Isaiah 40:24

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 above the circle of the earth— its inhabitants are like grasshoppers— He stretches out the skies like a curtain, spreads them out like a tent to dwell in. 23He reduces princes to nothing. He makes the judges of the earth a confusion. Scarcely are they planted, scarcely are they sown, scarcely their stem takes root in the earth, when He blows on them and they wither, and a storm carries them off as stubble. 25“To whom then will you liken Me? Or who is My equal?” says the Holy One. 26Lift up your eyes on high, and see! Who created these? The One who brings out their host by number, the One who calls them all by name. Because of His great strength and vast power, not one is missing.

Isaiah 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

Words taken from the KJV.

• Yea, they shall not be plantedנָטַעnâţa‛ · to plantH5193
• yea, they shall not be sownזָרַעzâra‛ · to sowH2232
• yea, their stockגֶּ֫זַעgeza‛ · stockH1503
• shall not take rootשָׁרַשׁshârash · to uprootH8327
• in the earthאֶ֫רֶץ'erets · land: country/planetH776
• and he shall also blowנָשַׁףnâshaph · to blowH5398
• upon them, and they shall witherיָבֵשׁyâbêsh · to witherH3001
• and the whirlwindסְעָרָהsa‛ar se‛ârâh · tempestH5591
• shall takeנָשָׂאnâώâ' nâsâh · to lift: bearH5375
• them away as stubbleקַשׁqash · stubbleH7179

Cross-references for Isaiah 40:24

• Isaiah 14:21Prepare slaughter for his children for the iniquity of their fathers, so they would not rise up and possess the land, or fill the face of the earth with cities.
• Isaiah 17:11In the day that you plant, you fence it in, and in the morning you made your seed to sprout— but the harvest will be a heap in a day of grief and incurable pain.
• 1 Kings 21:21‘Behold, I will bring evil upon you, utterly sweep you away, and will cut off from Ahab every male, both bond and free in Israel.
• 2 Kings 10:11So Jehu struck down all who remained of the house of Ahab in Jezreel—all his nobles, his acquaintances, his priests—until he left him not a survivor.
• Job 15:30He will not escape from the darkness; a flame will wither his shoots, and he will depart by the breath of His mouth.
• Job 18:16Below his roots dry up, and above his branches wither.
• Jeremiah 22:30Thus says Adonai: “Write this man childless, a man who will not prosper in his days. For no man of his seed will prosper, sitting on the throne of David and ruling again in Judah.”
• Nahum 1:14Adonai has issued a command against you: no more will your name be spread. From the house of your gods I will cut off the idol and metal image. I will prepare your grave— for you have become worthless.
• Isaiah 40:7The grass withers, the flower fades. For the breath of Adonai blows on it. Surely the people are grass.
• Isaiah 11:4But with righteousness He will judge the poor, and decide with fairness for the poor of the land. He will strike the land with the rod of His mouth, and with the breath of His lips He will slay the wicked.
• Isaiah 30:33For Topheth has long been ready, prepared for the king, its fire pit made deep and wide, a pyre of fire with plenty of wood. The breath of Adonai, like a torrent of brimstone, sets it aflame.
• Isaiah 37:7Behold, I am putting a spirit in him so that he will hear a rumor, and will return to his own country; then I will cause him to fall by the sword in his own land.’”
• 2 Samuel 22:16Then the ravines of the sea appeared, the foundations of the world were exposed by the rebuke of Adonai, at a blast of the breath of His nostrils.
• Job 4:9By the breath of God they perish; by the blast of His anger they vanish.
• Haggai 1:9“You have looked for much, but indeed, there is little. What you have brought home, I have blown away. Why is this?”—it is a declaration of Adonai-Tzva’ot—“because My House lies in ruins, while you are running, each to his own house.
• Isaiah 17:13The nations will rush in like the rumbling of many waters, but He will rebuke them so they will flee far away, chased like chaff on the hills before the wind, like whirling dust before the storm.

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

• God Continued...
• Idolatry
• Life
• Readings, Select
• Stubble

In the dictionaries

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

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