Isaiah 37:19
New International Version
They have thrown their gods into the fire and destroyed them, for they were not gods but only wood and stone, fashioned by human hands.

New Living Translation
And they have thrown the gods of these nations into the fire and burned them. But of course the Assyrians could destroy them! They were not gods at all—only idols of wood and stone shaped by human hands.

English Standard Version
and have cast their gods into the fire. For they were no gods, but the work of men’s hands, wood and stone. Therefore they were destroyed.

Berean Standard Bible
They have cast their gods into the fire and destroyed them, for they were not gods, but only wood and stone—the work of human hands.

King James Bible
And 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.

New King James Version
and have cast their gods into the fire; for they were not gods, but the work of men’s hands—wood and stone. Therefore they destroyed them.

New American Standard Bible
and have thrown their gods into the fire, for they were not gods but only the work of human hands, wood and stone. So they have destroyed them.

NASB 1995
and have cast their gods into the fire, for they were not gods but the work of men’s hands, wood and stone. So they have destroyed them.

NASB 1977
and have cast their gods into the fire, for they were not gods but the work of men’s hands, wood and stone. So they have destroyed them.

Legacy Standard Bible
and have cast their gods into the fire, for they were not gods but the work of men’s hands, wood and stone. So they have destroyed them.

Amplified Bible
and have cast the gods [of those peoples] into the fire, for they were not gods but the work of men’s hands, wood and stone. Therefore they have destroyed them.

Christian Standard Bible
They have thrown their gods into the fire, for they were not gods but made from wood and stone by human hands. So they have destroyed them.

Holman Christian Standard Bible
They have thrown their gods into the fire, for they were not gods but made by human hands—wood and stone. So they have destroyed them.

American Standard Version
and 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.

Contemporary English Version
They destroyed the idols of wood and stone that the people of those nations had made and worshiped.

English Revised Version
and 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.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
They have thrown the gods from these countries into fires because these gods aren't real gods. They're only wooden and stone statues made by human hands. So the Assyrians have destroyed them.

Good News Translation
and burned up their gods--which were no gods at all, only images of wood and stone made by human hands.

International Standard Version
and have thrown their gods into the fire—but they are not gods, but rather the products of human hands, mere wood and stone. So the Assyrians destroyed them.

Majority Standard Bible
They have cast their gods into the fire and destroyed them, for they were not gods, but only wood and stone—the work of human hands.

NET Bible
They have burned the gods of the nations, for they are not really gods, but only the product of human hands manufactured from wood and stone. That is why the Assyrians could destroy them.

New Heart English Bible
and 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.

Webster's Bible Translation
And 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.

World English Bible
and 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.
Literal Translations
Literal Standard Version
so as to put their gods into fire—for they [are] no gods, but work of the hands of man, wood and stone—and they destroy them.

Young's Literal Translation
so as to put their gods into fire -- for they are no gods, but work of the hands of man, wood and stone -- and they destroy them.

Smith's Literal Translation
And he gave their gods into fire; for they were not God but the work of man's hands, wood and stone: and they will destroy them.
Catholic Translations
Douay-Rheims Bible
And they have cast their gods into the fire, for they were not gods, but the works of men's hands, of wood and stone: and they broke them in pieces.

Catholic Public Domain Version
And they have cast their gods into the fire. For these were not gods, but the works of men’s hands, of wood and of stone. And they broke them into pieces.

New American Bible
They gave their gods to the fire —they were not gods at all, but the work of human hands— Wood and stone, they destroyed them.

New Revised Standard Version
and have hurled their gods into the fire, though they were no gods, but the work of human hands—wood and stone—and so they were destroyed.
Translations from Aramaic
Lamsa Bible
And have burned their lands and their gods with fire; for they were no gods, but the work of men's hands, of wood, of silver, and of stone; therefore they have destroyed them.

Peshitta Holy Bible Translated
And their gods they have burned in fire because they were not gods, but the work of the hands of men, of wood and of silver and of stone, and they destroyed them
OT Translations
JPS Tanakh 1917
and 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.

Brenton Septuagint Translation
and have cast their idols into the fire: for, they were no gods, but the work of men's hands, wood and stone; and they have cast them away.

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
Hezekiah's Prayer
18Truly, O LORD, the kings of Assyria have laid waste all these countries and their lands. 19They have cast their gods into the fire and destroyed them, for they were not gods, but only wood and stone— the work of human hands. 20And now, O LORD our God, save us from his hand, so that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that You alone, O LORD, are God.”…

Cross References
2 Kings 19:18
They have cast their gods into the fire and destroyed them, for they were not gods, but only wood and stone—the work of human hands.

Jeremiah 10:11
Thus you are to tell them: “These gods, who have made neither the heavens nor the earth, will perish from this earth and from under these heavens.”

Psalm 115:4-8
Their idols are silver and gold, made by the hands of men. / They have mouths, but cannot speak; they have eyes, but cannot see; / they have ears, but cannot hear; they have noses, but cannot smell; ...

Psalm 135:15-18
The idols of the nations are silver and gold, made by the hands of men. / They have mouths, but cannot speak; they have eyes, but cannot see; / they have ears, but cannot hear; nor is there breath in their mouths. ...

Deuteronomy 4:28
And there you will serve man-made gods of wood and stone, which cannot see or hear or eat or smell.

1 Corinthians 8:4-6
So about eating food sacrificed to idols: We know that an idol is nothing at all in the world, and that there is no God but one. / For even if there are so-called gods, whether in heaven or on earth (as there are many so-called gods and lords), / yet for us there is but one God, the Father, from whom all things came and for whom we exist. And there is but one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom all things came and through whom we exist.

1 Kings 18:26-29
And they took the bull that was given them, prepared it, and called on the name of Baal from morning until noon, shouting, “O Baal, answer us!” But there was no sound, and no one answered as they leaped around the altar they had made. / At noon Elijah began to taunt them, saying, “Shout louder, for he is a god! Perhaps he is deep in thought, or occupied, or on a journey. Perhaps he is sleeping and must be awakened!” / So they shouted louder and cut themselves with knives and lances, as was their custom, until the blood gushed over them. ...

Jeremiah 16:20
Can man make gods for himself? Such are not gods!”

Acts 17:29
Therefore, being offspring of God, we should not think that the Divine Being is like gold or silver or stone, an image formed by man’s skill and imagination.

Habakkuk 2:18-19
What use is an idol, that a craftsman should carve it—or an image, a teacher of lies? For its maker trusts in his own creation; he makes idols that cannot speak. / 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.”

Revelation 9:20
Now the rest of mankind who were not killed by these plagues still did not repent of the works of their hands. They did not stop worshiping demons and idols of gold, silver, bronze, stone, and wood, which cannot see or hear or walk.

Exodus 20:3-5
You shall have no other gods before Me. / You shall not make for yourself an idol in the form of anything in the heavens above, on the earth below, or in the waters beneath. / You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on their children to the third and fourth generations of those who hate Me,

2 Chronicles 32:19
They spoke against the God of Jerusalem as they had spoken against the gods of the peoples of the earth—the work of human hands.

Isaiah 44:9-20
All makers of idols are nothing, and the things they treasure are worthless. Their witnesses fail to see or comprehend, so they are put to shame. / Who fashions a god or casts an idol which profits him nothing? / Behold, all his companions will be put to shame, for the craftsmen themselves are only human. Let them all assemble and take their stand; they will all be brought to terror and shame. ...

Isaiah 46:6-7
They pour out their bags of gold and weigh out silver on scales; they hire a goldsmith to fashion it into a god, so they can bow down and worship. / They lift it to their shoulder and carry it along; they set it in its place, and there it stands, not budging from that spot. They cry out to it, but it does not answer; it saves no one from his troubles.


Treasury of Scripture

And 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.

and have

Isaiah 10:9-11
Is not Calno as Carchemish? is not Hamath as Arpad? is not Samaria as Damascus? …

Isaiah 36:18-20
Beware lest Hezekiah persuade you, saying, The LORD will deliver us. Hath any of the gods of the nations delivered his land out of the hand of the king of Assyria? …

Isaiah 46:1,2
Bel boweth down, Nebo stoopeth, their idols were upon the beasts, and upon the cattle: your carriages were heavy loaden; they are a burden to the weary beast

cast.

Isaiah 40:19-21
The workman melteth a graven image, and the goldsmith spreadeth it over with gold, and casteth silver chains…

Isaiah 41:7
So the carpenter encouraged the goldsmith, and he that smootheth with the hammer him that smote the anvil, saying, It is ready for the sodering: and he fastened it with nails, that it should not be moved.

Isaiah 44:9,10,17
They that make a graven image are all of them vanity; and their delectable things shall not profit; and they are their own witnesses; they see not, nor know; that they may be ashamed…

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Cast Destroy Destroyed Destruction Fashioned Fire Gods Hands Human Stone Thrown Wood Work
Isaiah 37
1. Hezekiah mourning, sends to Isaiah to pray for them
6. Isaiah comforts them
8. Sennacherib, going to encounter Tirhakah, sends a blasphemous letter to Hezekiah
14. Hezekiah's prayer
21. Isaiah's prophecy of the destruction of Sennacherib, and the good of Zion
36. An angel slays the Assyrians
37. Sennacherib is slain at Nineveh by his own sons.














They have cast their gods into the fire
This phrase refers to the actions of the Assyrians, who conquered various nations and destroyed their idols. The Hebrew word for "cast" (שָׁלַךְ, shalak) implies a forceful throwing away, indicating disdain and the complete rejection of these idols. Historically, this reflects the common practice of victors destroying the religious symbols of the vanquished to demonstrate the superiority of their own deities. This act of casting into the fire symbolizes the ultimate powerlessness of these idols, as they are unable to save themselves or their worshippers.

and destroyed them
The Hebrew root for "destroyed" (שָׁמַד, shamad) conveys a sense of complete annihilation. This destruction is not just physical but also symbolic, representing the obliteration of the false hope and security that these idols provided. In the context of Isaiah, this serves as a powerful reminder of the futility of trusting in anything other than the one true God. The historical context here is significant, as it underscores the transient nature of man-made objects and the enduring power of God.

for they were not gods
This phrase is a direct assertion of the monotheistic belief central to the faith of Israel. The Hebrew word for "gods" (אֱלֹהִים, elohim) is often used in the Old Testament to refer to both the true God and false gods, but here it is clear that these entities are not divine. This statement challenges the polytheistic beliefs of surrounding nations and affirms the unique sovereignty of Yahweh. It serves as a theological declaration that idols, despite being revered, hold no real power or divinity.

but only wood and stone
The materials "wood" (עֵץ, etz) and "stone" (אֶבֶן, eben) emphasize the earthly and perishable nature of these idols. In ancient Near Eastern cultures, idols were often crafted from these materials, which were abundant and easily shaped. This phrase highlights the absurdity of worshipping objects that are lifeless and crafted by human hands. It serves as a stark contrast to the living God, who is spirit and truth, and not confined to physical form.

the work of human hands
This final phrase underscores the artificial and man-made origin of these idols. The Hebrew word for "work" (מַעֲשֶׂה, ma'aseh) implies craftsmanship and effort, yet it also points to the inherent limitations of human creation. In the biblical narrative, this serves as a critique of idolatry, which places trust in human ingenuity rather than divine providence. Theologically, it calls believers to recognize the futility of relying on anything crafted by human hands and to place their faith solely in God, the Creator of all.

Verse 19. - And have cast their gods into the fire. The more valuable of the foreign idols were usually carried off by the Assyrians, and placed in the shrines of their own gods as trophies of victory; but no doubt great numbers of the inferior idols. which were of wood, not even coated with metal - the ξόανα of the Greeks - were burnt. For they were no gods (temp. Jeremiah 2:11; Jeremiah 5:7; Jeremiah 16:20, etc.). Isaiah's favourite word for "idols" is elilim, which is, etymologically, "not-gods" (Isaiah 2:8, 18, 20; Isaiah 10:10, 11; Isaiah 19:1, 3; Isaiah 31:7). The work of men's hands (see Isaiah 2:8; Isaiah 40:19; Isaiah 41:7, etc.). The absurdity of men's worshipping as gods what their own hands had made is ever increasingly ridiculed by the religious Jews (comp. Psalm 115:4-8; Isaiah 44:9-20; Jeremiah 10:3-15; 'Ep of Jeremy,' 8-73).

Parallel Commentaries ...


Hebrew
They have cast
וְנָתֹ֥ן (wə·nā·ṯōn)
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Qal - Infinitive absolute
Strong's 5414: To give, put, set

their gods
אֱלֹהֵיהֶ֖ם (’ĕ·lō·hê·hem)
Noun - masculine plural construct | third person masculine plural
Strong's 430: gods -- the supreme God, magistrates, a superlative

into the fire
בָּאֵ֑שׁ (bā·’êš)
Preposition-b, Article | Noun - common singular
Strong's 784: A fire

and destroyed them,
וַֽיְאַבְּדֽוּם׃ (way·’ab·bə·ḏūm)
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Piel - Consecutive imperfect - third person masculine plural | third person masculine plural
Strong's 6: To wander away, lose oneself, to perish

for
כִּי֩ (kî)
Conjunction
Strong's 3588: A relative conjunction

they
הֵ֗מָּה (hêm·māh)
Pronoun - third person masculine plural
Strong's 1992: They

were not
לֹ֨א (lō)
Adverb - Negative particle
Strong's 3808: Not, no

gods,
אֱלֹהִ֜ים (’ĕ·lō·hîm)
Noun - masculine plural
Strong's 430: gods -- the supreme God, magistrates, a superlative

but only
כִּ֣י (kî)
Conjunction
Strong's 3588: A relative conjunction

wood
עֵ֥ץ (‘êṣ)
Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 6086: Tree, trees, wood

and stone—
וָאֶ֖בֶן (wā·’e·ḇen)
Conjunctive waw | Noun - feminine singular
Strong's 68: A stone

the work
מַעֲשֵׂ֧ה (ma·‘ă·śêh)
Noun - masculine singular construct
Strong's 4639: An action, a transaction, activity, a product, property

of human
אָדָ֛ם (’ā·ḏām)
Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 120: Ruddy, a human being

hands.
יְדֵֽי־ (yə·ḏê-)
Noun - fdc
Strong's 3027: A hand


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OT Prophets: Isaiah 37:19 And have cast their gods into (Isa Isi Is)
Isaiah 37:18
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