Jeremiah 10:4

4 and decorated with silver and gold. It is fastened down with nails to keep it from falling over.

Jeremiah 10:4 Meaning and Commentary

Jeremiah 10:4

They deck it with silver and with gold
Cover it with plates of silver and gold, for the sake of ornament, that it may look grand, majestic, and venerable; and by this means draw the eye and attention, and so the devotion of people to it: they fasten it with nails and hammers, that it move not.
The sense is, either that the idol was fastened to some post or pillar, or in some certain place on a pedestal, that it might not fall, it not being able otherwise to support itself; or the plates of silver and gold, as Kimchi thinks, were fastened to the idol with nails and hammers, that so they might not be taken away from it; for, were it not for the nails, the god would not be able to keep his silver and golden deckings.

Jeremiah 10:4 In-Context

2 He says, "Do not follow the ways of other nations; do not be disturbed by unusual sights in the sky, even though other nations are terrified.

3 The religion of these people is worthless. A tree is cut down in the forest; it is carved by the tools of the woodworker

4 and decorated with silver and gold. It is fastened down with nails to keep it from falling over.

5 Such idols are like scarecrows in a field of melons; they cannot speak; they have to be carried because they cannot walk. Do not be afraid of them: they can cause you no harm, and they can do you no good."

6 Lord, there is no one like you; you are mighty, and your name is great and powerful.