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Isaiah 40
Lexham English Bible
Isaiah 40
Lexham English Bible
Comfort for God’s People
40 “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[a] from the hand of Yahweh double for all her sins.”
3 A voice is calling in the wilderness, “Clear the way of Yahweh!
Make a highway smooth in the desert for our God!
4 Every 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.
5 And the glory of Yahweh shall be revealed,
and all humankind[b] together shall see it,
for the mouth of Yahweh has spoken.”
6 A voice is saying, “Call!”
And he said, “What shall I call?”
All humankind[c] are grass,
and all his loyalty is like the flowers of the field.
7 Grass withers; the flower withers
when the breath of Yahweh blows on it.
Surely the people are grass.
8 Grass withers; the flower withers,
but[d] the word of our God will stand forever.
9 Get yourself[e] 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!”
10 Look! The Lord Yahweh comes with strength,[f]
and his arm rules for him.
Look! His reward is with him,
and his recompense in his presence.[g]
11 He 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.
12 Who 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,[h] and the hills in a balance?
13 Who has measured up the spirit of Yahweh
or informed him as his counselor[i]?
14 With whom has he consulted, that[j] he enlightened him[k]
and taught him the path of justice,
and taught him knowledge,
and made the way of understanding known to him?
15 Look! 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.
16 And Lebanon is not enough to light a fire,
and its animals[l] not enough for a burnt offering.
17 All the nations are like nothing before him;
they are counted by him as[m] nothing and emptiness.
18 And to whom will you liken God?
And to what likeness will you compare him?
19 A craftsman pours out the idol,
and a goldsmith[n] overlays it with gold,
and he smelts chains of silver.
20 The 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.
21 Have you not known?
Have you not heard?
Has it not been told to you from the beginning?[o]
Have you not understood from the foundation of the earth?
22 He 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,
23 the one who brings[p] princes to nothing;
he makes rulers of the earth like nothing.
24 Indeed, hardly are they planted; indeed, hardly are they sown;
indeed, hardly has their shoot taken root in the earth
when[q] 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.
26 Lift 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.
27 Why[r] do you say, Jacob,
and you speak, Israel,
“My way is hidden from Yahweh,
and my judgment is passed over by my God?”
28 Have 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.
29 He gives power to the weary,
and he increases power for the powerless.[s]
30 Even[t] young people will be faint and grow weary,
and the young will stumble, exhausted.
31 But[u] those who wait for Yahweh shall renew their strength.
They shall go up with wings[v] like eagles;
they shall run and not grow weary;
they shall walk and not be faint.
Footnotes
- Isaiah 40:2 Literally “taken”
- Isaiah 40:5 Literally “flesh”
- Isaiah 40:6 Literally “flesh”
- Isaiah 40:8 Or “and”
- Isaiah 40:9 Literally “Go for you”
- Isaiah 40:10 Literally “strong”
- Isaiah 40:10 Literally “before his face”
- Isaiah 40:12 Hebrew “scale”
- Isaiah 40:13 Literally “the man of his counsel”
- Isaiah 40:14 Or “and”
- Isaiah 40:14 Or “made him understand”
- Isaiah 40:16 Hebrew “animal”
- Isaiah 40:17 Or “from”
- Isaiah 40:19 Literally “refiner”
- Isaiah 40:21 Literally “head”
- Isaiah 40:23 Or “gives”
- Isaiah 40:24 Or “also”
- Isaiah 40:27 Literally “To what”
- Isaiah 40:29 Literally “not power”
- Isaiah 40:30 Or “And”
- Isaiah 40:31 Or “And”
- Isaiah 40:31 Hebrew “wing”
Isaiah 40
New International Version
Isaiah 40
New International Version
Comfort for God’s People
40 Comfort, comfort(A) my people,
says your God.
2 Speak tenderly(B) to Jerusalem,
and proclaim to her
that her hard service(C) has been completed,(D)
that her sin has been paid for,(E)
that she has received from the Lord’s hand
double(F) for all her sins.
3 A voice of one calling:
“In the wilderness prepare
the way(G) for the Lord[a];
make straight(H) in the desert
a highway for our God.[b](I)
4 Every valley shall be raised up,(J)
every mountain and hill(K) made low;
the rough ground shall become level,(L)
the rugged places a plain.
5 And the glory(M) of the Lord will be revealed,
and all people will see it together.(N)
For the mouth of the Lord has spoken.”(O)
6 A voice says, “Cry out.”
And I said, “What shall I cry?”
“All people are like grass,(P)
and all their faithfulness is like the flowers of the field.
7 The grass withers(Q) and the flowers fall,
because the breath(R) of the Lord blows(S) on them.
Surely the people are grass.
8 The grass withers and the flowers(T) fall,
but the word(U) of our God endures(V) forever.(W)”
9 You who bring good news(X) to Zion,
go up on a high mountain.
You who bring good news to Jerusalem,[c](Y)
lift up your voice with a shout,
lift it up, do not be afraid;
say to the towns of Judah,
“Here is your God!”(Z)
10 See, the Sovereign Lord comes(AA) with power,(AB)
and he rules(AC) with a mighty arm.(AD)
See, his reward(AE) is with him,
and his recompense accompanies him.
11 He tends his flock like a shepherd:(AF)
He gathers the lambs in his arms(AG)
and carries them close to his heart;(AH)
he gently leads(AI) those that have young.(AJ)
12 Who has measured the waters(AK) in the hollow of his hand,(AL)
or with the breadth of his hand marked off the heavens?(AM)
Who has held the dust of the earth in a basket,
or weighed the mountains on the scales
and the hills in a balance?(AN)
13 Who can fathom the Spirit[d](AO) of the Lord,
or instruct the Lord as his counselor?(AP)
14 Whom did the Lord consult to enlighten him,
and who taught him the right way?
Who was it that taught him knowledge,(AQ)
or showed him the path of understanding?(AR)
15 Surely the nations are like a drop in a bucket;
they are regarded as dust on the scales;(AS)
he weighs the islands as though they were fine dust.(AT)
16 Lebanon(AU) is not sufficient for altar fires,
nor its animals(AV) enough for burnt offerings.
17 Before him all the nations(AW) are as nothing;(AX)
they are regarded by him as worthless
and less than nothing.(AY)
18 With whom, then, will you compare God?(AZ)
To what image(BA) will you liken him?
19 As for an idol,(BB) a metalworker casts it,
and a goldsmith(BC) overlays it with gold(BD)
and fashions silver chains for it.
20 A person too poor to present such an offering
selects wood(BE) that will not rot;
they look for a skilled worker
to set up an idol(BF) that will not topple.(BG)
21 Do you not know?
Have you not heard?(BH)
Has it not been told(BI) you from the beginning?(BJ)
Have you not understood(BK) since the earth was founded?(BL)
22 He sits enthroned(BM) above the circle of the earth,
and its people are like grasshoppers.(BN)
He stretches out the heavens(BO) like a canopy,(BP)
and spreads them out like a tent(BQ) to live in.(BR)
23 He brings princes(BS) to naught
and reduces the rulers of this world to nothing.(BT)
24 No sooner are they planted,
no sooner are they sown,
no sooner do they take root(BU) in the ground,
than he blows(BV) on them and they wither,(BW)
and a whirlwind sweeps them away like chaff.(BX)
25 “To whom will you compare me?(BY)
Or who is my equal?” says the Holy One.(BZ)
26 Lift up your eyes and look to the heavens:(CA)
Who created(CB) all these?
He who brings out the starry host(CC) one by one
and calls forth each of them by name.
Because of his great power and mighty strength,(CD)
not one of them is missing.(CE)
27 Why do you complain, Jacob?
Why do you say, Israel,
“My way is hidden from the Lord;
my cause is disregarded by my God”?(CF)
28 Do you not know?
Have you not heard?(CG)
The Lord is the everlasting(CH) God,
the Creator(CI) of the ends of the earth.(CJ)
He will not grow tired or weary,(CK)
and his understanding no one can fathom.(CL)
29 He gives strength(CM) to the weary(CN)
and increases the power of the weak.
30 Even youths grow tired and weary,
and young men(CO) stumble and fall;(CP)
31 but those who hope(CQ) in the Lord
will renew their strength.(CR)
They will soar on wings like eagles;(CS)
they will run and not grow weary,
they will walk and not be faint.(CT)
Footnotes
- Isaiah 40:3 Or A voice of one calling in the wilderness: / “Prepare the way for the Lord
- Isaiah 40:3 Hebrew; Septuagint make straight the paths of our God
- Isaiah 40:9 Or Zion, bringer of good news, / go up on a high mountain. / Jerusalem, bringer of good news
- Isaiah 40:13 Or mind
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