Isaiah 40:1–31
This chapter contains a message of salvation. It opens with comfort:
1 Comfort, comfort my people, says your God. 2 Speak tenderly to Jerusalem, and proclaim to her that her hard service has been completed, that her sin has been paid for, that she has received from the Lord’s hand double for all her sins. (Isaiah 40:1–2)
The evil days for Israel are over. Her sins are forgiven, and from now on she can expect only good from God. But what is the basis for such mercy and kindness on God’s part? The explanation comes from an unnamed herald who calls all people to prepare for the arrival of the King of kings.
3 A voice of one calling: “In the wilderness prepare the way for the Lord; make straight in the desert a highway for our God. 4 Every valley shall be raised up, every mountain and hill made low; the rough ground shall become level, the rugged places a plain. (Isaiah 40:3–4)
Of course, this is not about construction work but about the spiritual and moral preparation we need in order to welcome the Messiah. Just as the ancients would prepare the road by which their ruler would arrive, so we too must prepare for the coming of the Lord. And here we come to the basis for the saving and comforting message of the first two verses — the appearing of God’s glory.
5 And the glory of the Lord will be revealed, and all people will see it together. For the mouth of the Lord has spoken.” (Isaiah 40:5)
Truly, people are beautiful, and they bloom like the flowers of the field, but their triumph lasts only a moment.
6 A voice says, “Cry out.” And I said, “What shall I cry?” “All people are like grass, and all their faithfulness is like the flowers of the field. 7 The grass withers and the flowers fall, because the breath of the Lord blows on them. Surely the people are grass. (Isaiah 40:6–7)
People are unsteady, fragile, and fleeting. Our hope should not rest in them, but in God. Our confidence in God’s comfort rests on the truthfulness and permanence of God’s Word.
8 The grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of our God endures forever.” (Isaiah 40:8)
With this introduction, Isaiah enters one of the most magnificent series of declarations and affirmations that a person can find anywhere in God’s Word. The messenger who carries God’s good news must climb up high and proclaim it with all the voice he has, so that every town of Judah may hear it.
9 You who bring good news to Zion, go up on a high mountain. You who bring good news to Jerusalem, lift up your voice with a shout, lift it up, do not be afraid; say to the towns of Judah, “Here is your God!” (Isaiah 40:9)
“Here is your God.” This is a theophany. God is coming to visit His people and to reign over them.
10 See, the Sovereign Lord comes with power, and he rules with a mighty arm. See, his reward is with him, and his recompense accompanies him. (Isaiah 40:10)
Verses 10–11 are like an introduction or overture to the symphony of themes that follows. All these themes will be explored in the five stanzas that come next. In each of these stanzas there is a comparison of God. Here we hear of God’s power, by which He will impose His authority. This theme is taken up in verses 12–24. In this passage we meet several comparisons of God. He is compared with the vastness of nature (v. 12), with the wisdom of people (vv. 13–14), with the strength of the nations (vv. 15–17), with lifeless idols (vv. 18–20), with princes and earthly judges (vv. 21–24). And in every one of these comparisons we see that God is incomparably greater, no matter what or whom we compare Him to. God is incomparable in His power, might, and glory. All this incomparable power of God is hinted at in verse 10. Verse 11, in turn, prepares us for the second part of the symphony, whose main theme is God’s care and providence for His people. Despite His power and might — or more precisely, because of them — the God who comes is able to be tender, caring, and loving, like a shepherd who cares for the lambs and their mothers (v. 11).
11 He tends his flock like a shepherd: He gathers the lambs in his arms and carries them close to his heart; he gently leads those that have young. (Isaiah 40:11)
He is attentive to them and provides the very best food for them. In this second part, God seeks to convince Israel of His care for her by showing His care for the stars, the planets, and the heavenly bodies. If God cares so well for them, will He not care even more for His people (vv. 25–27)? And finally, if God cares for the weary and the faint, will He not care even more for His captive people (vv. 28–31)? And if God so cares for the stars, for the feeble, and for His people, will He not care for us as well?
The purpose of the comparisons we find in this chapter is to prove that God is incomparably mighty and great in both His power and His care. That is why we must never withdraw our trust from Him. As the key verses of the whole chapter, verse 18 could serve well:
18 With whom, then, will you compare God? To what image will you liken him? (Isaiah 40:18)
And verse 25:
25 “To whom will you compare me? Or who is my equal?” says the Holy One. (Isaiah 40:25)
Notice that in both verses the matter at hand is comparison. Of course, both questions are rhetorical. Both call for a negative answer — or more precisely, for silence. With whom can we compare God? With no one. To what could we liken Him? To nothing. He is incomparable and indescribable. He surpasses all our understanding. In other words, He is holy.
And so, with the overture or introduction to the symphony of God’s power and providence now complete (vv. 11–12), we are ready to enter the first of the five attempts at comparing God that we find in the first part of this divine symphony.
GREATER THAN NATURE
The first candidate for comparison with God is nature.
12 Who has measured the waters in the hollow of his hand, or with the breadth of his hand marked off the heavens? Who has held the dust of the earth in a basket, or weighed the mountains on the scales and the hills in a balance? (Isaiah 40:12)
These are five rhetorical questions that cover the entire spectrum of possible challenges to God’s power. But all these challenges are meaningless. The waters of the seven oceans are for Him only a handful of water. The infinite cosmos is for Him only as long as the distance from His thumb to His little finger. All the dust of the earth can fit into the little cup of His scale. The billions of tons of mass in the mountains and hills are so light to Him that He can place them on one side of the balance and, without any effort at all, balance them on the other side. Of course, all these are anthropomorphisms — the attributing of human organs to God: a hollow of the hand, a span. God is spirit; He has no body, hands, or eyes. But He can act and see, and the use of these figures of speech is meant to show us that God’s power is immeasurable.
That is why we must not feel oppressed or intimidated by those who claim power in our day. If our God has such supremacy over everything in nature — oceans and mountains, everything that amazes us in this world — then why should we not believe that He can meet and handle every challenge and problem in our lives? Our God is enormous. He is almighty. Nothing is too hard for Him. Nothing is impossible to Him.
WISER THAN THE WISE
In size and grandeur God surpasses nature. But what about His knowledge? Can God compete with all the computers and research of our modern age? The prophet poses another five rhetorical questions in this sphere, which we can find in verses 13–14.
13 Who can fathom the Spirit of the Lord, or instruct the Lord as his counselor? 14 Whom did the Lord consult to enlighten him, and who taught him the right way? Who was it that taught him knowledge, or showed him the path of understanding? (Isaiah 40:13–14)
Would God consult some human being — a specialist or a scholar — in a moment when He lacked wisdom? Would He enroll to study at one of our universities in order to learn and become competent in some matters in which He had previously been ignorant? To suggest such a thing would be truly foolish and absurd, for God Himself is the source of all knowledge and wisdom. No one is more righteous and competent in every matter than He is. No one is more objective, for God is not only almighty, He is all-knowing. Nothing is hidden from Him. He knows absolutely everything — both our transgressions and unfaithfulness, and our problems and needs.
MIGHTIER THAN THE NATIONS
In verses 15–17 we discover that God is not only greater than nature and wiser than all the scholars and specialists of this world. God surpasses not only every individual person, but the nations as a whole. Here three comparisons are listed, underscoring that the united nations of the world, with all their pomp and self-confidence, are before God “like a drop in a bucket” and like a speck of dust.
15 Surely the nations are like a drop in a bucket; they are regarded as dust on the scales; he weighs the islands as though they were fine dust. 16 Lebanon is not sufficient for altar fires, nor its animals enough for burnt offerings. 17 Before him all the nations are as nothing; they are regarded by him as worthless and less than nothing. (Isaiah 40:15–17)
Military potential, drug cartels, economic power… Even united, the potential of all the nations compared with God’s potential is like nothing — and even “less than nothing.” That is why we must not be afraid of human power. It is nothing compared with the authority and strength possessed by our incomparably great, almighty, all-knowing, all-wise, and invincible God.
DESCRIBE GOD? IMPOSSIBLE!
Could God be described? Could His dimensions and abilities be calculated? Could we create a model that He might resemble? Verse 16 says that even if all the cedars of Lebanon were cut down and a pyre were built, say, 200 kilometers high, and on it all the cattle of the earth were placed as a burnt offering, still this would not be enough to grasp God’s immensity. How then could any painter or sculptor imagine that he could depict Him, make a portrait of Him, or carve a statue of Him? The next candidate for comparison with God is the idol (vv. 18–20).
18 With whom, then, will you compare God? To what image will you liken him? 19 As for an idol, a metalworker casts it, and a goldsmith overlays it with gold and fashions silver chains for it. 20 A person too poor to present such an offering selects wood that will not rot; they look for a skilled worker to set up an idol that will not topple. (Isaiah 40:18–20)
The modern listener might say: “Skip this point, because we have no icons in our yards, nor statues of gods to which we offer sacrifices. The worship of idols simply belongs to another age.” But is that really so? In reality, idolatry is a universal problem, because it is rooted in the pride and selfishness of the human heart. Every time we place a person, an object, or a goal on a level equal with God or above Him, we become idolaters (1 John 5:21).
21 Dear children, keep yourselves from idols. (1 John 5:21)
Although even today in Bulgaria there are people who bow down to icons, and perhaps to other gods as well, far more numerous are those who bow down to television, to fashion, to money, to possessions, to footballers, athletes, and every kind of television and music “star.” Is there anything, however, among all these modern idols that is worthy to take the place of God?
In fact, Isaiah has quite a bit of fun with this comparison of God to an idol. He advises those who are too poor to pay a goldsmith to overlay their idol with gold and silver chains to be very careful in choosing the wood for their idol. If it is to be made only of wood, then the wood must be “non-rotting.” For it would be rather embarrassing and awkward if their god were destroyed by ants or woodworm while they were worshiping it. Isaiah advises that if a person is going to make his idol only of wood, then he should find a really good master carpenter to make the idol of sufficient quality. And not only that, but let him nail it firmly to the floor and make it “immovable,” for when it comes to a god, it ought above all to be stable. Here Isaiah is perhaps recalling the Philistine god Dagon, who kept coming loose from his place and falling to the ground in the presence of the ark of the covenant, which God had allowed to be captured and carried into Philistine territory in the days of the prophet Samuel (1 Samuel 5:1–5).
1 After the Philistines had captured the ark of God, they took it from Ebenezer to Ashdod. 2 Then they carried the ark into Dagon’s temple and set it beside Dagon. 3 When the people of Ashdod rose early the next day, there was Dagon, fallen on his face on the ground before the ark of the Lord! They took Dagon and put him back in his place. 4 But the following morning when they rose, there was Dagon, fallen on his face on the ground before the ark of the Lord! His head and hands had been broken off and were lying on the threshold; only his body remained. 5 That is why to this day neither the priests of Dagon nor any others who enter Dagon’s temple at Ashdod step on the threshold. (1 Samuel 5:1–5)
“So then, take long nails,” says Isaiah, “and nail your god firmly to the floor, so that he does not fall.” The irony in all this is so obvious. Our God, however, is not dead wood; He is living and eternal! There is no need to adorn Him — He is glorious! There is no need to search for durable material to make Him — He is everlasting! He simply cannot be compared with idols.
THE PRINCES? PRESSURIZED AIR!
21 Do you not know? Have you not heard? Has it not been told you from the beginning? Have you not understood since the earth was founded? 22 He sits enthroned above the circle of the earth, and its people are like grasshoppers. He stretches out the heavens like a canopy, and spreads them out like a tent to live in. 23 He brings princes to naught and reduces the rulers of this world to nothing. 24 No 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. (Isaiah 40:21–24)
God is so great that He could not be described or comprehended. He is too great. He is beyond the reach of our knowledge. But if the question is not about attempts to make idols, what shall we say about the princes of this world — the VIPs, the kings and queens of this world? They come to power quickly, but they stand for only a very short while and depart just as quickly. Barely rooted, barely sprouted and appeared, and already they are vanishing. Why? Because God “blows” upon them, and they are swept away as by a whirlwind. The authority of earthly rulers is limited and futile, while God’s throne is lifted high above the earth, and no one can reach Him. So then, why should we worry and be intimidated by the “empty masks” we watch on television? Do we think that the “worldly elite” is more real and lasting than God? Hardly…
And so, God is incomparably greater than the oceans and mountains, wiser than all the specialists of earth, mightier than all the nations even if they should band together against Him, and He cannot be compared with an idol, nor with the VIPs of the worldly elite. He is holy.
GOD KNOWS US BY NAME!
Here the first part of the symphony for the incomparable God comes to an end, and the second part begins. The difference between the two parts lies in this: the emphasis of the first part is on God’s greatness, while the emphasis of the second part is on God’s providence, care, and love toward us. Here the heavenly bodies are spoken of again, but this time the accent is not on God’s supremacy over them but on God’s care for them. God is like their shepherd. He has not only created them, but every evening He leads them out one by one across the night sky and calls each of them by name. Because He is almighty and all-encompassing, not one of the heavenly lights could ever be lost — every one of them is under the authority of God and under His almighty care.
25 “To whom will you compare me? Or who is my equal?” says the Holy One. 26 Lift up your eyes and look to the heavens: Who created all these? He who brings out the starry host one by one and calls forth each of them by name. Because of his great power and mighty strength, not one of them is missing. (Isaiah 40:25–26)
If God knows by name all the heavenly lights He has created, then how will He not know by name all the people He has created in His own image and for whom He sacrificed His only begotten Son? That is why I believe that He knows me perfectly, and you as well; and He knows my name, as He knows yours.
GOD CARES FOR US!
And finally, the good news is that God is not only incomparable with anything whatsoever in this world, not only knows us by name, but He also takes an interest in us. We must never think that God has abandoned us. Discouraged Israel thinks that God has neglected her — her and her right. But she has forgotten that God does not grow tired or weary of His work of governing and sustaining the whole universe. No one can set a limit to His understanding, to His power, or to His tender care for the weary and the wounded.
27 Why do you complain, Jacob? Why do you say, Israel, “My way is hidden from the Lord; my cause is disregarded by my God”? 28 Do 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 his understanding no one can fathom. 29 He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak. 30 Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; 31 but 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. (Isaiah 40:27–31)
Our God is exceedingly great and beyond all comparison, no matter how vast the thing He is measured against. But He is not only incomparable in greatness — He is also incomparable in mercy, compassion, and love. He will not leave the weary without strength. He will increase the power of the weak. The question, however, is whether we place our trust in Him, whether we wait for Him, whether we believe Him. For those who set their trust and hope in Him will walk and run instead of growing weary and stopping; they will rise instead of falling; they will be encouraged and strengthened instead of despairing and depressed.
After everything we have read so far, we can say that God is incomparably greater than anything and anyone in this world that we could ever think of or imagine. Before Him alone should we bow in awe and reverence. Him alone should we praise, and to Him alone should we give thanks for every good thing in our lives. All other candidates for His place are only a pale imitation of His greatness. Truly, our God is incomparable — incomparable not only in His greatness, but also in His care and providence for every one of us. To Him alone be glory, now and to the eternal ages! Amen!