God’s Word Translation
Isaiah 40:16
16All the trees in Lebanon are not enough to burn an offering. Its wild animals are not enough for a single burnt offering.
Isaiah 40:16 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)And Lebanon is not sufficient to burn, nor the beasts thereof sufficient for a burnt offering.
- New International Version (NIV)Lebanon is not sufficient for altar fires, nor its animals enough for burnt offerings.
- English Standard Version (ESV)Lebanon would not suffice for fuel, nor are its beasts enough for a burnt offering.
- New King James Version (NKJV)And Lebanon is not sufficient to burn, Nor its beasts sufficient for a burnt offering.
Context of Isaiah 40:16
14Whom did he consult? Who gave him understanding? Who taught him the right way? Who taught him knowledge? Who informed him about the way to understanding? 15The nations are like a drop in a bucket and are considered to be like dust on a scale. The weight of the islands is like fine dust. All the trees in Lebanon are not enough to burn an offering. Its wild animals are not enough for a single burnt offering. 17All the nations amount to nothing in his presence. He considers them less than nothing and worthless. 18To whom, then, can you compare God? To what statue can you compare him?
Read all of Isaiah 40Isaiah 40:16 word by word
וּלְבָנ֕וֹן אֵ֥ין דֵּ֖י בָּעֵ֑ר וְחַיָּת֔וֹ אֵ֥ין דֵּ֖י עוֹלָֽה׃ סRead the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
Cross-references for Isaiah 40:16
- Psalms 40:6You were not pleased with sacrifices and offerings. You have dug out two ears for me. You did not ask for burnt offerings or sacrifices for sin.
- Psalms 60:10Isn’t it you, O God, who rejected us? Isn’t it you, O God, who refused to accompany our armies?
- Micah 6:6What should I bring when I come into the Lord’s presence, when I bow in front of the God of heaven? Should I bring him year-old calves as burnt offerings?
- Hebrews 10:5For this reason, when Christ came into the world, he said, “ ‘You did not want sacrifices and offerings, but you prepared a body for me.
Commentaries on Isaiah 40:16
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 16And Lebanon is not sufficient - The image is beautiful and uncommon. It has been imitated by an apocryphal writer, who however comes far short of the original: - "For all sacrifice is too little for a sweet savor unto thee: And all the fat is not sufficient for thy burnt-offering." Judith 16:16. Does not the prophet mean here that all the burnt-offerings and sacrifices that could be offered were insufficient to atone for sin? That the nations were as…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 16And Lebanon - The expression here refers to the trees or the cedars of Lebanon. Thus it is rendered by the Chaldee: And the trees of Lebanon.‘ For a description of Lebanon, see the note at Isaiah 10:34. It is probable that the word Lebanon here is not used in the limited sense in which it is sometimes employed, to denote a single mountain, or a single range of mountains, but includes the entire ranges lying north of Palestine, and which were comprehended…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. 16People valued Lebanon for its plentiful wood and wildlife (see Isaiah 2:13–16; Psalm 104:16–17).Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1616. All Lebanon's forest would not supply fuel enough to burn sacrifices worthy of the glory of God (Is 66:1; 1Ki 8:27; Psa 50:8-13). beasts--which abounded in Lebanon.Read the comment
Topics related to Isaiah 40:16
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
God’s Word Translation — © 1995 God’s Word to the Nations Bible Society
Commentaries