16. Their eyes are full of dust from the feet of visitors.
17. Even as the courtyards are locked up on every side when one is sentenced to death for doing wrong against a king, so the priests secure their temples with doors, bolts, and bars from robbers and thieves.
18. The priests light more lamps for the idols than for themselves, but their gods can’t see them.
19. The idols are just like the beams that support a house, but people say that their hearts melt before them. They don’t notice when vermin from the earth have eaten them and their clothing.
20. Their faces have been darkened by the smoke that is in the temple.
21. Bats, swallows, birds, and cats land on their bodies and heads.
22. From this you will know that they aren’t gods. So don’t be afraid of them.
23. As for the gold they wear beautifully, the idols won’t shine unless someone else wipes away the rust. They didn’t have any feeling when they were made.
24. They are purchased at great cost, but there is no breath in them.