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Verse Takeaways
1
Idolatry's Universal Temptation
Commentators like John Calvin explain that this verse shows how idolatry tempts everyone, not just the wealthy. While the previous verse described rich idols of gold, this one shows a poor person investing in the best wood they can find. This reveals the universal human desire to create a tangible, visible god, a temptation that crosses all economic lines.
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Book Overview
Isaiah
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Commentaries
10
Albert Barnes
On Isaiah 40:20
18th Century
Theologian
He who is so impoverished - So poor.
It is generally supposed that the word used here is to be understood in this way, though interpr…
Charles Ellicott
On Isaiah 40:20
19th Century
Bishop
He who is so impoverished ... —The transition is abrupt, but the intention apparently is to represent idolatry at its opposite ext…
Charles Spurgeon
On Isaiah 40:20
19th Century
Preacher
Chooseth a tree that will not rot;
A good piece of heart of oak or enduring elm.
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John Calvin
On Isaiah 40:20
16th Century
Theologian
The poor chooseth for his offering wood that will not rot. He concludes that no class of men is free from that crime, that the rich and po…
John Gill
On Isaiah 40:20
17th Century
Pastor
He that is so impoverished that he has no oblation
Who is so poor that he cannot bring an offering to his God, yet h…
Matthew Henry
On Isaiah 40:18–26
17th Century
Minister
Whatever we esteem or love, fear or hope in, more than God, that creature we make equal with God, though we do not make images or worship them. Eve…