God’s Word Translation
Isaiah 40:2
2“Speak tenderly to Jerusalem and announce to it that its time of hard labor is over and its wrongs have been paid for. It has received from the Lord double for all its sins.”
Isaiah 40:2 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)Speak ye comfortably to Jerusalem, and cry unto her, that her warfare is accomplished, that her iniquity is pardoned: for she hath received of the Lord’s hand double for all her sins.
- New International Version (NIV)Speak tenderly to Jerusalem, and proclaim to her that her hard service has been completed, that her sin has been paid for, that she has received from the Lord’s hand double for all her sins.
- English Standard Version (ESV)Speak tenderly to Jerusalem, and cry to her that her warfare is ended, that her iniquity is pardoned, that she has received from the Lord's hand double for all her sins.
- New King James Version (NKJV)“Speak comfort to Jerusalem, and cry out to her, That her warfare is ended, That her iniquity is pardoned; For she has received from the Lord’s hand Double for all her sins.”
Context of Isaiah 40:2
1“Comfort my people! Comfort them!” says your God. “Speak tenderly to Jerusalem and announce to it that its time of hard labor is over and its wrongs have been paid for. It has received from the Lord double for all its sins.” 3A voice cries out in the desert: “Clear a way for the Lord. Make a straight highway in the wilderness for our God. 4Every valley will be raised. Every mountain and hill will be lowered. Steep places will be made level. Rough places will be made smooth.
Read all of Isaiah 40Isaiah 40:2 word by word
דַּבְּר֞וּ עַל־לֵ֤ב יְרֽוּשָׁלִַ֙ם֙ וְקִרְא֣וּ אֵלֶ֔יהָ כִּ֤י מָֽלְאָה֙ צְבָאָ֔הּ כִּ֥י נִרְצָ֖ה עֲוֹנָ֑הּ כִּ֤י לָקְחָה֙ מִיַּ֣ד יְהוָ֔ה כִּפְלַ֖יִם בְּכָל־חַטֹּאתֶֽיהָ׃ סRead the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- Speakדָבַרdâbar · to speak: speakH1696
- ye comfortablyלֵבlêb · heartH3820
- to Jerusalemיְרוּשָׁלִַ֫ם, יְרוּשְׁלֵםyerûshâlaim yerûshâlayim · JerusalemH3389
- and cryקָרָאqârâ' · to call: call toH7121
- unto her, that her warfareצָבָאtsâbâ' tsebâ'âh · army: warH6635
- is accomplishedמָלֵאmâlê' mâlâ' · to fillH4390
- that her iniquityעָוֺן‛âvôn ‛âvôn · iniquity: crimeH5771
- is pardonedרָצָהrâtsâh · to acceptH7521
- for she hath receivedלָקַחlâqach · to take: recieveH3947
- of the Lord’sיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
- handיָדyâd · handH3027
- doubleכֶּ֫פֶלkephel · doubleH3718
- for all her sinsחַטָּאתchaţţâ'âh chaţţâ'th · sinH2403
Cross-references for Isaiah 40:2
- Genesis 34:3He became very fond of Jacob’s daughter Dinah. He loved the girl and spoke tenderly to her.
- 2 Chronicles 30:22Hezekiah spoke encouraging words to all the Levites who had the skills to serve the Lord. They ate the festival meals for seven days, sacrificed fellowship offerings, and confessed their sins to the Lord God of their ancestors.
- Hosea 2:14“That is why I’m going to win her back. I will lead her into the desert. I will speak tenderly to her.
- Psalms 102:13You will rise and have compassion on Zion, because it is time to grant a favor to it. Indeed, the appointed time has come.
- Jeremiah 29:11I know the plans that I have for you, declares the Lord. They are plans for peace and not disaster, plans to give you a future filled with hope.
- Daniel 9:2In the first year of his reign, I, Daniel, learned from the Scriptures the number of years that Jerusalem would remain in ruins. The Lord had told the prophet Jeremiah that Jerusalem would remain in ruins for 70 years.
- Daniel 11:35Some of the wise people will be defeated in order to refine, purify, and make them white until the end times. But the appointed time is still to come.
- Daniel 12:4“But you, Daniel, keep these words secret, and seal the book until the end times. Many will travel everywhere, and knowledge will grow.”
- Habakkuk 2:3The vision will still happen at the appointed time. It hurries toward its goal. It won’t be a lie. If it’s delayed, wait for it. It will certainly happen. It won’t be late.
- Acts 1:7Jesus told them, “You don’t need to know about times or periods that the Father has determined by his own authority.
- Galatians 4:4But when the right time came, God sent his Son ⌞into the world⌟. A woman gave birth to him, and he came under the control of the laws given to Moses.
- Revelation 6:10They cried out in a loud voice, “Holy and true Master, how long before you judge and take revenge on those living on earth who shed our blood?”
- Revelation 11:15When the seventh angel blew his trumpet, there were loud voices in heaven, saying, “The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Messiah, and he will rule as king forever and ever.”
- Isaiah 12:1At that time you will say, “I will praise you, O Lord. Although you had been angry with me, you turned your anger away from me, and you comforted me.
- Isaiah 33:24No one who lives ⌞in Zion⌟ will say, “I’m sick.” The sins of its inhabitants will be forgiven.
- Isaiah 43:25I alone am the one who is going to wipe away your rebellious actions for my own sake. I will not remember your sins ⌞anymore⌟.
Commentaries on Isaiah 40:2
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 2Double for all her sins "Blessings double to the punishment" - It does not seem reconcilable to our notions of the Divine justice, which always punishes less than our iniquities deserve, to suppose that God had punished the sins of the Jews in double proportion; and it is more agreeable to the tenor of this consolatory message to understand it as a promise of ample recompense for the effects of past displeasure, on the reconciliation of God to his…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 2Speak ye comfortably - Hebrew, על־לב ‛al -lēb as in the margin, To the heart.‘ The heart is the seat of the affections. It is there that sorrow and joy are felt. We are oppressed there with grief, and we speak familiarly of being pained at the heart and of being of a glad or merry heart. To speak to the heart,‘ is to speak in such a way as to remove the troubles of the heart; to furnish consolation, and joy. It means that they were not merely to urge…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 2Speak tenderly: The prophet's message was to encourage Jerusalem with the good news of God's forgiveness, reconciliation, and restoration. From the prophetic perspective, Israel’s sad days are gone because the exile has ended. she has received from the hand of the LORD double for all her sins: Israel faced the full force of God's wrath (Isaiah 51:19–23; compare 61:7).Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 22. comfortably--literally, "to the heart"; not merely to the intellect. Jerusalem--Jerusalem though then in ruins, regarded by God as about to be rebuilt; her people are chiefly meant, but the city is personified. cry--publicly and emphatically as a herald cries aloud (Is 40:3). warfare--or, the appointed time of her misery (Job 7:1, Margin; Job 14:14; Da 10:1). The ulterior and Messianic reference probably is the definite time when the legal economy of…Read the comment
Topics related to Isaiah 40:2
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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