Isaiah 40
40
Comfort for God’s People
1“Comfort; comfort my people,” says your God.
2“Speak to the heart of Jerusalem, and call to her,
that her compulsory labor is fulfilled, that her sin is paid for,
that she has received#Literally “taken” from the hand of Yahweh double for all her sins.”
3A voice is calling in the wilderness, “Clear the way of Yahweh!
Make a highway smooth in the desert for our God!
4Every valley shall be lifted up,
and every mountain and hill shall become low,
And the rough ground shall be like a plain,
and the rugged ground like a valley-plain.
5And the glory of Yahweh shall be revealed,
and all humankind#Literally “flesh” together shall see it,
for the mouth of Yahweh has spoken.”
6A voice is saying, “Call!”
And he said, “What shall I call?”
All humankind#Literally “flesh” are grass,
and all his loyalty is like the flowers of the field.
7Grass withers; the flower withers
when the breath of Yahweh blows on it.
Surely the people are grass.
8Grass withers; the flower withers,
but#Or “and” the word of our God will stand forever.
9Get yourself#Literally “Go for you” up to a high mountain, Zion, bringer of good news!
Lift up your voice with strength, Jerusalem, bringer of good news!
Lift it up; you must not fear!
Say to the cities of Judah, “Here is your God!”
10Look! The Lord Yahweh comes with strength,#Literally “strong”
and his arm rules for him.
Look! His reward is with him,
and his recompense in his presence.#Literally “before his face”
11He will feed his flock like a shepherd;
he will gather the lambs in his arm,
and he will carry them in his bosom;
he will lead those who nurse.
12Who has measured the waters in the hollow of his hand
and marked off the heavens with a span,
comprehended the dust of the earth in a third of a measure
and weighed out the mountains in the scales,#Hebrew “scale” and the hills in a balance?
13Who has measured up the spirit of Yahweh
or informed him as his counselor#Literally “the man of his counsel”?
14With whom has he consulted, that#Or “and” he enlightened him#Or “made him understand”
and taught him the path of justice,
and taught him knowledge,
and made the way of understanding known to him?
15Look! The nations are like a drop from a bucket,
and they are counted like dust of the balances!
Look! He weighs the islands like a thin covering.
16And Lebanon is not enough to light a fire,
and its animals#Hebrew “animal” not enough for a burnt offering.
17All the nations are like nothing before him;
they are counted by him as#Or “from” nothing and emptiness.
18And to whom will you liken God?
And to what likeness will you compare him?
19A craftsman pours out the idol,
and a goldsmith#Literally “refiner” overlays it with gold,
and he smelts chains of silver.
20The one who is too impoverished for a gift chooses wood that will not rot;
he seeks a skillful artisan for himself to set up an image that will not be knocked over.
21Have you not known?
Have you not heard?
Has it not been told to you from the beginning?#Literally “head”
Have you not understood from the foundation of the earth?
22He is the one who sits above the circle of the earth,
and its inhabitants are like grasshoppers;
the one who stretches out the heavens like a veil
and spreads them out like a tent to live in,
23the one who brings#Or “gives” princes to nothing;
he makes rulers of the earth like nothing.
24Indeed, hardly are they planted; indeed, hardly are they sown;
indeed, hardly has their shoot taken root in the earth
when#Or “also” he blows on them and they wither,
and the tempest carries them like stubble.
25“And to whom you will compare me, and am I equal?” says the holy one.
26Lift your eyes up on high, and see! Who created these?
The one who brings out their host by number.
He calls all them by name.
Because he is great of power
and mighty of power, no man is missing.
27Why#Literally “To what” do you say, Jacob,
and you speak, Israel,
“My way is hidden from Yahweh,
and my judgment is passed over by my God?”
28Have you not known,
or have you not heard?
Yahweh is the God of eternity,
the creator of the ends of the earth!
He is not faint, and he does not grow weary!
There is no searching his understanding.
29He gives power to the weary,
and he increases power for the powerless.#Literally “not power”
30Even#Or “And” young people will be faint and grow weary,
and the young will stumble, exhausted.
31But#Or “And” those who wait for Yahweh shall renew their strength.
They shall go up with wings#Hebrew “wing” like eagles;
they shall run and not grow weary;
they shall walk and not be faint.
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Isaiah 40: LEB
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Isaiah 40
40
Words of Hope
1“Comfort my people,” says our God. “Comfort them!
2Encourage the people of Jerusalem.
Tell them they have suffered long enough
and their sins are now forgiven.#40.2 and their sins are now forgiven; or they have paid for what they did.
I have punished them in full for all their sins.”
3 #
Mt 3.3; Mk 1.3; Jn 1.23 #
Lk 3.4–6
A voice cries out,
“Prepare in the wilderness a road for the LORD!
Clear the way in the desert for our God!
4Fill every valley;
level every mountain.
The hills will become a plain,
and the rough country will be made smooth.
5Then the glory of the LORD will be revealed,
and the whole human race will see it.
The LORD himself has promised this.”
6 #
Jas 1.10–11; 1 Pet 1.24–25 A voice cries out, “Proclaim a message!”
“What message shall I proclaim?” I ask.
“Proclaim that all human beings are like grass;
they last no longer than wild flowers.
7Grass withers and flowers fade,
when the LORD sends the wind blowing over them.
People are no more enduring than grass.
8Yes, grass withers and flowers fade,
but the word of our God endures for ever.”
9Jerusalem, go up on a high mountain
and proclaim the good news!
Call out with a loud voice, Zion;
announce the good news!#40.9 Jerusalem, go up… news!; or Go up on a high mountain and proclaim the good news to Jerusalem! Call out with a loud voice and announce the good news to Zion!
Speak out and do not be afraid.
Tell the towns of Judah
that their God is coming!
10 #
Is 62.11; Rev 22.12 The Sovereign LORD is coming to rule with power,
bringing with him the people he has rescued.#40.10 the people he has rescued; or the rewards he has for his people.
11 #
Ezek 34.15; Jn 10.11 He will take care of his flock like a shepherd;
he will gather the lambs together
and carry them in his arms;
he will gently lead their mothers.
Israel's Incomparable God
12Can anyone measure the ocean by handfuls
or measure the sky with his hands?
Can anyone hold the soil of the earth in a cup
or weigh the mountains and hills on scales?
13 #
Rom 11.34; 1 Cor 2.16 Can anyone tell the LORD what to do?
Who can teach him or give him advice?
14With whom does God consult
in order to know and understand
and to learn how things should be done?
15To the LORD the nations are nothing,
no more than a drop of water;
the distant islands are as light as dust.
16All the animals in the forests of Lebanon
are not enough for a sacrifice to our God,
and its trees are too few to kindle the fire.
17The nations are nothing at all to him.
18 #
Acts 17.29
To whom can God be compared?
How can you describe what he is like?
19He is not like an idol that workmen make,
that metalworkers cover with gold
and set in a base of silver.
20The man who cannot afford silver or gold#40.20 Verses 19–20a in Hebrew are unclear.
chooses wood that will not rot.
He finds a skilful craftsman
to make an image that won't fall down.
21Do you not know?
Were you not told long ago?
Have you not heard how the world began?
22It was made by the one who sits on his throne
above the earth and beyond the sky;
the people below look as tiny as ants.
He stretched out the sky like a curtain,
like a tent in which to live.
23He brings down powerful rulers
and reduces them to nothing.
24They are like young plants,
just set out and barely rooted.
When the LORD sends a wind,
they dry up and blow away like straw.
25To whom can the holy God be compared?
Is there anyone else like him?
26Look up at the sky!
Who created the stars you see?
The one who leads them out like an army,
he knows how many there are
and calls each one by name!
His power is so great —
not one of them is ever missing!
27Israel, why then do you complain
that the LORD doesn't know your troubles
or care if you suffer injustice?
28Don't you know? Haven't you heard?
The LORD is the everlasting God;
he created all the world.
He never grows tired or weary.
No one understands his thoughts.
29He strengthens those who are weak and tired.
30Even those who are young grow weak;
young people can fall exhausted.
31But those who trust in the LORD for help
will find their strength renewed.
They will rise on wings like eagles;
they will run and not get weary;
they will walk and not grow weak.
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Good News Bible. Scripture taken from the Good News Bible (r) (Today's English Version Second Edition, UK/British Edition). Copyright © 1992 British & Foreign Bible Society. Used by permission.