Isaiah 40
40
The Greatness of God
1“Comfort, comfort My people,” says your God.
2“Speak #40:2 Lit to the heart ofkindly to Jerusalem;
And call out to her, that her #40:2 Or hard servicewarfare has ended,
That her #40:2 Or penalty of guilt accepted as paid offguilt has been removed,
That she has received of the Lord’s hand
Double for all her sins.”
3¶The voice of one calling out,
“Clear the way for the Lord in the wilderness;
Make #40:3 Or smoothstraight in the desert a highway for our God.
4“Let every valley be lifted up,
And every mountain and hill be made low;
And let the uneven ground become a plain,
And the rugged terrain a broad valley;
5 # 40:5 Or In order that the Then the glory of the Lord will be revealed,
And all flesh will see it together;
For the mouth of the Lord has spoken.”
6A voice says, “Call out.”
Then #40:6 Another reading is I saidhe answered, “What shall I call out?”
All flesh is grass, and all its #40:6 Or constancyloveliness is like the flower of the field.
7The grass withers, the flower fades,
# 40:7 Or Because When the breath of the Lord blows upon it;
The people are indeed grass!
8The grass withers, the flower fades,
But the word of our God stands forever.
9¶Go up on a high mountain,
Zion, messenger of good news,
Raise your voice forcefully,
Jerusalem, messenger of good news;
Raise it up, do not fear.
Say to the cities of Judah,
“Here is your God!”
10Behold, the Lord #40:10 Heb YHWH, usually rendered LordGod will come with might,
With His arm ruling for Him.
Behold, His compensation is with Him,
And His reward before Him.
11Like a shepherd He will tend His flock,
In His arm He will gather the lambs
And carry them in the fold of His robe;
He will gently lead the nursing ewes.
12¶Who has measured the #40:12 DSS reads waters of the seawaters in the hollow of His hand,
And measured the heavens with a #40:12 Or half cubit (9 in. or 22.8 cm)span,
And #40:12 Lit contained; or comprehendedcalculated the dust of the earth with a measure,
And weighed the mountains in a balance
And the hills in a pair of scales?
13Who has #40:13 Or measured, marked offdirected the Spirit of the Lord,
Or as His counselor has informed Him?
14With whom did He consult and who gave Him understanding?
And who taught Him in the path of justice and taught Him knowledge,
And informed Him of the way of understanding?
15Behold, the nations are like a drop from a bucket,
And are regarded as a speck of dust on the scales;
Behold, He lifts up the #40:15 Or coastlandsislands like fine dust.
16Even Lebanon is not enough to #40:16 I.e., for fire on an altarburn,
Nor its animals enough for a burnt offering.
17All the nations are as nothing before Him,
They are regarded by Him as less than nothing and #40:17 Or voidmeaningless.
18¶To whom then will you liken God?
Or what likeness will you compare with Him?
19 As for the #40:19 Or carved imageidol, a craftsman casts it,
A goldsmith plates it with gold,
And a silversmith fashions chains of silver.
20He who is too impoverished for such an offering
Selects a tree that does not rot;
He seeks out for himself a skillful craftsman
To #40:20 Or set upprepare #40:20 Or a carved imagean idol that will not totter.
21¶Do you not know? Have you not heard?
Has it not been declared to you from the beginning?
Have you not understood from the foundations of the earth?
22It is He who #40:22 Or is enthronedsits above the #40:22 Or vaultcircle of the earth,
And its inhabitants are like grasshoppers,
Who stretches out the heavens like a curtain
And spreads them out like a tent to live in.
23 It is He who reduces rulers to nothing,
Who makes the judges of the earth #40:23 Or voidmeaningless.
24 # 40:24 Or Not even Scarcely have they been planted,
# 40:24 Or Not even Scarcely have they been sown,
# 40:24 Or Not even Scarcely has their stock taken root in the earth,
But He merely blows on them, and they wither,
And the storm carries them away like stubble.
25“To whom then will you compare Me
That I would be his equal?” says the Holy One.
26Raise your eyes on high
And see who has created these stars,
The One who brings out their #40:26 Lit hostmultitude by number,
He calls them all by name;
Because of the greatness of His might and the #40:26 As in DSS and ancient versions; MT strongstrength of His power,
Not one of them is missing.
27¶Why do you say, Jacob, and you assert, Israel,
“My way is hidden from the Lord,
And the justice due me #40:27 Lit passes by my Godescapes the notice of my God”?
28Do you not know? Have you not heard?
The Everlasting God, the Lord, the Creator of the ends of the earth
Does not become weary or tired.
His understanding is unsearchable.
29He gives strength to the weary,
And to the one who lacks might He increases power.
30Though youths grow weary and tired,
And vigorous young men stumble badly,
31Yet those who #40:31 Or hope inwait for the Lord
Will gain new strength;
They will #40:31 Or sprout wingsmount up with wings like eagles,
They will run and not get tired,
They will walk and not become weary.
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Isaiah 40: NASB2020
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