Jeremiah 10:5
They are upright as the palm tree, but speak not: they must needs be borne, because they cannot go. Be not afraid of them; for they cannot do evil, neither also is it in them to do good.
Cross-reference
Jeremiah 16:19 calls idols 'worthless things' inherited from ancestors — the same contempt for false gods as the scarecrow image here.
Isaiah 44:9 likewise condemns idol-makers and declares idols worthless, reinforcing the futility of handmade gods.
Revelation 13:15 gives breath to the image so it speaks — a direct contrast to the silent, powerless idols here.
1 Corinthians 8:4 declares that an idol has no real existence, affirming the OT truth that idols are nothing.
Habakkuk 2:19 condemns idols as silent, breathless stone — echoing the inability to speak or act.
Isaiah 46:7 adds that the idol cannot move or answer when cried to — same theme of helpless idols.
Isaiah 46:1 shows idols being carried as burdens — mirroring the 'carried' imagery of powerless deities.
Isaiah 45:20 speaks of carrying wooden idols and praying to a god who cannot save — the same impotence described in Jeremiah 10:5.
Isaiah 44:10 asks who would shape a god that profits nothing, directly echoing the uselessness of idols in Jeremiah 10:5.
Isaiah 41:24 declares idols are nothing and their works less than nothing — reinforcing the total powerlessness.
Isaiah 41:23 challenges idols to do good or harm — directly matching the claim that they cannot do either.
Psalm 135:16-18 repeats the identical idol critique: mouths that cannot speak, and trusters become like them.
In Psalm 115:5-8, the same satire appears: idols with mouths but cannot speak, and their makers become like them.
Judges 6:31 challenges Baal to defend himself — a true god can act, contrasting with Jeremiah's mute, helpless idols.
2 Chronicles 28:23 shows King Ahaz sacrificing to defeated gods, proving their inability to help — consistent with Jeremiah's point that idols do no good.
1 Kings 18:26 shows Baal's silence despite fervent calls — exactly the mute impotence Jeremiah describes.
2 Kings 17:35 records God's command not to fear other gods, grounding Jeremiah's polemic in covenant law.
2 Kings 17:7 traces Israel's exile to their fear of other gods, providing the historical consequence of the idolatry Jeremiah condemns.
1 Corinthians 12:2 recalls being led astray to mute idols — a brief New Testament echo of the powerless idols theme.