Isaiah 46:6

They lavish gold out of the bag, and weigh silver in the balance, and hire a goldsmith; and he maketh it a god: they fall down, yea, they worship.

EXPOSITORY (ENGLISH BIBLE)

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary

46:5-13 Here the folly of those who made idols, and then prayed to them, is exposed. How does the profuseness of idolaters shame the stubbornness of many who call themselves God's servants, but are for a religion which costs them nothing! The service of sin always costs a great deal. God puts it to them what senseless, helpless things idols are. Let, then, the Jews show themselves men, avoiding such abominations. Many Scripture prophecies, delivered long ago, are not yet fulfilled; but the fulfilling of some is an earnest that the rest will come to pass. Nothing can help more to make us easy, than to be assured that God will do all his pleasure. Even those who know not and mind not God's revealed will, are called and used to fulfil the counsels of his secret will. Heaven and earth shall pass away, sooner than one tittle of the word of God. Obstinate sinners are addressed. Such were far from acceptance, but they were summoned to hearken to the word of the Lord. The salvation of a sinner begins with a humble and contrite heart, that trembles at God's word, with godly sorrow working true repentance, and faith in his mercy, through the obedience unto death of our Divine Surety. Christ, as the Divine righteousness and salvation to his people, would come in the appointed time. His salvation abides in his church for all believers.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

They lavish gold - The word used here means properly to shake out; and then to pour out abundantly, or in a lavish manner. It is used in connection with the idea of squandering in Deuteronomy 21:20; Proverbs 23:21; Proverbs 28:7. Here the idea is, that they spared no expense; they poured out gold as if it were vile and worthless, in order to make an idol. The design of this verse is, to show the superstition of those who were idolaters; and, particularly, how much they were willing to devote in order to maintain idol-worship.

Out of the bag - They pour their gold out of the bag, or purse, where they have kept it; that is, they lavish it freely.

And weigh silver in the balance - Perhaps the idea is here, that they used silver so lavishly that they did not wait to count it, but weighed it as they would the grosser metals. The word used here and translated 'balance' (קנה qâneh), means properly "cane, reed, calamus"; then a measuring reed or rod Ezekiel 40:3, Ezekiel 40:5; then a rod, or beam of a balance, or scales (Greek ζυγὸς zugos).

And hire a goldsmith - (See the notes at Isaiah 40:19-20).

And he maketh it a god - The goldsmith manufactures the gold and the silver into an image. The object of the prophet is to deride the custom of offering divine homage to a god formed in this manner (see the notes at Isaiah 44:9-19).

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

6. (Isa 40:19, 20; 41:7.) They lavish gold out of their purses and spare no expense for their idol. Their profuseness shames the stubbornness of professors who worship God with what cost them nothing. Sin is always a costly service.

Matthew Poole's Commentary

Maketh it a god; let us suppose, a god made with the greatest cost and art.

Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible

They lavish gold out of the bag,.... As if it was of no value and account; that is, the Heathen idolaters, some of them, who are excessively devoted to idolatry; these, being rich, take out their bags of gold, and give it in a very profuse manner to a workman to make a golden image for them, not caring what it cost them; such an one was that which Nebuchadnezzar made, sixty cubits high, and six broad, Daniel 3:1 see an instance of profuseness this way in the Israelites themselves, Exodus 32:2.

And weigh silver in the balance; or "with a reed" (o). Others, though idolaters, yet less devoted to idolatry, and more tenacious of their money, make silver do for a god, and weigh it out to the workman, that it be made of such a weight, and no more, and that they might not be cheated of their silver; or they weighed it to pay the workman for his workmanship. Money formerly was not coined and stamped, so not numbered by pieces, but weighed.

And hire a goldsmith, and he maketh it a god; a "finer" or "founder", with whom they agree for such a sum of money, and he, of the gold or silver that is put into his hands, makes a god: he casts and moulds it into such a form or shape that is agreed upon, and this is called a god; though nothing but a piece of gold or silver fashioned by art and man's device, and the work of his hands:

they fall down, yea, they worship; the god they made; both the artificer, and he that employed him, fall down upon their knees, or their faces, and pay divine worship add adoration to the idol; though the one knew it was made of his own gold or silver, and the other knew it to be the workmanship of his hands. Worshipping is more than falling down, as Ben Melech observes, and therefore it is said, yea, they worship.

(o) "in calamo", Pagninus, Montanus. The bar of the balance on which they hang the scales with threads, Ben Meleck says is called the "reed". So Vatablus.

Geneva Study Bible

They lavish gold out of the bag, and weigh silver in the balance, and hire a goldsmith; and he maketh it a god: they fall down, yea, they worship.

EXEGETICAL (ORIGINAL LANGUAGES)

Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges

6. They lavish gold &c.] Better as an exclamation of contempt: They that pour gold etc. The gold and silver are the material out of which the images (or at least their plating) are to be made by the goldsmith (Isaiah 40:19) who is hired for the work. The word for balance is qâneh (reed), never elsewhere used in this sense. It probably denotes the beam of the balance.

they fall down] The same word (ṣâgad) in Isaiah 44:15; Isaiah 44:17; Isaiah 44:19.

6, 7. Contemptuous description of idolatry in general. Comp. especially with ch. Isaiah 44:9-20.

Isaiah 46:6

Keil and Delitzsch Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament

The negative answer to this question is the direct result of what precedes, but a still further proof is given in Isaiah 46:6, Isaiah 46:7. "They who pour gold out of the bag, and weigh silver with the balance, hire a goldsmith to make it into a god, that they may fall down, yea, throw themselves down. They lift it up, carry it away upon their shoulder, and set it down in its place: there it stands; from its place it does not move: men also cry to it, but it does not answer; it saves no one out of distress." There is no necessity for assuming that הזּלים is used in the place of the finite verb, as Hitzig imagines, or as equivalent to זלים הם, as Rosenmller and Gesenius suppose; but up to ישׂכּרוּ the whole is subject, and therefore ישׁקלוּ is the point at which the change into the finite verb occurs (Ges. 131, 2). The point in hazzâlı̄m is not the extravagant expenditure, as Ewald thinks, but the mean origin of the god, which commences with the pouring out of gold from a purse (zūl equals zâlal, to shake, to pour out). Qâneh is the lever of the scales (κανών). The metal weighed out is given to a goldsmith, who plates the idol with the gold, and makes the ornaments for it of silver. When it is finished, they lift it up, or shoulder it (ישּׂאהוּ with a distinctive Great Telisha), carry it home, and set it down in the place which it is to have under it (תּחתּיו). There it stands firm, immoveable, and also deaf and dumb, hearing no one, answering no one, and helping no one. The subject to יצעק is any צעק. The first admonition closes here. The gods who are carried fall without being able to save themselves, whereas Israel's God carries and saves His people; He, the Incomparable, more especially in contrast with the lifeless puppets of idols.