Isaiah 40:22 (GNV)

Passage

He sitteth vpon the circle of the earth, and the inhabitants thereof are as grashoppers, hee stretcheth out ye heauens, as a curtaine, and spreadeth them out, as a tent to dwell in.

Nearby Context

Isaiah 40:20 Doeth not the poore chuse out a tree that will not rot, for an oblation? he seeketh also vnto him a cunning workeman, to prepare an image, that shall not be moued.

Isaiah 40:21 Know ye nothing? haue ye not heard it? hath it not bene tolde you from the beginning? haue ye not vnderstand it by the foundation of the earth?

Isaiah 40:22 He sitteth vpon the circle of the earth, and the inhabitants thereof are as grashoppers, hee stretcheth out ye heauens, as a curtaine, and spreadeth them out, as a tent to dwell in.

Isaiah 40:23 He bringeth the princes to nothing, and maketh the iudges of the earth, as vanitie,

Isaiah 40:24 As though they were not plated, as though they were not sowen, as though their stocke tooke no roote in the earth: for he did euen blow vpon them, and they withered, and the whirlewinde will take them away as stubble.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "sitteth", "vpon", "circle", "earth", "inhabitants", "thereof", "grashoppers", and "stretcheth". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "sitteth" and "vpon", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 21's "Know ye nothing haue ye not heard..." into verse 23's "He bringeth the princes to nothing and...", so "sitteth" and "vpon" 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 "sitteth" and "vpon" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.