Isaiah 40 JPS Tanakh (1917)
Audio: World English Bible (WEB), read by Winfred W. Henson · About the recordings
Notes on this text (1)
- Numbers like (22-2) in the text give the Hebrew verse numbering where it differs.
1 Comfort ye, comfort ye My people, saith your God.
1 CONSOLAOS, consolaos, pueblo mío, dice vuestro Dios.
2 Bid Jerusalem take heart, and proclaim unto her, that her time of service is accomplished, that her guilt is paid off; that she hath received of the LORD'S hand double for all her sins.
2 Hablad al corazón de Jerusalem: decidle á voces que su tiempo es ya cumplido, que su pecado es perdonado; que doble ha recibido de la mano de Jehová por todos sus pecados.
3 Hark! one calleth: 'Clear ye in the wilderness the way of the LORD, make plain in the desert a highway for our God.
3 Voz que clama en el desierto: Barred camino á Jehová: enderezad calzada en la soledad á nuestro Dios.
4 Every valley shall be lifted up, and every mountain and hill shall be made low; and the rugged shall be made level, and the rough places a plain;
4 Todo valle sea alzado, y bájese todo monte y collado; y lo torcido se enderece, y lo áspero se allane.
5 And the glory of the LORD shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together; for the mouth of the LORD hath spoken it.'
5 Y manifestaráse la gloria de Jehová, y toda carne juntamente la verá; que la boca de Jehová habló.
6 Hark! one saith: 'Proclaim!' And he saith: 'What shall I proclaim?' 'All flesh is grass, and all the goodliness thereof is as the flower of the field;
6 Voz que decía: Da voces. Y [yo] respondí: ¿Qué tengo de decir á voces? Toda carne es hierba, y toda su gloria como flor del campo:
7 The grass withereth, the flower fadeth; because the breath of the LORD bloweth upon it — surely the people is grass.
7 La hierba se seca, y la flor se cae; porque el viento de Jehová sopló en ella: ciertamente hierba es el pueblo.
8 The grass withereth, the flower fadeth; but the word of our God shall stand for ever.'
8 Sécase la hierba, cáese la flor: mas la palabra del Dios nuestro permanece para siempre.
9 O thou that tellest good tidings to Zion, get thee up into the 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!'
9 Súbete sobre un monte alto, anunciadora de Sión; levanta fuertemente tu voz, anunciadora de Jerusalem; levántala, no temas; di á las ciudades de Judá: ¡Veis aquí el Dios vuestro!
10 Behold, the Lord GOD will come as a Mighty One, and His arm will rule for Him; behold, His reward is with Him, and His recompense before Him.
10 He aquí que el Señor Jehová vendrá con fortaleza, y su brazo se enseñoreará: he aquí que su salario viene con él, y su obra delante de su rostro.
11 Even as a shepherd that feedeth his flock, that gathereth the lambs in his arm, and carrieth them in his bosom, and gently leadeth those that give suck.
11 Como pastor apacentará su rebaño; en su brazo cogerá los corderos, y en su seno los llevará; pastoreará suavemente las paridas.
12 Who 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?
12 ¿Quién midió las aguas con su puño, y aderezó los cielos con su palmo, y con tres dedos allegó el polvo de la tierra, y pesó los montes con balanza, y con peso los collados?
13 Who hath meted out the spirit of the LORD? Or who was His counsellor that he might instruct Him?
13 ¿Quién enseñó al espíritu de Jehová, ó le aconsejo enseñándole?
14 With whom took He counsel, and who instructed Him, and taught Him in the path of right, and taught Him knowledge, and made Him to know the way of discernment?
14 ¿A quién demandó consejo para ser avisado? ¿Quién le enseñó el camino del juicio, ó le enseñó ciencia, ó le mostró la senda de la prudencia?
15 Behold, the nations are as a drop of a bucket, and are counted as the small dust of the balance; behold the isles are as a mote in weight.
15 He aquí que las naciones son reputadas como la gota de un acetre, y como el orín del peso: he aquí que hace desaparecer las islas como polvo.
16 And Lebanon is not sufficient fuel, nor the beasts thereof sufficient for burnt-offerings.
16 Ni el Líbano bastará para el fuego, ni todos sus animales para el sacrificio.
17 All the nations are as nothing before Him; they are accounted by Him as things of nought, and vanity.
17 Como nada son todas las gentes delante de él; y en su comparación serán estimadas en menos que nada, y que lo que no es.
18 To whom then will ye liken God? Or what likeness will ye compare unto Him?
18 ¿A qué pues haréis semejante á Dios, ó qué imagen le compondréis?
19 The image perchance, which the craftsman hath melted, and the goldsmith spread over with gold, the silversmith casting silver chains?
19 El artífice apareja la imagen de talla, el platero le extiende el oro, y le funde cadenas de plata.
20 A holm-oak is set apart, he chooseth a tree that will not rot; he seeketh unto him a cunning craftsman to set up an image, that shall not be moved.
20 El pobre escoge, para ofrecerle, madera que no se corrompa; búscase un maestro sabio, que le haga una imagen de talla que no se mueva.
21 Know ye not? hear ye not? Hath it not been told you from the beginning? Have ye not understood the foundations of the earth?
21 ¿No sabéis? ¿no habéis oído? ¿nunca os lo han dicho desde el principio? ¿no habéis sido enseñados desde que la tierra se fundó?
22 It 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;
22 El está asentado sobre el globo de la tierra, cuyos moradores son como langostas: él extiende los cielos como una cortina, tiéndelos como una tienda para morar:
23 That bringeth princes to nothing; He maketh the judges of the earth as a thing of nought.
23 El torna en nada los poderosos, y á los que gobiernan la tierra hace como cosa vana.
24 Scarce are they planted, scarce are they sown, scarce hath their stock taken root in the earth; when He bloweth upon them, they wither, and the whirlwind taketh them away as stubble.
24 Como si nunca fueran plantados, como si nunca fueran sembrados, como si nunca su tronco hubiera tenido raíz en la tierra; así que sopla en ellos se secan, y el torbellino los lleva como hojarascas.
25 To whom then will ye liken Me, that I should be equal? saith the Holy One.
25 ¿A qué pues me haréis semejante, ó seré asimilado? dice el Santo.
26 Lift up your eyes on high, and see: who hath created these? He 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 faileth.
26 Levantad en alto vuestros ojos, y mirad quién crió estas cosas: él saca por cuenta su ejército: á todas llama por sus nombres; ninguna faltará: [tal] es la grandeza de su fuerza, y [su] poder y virtud.
27 Why sayest thou, O Jacob, and speakest, O Israel: 'My way is hid from the LORD, and my right is passed over from my God'?
27 ¿Por qué dices, oh Jacob, y hablas tú, Israel: Mi camino es escondido de Jehová, y de mi Dios pasó mi juicio?
28 Hast 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? His discernment is past searching out.
28 ¿No has sabido, no has oído que el Dios del siglo es Jehová, el cual crió los términos de la tierra? No se trabaja, ni se fatiga con cansancio, y su entendimiento no hay quien lo alcance.
29 He giveth power to the faint; and to him that hath no might He increaseth strength.
29 El da esfuerzo al cansado, y multiplica las fuerzas al que no tiene ningunas.
30 Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall;
30 Los mancebos se fatigan y se cansan, los mozos flaquean y caen:
31 But they that wait for the LORD 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.
31 Mas los que esperan á Jehová tendrán nuevas fuerzas; levantarán las alas como águilas; correrán, y no se cansarán; caminarán, y no se fatigarán.
Cross references (31)
Related passages for each verse, from the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge as collected and ranked by readers at OpenBible.info.
- 1 2 Corinthians 1:4; Isaiah 51:12; Isaiah 51:3; Zephaniah 3:14–17; Zechariah 1:13
- 2 Zechariah 9:12; Isaiah 61:7; Hosea 2:14; Jeremiah 33:8–9; Revelation 18:6
- 3 Malachi 3:1; Mark 1:2–5; John 1:23; Matthew 3:1–3; Luke 1:16–17
- 4 Luke 3:5; Ezekiel 21:26; Luke 18:14; Isaiah 42:15–16; Isaiah 45:2
- 5 Habakkuk 2:14; Isaiah 52:10; Joel 2:28; 2 Corinthians 4:6; Luke 3:6
- 6 Psalm 103:15–16; 1 Peter 1:24–25; Psalm 102:11; James 1:10–11; Job 14:2
- 7 Job 41:21
- 8 Mark 13:31; Matthew 24:35; 1 Peter 1:25; Psalm 119:89–91; Matthew 5:18
- 9 Isaiah 52:7–8; Ephesians 6:19; Isaiah 12:2; Isaiah 25:9; Isaiah 61:1
- 10 Revelation 22:12; Isaiah 62:11; Revelation 17:14; Matthew 28:18; Isaiah 49:4
- 11 Revelation 7:17; Psalm 23:1–6; Micah 5:4; Ezekiel 34:23; John 10:11–16
- 12 Proverbs 30:4; Hebrews 1:10–12; Psalm 102:25–26; Job 38:4–11; Isaiah 48:13
- 13 1 Corinthians 2:16; Romans 11:34; Job 36:22–23; Job 21:22; Luke 10:22
- 14 Job 21:22; Colossians 2:3; 1 Corinthians 12:4–6; James 1:17
- 15 Jeremiah 10:10; Isaiah 40:22; Job 34:14–15; Isaiah 29:5; Isaiah 11:11
- 16 Micah 6:6–7; Psalm 50:9–12; Psalm 40:6; Hebrews 10:5–10
- 17 Psalm 62:9; Daniel 4:34–35; Isaiah 29:7
- 18 Isaiah 46:5; 1 Samuel 2:2; Isaiah 40:25; Exodus 15:11; Acts 17:29
- 19 Jeremiah 10:9; Isaiah 46:6–7; Exodus 32:2–4; Habakkuk 2:18–19; Psalm 115:4–8
- 20 Jeremiah 10:3–4; Isaiah 41:7; Isaiah 46:7; Isaiah 2:8–9; Daniel 5:23
- 21 Isaiah 46:8; Isaiah 48:13; Acts 14:17; Romans 1:19–21; Psalm 50:6
- 22 Proverbs 8:27; Isaiah 42:5; Psalm 104:2; Isaiah 66:1; Jeremiah 10:12
- 23 Psalm 107:40; Job 12:21; Jeremiah 25:18–27; Isaiah 34:12; Isaiah 24:21–22
- 24 Isaiah 41:16; Isaiah 17:13; Jeremiah 23:19; Haggai 1:9; Proverbs 1:27
- 25 Isaiah 40:18; Deuteronomy 4:15–18; Deuteronomy 4:33; Deuteronomy 5:8
- 26 Colossians 1:16–17; Jeremiah 32:17–19; Isaiah 48:13; Isaiah 51:6; Psalm 147:4–5
- 27 Isaiah 49:4; Luke 18:7–8; Isaiah 49:14; Job 27:2
- 28 Romans 11:33–34; Psalm 147:5; 1 Timothy 1:17; Isaiah 55:8–9; Philippians 1:6
- 29 Isaiah 41:10; Philippians 4:13; 2 Corinthians 12:9–10; Colossians 1:11; Zechariah 10:12
- 30 Amos 2:14; Psalm 34:10; Psalm 33:16; Ecclesiastes 9:11; Isaiah 9:17
- 31 Lamentations 3:25–26; 2 Corinthians 4:16; Psalm 27:13–14; Psalm 103:5; 2 Corinthians 12:9–10
Cross references: OpenBible.info (CC BY), drawn mainly from the public-domain Treasury of Scripture Knowledge. · Sources & licences
What the Fathers said
Passages from the Church Fathers that expound or quote this chapter, verbatim from the public-domain Schaff edition (19th-century English translations).
How these were chosen
“Commentary” is the opening of a homily or exposition on this chapter (John Chrysostom’s homilies, Augustine’s tractates, sermons and expositions of the Psalms). “Quotes” are sentences where the edition’s own footnotes identify a quotation of a verse here, kept only when the wording matches the verse. Only works whose authorship is not in doubt are used. Psalms follow the Hebrew/English numbering (Augustine numbers them as the Septuagint does: his Psalm 50 is Psalm 51 here).
And thus He forewarns us: "Behold, the Lord [cometh], and His reward is before His face, to render to every man according to his work." He exhorts us, therefore, with our whole heart to attend to this, that we be not lazy or slothful in any good work.
Ye have heard "that the heavens are meted out in the palm of [His] hand:" tell me the measure, and recount the endless multitude of cubits, explain to me the fulness, the breadth, the length, the height, the beginning and end of the measurement,--things which the heart of man understands not, neither does it comprehend them.
Because the scroll shall be rolled together, and the grass over which it was spread shall with its goodliness pass away; but Thy Word remaineth for ever, which now appeareth unto us in the dark image of the clouds, and through the glass of the heavens, not as it is; because we also, although we be the well-beloved of Thy …
Read in context · Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, series 1, vol. 1 (1886)
Thus the prophet saith that he shall come saying, "Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make his paths straight." And he himself when he was come said, "Bring forth fruits meet for repentance," which corresponds with, "Prepare ye the way of the Lord." Seest thou that both by the words of the prophet, and by his own preaching, this …
Read in context · Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, series 1, vol. 10 (1888)
For the voice is heard of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord.
Read in context · Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, series 2, vol. 7 (1894)