Jump to a verse
Isaiah 46:5–11, King James Version
Italic words were supplied in the English translation for clarity.
Isaiah 46:5–11
A Crafted God Cannot Rival the One Who Calls Cyrus
They hire a goldsmith; I call a bird of prey
Comparison is forbidden because it is comic. Gold is weighed, silver is hired, a smith makes a god that cannot move from its place. The worshiper cries out, and it does not answer. God says: remember the former things; I am God, there is no other. My counsel shall stand. I have spoken; I will bring it. A bird of prey from the east, a man of my purpose, is already in the air.
The eastern bird is Cyrus again, purpose-shaped, not a mascot for later nationalisms. Crafted immobility versus spoken purpose is the contrast. This is not contempt for other peoples' crafts as crafts, and not a science quarrel. It is about what can actually answer when history turns.
Remembering 'the former things' keeps faith from becoming a novelty cult. A warranted life is to stop polishing what cannot walk, and to refuse the urge to crown whoever currently looks like a bird of prey. God's purpose is not identical with the nearest empire's momentum.
How this should shape us
Stop polishing what cannot walk, and do not crown whoever currently looks like a bird of prey. God's purpose is not identical with the nearest empire's momentum.
Teach it back
Explain Isaiah 46:5–11 in your own words. Name its place in Isaiah, one source-controlled observation, one uncertainty, one enduring truth, and one harmful use the passage does not authorize.
Your explanation stays in this browser. It is not sent or saved.
Go deeper
The explanation above is meant to stand on its own. Open these notes only if you want language, history, disagreements, or source locations.
Research trail and exact locationsThe source record behind this section
Supports: Exact displayed KJV wording, verse order, paragraph metadata, supplied-word markup, and complete thought-unit coverage.
Isaiah 46:5–11, pinned eng-kjv2006 USFM-derived repository corpus
Supports: Masoretic Hebrew wording and morphology at the exact unit, without treating morphology as apparatus, lexicon, composition history, or interpretation.
Open Scriptures MorphHB v2.2, commit 6a5db284c715c18b239422e57bb89684e6a19f00, wlc/Isa.xml, OSIS 46:5–11 with Hebrew/KJV versification difference checked
Supports: Verse-level controls for Hebrew, syntax, poetry, older KJV language, chronology, names, textual issues, and material translation alternatives.
Official NET Isaiah PDF, translator, study, and textual notes attached to Isaiah 46:5–11 in the complete 205-page book PDF
Supports: Babylonian-exile and Persian horizons, new exodus, Cyrus, servant figures, Daughter Zion, nations, suffering, and transition to plural servants.
Yale Bible Study, Second Isaiah course, Agents of God's Redemption guide on Cyrus, Babylon, and Isaiah 44:24-48:22; applied to Isaiah 46:5–11
Supports: Whole-book historical, literary, theological, ethical, and reception synthesis across Assyrian, Babylonian, Persian, and postexilic horizons.
Enter the Bible Isaiah course, Outline Book 2A-2B, Background, Introductory Issues, and Themes; applied to Isaiah 46:5–11
Sources for This Section
These records identify the source, the claim it supports, and the exact location used. A source remains evidence to evaluate; it does not replace the biblical text.
Biblical text
King James (Authorized) Version — eng-kjv2006
eBible.org and CrossWire Bible Society
USFM archive eng-kjv2006_usfm.zip; source files dated 2026-08-19; downloaded 2026-08-24; archive SHA-256 aec1b3b26c622fd3d963d2bbac963016b9513246ffbfa20da00bb100372ea007; normalized corpus SHA-256 09aef51d90488aa7b9722b3fd9a93f4b25f6bf2064c5fd798fb39673c300ddf2.
Supports: Exact displayed KJV wording, verse order, paragraph metadata, supplied-word markup, and complete thought-unit coverage.
Exact location: Isaiah 46:5–11, pinned eng-kjv2006 USFM-derived repository corpus
Open source ↗hebrew text and morphology
Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible: Isaiah
Open Scriptures
Open Scriptures, release 2.2
Supports: Masoretic Hebrew wording and morphology at the exact unit, without treating morphology as apparatus, lexicon, composition history, or interpretation.
Exact location: Open Scriptures MorphHB v2.2, commit 6a5db284c715c18b239422e57bb89684e6a19f00, wlc/Isa.xml, OSIS 46:5–11 with Hebrew/KJV versification difference checked
Open the fixed Hebrew Isaiah file ↗translation and translator notes
NET Bible Notes: Isaiah
Biblical Studies Press
Biblical Studies Press, 2016; current official PDF
Supports: Verse-level controls for Hebrew, syntax, poetry, older KJV language, chronology, names, textual issues, and material translation alternatives.
Exact location: Official NET Isaiah PDF, translator, study, and textual notes attached to Isaiah 46:5–11 in the complete 205-page book PDF
Open the official NET Isaiah PDF ↗open university study guide series
Second Isaiah study-guide course
Robert R. Wilson and Stephen L. Cook
Yale Bible Study, 2019; current public course
Supports: Babylonian-exile and Persian horizons, new exodus, Cyrus, servant figures, Daughter Zion, nations, suffering, and transition to plural servants.
Exact location: Yale Bible Study, Second Isaiah course, Agents of God's Redemption guide on Cyrus, Babylon, and Isaiah 44:24-48:22; applied to Isaiah 46:5–11
Open the Yale Second Isaiah course ↗modern scholarly book course
Isaiah course: summary, outline, background, introductory issues, themes, and reception
Fred Gaiser; revised by Michael Chan
Enter the Bible, Luther Seminary, revised August 2024
Supports: Whole-book historical, literary, theological, ethical, and reception synthesis across Assyrian, Babylonian, Persian, and postexilic horizons.
Exact location: Enter the Bible Isaiah course, Outline Book 2A-2B, Background, Introductory Issues, and Themes; applied to Isaiah 46:5–11
Open the Enter the Bible Isaiah course ↗