Who is both stupid and foolish?

 Having spoken of the power and uniqueness of the Lord and his worthiness to be worshipped in Jeremiah 10:6–7, the foolishness of idol worship is further exposed. People who, in their wisdom, claim wisdom and worthiness for the gods they have created are actually stupid and foolish, which of course means that their gods too are stupid and foolish. The Hebrew word for stupid is baar, and it describes someone who is no different from an animal (see Psalm 73:22; Psalm 94:8). This is not a reference to intellect but rather to moral and religious insight. They cannot show signs of being created in Gods image with the capacity to know and worship him, and therefore to share in his wisdom and goodness, because their idolatry is dehumanizing.¹ How can they be anything but stupid and foolish if the instruction of idols is but wood? No matter how much wisdom goes into carefully carving and decoration these idols, the teaching, instruction, and moral correction that results from these religions is never greater than the substance of the gods – it is simply wood.²