Isaiah 10:15

THE MESSAGE

Does an ax take over from the one who swings it? Does a saw act more important than the sawyer? As if a shovel did its shoveling by using a ditch digger! As if a hammer used the carpenter to pound nails! Therefore the Master, God -of-the-Angel-Armies, will send a debilitating disease on his robust Assyrian fighters. Under the canopy of God's bright glory a fierce fire will break out. Israel's Light will burst into a conflagration. The Holy will explode into a firestorm, And in one day burn to cinders every last Assyrian thornbush. God will destroy the splendid trees and lush gardens. The Assyrian body and soul will waste away to nothing like a disease-ridden invalid. A child could count what's left of the trees on the fingers of his two hands.

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
Does an ax exalt itselfabove the one who chops with it?Does a saw magnify itselfabove the one who saws with it?It would be like a rod waving the one who lifts it!It would be like a staff lifting the one who isn’t wood!

Hebrew Names Version
Shall the ax boast itself against him who hews therewith? Shall the saw magnify itself against him who wields it? as if a rod should wield those who lift it up, [or] as if a staff should lift up [him who is] not wood.

King James Version
Shall the axe boast itself against him that heweth therewith? or shall the saw magnify itself against him that shaketh it? as if the rod should shake itself against them that lift it up, or as if the staff should lift up itself, as if it were no wood.

English Standard Version
Shall the axe boast over him who hews with it, or the saw magnify itself against him who wields it? As if a rod should wield him who lifts it, or as if a staff should lift him who is not wood!

New American Standard Bible
Is the axe to boast itself over the one who chops with it? Is the saw to exalt itself over the one who wields it? That would be like a club wielding those who lift it, Or like a rod lifting the one who is not wood.

New Century Version
An ax is not better than the person who swings it. A saw is not better than the one who uses it. A stick cannot control the person who picks it up. A club cannot pick up the person!

Amplified Bible
Is the axe able to lift itself over the one who chops with it? Is the saw able to magnify itself over the one who wields it? That would be like a club moving those who lift it, Or like a staff raising him who is not [made of] wood [like itself]!

World English Bible
Shall the ax boast itself against him who hews therewith? Shall the saw magnify itself against him who wields it? as if a rod should wield those who lift it up, [or] as if a staff should lift up [him who is] not wood.

Geneva Bible (1587)
Shall the axe boast it selfe against him that heweth therewith? or shall the sawe exalt it selfe against him that moueth it? as if the rod shoulde lift vp it selfe against him that taketh it vp, or the staffe should exalt it selfe, as it were no wood.

Legacy Standard Bible
Is the axe to boast itself over the one who chops with it?Is the saw to magnify itself over the one who wields it?That would be like a rod wielding those who lift it,Or like a staff lifting him who is not wood.

Berean Standard Bible
Does an ax raise itself above the one who swings it? Does a saw boast over him who saws with it? It would be like a staff waving the one who lifts it! It would be like a staff lifting him who is not wood!

Contemporary English Version
King of Assyria, can an ax or a saw overpower the one who uses it? Can a wooden pole lift whoever holds it?

Complete Jewish Bible
Should the axe glorify itself over the one who chops with it? Should the saw magnify itself over the one who moves it? It's as if a stick could wave the hand that raises it up, or as if a wooden staff could lift [a person, who is] not made of wood.

Darby Translation
—Shall the axe boast itself against him that heweth therewith? shall the saw magnify itself against him that wieldeth it? As if the rod should wield them that lift it up; as if the staff should lift up [him who is] not wood!

Easy-to-Read Version
An ax is not better than the one who cuts with it. A saw is not better than the one who uses it. Is a stick stronger than the one who picks it up? It can't do anything to the person who is using it to punish someone!

George Lamsa Translation
Shall the ax boast itself over him who hews with it? Or shall the saw magnify itself over him who saws with it? Or shall a rod exalt itself over him who lifts it up?

Good News Translation
But the Lord says, "Can an ax claim to be greater than the one who uses it? Is a saw more important than the one who saws with it? A club doesn't lift up a person; a person lifts up a club."

Lexham English Bible
Does the ax boast against the one who cuts with it, or the saw magnify itself against the one who moves it to and fro? As if a rod should move the one who lifts it! As if a staff should lift up that which is not wood!

Literal Translation
Shall the axe glorify itself over him chopping with it? Or shall the saw magnify itself over him moving it? As if a rod could wave those who lift it . As if a staff could raise what is not wood!

Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
But doth the axe boost itself, agaynst him yt heweth therwith, or doth the sawe make eny krakinge, agaynst him that ruleth it? That were euen like, as yf the rod dyd exalte it self agaynst him, that beareth it: or as though ye staff shulde magnifie it self, as who saye: it were no wodd.

American Standard Version
Shall the axe boast itself against him that heweth therewith? shall the saw magnify itself against him that wieldeth it? as if a rod should wield them that lift it up, or as if a staff should lift up him that is not wood.

Bible in Basic English
Will the axe say high-sounding words against him who is using it, or the blade be full of pride against him who is cutting with it? As if a rod had the power of shaking him who is using it, or as if a stick might take up him who is not wood.

JPS Old Testament (1917)
Should the axe boast itself against him that heweth therewith? Should the saw magnify itself against him that moveth it? as if a rod should move them that lift it up, or as if a staff should lift up him that is not wood.

King James Version (1611)
Shall the axe boast it selfe against him that heweth therewith? Or shal the sawe magnifie it selfe against him that shaketh it? as if the rod should shake it selfe against them that lift it vp, or as if the staffe should lift vp it selfe, as if it were no wood.

Bishop's Bible (1568)
Shall the axe boast it selfe against him that heweth therwith? or shal the sawe make any bragging against hym that ruleth it? That were euen lyke as if the rod did exalt it selfe against him that beareth it, or as though the staffe should magnifie it selfe [as who say] it were no wood.

Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
Shall the axe glorify itself without him that hews with it? or shall the saw lift up itself without him that uses it, as if one should lift a rod or staff? but it shall not be so;

English Revised Version
Shall the axe boast itself against him that heweth therewith? shall the saw magnify itself against him that shaketh it? as if a rod should shake them that lift it up, or as if a staff should lift up him that is not wood.

Wycliffe Bible (1395)
Whether an ax schal haue glorie ayens hym that kittith with it? ether a sawe schal be enhaunsid ayens hym of whom it is drawun? as if a yerde is reisid ayens hym that reisith it, and a staf is enhaunsid, which sotheli is a tre.

Update Bible Version
Shall the ax boast itself against him that cuts therewith? shall the saw magnify itself against him that wields it? as if a rod should wield those that lift it up, [or] as if a staff should lift up [him that is] not wood.

Webster's Bible Translation
Shall the ax boast itself against him that heweth with it? [or] shall the saw magnify itself against him that moveth it? as if the rod should shake [itself] against them that lift it, [or] as if the staff should lift [itself], [as if it were] no wood.

New English Translation
Does an ax exalt itself over the one who wields it, or a saw magnify itself over the one who cuts with it? As if a scepter should brandish the one who raises it, or a staff should lift up what is not made of wood!

New King James Version
Shall the ax boast itself against him who chops with it? Or shall the saw exalt itself against him who saws with it? As if a rod could wield itself against those who lift it up, Or as if a staff could lift up, as if it were not wood!

New Living Translation
But can the ax boast greater power than the person who uses it? Is the saw greater than the person who saws? Can a rod strike unless a hand moves it? Can a wooden cane walk by itself?

New Life Bible
Can an ax say it is more important than the one who uses it? Is the saw more important than the one who saws with it? A stick of wood does not lift up a man. A man lifts up a stick.

New Revised Standard
Shall the ax vaunt itself over the one who wields it, or the saw magnify itself against the one who handles it? As if a rod should raise the one who lifts it up, or as if a staff should lift the one who is not wood!

J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
Shall the axe boast itself against him that heweth therewith? Or, the saw, magnify itself, against him that wieldeth it? As if a rod, could wield, them who lift it up! As if a staff, could raise, what is, not wood!

Douay-Rheims Bible
Shall the axe boast itself against him that cutteth with it? or shall the saw exalt itself against him by whom it is drawn? as if a rod should lift itself up against him that lifteth it up, and a staff exalt itself, which is but wood.

Revised Standard Version
Shall the axe vaunt itself over him who hews with it, or the saw magnify itself against him who wields it? As if a rod should wield him who lifts it, or as if a staff should lift him who is not wood!

Young's Literal Translation
-- Doth the axe glorify itself Against him who is hewing with it? Doth the saw magnify itself Against him who is shaking it? As a rod waving those lifting it up! As a staff lifting up that which is not wood!

New American Standard Bible (1995)
Is the axe to boast itself over the one who chops with it? Is the saw to exalt itself over the one who wields it? That would be like a club wielding those who lift it, Or like a rod lifting him who is not wood.

Contextual Overview

⁵"Doom to Assyria, weapon of my anger. My wrath is a cudgel in his hands! I send him against a godless nation, against the people I'm angry with. I command him to strip them clean, rob them blind, and then push their faces in the mud and leave them. But Assyria has another agenda; he has something else in mind. He's out to destroy utterly, to stamp out as many nations as he can. Assyria says, ‘Aren't my commanders all kings? Can't they do whatever they like? Didn't I destroy Calno as well as Carchemish? Hamath as well as Arpad? Level Samaria as I did Damascus? I've eliminated kingdoms full of gods far more impressive than anything in Jerusalem and Samaria. So what's to keep me from destroying Jerusalem in the same way I destroyed Samaria and all her god-idols?'" ¹²When the Master has finished dealing with Mount Zion and Jerusalem, he'll say, "Now it's Assyria's turn. I'll punish the bragging arrogance of the king of Assyria, his high and mighty posturing, the way he goes around saying, "‘I've done all this by myself. I know more than anyone. I've wiped out the boundaries of whole countries. I've walked in and taken anything I wanted. I charged in like a bull and toppled their kings from their thrones. I reached out my hand and took all that they treasured as easily as a boy taking a bird's eggs from a nest. Like a farmer gathering eggs from the henhouse, I gathered the world in my basket, And no one so much as fluttered a wing or squawked or even chirped.'" Does an ax take over from the one who swings it? Does a saw act more important than the sawyer? As if a shovel did its shoveling by using a ditch digger! As if a hammer used the carpenter to pound nails! Therefore the Master, God -of-the-Angel-Armies, will send a debilitating disease on his robust Assyrian fighters. Under the canopy of God's bright glory a fierce fire will break out. Israel's Light will burst into a conflagration. The Holy will explode into a firestorm, And in one day burn to cinders every last Assyrian thornbush. God will destroy the splendid trees and lush gardens. The Assyrian body and soul will waste away to nothing like a disease-ridden invalid. A child could count what's left of the trees on the fingers of his two hands. And on that Day also, what's left of Israel, the ragtag survivors of Jacob, will no longer be fascinated by abusive, battering Assyria. They'll lean on God , The Holy—yes, truly. The ragtag remnant—what's left of Jacob—will come back to the Strong God. Your people Israel were once like the sand on the seashore, but only a scattered few will return. Destruction is ordered, brimming over with righteousness. For the Master, God -of-the-Angel-Armies, will finish here what he started all over the globe. Therefore the Master, God -of-the-Angel-Armies, says: "My dear, dear people who live in Zion, don't be terrorized by the Assyrians when they beat you with clubs and threaten you with rods like the Egyptians once did. In just a short time my anger against you will be spent and I'll turn my destroying anger on them. I, God -of-the-Angel-Armies, will go after them with a cat-o'-nine-tails and finish them off decisively—as Gideon downed Midian at the rock Oreb, as Moses turned the tables on Egypt. On that day, Assyria will be pulled off your back, and the yoke of slavery lifted from your neck." Assyria's on the move: up from Rimmon, on to Aiath, through Migron, with a bivouac at Micmash. They've crossed the pass, set camp at Geba for the night. Ramah trembles with fright. Gibeah of Saul has run off. Cry for help, daughter of Gallim! Listen to her, Laishah! Do something, Anathoth! Madmenah takes to the hills. The people of Gebim flee in panic. The enemy's soon at Nob—nearly there! In sight of the city he shakes his fist At the mount of dear daughter Zion, the hill of Jerusalem. But now watch this: The Master, God -of-the-Angel-Armies, swings his ax and lops the branches, Chops down the giant trees, lays flat the towering forest-on-the-march. His ax will make toothpicks of that forest, that Lebanon-like army reduced to kindling. ¹⁴You Who Legislate Evil Doom to you who legislate evil, who make laws that make victims— Laws that make misery for the poor, that rob my destitute people of dignity, Exploiting defenseless widows, taking advantage of homeless children. What will you have to say on Judgment Day, when Doomsday arrives out of the blue? Who will you get to help you? What good will your money do you? A sorry sight you'll be then, huddled with the prisoners, or just some corpses stacked in the street. Even after all this, God is still angry, his fist still raised, ready to hit them again. "Doom to Assyria, weapon of my anger. My wrath is a cudgel in his hands! I send him against a godless nation, against the people I'm angry with. I command him to strip them clean, rob them blind, and then push their faces in the mud and leave them. But Assyria has another agenda; he has something else in mind. He's out to destroy utterly, to stamp out as many nations as he can. Assyria says, ‘Aren't my commanders all kings? Can't they do whatever they like? Didn't I destroy Calno as well as Carchemish? Hamath as well as Arpad? Level Samaria as I did Damascus? I've eliminated kingdoms full of gods far more impressive than anything in Jerusalem and Samaria. So what's to keep me from destroying Jerusalem in the same way I destroyed Samaria and all her god-idols?'" When the Master has finished dealing with Mount Zion and Jerusalem, he'll say, "Now it's Assyria's turn. I'll punish the bragging arrogance of the king of Assyria, his high and mighty posturing, the way he goes around saying, "‘I've done all this by myself. I know more than anyone. I've wiped out the boundaries of whole countries. I've walked in and taken anything I wanted. I charged in like a bull and toppled their kings from their thrones. I reached out my hand and took all that they treasured as easily as a boy taking a bird's eggs from a nest. Like a farmer gathering eggs from the henhouse, I gathered the world in my basket, And no one so much as fluttered a wing or squawked or even chirped.'" ¹⁵Does an ax take over from the one who swings it? Does a saw act more important than the sawyer? As if a shovel did its shoveling by using a ditch digger! As if a hammer used the carpenter to pound nails! Therefore the Master, God -of-the-Angel-Armies, will send a debilitating disease on his robust Assyrian fighters. Under the canopy of God's bright glory a fierce fire will break out. Israel's Light will burst into a conflagration. The Holy will explode into a firestorm, And in one day burn to cinders every last Assyrian thornbush. God will destroy the splendid trees and lush gardens. The Assyrian body and soul will waste away to nothing like a disease-ridden invalid. A child could count what's left of the trees on the fingers of his two hands.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

the ax: Isaiah 10:5, Psalms 17:13, Psalms 17:14, Jeremiah 51:20-23, Ezekiel 28:9, Romans 9:20, Romans 9:21

the rod should shake itself against them: or, a rod should shake them. itself, as if it were no wood. or, that which is not wood.

Reciprocal: Exodus 8:9 - Glory over me Exodus 9:17 - General Judges 3:12 - and the Lord 1 Samuel 17:36 - seeing 1 Kings 20:11 - Let not him 2 Kings 18:35 - that the Lord 2 Kings 19:22 - exalted thy voice 2 Kings 19:25 - Hast thou not 1 Chronicles 10:14 - he slew 2 Chronicles 32:17 - to rail Psalms 55:12 - magnify Isaiah 17:13 - but Isaiah 30:31 - which smote Isaiah 37:26 - how I Isaiah 45:9 - Shall the clay Isaiah 54:16 - I have Isaiah 57:4 - Against Jeremiah 46:22 - and come Jeremiah 47:6 - thou sword Jeremiah 48:26 - for he Ezekiel 28:14 - and I Ezekiel 30:24 - and put Malachi 1:4 - They shall build 1 Corinthians 1:29 - General 2 Timothy 3:2 - boasters Revelation 13:7 - and power

Cross-References

Genesis 10:2
The sons of Japheth: Gomer, Magog, Madai, Javan, Tubal, Meshech, Tiras.

Genesis 10:3
The sons of Gomer: Ashkenaz, Riphath, Togarmah.

Genesis 10:8
Cush also had Nimrod. He was the first great warrior on Earth. He was a great hunter before God . There was a saying, "Like Nimrod, a great hunter before God ." His kingdom got its start with Babel; then Erech, Akkad, and Calneh in the country of Shinar. From there he went up to Asshur and built Nineveh, Rehoboth Ir, Calah, and Resen between Nineveh and the great city Calah.

Genesis 10:15
Canaan had Sidon his firstborn, Heth, the Jebusites, the Amorites, the Girgashites, the Hivites, the Arkites, the Sinites, the Arvadites, the Zemarites, and the Hamathites. Later the Canaanites spread out, going from Sidon toward Gerar, as far south as Gaza, and then east all the way over to Sodom, Gomorrah, Admah, Zeboiim, and on to Lasha.

Genesis 10:20
These are the descendants of Ham by family, language, country, and nation.

Genesis 10:21
Shem, the older brother of Japheth, also had sons. Shem was ancestor to all the children of Eber.

Genesis 10:24
Arphaxad had Shelah and Shelah had Eber. Eber had two sons, Peleg (so named because in his days the human race divided) and Joktan.

Genesis 23:3
Then Abraham got up from mourning his dead wife and spoke to the Hittites: "I know I'm only an outsider here among you, but sell me a burial plot so that I can bury my dead decently."

Genesis 49:13
Zebulun settles down on the seashore; he's a safe harbor for ships, right alongside Sidon.

1 Chronicles 1:13
Canaan had Sidon (his firstborn) and Heth, and was ancestor to the Jebusites, the Amorites, the Girgashites, the Hivites, the Arkites, the Sinites, the Arvadites, the Zemarites, and the Hamathites.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

Shall the axe boast itself against him that heweth therewith?.... Hitherto are the words of the Assyrian monarch; and here begin the words of the prophet, rebuking him for his pride, and deriding his vain boasting, in attributing that to himself, to his wisdom and power, who was but an instrument, which belonged to God, the sole Governor and wise orderer of all things; which was all one as if an axe should ascribe the cutting down of trees to itself, and insist on it that the man that cut with it had no share in the action, nor was it to be ascribed to him; than which nothing is more absurd. The sense is, that the king of Assyria, in taking cities, and conquering kingdoms, and adding them to his own, was only an instrument in the hand of God, like an axe in the hand of one that hews down trees; and therefore it was vain and ridiculous to take that to himself which belonged to the Lord, on whom he depended as an instrument, as to motion, operation, and effect; from whom he had all power to act, all fitness for it, and efficacy in it, as the axe has from the person that makes and uses it, or any other instrument, as follows:

[or] shall the saw magnify itself against him that shaketh it? or draws it to and fro; which is the sense of the Targum, Septuagint, and Vulgate Latin versions, and others; and which further exposes the vanity and arrogance of the Assyrian monarch, who had no more concern in the spoiling of nations, and destruction of kingdoms, than the saw has in cutting of timber that is hewn; which has its form, its sharp teeth, not of itself, but from the maker; and when thus made, and fit for use, cannot draw itself to and fro, and cut trees in pieces, which are felled by the axe, but must be moved by another; and to insult the mover of it, as if it was not his act, but its own, is not more absurd than what this haughty prince was guilty of, in boasting of his power, wisdom, and prudence, in the above mentioned things:

as if the rod should shake [itself] against them that lift it up m; for such was the king of Assyria, he was no other than the rod of the Lord's anger, Isaiah 10:5 and which he lifted up, and with it chastised his people; wherefore for him to behave haughtily against the Lord, and arrogate that to himself which was the Lord's doing, was as if a rod should shake itself against him that lifts it up; or, "as if a rod should shake those that lift it up": as if there were more power in the rod than in them that take it up and strike with it; yea, that even the rod moves them, and not they the rod, which is wretchedly absurd:

[or], as if the staff should lift up [itself, as if it were] no wood n; but something more than wood, an animate creature, a rational agent, whereas it is nothing else but wood; or "as if a staff should lift up" itself against that which is "not wood", like itself, but is a man, that can move himself and that too; or "as if a staff should lift up" that which is "not wood"; attempt to bear, carry, move, and direct that which is not material like itself, but is a Spirit, infinite, eternal, even the almighty God. De Dieu thinks that הרים is not a verb, but a noun of the plural number, of הר, "a mountain": and renders it, "as if a rod should shake those that lift it up: and as if a staff were mountains, and not wood". The Targum is,

"when a rod is lifted up to smite, it is not the rod that smites, but he that smites with it.''

The sense is, that the Assyrian monarch was only a rod and staff in the hand of the Lord, and only moved and acted as used by him; whereas, according to his vain boast, he was the sole agent, and all was done by his own power and prudence; and was so far from being moved and directed by the power and providence of God, that he was the director of him; which is infinitely more absurd than the things instanced in.

m Ben Melech observes, that this is to be understood of the blessed God; and the word being in the plural number, it is the same way, of speaking as in Josh. xxiv. 19. "the Holy Gods is he".

n Gussetius thinks this clause contains an ironical answer to the above questions, "shall the axe boast itself?" c. "shall the saw magnify itself?" c. they should, "as the rod should shake itself" c. just in like manner as that does, and so by lifting up itself, ceases to be wood; and which being sarcastically spoken, carries in it a strong negative, that the axe and saw should not glory, or magnify themselves, and no more should the king of Assyria. Vid. Comment. Ebr. p. 360.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

Shall the axe ... - In this verse God reproves the pride and arrogance of the Assyrian monarch. He does it by reminding him that he was the mere instrument in his hand, to accomplish his purposes; and that it was just as absurd for him to boast of what he had done, as it would be for the axe to boast when it had been welded with effect. In the axe there is no wisdom, no skill, no power; and though it may lay the forest low, yet it is not by any skill or power which it possesses. So with the Assyrian monarch. Though nations had trembled at his power, yet be was in the hand of God, and had been directed by an unseen arm in accomplishing the designs of the Ruler of the universe. Though himself free, yet he was under the direction of God, and had been so directed as to accomplish his designs.

The saw magnify itself - That is boast or exalt itself against or over him that uses it.

That shaketh it - Or moves it backward and forward, for the purpose of sawing.

As if the rod - A rod is an instrument of chastisement or punishment; and such God regarded the king of Assyria.

Should shake” itself ... - The Hebrew, in this place, is as in the margin: ‘A rod should shake them that lift it up.’ But the sense is evidently retained in our translation, as this accords with all the other members of the verse, where the leading idea is, the absurdity that a mere instrument should exalt itself against him who makes use of it. In this manner the preposition על ‛al “over,” or “against,” is evidently understood. So the Vulgate and the Syriac.

The staff - This word here is synonymous with rod, and denotes an instrument of chastisement.

As if it were no wood - That is, as if it were a moral agent, itself the actor or deviser of what it is made to do. It would be impossible to express more strongly the idea intended here, that the Assyrian was a mere instrument in the hand of God to accomplish “his” purposes, and to be employed at his will. The statement of this truth is designed to humble him: and if there be “any” truth that will humble sinners, it is, that they are in the hands of God; that he will accomplish his purposes by them; that when they are laying plans against him, he will overrule them for his own glory; and that they will be arrested, restrained, or directed, just as he pleases. Man, in his schemes of pride and vanity, therefore, should not boast. He is under the God of nations; and it is one part of his administration, to control and govern all the intellect in the universe. In all these passages, however, there is not the slightest intimation that the Assyrian was not “free.” There is no fate; no compulsion. He regarded himself as a free moral agent; he did what he pleased; he never supposed that he was urged on by any power that violated his own liberty. If he did what he pleased, he was free. And so it is with all sinners. They do as they please. They form and execute such plans as they choose; and God overrules their designs to accomplish his own purposes. The Targum of Jonathan has given the sense of this passage; ‘Shall the axe boast against him who uses it, saying, I have cut (wood); or the saw boast against him who moves it, saying, I have sawed? When the rod is raised to smite, it is not the rod that smites, but he who smites with it.’

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse Isaiah 10:15. No wood - "Its master."] I have here given the meaning, without attempting to keep to the expression of the original, לא עץ lo ets, "the no-wood;" that which is not wood like itself, but of a quite different and superior nature. The Hebrews have a peculiar way of joining the negative particle לא lo to a noun, to signify in a strong manner a total negation of the thing expressed by the noun.

"How hast thou given help (ללא כח lelo choach) to the no-strength?

And saved the arm (לא עז lo oz) of the no-power?

How hast, thou given counsel (ללא חכמה lelo chochmah) to the no-wisdom?"

Job 26:2-3.

That is, to the man totally deprived of strength, power, and wisdom.

"Ye that rejoice (ללא דבר lelo dabar) in nothing."

Amos 6:13.

That is, in your fancied strength, which is none at all, a mere nonentity.

"For I am God, (ולא איש velo ish,) and no-man;

The Holy One in the midst of thee, yet do not frequent cities."

Hosea 11:9.

"And the Assyrian shall fall by a sword (לא איש lo ish) of no-man;

And a sword of (לא אדם lo adam) no-mortal, shall devour him."

Isaiah 31:8.

"Wherefore do ye weigh out your silver (בלוא לחם belo lechem)

for the no-bread."

Isaiah 55:2.

So here לא עץ lo ets means him who is far from being an inert piece of wood, but is an animated and active being; not an instrument, but an agent.