Isaiah 40
The Greatness of God
1 “ aComfort, comfort My people,” says your God.2 “ bSpeak ▼
▼Lit to the heart of
kindly to Jerusalem;And call out to her, that her ▼
▼Or hard service
,
ewarfare has ended,That her ▼
▼Or penalty of guilt accepted as paid off
,
gguilt has been removed,That she has received of the Lord’s hand
hDouble for all her sins.”
3 iThe voice of one calling out,
“ jClear the way for the Lord in the wilderness;
Make ▼
▼Or smooth
straight 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 ▼
▼Or In order that the
Then the mglory of the Lord will be revealed,And nall flesh will see it together;
For the omouth of the Lord has spoken.”
6 A voice says, “Call out.”
Then ▼
▼Another reading is I said
he answered, “What shall I call out?”qAll flesh is grass, and all its ▼
▼Or constancy
loveliness is like the flower of the field.7 The sgrass withers, the flower fades,
▼
▼Or Because
When the ubreath of the Lord blows upon it;The people are indeed grass!
8 The grass withers, the flower fades,
But vthe word of our God stands forever.
9 Go up on a whigh mountain,
Zion, messenger of xgood news,
Raise your voice forcefully,
Jerusalem, messenger of good news;
Raise it up, do not fear.
Say to the ycities of Judah,
“ zHere is your God!”
10 Behold, the Lord ▼
▼Heb YHWH, usually rendered Lord
God will come abwith might,With His acarm ruling for Him.
Behold, His adcompensation is with Him,
And His reward before Him.
11 Like a shepherd He will aetend 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 afmeasured the ▼
▼DSS reads waters of the sea
waters in the hollow of His hand,And measured the heavens with a ▼
▼Or half cubit (9 in. or 22.8 cm)
span,And ▼
▼Lit contained; or comprehended
calculated the dust of the earth with a measure,And weighed the mountains in a balance
And the hills in a pair of scales?
13 ajWho has ▼
▼Or measured, marked off
directed the Spirit of the Lord,Or as His alcounselor has informed Him?
14 amWith whom did He consult and who angave Him understanding?
And who taught Him in the path of justice and taught Him knowledge,
And informed Him of the way of understanding?
15 Behold, the aonations are like a drop from a bucket,
And are regarded as a speck of apdust on the scales;
Behold, He lifts up the ▼
▼Or coastlands
islands like fine dust.16 Even Lebanon is not enough to ▼
▼I.e., for fire on an altar
burn,Nor its asanimals enough for a burnt offering.
17 atAll the nations are as nothing before Him,
They are regarded by Him as less than nothing and ▼
▼Or void
meaningless.18 avTo whom then will you liken God?
Or what likeness will you compare with Him?
19 As for the ▼
▼Or carved image
,
axidol, a craftsman casts it,A goldsmith ayplates it with gold,
And a silversmith fashions chains of silver.
20 He who is too impoverished for such an offering
Selects a aztree that does not rot;
He seeks out for himself a skillful craftsman
To ▼
▼Or set up
prepare ▼▼Or a carved image
an idol that bcwill not totter.21 bdDo you not know? Have you not heard?
Has it not been declared to you from the beginning?
Have you not understood befrom the foundations of the earth?
22 It is He who ▼
▼Or is enthroned
sits above the ▼▼Or vault
,
bhcircle of the earth,And its inhabitants are like bigrasshoppers,
Who bjstretches out the heavens like a bkcurtain
And spreads them out like a bltent to live in.
23 It is He who reduces bmrulers to nothing,
Who bnmakes the judges of the earth ▼
▼Or void
meaningless.24 ▼
▼Or Not even
Scarcely have they been planted,▼
▼Or Not even
Scarcely have they been sown,▼
▼Or Not even
Scarcely has their stock taken root in the earth,But He merely blows on them, and they wither,
And the bsstorm carries them away like stubble.
25 “ btTo whom then will you compare Me
That I would be his equal?” says the Holy One.
26 buRaise your eyes on high
And see bvwho has created these stars,
The bwOne who brings out their ▼
▼Lit host
multitude by number,He calls them all by name;
Because of the bygreatness of His might and the ▼
▼As in DSS and ancient versions; MT strong
strength of His power,caNot one of them is missing.
27 cbWhy do you say, Jacob, and you assert, Israel,
“My way is cchidden from the Lord,
And the cdjustice due me ▼
▼Lit passes by my God
escapes the notice of cfmy God”?28 cgDo you not know? Have you not heard?
The chEverlasting God, the Lord, the Creator of the ends of the earth
Does not become weary or tired.
His understanding is ciunsearchable.
29 He gives strength to the cjweary,
And to the one who lacks might He ckincreases power.
30 Though clyouths grow weary and tired,
And vigorous cmyoung men stumble badly,
31 Yet those who ▼
▼Or hope in
wait for the LordWill cogain new strength;
They will ▼
▼Or sprout wings
,
cqmount up with wings like eagles,They will run and not get tired,
They will walk and not become weary.
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