Jeremiah 16:20

20 Do people make their own gods? Yes, but they are not gods!”

Jeremiah 16:20 in Other Translations

KJV
20 Shall a man make gods unto himself, and they are no gods?
ESV
20 Can man make for himself gods? Such are not gods!"
NLT
20 Can people make their own gods? These are not real gods at all!”
MSG
20 Can mortals manufacture gods? Their factories turn out no-gods!
CSB
20 Can one make gods for himself? But they are not gods.

Jeremiah 16:20 Meaning and Commentary

Jeremiah 16:20

Shall a man make gods unto himself
Can a man make his own gods? a poor, weak, mortal man? can he make gods of gold, silver, brass, wood, or stone? can he put deity into them? and when he has made images of these, can he be so stupid as to account them gods, and worship them? can he be so sottish, and void of understanding, as to imagine that anything that is made by himself or any other, can be God? and they are no gods;
that are made by men; he only is the true God, that is the Maker and Creator of all things; or they are no gods themselves that pretend to make them, and therefore how should they make gods? can they give that which they have not? or impart deity to others which they have not themselves? These words are a continuation of the speech of the Gentiles, and contain their reasonings, exposing the folly of their idolatrous ancestors: though some take them to be the words of God, or of the prophet, inveighing against the Jews for their stupidity in worshipping idols; when the Gentiles were convinced of the folly and vanity of such practices, and acknowledged it.

Jeremiah 16:20 In-Context

18 I will repay them double for their wickedness and their sin, because they have defiled my land with the lifeless forms of their vile images and have filled my inheritance with their detestable idols.”
19 LORD, my strength and my fortress, my refuge in time of distress, to you the nations will come from the ends of the earth and say, “Our ancestors possessed nothing but false gods, worthless idols that did them no good.
20 Do people make their own gods? Yes, but they are not gods!”
21 “Therefore I will teach them— this time I will teach them my power and might. Then they will know that my name is the LORD.

Cross References 1

  • 1. Psalms 115:4-7; Isaiah 37:19; S Jeremiah 2:11; Romans 1:23
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