Isa 40 | LSB | STEP | “Comfort, O comfort My people,” says your God.

‏ Isaiah 40

The Glory of Yahweh Will Be Revealed

1 “Comfort, O comfort My people,” says your God.
2 “Speak to the heart of Jerusalem;
And call out to her, that her ^{▼▼Or hard service}warfare has been fulfilled,
That her ^{▼▼Or penalty of iniquity has been accepted as paid off}iniquity has been removed,
That she has received from the hand of Yahweh
Double for all her sins.”
3 A voice ^{▼▼Or of one calling out}is calling,
“Prepare the way for Yahweh in the wilderness;
Make smooth 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 rough ground become a plain,
And the rugged terrain a broad valley;
5 ^{▼▼ Or In order that the}Then the glory of Yahweh will be revealed,
And all flesh will see it together;
For the mouth of Yahweh has spoken.”
6 A voice says, “Call out.”
Then ^{▼▼Or I said}he answered, “What shall I call out?”
All flesh is grass, and all its lovingkindness is like the flower of the field.
7 The grass ^{▼▼Or dries up, cf. 42:15; Ps 90:5-6}withers, the flower fades,
^{▼▼ Or Because}When the breath of Yahweh blows upon it;
Surely the people are grass.
8 The grass ^{▼▼Or dries up, cf. 42:15; Ps 90:5-6}withers, the flower fades,
But the word of our God stands forever.
9 Get yourself up on a high mountain,
O Zion, bearer of good news,
Raise up your voice powerfully,
O Jerusalem, bearer of good news;
Raise it up, do not fear.
Say to the cities of Judah,
“Behold your God!”
10 Behold, Lord Yahweh will come with strength,
With His arm ruling for Him.
Behold, His reward is with Him
And His recompense before Him.
11 Like a shepherd He will shepherd His flock;
In His arm He will gather the lambs
And carry them in His bosom;
He will gently lead the nursing ewes.
12 Who has measured the ^{▼▼DSS waters of the sea}waters in the hollow of His hand,
And ^{▼▼Or measured, marked off}encompassed the heavens by the ^{▼▼A span was approx. 9 in. or 23 cm}span,
And ^{▼▼Lit contained, comprehended}calculated the dust of the earth by the measure,
And weighed the mountains in a balance
And the hills in a pair of scales?
13 Who has ^{▼▼Or measured, marked off}encompassed the Spirit of Yahweh,
Or as His counselor has informed Him?
14 With whom did He take counsel and who gave Him understanding?
And who taught Him in the path of justice and taught Him knowledge
And made Him know the way of understanding?
15 Behold, the nations are like a drop from a bucket,
And are counted as a speck of dust on the scales;
Behold, He lifts up the coastlands like fine dust.
16 Even Lebanon is not enough to burn,
Nor its beasts enough for a burnt offering.
17 All the nations are as nothing before Him;
They are counted by Him as non-existent and utterly formless.
18 To whom then will you liken God?
Or what likeness will you compare with Him?
19 As for the graven images, a craftsman casts it,
A goldsmith plates it with gold,
And a silversmith fashions chains of silver.
20 He who is too impoverished to make such a contribution
Chooses a tree that does not rot;
He seeks out for himself a wise craftsman
To ^{▼▼Or set up}prepare a graven image that will not be shaken.
21 Do you not know? Have you not heard?
Has it not been declared to you from the beginning?
Have you not understood from the foundations of the earth?
22 It is He who ^{▼▼Or is enthroned}inhabits above the ^{▼▼Or vault}circle of the earth,
And its inhabitants are like grasshoppers;
It is He who stretches out the heavens like a curtain
And spreads them out like a tent to inhabit.
23 It is He who reduces rulers to nothing,
Who makes the ^{▼▼Or leaders}judges of the earth utterly formless.
24 ^{▼▼ Or Not even}Scarcely have they been planted;
^{▼▼ Or Not even}Scarcely have they been sown;
^{▼▼ Or Not even}Scarcely has their stem taken root in the earth,
But He merely blows on them, and they ^{▼▼Or dry up, cf. 42:15; Ps 90:5-6}wither,
And the storm carries them away like stubble.
25 “To whom then will you liken Me
That I would be his equal?” says the Holy One.
26 Lift up your eyes on high
And see who has created these stars,
The One who leads forth their host by number,
He calls them all by name;
Because of the greatness of His vigor and the ^{▼▼As in DSS and ancient versions; M.T. strong}strength of His power,
Not one of them is missing.
27 Why do you say, O Jacob, and assert, O Israel,
“My way is hidden from Yahweh,
And the justice due me passes by my God”?
28 Do you not know? Have you not heard?
The Everlasting God, Yahweh, the Creator of the ends of the earth,
Does not become weary or tired.
His understanding is unsearchable.
29 He gives power to the weary,
And to him who lacks vigor He increases might.
30 Though youths grow weary and tired,
And choice young men stumble badly,
31 Yet those who hope in Yahweh
Will gain new power;
They will ^{▼▼Or sprout wings}mount up with ^{▼▼Or pinions}wings like eagles;
They will run and not get tired;
They will walk and not become weary.