Thematic Bible




Thematic Bible



Verily, thus, shall ye do unto them: Their altars, shall ye tear down, And their pillars, shall ye break in pieces, - And their sacred stems, shall ye hew down, And their carved images, a shall ye burn up in the fire.

The fashioners of an image - all of them, are emptiness, And, the things they delight in, cannot profit, - And, their, witnesses, they, neither see nor know, That they may be ashamed. Who hath fashioned a GOD, Oran image, hath molten? It cannot profit! Lo! all his partners, turn pale, Even, the artificers themselves, are of the sons of earth, - Let them gather themselves together - all of them. Let them take their stand, Let them dread, and turn pale, together! read more.
As for the smith, with his cutting-tool, - When he hath wrought in the live coals, And, with hammers, hath fashioned it, - And hath wrought it with his strong arm, Anon he is hungry, and hath no strength, He hath drunk no water and so hath become faint! As for the carpenter, - He hath stretched out a line hath drawn it with a pencil, Hath made it with carving tools, With compasses, hath rounded it, - And so hath made it after the figure of a great man, After the beauty of a son of earth, that it may remain in a house! When one was cutting him down cedars, Then took he a holm-tree and an oak, And secured them for himself, among the trees of the forest, - He planted a fir-tree and the pouring rain made it grow; So it serveth for a man to burn, And he hath taken of the branches and warmed himself, Also he kindleth a fire, and baketh bread, - Also he maketh a GOD, and hath bowed himself down, Hath made of it a carved image, and adored it: The half thereof, hath he burned in the fire, Over half thereof, he eateth flesh, He roasteth roast, that he may be satisfied, - Also he warmeth himself, and saith, Aha, I am warm, I have seen a blaze; And the residue thereof, Into a GOD, he maketh, Into his carved image, - Adoreth it, and boweth down and prayeth unto it, And saith Deliver me, for, my GOD, thou art!

Assemble yourselves and come Draw near together, ye escaped of the nations, - They know not Who carry the wood of their carved image, And pray unto a GOD who cannot save.

What hath a carved image, profited, though the fashioner thereof, carved it? a molten image, and a teacher of falsehood, - though the fashioner of his fashioned thing trusted therein? that men should make Dumb Nonentities! Alas! for him who saith to wood, Awake, bestir thee! to a silent stone, he, shall teach! Though he is overlaid with gold and silver, yet, no spirit whatsoever, is in him!


And he received the gold at their hand, and fashioned it with a graving tool, and made it a molten calf, and they said - These, are thy gods, O Israel, who brought thee up, out of the land of Egypt.

Then took he the calf which they had made and burned it in the fire, and ground it till it became powder, and strewed it on the face of the waters, and made the sons of Israel drink.

Take heed to yourselves lest ye forget the covenant of Yahweh your God, which he hath solemnised with you, - and so make for yourselves an image, the form of anything, the which Yahweh thy God hath forbidden thee;

Thou shalt not make to thee an image, or any form, that is in the heavens above, - or that is in the earth beneath, - or that is in the waters beneath the earth:

The image, hath been cast by an artificer, And a goldsmith, with gold, overlayeth it, - And, chains of silver, he worketh. The needy offerer, of a tree that will not rot, maketh choice, - A skilled artificer, seeketh he out for himself to construct an image that shall not totter,

The fashioners of an image - all of them, are emptiness, And, the things they delight in, cannot profit, - And, their, witnesses, they, neither see nor know, That they may be ashamed. Who hath fashioned a GOD, Oran image, hath molten? It cannot profit! Lo! all his partners, turn pale, Even, the artificers themselves, are of the sons of earth, - Let them gather themselves together - all of them. Let them take their stand, Let them dread, and turn pale, together! read more.
As for the smith, with his cutting-tool, - When he hath wrought in the live coals, And, with hammers, hath fashioned it, - And hath wrought it with his strong arm, Anon he is hungry, and hath no strength, He hath drunk no water and so hath become faint!

And the residue thereof, Into a GOD, he maketh, Into his carved image, - Adoreth it, and boweth down and prayeth unto it, And saith Deliver me, for, my GOD, thou art!

What hath a carved image, profited, though the fashioner thereof, carved it? a molten image, and a teacher of falsehood, - though the fashioner of his fashioned thing trusted therein? that men should make Dumb Nonentities!

For, one Demetrius by name, a silversmith, making silvershrines, of Diana, used to bring unto the craftsmen no little business; gathering whom together, and them who in such things wrought, he said - Men! ye well know that, by this business, we have our prosperity;


Ye know that, when ye were of the nations, unto the dumb idols, howsoever ye were being led, ye were seduced.

What hath a carved image, profited, though the fashioner thereof, carved it? a molten image, and a teacher of falsehood, - though the fashioner of his fashioned thing trusted therein? that men should make Dumb Nonentities!


Cursed, be the man that maketh an image - cut or molten - an abomination unto Yahweh the work of the hands of the craftsman and putteth it in a secret place. And all the people shall respond and say - Amen.

What hath a carved image, profited, though the fashioner thereof, carved it? a molten image, and a teacher of falsehood, - though the fashioner of his fashioned thing trusted therein? that men should make Dumb Nonentities!


What hath a carved image, profited, though the fashioner thereof, carved it? a molten image, and a teacher of falsehood, - though the fashioner of his fashioned thing trusted therein? that men should make Dumb Nonentities!


A drought, is against her waters, And they shall be dried up, - For a land of images, it is, And with their shocking things, they act as men who are mad:

but, against the Lord of the heavens, hast uplifted thyself, and, the vessels of his house, have they brought before thee, and, thou, and thy nobles, thy wives and thy concubines, have been drinking, wine, therein, and, gods of silver and gold, of bronze, iron, wood and stone, which see not nor hear nor know, hast thou praised, - whereas, God, in whose hand thy breath is and whose are all thy ways, him, hast thou not glorified.

Being, then, offspring, of God, we ought not to be supposing that, unto gold or silver or stone, graven by art and device of man, the Divine, is like.

Vanity, they are, the handiwork of mockeries, - In the time of their visitation, shall they perish.

What hath a carved image, profited, though the fashioner thereof, carved it? a molten image, and a teacher of falsehood, - though the fashioner of his fashioned thing trusted therein? that men should make Dumb Nonentities!

Mere palm-trunks turned, they are and cannot speak, They must needs be, carried, for they cannot take a step, Be not afraid of them, for they cannot do harm, And even to do good, is not in their power.

Every son of earth had become too brutish to know, - Every goldsmith, hath been put to shame, by a graven image, - For a falsehood, is his molten image Seeing there is no breath in them:

What, then, am I saying? - that, an idol-sacrifice, is anything? or that, an idol, is anything?



What hath a carved image, profited, though the fashioner thereof, carved it? a molten image, and a teacher of falsehood, - though the fashioner of his fashioned thing trusted therein? that men should make Dumb Nonentities! Alas! for him who saith to wood, Awake, bestir thee! to a silent stone, he, shall teach! Though he is overlaid with gold and silver, yet, no spirit whatsoever, is in him!


Hath a nation, changed gods, although they were No-gods? Yet my people have changed my glory for that which could not profit!



The fashioners of an image - all of them, are emptiness, And, the things they delight in, cannot profit, - And, their, witnesses, they, neither see nor know, That they may be ashamed. Who hath fashioned a GOD, Oran image, hath molten? It cannot profit!

But, ye, -- draw near hither, Ye sons of divination, - Ye seed of an adulterer when your mother committed unchastity! Against whom would ye disport yourselves? Against whom would ye widen the mouth and lengthen the tongue, - Are not, ye, Children of transgression, A Seed of falsehood. Who inflame yourselves With the terebinths, Under every green tree - Slaying the children, In the torrent-valleys, Under the clefts of the crags: read more.
Among the smooth stones of the torrent - valley, is thy portion. They, they, are thy lot; Even to them, hast thou Poured out a drink-offering. Caused to ascend a gift. Over these things, can I cease to grieve? On a mountain high and uplifted, hast thou set thy couch, - Even thither, hast thou gone up, to offer sacrifice; And behind the door arid the post, hast thou set thy symbol, For, with another than me, hast thou uncovered thyself and gone up - Hast widened thy couch, And hast solemnised for thyself a covenant from them, Thou hast loved their couch a sign, hast thou seen; And hast gone to the king with oil, And hast multiplied thy perfumes, - And hast sent thy messengers afar, And -- lowered thyself as far as hades! With the length of thy journey, thou wast wearied, Thou didst not say, Hopeless! The reviving of thy power, thou didst find, For this cause, hast thou not become sick. Whom then hadst thou been anxious about and feared that thou shouldest speak falsely, When me, thou rememberedst not, caredst not for me? Did not, I, keep silence even from age-past times, Although me, thou wouldest not fear? I, will expose thy righteousness, - And thy works - but they will not profit thee!

O Yahweh, my strength, and my refuge, and my place to fly to, in the day of distress, - Unto thee, shall nations come in, out of the ends of the earth, that they may say - Surely! Falsehood, did our fathers inherit, Vanity, among whom is none that can profit: Shall a son of earth, make for himself gods, Seeing that, they, are no-gods?

For, what doth it profit a man, to gain the whole world, and be made to forfeit his life? For what can a man, give, in exchange for his life?


What hath a carved image, profited, though the fashioner thereof, carved it? a molten image, and a teacher of falsehood, - though the fashioner of his fashioned thing trusted therein? that men should make Dumb Nonentities! Alas! for him who saith to wood, Awake, bestir thee! to a silent stone, he, shall teach! Though he is overlaid with gold and silver, yet, no spirit whatsoever, is in him!

Their idols, are silver and gold, the works of the hands of men, - A mouth, have they, but they speak not, Eyes, have they, but they see not; Ears, have they, but they hear not, A nose, have they, but they smell not: read more.
Their hands! but they feel not Their feet! but they walk not, No sound make they in their throat. Like unto them, shall be they who make them, Every one who trusteth in them.

They have drawn back They turn very pale Who have been trusting in a graven image, - Who have been saying to a molten image, Ye, are our gods!

The idols of the nations, are silver and gold, the work of the hands of men: Ears, have they, but they hear not, Nose, - there is no breath in their mouth.


What hath a carved image, profited, though the fashioner thereof, carved it? a molten image, and a teacher of falsehood, - though the fashioner of his fashioned thing trusted therein? that men should make Dumb Nonentities!

They have drawn back They turn very pale Who have been trusting in a graven image, - Who have been saying to a molten image, Ye, are our gods!


A drought, is against her waters, And they shall be dried up, - For a land of images, it is, And with their shocking things, they act as men who are mad:

but, against the Lord of the heavens, hast uplifted thyself, and, the vessels of his house, have they brought before thee, and, thou, and thy nobles, thy wives and thy concubines, have been drinking, wine, therein, and, gods of silver and gold, of bronze, iron, wood and stone, which see not nor hear nor know, hast thou praised, - whereas, God, in whose hand thy breath is and whose are all thy ways, him, hast thou not glorified.

Being, then, offspring, of God, we ought not to be supposing that, unto gold or silver or stone, graven by art and device of man, the Divine, is like.

Vanity, they are, the handiwork of mockeries, - In the time of their visitation, shall they perish.

What hath a carved image, profited, though the fashioner thereof, carved it? a molten image, and a teacher of falsehood, - though the fashioner of his fashioned thing trusted therein? that men should make Dumb Nonentities!

Mere palm-trunks turned, they are and cannot speak, They must needs be, carried, for they cannot take a step, Be not afraid of them, for they cannot do harm, And even to do good, is not in their power.

Every son of earth had become too brutish to know, - Every goldsmith, hath been put to shame, by a graven image, - For a falsehood, is his molten image Seeing there is no breath in them:

What, then, am I saying? - that, an idol-sacrifice, is anything? or that, an idol, is anything?


A drought, is against her waters, And they shall be dried up, - For a land of images, it is, And with their shocking things, they act as men who are mad:

but, against the Lord of the heavens, hast uplifted thyself, and, the vessels of his house, have they brought before thee, and, thou, and thy nobles, thy wives and thy concubines, have been drinking, wine, therein, and, gods of silver and gold, of bronze, iron, wood and stone, which see not nor hear nor know, hast thou praised, - whereas, God, in whose hand thy breath is and whose are all thy ways, him, hast thou not glorified.

Being, then, offspring, of God, we ought not to be supposing that, unto gold or silver or stone, graven by art and device of man, the Divine, is like.

Vanity, they are, the handiwork of mockeries, - In the time of their visitation, shall they perish.

What hath a carved image, profited, though the fashioner thereof, carved it? a molten image, and a teacher of falsehood, - though the fashioner of his fashioned thing trusted therein? that men should make Dumb Nonentities!

Mere palm-trunks turned, they are and cannot speak, They must needs be, carried, for they cannot take a step, Be not afraid of them, for they cannot do harm, And even to do good, is not in their power.

Every son of earth had become too brutish to know, - Every goldsmith, hath been put to shame, by a graven image, - For a falsehood, is his molten image Seeing there is no breath in them:

What, then, am I saying? - that, an idol-sacrifice, is anything? or that, an idol, is anything?