Isaiah 44:12-14 New International Reader's Version (NIRV)

12. A blacksmith gets his tool. He uses it to shape metal over the burning coals. He uses his hammers to make a statue of a god. He forms it with his powerful arm. He gets hungry and loses his strength. He doesn't drink any water. He gets weaker and weaker.

13. A carpenter measures a piece of wood with a line. He draws a pattern on it with a marker. He cuts out a statue with sharp tools. He marks it with compasses. He shapes it into the form of a handsome man. He does all of that so he can put it in a temple.

14. He cuts down a cedar tree. Or perhaps he takes a cypress or an oak tree. It might be a tree that grew in the forest. Or it might be a pine tree he planted. And the rain made it grow.

Isaiah 44