Isaiah 40:24

God's power and sovereignty

²² He sits enthroned above the circle of the earth; its dwellers are like grasshoppers. He stretches out the heavens like a curtain, and spreads them out like a tent to dwell in.

²³ He brings the princes to nothing and makes the rulers of the earth meaningless.

No sooner are they planted, no sooner are they sown, no sooner have their stems taken root in the ground, than He blows on them and they wither, and a whirlwind sweeps them away like stubble.

²⁵ “To whom will you liken Me, or who is My equal?” asks the Holy One.

²⁶ Lift up your eyes on high: Who created all these? He leads forth the starry host by number; He calls each one by name. Because of His great power and mighty strength, not one of them is missing.

Do read the surrounding verses too, because the context often says more than a single verse.

Compare

BSB: No sooner are they planted, no sooner are they sown, no sooner have their stems taken root in the ground, than He blows on them and they wither, and a whirlwind sweeps them away like stubble.
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.
WEB: They are planted scarcely. They are sown scarcely. Their stock has scarcely taken root in the ground. He merely blows on them, and they wither, and the whirlwind takes them away as stubble.
ASV: Yea, they have not been planted; yea, they have not been sown; yea, their stock hath not taken root in the earth: moreover he bloweth upon them, and they wither, and the whirlwind taketh them away as stubble.
DARBY: Scarcely are they planted, scarcely are they sown, scarcely hath their stock taken root in the earth, but he also bloweth upon them and they wither, and the whirlwind taketh them away as stubble.
BLB: Yes, they are hardly planted; yes, they are hardly sown; Yes their stem has hardly taken root in the earth. And also He will blow on them, and they will wither, and the tempest will carry them off like the stubble.

ÅB: neppe er de plantet, neppe er de sådd, neppe har deres stamme skutt rot i jorden, før han har blåst på dem, og de blir tørre, og en storm fører dem bort som strå.
OTB: Knapt er de plantet, knapt er de sådd, knapt har de slått rot i bakken, før Han blåser på dem og de visner, og en virvelvind feier dem bort som agner.
B1930: neppe er de plantet, neppe er de sådd, neppe har deres stamme skutt rot i jorden, før han har blåst på dem, og de blir tørre, og en storm fører dem bort som strå.

Study notes (Tyndale)

Original text and word study

Cross references

Isaiah 41:16
You will winnow them, and a wind will carry them away; a gale will scatter them. But you will rejoice in the LORD; you will glory in the Holy One of Israel.
Read in context
Isaiah 17:13
The nations rage like the rush of many waters. He rebukes them, and they flee far away, driven before the wind like chaff on the hills, like tumbleweeds before a gale.
Read in context
Jeremiah 23:19
Behold, the storm of the LORD has gone out with fury, a whirlwind swirling down upon the heads of the wicked.
Read in context
Haggai 1:9
You expected much, but behold, it amounted to little. And what you brought home, I blew away. Why? declares the LORD of Hosts. Because My house still lies in ruins, while each of you is busy with his own house.
Read in context
Proverbs 1:27
when your dread comes like a storm, and your destruction like a whirlwind, when distress and anguish overwhelm you.
Read in context
1 Kings 21:21–22
This is what the LORD says: ‘I will bring calamity on you and consume your descendants; I will cut off from Ahab every male in Israel, both slave and free.
Read in context
Nahum 1:14
The LORD has issued a command concerning you, O Nineveh: “There will be no descendants to carry on your name. I will cut off the carved image and cast idol from the house of your gods; I will prepare your grave, for you are contemptible.”
Read in context
Jeremiah 22:30
This is what the LORD says: “Enroll this man as childless, a man who will not prosper in his lifetime. None of his descendants will prosper to sit on the throne of David or to rule again in Judah.”
Read in context