Will a man make gods for himself, Which are not gods?
Parallel translations
- WEB Shall a man make to himself gods, which yet are no gods?”
- KJV Shall a man make gods unto himself, and they are no gods?
- BSB Can man make gods for himself? Such are not gods!”
- NASB Can a person make gods for himself? But they are not gods!
- NLT Can people make their own gods? These are not real gods at all!”
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
The verse asks how a man can make gods for himself, which are not gods at all. It exposes the folly of idolatry, in which people manufacture and worship what cannot save.
Overview
This pointed question lays bare the absurdity of idol-making: created things fashioned by human hands are no gods at all. Scripture repeatedly mocks the powerlessness of idols against the living Creator (Isaiah 44:9-20). The verse calls all people to abandon every false god and worship the only true God, made known and accessible through His Son, Jesus Christ.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 9
- Ps 115:4–8Their idols are silver and gold, the work of men’s hands.
- Isa 37:19and have cast their gods into the fire; for they were no gods, but the work of men’s hands, wood and stone; therefore they have destroyed them.
- Gal 4:8However at that time, not knowing God, you were in bondage to those who by nature are not gods.
- Ps 135:14–18For Yahweh will judge his people, and have compassion on his servants.
- Hos 8:4–6They have set up kings, but not by me. They have made princes, and I didn’t approve. Of their silver and their gold they have made themselves idols, that they may be cut off.
- Acts 19:26You see and hear, that not at Ephesus alone, but almost throughout all Asia, this Paul has persuaded and turned away many people, saying that they are no gods, that are made with hands.
- Isa 36:19Where are the gods of Hamath and Arpad? Where are the gods of Sepharvaim? Have they delivered Samaria from my hand?
- Jer 2:11Has a nation changed its gods, which really are no gods? But my people have changed their glory for that which does not profit.
- Gal 1:8But even though we, or an angel from heaven, should preach to you any “good news” other than that which we preached to you, let him be cursed.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
Resources, by level
Commentaries & study tools
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Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.
Christ at the center
Against the failure of false shepherds Jeremiah promises the Righteous Branch, 'The LORD our righteousness,' and the new covenant written on the heart and sealed in the blood of Christ.
How Jeremiah 16:20 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.