Isaiah 45:9

In 11 translations

BSB

Woe to him who quarrels with his Maker— one clay pot among many. Does the clay ask the potter, ‘What are you making?’ Does your work say, ‘He has no hands’?Cited in Romans 9:20

KJV

Woe unto him that striveth with his Maker! Let the potsherd strive with the potsherds of the earth. Shall the clay say to him that fashioneth it, What makest thou? or thy work, He hath no hands?

WEB

Woe to him who strives with his Maker— a clay pot among the clay pots of the earth! Shall the clay ask him who fashions it, ‘What are you making?’ or your work, ‘He has no hands’?

ASV

Woe unto him that striveth with his Maker! a potsherd among the potsherds of the earth! Shall the clay say to him that fashioneth it, What makest thou? or thy work, He hath no hands?

LSV

Woe [to] him who is striving with his Former || (A potsherd with potsherds of the ground!) Does clay say to its Framer, What [are] you doing? And your work, He has no hands?

YLT

Woe [to] him who is striving with his Former, (A potsherd with potsherds of the ground!) Doth clay say to its Framer, 'What dost thou?' And thy work, 'He hath no hands?'

DBY

Woe unto him that striveth with his Maker! Let a potsherd [strive] with the potsherds of the earth. Shall the clay say to him that formeth it, What makest thou? Or thy work, He hath no hands?

DRC

Woe to him that gainsayeth his maker, a sherd of the earthen pots: shall the clay say to him that fashioneth it: What art thou making, and thy work is without hands?

GNV

Woe be vnto him that striueth with his maker, the potsherd with the potsherds of the earth: shall the clay say to him that facioneth it, What makest thou? or thy worke, It hath none hands?

JPS

Woe unto him that striveth with his Maker, as a potsherd with the potsherds of the earth! Shall the clay say to him that fashioned it: 'What makest thou?' Or: 'Thy work, it hath no hands'?

LXXE

What excellent thing have I prepared as clay of the potter? Will the ploughman plough the earth all day? shall the clay say to the potter, What art thou doing that thou dost not work, nor hast hands? shall the thing formed answer him that formed it?

Word by word Hebrew · tap a word

Words in brackets are English the glossers added; the Hebrew has no word for them, and they can carry a choice of tense or meaning.

Original-language editions

WLC

ה֗וֹי רָ֚ב אֶת־יֹ֣צְר֔וֹ חֶ֖רֶשׂ אֶת־חַרְשֵׂ֣י אֲדָמָ֑ה הֲיֹאמַ֨ר חֹ֤מֶר לְיֹֽצְרוֹ֙ מַֽה־תַּעֲשֶׂ֔ה וּפָעָלְךָ֖ אֵין־יָדַ֥יִם לֽוֹ׃We read one or more accents in L differently than BHS. Often this notation indicates a typographical error in BHS.

LXX-Br

Ποῖον βέλτιον κατεσκεύασα ὡς πηλὸν κεραμέως; μὴ ὁ ἀροτριῶν ἀροτριάσει τὴν γῆν ὅλην τὴν ἡμέραν; μὴ ἐρεῖ ὁ πηλὸς τῷ κεραμεῖ, τί ποιεῖς ὅτι οὐκ ἐργάζῃ, οὐδὲ ἔχεις χεῖρας; μὴ ἀποκριθήσεται τὸ πλάσμα πρὸς τὸν πλάσαντα αὐτό;

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In the reference works topics that cite this verse

From public-domain Bible dictionaries and topical indexes (1884–1915).

Cross-references most cited first

• Isaiah 64:8But now, O LORD, You are our Father; we are the clay, and You are the potter; we are all the work of Your hand.
• Romans 9:20–21But who are you, O man, to talk back to God? Shall what is formed say to Him who formed it, “Why did You make me like this?” Does not the potter have the right to make from the same lump of clay one vessel for special…
• Isaiah 10:15Does an axe raise itself above the one who swings it? Does a saw boast over him who saws with it? It would be like a rod waving the one who lifts it, or a staff lifting him who is not wood!
• Isaiah 29:16You have turned things upside down, as if the potter were regarded as clay. Shall what is formed say to him who formed it, “He did not make me”? Can the pottery say of the potter, “He has no understanding”?
• Jeremiah 18:6“O house of Israel, declares the LORD, can I not treat you as this potter treats his clay? Just like clay in the potter’s hand, so are you in My hand, O house of Israel.
• Proverbs 21:30There is no wisdom, no understanding, no counsel that can prevail against the LORD.
• Job 40:8–9Would you really annul My justice? Would you condemn Me to justify yourself? Do you have an arm like God’s? Can you thunder with a voice like His?
• Psalms 2:2–9The kings of the earth take their stand and the rulers gather together, against the LORD and against His Anointed One: “Let us break Their chains and cast away Their cords.” The One enthroned in heaven laughs; the Lord…
• 1 Corinthians 10:22Are we trying to provoke the Lord to jealousy? Are we stronger than He?
• Jeremiah 50:24I laid a snare for you, O Babylon, and you were caught before you knew it. You were found and captured because you challenged the LORD.
• Exodus 9:16–17But I have raised you up for this very purpose, that I might display My power to you, and that My name might be proclaimed in all the earth. Still, you lord it over My people and do not allow them to go.
• Job 15:24–26Distress and anguish terrify him, overwhelming him like a king poised to attack. For he has stretched out his hand against God and has vaunted himself against the Almighty, rushing headlong at Him with a thick, studded…

From the OpenBible.info cross-reference set (votes from readers; not every link is a quotation or allusion).