Albert Barnes Commentary Psalms 115:4

"Their idols are silver and gold, The work of men`s hands." — Psalms 115:4 (ASV)

Their idols—Their gods—the gods that they worship, as contrasted with the God whom we adore. The design of this description (Psalms 115:4–8) is to show the utter vanity of trusting in such gods, and to lead the people of Israel to put their trust in the true God—in Yahweh.

Are silver and gold—Made of silver and gold, they must therefore have the properties of silver and gold. They can be of value only as silver and gold. They cannot do the work of mind; they cannot do the work of God. The psalmist was not inclined to depreciate the real value of these idols, or to throw contempt on them which they did not deserve. He was inclined to treat them fairly. They were silver and gold; they had an intrinsic value as such. They showed, in the value of the material, how much the pagans were inclined to honor their objects of worship, and they were not held up to contempt as shapeless blocks of wood or stone.

The psalmist might have said that most of them were made of wood or stone, and were mere shapeless blocks; but it is always best to do justice to an adversary and not to attempt to underrate what he values. The argument of an infidel on the subject of religion may be utterly worthless as an argument for infidelity, but it may show ability, learning, subtlety, clearness of reasoning, and even candor.

And it is best to admit this, if it is so, and to give it all the credit it deserves as a specimen of reasoning or as stating a real difficulty that ought to be solved by someone—that is, to call it “silver and gold” if it is so, and not to characterize it as worthless, weak, or stupid, the result of ignorance and folly. He who acknowledges the real force of what an opponent says has a great advantage in an argument; he gains nothing who charges it as the offspring of stupidity, ignorance, and folly—unless he can show that it is so.

The work of men’s hands—Shaped and fashioned by people’s hands. They cannot, therefore, be superior to those who made them; they cannot answer the purpose of a God.