Isaiah 44:14

He cuts down cedars or retrieves a cypress or oak. He lets it grow strong among the trees of the forest. He plants a laurel, and the rain makes it grow.

Berean Standard Bible

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Study note

Setting — The prophet addresses Israel while narrating a woodworker's preparation of timber for an idol. This description occurs between verses detailing the crafting of the image and its subsequent misuse as fuel and deity.

The words — לִכְרָת (li/kh.rot) means "to cut down" and אֲרָזִים ('a.ra.Zim) means "cedars," establishing the specific harvesting of valuable timber. The verb וַיְאַמֵּץ (va/y.'a.metz) translates as "he strengthened," describing how the wood is allowed to mature among the forest trees.

The thread — This preparation of wood for idolatry appears in Isaiah 40:20 and Jeremiah 10:3, where craftsmen select and shape timber for false gods. Hosea 4:12 references consulting wooden idols and divining rods but does not describe the cutting or harvesting of trees.

Why it lands — The text records the physical labor of selecting and maturing wood before any crafting begins, highlighting the mundane origins of the idol. It demands a reader recognize that the material used for worship is merely cultivated timber, not a divine substance.

Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.

The Hebrew words

לִכְרָת־li/kh.rot-to/ cut downל֣וֹl/ofor <the>/ himselfאֲרָזִ֔ים'a.ra.Zimcedars וַיִּקַּ֤חva/i.yi.Kachand/ he took תִּרְזָה֙tir.Zaha cypress וְאַלּ֔וֹןve./'a.Lonand/ an oak וַיְאַמֶּץ־va/y.'a.metz-and/ he strengthened [it]ל֖וֹl/ofor <the>/ himselfבַּעֲצֵי־ba./'a.tzei-among/ [the] trees of יָ֑עַרYa.'ar[the] forest נָטַ֥עna.Ta'he plants אֹ֖רֶן'O.renlaurel וְגֶ֥שֶׁםve./Ge.shemand/ rain יְגַדֵּֽל׃ye.ga.Delit makes [it] grow

King James Version

He heweth him down cedars, and taketh the cypress and the oak, which he strengtheneth for himself among the trees of the forest: he planteth an ash, and the rain doth nourish it.

Cross-references

Isaiah 40:20 One lacking such an offering chooses wood that will not rot. He seeks a skilled craftsman to set up an idol that will not topple.
Jeremiah 10:3 For the customs of the peoples are worthless; they cut down a tree from the forest; it is shaped with a chisel by the hands of a craftsman.
Hosea 4:12 My people consult their wooden idols, and their divining rods inform them. For a spirit of prostitution leads them astray and they have played the harlot against their God.
Habakkuk 2:19 Woe to him who says to wood, ‘Awake!’ or to silent stone, ‘Arise!’ Can it give guidance? Behold, it is overlaid with gold and silver, yet there is no breath in it at all.”