Amplified Bible
Habakkuk 2:19
19Woe (judgment is coming) to him who says to the wooden image, ‘Awake!’ And to the speechless stone, ‘Arise!’ And that is your teacher? Look, it is overlaid with gold and silver, And there is no breath at all inside it.
Habakkuk 2:19 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)Woe unto him that saith to the wood, Awake; to the dumb stone, Arise, it shall teach! Behold, it is laid over with gold and silver, and there is no breath at all in the midst of it.
- New International Version (NIV)Woe to him who says to wood, ‘Come to life!’ Or to lifeless stone, ‘Wake up!’ Can it give guidance? It is covered with gold and silver; there is no breath in it.”
- English Standard Version (ESV)Woe to him who says to a wooden thing, Awake; to a silent stone, Arise! Can this teach? Behold, it is overlaid with gold and silver, and there is no breath at all in it.
- New King James Version (NKJV)Woe to him who says to wood, ‘Awake!’ To silent stone, ‘Arise! It shall teach!’ Behold, it is overlaid with gold and silver, Yet in it there is no breath at all.
Context of Habakkuk 2:19
17For the violence done to Lebanon will overwhelm you; The destruction of the animals will terrify you On account of human bloodshed and the violence done to the land, To the city and all its inhabitants. 18“What profit is the carved image when its maker has formed it? It is only a cast image, and a teacher of lies. For its maker trusts in his own creation [as his god] When he makes speechless idols. Woe (judgment is coming) to him who says to the wooden image, ‘Awake!’ And to the speechless stone, ‘Arise!’ And that is your teacher? Look, it is overlaid with gold and silver, And there is no breath at all inside it. 20But the Lord is in His holy temple. Let all the earth hush and be silent before Him.”
Read all of Habakkuk 2Habakkuk 2:19 word by word
ה֣וֹי אֹמֵ֤ר לָעֵץ֙ הָקִ֔יצָה ע֖וּרִי לְאֶ֣בֶן דּוּמָ֑ם ה֣וּא יוֹרֶ֔ה הִנֵּה־ה֗וּא תָּפוּשׂ֙ זָהָ֣ב וָכֶ֔סֶף וְכָל־ר֖וּחַ אֵ֥ין בְּקִרְבּֽוֹ׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- Woeהוֹיhôy · woe!H1945
- unto him that saithאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
- to the woodעֵץ‛êts · tree: woodH6086
- Awakeקִיץqûts · to awakeH6974
- to the dumbדּוּמָםdûmâm · silenceH1748
- stoneאֶ֫בֶן'eben · stoneH68
- Ariseעוּר‛ûr · to rouseH5782
- it shall teachיָרָהyârâh yârâ' · to showH3384
- laidתָּפַשׂtâphaώ · to captureH8610
- over with goldזָהָבzâhâb · goldH2091
- and silverכֶּ֫סֶףkeseph · silver: moneyH3701
- no breathרוּחַrûach · spirit: breathH7307
- at all in the midstקֶ֫רֶבqereb · entrails: amongH7130
Cross-references for Habakkuk 2:19
- 1 Kings 18:26So they took the bull that was given to them and prepared it, and called on the name of Baal from morning until noon, saying, “O Baal, hear and answer us.” But there was no voice and no one answered. And they leaped about the altar which they had made.
- Psalms 97:7Let all those be [deeply] ashamed who serve carved images, Who boast in idols. Worship Him, all you gods!
- Isaiah 44:17But from what is left of the wood he makes a god, his carved idol. He falls down before it, he worships it and prays to it and says, “Save me, for you are my god.”
- Jeremiah 51:47Therefore behold (listen carefully), the days are coming When I will judge and punish the idols of Babylon; Her whole land will be perplexed and shamed, And all her slain will fall in her midst.
- Daniel 3:7So when the people heard the sound of the horn, pipe, lyre, trigon, dulcimer, bagpipe and all kinds of music, all the peoples, nations, and speakers of every language fell down and worshiped the golden image that Nebuchadnezzar the king had set up.
- Daniel 5:23And you have exalted yourself against the Lord of heaven, and the vessels of His house have been brought before you, and you and your nobles, your wives and your concubines have been drinking wine from them; and you have praised the gods of silver and gold, of bronze, iron, wood and stone, which do not see or hear or understand. But the God who holds in His hand your breath of life and your ways you have not honored and glorified [but have dishonored and defied].
- Jonah 1:5Then the sailors were afraid, and each man cried out to his god; and to lighten the ship [and diminish the danger] they threw the ship’s cargo into the sea. But Jonah had gone below into the hold of the ship and had lain down and was sound asleep.
- Isaiah 40:19As for the cast image (idol), a metalworker casts it, A goldsmith overlays it with gold And a silversmith casts its silver chains.
- Isaiah 46:6Those who lavish gold from the bag And weigh out silver on the scales Hire a goldsmith, and he makes it into a god; They bow down, indeed they worship it.
- Jeremiah 10:4They adorn the idol with silver and with gold; They fasten it with hammers and nails So that it will not fall apart.
- Daniel 3:1Nebuchadnezzar the king made a gold [-plated] image, whose height [including the pedestal] was sixty cubits (ninety feet) and its width six cubits (nine feet). He set it up on the plain of Dura in the province of Babylon.
- Acts 17:29So then, being God’s children, we should not think that the Divine Nature (deity) is like gold or silver or stone, an image formed by the art and imagination or skill of man.
- Revelation 17:4The woman was dressed in purple and scarlet, and adorned with gold, precious stones and pearls, [and she was] holding in her hand a gold cup full of the abominations and the filth of her [sexual] immorality.
- Psalms 135:17They have ears, but they do not hear, Nor is there any breath in their mouths.
Commentaries on Habakkuk 2:19
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 19Wo unto him - How foolish and contemptible to worship a thing formed by the hand of man out of wood, stone, gold, or silver! The meanest brute is superior to them all; it breathes and lives, but they have no breath in them. However, they are said above to be teachers of lies; that is, they appeared to give out oracles: but these were lies; and were not given by the statue, but by the priest.Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 19But then the greater is the “Woe” to him who deceiveth by them. The prophet passes away from the idols as “nothings” and pronounces “woe” on those who deceive by them. He. first expostulates with them on their folly, and would awaken them. “What hath it profited?” (As in Psalm 115:5; 1 Corinthians 12:2) Then on the obstinate he denounces “woe.” “Woe unto him that saith to the wood, Awake; to the dumb stone, Arise.” Self-made blindness alone could, in the…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 15-20Verses 15-20 A severe woe is pronounced against drunkenness; it is very fearful against all who are guilty of drunkenness at any time, and in any place, from the stately palace to the paltry ale-house. To give one drink who is in want, who is thirsty and poor, or a weary traveller, or ready to perish, is charity; but to give a neighbour drink, that he may expose himself, may disclose secret concerns, or be drawn into a bad bargain, or for any such…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 18-20In the fifth taunt song, the Babylonians face criticism for worshiping idols. Whether people carve or cast idols, they cannot save or teach their worshipers (Isaiah 42:17). Only the Lord truly deserves worship (Habakkuk 2:20; Exodus 20:2–6; compare Ecclesiastes 5:1–2).Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1919. Awake--Arise to my help. it shall teach!--rather, An exclamation of the prophet, implying an ironical question to which a negative answer must be given. What! "It teach?" Certainly not [Maurer]. Or, "It (the idol itself) shall (that is, ought to) teach you that it is deaf, and therefore no God" [Calvin]. Compare "they are their own witnesses" (Is 44:9). Behold--The Hebrew is nominative, "There it is" [Henderson]. it is laid over with gold ... no…Read the comment
Topics related to Habakkuk 2:19
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Habakkuk 2
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Rashi on Tanakh
- Calvin’s Commentaries
- Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
- John Wesley’s Notes
- Darby Translation Notes
- Geneva Bible Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
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