1    ^noteA copy of a letter sent by Jeremiah to the captives who were to be taken to Babylon by the king of Babylon, conveying a message entrusted to him by God.

2   The sins you have committed in the sight of God are the cause of your being led away captive to Babylon by Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon. 3   Once you are in Babylon, your stay there will be long; it will last for many years, up to seven generations; but afterwards I will lead you out in peace and prosperity.

4   Now in Babylon you will see carried on men's shoulders gods made of silver, gold, and wood, which fill the heathen with awe. 5   Be careful, then, never to imitate these Gentiles; do not be overawed by their gods when you see them in the midst of a procession of worshippers. 6   But say in your hearts, ‘To thee alone, Lord, is worship due.’ 7   For my angel is with you; your lives are in his care.

8   The idols are plated with gold and silver, they have tongues fashioned by a craftsman, but they are a fraud and cannot speak. 9   And the people take gold and make crowns for the heads of their gods, as one might for a girl fond of finery. 10   Sometimes also the priests filch gold and silver from their gods and spend it on themselves; 11   they will even give some of it to the prostitutes in the inner chamber. They dress up the idols in clothes like human beings, these gods of silver, gold, and wood. 12   But the gods, decked in purple though they are, cannot protect themselves against rust and moth. 13   The dust in the temple, too, lies thick upon them, so that their faces have to be wiped clean. 14   Like a human judge the god holds a sceptre, yet he cannot put to death anyone who offends him. 15   In his right hand he has a dagger and an axe, yet he cannot deliver himself from war and pillage. 16   This shows they are not gods, so have no fear of them.

The folly of idolatry

17   Their gods are no more use than a broken tool, sitting there in their temples. Their eyes get filled with dust from the feet of those who come in. 18   And just as the palace-court is barricaded to secure a traitor awaiting execution, so the priests secure their temples with doors and bolts and bars to guard against plundering by robbers. 19   They light lamps, more than they need for themselves—yet the idols can see none of them. 20    21   They are like one of the beams of the temple; their hearts are eaten out, as the saying is, for creatures crawl out of the ground and devour them and their clothing. When their faces are blackened by the smoke of the temple they are quite unaware of it. 22   Bats and swallows and birds of all kinds perch on their heads and bodies, and cats do the same. 23   From all this you may be sure that they are not gods, so have no fear of them.

24   Though plated with gold for ornament, the idols will not shine, unless someone rubs off the tarnish. Even when they were being cast they did not feel it. 25   They were bought at great cost, but there is no breath in them. 26   As they have no real feet they are carried on men's shoulders, which shows how worthless they are. 27   Even those who serve them are ashamed, because if ever an idol falls on the ground, it does not get up by itself; nor, if anyone sets it up again, can it move by its own effort, and if it is tilted it cannot straighten itself. To set offerings before them is like setting them before the dead. 28   The sacrifices made to gods are sold by the priests, who spend the proceeds on themselves. Their wives are no better; they take portions of these sacrifices and cure the meat, and give no share to the poor or helpless. 29   Their offerings are touched by women who are menstruating or by mothers fresh from childbed. Be assured by all this that they are not gods, and have no fear of them.

30   Why should they be called gods? These gods of silver, gold, and wood have food served to them by women. 31   In their temples the priests sit shaven and shorn, with their clothes rent, and their heads uncovered. 32   They shout and howl before these gods of theirs, like mourners at a funeral feast. 33   The priests strip vestments from the gods to clothe their own wives and children. 34   Should anyone do these gods either injury or service they will not be able to repay it. They cannot set up or depose a king. 35   So also they are incapable of bestowing wealth or money; if someone makes a vow to them and does not honour it, they will never exact payment. 36   They will never save any man from death, never rescue the weak from the strong. 37   They cannot

The folly of idolatry restore the blind man's sight or give relief to the needy. 38   They do not pity the widow or befriend the orphan. 39   They are like blocks from the quarry, these wooden things plated with gold and silver, and their worshippers will be humiliated. 40   How then can anyone suppose them to be gods or call them so?

Besides, even the Chaldaeans themselves bring these idols of theirs into disrepute; 41   for, when they see a dumb man without the power of articulate speech, they bring him into the temple and make him call upon Bel, as if Bel could understand him. 42   They cannot see the folly of it and abandon the idols, because they themselves have no understanding. 43   The women too sit in the street with cords round them, burning bran for incense. And when a passer-by has pulled one of them to him and she has lain with him, she taunts her neighbour, because she has not been thought as attractive as herself and her cord has not been broken. 44   Everything to do with these idols is fraud and delusion. How then can anyone suppose them to be gods or call them so?

45   They are things manufactured by carpenters and goldsmiths; they can be nothing but what the craftsmen wish them to be. 46   Even their makers' lives cannot be prolonged; what, then, can the things they make expect? 47   It is simply a scandalous fraud that they have bequeathed to posterity. 48   When war and disasters befall the gods, it is the priests who discuss amongst themselves where they and their gods can hide. 49   How then can men fail to see that these are not gods, when they cannot save themselves from war and disaster? 50   Since they are nothing but wood plated with gold and silver, they will in time be recognized for the frauds they are. 51   All the heathen and their kings will plainly see that they are not gods but the work of men's hands, with no divine power in them at all. 52   Can there still be anyone who does not realize that they are not gods?

53   They cannot set up a king over a country, and they cannot give men rain. 54   They cannot decide a case or redress a wrong. ^noteThey are as helpless as crows tossed about in mid air. 55   When fire breaks out in a temple belonging to those wooden gods all gilded and silvered, their priests will run away to safety, but the gods will be burnt up in the flames like timbers. 56   They cannot resist king or enemy. How then can anyone allow or believe that they are gods?

57   They cannot save themselves from thieves and robbers, these

The folly of idolatry wooden gods, plated with silver and gold. 58   Anyone who can will strip away their gold and silver and make off with the clothing they wear, and the gods can do nothing to help themselves. 59   It is better to be a king who proves his courage than such a sham god, better a household vessel that serves its owner's purpose, better even the door of a house that keeps the contents safe, or a wooden pillar in a palace. 60   Sun and moon and the stars that shine so brightly are sent to serve a purpose, and they obey. 61   So too, when the lightning flashes, it is seen far and wide. It is the same with the wind; it blows in every land. 62   And when God orders the clouds to travel over all the world they carry out their task, 63   and so does fire when it is sent down from above to consume mountains and forests. But idols are not to be compared with any of these, in appearance or in power. 64   It follows that they are not to be considered gods or called by that name, seeing that they are incapable of pronouncing judgement or of conferring benefits on mankind. 65   Recognize, therefore, that they are not gods, and have no fear of them.

66   They wield no power over kings, either to curse them or to bless them; 67   and they cannot provide heavenly signs for the nations, either by shining like the sun or by giving light like the moon. 68   They are more helpless than wild beasts, which can at least save themselves by taking cover. 69   There is no evidence at all that they are gods, so have no fear of them.

70   These wooden gods of theirs, plated with gold and silver, give no better protection than a scarecrow in a plot of cucumbers. 71   They are like a thorn-bush in a garden, a perch for every bird, like a corpse cast out in the dark. Such are their wooden gods, with their plating of gold and silver. 72   The purple and fine linen ^note rotting on them proves that they are not gods; in the end they will themselves be eaten away, held in contempt throughout the land.

73   Better, then, is an upright man who has no idols; he will be in no danger of contempt.

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