To whom will ye liken me, and make me equal, and compare me, that we may be like? 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. They bear him upon the shoulder, they carry him, and set him in his place, and he standeth; from his place shall he not remove: yea, one shall cry unto him, yet can he not answer, nor save him out of his trouble.

Isaiah 46:5-7

Explanation:
God continues and asks what may seem like an obvious question to the one who knows the reality of who God really is. Can God be compared to other gods? Many have certainly tried, and yet there really isn’t much that dead idols have in common with the living God.
Other gods are crafted using created things. In those days they would hire a craftsman to make a god. If an idol was to go anywhere it must be carried and set down. Idols must be shaped so that they don’t fall over. Think about this: people hire someone one to craft an idol, pick it up and take it to a place of worship, and then bow down to worship idols seeking for them to move in their lives. Idols cannot save! Idols cannot answer, much less save anyone from trouble.

Application:
Again, we don’t craft images that look like the ones described in this passage in our western culture. Yet we do worship created things. There is no doubt that we give our lives over to things that replace the True and living God. The same kinds of statements can be made of these things we give ourselves to as are made of the idols in this passage. We purchase the goods and set them up in our houses and then allow them to control the way we think, behave, and yes, even worship. We prioritize these created things over the God of the Universe who has made us and redeemed us. Worshipping these things will always cause there to be a void left in our lives that only God can fill.

We ought to worship the God that carries us, and not the gods that we have to carry.

Response:
We have already asked you to identify any potential idols in your life. Have you done that? The right response to any sin is repentance. Take some time to offer up repentance today if it is needed.