2.1 KiB
General Information:
Isaiah continues speaking to God's people.
Have you not known? Have you not heard? Has it not been told you from the beginning? Have you not understood from the foundations of the earth?
Isaiah uses these questions to emphasize that the people should know Yahweh's greatness as the creator. AT: "You certainly know and have heard! It has been told to you from the beginning; you have understood from the foundations of the earth!" (See: rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-rquestion and rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-parallelism)
Has it not been told you from the beginning?
This can be stated in active form. AT: "Have people not told you from the beginning?" (See: rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-activepassive)
from the foundations of the earth
The prophet speaks of Yahweh creating the earth as if the earth were a building for which Yahweh laid the foundation. AT: "from the time that Yahweh created the earth" (See: rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-metaphor)
He is the one who sits above the horizon of the earth
The prophet speaks of Yahweh ruling the earth as if Yahweh were seated on a throne above the earth. (See: rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-metaphor)
the inhabitants are like grasshoppers before him
The prophet compares the way Yahweh considers humans to the way humans would consider grasshoppers. Just as grasshoppers are small to humans, humans are small and weak before God. (See: rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-simile)
He stretches out the heavens like a curtain and spreads them out as a tent to live in
These two lines share similar meanings. The prophet speaks of Yahweh creating the heavens as if he had erected a tent in which to live. AT: "He spreads out the heavens as easily as a person would stretch out a curtain or erect a tent in which to live" (See: rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-parallelism and rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-simile)