Isaiah 40
40
God’s People Comforted
1“Comfort, comfort my people,”#Is 12:1; 49:13; 51:3,12; 52:9; 61:2; 66:13; Jr 31:10–14; Zph 3:14–17; 2Co 1:4
says your God.
2“Speak tenderly to#40:2 Lit Speak to the heart of Jerusalem,
and announce to her
that her time of hard service is over,
her iniquity#Is 13:11 has been pardoned,#Lv 26:41,43; Is 27:9
and she has received from the Lord’s hand
double for all her sins.”#Ex 22:7–8; Jr 16:18; Zch 9:12; Rv 18:6
3A voice of one crying out:
Prepare the way of the Lord in the wilderness;#Mal 3:1; 4:5–6
make a straight highway for our God in the desert.#Mt 3:3; Mk 1:3; Lk 3:4; Jn 1:23
4Every valley will be lifted up,
and every mountain and hill will be leveled;
the uneven ground will become smooth
and the rough places, a plain.#Lk 3:5–6
5And the glory of the Lord will appear,#Is 35:2
and all humanity#40:5 Lit flesh together will see it,#Is 52:10; Jl 2:28
for the mouth of the Lord has spoken.#Is 1:20; 34:16; 58:14
6A voice was saying, “Cry out!”
Another said,#40:6 DSS, LXX, Vg read I said “What should I cry out?”
“All humanity is grass,#1Pt 1:24–25
and all its goodness is like the flower of the field.#Jb 14:2; Ps 102:11; 103:15
7The grass withers, the flowers fade
when the breath#40:7 Or wind, or Spirit of the Lord blows on them;#40:7 Lit it
indeed, the people are grass.
8The grass withers, the flowers fade,#Jms 1:11
but the word of our God remains forever.”#Is 55:11; 59:21; Mk 13:31; Lk 21:33
9Zion, herald of good news,
go up on a high mountain.#Is 52:7
Jerusalem, herald of good news,#Is 61:1
raise your voice loudly.
Raise it, do not be afraid!
Say to the cities of Judah,
“Here is your God!” #Is 25:9; 35:2
10See, the Lord God comes with strength,
and his power establishes his rule.#Is 59:16–18
His wages are with him,#Is 62:11; Rv 22:12
and his reward accompanies him.
11He protects his flock like a shepherd;#Jr 31:10; Ezk 34:12–14,23,31; Mc 5:4; Jn 10:11,14–16
he gathers the lambs in his arms
and carries them in the fold of his garment.
He gently leads those that are nursing.
12Who has measured the waters in the hollow of his hand
or marked off the heavens with the span of his hand?#Is 48:13; Heb 1:10–12
Who has gathered the dust of the earth in a measure
or weighed the mountains on a balance
and the hills on the scales?
13Who has directed#40:13 Or measured, or comprehended the Spirit of the Lord,
or who gave him counsel?#Rm 11:34; 1Co 2:16
14Who did he consult?
Who gave him understanding#Jb 21:22; Col 2:3
and taught him the paths of justice?
Who taught him knowledge
and showed him the way of understanding?
15Look, the nations are like a drop in a bucket;
they are considered as a speck of dust on the scales;
he lifts up the islands like fine dust.
16Lebanon’s cedars are not enough for fuel,
or its animals enough for a burnt offering.#Ps 50:9–11; Mc 6:6–7; Heb 10:5–9
17All the nations are as nothing before him;
they are considered by him
as empty nothingness.#Is 29:7
18With whom will you compare God?
What likeness will you set up for comparison with him?#Ex 8:10; 15:11; 1Sm 2:2; Is 40:25; 46:5; Mc 7:18; Ac 17:29
19An idol? — something that a smelter casts
and a metalworker plates with gold
and makes silver chains for?#Is 2:20; 30:22; 41:7; 44:10
20A poor person contributes wood for a pedestal
that will not rot.#40:20 Or who is too poor for such an offering, or who chooses mulberry wood as a votive gift; Hb obscure
He looks for a skilled craftsman
to set up an idol that will not fall over.#1Sm 5:3; Is 44:9–15; 46:6–7; Jr 10:3–5
21Do you not know?#Ps 19:1; 50:6; Is 37:26; Ac 14:17; Rm 1:19–20
Have you not heard?
Has it not been declared to you
from the beginning?
Have you not considered
the foundations of the earth?#Is 48:13; 51:13
22God is enthroned above the circle of the earth;
its inhabitants are like grasshoppers.#Nm 13:33
He stretches out the heavens like thin cloth#Jb 9:8; Is 37:16; 42:5; 44:24
and spreads them out like a tent to live in.#Jb 36:29; Ps 18:11; 19:4; 104:2
23He reduces princes to nothing#Jb 12:21; Ps 107:40; Is 34:12
and makes judges of the earth like a wasteland.
24They are barely planted, barely sown,
their stem hardly takes root in the ground
when he blows on them and they wither,
and a whirlwind carries them away like stubble.#Ps 1:4; Is 41:2,16; 64:6; Ezk 17:10,24; Nah 1:4
25“To whom will you compare me,#Is 46:5; Ac 17:29
or who is my equal?” asks the Holy One.
26Look up and see!
Who created#Is 42:5; 48:12–13 these?
He brings out the stars by number;
he calls all of them by name.#Ps 147:4–5
Because of his great power and strength,
not one of them is missing.
27Jacob, why do you say,
and Israel, why do you assert,
“My way is hidden from the Lord,
and my claim is ignored by my God”?#Is 7:13; 49:4,14
28Do you not know?
Have you not heard?
The Lord is the everlasting God,#Gn 21:33; Ps 90:2
the Creator of the whole earth.
He never becomes faint or weary;
there is no limit to his understanding.#Ps 147:5; Rm 11:33
29He gives strength to the faint
and strengthens the powerless.
30Youths may become faint and weary,
and young men stumble and fall,
31but those who trust in the Lord
will renew their strength;#Jb 17:9; Ps 103:5; 2Co 4:8–10,16; 12:9
they will soar on wings like eagles;#Ex 19:4; Dt 32:11; Lk 18:1; 2Co 4:1,16; Gl 6:9; Heb 12:3
they will run and not become weary,
they will walk and not faint.
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Isaiah 40: CSB
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© 2017 Holman Bible Publishers
Isaiah 40
40
The Greatness of God
1“Comfort, O comfort My people,” says your God.
2“Speak #Lit to the heart of.tenderly to Jerusalem,
And call out to her, that her time of compulsory service in warfare is finished,
That her wickedness has been taken away [since her punishment is sufficient],
That she has received from the Lord’s hand
Double [punishment] for all her sins.”
3A voice of one is calling out,
“Clear the way for the Lord in the wilderness [remove the obstacles];
Make straight and smooth in the desert a highway for our God.
4Every valley shall be raised,
And every mountain and hill be made low;
And let the rough ground become a plain,
And the rugged places a broad valley.
5And the glory and majesty and splendor of the Lord will be revealed,
And all humanity shall see it together;
For the mouth of the Lord has spoken it.”
6A voice says, “Call out [prophesy].”
Then he answered, “What shall I call out?”
[The voice answered:] All humanity is [as frail as] grass, and all that makes it attractive [its charm, its loveliness] is [momentary] like the flower of the field.
7The grass withers, the flower fades,
When the breath of the Lord blows upon it;
Most certainly [all] the people are [like] grass.
8The grass withers, the flower fades,
But the word of our God stands forever.
9O Zion, herald of good news,
Get up on a high mountain.
O Jerusalem, herald of good news,
Lift up your voice with strength,
Lift it up, do not fear;
Say to the cities of Judah,
“Here is your God!”
10Listen carefully, the Lord God will come with might,
And His arm will rule for Him.
Most certainly His reward is with Him,
And His restitution accompanies Him.
11He will protect His flock like a shepherd,
He will gather the lambs in His arm,
He will carry them in His bosom;
He will gently and carefully lead those nursing their young.
12Who has measured the waters in the hollow of His hand,
And marked off the heavens with a span [of the hand],
And calculated the dust of the earth with a #Lit third.measure,
And weighed the mountains in a balance
And the hills in a pair of scales?
13Who has directed the Spirit of the Lord,
Or has taught Him as His counselor?
14With whom did He consult and who enlightened Him?
Who taught Him the path of justice and taught Him knowledge
And informed Him of the way of understanding?
15In fact, the nations are like a drop from a bucket,
And are regarded as a speck of dust on the scales;
Now look, He lifts up the islands like fine dust.
16And [the forests of] Lebanon cannot supply sufficient fuel to start a fire,
Nor are its wild beasts enough for a burnt offering [worthy of the Lord].
17All the nations are as nothing before Him,
They are regarded by Him as less than nothing and meaningless.
18To whom then will you liken God?
Or with what likeness will you compare Him?
19 As for the cast image (idol), a metalworker casts it,
A goldsmith overlays it with gold
And a silversmith casts its silver chains.
20He who is too impoverished for such an offering [to give to his god]
Chooses a tree that will not rot;
He seeks out for himself a skillful craftsman
To [carve and] set up an idol that will not totter.
21Do you [who worship idols] not know? Have you not heard?
Has it not been told to you from the beginning?
Have you not understood from the foundations of the earth [the omnipotence of God and the stupidity of bowing to idols]?
22It is He who sits above the circle of the earth,
And its inhabitants are like grasshoppers;
[It is He] who stretches out the heavens like a veil
And spreads them out like a tent to dwell in.
23It is He who reduces dignitaries to nothing,
Who makes the judges (rulers) of the earth meaningless (useless).
24Scarcely have they been planted,
Scarcely have they been sown,
Scarcely has their stock taken root in the earth,
But He merely blows on them, and they wither,
And a strong wind carries them away like stubble.
25“To whom then will you compare Me
That I would be his equal?” says the Holy One.
26Lift up your eyes on high
And see who has created these heavenly bodies,
The One who brings out their host by number,
He calls them all by name;
Because of the greatness of His might and the strength of His power,
Not one is missing.
27Why, O Jacob, do you say, and declare, O Israel,
“My way is hidden from the Lord,
And the justice due me escapes 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 tired or grow weary;
There is no searching of His understanding.
29He gives strength to the weary,
And to him who has no might He increases power.
30Even youths grow weary and tired,
And vigorous young men stumble badly,
31But those who wait for the Lord [who expect, look for, and hope in Him]
Will gain new strength and renew their power;
They will lift up their wings [and rise up close to God] like eagles [rising toward the sun];
They will run and not become weary,
They will walk and not grow tired.
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