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18 To whom then will you liken God?
    Or what likeness will you compare to him?
19 A workman has cast an image,
    and the goldsmith overlays it with gold,
    and casts silver chains for it.
20 He who is too impoverished for such an offering chooses a tree that will not rot.
    He seeks a skillful workman to set up a carved image for him that will not be moved.

21 Haven’t you known?
    Haven’t you heard?
    Haven’t you been told from the beginning?
    Haven’t you understood from the foundations of the earth?
22 It is he who sits above the circle of the earth,
    and its inhabitants are like grasshoppers;
    who stretches out the heavens like a curtain,
    and spreads them out like a tent to dwell in,
23     who brings princes to nothing,
    who makes the judges of the earth meaningless.
24 They are planted scarcely.
    They are sown scarcely.
    Their stock has scarcely taken root in the ground.
    He merely blows on them, and they wither,
    and the whirlwind takes them away as stubble.

25 “To whom then will you liken me?
    Who is my equal?” says the Holy One.
26 Lift up your eyes on high,
    and see who has created these,
    who brings out their army by number.
    He calls them all by name.
    by the greatness of his might,
    and because he is strong in power,
    not one is lacking.

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18 “To whom, then, will you compare me,[a] the One who is[b] God?
    Or to what image will you liken me?[c]
19 To an idol? A craftsman makes[d] the image,
    and a goldsmith overlays it with gold
        and casts silver chains.
20 To the impoverished person?
    He prepares[e] an offering—[f]
        wood that won’t rot—
Or to the one who chooses a skilled craftsman[g]
    and[h] seeks[i] to erect an idol that won’t topple?”

The Majesty of the Lord

21 “You know, don’t you?
    You have heard, haven’t you?
Hasn’t it been told you from the beginning?
    Haven’t you understood from the foundations of the[j] earth?
22 He’s the one who sits above the disk of the earth,
    and its inhabitants are like grasshoppers.
He’s the one who stretches out the heavens like a curtain,
    and spreads them like a tent to live in,
23 who brings princes to nothing,
    and makes void the rulers of the earth.
24 No sooner are they planted,
    no sooner are they sown,
        no sooner have[k] their stems taken root in the earth,
than[l] he blows on them, and they wither,
    and the tempest sweeps them away like stubble.

25 “To[m] whom, then, will you compare me,
    and to whom should I be equal?”
        asks the Holy One.
26 “Lift your eyes up to heaven and see
    who created all these—
the one who leads out their vast array of stars by number,
    calling them all by name—
because of his great might
    and his[n] powerful strength[o]
        and[p] not one is missing.”

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Footnotes

  1. Isaiah 40:18 So 1QIsaa; MT LXX lack me
  2. Isaiah 40:18 1QIsaa LXX MT lack the One who is
  3. Isaiah 40:18 So 1QIsaa; MT LXX read him
  4. Isaiah 40:19 So 1QIsaa LXX; MT reads casts
  5. Isaiah 40:20 1QIsaa MT LXX lack prepares
  6. Isaiah 40:20 So MT; later 1QIsaa scribe includes this line
  7. Isaiah 40:20 So 1QIsaa; MT LXX read chooses wood
  8. Isaiah 40:20 So 1QIsaa; MT lacks and
  9. Isaiah 40:20 So 1QIsaa; MT reads seeks a skilled craftsman
  10. Isaiah 40:21 So MT; implied in 1QIsaa
  11. Isaiah 40:24 So 1QIsaa; 4QIsab MT LXX read has
  12. Isaiah 40:24 So 1QIsaa; 4QIsab MT read and then; LXX lacks than
  13. Isaiah 40:25 So 1QIsaa; 4QIsab MT read And to
  14. Isaiah 40:26 So 1QIsaa; MT LXX lack his
  15. Isaiah 40:26 So 1QIsaa LXX; MT reads strong
  16. Isaiah 40:26 So 1QIsaa; MT LXX lack and