Isaiah 40
1 “Comfort, comfort My people,” says your God.
Comfort ye, comfort ye, my people, Saith your God.
2 “Speak tenderly to Jerusalem, and proclaim to her that her forced labor has been completed; her iniquity has been pardoned. For she has received from the hand of the LORD double for all her sins.”
Speak ye encouragement to Jerusalem, and declare to her, That her hard service is ended; That her iniquity is expiated; That she hath received from the hand of Jehovah Double for all her sins.
3 A voice of one calling: “Prepare the way for the LORD in the wilderness; make a straight highway for our God in the desert.
A voice crieth: “Prepare ye in the wilderness the way of Jehovah; Make straight in the desert a highway for our God!
4 Every valley shall be lifted up, and every mountain and hill made low; the uneven ground will become smooth, and the rugged land a plain.
Every valley shall be exalted, And every mountain and hill be made low; The crooked shall become straight, And the rough places plain.
5 And the glory of the LORD will be revealed, and all humanity together will see it.
For the glory of Jehovah shall be revealed, And all flesh shall see it together; For the mouth of Jehovah hath spoken it!”
6 A voice says, “Cry out!” And I asked, “What should I cry out?” “All flesh is like grass, and all its glory like the flowers of the field.
A voice said, Proclaim! And I said, What shall I proclaim? All flesh is grass, And all its comeliness as the flower of the field.
7 The grass withers and the flowers fall when the breath of the LORD blows on them; indeed, the people are grass.
The grass withereth, the flower fadeth, When the breath of Jehovah bloweth upon it. Truly the people is grass.
8 The grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of our God stands forever.”
The grass withereth, the flower fadeth, But the word of our God shall stand forever.
9 Go up on a high mountain, O Zion, herald of good news. Raise your voice loudly, O Jerusalem, herald of good news. Lift it up, do not be afraid! Say to the cities of Judah, “Here is your God!”
Get thee up on the high mountain, O thou that bringest glad tidings to Zion; Lift up thy voice with strength, thou that bringest glad tidings to Jerusalem; Lift it up; be not afraid; Say to the cities of Judah, Behold your God!
10 Behold, the Lord GOD comes with might, and His arm establishes His rule. His reward is with Him, and His recompense accompanies Him.
Behold, the Lord Jehovah shall come with might, And his arm shall rule for him; Behold, his reward is with him, And his recompense before him.
11 He tends His flock like a shepherd; He gathers the lambs in His arms and carries them close to His heart. He gently leads the nursing ewes.
He shall feed his flock like a shepherd; He shall gather up the lambs in his arms, And carry them in his bosom, And gently lead the nursing ewes.
12 Who has measured the waters in the hollow of his hand, or marked off the heavens with the span of his hand? Who has held the dust of the earth in a basket, or weighed the mountains on a scale and the hills with a balance?
Who hath measured the waters in the hollow of his hand, And meted out the heavens with his span, And gathered the dust of the earth into a measure, And weighed the mountains in scales, And the hills in a balance?
13 Who has directed the Spirit of the LORD, or informed Him as His counselor?
Who hath searched out the spirit of Jehovah, Or, being his counsellor, hath taught him?
14 Whom did He consult to enlighten Him, and who taught Him the paths of justice? Who imparted knowledge to Him and showed Him the way of understanding?
With whom took he counsel, and who instructed him, And taught him the path of justice, And taught him knowledge, And showed him the way of understanding?
15 Surely the nations are like a drop in a bucket; they are considered a speck of dust on the scales; He lifts up the islands like fine dust.
Behold, the nations are as a drop from a bucket, And are accounted as the small dust of the balance; Behold, he taketh up the isles as a very little thing,
16 Lebanon is not sufficient for fuel, nor its animals enough for a burnt offering.
And Lebanon is not sufficient for fire, Nor its beasts for a burnt-offering.
17 All the nations are as nothing before Him; He regards them as nothingness and emptiness.
All the nations are as nothing before him; They are accounted by him as less than nothing, and vanity.
18 To whom will you liken God? To what image will you compare Him?
To whom then will ye liken God, And what likeness will ye compare unto him?
19 To an idol that a craftsman casts and a metalworker overlays with gold and fits with silver chains?
The workman casteth an image, And the smith overlayeth it with gold, And casteth for it silver chains.
20 To one bereft of an offering who chooses wood that will not rot, who seeks a skilled craftsman to set up an idol that will not topple?
He that is too poor to make an oblation Chooseth a piece of wood that will not rot; He seeketh for himself a skilful artificer, To prepare an image that shall not be moved.
21 Do you not know? Have you not heard? Has it not been declared to you from the beginning? Have you not understood since the foundation of the earth?
Do ye not know? Have ye not heard? Hath it not been declared to you from the beginning? Have ye not considered the foundations of the earth?
22 He sits enthroned above the circle of the earth; its dwellers are like grasshoppers. He stretches out the heavens like a curtain, and spreads them out like a tent to dwell in.
It is He that sitteth above the circle of the earth, And the inhabitants are to him as grasshoppers; That stretcheth out the heavens as a canopy, And spreadeth them out as a tent to dwell in;
23 He brings the princes to nothing and makes the rulers of the earth meaningless.
That bringeth princes to nothing, And reduceth the rulers of the earth to vanity.
24 No sooner are they planted, no sooner are they sown, no sooner have their stems taken root in the ground, than He blows on them and they wither, and a whirlwind sweeps them away like stubble.
Yea, scarcely are they planted, scarcely are they sown, Scarcely hath their stem taken root in the ground, When He bloweth upon them and they wither, And the whirlwind beareth them away like stubble.
25 “To whom will you liken Me, or who is My equal?” asks the Holy One.
To whom then will ye liken me, And to whom shall I be compared? Saith the Holy One.
26 Lift up your eyes on high: Who created all these? He leads forth the starry host by number; He calls each one by name. Because of His great power and mighty strength, not one of them is missing.
Lift up your eyes to the heavens, and behold! Who hath created these? He draweth forth their host by number, He calleth them all by name; Through the greatness of his strength and the mightiness of his power, Not one of them faileth to appear.
27 Why do you say, O Jacob, and why do you assert, O Israel, “My way is hidden from the LORD, and my claim is ignored by my God”?
Why sayest thou, O Jacob, and speakest, O Israel, “My way is hidden from Jehovah, My cause passeth by before my God”?
28 Do you not know? Have you not heard? The LORD is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He will not grow tired or weary; His understanding is beyond searching out.
Do ye not know? Have ye not heard? Jehovah is an everlasting God, The creator of the ends of the earth; He fainteth not, nor is he weary; His understanding is unsearchable.
29 He gives power to the faint and increases the strength of the weak.
He giveth power to the faint; To the feeble abundant strength.
30 Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall.
The youths shall faint and be weary, And the young warriors shall utterly fall.
31 But those who wait upon the LORD will renew their strength; they will mount up with wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not faint.
But they that trust in Jehovah shall renew their strength; They shall mount up with wings like eagles; They shall run and not be weary; They shall walk and not faint.
