Isaiah 40:16 (DBY)

Passage

And Lebanon is not sufficient to burn, nor the beasts thereof sufficient for a burnt-offering.

Nearby Context

Isaiah 40:14 With whom took he counsel, and [who] gave him intelligence, and instructed him in the path of judgment, and taught him knowledge, and shewed him the way of understanding?

Isaiah 40:15 Behold, the nations are esteemed as a drop of the bucket, and as the fine dust on the scales; behold, he taketh up the isles as an atom.

Isaiah 40:16 And Lebanon is not sufficient to burn, nor the beasts thereof sufficient for a burnt-offering.

Isaiah 40:17 All the nations are as nothing before him; they are esteemed by him less than a cipher, and vanity.

Isaiah 40:18 To whom then will ye liken God? and what likeness will ye compare unto him?

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "lebanon", "sufficient", "burn", "beasts", "thereof", and "burnt-offering". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "lebanon" and "sufficient", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 15's "Behold the nations are esteemed as a..." into verse 17's "All the nations are as nothing before...", so "lebanon" and "sufficient" belong inside that flow. In Isaiah context, the local focus is the Holy One of Israel, judgment and restoration, the servant of the LORD, and Zion's hope.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "lebanon" and "sufficient" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.