Isaiah 40

1Comfort ye, comfort ye my people, saith your God.

1Comfort, comfort my people, says your God.

2Speak ye comfortably to Jerusalem; and cry unto her, that her warfare is accomplished, that her iniquity is pardoned, that she hath received of Jehovah’s hand double for all her sins.

2Speak kindly to Jerusalem and tell her that her hard labor is over, her sin is forgiven, and she has received from the Lord’s hand double for all her sins.

3The voice of one that crieth, Prepare ye in the wilderness the way of Jehovah; make level in the desert a highway for our God.

3A voice cries out: Prepare the way for the Lord in the wilderness; make a straight highway for our God in the desert.

4Every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and hill shall be made low; and the uneven shall be made level, and the rough places a plain:

4Every valley will be raised up, and every mountain and hill will be made low; the uneven ground will become level, and the rough places will become a plain.

5and the glory of Jehovah shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together; for the mouth of Jehovah hath spoken it.

5The glory of the Lord will be revealed, and all people will see it together, for the Lord has spoken it.

6The voice of one saying, Cry. And one said, What shall I cry? All flesh is grass, and all the goodliness thereof is as the flower of the field.

6A voice says, 'Cry out.' And I asked, 'What shall I cry out?' All people are like grass, and all their beauty is like the flowers of the field.

7The grass withereth, the flower fadeth, because the breath of Jehovah bloweth upon it; surely the people is grass.

7The grass withers and the flowers fall when the breath of the Lord blows on them; surely the people are grass.

8The grass withereth, the flower fadeth; but the word of our God shall stand forever.

8The grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of our God stands forever.

9O thou that tellest good tidings to Zion, get thee up on a high mountain; O thou that tellest good tidings to Jerusalem, lift up thy voice with strength; lift it up, be not afraid; say unto the cities of Judah, Behold, your God!

9You who bring good news to Zion, go up on a high mountain. You who bring good news to Jerusalem, shout out loud; lift up your voice and do not be afraid. Say to the towns of Judah, 'Here is your God!'

10Behold, the Lord Jehovah will come as a mighty one, and his arm will rule for him: Behold, his reward is with him, and his recompense before him.

10See, the Sovereign Lord comes with power, and his arm rules for him. Look, his reward is with him, and his personal prize is before him.

11He will feed his flock like a shepherd, he will gather the lambs in his arm, and carry them in his bosom, and will gently lead those that have their young.

11He tends his flock like a shepherd: He gathers the lambs in his arms and carries them close to his heart; he gently leads those who have young.

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?

12Who has measured the waters in the palm of his hand, or marked off the heavens with the width of his hand? Who has held the dust of the earth in a container, or weighed the mountains on scales and the hills in a balance?

13Who hath directed the Spirit of Jehovah, or being his counsellor hath taught him?

13Who has directed the Spirit of the Lord, or who was his advisor to teach him?

14With whom took he counsel, and who instructed him, and taught him in the path of justice, and taught him knowledge, and showed to him the way of understanding?

14Whom did he consult to gain enlightenment, and who taught him the right path? Who taught him knowledge or showed him the way of understanding?

15Behold, the nations are as a drop of a bucket, and are accounted as the small dust of the balance: behold, he taketh up the isles as a very little thing.

15Look, the nations are like a drop in a bucket; they are regarded as dust on the scales. He lifts up the islands as if they were fine dust.

16And Lebanon is not sufficient to burn, nor the beasts thereof sufficient for a burnt-offering.

16Lebanon does not have enough wood for fuel, nor are its animals enough for a burnt offering.

17All the nations are as nothing before him; they are accounted by him as less than nothing, and vanity.

17All the nations are as nothing before him; he regards them as less than nothing and empty.

18To whom then will ye liken God? or what likeness will ye compare unto him?

18To whom then will you compare God? What image will you compare him to?

19The image, a workman hath cast it, and the goldsmith overlayeth it with gold, and casteth for it silver chains.

19As for an idol, a craftsman casts it, a goldsmith overlays it with gold and fashions silver chains for it.

20He that is too impoverished for such an oblation chooseth a tree that will not rot; he seeketh unto him a skilful workman to set up a graven image, that shall not be moved.

20A person too poor to buy such an offering chooses wood that will not rot; they find a skilled craftsman to set up an idol that will not topple over.

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?

21Do you not know? Have you not heard? Has it not been told to you from the beginning? Have you not understood since the earth was founded?

22It is he that sitteth above 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;

22He sits enthroned above the circle of the earth, and its people are like grasshoppers. He stretches out the heavens like a curtain and spreads them out like a tent to live in.

23that bringeth princes to nothing; that maketh the judges of the earth as vanity.

23He brings princes to nothing and makes the rulers of this world useless.

24Yea, they have not been planted; yea, they have not been sown; yea, their stock hath not taken root in the earth: moreover he bloweth upon them, and they wither, and the whirlwind taketh them away as stubble.

24No sooner are they planted, no sooner are they sown, no sooner do they take root in the ground, than he blows on them and they wither, and a whirlwind sweeps them away like chaff.

25To whom then will ye liken me, that I should be equal to him? saith the Holy One.

25'To whom will you compare me? Who is my equal?' says the Holy One.

26Lift up your eyes on high, and see who hath created these, that bringeth out their host by number; he calleth them all by name; by the greatness of his might, and for that he is strong in power, not one is lacking.

26Look up at the heavens and see: Who created all these? He who brings out the starry host one by one and calls them each by name. Because of his great power and mighty strength, not one of them is missing.

27Why sayest thou, O Jacob, and speakest, O Israel, My way is hid from Jehovah, and the justice due to me is passed away from my God?

27Why do you say, O Jacob, and complain, O Israel, 'My way is hidden from the Lord; my cause is ignored by my God'?

28Hast thou not known? hast thou not heard? The everlasting God, Jehovah, the Creator of the ends of the earth, fainteth not, neither is weary; there is no searching of his understanding.

28Do you not know? Have you not heard? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He will not grow tired or weary, and no one can fathom his understanding.

29He giveth power to the faint; and to him that hath no might he increaseth strength.

29He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak.

30Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall:

30Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall;

31but they that wait for Jehovah shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; they shall walk, and not faint.

31but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.