Bible Strands
Isaiah 40:27
Why do you say, O Jacob, and why do you assert, O Israel, “My way is hidden from the LORD, and my claim is ignored by my God”?
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — The speaker addresses Jacob and Israel, challenging their perception of God’s attention immediately after describing His sovereign control over the stars and His endless strength.
The words — The Hebrew terms מָה (mah) and נִסְתָּרָה (nistarah) literally mean “why” and “is hidden,” framing the question around the perceived concealment of God’s awareness.
The thread — This theme of perceived divine absence recurs in Isaiah 49:14, where Zion claims the Lord has forgotten her, and in Luke 18:7, where the elect cry out day and night for justice.
Why it lands — The text demands readers examine whether their circumstances genuinely obscure God’s knowledge or merely their own perception of it.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
Why sayest thou, O Jacob, and speakest, O Israel, My way is hid from the Lord, and my judgment is passed over from my God?
Cross-references
- Isaiah 49:4 But I said, “I have labored in vain, I have spent My strength in futility and vanity; yet My vindication is with the LORD, and My reward is with My God.”
- Luke 18:7 Will not God bring about justice for His elect who cry out to Him day and night? Will He delay in helping them?
- Isaiah 49:14 But Zion said, “The LORD has forsaken me; the Lord has forgotten me!”
- Job 27:2 “As surely as God lives, who has deprived me of justice—the Almighty, who has embittered my soul—