Berean Standard Bible
Isaiah 40:24
24No sooner are they planted, no sooner are they sown, no sooner have their stems taken root in the ground, than He blows on them and they wither, and a whirlwind sweeps them away like stubble.
Isaiah 40:24 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)Yea, they shall not be planted; yea, they shall not be sown: yea, their stock shall not take root in the earth: and he shall also blow upon them, and they shall wither, and the whirlwind shall take them away as stubble.
- New International Version (NIV)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.
- English Standard Version (ESV)Scarcely are they planted, scarcely sown, scarcely has their stem taken root in the earth, when he blows on them, and they wither, and the tempest carries them off like stubble.
- New King James Version (NKJV)Scarcely shall they be planted, Scarcely shall they be sown, Scarcely shall their stock take root in the earth, When He will also blow on them, And they will wither, And the whirlwind will take them away like stubble.
Context of Isaiah 40:24
22He sits enthroned above the circle of the earth; its dwellers are like grasshoppers. He stretches out the heavens like a curtain, and spreads them out like a tent to dwell in. 23He brings the princes to nothing and makes the rulers of the earth meaningless. No sooner are they planted, no sooner are they sown, no sooner have their stems taken root in the ground, than He blows on them and they wither, and a whirlwind sweeps them away like stubble. 25“To whom will you liken Me, or who is My equal?” asks the Holy One. 26Lift up your eyes on high: Who created all these? He leads forth the starry host by number; He calls each one by name. Because of His great power and mighty strength, not one of them is missing.
Read all of Isaiah 40Isaiah 40:24 word by word
אַ֣ף בַּל־נִטָּ֗עוּ אַ֚ף בַּל־זֹרָ֔עוּ אַ֛ף בַּל־שֹׁרֵ֥שׁ בָּאָ֖רֶץ גִּזְעָ֑ם וְגַם־נָשַׁ֤ף בָּהֶם֙ וַיִּבָ֔שׁוּ וּסְעָרָ֖ה כַּקַּ֥שׁ תִּשָּׂאֵֽם׃ סRead the interlinear
- No soonerאַף'aph · alsoH637
- No soonerבַּלbal · notH1077
- are they plantedנָטַעnâţa‛ · to plantH5193
- are they sownזָרַעzâra‛ · to sowH2232
- have their stemsגֶּ֫זַעgeza‛ · stockH1503
- taken rootשָׁרַשׁshârash · to uprootH8327
- in the groundאֶ֫רֶץ'erets · land: country/planetH776
- thanגַּםgam · alsoH1571
- He blowsנָשַׁףnâshaph · to blowH5398
- and they witherיָבֵשׁyâbêsh · to witherH3001
- and a whirlwindסְעָרָהsa‛ar se‛ârâh · tempestH5591
- sweeps them awayנָשָׂאnâώâ' nâsâh · to lift: bearH5375
- like stubbleקַשׁqash · stubbleH7179
Cross-references for Isaiah 40:24
- Isaiah 14:21Prepare a place to slaughter his sons for the iniquities of their forefathers. They will never rise up to possess a land or cover the earth with their cities.
- Isaiah 17:11though on the day you plant you make them grow, and on that morning you help your seed sprout— yet the harvest will vanish on the day of disease and incurable pain.
- 1 Kings 21:21This is what the LORD says: ‘I will bring calamity on you and consume your descendants; I will cut off from Ahab every male in Israel, both slave and free.
- 2 Kings 10:11So Jehu killed everyone in Jezreel who remained of the house of Ahab, as well as all his great men and close friends and priests, leaving him without a single survivor.
- Job 15:30He will not escape from the darkness; the flame will wither his shoots, and the breath of God’s mouth will carry him away.
- Job 18:16The roots beneath him dry up, and the branches above him wither away.
- Jeremiah 22:30This is what the LORD says: “Enroll this man as childless, a man who will not prosper in his lifetime. None of his descendants will prosper to sit on the throne of David or to rule again in Judah.”
- Nahum 1:14The LORD has issued a command concerning you, O Nineveh: “There will be no descendants to carry on your name. I will cut off the carved image and cast idol from the house of your gods; I will prepare your grave, for you are contemptible.”
- Isaiah 40:7The grass withers and the flowers fall when the breath of the LORD blows on them; indeed, the people are grass.
- Isaiah 11:4but with righteousness He will judge the poor, and with equity He will decide for the lowly of the earth. He will strike the earth with the rod of His mouth and slay the wicked with the breath of His lips.
- Isaiah 30:33For Topheth has long been prepared; it has been made ready for the king. Its funeral pyre is deep and wide, with plenty of fire and wood. The breath of the LORD, like a torrent of burning sulfur, sets it ablaze.
- Isaiah 37:7Behold, I will put a spirit in him so that he will hear a rumor and return to his own land, where I will cause him to fall by the sword.’”
- 2 Samuel 22:16The channels of the sea appeared, and the foundations of the world were exposed at the rebuke of the LORD, at the blast of the breath of His nostrils.
- Job 4:9By the breath of God they perish, and by the blast of His anger they are consumed.
- Haggai 1:9You expected much, but behold, it amounted to little. And what you brought home, I blew away. Why? declares the LORD of Hosts. Because My house still lies in ruins, while each of you is busy with his own house.
- Isaiah 17:13The nations rage like the rush of many waters. He rebukes them, and they flee far away, driven before the wind like chaff on the hills, like tumbleweeds before a gale.
Commentaries on Isaiah 40:24
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 24And he shall also blow upon them "And if he but blow upon them" - The Septuagint, Syriac, Vulgate, and MS. Bodl., with another, have גם gam, only, without the conjunction ו vau, and.Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 24Yea, they shall not be planted - The kings and rulers - especially they who oppose God in the execution of his purposes. The idea in this verse is, that their name and family should become extinct in the same way as a tree does from which no shoot starts up. Although they were great and mighty, like the tree that sends out far-spreading branches, and strikes its roots deep, yet God would so utterly destroy them that they should have no posterity, and…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. 1-31This chapter introduces chapters 40–66. In this section, comfort means the result of God's merciful actions toward people in the future. It includes encouragement, strength, and acceptance. God wants to rescue his people (Isaiah 40:1–11) and is fully capable of doing so (40:12–26). The exiles needed to trust God's promises and wait for their rescue (Isaiah 40:27–31; see also 30:15–18).Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 2424. they--the "princes and judges" (Is 40:23) who oppose God's purposes and God's people. Often compared to tall trees (Psa 37:35; Da 4:10). not ... sown--the seed, that is, race shall become extinct (Na 1:14). stock--not even shall any shoots spring up from the stump when the tree has been cut down: no descendants whatever (Job 14:7; see on Is 11:1). and ... also--so the Septuagint. But Maurer translates, "They are hardly (literally, 'not yet', as in 2Ki…Read the comment
Topics related to Isaiah 40:24
In the dictionaries
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
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