Commentary for Isaiah 42:17
נָסֹ֤גוּ אָחוֹר֙ יֵבֹ֣שׁוּ בֹ֔שֶׁת הַבֹּטְחִ֖ים בַּפָּ֑סֶל הָאֹמְרִ֥ים לְמַסֵּכָ֖ה אַתֶּ֥ם אֱלֹהֵֽינוּ׃ (ס)
They shall be turned back, greatly ashamed, That trust in graven images, That say unto molten images: ‘Ye are our gods.’
Ibn Ezra on Isaiah
They shall be turned back, etc., for I have the power to do as I like, not so the idols.
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Ibn Ezra on Isaiah
מסכה Molten images.29The singular may be rendered by a plural form, and also be considered as a plural for the grammatical construction, if the context shows that the word is to be taken in a collective sense. The form of the fem. sing. is often the sign of a collective noun. I. E., however, prefers to explain the construction by the assumption of an ellipsis. The plural פסלי images must be supplied from the preceding phrase, because of the pronoun אַתֶּם ye which follows.
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