Isaiah 40
40
1“Comfort, yes comfort my people!” says your God. 2“Speak lovingly to the people of Jerusalem, telling them that their hard times are over, that their sins have been forgiven, and that the Lord has paid them twice over for their sins.”
3A voice is heard calling, “Prepare the way for the Lord in the wilderness, make a straight highway for our God through the desert. 4Fill in all the valleys; level all the mountains and hills; smooth out the uneven ground; make the rough places flat. 5The Lord's glory will be revealed, and everyone will see it together. This is what the Lord has declared.”
6A voice is heard saying, “Shout it out.” I asked, “What shall I shout?” “All human beings are like grass, and all their trustworthiness is like the flowers of the field. 7The grass wilts and the flower fades when the Lord breathes on them. Yes, the people are grass! 8However, even though the grass wilts and the flower fades, the word of our God will endure forever.”
9Zion, bringer of good news, go up a high mountain. Jerusalem, bringer of good news, raise your voice and shout out loud. Don't be afraid to shout really loud! Tell the towns of Judah, “Here is your God!” 10Look! The Lord God is coming with power! He will rule with a firm hand. Look! He's bringing his reward with him, coming to give his gift. 11He looks after his flock like a shepherd. He picks up the lambs in his arms and holds them close to his chest. He leads those that are nursing young.
12Who has measured the waters he holds in the palm of his hand? Who has marked off the heavens with the span of his hand? Who has worked out the amount of dust of the earth? Who has weighed the mountains on a scale and the hills with a balance? 13Who has measured the Spirit of the Lord, or taught him what to do as his counselor? 14Who did the Lord go to for advice to help him understand? Who taught him right from wrong? Who gave him knowledge and showed him the way of wisdom?
15It's obvious that the nations are just a drop in a bucket. They're like dust on a set of scales. He can pick up islands as if they weigh next to nothing. 16All the wood in Lebanon for a fire and all its animals as a sacrifice wouldn't be enough to provide a burnt offering. 17To him all the nations are like nothing. He counts them as less than nothing—like they don't exist.
18Who do you think is like God? What image do you think he looks like? 19Is he a metal idol that a craftsman casts in a mold, and then a goldsmith overlays it with gold and makes silver chains for it? 20Those who are too poor to pay for that choose wood that won't rot, then they look for a skilled wood-carver to make an idol that won't fall over.
21Don't you know? Haven't you heard? Hasn't it been explained to you from the very beginning? Haven't you understood from the time the world was created?#40:21. “The world was created”: literally, “the foundations of the world.” 22God sits on his throne above the horizon of the earth; the people that live there are like grasshoppers. He stretches out the heavens like a curtain, spreading them out like a tent to live in. 23He brings leaders down; he makes the rulers of the world like nothing. 24In fact they are hardly even planted, hardly even sown, hardly even taken root, when he blows on them and they wither, and the wind carries them away like straw.
25“Who are you going to compare me with? Who is equal to me?” asks the Holy One.
26Look at the heavens. Who created all this? He leads the stars like an army, and calls each one by name. Because he has great power and incredible strength, not a single one of them is missing.
27Why do you speak like this, Jacob, and why do you say, Israel, “The Lord doesn't see what's happening to me, and he's ignoring my rights!”
28Don't you know? Haven't you heard? The Lord is the eternal God, the Creator of the whole earth. He's never weak or tired; you can't find out all he knows. 29He gives strength to the weary and power to the powerless. 30Even young people grow weak and tired—they fall down when they're exhausted. 31But those who trust in the Lord will have their strength renewed. They will fly high with wings like eagles. They will run and not be tired. They will walk and not be worn out.
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Isaiah 40: FBV
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Dr. Jonathan Gallagher. Released under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 Unported License. Version 4.3. For corrections send email to jonathangallagherfbv@gmail.com
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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