40:7 The grass dries up,
the flowers wither,
when the wind sent by the Lord 1 blows on them.
Surely humanity 2 is like grass.
40:13 Who comprehends 3 the mind 4 of the Lord,
or gives him instruction as his counselor? 5
1 tn The Hebrew text has רוּחַ יְהוָה (ruakh yehvah), which in this context probably does not refer to the Lord’s personal Spirit. The phrase is better translated “the breath of the Lord,” or “the wind of [i.e., sent by] the Lord.” The Lord’s sovereign control over nature, including the hot desert winds that dry up vegetation, is in view here (cf. Ps 147:18; Isa 59:19).
2 tn Heb “the people” (so KJV, ASV, NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV).
3 tn Perhaps the verb is used metonymically here in the sense of “advises” (note the following line).
4 tn In this context רוּחַ (ruakh) likely refers to the Lord’s “mind,” or mental faculties, rather than his personal Spirit (see BDB 925 s.v.).
5 tn Heb “or [as] the man of his counsel causes him to know?”