Ésaïe 41:24

24 Voici, vous n'êtes rien, Et votre oeuvre est le néant; C'est une abomination que de se complaire en vous.

Ésaïe 41:24 Meaning and Commentary

Isaiah 41:24

Behold, ye are of nothing
Not as to the matter of them, for they were made of gold, silver, brass but as to the divinity of them: there was none in them, they were of no worth and value; they could do nothing, either good or evil, either help their friends, or hurt their enemies; yea, they were less than nothing; for the words may be rendered by way of comparison, "behold, ye are less than nothing"; {a}. (See Gill on Isaiah 40:17); and your work of nought;
the workmanship bestowed on them, in casting or carving them, was all to no purpose, and answered no end; or the work they did, or pretended to do, their feigned oracles, and false predictions: or, "worse than nothing": some render it, "worse than a viper" ^F2; a word like this is used for one, ( Isaiah 49:5 ) and so denotes the poisonous and pernicious effects of idolatry: an abomination is he that chooseth you;
as the object of his worship; he is not only abominable, but an abomination itself to God, and to all men of sense and religion; for the choice he makes of an idol to be his god shows him to be a man void of common sense and reason, and destitute of all true religion and godliness, and must be a stupid sottish creature. The Targum is,

``an abomination is that which ye have chosen for yourselves, or in which ye delight;''

meaning their idols. This is the final issue of the controversy, and the judgment passed both upon the idols and their worshippers.

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FOOTNOTES:

F1 (Nyam Mta) "vos minus quam nihil [estis]", Junius & Tremellius, Piscator.
F2 (epam) "pejus [opere] viperae", Junius & Tremellius; "pejus [est opere] basilisci", Piscator.

Ésaïe 41:24 In-Context

22 Qu'ils les produisent, et qu'ils nous déclarent Ce qui doit arriver. Quelles sont les prédictions que jadis vous avez faites? Dites-le, pour que nous y prenions garde, Et que nous en reconnaissions l'accomplissement; Ou bien, annoncez-nous l'avenir.

23 Dites ce qui arrivera plus tard, Pour que nous sachions si vous êtes des dieux; Faites seulement quelque chose de bien ou de mal, Pour que nous le voyions et le regardions ensemble.

24 Voici, vous n'êtes rien, Et votre oeuvre est le néant; C'est une abomination que de se complaire en vous.

25 Je l'ai suscité du septentrion, et il est venu; De l'orient, il invoque mon nom; Il foule les puissants comme de la boue, Comme de l'argile que foule un potier.

26 Qui l'a annoncé dès le commencement, pour que nous le sachions, Et longtemps d'avance, pour que nous disions: C'est vrai? Nul ne l'a annoncé, nul ne l'a prédit, Et personne n'a entendu vos paroles.