Isaiah 40:13

40:13 Who comprehends the mind of the Lord,

or gives him instruction as his counselor?

Isaiah 40:18

40:18 To whom can you compare God?

To what image can you liken him?

Isaiah 42:23

42:23 Who among you will pay attention to this?

Who will listen attentively in the future?

Isaiah 44:10

44:10 Who forms a god and casts an idol

that will prove worthless?

Isaiah 60:8

60:8 Who are these who float along like a cloud,

who fly like doves to their shelters?


tn Perhaps the verb is used metonymically here in the sense of “advises” (note the following line).

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.).

tn Heb “or [as] the man of his counsel causes him to know?”

tn The interrogative particle is understood in the second line by ellipsis (note the preceding line).

tn The rhetorical question is sarcastic. The sense is, “Who is foolish enough…?”

10 tn Heb “fly” (so KJV, NASB, NRSV); NAB, NIV “fly along.”

11 tn Heb “to their windows,” i.e., to the openings in their coops. See HALOT 83 s.v. אֲרֻבָּה.