Isaiah 40

New English Translation

The Lord Returns to Jerusalem

40 “Comfort, comfort my people,”
says your^[a] God.
²“Speak kindly to^[b] Jerusalem and tell her
that her time of warfare is over,^[c]
that her punishment is completed.^[d]
For the Lord has made her pay double^[e] for all her sins.”
³A voice cries out,
“In the wilderness clear a way for the Lord;
build a level road^[f] through the rift valley^[g] for our God.
⁴Every valley must be elevated,
and every mountain and hill leveled.
The rough terrain will become a level plain,
the rugged landscape a wide valley.
⁵The splendor^[h] of the Lord will be revealed,
and all people^[i] will see it at the same time.
For^[j] the Lord has decreed it.”^[k]
⁶A voice says, “Cry out!”
Another asks,^[l] “What should I cry out?”
The first voice responds:^[m] “All people are like grass,^[n]
and all their promises^[o] are like the flowers in the field.
⁷The grass dries up,
the flowers wither,
when the wind sent by the Lord^[p] blows on them.
Surely humanity^[q] is like grass.
⁸The grass dries up,
the flowers wither,
but the decree of our God is forever reliable.”^[r]
⁹Go up on a high mountain, O herald Zion.
Shout out loudly, O herald Jerusalem!^[s]
Shout, don’t be afraid!
Say to the towns of Judah,
“Here is your God!”
¹⁰Look, the Sovereign Lord comes as a victorious warrior;^[t]
his military power establishes his rule.^[u]
Look, his reward is with him;
his prize goes before him.^[v]
¹¹Like a shepherd he tends his flock;
he gathers up the lambs with his arm;
he carries them close to his heart;^[w]
he leads the ewes along.

The Lord is Incomparable

¹²Who has measured out the waters^[x] in the hollow of his hand,
or carefully^[y] measured the sky,^[z]
or carefully weighed^[aa] the soil of the earth,
or weighed the mountains in a balance,
or the hills on scales?^[ab]
¹³Who comprehends^[ac] the mind^[ad] of the Lord,
or gives him instruction as his counselor?^[ae]
¹⁴From whom does he receive directions?^[af]
Who^[ag] teaches him the correct way to do things,^[ah]
or imparts knowledge to him,
or instructs him in skillful design?^[ai]
¹⁵Look, the nations are like a drop in a bucket;
they are regarded as dust on the scales.
He lifts^[aj] the coastlands^[ak] as if they were dust.
¹⁶Not even Lebanon could supply enough firewood for a sacrifice;^[al]
its wild animals would not provide enough burnt offerings.^[am]
¹⁷All the nations are insignificant before him;
they are regarded as absolutely nothing.^[an]
¹⁸To whom can you compare God?
To what image can you liken him?
¹⁹A craftsman casts^[ao] an idol;
a metalsmith overlays it with gold
and forges silver chains for it.
²⁰To make a contribution one selects wood that will not rot;^[ap]
he then seeks a skilled craftsman
to make^[aq] an idol that will not fall over.
²¹Do you not know?
Do you not hear?
Has it not been told to you since the very beginning?
Have you not understood from the time the earth’s foundations were made?
²²He is the one who sits on the earth’s horizon;^[ar]
its inhabitants are like grasshoppers before him.^[as]
He is the one who stretches out the sky like a thin curtain,^[at]
and spreads it out^[au] like a pitched tent.^[av]
²³He is the one who reduces rulers to nothing;
he makes the earth’s leaders insignificant.
²⁴Indeed, they are barely planted;
yes, they are barely sown;
yes, they barely take root in the earth,
and then he blows on them, causing them to dry up,
and the wind carries them away like straw.
²⁵“To whom can you compare me? Whom do I resemble?”
says the Holy One.^[aw]
²⁶Look up at the sky!^[ax]
Who created all these heavenly lights?^[ay]
He is the one who leads out their ranks;^[az]
he calls them all by name.
Because of his absolute power and awesome strength,
not one of them is missing.
²⁷Why do you say, Jacob,
Why do you say, Israel,
“The Lord is not aware of what is happening to me;^[ba]
My God is not concerned with my vindication”?^[bb]
²⁸Do you not know?
Have you not heard?
The Lord is an eternal God,
the Creator of the whole earth.^[bc]
He does not get tired or weary;
there is no limit to his wisdom.^[bd]
²⁹He gives strength to those who are tired;
to the ones who lack power, he gives renewed energy.
³⁰Even youths get tired and weary;
even strong young men clumsily stumble.^[be]
³¹But those who wait for the Lord’s help^[bf] find renewed strength;
they rise up as if they had eagles’ wings,^[bg]
they run without growing weary,
they walk without getting tired.

Footnotes

Isaiah 40:1 tn The pronominal suffix is second masculine plural. The identity of the addressee is uncertain: (1) God’s people may be addressed, or (2) the unidentified heralds commanded to comfort Jerusalem.
Isaiah 40:2 tn Heb “speak to the heart of Jerusalem.” Jerusalem is personified as a woman.
Isaiah 40:2 tn Heb “that she is filled [with] her warfare.” Some understand צָבָא (tsavah, “warfare”) as meaning “hard service” or “compulsory labor” in this context.
Isaiah 40:2 tn Heb “that her punishment is accepted [as satisfactory].”
Isaiah 40:2 tn Heb “for she has received from the hand of the Lord double.” The principle of the double portion in punishment is also seen in Jer 16:18; 17:18 and Rev 18:6. For examples of the double portion in Israelite law, see Exod 22:4, 7, 9 (double restitution by a thief) and Deut 21:17 (double inheritance portion for the firstborn).
Isaiah 40:3 tn Heb “make level a built road.” The verb יָשַׁר (yashar) in the Piel means “to make smooth, or straight.” The noun מְסִלָּה (mesillah) typically refers to a main road, possibly paved with stones or made level with fill (see HALOT 606 s.v. and The Concise DCH 230 s.v.).
Isaiah 40:3 sn Most translations render this as “desert” (KJV, NASB, ESV, NRSV, NIV 2011, Holman), “wilderness” (NIV 1984), or “wasteland” (NLV). The rift valley (עֲרָבָה, ʿaravah), which extends from Galilee to the Gulf of Aqaba, is quite arid and desert-like in the areas near the Dead Sea and southward (see the note at Num 22:1). But the point here has more to do with preparation for a royal visit. To come to Jerusalem from the east requires coming through the rift valley (or Jordan Valley). Thematically, God is typically portrayed as coming to Israel from the east. Similarly in the Gospel accounts Jesus approaches Jerusalem from the east.
Isaiah 40:5 tn Or “glory.” The Lord’s “glory” is his theophanic radiance and royal splendor (see Isa 6:3; 24:23; 35:2; 60:1; 66:18-19).
Isaiah 40:5 tn Heb “flesh” (so KJV, ASV, NASB); NAB, NIV “mankind”; TEV “the whole human race.”
Isaiah 40:5 tn Or “indeed.”
Isaiah 40:5 tn Heb “the mouth of the Lord has spoken” (so NASB, NIV, NRSV).
Isaiah 40:6 tn Heb “and he says.” Apparently a second “voice” responds to the command of the first “voice.”
Isaiah 40:6 tn The words “the first voice responds” are supplied in the translation for clarification. The first voice tells the second one what to declare.
Isaiah 40:6 tn Heb “all flesh is grass.” The point of the metaphor is explained in v. 7.
Isaiah 40:6 tn Heb “and all his loyalty.” The antecedent of the third masculine suffix is בָּשָׂר (basar, “flesh”), which refers collectively to mankind. The LXX, apparently understanding the antecedent as “grass,” reads “glory,” but חֶסֶד (khesed) rarely, if ever, has this nuance. The normal meaning of חֶסֶד (“faithfulness, loyalty, devotion”) fits very well in the argument. Human beings and their faithfulness (verbal expressions of faithfulness are specifically in view; cf. NRSV “constancy”) are short-lived and unreliable, in stark contrast to the decrees and promises of the eternal God.
Isaiah 40:7 tn The Hebrew text has רוּחַ יְהוָה (ruakh yehvah), which in this context probably does not refer to the Lord’s personal Spirit. The phrase is better translated “the breath of the Lord,” or “the wind of [i.e., sent by] the Lord.” The Lord’s sovereign control over nature, including the hot desert winds that dry up vegetation, is in view here (cf. Ps 147:18; Isa 59:19).
Isaiah 40:7 tn Heb “the people” (so KJV, ASV, NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV).
Isaiah 40:8 tn Heb “but the word of our God stands forever.” In this context the divine “word” specifically refers to his decreed promise assuring Jerusalem that her suffering is over and his glorious return imminent (vv. 1-5).
Isaiah 40:9 tn The second feminine singular imperatives are addressed to personified Zion/Jerusalem, who is here told to ascend a high hill and proclaim the good news of the Lord’s return to the other towns of Judah. Isa 41:27 and 52:7 speak of a herald sent to Zion, but the masculine singular form מְבַשֵּׂר (m^evasser) is used in these verses, in contrast to the feminine singular form מְבַשֶּׂרֶת (m^evasseret) employed in 40:9, where Zion is addressed as a herald.
Isaiah 40:10 tn Heb “comes as a strong one”; ASV “will come as a mighty one.” The preposition בְּ (bet) here carries the nuance “in the capacity of.” It indicates that the Lord possesses the quality expressed by the noun. See GKC 379 §119.i and HALOT 104 s.v. בְּ.
Isaiah 40:10 tn Heb “his arm rules for him” (so NIV, NRSV). The Lord’s “arm” symbolizes his military power (see Isa 51:9-10; 63:5).
Isaiah 40:10 tn As the Lord returns to Jerusalem as a victorious warrior, he brings with him the spoils of victory, called here his “reward” and “prize.” These terms might also be translated “wages” and “recompense.” Verse 11 indicates that his rescued people, likened to a flock of sheep, are his reward.
Isaiah 40:11 tn Heb “in his bosom” (so KJV, NAB, NASB, NRSV), an expression which reflects closeness and protective care.
Isaiah 40:12 tn The Qumran scroll 1QIsa^a has מי ים (“waters of the sea”), a reading followed by NAB.
Isaiah 40:12 tn Heb “with a span.” A “span” was the distance between the ends of the thumb and the little finger of the spread hand” (BDB 285 s.v. זֶרֶת).
Isaiah 40:12 tn Or “the heavens.” The Hebrew term שָׁמַיִם (shamayim) may be translated “heavens” or “sky” depending on the context.
Isaiah 40:12 tn Heb “or weighed by a third part [of a measure].”
Isaiah 40:12 sn The implied answer to the rhetorical questions of v. 12 is, “No one but the Lord.” The Lord, and no other, created the world. Like a merchant weighing out silver or commodities on a scale, the Lord established the various components of the physical universe in precise proportions.
Isaiah 40:13 tn Perhaps the verb is used metonymically here in the sense of “advises” (note the following line).
Isaiah 40:13 tn In this context רוּחַ (ruakh) likely refers to the Lord’s “mind,” or mental faculties, rather than his personal Spirit (see BDB 925 s.v. 6).
Isaiah 40:13 tn Heb “or [as] the man of his counsel causes him to know?”
Isaiah 40:14 tn Heb “With whom did he consult, so that he gave discernment to him?”
Isaiah 40:14 tn Heb “and taught him.” The vav (ו) consecutive with prefixed verbal form continues the previous line. The translation employs an interrogative pronoun for stylistic reasons.
Isaiah 40:14 tn The phrase אֹרַח מִשְׁפָּט (ʾorakh mishpat) could be translated “path of justice” (so NASB, NRSV), but in this context, where creative ability and skill is in view, the phrase is better understood in the sense of “the way that is proper or fitting” (see BDB 1049 s.v. מִשְׁפָּט 6); cf. NIV, NCV “the right way.”
Isaiah 40:14 tn Heb “or the way of understanding causes him to know?”sn The implied answer to the rhetorical questions in vv. 13-14 is, “No one.” In contrast to Marduk, the creator-god of Mesopotamian myths who receives help from the god of wisdom, the Lord neither needs nor receives any such advice or help. See R. Whybray, Heavenly Counsellor (SOTSMS), 64-77.
Isaiah 40:15 tn Or “weighs” (NIV); NLT “picks up.”
Isaiah 40:15 tn Or “islands” (NASB, NIV, NLT).
Isaiah 40:16 tn The words “for a sacrifice” are supplied in the translation for clarification.
Isaiah 40:16 sn The point is that not even the Lebanon forest could supply enough wood and animals for an adequate sacrifice to the Lord.
Isaiah 40:17 tn Heb “[as derived] from nothing and unformed.”
Isaiah 40:19 tn Heb “pours out”; KJV “melteth.”
Isaiah 40:20 tn The first two words of the verse (הַמְסֻכָּן תְּרוּמָה, ham^esukkan t^erumah) are problematic. Some take מְסֻכָּן as an otherwise unattested Pual participle from סָכַן (sakhan, “be poor”) and translate “the one who is impoverished.” תְּרוּמָה (t^erumah, “contribution”) can then be taken as an adverbial accusative, “with respect to a contribution,” and the entire line translated, “the one who is too impoverished for such a contribution [i.e., the metal idol of v. 19?] selects wood that will not rot.” However, מְסֻכָּן is probably the name of a tree used in idol manufacturing (cognate with Akkadian musukkanu, cf. H. R. Cohen, Biblical Hapax Legomena [SBLDS], 133). מְסֻכָּן may be a scribal interpretive addition attempting to specify עֵץ (ʿets) or עֵץ may be a scribal attempt to categorize מְסֻכָּן. How an idol constitutes a תְּרוּמָה (“contribution”) is not entirely clear.
Isaiah 40:20 tn Or “set up” (ASV, NAB, NIV, NRSV); KJV, NASB “to prepare.”
Isaiah 40:22 tn Heb “the circle of the earth” (so KJV, NIV, NRSV, NLT).
Isaiah 40:22 tn The words “before him” are supplied in the translation for clarification.
Isaiah 40:22 tn The otherwise unattested noun דֹּק (doq), translated here “thin curtain,” is apparently derived from the verbal root דקק (“crush”) from which is derived the adjective דַּק (daq, “thin”; see HALOT 229 s.v. דקק). The nuance “curtain” is implied from the parallelism (see “tent” in the next line).
Isaiah 40:22 tn The meaning of the otherwise unattested verb מָתַח (matakh, “spread out”) is determined from the parallelism (note the corresponding verb “stretch out” in the previous line) and supported by later Hebrew and Aramaic cognates. See HALOT 654 s.v. *מתה.
Isaiah 40:22 tn Heb “like a tent [in which] to live”; NAB, NASB “like a tent to dwell (live NIV, NRSV) in.”
Isaiah 40:25 sn See the note on the phrase “the Holy One of Israel” in 1:4.
Isaiah 40:26 tn Heb “Lift on high your eyes and see.”
Isaiah 40:26 tn The words “heavenly lights” are supplied in the translation for clarification. See the following lines.
Isaiah 40:26 tn Heb “the one who brings out by number their host.” The stars are here likened to a huge army that the Lord leads out. Perhaps the next line pictures God calling roll. If so, the final line may be indicating that none of them dares “go AWOL.” (“AWOL” is a military acronym for “absent without leave.”)
Isaiah 40:27 tn Heb “my way is hidden from the Lord” (so NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV).
Isaiah 40:27 tn Heb “and from my God my justice passes away”; NRSV “my right is disregarded by my God.”
Isaiah 40:28 tn Heb “the ends of the earth,” but this is a merism, where the earth’s extremities stand for its entirety, i.e., the extremities and everything in between them.
Isaiah 40:28 sn Exiled Israel’s complaint (v. 27) implies that God might be limited in some way. Perhaps he, like so many of the pagan gods, has died. Or perhaps his jurisdiction is limited to Judah and does not include Babylon. Maybe he is unable to devise an adequate plan to rescue his people, or is unable to execute it. But v. 28 affirms that he is not limited temporally or spatially nor are his power and wisdom restricted in any way. He can and will deliver his people, if they respond in hopeful faith (v. 31a).
Isaiah 40:30 tn Heb “stumbling they stumble.” The verbal idea is emphasized by the infinitive absolute.
Isaiah 40:31 tn The word “help” in the phrase “for the Lord’s help” is supplied in the translation for clarification, as is the possessive on “Lord.”
Isaiah 40:31 tn Heb “they rise up [on] wings like eagles” (TEV similar).

Jesaja 40

Hoffnung für Alle

Gott tröstet die nach Babylonien verbannten Judäer (Kapitel 40–55)

Trost für Gottes Volk

40 So spricht euer Gott: »Tröstet, ja, tröstet mein Volk! ²Ermutigt die Einwohner Jerusalems! Ruft ihnen zu: Nun habt ihr genug gelitten! Die schreckliche Zeit ist vorbei! Der Herr hat euch voll und ganz für eure Sünden bestraft. Eure Schuld ist beglichen.«

³Hört! Jemand ruft: »Bahnt dem Herrn einen Weg durch die Wüste! Baut eine Straße durch die Steppe für unseren Gott! ⁴Jedes Tal soll aufgefüllt, jeder Berg und Hügel abgetragen werden. Alles Unebene soll eben werden und alles Hügelige flach. ⁵Denn der Herr wird kommen in seiner ganzen Herrlichkeit. Alle Welt wird ihn sehen, so hat er selbst es angekündigt.«

⁶Hört! Jemand sagt zu mir: »Sprich zu den Menschen!« »Was soll ich ihnen denn sagen?«, frage ich. »Sag: Die Menschen sind wie das Gras, und ihre Schönheit gleicht den Blumen: ⁷Das Gras verdorrt, die Blumen verwelken, wenn der Herr seinen Atem darüber wehen lässt. Ja, nichts als Gras ist das Volk. ⁸Das Gras verdorrt, die Blumen verwelken, aber das Wort unseres Gottes bleibt gültig für immer und ewig.«

⁹Steig auf einen hohen Berg, Jerusalem! Du hast eine gute Nachricht zu verkünden, Berg Zion. Ruf sie mit lauter Stimme in die Welt hinaus! Ruf laut und scheue dich nicht! Sag den Städten im Land Juda: »Seht, da kommt euer Gott!«

¹⁰Ja, der Herr kommt als ein mächtiger Gott. Er herrscht mit großer Kraft. Den Lohn für seine Mühe bringt er mit: sein Volk, das er sich erworben hat. Es geht vor ihm her. ¹¹Er sorgt für sein Volk wie ein guter Hirte. Die Lämmer nimmt er auf den Arm und hüllt sie schützend in seinen Umhang. Die Mutterschafe führt er behutsam ihren Weg.

Die unvergleichliche Größe Gottes

¹²Kann jemand die Wassermassen der Meere mit der hohlen Hand messen oder die Weite des Himmels mit der Handspanne bestimmen? Und kann jemand die Erdmassen in Eimer abfüllen, die Berge wiegen und alle Hügel auf die Waagschale legen? ¹³Wer kann den Geist des Herrn fassen? Wer war sein Lehrer, wer hat ihn beraten? ¹⁴Braucht Gott jemanden, bei dem er sich Rat holt, einen, der ihn unterrichtet und ihm zeigt, was richtig ist? Musste ihm je einer neue Erkenntnisse vermitteln und ihm die Augen öffnen für das, was er zu tun hat? ¹⁵Nein, niemals! Denn in seinen Augen sind selbst ganze Völker nur wie Tropfen im Eimer, wie Stäubchen auf der Waage. Die Inseln im Meer hebt er hoch, als wären sie Sandkörner. ¹⁶Würde man alle Wälder auf dem Libanon zu Brennholz machen und alles Wild darin schlachten, es wäre immer noch zu wenig als Opfer für den Herrn! ¹⁷Gemessen an ihm sind alle Völker wie ein Nichts; ihre Macht hat für ihn nicht das geringste Gewicht.

¹⁸Mit wem wollt ihr Gott vergleichen? Gibt es für ihn überhaupt ein passendes Bild? ¹⁹Da gießt der Künstler eine Figur aus Bronze, und der Goldschmied überzieht sie mit Gold und schmückt sie mit silbernen Kettchen. ²⁰Wem eine solche Götterstatue zu teuer ist, der nimmt Holz, das nicht fault. Er lässt sich von einem geschickten Künstler eine Figur daraus schnitzen, die fest steht und nicht wackelt.

²¹Ihr aber – wisst ihr es nicht besser? Oder wollt ihr es nicht hören? Hat man es euch nicht von Anfang an erzählt? Ist euch wirklich nicht bekannt, wer die Erde gemacht hat? ²²Es ist der Herr! Hoch thront er über der Welt; ihre Bewohner sind für ihn klein wie Heuschrecken. Er spannt den Himmel aus wie einen Schleier, er schlägt ihn auf wie ein Zelt, unter dem die Menschen wohnen können. ²³Er stürzt die Mächtigen und nimmt den obersten Richtern die Gewalt. ²⁴Sie gleichen jungen Pflanzen: Kaum sind sie gesetzt, kaum haben sie Wurzeln geschlagen, da bläst er sie an, und sie verdorren. Wie Spreu werden sie vom Sturm verweht.

²⁵»Mit wem also wollt ihr mich vergleichen?«, fragt der heilige Gott. »Wer hält einem Vergleich mit mir stand?« ²⁶Blickt nach oben! Schaut den Himmel an: Wer hat die unzähligen Sterne geschaffen? Er ist es! Er ruft sie, und sie kommen hervor; jeden nennt er mit seinem Namen. Kein einziger fehlt, wenn der starke und mächtige Gott sie antreten lässt.

²⁷Ihr Nachkommen von Jakob, ihr Israeliten, warum behauptet ihr: »Der Herr weiß nicht, wie es uns geht! Es macht unserem Gott nichts aus, wenn wir Unrecht leiden müssen«? ²⁸Begreift ihr denn nicht? Oder habt ihr es nie gehört? Der Herr ist der ewige Gott. Er ist der Schöpfer der Erde – auch die entferntesten Länder hat er gemacht. Er wird weder müde noch kraftlos. Seine Weisheit ist unendlich tief. ²⁹Den Erschöpften gibt er neue Kraft, und die Schwachen macht er stark. ³⁰Selbst junge Menschen ermüden und werden kraftlos, starke Männer stolpern und brechen zusammen.

³¹Aber alle, die ihre Hoffnung auf den Herrn setzen, bekommen neue Kraft. Sie sind wie Adler, denen mächtige Schwingen wachsen. Sie gehen und werden nicht müde, sie laufen und sind nicht erschöpft.

New English Translation (NET)

Hoffnung für Alle (HOF)

Isaiah 40 New English Translation