Isaiah 40:12-24

English Standard Version

¹²^(A)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^(B)Who has measured^[a] the Spirit of the Lord,
    or what man shows him his counsel?
¹⁴Whom did he consult,
    and who made him understand?
^(C)Who taught him the path of justice,
    and taught him knowledge,
    and showed him the way of understanding?
¹⁵Behold, the nations are like a drop from a bucket,
    and are accounted ^(D)as the dust on the scales;
    behold, he takes up ^(E)the coastlands like fine dust.
¹⁶Lebanon would not suffice for fuel,
    nor are ^(F)its beasts enough for a burnt offering.
¹⁷^(G)All the nations are as nothing before him,
    they are accounted by him as less than nothing and emptiness.

¹⁸^(H)To whom then will you liken God,
    ^(I)or what likeness compare with him?
¹⁹^(J)An idol! A craftsman casts it,
    and a goldsmith overlays it with gold
    and casts for it silver chains.
²⁰^(K)He who is too impoverished for an offering
    chooses wood^[b] that will not rot;
he seeks out a skillful craftsman
    to set up an idol that will not move.

²¹^(L)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?
²²It is he who sits above the circle of the earth,
    and its inhabitants are ^(M)like grasshoppers;
^(N)who stretches out the heavens like a curtain,
    and spreads them like a tent to dwell in;
²³^(O)who brings princes to nothing,
    and makes the rulers of the earth as emptiness.

²⁴Scarcely are they planted, scarcely sown,
scarcely has their stem taken root in the earth,
when he blows on them, and they wither,
^(P)and the tempest carries them off like stubble.

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Footnotes

Isaiah 40:13 Or has directed
Isaiah 40:20 Or He chooses valuable wood

Isaiah 40:12-24

New International Version

¹²Who has measured the waters^(A) in the hollow of his hand,^(B)
    or with the breadth of his hand marked off the heavens?^(C)
Who has held the dust of the earth in a basket,
    or weighed the mountains on the scales
    and the hills in a balance?^(D)
¹³Who can fathom the Spirit^[a]^(E) of the Lord,
    or instruct the Lord as his counselor?^(F)
¹⁴Whom did the Lord consult to enlighten him,
    and who taught him the right way?
Who was it that taught him knowledge,^(G)
    or showed him the path of understanding?^(H)

¹⁵Surely the nations are like a drop in a bucket;
    they are regarded as dust on the scales;^(I)
    he weighs the islands as though they were fine dust.^(J)
¹⁶Lebanon^(K) is not sufficient for altar fires,
    nor its animals^(L) enough for burnt offerings.
¹⁷Before him all the nations^(M) are as nothing;^(N)
    they are regarded by him as worthless
    and less than nothing.^(O)

¹⁸With whom, then, will you compare God?^(P)
    To what image^(Q) will you liken him?
¹⁹As for an idol,^(R) a metalworker casts it,
    and a goldsmith^(S) overlays it with gold^(T)
    and fashions silver chains for it.
²⁰A person too poor to present such an offering
    selects wood^(U) that will not rot;
they look for a skilled worker
    to set up an idol^(V) that will not topple.^(W)

²¹Do you not know?
    Have you not heard?^(X)
Has it not been told^(Y) you from the beginning?^(Z)
    Have you not understood^(AA) since the earth was founded?^(AB)
²²He sits enthroned^(AC) above the circle of the earth,
    and its people are like grasshoppers.^(AD)
He stretches out the heavens^(AE) like a canopy,^(AF)
    and spreads them out like a tent^(AG) to live in.^(AH)
²³He brings princes^(AI) to naught
    and reduces the rulers of this world to nothing.^(AJ)
²⁴No sooner are they planted,
    no sooner are they sown,
    no sooner do they take root^(AK) in the ground,
than he blows^(AL) on them and they wither,^(AM)
    and a whirlwind sweeps them away like chaff.^(AN)