Isaiah 40 18

Isaiah 40:18 kjv

To whom then will ye liken God? or what likeness will ye compare unto him?

Isaiah 40:18 nkjv

To whom then will you liken God? Or what likeness will you compare to Him?

Isaiah 40:18 niv

With whom, then, will you compare God? To what image will you liken him?

Isaiah 40:18 esv

To whom then will you liken God, or what likeness compare with him?

Isaiah 40:18 nlt

To whom can you compare God?
What image can you find to resemble him?

Isaiah 40 verses

Isaiah 40 18 Meaning

Isaiah 40:18 poses profound rhetorical questions that underscore the absolute incomparability and uniqueness of God. It challenges any attempt by humanity to liken the Almighty Creator to anything within creation or to represent Him by any crafted image. The verse declares that God transcends all finite categories, earthly comparisons, and human conceptions, standing distinct in His being, power, and glory from all else. It is a foundational assertion of monotheism and an explicit repudiation of idolatry.

Isaiah 40 18 Context

Isaiah chapter 40 marks a significant shift in the book of Isaiah, moving from prophecies of judgment (chapters 1-39) to messages of comfort and restoration for Israel (chapters 40-66). This chapter opens with the majestic call for comfort for God's people and immediately establishes the unparalleled glory and power of Yahweh as the Creator and Sustainer of the cosmos. Verses 12-17 emphatically detail God's immeasurable power and wisdom, depicting Him as the one who measures the oceans, metes out the heavens, and before whom nations are like a drop in a bucket or dust on a scale. Verse 18 directly follows this awe-inspiring description of divine omnipotence and omnicompetence. It serves as a rhetorical climax to the preceding affirmations, leading into an explicit condemnation of idolatry (vv. 19-20) and a call to remember God's eternal nature and sovereignty (vv. 21-26), culminating in comfort for the weak who wait on the Lord (vv. 27-31). Historically, this context speaks to Israel, who would face Babylonian exile and the temptations of pagan worship, reminding them of the true God's uniqueness against all foreign deities.

Isaiah 40 18 Word analysis

• To whom then: This opening phrase "וְאֶל מִי" (ve'el mi) functions as an intensified interrogative. "To whom" immediately challenges the listener to identify any entity, real or imagined, that could possibly stand in comparison. The "then" (not explicitly a separate word in Hebrew, but implied by the flow and "mi" often carrying the sense of "who then") ties it back to the preceding declaration of God's unmatched might (Isa 40:12-17). It's not a search for an answer, but an assertion of no answer.

• will you liken: The Hebrew verb is "תְדַמְּיוּן" (t'dam'yoon), from the root דָּמָה (damah), meaning "to be like," "to resemble," or "to imagine." It carries the connotation of forming a mental or physical image based on comparison. The form is plural, addressing the audience collectively, implying both individual and societal attempts at comparison. The question challenges their very imagination.

• God: The Hebrew word is "אֵל" (El). While 'El' can be a general term for deity, in this context, especially in Isaiah's consistent monotheism and within this passage's focus, it unequivocally refers to Yahweh, the God of Israel. It denotes God in His supreme, powerful capacity, emphasizing His intrinsic nature as deity.

• Or what likeness: This second part of the question "וּמָה דְּמוּת" (oo'mah d'moot) echoes and intensifies the first. "וּמָה" (oo'mah) means "and what." "דְּמוּת" (d'moot), derived from the same root as "liken" (damah), specifically refers to an "image," "likeness," "form," or "model." It moves from the abstract act of comparing to the concrete outcome—any form or representation one might create.

• will you compare: The Hebrew verb is "תַּעַרְכוּ" (ta'archoo), from the root עָרַךְ (arakh), meaning "to set in order," "to arrange," "to line up," or "to estimate value by comparing." This verb suggests bringing two items side-by-side to assess their similarities or differences. Here, it implies an evaluation where any human effort to align God with anything else will inevitably fall short.

• to him: The pronoun "לוֹ" (lo) points emphatically back to God (El), reinforcing the object of the rhetorical question. It makes the challenge personal and undeniable.

• To whom then will you liken God? Or what likeness will you compare to him?: This bipartite rhetorical question serves as a potent anti-idolatry polemic. The dual questioning uses synonymous parallelism, each part reinforcing the other, leaving no room for a conceivable answer. The first question focuses on the abstract conceptual comparison (who/what entity can be like God?), while the second zeroes in on the concrete representation (what tangible image can stand for Him?). Together, they dismantle both the philosophical justification and the practical manifestation of idolatry, proclaiming God's absolute uniqueness beyond all categories.

Isaiah 40 18 Bonus section

The context of Isaiah 40:18 includes a direct confrontation with the idol worship practices common in the ancient Near East. The neighboring cultures, including Babylon (which Israel would later experience in exile), crafted elaborate statues and images of their deities, believing they could confine, consult, or even manipulate their gods through these representations. This verse, alongside 40:19-20, forms a scathing polemic against such practices, highlighting the absurdity of finite creatures attempting to create an image of the infinite Creator using perishable materials. It serves as a reminder that the true God is not made, but makes, and is not to be worshiped through an image, but in Spirit and truth. This idea later finds its full expression in the New Testament with Jesus being the ultimate image of the invisible God, representing God not as a created idol but as God incarnate.

Isaiah 40 18 Commentary

Isaiah 40:18 functions as the interpretive climax following the breathtaking portrayal of God's cosmic grandeur in the preceding verses. Having depicted Yahweh as the immeasurable Creator and sustainer before whom nations are insignificant, the prophet now confronts the human tendency to diminish God by comparison or representation. The rhetorical questions demand that the audience acknowledge the utter impossibility of such an endeavor. God's essence cannot be captured by human imagination, material form, or intellectual comparison. This verse doesn't merely state that God is incomparable; it challenges humanity to try and fail, thereby demonstrating His singular transcendence. This forms the bedrock for trusting God's ability to fulfill His promises of comfort and restoration to Israel, emphasizing that their Redeemer is beyond all earthly limitations. It implies that true worship necessitates recognizing His unparalleled otherness, preventing any attempt to reduce Him to something comprehensible or controllable by human terms.