol with precious metals. This verse directly follows this detailed exposé on idolatry. The prophet is emphasizing the blindness of the people who persist in worshipping these lifeless objects, despite knowing intellectually how they are made. The overall message of Isaiah 40-66 is about God's sovereignty, His unfailing love for His people, and His ultimate triumph over all opposition, including false gods and pagan nations.
Isaiah 44 19 Word Analysis
- וְעָבַר (v'avar): Literally "and he passes" or "and he has turned." It signifies a cognitive process, a turning away from something, or a passage of understanding. Here, it describes the condition of the people's minds concerning their idols.
- בּוֹ (bo): "in him" or "it." Refers to the idol.
- לֵב (lev): "heart." In Hebrew thought, the heart is the seat of intellect, will, and emotion. So, "his heart" encompasses his entire inner being, his mind and understanding.
- נָשָׂא (nasa): "to lift up," "to carry," or "to bear." In this context, it implies understanding or apprehending something. "His heart has not lifted up."
- לֵב (lev): Again, "heart." The repetition emphasizes the totality of the inward capacity for comprehension.
- וְיֵדַע (v'yeda'): "and he knows" or "and he shall know." This denotes intellectual awareness or recognition.
- לְהַצִּיל (l'hatzil): "to deliver," "to save," or "to rescue." This implies recognizing the need for salvation or intervention.
- חֶצְיוֹ (hetzio): "half of it." This phrase, when connected to the preceding thought of "half he burned," indicates the source of the spiritual blindness: they deliberately separate from God's truth, utilizing part of the idol for their own needs while worshipping the remainder. This is a key aspect of their self-deception. They acknowledge the physical origin of the wood, even using part of it, yet cannot grasp the implications of this material existence for the divine nature attributed to the idol.
- נֹקִי (noqi): "clean," "innocent," or "to clear." Here, it suggests that the idol possesses no inherent guilt or spiritual deficiency to be accounted for or cleansed. This further highlights the idol's lack of agency or power.
- וְהָשִׁיב (v'hashiv): "and he returns" or "and he answers." In the context of divine communication, "returns" can mean responds.
- אֶל (el): "to," "unto."
- חֶצְיוֹ (hetzio): "half of it." Again, referring to the idol. The man recognizes one half was fuel for his fire and personal use. This intellectual act is then contrasted with his inability to understand the theological implications of worshipping the other half.
Words Group Analysis:
- "his heart has not lifted up / neither knows": This combined phrase signifies a complete failure of comprehension. The intellect is dormant, incapable of grasping the truth concerning the idols.
- "nor (is there) knowledge, that he might discern it": This reinforces the prior point, highlighting the absence of perceptive ability and the consequent inability to distinguish truth from falsehood.
- "to deliver / half of it": This difficult phrase suggests the partial awareness. They know half of the wood was used for their sustenance (fire, cooking), but this knowledge does not lead them to "deliver" or apprehend the falsehood of the other half.
- "and answer / his half / that it is not a god": The inability to "answer" implies they cannot intellectually counter the reality of the idol's nature based on their limited, contradictory understanding.
Isaiah 44 19 Bonus Section
This verse speaks to a profound spiritual obtuseness, a wilful ignorance that results from turning away from God's truth. It reflects a state where logic is available but not applied to spiritual matters due to hardened hearts. The practice of idol making often involved using a single piece of wood, with a portion set aside for domestic use (like a hearth fire) while the other was consecrated as an idol. This physical duality serves as a stark, literal illustration of the theological absurdity that the people, in their spiritual blindness, fail to recognize. The ultimate implication is that such persistent refusal to acknowledge truth leads to a deeper delusion, where even evident facts cannot penetrate the darkened understanding. This theme is echoed in the New Testament's description of those who, though having knowledge of God, do not honour Him as God, and become futile in their thinking (Romans 1:21).
Isaiah 44 19 Commentary
The people are described as having a fragmented and ultimately futile understanding of their idols. They witness firsthand the physical reality of the objects they worship – wood is cut, shaped, and portions are used for personal needs, like fueling a fire. This empirical evidence should logically lead to the conclusion that such an object cannot be divine. However, their spiritual perception is so darkened that this logical inference is not made. They cannot "apprehend" or "understand" that the very wood which sustained them cannot simultaneously be God. This cognitive dissonance is a testament to the blindness that comes from rejecting true divine revelation. They hold a partial truth – that the object is manufactured and partly functional in a mundane way – but cannot integrate this into a complete theological understanding that would dismantle their idolatry. Their inability to "answer" or "discern" underscores their spiritual paralysis, trapped in a cycle of worshipping what they know is materially derived from the earth.