The Meaning of Isaiah 40:5 Explained

Isaiah 40:5

KJV: And the glory of the LORD shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together: for the mouth of the LORD hath spoken it.

YLT: And revealed hath been the honour of Jehovah, And seen it have all flesh together, For the mouth of Jehovah hath spoken.

Darby: And the glory of Jehovah shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together: for the mouth of Jehovah hath spoken.

ASV: and the glory of Jehovah shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together; for the mouth of Jehovah hath spoken it.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

And the glory  of the LORD  shall be revealed,  and all flesh  shall see  [it] together:  for the mouth  of the LORD  hath spoken  [it]. 

What does Isaiah 40:5 Mean?

Verse Meaning

God would appear, acting for His people, and by that acting, manifest His glory to the whole world. All flesh would marvel at His liberating the Israelites and bringing them back into their land. Even more, everyone would stand amazed at His saving humankind through the coming of Messiah. Still more impressive would be the eschatological demonstration of His glory that would accompany Messiah"s return to the earth to rule. All these occasions of salvation are probably in view in this verse. This revelation was certain because it was an announcement from the mouth of Yahweh Almighty.
"Isaiah"s tendency to add some emphatic statement like "for the mouth of the LORD has spoken" ( Isaiah 40:6; cf. Isaiah 9:7; Isaiah 37:32) anticipates Christ"s "truly I say to you."" [1]

Context Summary

Isaiah 40:1-8 - The Cry Of Jehovah's Herald
Voices are ever speaking to us from the infinite; let us heed them.
(1.) There is the voice of forgiveness, Isaiah 40:2. Are you truly penitent? Have you put away your sin? Have you meekly accepted the chastening rod? Then be of good cheer, this promise is for you. The time of hard service as a conscript (the literal rendering) is accomplished, your iniquity is pardoned, you have received double for all your sins. God speaks comfortably to your heart, that you may be able to comfort others as He does you, 2 Corinthians 1:4.
(2.) The voice of deliverance, Isaiah 40:3-4. Between Babylon and Canaan lay a great desert of thirty days' journey with mountain ranges, yawning gulfs. But when God arises to deliver His children, "who cry day and night unto Him," crooked places straighten out, rough ones become smooth, and mountains disappear.
(3.) The voices of decay, Isaiah 40:6-8. The one herald, speaking from his observation of human mortality, describes man and his glory as the "flower of the field." But in contrast to this, another voice seems to break in with the eternal word of God, which stands forever. The precepts, promises, and invitations of the gospel are as sure as God's throne, 1 Peter 1:25. [source]

Chapter Summary: Isaiah 40

1  The promulgation of the Gospel
3  The preaching of John Baptist foretold
9  The preaching of the apostles foretold
12  The prophet, by the omnipotence of God
18  And his incomparableness
26  Comforts the people

What do the individual words in Isaiah 40:5 mean?

and shall be revealed the glory of Yahweh and shall see [it] all flesh together for the mouth of Yahweh has spoken -
וְנִגְלָ֖ה כְּב֣וֹד יְהוָ֑ה וְרָא֤וּ כָל־ בָּשָׂר֙ יַחְדָּ֔ו כִּ֛י פִּ֥י יְהוָ֖ה דִּבֵּֽר ס

וְנִגְלָ֖ה  and  shall  be  revealed 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Nifal, Conjunctive perfect, third person masculine singular
Root: גָּלָה  
Sense: to uncover, remove.
כְּב֣וֹד  the  glory 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct
Root: כָּבֹוד  
Sense: glory, honour, glorious, abundance.
יְהוָ֑ה  of  Yahweh 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: יהוה 
Sense: the proper name of the one true God.
וְרָא֤וּ  and  shall  see  [it] 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Conjunctive perfect, third person common plural
Root: רָאָה 
Sense: to see, look at, inspect, perceive, consider.
בָּשָׂר֙  flesh 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular
Root: בָּשָׂר  
Sense: flesh.
יַחְדָּ֔ו  together 
Parse: Adverb
Root: יַחַד 
Sense: union, unitedness adv.
פִּ֥י  the  mouth 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct
Root: פֶּה  
Sense: mouth.
יְהוָ֖ה  of  Yahweh 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: יהוה 
Sense: the proper name of the one true God.
דִּבֵּֽר  has  spoken 
Parse: Verb, Piel, Perfect, third person masculine singular
Root: דָּבַר 
Sense: to speak, declare, converse, command, promise, warn, threaten, sing.
ס  - 
Parse: Punctuation