ירמיהו, פרק י׳, פסוק ג׳

The religious customs and objects of reverence held by the surrounding nations are fundamentally absurd when viewed against plain reality [מצודת ציון, ביאור שטיינזלץ]. The blind faith of the masses stands in stark contrast to the simple, earthly materials from which their gods are made.

The commentators explain the historical and psychological process that led to this foolishness. Originally, idolatrous priests created statues merely to represent the stars and heavenly bodies. They claimed that honoring the physical statue was a way to honor the star it represented. As years passed and these practices became ingrained habits, the masses lost sight of this original intent. They began to mistakenly believe that the physical statues themselves possessed independent power to bring harm or blessing [רד״ק].

This belief is completely empty. Even if the stars possessed some sort of influence, there is absolutely no connection between heavenly bodies and artificial, man-made objects. The higher powers of the universe are entirely unaffected by people bowing to statues [מצודת דוד, מלבי״ם, אברבנאל]. Ultimately, there is no reason to fear the stars or the idols, because the true power to do good or cause harm rests exclusively in the hands of God [אברבנאל].

To further expose this foolishness, the idol is stripped down to its most basic physical components. It is not a heavenly being at all. It is simply wood taken from a forest, an entirely ordinary and earthly raw material lacking any special qualities [מלבי״ם, אברבנאל]. Furthermore, it is the product of a human craftsman [רש״י, מצודת ציון, ביאור שטיינזלץ]. A flesh and blood carpenter shapes it using an axe, a common, heavy tool meant for cutting wood [מצודת ציון, ביאור שטיינזלץ]. This breakdown highlights the deep inferiority of the idol in every way, from its material and shape to the tools used to make it. It proves definitively that an inanimate object crafted by human hands can never take action or influence the world [מלבי״ם, רד״ק].