Isaiah 2:8
in Isaiah 2Their land is full of idols; they bow down to the work of their hands, to what their fingers have made.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
Their land also is full of idols; they worship the work of their own hands, that which their own fingers have made.
KJV
Their land also is full of idols; they worship the work of their own hands, that which their own fingers have made:
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This verse in Isaiah 2
Commentary
11 notes on this verse(Verse 8) And the land was filled with silver and gold, and there was no end to its treasure. Among the other vices of the earth, the house of Jacob is also counted for its abundance of gold and silver. Among all the omens and divinations, the horses and chariots that God prohibited the kings of Israel from multiplying are condemned. Among the idols, which are the works of human hands, greed is condemned.
This site's exposition
Their land is full of silver
on Isaiah 2:7-9
Verses 7 and 8 list the wealth in three items, treasure, horses and idols, each one a substitute for trust in the LORD. Horses and chariots without limit recall the law for kings at Deuteronomy 17:16. The idols indict themselves by their own description, "the work of their hands."
This site's exposition
Their land is full of idols
Verse 7 counted Judah's silver, gold, horses and chariots, and verse 8 finishes the count with idols. Matthew Henry saw a worse wrong in idols made from the silver and gold God had given. The king's law in Deuteronomy 17 forbade hoarding them.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers3 voices
Not only do human beings "make gods for themselves" from statues, but you will also find them "making gods for themselves" from their imaginations. For such people can imagine another god and creator of the world in a system different from the divine plan of the world recorded by the Spirit, other than the true world. These all have "made gods for themselves," and they have "worshiped the works of their hands." So, too, I believe is the case either among the Greeks who generate opinions, so to speak, of this philosophy or that, or among the heretics, the first who generate opinions. These have "made idols for themselves" and figments of the soul, and by turning to them "they worship the works of their hands," since they accept as truth their own fabrications.
Vanity is the general term for vices, but vain in the particular sense means that which is found alien to God. Just as trusting in the Godhead is fruitful constancy, so deviating from him is the vanity that perishes.… So those who burned with the …
Someone might ask, what is wrong with having silver or horses, particularly when what the people believed was not rigorous? How should we respond? The prophet was not criticizing the use of these possessions but the misuse of them. When he said, "Woe to the mighty," he was not condemning them for having possessions but for hoarding so much more than they needed.
The Medieval Church1 voice
Here he denounces in them the worship of idolatry; and he adds to the weight of this from three things. First, from its multitude, where he says, "also is full": "Ephraim has made many altars to sin" (Hos 7:11); "under every green tree, and on …
The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice
It was an aggravation of their idolatry that God had enriched them with silver and gold, and yet of that silver and gold they made idols; so it was, Jeshurun waxed fat, and kicked, see Hos. ii.
3 more voices on this verse
The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice
Their land also is full of idols,.... Of the Virgin Mary, and of saints departed, whose images are set up to be worshipped in all their churches, and had in private houses: and they worship the work of their own hands, that which their own fingers have made; namely, idols of gold, silver, brass, wood, and stone, Rev 9:20.
The Nineteenth Century2 voices
Their land also is full of idols “And his land is filled with idols” - Uzziah and Fotham are both said, 2Ki 15:3, 2Ki 15:4, 2Ki 15:34, 2Ki 15:35, “to have done that which was right in the sight of the Lord;” that is, to have adhered to and maintained the legal worship of God, in opposition to idolatry and all irregular worship; for to this sense the meaning of that phrase is commonly to be restrained; “save that the high places were not removed where the people still sacrificed and burned incense.” There was hardly any time when they were quite free from this irregular and unlawful practice, which they seem to have looked upon as very consistent with the true worship of God; and which seems in some measure to have been tolerated, while the tabernacle was removed from place to place, and before the temple was built.
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
proposed
Their land also is full of idols - compare Hos 8:4; Hos 10:1. Vitringa supposes that Isaiah here refers to idols that were kept in private houses, as Uzziah and Jotham were worshippers of the true God, and in their reign idolatry was not publicly practiced. It is certain, however, that though Uzziah himself did right, and was disposed to worship the true God, yet he did not effectually remove idolatry from the land. The high places were not removed, and the people still sacrificed and burned incense on them; 2Ki 15:4. It was customary with the pagan to keep in their houses “Penates or household gods” - small images, which they regarded as “protectors,” and to which they paid homage: compare Gen 30:19; Jdg 17:5; 1Sa 19:13; Hos 3:4. ‘This is a true and literal description of India. The traveler cannot proceed a “mile” through an inhabited country without seeing idols, and vestiges of idolatry in every direction. See their vessles, their implements of husbandry, their houses, their furniture, their ornaments, their sacred trees, their “domestic” and public temples; and they all declare that the land is full of idols.’ - “Roberts.” The work of their own hands ... - Idols. It is often brought as proof of their great folly and degradation that they paid homage to what “they” had themselves made. See this severely satirized in Isa 40:18-20; Isa 41:6-7; Isa 44:9-17.
The words behind it
9 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וַתִּמָּלֵ֥א | vatimale' | and it has been filled | H4390 → | 249 times |
| אַרְצ֖וֹ | ʾartzo | land its | H776 → | 2504 times |
| אֱלִילִ֑ים | ʾelilim | idols | H457 → | 20 times |
| לְמַעֲשֵׂ֤ה | lemaaseh | to [the] work of | H4639 → | 236 times |
| יָדָיו֙ | yadav | hands his | H3027 → | 1618 times |
| יִֽשְׁתַּחֲו֔וּ | yishtachavu | they bow down | H7812 → | 172 times |
| לַאֲשֶׁ֥ר | laasher | to [that] which | H834 → | 5497 times |
| עָשׂ֖וּ | ʾasu | they have made | H6213 → | 2628 times |
| אֶצְבְּעֹתָֽיו׃ | ʾetzbeotav | fingers his | H676 → | 31 times |
וַתִּמָּלֵ֥אand it has been filled
vatimale'H4390 →249 times
אַרְצ֖וֹland its
ʾartzoH776 →2504 times
אֱלִילִ֑יםidols
ʾelilimH457 →20 times
לְמַעֲשֵׂ֤הto [the] work of
lemaasehH4639 →236 times
יָדָיו֙hands his
yadavH3027 →1618 times
יִֽשְׁתַּחֲו֔וּthey bow down
yishtachavuH7812 →172 times
לַאֲשֶׁ֥רto [that] which
laasherH834 →5497 times
עָשׂ֖וּthey have made
ʾasuH6213 →2628 times
אֶצְבְּעֹתָֽיו׃fingers his
ʾetzbeotavH676 →31 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Revelation 9:20Now the rest of mankind who were not killed by these plagues still did not repent of the works of their hands. They did not stop worshiping demons and idols of gold, silver, bronze,…
it leads to
- Daniel 5:23
Instead, you have exalted yourself against the Lord of heaven. The vessels from His house were brought to you, and as you drank wine from them with your nobles, wives, and concubines, you praised…
- Deuteronomy 31:29
For I know that after my death you will become utterly corrupt and turn from the path I have commanded you. And in the days to come, disaster will befall you because you will…
- 1 Timothy 4:1
Now the Spirit expressly states that in later times some will abandon the faith to follow deceitful spirits and the teachings of demons,
- Romans 1:21–23
For although they knew God, they neither glorified Him as God nor gave thanks to Him, but they became futile in their thinking and darkened in their foolish hearts.
- Revelation 9:21
Furthermore, they did not repent of their murder, sorcery, sexual immorality, and theft.
- Daniel 5:23
Through
Acts 17:16While Paul was waiting for them in Athens, he was deeply disturbed in his spirit to see that the city was full of idols.
it leads to
- Psalms 119:158
I look on the faithless with loathing because they do not keep Your word.
- Psalms 119:158
Through
Jeremiah 2:28But where are the gods you made for yourselves? Let them rise up in your time of trouble and save you if they can; for your gods are as numerous as your cities, O…
it leads to
- Jeremiah 11:13
Your gods are indeed as numerous as your cities, O Judah; the altars of shame you have set up—the altars to burn incense to Baal—are as many as the streets of Jerusalem.’
- Deuteronomy 32:37
He will say: “Where are their gods, the rock in which they took refuge,
- Jeremiah 11:13
Where this verse is studied
About Isaiah
This page draws on 10 works. Open the list of works
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes on the Book of Isaiah; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Cassiodorus, EXPOSITION OF THE PSALMS 4:3; Jerome, Commentary on Isaiah; John Chrysostom, COMMENTARY ON ISAIAH 2:7; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible; Origen of Alexandria, HOMILIES ON JEREMIAH 16:9.1 and Thomas Aquinas, Commentary on Isaiah.