Isaiah 40:27

"Why sayest thou, O Jacob, and speakest thou, O Israel, My way is hid from Jehovah, and the justice due to me is passed away from my God? Hast thou not known? hast thou not heard? The everlasting God, Jehovah, the Creator of the ends of the earth, fainteth not, neither is weary; there is no searching of his understanding. He giveth power to the faint; and to him that hath no might he increaseth strength. Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall: but they that wait for Jehovah shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint."

Kelley and others suppose that these words of reproach coming here in Isaiah 40:27 from the Jews and directed against Jehovah were due to the terrible anguish the people were suffering in their captivity. However, there is not even a hint of such things in the text. This attitude on the part of the chosen people was characteristic of nearly any period in their long history of distrust and rebellion against God and by no means was confined to the captivity.[16] As a matter of truth, the Jews fared very well in Babylon; and the vast majority of them found it so good there that they even refused to go back to Jerusalem when the opportunity finally came. Remember, it was only a "remnant," and a very pitifully small one, that returned.

Of course, Isaiah designed these words to be of special comfort to Israel during the captivity who had prophesied in the preceding chapter; and the big admonition here is that Israel should stabilize and comfort herself by leaning "Upon God, (1) the everlasting; (2) the Creator; (3) the unwearied; and (4) the unsearchable."[17]

The word "wait" (Isaiah 40:31) is of unusual interest. Kelley informs us that:

"The basic word from which `wait' is derived means `to wind' or `to twist,' the word `rope' being a noun that comes from this term. The meaning here is that the believer should let the Lord be his lifeline, his cord of escape."[18]

Some are tempted to view the last clauses of Isaiah 40:31 as an anticlimax, that is, in the words flying, running, and walking; but as Kelley noted:

"The man of faith may sometimes soar on eagles' wings, or run without wearing; but most of the time he will merely walk. And the real test of his faith comes, not when he flies or runs, but when he must plod along. It is in the monotony of everyday life that the man of faith reveals his true character."[19]

As Hailey noted, "`They that wait for Jehovah' is another favorite expression of Isaiah."[20] As we have already observed, the vocabulary, style, and favorite expressions of this great prophet are so abundantly used in this chapter that they are as valuable in the identification of Isaiah as the author of it, as would be a half dozen signatures!

It is curious that Lowth rendered a portion of Isaiah 40:31 thus, "They shall put forth fresh feathers." His comment on this tells of a common and popular opinion, "that the eagle lives and retains his vigor to a great age; and that beyond the common lot of other birds, he moults in his old age, and renews his feathers, and with them his youth. Psalms 103:5 has this: `Thou shalt renew thy youth like the eagle.'"[21]