18 (A)To whom then will you liken God?
Or what likeness will you compare with Him?
19 As for the [a](B)idol, a craftsman casts it,
A goldsmith (C)plates it with gold,
And a silversmith fashions chains of silver.
20 He who is too impoverished for such an offering
Selects a (D)tree that does not rot;
He seeks out for himself a skillful craftsman
To [b]prepare [c]an idol that (E)will not totter.

21 (F)Do you not know? Have you not heard?
Has it not been declared to you from the beginning?
Have you not understood (G)from the foundations of the earth?
22 It is He who [d]sits above the [e](H)circle of the earth,
And its inhabitants are like (I)grasshoppers,
Who (J)stretches out the heavens like a (K)curtain
And spreads them out like a (L)tent to dwell in.
23 He it is who reduces (M)rulers to nothing,
Who (N)makes the judges of the earth [f]meaningless.
24 [g]Scarcely have they been planted,
[h]Scarcely have they been sown,
[i]Scarcely has their stock taken root in the earth,
But He merely blows on them, and they wither,
And the (O)storm carries them away like stubble.
25 (P)To whom then will you liken Me
That I would be his equal?” says the Holy One.
26 (Q)Lift up your eyes on high
And see (R)who has created these stars,
The (S)One who leads forth their host by number,
He calls them all by name;
Because of the (T)greatness of His might and the [j]strength of His power,
(U)Not one of them is missing.

27 (V)Why do you say, O Jacob, and assert, O Israel,
“My way is (W)hidden from the Lord,
And the (X)justice due me [k]escapes the notice of (Y)my God”?
28 (Z)Do you not know? Have you not heard?
The (AA)Everlasting God, the Lord, the Creator of the ends of the earth
Does not become weary or tired.
His understanding is (AB)inscrutable.
29 He gives strength to the (AC)weary,
And to him who lacks might He (AD)increases power.
30 Though (AE)youths grow weary and tired,
And vigorous (AF)young men stumble badly,
31 Yet those who [l]wait for the Lord
Will (AG)gain new strength;
They will [m](AH)mount up with [n]wings like eagles,
They will run and not get tired,
They will walk and not become weary.

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Footnotes

  1. Isaiah 40:19 Or graven image
  2. Isaiah 40:20 Or set up
  3. Isaiah 40:20 Or a graven image
  4. Isaiah 40:22 Or is enthroned
  5. Isaiah 40:22 Or vault
  6. Isaiah 40:23 Or void
  7. Isaiah 40:24 Or Not even
  8. Isaiah 40:24 Or Not even
  9. Isaiah 40:24 Or Not even
  10. Isaiah 40:26 So DSS and ancient versions; M.T. strong
  11. Isaiah 40:27 Lit passes by my God
  12. Isaiah 40:31 Or hope in
  13. Isaiah 40:31 Or sprout wings
  14. Isaiah 40:31 Or pinions

23 and (A)exchanged the glory of the incorruptible God for an image in the form of corruptible man and of birds and four-footed animals and [a]crawling creatures.

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Footnotes

  1. Romans 1:23 Or reptiles