Isaiah 45:20

Bible in Basic English (1941)

Come together, even come near, you nations who are still living: they have no knowledge who take up their image of wood, and make prayer to a god in whom is no salvation.

📖 Grammatical Analysis

Original Text

הִקָּבְצ֥וּ וָבֹ֛אוּ הִֽתְנַגְּשׁ֥וּ יַחְדָּ֖ו פְּלִיטֵ֣י הַגּוֹיִ֑ם לֹ֣א יָדְע֗וּ הַנֹּֽשְׂאִים֙ אֶת־עֵ֣ץ פִּסְלָ֔ם וּמִתְפַּלְלִ֔ים אֶל־אֵ֖ל לֹ֥א יוֹשִֽׁיעַ

Transliteration

hiqqābṣû and-bōʾû hitnagĕšû yaḥdāw pĕlîṭê the-gôyim not yādĕʿû the-nōśĕʾîm [direct object marker]-ʿēṣ pislām and-mitpalĕlîm to-ʾēl not yôšîaʿ

Grammar Details

• *hiqqābṣû*: niphal imperative, masculine plural - assemble/gather yourselves
• *bōʾû*: qal imperative, masculine plural - come
• *hitnagĕšû*: hithpael imperative, masculine plural - draw near together
• *yaḥdāw*: adverb - together/all of them
• *pĕlîṭê*: masculine plural construct - escapees/survivors of
• *gôyim*: masculine plural noun with definite article - the nations/gentiles
• *yādĕʿû*: qal perfect, 3rd common plural - they know
• *nōśĕʾîm*: qal participle, masculine plural with definite article - the ones carrying
• *ʿēṣ*: masculine singular noun - wood/tree
• *pislām*: masculine singular noun with 3rd person masculine plural suffix - their carved image
• *mitpalĕlîm*: hithpael participle, masculine plural - praying/who pray
• *ʾēl*: masculine singular noun - god/deity
• *yôšîaʿ*: hiphil imperfect, 3rd masculine singular - he saves/delivers

Word Meanings

• *hiqqābṣû*: assemble/gather yourselves/come together
• *hitnagĕšû*: draw near together/approach/come together
• *yaḥdāw*: together/all of them/at once
• *pĕlîṭê*: escapees/survivors/fugitives
• *nōśĕʾîm*: the ones carrying/bearers/those who lift up
• *ʿēṣ*: wood/tree/timber
• *pislām*: their carved image/their idol/their sculpture
• *mitpalĕlîm*: praying/who pray/supplicating
• *yôšîaʿ*: he saves/delivers/rescues

Referenced Verses

• Isa 43:9 : 9 Let all the nations come together, and let the peoples be present: who among them is able to make this clear, and give us word of earlier things? let their witnesses come forward, so that they may be seen to be true, and that they may give ear, and say, It is true.
• Isa 46:1 : 1 Bel is bent down, Nebo is falling; their images are on the beasts and on the cattle: the things which you took about have become a weight to the tired beast.
• Jer 10:5 : 5 It is like a pillar in a garden of plants, and has no voice: it has to be lifted, for it has no power of walking. Have no fear of it; for it has no power of doing evil and it is not able to do any good.
• Jer 10:8 : 8 But they are together like beasts and foolish: the teaching of false gods is wood.
• Jer 10:14 : 14 Then every man becomes like a beast without knowledge; every gold-worker is put to shame by the image he has made: for his metal image is deceit, and there is no breath in them.
• Jer 25:15-29 : 15 For this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, has said to me: Take the cup of the wine of this wrath from my hand, and make all the nations to whom I send you take of it. 16 And after drinking it, they will go rolling from side to side, and be off their heads, because of the sword which I will send among them. 17 Then I took the cup from the Lord's hand, and gave a drink from it to all the nations to whom the Lord sent me; 18 Jerusalem and the towns of Judah and their kings and their princes, to make them a waste place, a cause of fear and surprise and a curse, as it is this day; 19 Pharaoh, king of Egypt, and his servants and his princes and all his people; 20 And all the mixed people and all the kings of the land of Uz, and all the kings of the land of the Philistines, and Ashkelon and Gaza and Ekron and the rest of Ashdod; 21 Edom and Moab and the children of Ammon, 22 And all the kings of Tyre, and all the kings of Zidon, and the kings of the lands across the sea; 23 Dedan and Tema and Buz, and all who have the ends of their hair cut; 24 And all the kings of Arabia, and all the kings of the mixed people living in the waste land; 25 And all the kings of Zimri, and all the kings of Elam, and all the kings of the Medes; 26 And all the kings of the north, far and near, one with another; and all the kingdoms of the world on the face of the earth. 27 And you are to say to them, This is what the Lord of armies, the God of Israel, has said: Take of this cup and be overcome, and let it come out again from your lips, and from your fall you will never be lifted up again, because of the sword which I will send among you. 28 And it will be, if they will not take of the cup in your hand, then you are to say to them, This is what the Lord of armies has said: You will certainly take of it. 29 For see, I am starting to send evil on the town which is named by my name, and are you to be without any punishment? You will not be without punishment: for I will send a sword on all people living on the earth, says the Lord of armies.
• Jer 50:28 : 28 The voice of those who are in flight, who have got away safe from the land of Babylon, to give news in Zion of punishment from the Lord our God, even payment for his Temple.
• Jer 51:6-9 : 6 Go in flight out of Babylon, so that every man may keep his life; do not be cut off in her evil-doing: for it is the time of the Lord's punishment; he will give her her reward. 7 Babylon has been a gold cup in the hand of the Lord, which has made all the earth overcome with wine: the nations have taken of her wine, and for this cause the nations have gone off their heads. 8 Sudden is the downfall of Babylon and her destruction: make cries of grief for her; take sweet oil for her pain, if it is possible for her to be made well. 9 We would have made Babylon well, but she is not made well: give her up, and let us go everyone to his country: for her punishment is stretching up to heaven, and lifted up even to the skies.
• Jer 51:17-18 : 17 Then every man becomes like a beast without knowledge; every gold-worker is put to shame by the image he has made: for his metal image is deceit, and there is no breath in them. 18 They are nothing, a work of error: in the time of their punishment, destruction will overtake them.
• Hab 2:18-20 : 18 What profit is the pictured image to its maker? and as for the metal image, the false teacher, why does its maker put his faith in it, making false gods without a voice? 19 A curse on him who says to the wood, Awake! to the unbreathing stone, Up! let it be a teacher! See, it is plated with gold and silver, and there is no breath at all inside it. 20 But the Lord is in his holy Temple: let all the earth be quiet before him.
• Rom 1:21-23 : 21 Because, having the knowledge of God, they did not give glory to God as God, and did not give praise, but their minds were full of foolish things, and their hearts, being without sense, were made dark. 22 Seeming to be wise, they were in fact foolish, 23 And by them the glory of the eternal God was changed and made into the image of man who is not eternal, and of birds and beasts and things which go on the earth.
• Eph 2:12 : 12 That you were at that time without Christ, being cut off from any part in Israel's rights as a nation, having no part in God's agreement, having no hope, and without God in the world.
• Eph 2:16 : 16 And that the two might come into agreement with God in one body through the cross, so putting an end to that division.
• Rev 18:3-9 : 3 For through the wine of the wrath of her evil desires all the nations have come to destruction; and the kings of the earth made themselves unclean with her, and the traders of the earth had their wealth increased by the power of her evil ways. 4 And another voice from heaven came to my ears, saying, Come out of her, my people, so that you may have no part in her sins and in her punishments. 5 For her sins have gone up even to heaven, and God has taken note of her evil-doing. 6 Give to her as she gave, even an increased reward for her works; in the cup which was mixed by her, let there be mixed as much again for herself. 7 As she gave glory to herself, and became more evil in her ways, in the same measure give her pain and weeping: for she says in her heart, I am seated here a queen, and am no widow, and will in no way see sorrow. 8 For this reason in one day will her troubles come, death and sorrow and need of food; and she will be completely burned with fire; for strong is the Lord God who is her judge. 9 And the kings of the earth, who made themselves unclean with her, and in her company gave themselves up to evil, will be weeping and crying over her, when they see the smoke of her burning, 10 Watching from far away, for fear of her punishment, saying, Sorrow, sorrow for Babylon, the great town, the strong town! for in one hour you have been judged. 11 And the traders of the earth are weeping and crying over her, because no man has any more desire for their goods, 12 Gold, and silver, and stones of great price, and jewels, and delicate linen, and robes of purple and silk and red; and perfumed wood, and every vessel of ivory, and every vessel made of fair wood, and of brass, and iron, and stone; 13 And sweet-smelling plants, and perfumes, and wine, and oil, and well crushed grain, and cattle and sheep; and horses and carriages and servants; and souls of men. 14 And the fruit of your soul's desire has gone from you, and all things delicate and shining have come to an end and will never again be seen. 15 The traders in these things, by which their wealth was increased, will be watching far off for fear of her punishment, weeping and crying; 16 Saying, Sorrow, sorrow for the great town, she who was clothed in delicate linen, and purple, and red; with ornaments of gold and stones of great price and jewels! 17 For in one hour such great wealth has come to nothing. And every shipmaster, and all who are sailing on the sea, and sailors and all who get their living by the sea, were watching from far away, 18 And crying out when they saw the smoke of her burning, saying, What town is like the great town?
• Isa 46:6-7 : 6 As for those who take gold out of a bag, and put silver in the scales, they give payment to a gold-worker, to make it into a god; they go down on their faces and give it worship. 7 They put him on their backs, and take him up, and put him in his fixed place, from which he may not be moved; if a man gives a cry for help to him, he is unable to give an answer, or get him out of his trouble.
• Isa 48:5-7 : 5 For this reason I made it clear to you in the past, before it came I gave you word of it: for fear that you might say, My god did these things, and my pictured and metal images made them come about. 6 All this has come to your ears and you have seen it; will you not give witness to it? I am now making clear new things, even secret things, of which you had no knowledge. 7 They have only now been effected, and not in the past: and before this day they had not come to your ears; for fear that you might say, I had knowledge of them.
• Jer 2:27-28 : 27 Who say to a tree, You are my father; and to a stone, You have given me life: for their backs have been turned to me, not their faces: but in the time of their trouble they will say, Up! and be our saviour. 28 But where are the gods you have made for yourselves? let them come, if they are able to give you salvation in the time of your trouble: for the number of your gods is as the number of your towns, O Judah.
• 1 Kgs 18:26-29 : 26 So they took the ox which was given them, and made it ready, crying out to Baal from morning till the middle of the day, and saying, O Baal, give ear to us. But there was no voice and no answer. And they were jumping up and down before the altar they had made. 27 And in the middle of the day, Elijah made sport of them, saying, Give louder cries, for he is a god; he may be deep in thought, or he may have gone away for some purpose, or he may be on a journey, or by chance he is sleeping and has to be made awake. 28 So they gave loud cries, cutting themselves with knives and swords, as was their way, till the blood came streaming out all over them. 29 And from the middle of the day they went on with their prayers till the time of the offering; but there was no voice, or any answer, or any who gave attention to them.
• Ps 115:8 : 8 Those who make them are like them; and so is everyone who puts his faith in them.
• Isa 4:2 : 2 In that day will the young growth of the Lord be beautiful in glory, and the fruit of the earth will be the pride of those who are still living in Israel.
• Isa 41:5-6 : 5 The sea-lands saw it, and were in fear; the ends of the earth were shaking: they came near. 6 They gave help everyone to his neighbour; and everyone said to his brother, Take heart!
• Isa 41:21 : 21 Put forward your cause, says the Lord; let your strong argument come out, says the King of Jacob.
• Isa 42:17-18 : 17 They will be turned back and be greatly shamed who put their hope in pictured images, who say to metal images, You are our gods. 18 Give ear, you whose ears are shut; and let your eyes be open, you blind, so that you may see.
• Isa 44:17-20 : 17 And the rest of it he makes into a god, even his pictured image: he goes down on his face before it, giving worship to it, and making prayer to it, saying, Be my saviour; for you are my god. 18 They have no knowledge or wisdom; for he has put a veil over their eyes, so that they may not see; and on their hearts, so that they may not give attention. 19 And no one takes note, no one has enough knowledge or wisdom to say, I have put part of it in the fire, and made bread on it; I have had a meal of the flesh cooked with it: and am I now to make the rest of it into a false god? am I to go down on my face before a bit of wood? 20 As for him whose food is the dust of a dead fire, he has been turned from the way by a twisted mind, so that he is unable to keep himself safe by saying, What I have here in my hand is false.