16 He burns part of the tree to roast his meat
and to keep himself warm.
He says, “Ah, that fire feels good.”
17 Then he takes what’s left
and makes his god: a carved idol!
He falls down in front of it,
worshiping and praying to it.
“Rescue me!” he says.
“You are my god!”
18 Such stupidity and ignorance!
Their eyes are closed, and they cannot see.
Their minds are shut, and they cannot think.
19 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?”
20 The poor, deluded fool feeds on ashes.
He trusts something that can’t help him at all.
Yet he cannot bring himself to ask,
“Is this idol that I’m holding in my hand a lie?”
Have someone read Isaiah 44:6-20 out loud to you. It’s almost impossible not to audibly laugh as you listen to the absurdity of it. Why would anyone believe that a carved piece of wood might have some mystical spiritual powers? The enlightened, mature, Bible believing, disciples of Christ who attend Hicksville Mennonite certainly wouldn’t be so foolish! And yet, haven’t we set up things in our hearts that often take the place of God? Why are certain things so significant to us? Why do we spend all of our money on such trivial things? Why do we view things as absolutely essential when they only take our minds off of Jesus? Could it be that our idols are just as absurd as the ones bashed by Isaiah? Are we just like the idol makers in Isaiah’s time, too blind to see our own delusions?
Submitted by Pastor Jay
