Isaiah 40
40
Comfort My People
1“Comfort my people! Comfort them!” says your God.
2“Speak tenderly to Jerusalem and announce to it
that its time of hard labor is over
and its wrongs have been paid for.
It has received from the Lord double for all its sins.”
3A voice cries out in the desert:
“Clear a way for the Lord.
Make a straight highway in the wilderness for our God.
4Every valley will be raised.
Every mountain and hill will be lowered.
Steep places will be made level.
Rough places will be made smooth.
5Then the Lord’s glory will be revealed
and all people will see it together.
The Lord has spoken.”
6A voice called, “Call out!”
I asked, “What should I call out?”
“Call out: All people are like grass,
and all their beauty is like a flower in the field.
7Grass dries up,
and flowers wither when the Lord’s breath blows on them.
Yes, people are like grass.
8Grass dries up,
and flowers wither,
but our God’s word will last forever.”
9Go up a high mountain, Zion.
Tell the good news!
Call out with a loud voice, Jerusalem.
Tell the good news!
Raise your voice without fear.
Tell the cities of Judah:
“Here is your God!”
10The Almighty Lord is coming with power
to rule with authority.
His reward is with him,
and the people he has won arrive ahead of him.
11Like a shepherd he takes care of his flock.
He gathers the lambs in his arms.
He carries them in his arms.
He gently helps the sheep and their lambs.
God Gives Strength to Those Who Depend on Him
12Who has measured the water of the sea #40:12 Dead Sea Scrolls; Masoretic Text “Who has measured the water.” with the palm of his hand
or measured the sky with the length of his hand?
Who has held the dust of the earth in a bushel basket
or weighed the mountains on a scale and the hills on a balance?
13Who has directed the Spirit of the Lord
or instructed him as his adviser?
14Whom did he consult?
Who gave him understanding?
Who taught him the right way?
Who taught him knowledge?
Who informed him about the way to understanding?
15The nations are like a drop in a bucket
and are considered to be like dust on a scale.
The weight of the islands is like fine dust.
16All the trees in Lebanon are not enough to burn an offering.
Its wild animals are not enough for a single burnt offering.
17All the nations amount to nothing in his presence.
He considers them less than nothing and worthless.
18To whom, then, can you compare God?
To what statue can you compare him?
19Craftsmen make idols.
Goldsmiths cover them with gold.
Silversmiths make silver chains for them.
20The poorest people choose wood that will not rot
and search out skillful craftsmen
to set up idols that will not fall over.
21Don’t you know?
Haven’t you heard?
Haven’t you been told from the beginning?
Don’t you understand the foundations of the earth?
22God is enthroned above the earth,
and those who live on it are like grasshoppers.
He stretches out the sky like a canopy
and spreads it out like a tent to live in.
23He makes rulers unimportant
and makes earthly judges worth nothing.
24They have hardly been planted.
They have hardly been sown.
They have hardly taken root in the ground.
Then he blows on them and they wither,
and a windstorm sweeps them away like straw.
25“To whom, then, can you compare me?
Who is my equal?” asks the Holy One.
26Look at the sky and see.
Who created these things?
Who brings out the stars one by one?
He calls them all by name.
Because of the greatness of his might and the strength of his power,
not one of them is missing.
27Jacob, why do you complain?
Israel, why do you say,
“My way is hidden from the Lord,
and my rights are ignored by my God”?
28Don’t you know?
Haven’t you heard?
The eternal God, the Lord, the Creator of the ends of the earth,
doesn’t grow tired or become weary.
His understanding is beyond reach.
29He gives strength to those who grow tired
and increases the strength of those who are weak.
30Even young people grow tired and become weary,
and young men will stumble and fall.
31Yet, the strength of those who wait with hope in the Lord
will be renewed.
They will soar on wings like eagles.
They will run and won’t become weary.
They will walk and won’t grow tired.
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Isaiah 40: GW
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GOD'S WORD® Translation ©1995, 2003, 2013, 2014, 2019, 2020 by God's Word to the Nations Mission Society. All rights reserved.
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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