isaiah-40:12-26,-psalm-50:12-26

The Pulpit Commentary - Isaiah 40:20

He that is so impoverished , etc.; rather, he that can only make a poor offering , i.e. that cannot spend much on religion. Chooseth a tree ; rather, chooseth wood—goes to the carpenter, and selects a good sound block of wood, out of which his idol shall be made. After this he has to find a skilful workman, who will carve his image for him and set it up, so that it shall not shake. As Delitzsch observes, "The thing carries its own satire" in the mere plain description of it. Is such... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Isaiah 40:20

The distinguishing love of God. "He calleth them all by names by the greatness of his might "for that he is strong in power." The infinitude of God is no argument at all against his observance of the individual and the minute; rightly regarded, it is a strong inference in favour of it. Because he is infinite in wisdom he compasses all that is most vast and extensive; and for the same reason , "by the greatness of his might, for that he is strong in power"—he has a perfect mastery over... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Isaiah 40:21

Have ye not known? Hitherto the prophet has restrained himself, and confined himself to quiet sarcasm. Now he bursts out. Is there any one so insensate, so devoid of natural reason and understanding, as not to know what has been known to all from the beginning—yea, from the foundations of the earth—by "the light that is in them," viz. that God is something wholly different from this?—that he is such a One as the prophet proceeds to describe in Isaiah 40:22-24 , alike above nature and above... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Isaiah 40:22

It is he that sitteth upon the circle of the earth ; rather, above the vault of the earth ; above the vault of sky which seems to arch over the earth. As grasshoppers; i.e. minute, scarcely visible (comp. Numbers 13:33 ). That stretcheth out the heavens as a curtain. So in Psalms 104:2 , only that here the "curtain" is represented as one of thin gauze. The idea is common to Isaiah with Job ( Job 9:8 ), Jeremiah ( Jeremiah 10:12 ; Jeremiah 51:15 ), and Zechariah ( Zechariah... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Isaiah 40:23

The princes … the judges ; rather, princes , judges. The entire class of such is meant, not any special individuals (comp. Psalms 107:40 ; Job 12:19-21 ). As vanity ; or, as chaos—the same word that is used in Isaiah 40:17 . read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Isaiah 40:24

They shall not be planted … shall not be sown … shall not take root. The verbs are all of them in the past tense. Translate, have not been planted , … sown , etc. The meaning is that princes and judges of the earth are not fixed in their places, have no firm root in the soil, are easily overturned. Even if the case were different, a breath from the Almighty would, as a matter of course, dry them up (see Isaiah 40:7 ) and blow them away. As stubble (comp. Isaiah 5:24 ; Psalms... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Isaiah 40:25

To whom then, etc.? This is a summary, to conclude the section ( Isaiah 40:19-24 ), as Isaiah 40:18 concludes the preceding one. If God is paramount over idols ( Isaiah 40:19 , Isaiah 40:20 ) and over nature ( Isaiah 40:22 ) and over humanity ( Isaiah 40:23 , Isaiah 40:24 ), to whom can he be likened? Is he not altogether unique and incomparable? Saith the Holy One (comp. Isaiah 57:15 ). Isaiah's special designation of God, at once pregnant and almost peculiar (see the... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Isaiah 40:26

Lift up your eyes , etc. Once more an appeal is made to creation, as proving God's greatness. "Lift up your eyes on high, and see who hath created these (heavens), bringing out their host ( i.e. the stars) by number, or in their full number (Cheyne), and calling them all by names" (comp. Psalms 147:4 , Psalms 147:5 , "He telleth the number of the stars, and calleth them all by their names," which, however, is probably later than Isaiah). Omnipotence alone could have created the starry... read more

Albert Barnes

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Whole Bible - Isaiah 40:12

Who hath measured - The object in this and the following verses to Isaiah 40:26, is to show the greatness, power, and majesty of God, by strong contrast with his creatures, and more especially with idols. Perhaps the prophet designed to meet and answer an implied objection: that the work of deliverance was so great that it could not be accomplished. The answer was, that God had made all things; that he was infinitely great; that he had entire control over all the nations; and that he could,... read more

Albert Barnes

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Whole Bible - Isaiah 40:13

Who hath directed - This passage is quoted by Paul in Romans 11:34, and referred to by him in 1 Corinthians 2:16. The word rendered ‘directed’ here (תכן tikēn) is the same which is used in the previous verse, ‘and meted out heaven.’ The idea here is, ‘Who has fitted, or disposed the mind or spirit of Yahweh? What superior being has ordered, instructed, or disposed his understanding? Who has qualified him for the exercise of his wisdom, or for the formation and execution of his plans?’ The... read more

The Pulpit Commentary - Isaiah 40:20

The Pulpit Commentary - Isaiah 40:20

The Pulpit Commentary - Isaiah 40:21

The Pulpit Commentary - Isaiah 40:22

The Pulpit Commentary - Isaiah 40:23

The Pulpit Commentary - Isaiah 40:24

The Pulpit Commentary - Isaiah 40:25

The Pulpit Commentary - Isaiah 40:26

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Whole Bible - Isaiah 40:12

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Whole Bible - Isaiah 40:13

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