Isaiah 40:22 - Printer Friendly

ESV: It is he who sits above the circle of the earth, and its inhabitants are like grasshoppers; who stretches out the heavens like a curtain, and spreads them like a tent to dwell in;

NIV: He sits enthroned above the circle of the earth, and its people are like grasshoppers. He stretches out the heavens like a canopy, and spreads them out like a tent to live in.

NASB: It is He who sits above the circle of the earth, And its inhabitants are like grasshoppers, Who stretches out the heavens like a curtain And spreads them out like a tent to live in.

CSB: God is enthroned above the circle of the earth; its inhabitants are like grasshoppers. He stretches out the heavens like thin cloth and spreads them out like a tent to live in.

NLT: God sits above the circle of the earth. The people below seem like grasshoppers to him! He spreads out the heavens like a curtain and makes his tent from them.

KJV: It is he that sitteth upon the circle of the earth, and the inhabitants thereof are as grasshoppers; that stretcheth out the heavens as a curtain, and spreadeth them out as a tent to dwell in:

NKJV: It is He who sits above the circle of the earth, And its inhabitants are like grasshoppers, Who stretches out the heavens like a curtain, And spreads them out like a tent to dwell in.

Isaiah 40:9–26 contains Isaiah's extended description of the limitless power and eternal nature of God. Isaiah calls on heralds to proclaim that God is coming to save and shepherd His people (Isaiah 40:9–11). Nobody is like the Creator, who needs nothing from His own creations. No idol or image can represent Him (Isaiah 40:18–20). He is bound by the limits of His creation; He sits above, seeing the entire horizon: the "circle" of the earth.

The tone of Isaiah's book shifts dramatically beginning with this chapter. God calls Isaiah and other voices to comfort His people and proclaim a time of peace and forgiven sins. Human life is short, but God's word is forever, and He is coming to save and shepherd His people. Nobody is like God, and the nations are nothing to Him. An idol cannot capture His likeness. He exists beyond the heavens, which He made and knows perfectly. Isaiah rejects the complaint that God does not see His people. Those who trust Him will never lack for strength and support.

Isaiah 40 begins the second half of Isaiah's epic book of prophecy. The prior section detoured to describe events in the life of Hezekiah (Isaiah 36—39). Now, God shouts out comfort and promises of restoration for His people. The Creator who made everything in the heavens knows our circumstances. He will rescue those who trust in Him. Upcoming passages will focus on Israel's future restoration. Included in those verses are references to the hopeful figure of the Messiah.

Isaiah is among the most important prophetic books in the entire Bible. The first segment details God's impending judgment against ancient peoples for sin and idolatry (Isaiah 1—35). The second part of Isaiah briefly explains a failed assault on Jerusalem during the rule of Hezekiah (Isaiah 36—39). The final chapters predict Israel's rescue from Babylonian captivity (Isaiah 40—48), the promised Messiah (Isaiah 49—57), and the final glory of Jerusalem and God's people (Isaiah 58—66).