Isaiah 40:21

Isaiah 40:21 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)Have 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?
• New International Version (NIV)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?
• English Standard Version (ESV)Do you not know? Do you not hear? Has it not been told you from the beginning? Have you not understood from the foundations of the earth?
• New King James Version (NKJV)Have you not known? Have you not heard? Has it not been told you from the beginning? Have you not understood from the foundations of the earth?

Context of Isaiah 40:21

19As for the cast image (idol), a metalworker casts it, A goldsmith overlays it with gold And a silversmith casts its silver chains. 20He who is too impoverished for such an offering [to give to his god] Chooses a tree that will not rot; He seeks out for himself a skillful craftsman To [carve and] set up an idol that will not totter. Do you [who worship idols] not know? Have you not heard? Has it not been told to you from the beginning? Have you not understood from the foundations of the earth [the omnipotence of God and the stupidity of bowing to idols]? 22It is He who sits above the circle of the earth, And its inhabitants are like grasshoppers; [It is He] who stretches out the heavens like a veil And spreads them out like a tent to dwell in. 23It is He who reduces dignitaries to nothing, Who makes the judges (rulers) of the earth meaningless (useless).

Isaiah 40:21 word by word

הֲל֤וֹא תֵֽדְעוּ֙ הֲל֣וֹא תִשְׁמָ֔עוּ הֲל֛וֹא הֻגַּ֥ד מֵרֹ֖אשׁ לָכֶ֑ם הֲלוֹא֙ הֲבִ֣ינֹתֶ֔ם מוֹסְד֖וֹת הָאָֽרֶץ׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• Have ye not knownיָדַעyâda‛ · to knowH3045
• have ye not heardשָׁמַעshâma‛ · to hear: hearH8085
• hath it not been toldנָגַדnâgad · to tellH5046
• you from the beginningרֹאשׁrô'sh · head: firstH7218
• have ye not understoodבִּיןbîyn · to understandH995
• from the foundationsמוֹסָדָהmôsâdâh môsâdâh · foundationH4146
• of the earthאֶ֫רֶץ'erets · land: country/planetH776

Cross-references for Isaiah 40:21

• Isaiah 27:11When its branches are dry, they are broken off; The women come and make a fire with them. For they are not a people of understanding, Therefore He who made them will not have compassion on them, And He who created them will not be gracious to them.
• Isaiah 44:20That kind of man (the idolater) feeds on ashes [and is satisfied with ashes]! A deceived mind has led him astray, so that he cannot save himself, or ask, “Is this thing [that I am holding] in my right hand not a lie?”
• Isaiah 46:8“Remember this, and take courage; Take it to heart, you rebellious and disloyal people.
• Psalms 19:1The heavens are telling of the glory of God; And the expanse [of heaven] is declaring the work of His hands.
• Psalms 115:8Those who make them will become like them, Everyone who trusts in them.
• Jeremiah 10:8But they are altogether irrational and stupid and foolish In their discipline of delusion—their idol is [only] wood [it is ridiculous, empty and worthless]!
• Acts 14:17yet He did not leave Himself without some witness [as evidence of Himself], in that He kept constantly doing good things and showing you kindness, and giving you rains from heaven and productive seasons, filling your hearts with food and happiness.”
• Romans 1:19because that which is known about God is evident within them [in their inner consciousness], for God made it evident to them.
• Romans 3:1Then what is the advantage of the Jew? Or what is the benefit of circumcision?

Commentaries on Isaiah 40:21

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 21Have ye not known - On this verse Kimchi has a very interesting comment, an extract of which I subjoin. "The whole world may be considered as a house built up; heaven its roof; the stars its lamps; and the fruits of the earth its table spread. The Master of the house is God, blessed for ever; and man is the steward into whose hand all the business of the house is given. If he always consider in his heart that the Master of the house is continually over…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 21Have ye not known? - This is evidently an address to the worshippers of idols, and either designed to be addressed to the Jews themselves in the times of Manasseh, when idolatry abounded, or to all idolaters. The prophet had in the previous verses shown the manner in which the idols were made, and the folly of regarding them as objects of worship. He now turns and addresses the worshippers of these idols, as being without excuse. They might have known…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 18-26Verses 18-26 Whatever we esteem or love, fear or hope in, more than God, that creature we make equal with God, though we do not make images or worship them. He that is so poor, that he has scarcely a sacrifice to offer, yet will not be without a god of his own. They spared no cost upon their idols; we grudge what is spent in the service of our God. To prove the greatness of God, the prophet appeals to all ages and nations. Those who are ignorant of this…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 21Idol worshipers do not recognize God or respond wisely to him. The faithful in Israel understand and see God's role in the story of redemption, which includes both exile and restoration (Isaiah 41:20).Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 2121. ye--who worship idols. The question emphatically implies, they had known. from the beginning--(Is 41:4, 26; 48:16). God is the beginning (Re 1:8). The tradition handed down from the very first, of the creation of all things by God at the beginning, ought to convince you of His omnipotence and of the folly of idolatry.Read the comment

Topics related to Isaiah 40:21

• Blindness
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• Idolatry
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In the dictionaries

• Bosom
• Carry
• Cry
• Feed
• Renew
• Isaiah
• Jeremiah (2)
• John, Gospel of
• Leviticus
• Philosophy

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