Yeshayah 40
Orthodox Jewish Bible
40 Comfort ye, comfort ye My people, saith Eloheichem.
2 Speak ye to the lev Yerushalayim, and preach unto her, that her tzeva’a (time of hard service, warfare) is ended, that her avon (iniquity) is nirtzah (punitively paid for, pardoned); for she hath received of the Yad Hashem kiflayim (double) in payment for all her chattot.
3 The voice of him that preacheth in the midbar, Prepare ye the Derech Hashem, make straight in the Aravah a highway for Eloheinu.
4 Every gey (valley) shall be raised up, and every har and givah (hill) shall be made low; and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough places bikah (plain, valley);
5 And the kavod Hashem shall be revealed, and all basar shall see it together; for the mouth of Hashem hath spoken.
6 The voice said, Preach. And he said, What shall I preach? All basar is khatzir (grass), and all the chesed (constancy) thereof is as the tzitz (flower, blossom) of the sadeh;
7 The khatzir (grass) withereth, the tzitz (flower, blossom) falleth; because the Ruach of Hashem bloweth upon it; surely the people is khatzir (grass).
8 The khatzir withereth, the tzitz falleth; but the Devar Eloheinu shall stand forever.
9 O Mevaseret Tziyon (O Herald, Preacher of Besorah [Good News, Gospel] Tziyon, O Lady Evangelist Tziyon), get thee up into the har gavo’ah (high mountain); O Mevaseret Yerushalayim (O Herald, Preacher of Besorah [Good News, Gospel] Yerushalayim, O Lady Evangelist Yerushalayim), lift up thy voice with ko’ach; lift it up, be not afraid; say unto the towns of Yehudah, Hinei Eloheichem!
10 Hinei, Adonoi Hashem will come with chazak, and His zero’a [Moshiach, see Isaiah 53:1] shall rule for Him; hinei, His sachar (reward) is with Him, and His pe’ullah (work, recompense, retribution, penal reward [for His enemies]) before Him.
11 He shall feed His Eder like a Ro’eh; He shall gather the tela’im (lambs) with His zero’a, and carry them in His kheyk, and shall gently lead those that are with young.
12 Who hath measured the mayim in the hollow of His Hand, and meted out Shomayim with a handbreadth, and enclosed the aphar ha’aretz in a measure, and weighed the harim (mountains) in scales, and the geva’ot (hills) in a balance? [See Prov 30:4.]
13 Who hath directed the Ruach of Hashem, or being His ish etzah (counselor) hath taught Him?
14 With whom did He take counsel, and who gave Him binah, and taught Him in the orakh mishpat, and taught Him da’as, and showed Him the derech tevunot (way of understanding, intelligence)?
15 Surely the Goyim are like a drop in a bucket, and are accounted as dust of the scales; surely He taketh up the iyim (islands) like fine dust.
16 Levanon is not sufficient to burn, nor the beasts thereof sufficient for an olah.
17 Kol HaGoyim before Him are as nothing; and they are counted to Him less than nothing, and tohu.
18 To whom then will ye liken El? Or what demut (likeness) will ye compare unto Him?
19 The charash (workman, craftsman) melteth a pesel (idol, image), and the goldsmith overlayeth it with zahav, and casteth for it chains of kesef.
20 He that is so impoverished that He hath no terumah chooseth an etz that will not rot; he seeketh unto him a charash chacham (skilled craftsman) to prepare a pesel, that shall not topple.
21 Have ye not known? Have ye not heard? Hath it not been told you from the beginning? Have ye not understood from the mosedot ha’aretz (foundations of the earth)?
22 It is He that sitteth above the circle of the earth, and the inhabitants thereof are like chagavim (grasshoppers); that stretcheth out Shomayim like a curtain, and spreadeth them out like an ohel to dwell in;
23 That bringeth the roznim (rulers) to nothing; He maketh the Shoftei Eretz like tohu.
24 Indeed, they shall not be planted; indeed, they shall not be sown; indeed, their stem shall not take root ba’aretz (in the ground); and He shall also blow upon them, and they shall wither, and the se’arah (storm wind) shall take them away like the kash (straw, stubble, chaff).
25 To whom then will ye liken Me, or shall I be equal? saith the Kadosh.
26 Lift up your eyes marom (on high, i.e,. into the heavens), and behold. Who hath created [T.N. This chp needs to be seen also in light of Ac chp 2 and Jerusalem’s Besurah HaGeulah proclaimed there.] these things, that bringeth out their tzeva’a (host, legions) by mispar (number); He calleth them all b’shem (by name) because of the abundance of His power and the might of His ko’ach; not one [star] is missing.
27 Why sayest thou, O Ya’akov, and speakest, O Yisroel, My derech is hid from Hashem, and my mishpat is passed over and disregarded by Elohai?
28 Hast thou not known? Hast thou not heard, that the Elohei Olam, Hashem, Boreh Ketzot HaAretz (Creator of the ends of the earth), fainteth not, neither is weary? There is no searching of His tevunah (understanding, intelligence).
29 He giveth ko’ach to the faint; and to them that have no might He increaseth power.
30 Even the ne’arim (youths) shall faint and grow weary, and the bochurim shall utterly fall;
31 But they that wait upon Hashem shall renew their ko’ach; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not grow weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.
Isaiah 40
English Standard Version
Comfort for God's People
40 (A)Comfort, comfort my people, says your God.
2 (B)Speak tenderly to Jerusalem,
and cry to her
that (C)her warfare[a] is ended,
that her iniquity is pardoned,
that she has received from the Lord's hand
double for all her sins.
3 (D)A voice cries:[b]
(E)“In the wilderness prepare the way of the Lord;
(F)make straight in the desert a highway for our God.
4 (G)Every valley shall be lifted up,
and every mountain and hill be made low;
the uneven ground shall become level,
and the rough places a plain.
5 (H)And the glory of the Lord shall be revealed,
and all flesh shall see it together,
(I)for the mouth of the Lord has spoken.”
The Word of God Stands Forever
6 A voice says, “Cry!”
And I said,[c] “What shall I cry?”
(J)All flesh is grass,
and all its beauty[d] is like the flower of the field.
7 The grass withers, the flower fades
when the breath of the Lord blows on it;
surely the people are grass.
8 (K)The grass withers, the flower fades,
but the word of our God will stand forever.
The Greatness of God
9 Go on up to a high mountain,
O Zion, (L)herald of good news;[e]
lift up your voice with strength,
O Jerusalem, herald of good news;[f]
lift it up, fear not;
say to the cities of Judah,
“Behold your God!”
10 (M)Behold, the Lord God comes with might,
and his arm rules for him;
(N)behold, his reward is with him,
and his recompense before him.
11 (O)He will tend his flock like a shepherd;
(P)he will gather the lambs in his arms;
(Q)he will carry them in his bosom,
and gently lead those that are with young.
12 (R)Who has measured the waters in the hollow of his hand
and marked off the heavens with a span,
enclosed the dust of the earth in a measure
and weighed the mountains in scales
and the hills in a balance?
13 (S)Who has measured[g] the Spirit of the Lord,
or what man shows him his counsel?
14 Whom did he consult,
and who made him understand?
(T)Who taught him the path of justice,
and taught him knowledge,
and showed him the way of understanding?
15 Behold, the nations are like a drop from a bucket,
and are accounted (U)as the dust on the scales;
behold, he takes up (V)the coastlands like fine dust.
16 Lebanon would not suffice for fuel,
nor are (W)its beasts enough for a burnt offering.
17 (X)All the nations are as nothing before him,
they are accounted by him as less than nothing and emptiness.
18 (Y)To whom then will you liken God,
(Z)or what likeness compare with him?
19 (AA)An idol! A craftsman casts it,
and a goldsmith overlays it with gold
and casts for it silver chains.
20 (AB)He who is too impoverished for an offering
chooses wood[h] that will not rot;
he seeks out a skillful craftsman
to set up an idol that will not move.
21 (AC)Do you not know? Do you not hear?
Has it not been told you from the beginning?
Have you not understood from the foundations of the earth?
22 It is he who sits above the circle of the earth,
and its inhabitants are (AD)like grasshoppers;
(AE)who stretches out the heavens like a curtain,
and spreads them like a tent to dwell in;
23 (AF)who brings princes to nothing,
and makes the rulers of the earth as emptiness.
24 Scarcely are they planted, scarcely sown,
scarcely has their stem taken root in the earth,
when he blows on them, and they wither,
(AG)and the tempest carries them off like stubble.
25 (AH)To whom then will you compare me,
that I should be like him? says the Holy One.
26 Lift up your eyes on high and see:
who created these?
(AI)He who brings out their host by number,
calling them all by name;
by the greatness of his might
and because he is strong in power,
not one is missing.
27 Why do you say, O Jacob,
and speak, O Israel,
(AJ)“My way is hidden from the Lord,
(AK)and my right is disregarded by my God”?
28 Have you not known? Have you not heard?
The Lord is (AL)the everlasting God,
the Creator of the ends of the earth.
He does not faint or grow weary;
(AM)his understanding is unsearchable.
29 He gives power to the faint,
and to him who has no might he increases strength.
30 Even youths shall faint and be weary,
and young men shall fall exhausted;
31 but (AN)they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength;
they shall mount up with wings (AO)like eagles;
they shall run and not be weary;
they shall walk and not faint.
Footnotes
- Isaiah 40:2 Or hardship
- Isaiah 40:3 Or A voice of one crying
- Isaiah 40:6 Revocalization based on Dead Sea Scroll, Septuagint, Vulgate; Masoretic Text And someone says
- Isaiah 40:6 Or all its constancy
- Isaiah 40:9 Or O herald of good news to Zion
- Isaiah 40:9 Or O herald of good news to Jerusalem
- Isaiah 40:13 Or has directed
- Isaiah 40:20 Or He chooses valuable wood
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The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. ESV Text Edition: 2025.
