Isaiah 40:1 Console, console My people He returns to his future prophecies; since from here to the end of the Book are words of consolations, this section separated them from the prophecies of retribution. Console, you, My prophets, console My people.
Isaiah 40:2 for she has become full [from] her host Jonathan renders: She is destined to become full from the people of the exiles, as though it would say, “She has become full from her host.” Others interpret צְבָאָה like (Job 7:1), “Is there not a time (צָבָא) for man on the earth?”
has been appeased Heb. נִרְצָה, has been appeased.
for she has taken etc. [Jonathan paraphrases:] For she has received a cup of consolation from before the Lord as though she has been punished doubly for all her sins. According to its simple meaning, it is possible to explain, ‘for she received double punishment.’ Now if you ask, how is it the standard of the Holy One, blessed be He, to pay back a person double his sin, I will tell you that we find an explicit verse (Jer. 16:18): “And I will pay first the doubling of their iniquity and their sin.”
Isaiah 40:3 A voice The Holy Spirit calls, “In the desert, the way to Jerusalem.”
clear the way of the Lord for her exiles to return to her midst. [The Warsaw edition yields:] Clear the way of the Lord The way of Jerusalem for her exiles to return to her midst.
Isaiah 40:4 Every valley shall be raised and the mountain shall be lowered, thus resulting in a smooth, even, and easily traversed road.
and the close mountains Heb. רְכָסִים, mountains close to each other, and because of their proximity, the descent between them is steep and it is not slanted, that it should be easy to descend and ascend. ([The word] רְכָסִים is translated by Jonathan as ‘banks,’ an expression of height like the banks of a river.)
close mountains Heb. רְכָסִים. Comp. (Ex. 28:28) “And they shall fasten (וְיִרְכְּסוּ) the breastplate.”
a champaigne Canpayne in O.F., a smooth and even terrain.
Isaiah 40:6 A voice from the Holy One, blessed be He, says to me, “Call!”
and it says My spirit says to Him, “What shall I call?” And the voice answers him, “Call this, all flesh is grass. All those who are haughty their greatness shall be turned over and become like grass. ([Manuscripts yield:] All the princes of the kingdom their greatness shall be turned over and shall wither away [lit. shall end] like grass.)
and all its kindness is like the blossom of the field For “the kindness of the nations is sin” (Prov. 14:34). [Ed. note: We have inverted the order of Rashi and followed the order of K’li Paz and Parshandatha, to connect the second part of the verse with the first. Rashi’s explanation of the second part follows his first explanation of the first part. In the Lublin edition, the second explanation of the first part of the verse interrupts the sequence.] (Another explanation is: All flesh is grass.) A person’s end is to die; therefore, if he says to do kindness, he is like the blossom of the field, that is cut off and dries, and one must not rely on him, for he has no power to fulfill his promise, perhaps he will die, for, just as the grass dries out and the blossom wilts, so is it that when a man dies, his promise is null, but the word of our God shall last for He is living and existing, and He has the power to fulfill. Therefore, “Upon a lofty mountain ascend and herald, O herald of Zion, for the promise of the tidings emanates from the mouth of Him Who lives forever.”
Isaiah 40:7 shall wilt Heb. נָבֵל, wilt.
Isaiah 40:9 O herald of Zion Heb. מְבַשֶּׂרֶת. The prophets who herald Zion. [This is the feminine form.] Elsewhere (infra 52:7), he says, “the feet of the herald (מְבַשֵּׂר).” [This is the masculine form.] This denotes that if they are worthy, he will be as swift as a male. If they are not worthy, he will be as weak as a female and will delay his steps until the end.
Isaiah 40:10 shall come with a strong [hand] to mete out retribution upon the heathens. ([Mss. read:] Upon the nations.)
behold His reward is with Him It is prepared with Him for the righteous.
and His recompense [lit. His deed,] the recompense for the deed, which He is obliged to give them.
Isaiah 40:11 Like a shepherd [who] tends his flock Like a shepherd who tends his flock; with his arm he gathers lambs, and he carries them in his bosom.
the nursing ones he leads [Jonathan renders:] The nursing ones he leads gently, the nursing sheep.
he leads Heb. יְנַהֵל, lit. he shall lead, like מְנַהֵל, he leads.
Isaiah 40:12 Who measured etc. He had the power to do all this, and surely He has the power to keep these promises.
with his gait Heb. בְּשָׁעֳלוֹ, with his walking, as it is said (Habakkuk 3:15): “You trod with Your horses in the sea.” Comp. (Num. 22:24) “In the path (בְּמִשְׁעוֹל) of the vineyards, a path (for walking).” Another explanation is that שַׁעַל is the name of a receptacle. Comp. (Ezekiel 13:19) “For measures (בְּשַׁעֲלוֹ) of barley.”
measured Amolad in O.F., an expression of measure and number. Comp. (Ex. 5:18) “And the number (וְתֹכֶן) of bricks you shall give.”
and measured by thirds Heb. בַּשָּׁלִשׁ, and measured by thirds, one third wilderness, one third civilization, and one third seas and rivers. Another interpretation: בַּשָּׁלִשׁ, from the thumb to the middle finger, the third of the fingers. Menahem explains it as the name of a vessel. Comp. (Ps. 80:6) “And You gave them to drink tears with a vessel (שָׁלִישׁ) .”
and weighed mountains with a scale Everything according to the earth, a heavy mountain He inserted into hard earth, and the light ones into soft earth.
Isaiah 40:13 Who meted the Holy Spirit in the mouth of the prophets? The Lord prepared it, and He is worthy of belief.
and His adviser who informs Him [and the one with whom He takes counsel He informs] of His spirit. So did Jonathan render it. [Who meted out the spirit? The Lord, and the one with whom He takes counsel He informs him, i.e., the righteous in whom God confides, He informs of His plans for the future.] But, according to its context, וְאִישׁ עֲצָתוֹ refers back to the beginning of the verse. Who meted out His spirit and who is His adviser who informs the Holy One, blessed be He, of counsel?
Isaiah 40:14 With whom did He take counsel and give him to understand With which of the heathens ([mss., K’li Paz:] nations) did He take counsel, as He took counsel with the prophets, as it is said concerning Abraham (Gen. 18:17): “Do I conceal from Abraham...?”
and give him to understand, and teach him in the way of justice With which one of the heathens ([mss., K’li Paz:] nations) did He do so, that He taught him wisdom as He did to Abraham, to whom He gave a heart to recognize Him by himself and to understand the Torah, as it is said (ibid. 26:5): “And he kept My charge,” and Scripture states further (ibid. 18:19), “For he commands etc.” And his kidneys would pour forth wisdom to him, as it is said (Ps. 16:7): “Even at night my kidneys chastised me.” (With whom did He take counsel and who gave Him to understand [With which man did He take counsel and which] man gave the Holy One, blessed be He, [to understand?] Behold all the nations are like a drop in a bucket, and how could they teach Him?)
Isaiah 40:15 Behold the nations are like a drop from a bucket And are not worthy to Him to appoint some of them as prophets to reveal His secret.
like a drop from a bucket Heb. כְּמַר, like a bitter drop that drips from the bottom of the bucket, bitter from the putrid water that is embedded in the bucket and the decay of the wood, limonede in O.F.
and like the dust of a balance for the copper corrodes and wears off.
like fine fine dust.
that blows away [lit. that will be taken.] Like dust that is picked up and goes up through the wind, like fine dust that is carried away.
Isaiah 40:16 there is not enough to burn on His altar.
and its beasts (the beasts] of the Lebanonthere is not enough for burnt offerings. Another explanation is: And the Lebanon etc. to expiate the iniquity of the heathens.
Isaiah 40:17 All the nations are as naught before Him In His eyes they are as naught, and are not regarded by Him.
Isaiah 40:19 melted Heb. נָסַךְ, an expression of melting (מַסֵּכָה).
the craftsman has melted The ironsmith has cast it from iron or from copper, and then the goldsmith plates it with plates of gold and covers it from above.
and chains Heb. וּרְתֻקוֹת, and chains.
Isaiah 40:20 He who is accustomed to select הַמְסֻכָּן תְּרוּמָה. Or, if he comes to make it of wood, one who is accustomed to discern between a durable tree and other trees, chooses a tree that does not decay quickly.
He who is accustomed Heb. הַמְסֻכָּן. Comp. (Num. 22:30) “Have I been accustomed (הַהַסְכֵּן הִסְכַּנְתִּי)?”
to select Heb. תְּרוּמָה, separation, selection of the trees.
Isaiah 40:21 Do you not know...the foundations of the earth Who founded it, and you should have worshipped Him.
Isaiah 40:22 the circle Heb. חוּג, an expression similar to (infra 44:13) “And with a compass (וּבַמְּחוּגָה),” a circle (compas in O.F.).
and whose inhabitants are to Him [lit. before Him] like grasshoppers.
like a curtain Heb. כַדֹּק, a curtain, toile in French.
Isaiah 40:24 Even [as though] they were not planted They are even as though they were not planted.
even [as though] they were not sown And still more than this, that they shall be uprooted and plucked out, as if they were not sown. Sowing is less than planting.
their trunk is not rooted in the earth When they will be plucked out, the trunk will not take root in the ground that it will grow up anew. Every שֹׁרֶשׁ, root, in Scripture is accented on the first letter, and the ‘reish’ is vowelized with a ‘pattah’ [segol]. This one, however, is accented on the latter syllable and it is vowelized with a ‘kamatz katan’ [tzeireh] because it is a verb, present tense, [enracinant in French] being rooted.
Isaiah 40:26 who created these All the host that you will see on high.
because of His great might that He has, and that He is strong in power, no one of His host is missing, that He does not call by name.
Isaiah 40:27 Why should you say My people ([K’li Paz, mss.:] the people of) Jacob, and speak in exile.
My way has been hidden from the Lord He hid from before His eyes all that we served Him, and gave those who did not know Him, dominion over us.
and from my God, my judgment passes? He ignores the judgment of the good reward He should have paid our forefathers and us.
Isaiah 40:28 the Creator of the ends of the earth...there is no fathoming His understanding And One who has such strength and such wisdom—He knows the thoughts. Why does He delay your benefit, only to terminate the transgression and to expiate the sin through afflictions.
Isaiah 40:29 Who gives the tired strength And who will eventually renew strength for your tiredness.
Isaiah 40:30 Now youths shall become tired Heb. נְעָרִים. The might of your enemies who are devoid (מְנֹעָרִים) of commandments, shall become faint.
and young men shall stumble Those who are now mighty and strong, shall stumble, but you, who put your hope in the Lord shall gain new strength and power.
Isaiah 40:31 wings [The Hebrew אבר means] a wing.</html