Isaiah 40:13

Isaiah 40:13 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)Who hath directed the Spirit of the Lord, or being his counsellor hath taught him?
• New International Version (NIV)Who can fathom the Spirit of the Lord, or instruct the Lord as his counselor?
• English Standard Version (ESV)Who has measured the Spirit of the Lord, or what man shows him his counsel?
• New King James Version (NKJV)Who has directed the Spirit of the Lord, Or as His counselor has taught Him?

Context of Isaiah 40:13

11He will protect His flock like a shepherd, He will gather the lambs in His arm, He will carry them in His bosom; He will gently and carefully lead those nursing their young. 12Who has measured the waters in the hollow of His hand, And marked off the heavens with a span [of the hand], And calculated the dust of the earth with a measure, And weighed the mountains in a balance And the hills in a pair of scales? Who has directed the Spirit of the Lord, Or has taught Him as His counselor? 14With whom did He consult and who enlightened Him? Who taught Him the path of justice and taught Him knowledge And informed Him of the way of understanding? 15In fact, the nations are like a drop from a bucket, And are regarded as a speck of dust on the scales; Now look, He lifts up the islands like fine dust.

Isaiah 40:13 word by word

מִֽי־תִכֵּ֥ן אֶת־ר֖וּחַ יְהוָ֑ה וְאִ֥ישׁ עֲצָת֖וֹ יוֹדִיעֶֽנּוּ׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• Who hath directedתָּכַןtâkan · to measureH8505
• the Spiritרוּחַrûach · spiritH7307
• of the Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
• his counsellorעֵצָה‛êtsâh · counselH6098
• his counsellorאִישׁ'îysh · manH376
• hath taughtיָדַעyâda‛ · to knowH3045

Cross-references for Isaiah 40:13

• Job 21:22Can anyone teach God knowledge, Seeing that He judges those on high?
• Job 36:22Behold, God is exalted in His power; Who is a ruler or a teacher like Him?
• Luke 10:22All things have been transferred and turned over to Me by My Father and no one knows who the Son is except the Father, or who the Father is except the Son, and anyone to whom the Son wishes to reveal Him.”
• John 1:13who were born, not of blood [natural conception], nor of the will of the flesh [physical impulse], nor of the will of man [that of a natural father], but of God [that is, a divine and supernatural birth—they are born of God—spiritually transformed, renewed, sanctified].
• Romans 11:34For who has known the mind of the Lord, or who has been His counselor?
• 1 Corinthians 2:16For who has known the mind and purposes of the Lord, so as to instruct Him? But we have the mind of Christ [to be guided by His thoughts and purposes].
• Ephesians 1:11In Him also we have received an inheritance [a destiny—we were claimed by God as His own], having been predestined (chosen, appointed beforehand) according to the purpose of Him who works everything in agreement with the counsel and design of His will,

Commentaries on Isaiah 40:13

• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 13Who 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…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 12-17Verses 12-17 All created beings shrink to nothing in comparison with the Creator. When the Lord, by his Spirit, made the world, none directed his Spirit, or gave advice what to do, or how to do it. The nations, in comparison of him, are as a drop which remains in the bucket, compared with the vast ocean; or as the small dust in the balance, which does not turn it, compared with all the earth. This magnifies God's love to the world, that, though it is of…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 12-13These rhetorical questions suggest the answer, “No one!” God alone created everything. He will judge creation (Isaiah 24:17), and only he can and will restore it through his salvation.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1313. Quoted in Ro 11:34; 1Co 2:16. The Hebrew here for "directed" is the same as in Is 40:12 for "meted out"; thus the sense is, "Jehovah measures out heaven with His span"; but who can measure Him? that is, Who can search out His Spirit (mind) wherewith He searches out and accurately adjusts all things? Maurer rightly takes the Hebrew in the same sense as in Is 40:12 (so Pr 16:2; 21:2), "weigh," "ponder." "Direct," as in English Version, answers, however…Read the comment

Topics related to Isaiah 40:13

• God Continued...
• Holy Spirit
• Idolatry
• Quotations and Allusions
• Readings, Select

In the dictionaries

• Bosom
• Carry
• Creation
• Cry
• Feed
• Renew
• God
• Isaiah
• Jeremiah (2)
• John, Gospel of

Commentaries on Isaiah 40

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Rashi on Tanakh
• Calvin’s Commentaries
• Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings