King James Version:
(The Lord speaking is red text)
All nations before him [are] as nothing; and they are counted to him less than nothing, and vanity.
Complete Jewish Bible:
Before him all the nations are like nothing. He regards them as less than nothing.
Berean Standard Bible:
All the nations are as nothing before Him; He regards them as nothingness and emptiness.
American Standard Version:
All the nations are as nothing before him; they are accounted by him as less than nothing, and vanity.
KJV with Strong’s Numbers:
All nations{H1471} before him are as nothing; and they are counted{H2803} to him less than nothing{H657}, and vanity{H8414}.
Cross-References (KJV):
Psalms 62:9
- Surely men of low degree [are] vanity, [and] men of high degree [are] a lie: to be laid in the balance, they [are] altogether [lighter] than vanity.
Daniel 4:34
- ¶ And at the end of the days I Nebuchadnezzar lifted up mine eyes unto heaven, and mine understanding returned unto me, and I blessed the most High, and I praised and honoured him that liveth for ever, whose dominion [is] an everlasting dominion, and his kingdom [is] from generation to generation:
Daniel 4:35
- And all the inhabitants of the earth [are] reputed as nothing: and he doeth according to his will in the army of heaven, and [among] the inhabitants of the earth: and none can stay his hand, or say unto him, What doest thou?
Isaiah 29:7
- And the multitude of all the nations that fight against Ariel, even all that fight against her and her munition, and that distress her, shall be as a dream of a night vision.
2 Corinthians 12:11
- ¶ I am become a fool in glorying; ye have compelled me: for I ought to have been commended of you: for in nothing am I behind the very chiefest apostles, though I be nothing.
Job 25:6
- How much less man, [that is] a worm? and the son of man, [which is] a worm?
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Commentary for Isaiah 40:17
Isaiah 40:17 is a part of the Book of Isaiah, which is a compilation of prophecies attributed to the prophet Isaiah. The verse is set within a larger section (Isaiah 40-55) often referred to as "Second Isaiah" or "Deutero-Isaiah," which is believed to have been written during the Babylonian exile or just after the return from exile, around the 6th century BCE. This period was a time of great upheaval and identity crisis for the Israelites, as they grappled with their faith in the face of military defeat, exile, and the seeming powerlessness of their God compared to the gods of the dominant nations like Babylon and Assyria.
The theme of Isaiah 40:17 is the incomparable greatness and sovereignty of God. The verse emphasizes that all the nations of the world, with their pride and power, are insignificant and worthless in comparison to the Lord. The text speaks to the idea that human achievements and the might of empires are transient and empty when measured against the eternal and omnipotent nature of God. This perspective would have been particularly comforting to the exiled Israelites, who were living under foreign rule and whose own nation seemed negligible in the shadow of great empires.
In this verse, the prophet Isaiah is reassuring the people of Israel that, despite their current circumstances, their God is the ultimate power in the universe. It serves as a theological assertion of monotheism and the supremacy of the Israelite God over all other gods and nations. The message is one of encouragement and hope, reminding the people that their exile and the dominance of other nations are temporary and that God's power and plan for His people will ultimately prevail. This verse, therefore, is a call to trust in God's sovereignty and to find comfort in His enduring presence and faithfulness.
*This commentary is produced by Microsoft/WizardLM-2-8x22B AI model
Strong's Numbers and Definitions:
Note: H = Hebrew (OT), G = Greek (NT)
- Strong's Number: H1471
There are 511 instances of this translation in the Bible
Lemma: גּוֹי
Transliteration: gôwy
Pronunciation: go'-ee
Description: rarely (shortened) גֹּי; apparently from the same root as גֵּוָה (in the sense of massing); a foreign nation; hence, a Gentile; also (figuratively) a troop of animals, or a flight of locusts; Gentile, heathen, nation, people. - Strong's Number: H2803
There are 122 instances of this translation in the Bible
Lemma: חָשַׁב
Transliteration: châshab
Pronunciation: khaw-shab'
Description: a primitive root; properly, to plait or interpenetrate, i.e. (literally) to weave or (generally) to fabricate; figuratively, to plot or contrive (usually in a malicious sense); hence (from the mental effort) to think, regard, value, compute; (make) account (of), conceive, consider, count, cunning (man, work, workman), devise, esteem, find out, forecast, hold, imagine, impute, invent, be like, mean, purpose, reckon(-ing be made), regard, think. - Strong's Number: H657
There are 132 instances of this translation in the Bible
Lemma: אֶפֶס
Transliteration: ʼepheç
Pronunciation: eh'-fes
Description: from אָפֵס; (sometimes like פָּעַל); cessation, i.e. an end (especially of the earth); often used adverb, no further; also the ankle (in the dual), as being the extremity of the leg or foot; ankle, but (only), end, howbeit, less than nothing, nevertheless (where), no, none (beside), not (any, -withstanding), thing of nought, save(-ing), there, uttermost part, want, without (cause). - Strong's Number: H8414
There are 19 instances of this translation in the Bible
Lemma: תֹּהוּ
Transliteration: tôhûw
Pronunciation: to'-hoo
Description: from an unused root meaning to lie waste; a desolation (of surface), i.e. desert; figuratively, a worthless thing; adverbially, in vain; confusion, empty place, without form, nothing, (thing of) nought, vain, vanity, waste, wilderness.