Isaiah 40:4

Isaiah 40:4 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)Every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and hill shall be made low: and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough places plain:
• New International Version (NIV)Every valley shall be raised up, every mountain and hill made low; the rough ground shall become level, the rugged places a plain.
• English Standard Version (ESV)Every valley shall be lifted up, and every mountain and hill be made low; the uneven ground shall become level, and the rough places a plain.
• New King James Version (NKJV)Every valley shall be exalted And every mountain and hill brought low; The crooked places shall be made straight And the rough places smooth;

Context of Isaiah 40:4

2Speak kindly to the heart of Jerusalem and proclaim to her that her warfare has ended, that her iniquity has been removed. For she has received from Adonai’s hand double for all her sins. 3A voice cries out in the wilderness, “Prepare the way of Adonai, Make straight in the desert a highway for our God. Every valley will be lifted up, every mountain and hill made low, the rough ground will be a plain and the rugged terrain smooth. 5The glory of Adonai will be revealed, and all flesh will see it together.” For the mouth of Adonai has spoken. 6A voice is saying, “Cry out!” So I said, “What shall I cry out?” “All flesh is grass, and all its loveliness is like the flower of the field.

Isaiah 40:4 word by word

כָּל־גֶּיא֙ יִנָּשֵׂ֔א וְכָל־הַ֥ר וְגִבְעָ֖ה יִשְׁפָּ֑לוּ וְהָיָ֤ה הֶֽעָקֹב֙ לְמִישׁ֔וֹר וְהָרְכָסִ֖ים לְבִקְעָֽה׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• Every valleyגַּיְאgay' gay · valleyH1516
• shall be exaltedנָשָׂאnâώâ' nâsâh · to lift: raiseH5375
• and every mountainהַרhar · mountain: mountH2022
• and hillגִּבְעָהgib‛âh · hillH1389
• shall be made lowשָׁפֵלshâphêl · to abaseH8213
• and the crookedעָקֹב‛âqôb · steepH6121
• shall be made straightמִישׁוֹרmîyshôr mîyshôr · plainH4334
• and the rough placesרֶ֫כֶסrekes · roughnessH7406
• plainבִּקְעָהbiq‛âh · valleyH1237

Cross-references for Isaiah 40:4

• Isaiah 42:11Let the desert and its cities exult— the villages that Kedar inhabits. Let the dwellers of Sela sing for joy. Let them shout for joy from the top of the mountains.
• 1 Samuel 2:8He raises the helpless from the dust. He lifts the needy from the dunghill, to make them sit with nobles, granting them a seat of honor. For the earth’s pillars are Adonai’s, and He has set the world on them.
• Psalms 113:7He raises the poor from the dust, lifts up the needy out of the dunghill,
• Ezekiel 17:24Then all the trees of the field will know that I, Adonai, have brought down the high tree, exalted the lowly tree, dried up the green tree, and made the dry tree flourish. I, Adonai, have spoken and I will do it.”
• Ezekiel 21:26For the king of Babylon stands at the fork in the road, at the start of the two roads, to seek divination. He shakes the arrows, consults the idols, he looks in the liver.
• Luke 1:52He has brought down rulers from thrones and exalted humble ones.
• Luke 3:5Every valley shall be filled up and every mountain and hill brought low. The crooked shall be made straight and the rough ways made smooth,
• Luke 18:14I tell you, this man, rather than the other, went down to his home declared righteous. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted.”
• Isaiah 2:12For the day of Adonai-Tzva’ot will be against anyone proud and haughty, against anyone lifted up—he will be humbled,
• Job 40:11Scatter the fury of your anger. Look at every proud person and bring him low;
• Isaiah 42:16I will bring the blind by a way they do not know. in paths they have not known, I will guide them. I will turn darkness before them to light and the rough places smooth. These are the things I will do, and I will not forsake them.
• Isaiah 45:2I will go before you and make crooked places straight. I will shatter bronze doors and cut through iron bars.
• Proverbs 2:15whose paths are crooked and are devious in their ways—

Commentaries on Isaiah 40:4

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 4Crooked - The word עקב akob is very generally rendered crooked: but this sense of the word seems not to be supported by any good authority. Ludolphus, Comment. ad Hist. Aethiop. p. 206, says "that in the Ethiopia language it signifies clivus, locus editus:" and so the Syriac Version renders it in this place, ערמא arama : Hebrew, ערמה aramah, tumulus, acervus. Thus the parallelism would be more perfect:" the hilly country shall be made level, and the…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 4Every valley shall be exalted - That is, every valley, or low piece of ground, shall be filled up so as to make a level highway, as was done in order to facilitate the march of armies. This verse is evidently designed to explain what is intended in Isaiah 40:3, by preparing the way for Yahweh. Applied to the return of the Jews from Babylon, it means simply that the impassable valleys were to be filled up so as to make a level road for their journey. If…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 3-5There is now a shift from announcing the good news to expecting God's arrival. The good news (Isaiah 40:1–2) is based on God himself. Isaiah described the Lord as coming on a highway through the desert (see Isaiah 35). However, the imagery is reversed here: In Isaiah 35, the people traveled to Zion, toward the Lord. Here, the Lord is coming toward his people (see also Isaiah 52:8, where both images are combined).Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 44. Eastern monarchs send heralds before them in a journey to clear away obstacles, make causeways over valleys, and level hills. So John's duty was to bring back the people to obedience to the law and to remove all self-confidence, pride in national privileges, hypocrisy, and irreligion, so that they should be ready for His coming (Mal 4:6; Lu 1:17). crooked--declivities.Read the comment

Topics related to Isaiah 40:4

• Church
• Gentiles
• Highways
• Prophecy
• Quotations and Allusions
• Readings, Select
• Straight

In the dictionaries

• Bosom
• Carry
• Cry
• Feed
• Plain
• Renew
• 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