Esaias 40

Old Testament · Brenton Septuagint with Greek parallel

Esaias 40

1Comfort you, comfort you my people, says God.Παρακαλεῖτε παρακαλεῖτε τὸν λαόν μου, λέγει ὁ Θεός.

2Speak, you priests, to the heart of Jerusalem; comfort her, for her humiliation is accomplished, her sin is put away: for she has received of the Lord's hand double the amount of her sins.Ἱερεῖς λαλήσατε εἰς τὴν καρδίαν Ἱερουσαλὴμ, παρακαλέσατε αὐτὴν, ὅτι ἐπλήσθη ἡ ταπείνωσις αὐτῆς, λέλυται αὐτῆς ἡ ἁμαρτία, ὅτι ἐδέξατο ἐκ χειρὸς Κυρίου διπλᾶ τὰ ἁμαρτήματα αὐτῆς.

3✡ The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare you the way of the Lord, make straight the paths of our God.Φωνὴ βοῶντος ἐν τῇ ἐρήμῳ, ἑτοιμάσατε τὴν ὁδὸν Κυρίου, εὐθείας ποιεῖτε τὰς τρίβους τοῦ Θεοῦ ἡμῶν.

4Every valley shall be filled, and every mountain and hill shall be brought low: * and all the crooked ways shall become straight, and the rough places plains.Πᾶσα φάραγξ πληρωθήσεται, καὶ πᾶν ὄρος καὶ βουνὸς ταπεινωθήσεται· καὶ ἔσται πάντα τὰ σκολιὰ εἰς εὐθεῖαν, καὶ ἡ τραχεῖα εἰς πεδία.

5And the glory of the Lord shall appear, and all flesh shall see the salvation of God: for the Lord has spoken it.Καὶ ὀφθήσεται ἡ δόξα Κυρίου, καὶ ὄψεται πᾶσα σὰρξ τὸ σωτήριον τοῦ Θεοῦ, ὅτι Κύριος ἐλάλησε.

6-7The voice of one saying, Cry; and I said, What shall I cry? ✡ All flesh is grass, and all the glory of man as the flower of grass:Φωνὴ λέγοντος, βόησον· καὶ εἶπα, τί βοήσω; πᾶσα σὰρξ χορτὸς, καὶ πᾶσα δόξα ἀνθρώπου ὡς ἄνθος χόρτου· Ἐξηράνθη ὁ χόρτος, καὶ τὸ ἄνθος ἐξέπεσε·

8The grass withers, and the flower fades: but the word of our God abides for ever.τὸ δὲ ῥῆμα τοῦ Θεοῦ ἡμῶν μένει εἰς τὸν αἰῶνα.

9O you that bring glad tidings to Zion, go up on the high mountain; lift up your voice with strength, you that bring glad tidings to Jerusalem; lift it up, fear not; say to the cities of Juda, Behold your God!Ἐπʼ ὄρος ὑψηλὸν ἀνάβηθι ὁ εὐαγγελιζόμενος Σιὼν, ὕψωσον τῇ ἰσχύϊ τὴν φωνήν σου ὁ εὐαγγελιζόμενος Ἱερουσαλήμ· ὑψώσατε, μὴ φοβεῖσθε· εἰπὸν ταῖς πόλεσιν Ἰούδα, ἰδοὺ ὁ Θεὸς ὑμῶν, ἰδοὺ Κύριος·

10Behold the Lord! The Lord is coming with strength, and his arm is with power: behold, his reward is with him, and his work before him.Κύριος μετὰ ἰσχύος ἔρχεται, καὶ ὁ βραχίων μετὰ κυρίας· ἰδοὺ ὁ μισθὸς αὐτοῦ μετʼ αὐτοῦ, καὶ τὸ ἔργον ἐναντίον αὐτοῦ.

11He shall tend his flock as a shepherd, and he shall gather the lambs with his arm, and shall soothe them that are with young.Ὡς ποιμὴν ποιμανεῖ τὸ ποίμνιον αὐτοῦ, καὶ τῷ βραχίονι αὐτοῦ συνάξει ἄρνας, καὶ ἐν γαστρὶ ἐχούσας παρακαλέσει.

12Who has measured the water in his hand, and the heaven with a span, and all the earth in a handful? Who has weighed the mountains in scales, and the forests in a balance?Τίς ἐμέτρησε τῇ χειρὶ τὸ ὕδωρ, καὶ τὸν οὐρανὸν σπιθαμῇ, καὶ πᾶσαν τὴν γῆν δρακί; τίς ἔστησε τὰ ὄρη σταθμῷ, καὶ τὰς νάπας ζυγῷ;

13✡ Who has known the mind of the Lord? and who has been his counsellor, to instruct him?Τίς ἔγνω νοῦν Κυρίου; καὶ τίς αὐτοῦ σύμβουλος ἐγένετο, ὃς συμβιβᾷ αὐτόν;

14Or with whom has he taken counsel, and he has instructed him? or who has taught him judgment, or who has taught him the way of understanding; †Ἢ πρὸς τίνα συνεβουλεύσατο, καὶ συνεβίβασεν αὐτόν; ἢ τίς ἔδειξεν αὐτῷ κρίσιν; ἢ ὁδὸν συνέσεως τίς ἔδειξεν αὐτῷ;

15since all the nations are counted as a drop from a bucket, and as the turning of a balance, and shall be counted as spittle?Εἰ πάντα τὰ ἔθνη ὡς σταγὼν ἀπὸ κάδου, καὶ ὡς ῥοπὴ ζυγοῦ ἐλογίσθησαν, ὡς σίελος λογισθήσονται;

16And Libanus is not enough to burn, nor all beasts enough for a whole burnt offering:Ὁ δὲ Λίβανος οὐχ ἱκανὸς εἰς καῦσιν, καὶ πάντα τὰ τετράποδα οὐχ ἱκανὰ εἰς ὁλοκάρπωσιν,

17and all the nations are as nothing, and counted as nothing.καὶ πάντα τὰ ἔθνη ὡς οὐδέν εἰσι, καὶ εἰς οὐθὲν ἐλογίσθησαν.

18To whom have you compared the Lord? and with what likeness have you compared him?Τίνι ὡμοιώσατε Κύριον; καὶ τίνι ὁμοιώματι ὡμοιώσατε αὐτόν;

19Has not the artificer made an image, or the goldsmith having melted gold, gilt it over, and made it a similitude?Μὴ εἰκόνα ἐποίησε τέκτων, ἢ χρυσοχόος χωνεύσας χρυσίον περιεχρύσωσεν αὐτὸν, ὁμοίωμα κατεσκεύασεν αὐτόν;

20For the artificer chooses out a wood that will not rot, and will wisely enquire how he shall set up his image, and that so that it should not be moved.Ξύλον γὰρ ἄσηπτον ἐκλέγεται τέκτων, καὶ σοφῶς ζητήσει πῶς στήσει εἰκόνα αὐτοῦ, καὶ ἵνα μὴ σαλεύηται.

21Will you not know? will you not hear? has it not been told you of old? Have you not known the foundations of the earth?Οὐ γνώσεσθε; οὐκ ἀκούσεσθε; οὐκ ἀνηγγέλη ἐξ ἀρχῆς ὑμῖν; οὐκ ἔγνωτε τὰ θεμέλια τῆς γῆς;

22It is he that comprehends the circle of the earth, and the inhabitants in it are as grasshoppers; he that set up the heaven as a chamber, and stretched it out as a tent to dwell in:Ὁ κατέχων τὸν γῦρον τῆς γῆς, καὶ οἱ ἐνοικοῦντες ἐν αὐτῇ ὡς ἀκρίδες· ὁ στήσας ὡς καμάραν τὸν οὐρανὸν, καὶ διατείνας ὡς σκηνὴν κατοικεῖν·

23he that appoints princes to rule as nothing, and has made the earth as nothing.Ὁ διδοὺς ἄρχοντας ὡς οὐδὲν ἄρχειν, τὴν δὲ γῆν ὡς οὐδὲν ἐποίησεν.

24For they shall not plant, neither shall they sow, neither shall their root be fixed in the ground: he has blown upon them, and they are withered, and a storm shall carry them away like sticks.Οὐ γὰρ μὴ φυτεύσωσιν, οὐδὲ μὴ σπείρωσιν, οὐδὲ μὴ ῥιζωθῇ εἰς τὴν γῆν ἡ ῥίζα αὐτῶν· ἔπνευσεν ἐπʼ αὐτοὺς, καὶ ἐξηράνθησαν, καὶ καταιγὶς ὡς φρύγανα λήψεται αὐτούς.

25Now then to whom have you compared me, that I may be exalted? says the Holy One.Νῦν οὖν τίνι με ὡμοιώσατε, καὶ ὑψωθήσομαι; εἶπεν ὁ ἅγιος.

26Lift up your eyes on high, and see, who has displayed all these things? even he that brings forth his host by number: he shall call them all by name by means of his great glory, and by the power of his might: nothing has escaped you.Ἀναβλέψατε εἰς ὕψος τοὺς ὀφθαλμοὺς ὑμῶν, καὶ ἴδετε, τίς κατέδειξε ταῦτα πάντα; ὁ ἐκφέρων κατʼ ἀριθμὸν τὸν κόσμον αὐτοῦ, πάντας ἐπʼ ὀνόματι καλέσει ἀπὸ πολλῆς δόξης, καὶ ἐν κράτει ἰσχύος αὐτοῦ· οὐδέν σε ἔλαθε.

27For say not you, O Jacob, and why have you spoken, Israel, saying, My way is hid from God, and my God has taken away my judgement, and has departed?Μὴ γὰρ εἴπῃς Ἰακὼβ, καὶ τί ἐλάλησας Ἰσραήλ; ἀπεκρύβη ἡ ὁδός μου ἀπὸ τοῦ Θεοῦ, καὶ ὁ Θεός μου τὴν κρίσιν ἀφεῖλε, καὶ ἀπέστη.

28And now, have you not known? have you not heard? the eternal God, the God that formed the ends of the earth, shall not hunger, nor be weary, and there is no searching of his understanding.Καὶ νῦν οὐκ ἔγνως; εἰ μὴ ἤκουσας; Θεὸς αἰώνιος, ὁ Θεὸς ὁ κατασκευάσας τὰ ἄκρα τῆς γῆς· οὐ πεινάσει, οὐδὲ κοπιάσει, οὐδὲ ἔστιν ἐξεύρεσις τῆς φρονήσεως αὐτοῦ,

29He gives strength to the hungry, and sorrow to them that are not suffering.διδοὺς τοῖς πεινῶσιν ἰσχὺν, καὶ τοῖς μὴ ὀδυνωμένοις λύπην.

30For the young men shall hunger, and the youths shall be weary, and the choice men shall be powerless:Πεινάσουσι γὰρ νεώτεροι, καὶ κοπιάσουσι νεανίσκοι, καὶ ἐκλεκτοὶ ἀνίσχυες ἔσονται.

31but they that wait on God shall renew their strength; they shall put forth new feathers like eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; they shall walk, and not hunger.Οἱ δὲ ὑπομένοντες τὸν Θεὸν, ἀλλάξουσιν ἰσχὺν, πτεροφυήσουσιν ὡς ἀετοὶ, δραμοῦνται καὶ οὐ κοπιάσουσι, βαδιοῦνται καὶ οὐ πεινάσουσιν.

Translator's Notes

These notes come from the printed edition of Sir Lancelot Brenton's classic English translation of the Septuagint (LXX), and record where the Greek differs from the English rendering or admits more than one reading.

• v. 3✡Matt 3:3; John 1:23
• v. 4*See Luke 3. 5, with which Alex. agrees
• v. 6-7✡1 Pe 1:24
• v. 13✡Rom 11:34
• v. 14†Alex. + Or who has first given to him, and it shall be recompensed to him again? Ro 11. 35; Heb. omits.