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 live in.
23 It is He 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 compare Me
That I would be his equal?” says the Holy One.
26 (Q)Raise your eyes on high
And see (R)who has created these stars,
The (S)One who brings out their [j]multitude by number,
He calls them all by name;
Because of the (T)greatness of His might and the [k]strength of His power,
(U)Not one of them is missing.

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Notas al pie

  1. Isaiah 40:19 Or carved image
  2. Isaiah 40:20 Or set up
  3. Isaiah 40:20 Or a carved 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 Lit host
  11. Isaiah 40:26 As in DSS and ancient versions; MT strong

18 With whom will you compare God?
What likeness will you set up for comparison with him?(A)
19 An idol?—something that a smelter casts
and a metalworker plates with gold
and makes silver chains for?(B)
20 A poor person contributes wood for a pedestal
that will not rot.[a]
He looks for a skilled craftsman
to set up an idol that will not fall over.(C)

21 Do you not know?(D)
Have you not heard?
Has it not been declared to you
from the beginning?
Have you not considered
the foundations of the earth?(E)
22 God is enthroned above the circle of the earth;
its inhabitants are like grasshoppers.(F)
He stretches out the heavens like thin cloth(G)
and spreads them out like a tent to live in.(H)
23 He reduces princes to nothing(I)
and makes judges of the earth like a wasteland.
24 They are barely planted, barely sown,
their stem hardly takes root in the ground
when he blows on them and they wither,
and a whirlwind carries them away like stubble.(J)

25 “To whom will you compare me,(K)
or who is my equal?” asks the Holy One.
26 Look up and see!
Who created(L) these?
He brings out the stars by number;
he calls all of them by name.(M)
Because of his great power and strength,
not one of them is missing.

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Notas al pie

  1. 40:20 Or who is too poor for such an offering, or who chooses mulberry wood as a votive gift; Hb obscure