Isaiah 40
Isaiah 40 is a message of comfort to God's people: their warfare is over and their sin is pardoned. It announces a voice in the wilderness preparing the way of the LORD, contrasts fading grass with the word of God that stands for ever, and ends with the promise that those who wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength.
Isaiah 40 (KJV)
Comfort ye my people v. 1-2
1Comfort ye, comfort ye my people, saith your God.
2Speak ye comfortably to Jerusalem, and cry unto her, that her warfare is accomplished, that her iniquity is pardoned: for she hath received of the LORD’s hand double for all her sins.
A voice in the wilderness v. 3-5
3The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the LORD, make straight in the desert a highway for our God.
4Every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and hill shall be made low: and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough places plain:
5And the glory of the LORD shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together: for the mouth of the LORD hath spoken it.
All flesh is grass, but the word stands v. 6-8
6The voice said, Cry. And he said, What shall I cry? All flesh is grass, and all the goodliness thereof is as the flower of the field:
7The grass withereth, the flower fadeth: because the spirit of the LORD bloweth upon it: surely the people is grass.
8The grass withereth, the flower fadeth: but the word of our God shall stand for ever.
Behold your God, the shepherd v. 9-11
9O Zion, that bringest good tidings, get thee up into the high mountain; O Jerusalem, that bringest good tidings, lift up thy voice with strength; lift it up, be not afraid; say unto the cities of Judah, Behold your God!
10Behold, the Lord GOD will come with strong hand, and his arm shall rule for him: behold, his reward is with him, and his work before him.
11He shall feed his flock like a shepherd: he shall gather the lambs with his arm, and carry them in his bosom, and shall gently lead those that are with young.
To whom then will ye liken God? v. 12-26
12Who hath measured the waters in the hollow of his hand, and meted out heaven with the span, and comprehended the dust of the earth in a measure, and weighed the mountains in scales, and the hills in a balance?
13Who hath directed the Spirit of the LORD, or being his counsellor hath taught him?
14With whom took he counsel, and who instructed him, and taught him in the path of judgment, and taught him knowledge, and shewed to him the way of understanding?
15Behold, the nations are as a drop of a bucket, and are counted as the small dust of the balance: behold, he taketh up the isles as a very little thing.
16And Lebanon is not sufficient to burn, nor the beasts thereof sufficient for a burnt offering.
17All nations before him are as nothing; and they are counted to him less than nothing, and vanity.
18To whom then will ye liken God? or what likeness will ye compare unto him?
19The workman melteth a graven image, and the goldsmith spreadeth it over with gold, and casteth silver chains.
20He that is so impoverished that he hath no oblation chooseth a tree that will not rot; he seeketh unto him a cunning workman to prepare a graven image, that shall not be moved.
21Have ye not known? have ye not heard? hath it not been told you from the beginning? have ye not understood from the foundations of the earth?
22It is he that sitteth upon the circle of the earth, and the inhabitants thereof are as grasshoppers; that stretcheth out the heavens as a curtain, and spreadeth them out as a tent to dwell in:
23That bringeth the princes to nothing; he maketh the judges of the earth as vanity.
24Yea, they shall not be planted; yea, they shall not be sown: yea, their stock shall not take root in the earth: and he shall also blow upon them, and they shall wither, and the whirlwind shall take them away as stubble.
25To whom then will ye liken me, or shall I be equal? saith the Holy One.
26Lift up your eyes on high, and behold who hath created these things, that bringeth out their host by number: he calleth them all by names by the greatness of his might, for that he is strong in power; not one faileth.
Strength for the weary v. 27-31
27Why sayest thou, O Jacob, and speakest, O Israel, My way is hid from the LORD, and my judgment is passed over from my God?
28Hast thou not known? hast thou not heard, that the everlasting God, the LORD, the Creator of the ends of the earth, fainteth not, neither is weary? there is no searching of his understanding.
29He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might he increaseth strength.
30Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall:
31But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.
What Isaiah 40 means
Isaiah 40 opens with a doubled word of tenderness: "Comfort ye, comfort ye my people, saith your God." Jerusalem is told that her warfare is accomplished and her iniquity is pardoned. After many chapters of warning, the tone of the book changes here to hope.
Verses 3-5 announce a voice crying in the wilderness to prepare a highway for God. Valleys will be lifted, mountains brought low, and the glory of the LORD revealed for all flesh to see. All four Gospels connect this voice with John the Baptist, who prepared the way for Jesus.
Verses 6-8 set human life beside God's word. People are like grass and wildflowers that wither when the wind blows on them, "but the word of our God shall stand for ever." Then Zion is told to climb a high mountain and announce to the cities of Judah, Behold your God. The Lord comes with strength, yet feeds his flock like a shepherd and carries the lambs in his arms.
The long middle section asks who could compare with this God. He measured the waters in the hollow of his hand, and the nations are like a drop in a bucket before him. Idols, by contrast, have to be made by a workman and fixed so they will not fall over. God sits above the circle of the earth, stretches out the heavens like a curtain, and calls every star by name so that not one is missing.
The chapter ends by answering a complaint. Israel says, My way is hid from the LORD. Isaiah replies that the everlasting God never faints or grows weary, and he gives power to the faint. Even young men stumble and fall, "But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength" and shall mount up with wings as eagles, run without weariness, and walk without fainting.
Background and context
The book is named for Isaiah the son of Amoz, who prophesied in Judah in the 700s BC (Isaiah 1:1). Chapter 40 begins the second major part of the book, which speaks largely of comfort and restoration after the exile to Babylon. Traditional readers hold that Isaiah wrote the whole book; many modern scholars assign chapters 40-66 to a later setting. Either way, the chapter speaks to a people who felt forgotten.
Isaiah 40 is quoted in the New Testament more than once, and Handel's Messiah opens its first part with words from verses 1-5.
Key verses
Comfort ye, comfort ye my people, saith your God.
Isaiah 40:1 · KJV
The grass withereth, the flower fadeth: but the word of our God shall stand for ever.
Isaiah 40:8 · KJV
He shall feed his flock like a shepherd: he shall gather the lambs with his arm, and carry them in his bosom, and shall gently lead those that are with young.
Isaiah 40:11 · KJV
But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.
Isaiah 40:31 · KJV
Cross references
- Matthew 3:3 Matthew applies the voice crying in the wilderness to John the Baptist.For this is he that was spoken of by the prophet Esaias, saying, The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make his paths straight.
- Luke 3:4-6 Luke quotes verses 3-5 at greater length, ending with all flesh seeing the salvation of God.As it is written in the book of the words of Esaias the prophet, saying, The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make his paths straight. Every valley shall be filled, and every mountain and hill shall be brought low; and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough ways shall be made smooth; And all flesh shall see the salvation of God.
- 1 Peter 1:24-25 Peter quotes verses 6-8: the grass withers, but the word of the Lord endures for ever.For all flesh is as grass, and all the glory of man as the flower of grass. The grass withereth, and the flower thereof falleth away: But the word of the Lord endureth for ever. And this is the word which by the gospel is preached unto you.
- John 10:11 Jesus calls himself the good shepherd, echoing the shepherd of verse 11.I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep.
- Psalm 147:4 Like verse 26, the psalm says God numbers the stars and calls them all by their names.He telleth the number of the stars; he calleth them all by their names.
- Isaiah 41:10 The next chapter continues the theme: fear not, I will strengthen thee.Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness.
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Common questions
What is the main message of Isaiah 40?
God comforts his people, announces that their sin is pardoned and that he is coming to them, shows that he is far greater than the nations and their idols, and promises strength to the weary who wait on him.
Who is the voice crying in the wilderness?
Isaiah does not name the speaker. Matthew, Mark, Luke and John all apply the words to John the Baptist, who prepared the way for Jesus.
What does wait upon the LORD mean in Isaiah 40:31?
In context it means to trust God and look to him for help rather than relying on your own strength, which verse 30 says even young men run out of.
Is Isaiah 40 in the Old Testament?
Yes. Isaiah is one of the major prophets of the Old Testament, and chapter 40 begins its well-known section of comfort.
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Isaiah 40 promises renewed strength to the weary, and Morning, Not Monday is a Bible-based book on building good habits and starting again without shame.
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