New International Version
Isaiah 44:19
19No 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 in other versions
- King James Version (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?
- English Standard Version (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?"
- New King James Version (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?”
- New Living Translation (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?”
Context of Isaiah 44:19
17From the rest he makes a god, his idol; he bows down to it and worships. He prays to it and says, “Save me! You are my god!” 18They know nothing, they understand nothing; their eyes are plastered over so they cannot see, and their minds closed so they cannot understand. 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?” 20Such a person feeds on ashes; a deluded heart misleads him; he cannot save himself, or say, “Is not this thing in my right hand a lie?” 21“Remember these things, Jacob, for you, Israel, are my servant. I have made you, you are my servant; Israel, I will not forget you.
Read all of Isaiah 44Isaiah 44:19 word by word
וְלֹא־יָשִׁ֣יב אֶל־לִבּ֗וֹ וְלֹ֨א דַ֥עַת וְלֹֽא־תְבוּנָה֮ לֵאמֹר֒ חֶצְי֞וֹ שָׂרַ֣פְתִּי בְמוֹ־אֵ֗שׁ וְ֠אַף אָפִ֤יתִי עַל־גֶּחָלָיו֙ לֶ֔חֶם אֶצְלֶ֥ה בָשָׂ֖ר וְאֹכֵ֑ל וְיִתְרוֹ֙ לְתוֹעֵבָ֣ה אֶעֱשֶׂ֔ה לְב֥וּל עֵ֖ץ אֶסְגּֽוֹד׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- And none considerethשׁוּבshûb · to return: recallH7725
- in his heartלֵבlêb · heartH3820
- knowledgeדַּ֫עַתda‛ath · knowledgeH1847
- nor understandingתְּבוּנָהtâbûn tebûnâh tôbûnâh · understandingH8394
- to sayאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
- I have burnedשָׂרַףώâraph · to burnH8313
- partחֲצִיchêtsîy · halfH2677
- of it inבְּמוֹbemô · in/at/byH1119
- the fireאֵשׁ'êsh · fireH784
- yea, also I have bakedאָפָה'âphâh · to bakeH644
- breadלֶ֫חֶםlechem · food: breadH3899
- upon the coalsגַּחֶ֫לֶתgechel gacheleth · coalH1513
- thereof; I have roastedצָלָהtsâlâh · to roastH6740
- fleshבָּשָׂרbâώâr · fleshH1320
- and eatenאָכַל'âkal · to eatH398
- and shall I makeעָשָׂה‛âώâh · to makeH6213
- the residueיֶ֫תֶרyether · remainderH3499
- thereof an abominationתּוֹעֵבַהtô‛êbah tô‛êbah · abominationH8441
- shall I fall downסָגַדsâgad · to prostrateH5456
- to the stockבּוּלbûl · produceH944
- of a treeעֵץ‛êts · tree: woodH6086
Cross-references for Isaiah 44:19
- Isaiah 46:8“Remember this, keep it in mind, take it to heart, you rebels.
- Exodus 7:23Instead, he turned and went into his palace, and did not take even this to heart.
- Deuteronomy 32:46he said to them, “Take to heart all the words I have solemnly declared to you this day, so that you may command your children to obey carefully all the words of this law.
- Ezekiel 40:4The man said to me, “Son of man, look carefully and listen closely and pay attention to everything I am going to show you, for that is why you have been brought here. Tell the people of Israel everything you see.”
- Haggai 1:5Now this is what the Lord Almighty says: “Give careful thought to your ways.
- Hosea 7:2but they do not realize that I remember all their evil deeds. Their sins engulf them; they are always before me.
- Deuteronomy 27:15“Cursed is anyone who makes an idol—a thing detestable to the Lord, the work of skilled hands—and sets it up in secret.” Then all the people shall say, “Amen!”
- 1 Kings 11:5He followed Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians, and Molek the detestable god of the Ammonites.
- 2 Kings 23:13The king also desecrated the high places that were east of Jerusalem on the south of the Hill of Corruption—the ones Solomon king of Israel had built for Ashtoreth the vile goddess of the Sidonians, for Chemosh the vile god of Moab, and for Molek the detestable god of the people of Ammon.
Commentaries on Isaiah 44:19
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 19And none considereth in his heart - Margin, Setteth to.‘ He does not place the subject near his heart or mind; he does not think of it. A similar phrase occurs in Isaiah 46:8: Bring it again to mind.‘ It is a phrase drawn from the act of placing an object near us, in order to examine it closely; and we express the same idea by the phrase looking at a thing,‘ or looking at it closely.‘ The sense is, they had not attentively and carefully thought on the…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 9-20Verses 9-20 Image-making is described, to expose the folly of idolaters. Though a man had used part of a log for fuel, he fell down before an image made of the remainder, praying it to deliver him. Man greatly dishonours God, when he represents him after the image of man. Satan blinds the eyes of unbelievers, causing absurd reasonings in matters of religion. Whether men seek happiness in worldly things, or run into unbelief, superstition, or any false…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 18-19closed their minds: Idol worshipers do not see the irony in using one part of a log for warmth and another part as their god.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1919. considereth--literally, "layeth it to heart," (Is 42:25; Jr 12:11). abomination--the scriptural term for an idol, not merely abominable, but the essence of what is so, in the eyes of a jealous God (1Ki 11:5, 7).Read the comment
Topics related to Isaiah 44:19
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Isaiah 44
- 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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