Earlier today I posted with a close look at two texts that people often misuse to prove the Bible’s scientific infallibility. We looked at how people often misuse Job 38:14 and Isaiah 40:22 regarding the physical structure of the Earth, and I demonstrated how both of the texts assume and apply an Ancient understanding of the world. If you missed my point, it is not to argue that the Bible is faulty, but rather that the writers made assumptions and used them in allegories with no intention of teaching scientific truths. Rather, they were focusing on the transcendence of God using worldviews common to the day. If you have not already read it, you may want to reference that post first, though it is not necessary in order to understand this one.
In this post I am applying the principle of the previous post. I wish to look at Isaiah 40:22 in light of the meaning of the entire chapter and in context of both parts of Isaiah. You can decide if the Ancient worldview of a flat disc changes the meaning of the text at all.
Regardless of the date of the writing, scholars agree that the events depicted in Isaiah 40-66 are Isaiah’s visions after the fall of Jerusalem to Babylon in 587 BC. Isaiah 39 concludes with King Hezekiah in power, having heard a good word from God, thinking he would have peace and security the rest of his life serving as Israel’s King. If we only had the book of Isaiah to go off of, in Isaiah 40, we wake up a century and a half later. What has happened to the peace and security Hezekiah thought he would have? We don’t know. What has gone on? Jerusalem has fallen. This we know. The temple therefore has presumably been destroyed, and the King is presumably dead. Israel's children have been raptured from their homeland and forced into exile in Babylon. Where is God in all this turmoil? Isaiah 40 therefore is the introduction to this half of the book, addressed to comfort those in exile and address this very question.
Below I have offered a direct paraphrase of all of Isaiah 40. My intent was to use some of the same concepts and emotions as the original writing rather than simply directly translating the passage. Isaiah was written during the apex of written Hebrew, and I hope to convey that apex of emotion below, as modern near-direct translations do not convey the emotion present, in my opinion. For reference purposes, I have included verse-by-verse citations in superscript, and I have included rhetorical information implied but not present in a grey font. I have preserved the Hebrew proper name of God as YHWH, translated as “The LORD” in most English Bibles. I will not be concluding with a prayer but will rather leave you with the Word of God, inviting you to internalize the Message for yourself:
1Comfort, oh comfort, my people! 2fJerusalem is gone, destroyed for her sins, but in this time of desert, YHWH, our God, is coming... 4fMountains may fall and valleys may fill with the sands of time, but YHWH is coming.... He said it Himself! 6I heard a voice. It said to proclaim the good news: He is coming!
7fCivilizations fade like dry grass, but the word of YHWH our God lasts forever. 9fDo not fear, for the fallen Jerusalem will rise!. Behold! He’s coming now! 11He brings a reward for his flock. He will feed us like a shepherd. He will gather us up in His arms as tender lambs.
12What? You do not know this God?! How can I describe Him?! The oceans are in His hands! The limits of the sky are but an arms reach! The Earth and its mountains are but dust on a scale! 13fWho directs Him? Who advises Him? With whom did He consult to enlighten Himself or teach Him justice? 15fNo one! Even all the peoples of the Earth are like a drop in the bucket to Him! All the trees of the King’s forrest and all the animals therein could never amount to an offering to Him!
17All the peoples of the Earth are nothing compared to our God. 18-20With what or whom can you compare God? An idol? Worthless! 21fDo you not know? Have you not heard? Have you not been told since your birth? Do even the foundations of the earth not attest to this understanding? It is He! He! whose throne is above this petty disc of land, whose inhabitants are but insects! He parts the curtains of the Heavens and dwells in them as a tent. 23fHe humiliates those rulers of the Earth, for they are nothing compared to Him. They are like scarce seed, planted without root, withering away and blowing as dust in the wind. 25The Holy One of Israel Himself asks: “Who is like Me?" No one!
26fLift up your eyes and see: the Creator is coming! He is mighty! Do not feel that God has abandoned you. 28Do you not know? Have you not heard? YHWH is an everlasting God! The Creator of even the very edges of the Earth! He doesn’t grow weary Himself, 29fno, He even energizes those who are weary. He strengthens those without power. Even the most stalwart young man will fall. But He doesn’t!
31Wait for Him.... He will restore our strength.... We will soar with Him again like eaglets... We will run with Him again like untiring deer... We will walk with Him again and never get tired of it... Wait for Him.... He is coming!~ The Deeper Magician's Apprentice
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