Isaiah 40:1-11
Chapter 40
ISAIAH II
(Deutero-Isaiah)
The Good News
Be comforted, my people,be strengthened, says your God.Speak to the heart of Jerusalem, proclaim to her that her time of bondage is at an end, that her guilt has been paid for, that from the hand of the Lord she has received double punishment for all her iniquity.
A voice cries, “In the wilderness prepare the way for the Lord. Make straight in the desert a highway for our God.
Every valley will be raised; every mountain and hill will be laid low. The stumbling blocks shall become level and the rugged places smooth.
The glory of the Lord will be revealed, and all mortals together will see it; for the mouth of the Lord has spoken.”
A voice says, “Cry” and I say, “What shall I cry?” “All flesh is grass, and all its beauty as the flower of the field.
The grass withers, the flower wilts, when the breath of the Lord blows upon it.
The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God will forever stand.”
Go up onto the high mountain, messenger of good news to Zion, lift up your voice with strength, fear not to cry aloud when you tell Jerusalem and announce to the cities of Judah: Here is your God!
Here comes the Lord Sabaoth with might; his strong arm rules for him; his reward is with him, and here before him is his booty.
Like a shepherd he tends his flock: he gathers the lambs in his arms, he carries them in his bosom, gently leading those that are with young.
Commentaries
The Good News.
This poem serves as a prologue to “the Book of Consolation” or Deutero-Isaiah (Isaiah 40-55). It features a dialogue initiated by the Lord, who proclaims that the sentence of servitude and exile for His people has been fulfilled (1-2). His speakers are voices from the heavenly court, who question the prophet (3- 3.6). Verses 3-5 describe the return of the exiles from Babylon to Jerusalem as a new exodus; instead of taking the traditional routes through the Fertile Crescent, the Lord guides them through the desert (cf. Mt 3:3). The voices ask the prophet to deliver a message of comfort to Jerusalem: the Lord comes as a tender and compassionate shepherd (9-11 cf. Jn 10:11; 21:15-17).