Jeremiah 16:20

New Century Version

Can people make gods for themselves? They will not really be gods!"

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
Can one make gods for himself?But they are not gods.

Hebrew Names Version
Shall a man make to himself gods, which yet are no gods?

King James Version
Shall a man make gods unto himself, and they are no gods?

English Standard Version
Can man make for himself gods? Such are not gods!"

New American Standard Bible
Can a person make gods for himself? But they are not gods!

Amplified Bible
"Can a man make gods for himself? Such [things] are not gods!

World English Bible
Shall a man make to himself gods, which yet are no gods?

Geneva Bible (1587)
Shall a man make gods vnto himselfe, and they are no gods?

Legacy Standard Bible
Can man make gods for himself?Yet they are not gods!

Berean Standard Bible
Can man make gods for himself? Such are not gods!

Contemporary English Version
worthless idols made by human hands."

Complete Jewish Bible
Can a person make himself gods? (In fact they aren't gods at all.)

Darby Translation
Shall a man make gods unto himself, and they are no-gods?

Easy-to-Read Version
Can people make real gods for themselves? No, they can only make statues that are not really gods."

George Lamsa Translation
Behold, men make gods to themselves, and they are no gods.

Good News Translation
Can people make their own gods? No, if they did, those would not really be gods."

Lexham English Bible
Can a human make for himself gods? Yet they are not gods!"

Literal Translation
Can a man make gods to himself? But they are not gods!

Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
How can a man make those his goddes, which are not able to be goddes?

American Standard Version
Shall a man make unto himself gods, which yet are no gods?

Bible in Basic English
Will a man make for himself gods which are no gods?

JPS Old Testament (1917)
Shall a man make unto himself gods, and they are no gods?

King James Version (1611)
Shall a man make Gods vnto himselfe, and they are no Gods?

Bishop's Bible (1568)
Howe can a man make those his gods, which are not able to be gods?

Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
Will a man make gods for himself, whereas these are no gods?

English Revised Version
Shall a man make unto himself gods, which yet are no gods?

Wycliffe Bible (1395)
Whether a man schal make goddis to hym silf? and tho ben no goddis.

Update Bible Version
Shall man make to himself gods, which yet are no gods?

Webster's Bible Translation
Shall a man make gods to himself, and they [are] no gods?

New English Translation
Can people make their own gods? No, what they make are not gods at all."

New King James Version
Will a man make gods for himself, Which are not gods?

New Living Translation
Can people make their own gods? These are not real gods at all!"

New Life Bible
Can man make his own gods? What man makes is not gods!

New Revised Standard
Can mortals make for themselves gods? Such are no gods!

J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
Shall a son of earth, make for himself gods, Seeing that, they, are no-gods?

Douay-Rheims Bible
Shall a man make gods unto himself and they are no gods?

Revised Standard Version
Can man make for himself gods? Such are no gods!"

Young's Literal Translation
Doth man make for himself gods, And they -- no gods?

New American Standard Bible (1995)
Can man make gods for himself? Yet they are not gods!

Contextual Overview

¹⁴ "People say, ‘As surely as the Lord lives, who brought the people of Israel out of Egypt... ' But the time is coming," says the Lord , "when people will not say this anymore. ¹⁵ They will say instead, ‘As surely as the Lord lives, who brought the Israelites from the northern land and from all the countries where he had sent them... ' And I will bring them back to the land I gave to their ancestors. ¹⁶ "I will soon send for many fishermen to come to this land," says the Lord . "And they will catch the people of Judah. After that, I will send for many hunters to come to this land. And they will hunt the people of Judah on every mountain and hill and in the cracks of the rocks. ¹⁷ I see everything they do. They cannot hide from me the things they do; their sin is not hidden from my eyes. ¹⁸ I will pay back the people of Judah twice for every one of their sins, because they have made my land unclean. They have filled my country with their hateful idols." ¹⁹ Lord , you are my strength and my protection, my safe place in times of trouble. The nations will come to you from all over the world and say, "Our ancestors had only false gods, useless idols that didn't help them. ²⁰ Can people make gods for themselves? They will not really be gods!" ²¹ The Lord says, "So I will teach those who make idols. This time I will teach them about my power and my strength. Then they will know that my name is the Lord .

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

Psalms 115:4-8, Psalms 135:14-18, Isaiah 36:19, Isaiah 37:19, Hosea 8:4-6, Acts 19:26, Galatians 1:8, Galatians 4:8

Reciprocal: Genesis 35:2 - strange Isaiah 44:9 - and their Jeremiah 2:11 - no gods Daniel 3:1 - made Amos 2:4 - and their

Gill's Notes on the Bible

Shall a man make gods unto himself,.... Can a man make his own gods? a poor, weak, mortal man? can he make gods of gold, silver, brass, wood, or stone? can he put deity into them? and when he has made images of these, can he be so stupid as to account them gods, and worship them? can he be so sottish, and void of understanding, as to imagine that anything that is made by himself or any other, can be God?

and they are no gods; that are made by men; he only is the true God, that is the Maker and Creator of all things; or they are no gods themselves that pretend to make them, and therefore how should they make gods? can they give that which they have not? or impart deity to others which they have not themselves? These words are a continuation of the speech of the Gentiles, and contain their reasonings, exposing the folly of their idolatrous ancestors: though some take them to be the words of God, or of the prophet, inveighing against the Jews for their stupidity in worshipping idols; when the Gentiles were convinced of the folly and vanity of such practices, and acknowledged it.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse Jeremiah 16:20. Shall a man make gods unto himself? — Can any be so silly, and so preposterously absurd? Yes, fallen man is capable of any thing that is base, mean, vile, and wicked, till influenced and converted by the grace of Christ.