46:6 Those who empty out gold from a purse
and weigh out silver on the scale 3
hire a metalsmith, who makes it into a god.
They then bow down and worship it.
46:7 They put it on their shoulder and carry it;
they put it in its place and it just stands there;
it does not 4 move from its place.
Even when someone cries out to it, it does not reply;
it does not deliver him from his distress.
10:14 All these idolaters 5 will prove to be stupid and ignorant.
Every goldsmith will be disgraced by the idol he made.
For the image he forges is merely a sham. 6
There is no breath in any of those idols. 7
1 tn The verb is a perfect tense, reflecting the present perfect nuance: “they have turned aside” and are still disobedient. But the verb is modified with the adverb “quickly” (actually a Piel infinitive absolute). It has been only a matter of weeks since they heard the voice of God prohibiting this.
2 sn Regarding the difficult etymology and meaning of the term for “idols” (אֱלִילִים, ’elilim), see B. A. Levine, Leviticus (JPSTC), 126; J. E. Hartley, Leviticus (WBC), 304; N. H. Snaith, Leviticus and Numbers (NBC), 89; and Judith M. Hadley, NIDOTTE 1:411. It appears to be a diminutive play on words with אֵל (’el, “god; God”) and, perhaps at the same time, recalls a common Semitic word for “worthless; weak; powerless; nothingness.” Snaith suggests a rendering of “worthless godlings.”
3 tn Heb “the reed,” probably referring to the beam of a scales. See BDB 889 s.v. קָנֶה 4.c.
4 tn Or perhaps, “cannot,” here and in the following two lines. The imperfect forms can indicate capability.
5 tn Heb “Every man.” But in the context this is not a reference to all people without exception but to all idolaters. The referent is made explicit for the sake of clarity.
6 tn Or “nothing but a phony god”; Heb “a lie/falsehood.”
7 tn Heb “There is no breath in them.” The referent is made explicit so that no one will mistakenly take it to refer to the idolaters or goldsmiths.
8 tn Or “the divine being.” BDAG 446 s.v. θεῖος 1.b has “divine being, divinity” here.
9 tn Or “a likeness.” Again idolatry is directly attacked as an affront to God and a devaluation of him.
10 tn Grk “by the skill and imagination of man,” but ἀνθρώπου (anqrwpou) has been translated as an attributive genitive.
11 tn Or “craftsmanship” (cf. BDAG 1001 s.v. τέχνη).
12 tn Or “thought.” BDAG 336 s.v. ἐνθύμησις has “thought, reflection, idea” as the category of meaning here, but in terms of creativity (as in the context) the imaginative faculty is in view.
13 tn Grk “persuading.” The participle πείσας (peisa") has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style.
14 tn Or “misled.”
15 tn BDAG 472 s.v. ἱκανός 3.a has “of pers. ὄχλος a large crowd…Ac 11:24, 26; 19:26.”
16 map For location see JP1-D2; JP2-D2; JP3-D2; JP4-D2.
17 tn Grk “Asia”; see the note on this word in v. 22.
18 tn The participle λέγων (legwn) has been regarded as indicating instrumentality.
19 tn The words “at all” are not in the Greek text but are implied.