Wisdom 13:6-16

6 But maybe we are too harsh with these people. After all, they may have really wanted to find God, but couldn't.
7 Surrounded by God's works, they keep on looking at them, until they are finally convinced that because the things they see are so beautiful, they must be gods.
8 But still, these people really have no excuse.
9 If they had enough intelligence to speculate about the nature of the universe, why did they never find the Lord of all things?
10 But the most miserable people of all are those who rest their hopes on lifeless things, who worship things that have been made by human hands - images of animals artistically made from gold and silver, or some useless stone carved by someone years ago. 1
11 A skilled woodworker may saw down some suitable tree, carefully strip off the bark, and then, with skillful craftsmanship, make from it an object that will serve some useful purpose.
12 He will take the leftover pieces and use them as firewood to cook a meal that he can sit down to and enjoy.
13 But among that scrap wood he may take one piece that isn't good for anything - maybe it's crooked and full of knots - and carefully carve it in his leisure time, using spare moments to shape it into the crude image of a person,
14 or maybe of some worthless animal. He paints it all over with red, covering up every flaw in the work.
15 Then he prepares a suitable place in the wall for it and fastens it in place with iron nails.
16 He is careful to keep it from falling, because he knows it is only an idol and needs help; it cannot help itself.

Cross References 1

  • 1. 13.10--14.31Isaiah 44.9-20;Jeremiah 10.1-16; LetJeremiah 8-73.
Scripture taken from the Good News Translation - Second Edition, Copyright 1992 by American Bible Society. Used by Permission.