All nations before him are as nothing; and they are counted to him less than nothing, and vanity.
All nations stand before God as utterly insignificant and empty, counted as nothing and even less than nothing in comparison with His greatness. He is incomparable in power, majesty, wisdom and sovereignty, beyond all measure and all human understanding, so that no nation can rival Him, represent Him, or counsel and instruct Him. This is part of His wider self-revelation as the One who measured the waters in His hand and weighed the mountains, who counts the nations as a drop of a bucket, sits above the circle of the earth, brings princes to nothing, creates and names every star, never faints nor grows weary, and gives renewed strength to those who wait upon Him. Earthly kingdoms, rulers, armies and splendor are nothing beside Him, and He will call every nation to account and bring every kingdom low while Christ's kingdom is exalted. Because He alone is so great, men must not trust in men or make flesh their arm, but humble their hearts, bring their cares and perplexities to Him, pray earnestly for His infinite wisdom, and do diligent work of repentance. His sure mercy and glory in these words give grounds for faith, hope and assurance, bringing comfort and encouragement amid judgments and calamities near the close of earth's history.
God's Greatness Over Nations
All nations before God are as nothing, and they are counted to Him as less than nothing and vanity, every nation being utterly insignificant and empty in comparison with His greatness. No nation's power or worth can compare with Him, and this insignificance is taught to congregations to emphasize His greatness over every nation. He is incomparable in power, greatness, majesty, wisdom and sovereignty, and His power and wisdom are beyond measure. Human wisdom and understanding are limited before Him, and no nation can rival Him, compare with Him, adequately represent Him, or counsel and instruct Him.
The verse belongs to a larger declaration that He measured the waters in the hollow of His hand, meted out heaven with the span, comprehended the dust of the earth in a measure, and weighed the mountains in scales and the hills in a balance. In that same declaration He needed no counselor or teacher to direct Him or show Him understanding, He counts the nations as a drop of a bucket and small dust of the balance, and He takes up the isles as a very little thing. He sits upon the circle of the earth with its inhabitants as grasshoppers, stretches out the heavens as a curtain and spreads them as a tent to dwell in, brings princes to nothing and makes the judges of the earth as vanity, and withers the unrooted as stubble before the whirlwind. He creates the starry host and calls them all by name without one failing because of the greatness of His might, He faints not and is not weary with understanding past searching, and He gives power to the faint and renewed strength with wings as eagles to those who wait upon Him, so that no likeness can be compared to Him.
He is the living, personal Author and Ruler of nature who is above all science and knows science inexplicable to the greatest human minds. Few have any knowledge of His greatness and majesty, human language cannot define Him, and His ways are past finding out. Before Him the nations count as insignificant and worthless as a drop in the bucket, He takes up the isles as a very little thing, and even Lebanon is not sufficient to burn nor its beasts sufficient for a burnt offering. Earthly kingdoms, political authority, rulers, armies and worldly splendor amount to nothing beside Him. He will call every nation to account and bring every kingdom low while Christ's kingdom is exalted.
The verse proves He has not changed, and the setting up of a false sabbath has not really succeeded in changing His law. The changed signpost points the wrong way, but He is still the mighty God of Israel, just as jealous for His law and His seventh-day Sabbath now as in the days of Ahab and Elijah. Before Him all nations are utterly insignificant and powerless.
Faith and Trust Applied
All nations are as nothing before God because He is immeasurably greater than them, and this truth stands within a confirmation of His sure mercy, grace and glory that gives grounds for faith, hope and assurance. It is among the words in Isaiah 40 and 41 whose significance is taught to congregations, presenting all nations as nothing before Him, counted as less than nothing and vanity, to emphasize His greatness over every nation.
The verse gives the correct meaning of true higher education and comforts true believers amid His afflicting providence in judgments coming upon the world near the closing of earth's history. It is a declaration from the Lord that will certainly be fulfilled to bring encouragement and assurance in the latter days, so that those who fulfill it place themselves where the Lord will do all He has promised. Amid earthquakes, storms on land and sea, and heavy calamities by sea and railroad, when many who have greatly sinned against Him perish physically and even the sincere, humble, righteous followers of Christ feel the results coming upon the rebellious, it stands against the world's so-called higher education and Lucifer's perverted higher education, exposing disregard of truth and righteousness. For Lucifer as the fallen angel wars against God and all who exalt Him, seeks to cause calamities, and as a mighty deceiver will take many to unite them to be deceived.
Because He alone is so great before whom all nations are as nothing and vanity, it is the exalted privilege of His church to have His infinite wisdom at her demand. His people should therefore humble their hearts, pray earnestly for wisdom, bring their cares and perplexities to Him, and not turn away from Him to look to finite man for wisdom. Since all nations are as nothing before Him, men must not trust in men or make flesh their arm, for the Lord alone is to be trusted. He will not be trifled with, and He calls His people to diligent and most earnest work of repentance, with strength given to His own people.
He is infinite and His judgments, purposes, wisdom, ways and works are past finding out by finite minds. Men of the greatest intellect cannot understand the mysteries revealed in nature, and even in the common things of daily life there are mysteries past comprehension, while His love can never be explained upon natural principles. He shrouds Himself in thick cloud of mystery and conceals more of Himself than He makes known, giving mysteries that are incomprehensible to command faith. Men must therefore exercise faith in Him and trust themselves and the interests of their souls wholly in His hands instead of doubting His existence and character and ascribing infinite power to nature because human science cannot explain the ways and works of the Creator. The world and its possessions are nothing and less than nothing when set against God and everlasting life, and property can become a snare that keeps people from serving God and seeking what is best for their souls.
All nations stand before God as utterly insignificant and empty, counted as nothing and even less than nothing in comparison with His greatness. He is incomparable in power, majesty, wisdom and sovereignty, beyond all measure and all human understanding, so that no nation can rival Him, represent Him, or counsel and instruct Him. This is part of His wider self-revelation as the One who measured the waters in His hand and weighed the mountains, who counts the nations as a drop of a bucket, sits above the circle of the earth, brings princes to nothing, creates and names every star, never faints nor grows weary, and gives renewed strength to those who wait upon Him. Earthly kingdoms, rulers, armies and splendor are nothing beside Him, and He will call every nation to account and bring every kingdom low while Christ's kingdom is exalted. Because He alone is so great, men must not trust in men or make flesh their arm, but humble their hearts, bring their cares and perplexities to Him, pray earnestly for His infinite wisdom, and do diligent work of repentance. His sure mercy and glory in these words give grounds for faith, hope and assurance, bringing comfort and encouragement amid judgments and calamities near the close of earth's history.
God's Greatness Over Nations
All nations before God are as nothing, and they are counted to Him as less than nothing and vanity, every nation being utterly insignificant and empty in comparison with His greatness. No nation's power or worth can compare with Him, and this insignificance is taught to congregations to emphasize His greatness over every nation. He is incomparable in power, greatness, majesty, wisdom and sovereignty, and His power and wisdom are beyond measure. Human wisdom and understanding are limited before Him, and no nation can rival Him, compare with Him, adequately represent Him, or counsel and instruct Him.
The verse belongs to a larger declaration that He measured the waters in the hollow of His hand, meted out heaven with the span, comprehended the dust of the earth in a measure, and weighed the mountains in scales and the hills in a balance. In that same declaration He needed no counselor or teacher to direct Him or show Him understanding, He counts the nations as a drop of a bucket and small dust of the balance, and He takes up the isles as a very little thing. He sits upon the circle of the earth with its inhabitants as grasshoppers, stretches out the heavens as a curtain and spreads them as a tent to dwell in, brings princes to nothing and makes the judges of the earth as vanity, and withers the unrooted as stubble before the whirlwind. He creates the starry host and calls them all by name without one failing because of the greatness of His might, He faints not and is not weary with understanding past searching, and He gives power to the faint and renewed strength with wings as eagles to those who wait upon Him, so that no likeness can be compared to Him.
He is the living, personal Author and Ruler of nature who is above all science and knows science inexplicable to the greatest human minds. Few have any knowledge of His greatness and majesty, human language cannot define Him, and His ways are past finding out. Before Him the nations count as insignificant and worthless as a drop in the bucket, He takes up the isles as a very little thing, and even Lebanon is not sufficient to burn nor its beasts sufficient for a burnt offering. Earthly kingdoms, political authority, rulers, armies and worldly splendor amount to nothing beside Him. He will call every nation to account and bring every kingdom low while Christ's kingdom is exalted.
The verse proves He has not changed, and the setting up of a false sabbath has not really succeeded in changing His law. The changed signpost points the wrong way, but He is still the mighty God of Israel, just as jealous for His law and His seventh-day Sabbath now as in the days of Ahab and Elijah. Before Him all nations are utterly insignificant and powerless.
Faith and Trust Applied
All nations are as nothing before God because He is immeasurably greater than them, and this truth stands within a confirmation of His sure mercy, grace and glory that gives grounds for faith, hope and assurance. It is among the words in Isaiah 40 and 41 whose significance is taught to congregations, presenting all nations as nothing before Him, counted as less than nothing and vanity, to emphasize His greatness over every nation.
The verse gives the correct meaning of true higher education and comforts true believers amid His afflicting providence in judgments coming upon the world near the closing of earth's history. It is a declaration from the Lord that will certainly be fulfilled to bring encouragement and assurance in the latter days, so that those who fulfill it place themselves where the Lord will do all He has promised. Amid earthquakes, storms on land and sea, and heavy calamities by sea and railroad, when many who have greatly sinned against Him perish physically and even the sincere, humble, righteous followers of Christ feel the results coming upon the rebellious, it stands against the world's so-called higher education and Lucifer's perverted higher education, exposing disregard of truth and righteousness. For Lucifer as the fallen angel wars against God and all who exalt Him, seeks to cause calamities, and as a mighty deceiver will take many to unite them to be deceived.
Because He alone is so great before whom all nations are as nothing and vanity, it is the exalted privilege of His church to have His infinite wisdom at her demand. His people should therefore humble their hearts, pray earnestly for wisdom, bring their cares and perplexities to Him, and not turn away from Him to look to finite man for wisdom. Since all nations are as nothing before Him, men must not trust in men or make flesh their arm, for the Lord alone is to be trusted. He will not be trifled with, and He calls His people to diligent and most earnest work of repentance, with strength given to His own people.
He is infinite and His judgments, purposes, wisdom, ways and works are past finding out by finite minds. Men of the greatest intellect cannot understand the mysteries revealed in nature, and even in the common things of daily life there are mysteries past comprehension, while His love can never be explained upon natural principles. He shrouds Himself in thick cloud of mystery and conceals more of Himself than He makes known, giving mysteries that are incomprehensible to command faith. Men must therefore exercise faith in Him and trust themselves and the interests of their souls wholly in His hands instead of doubting His existence and character and ascribing infinite power to nature because human science cannot explain the ways and works of the Creator. The world and its possessions are nothing and less than nothing when set against God and everlasting life, and property can become a snare that keeps people from serving God and seeking what is best for their souls.