Isaiah 41:28
in Isaiah 41When I look, there is no one; there is no counselor among them; when I ask them, they have nothing to say.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And when I look, there is no man: even among them there is no counsellor, that, when I ask of them, can answer a word.
KJV
For I beheld, and there was no man; even among them, and there was no counsellor, that, when I asked of them, could answer a word.
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This verse in Isaiah 41
Commentary
11 notes on this verse(Verses 28-29) And I saw, and there was none among them that could counsel, and when I asked, no one could answer a word. Behold, all are unjust, and their works are vain; their idols are wind and emptiness. LXX: For there is no one from the nations, and from their idols there was no one who announced. And if I ask them where they are, they will not respond to me: for they are your makers, and they deceive you in vain.
This site's exposition
When I look, there is no one
on Isaiah 41:28-29
The LORD's search comes up empty, When I look, there is no one. The final verdict falls without qualification, they are all a delusion, and their images are as empty as the wind. The trial that opened with the workshop of verses 6 and 7 closes on the same idols.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers1 voice
"I will give a leader to Zion, and I will console Jerusalem as I go." … Again the multitude of those going astray is promised the revealing of the Savior, through whom each one under heaven has been saved and is summoned to the recognition of the truth. So that we could have a guide who would be able and skilled to lead us along the path of salvation, the only-begotten Son of God became a human being. And though he was King by nature in that he is considered to be God and from God the Father and ruler of all things with all creation under his feet, he is said to be elected king among us.
The Medieval Church1 voice
812. And I saw. Here from the disputation set out above, he deduces the determination of the sentence, and it is self-evident: they are vain things, and a ridiculous work (Jer 10:15 and 51:18).
The Puritans and the Awakening3 voices
1 Keep silence before me, O islands; and let the people renew their strength: let them come near; then let them speak: let us come near together to judgment. 2 Who raised up the righteous man from the east, called him to his foot, gave the nations before him, and made him rule over kings? he gave them as the dust to his sword, and as driven stubble to his bow.
quarantine:scripture (2026-07-29) — verbatim-scripture
When I asked them what they had to say for themselves they stood mute; the case was so plain against them that there was none who could answer a word. " Judgment must therefore be given against the defendant upon Nihil dicit--He is mute.
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — odd-straight-quotes
For - I looked to see if I could find any man that could foretel future events. No man - Not any, of the idols; for the word man is sometimes used by the Hebrew of brute creatures, and even of lifeless things.
4 more voices on this verse
The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice
For I beheld, and there was no man,....
The Nineteenth Century3 voices
Among them “Among the idols” - For ומאלה umeelleh, I read ומאלים umeellim, with the Septuagint, και απο των ειδωλων, “and from or among the idols. “See Exo 15:11; Isa 57:5. R. D. Kimchi has many good observations on this chapter. Bishop Lowth follows him in applying it to Abraham, and not to Cyrus; the whole being spoken in the past tense, which is not used, or rarely, in such a case for the future. Almost the whole of the rabbins understand it of Abraham. On Kimchi’s plan, the following is a paraphrase.
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
proposed
no counsellor--no one of the idolatrous soothsayers who could inform (Nu 24:14) those who consulted them what would take place. Compare "counsel of His messenger" (Isa 44:26). when I asked--that is, challenged them, in this chapter.
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — starts-lowercase
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
proposed
For I beheld - I looked upon the pagan world, among all the pretended prophets, and the priests of pagan idolatry. And there was no man - No man among them who could predict these future events. No counselor - No one qualified to give counsel, or that could anticipate by his sagacity what would take place. That, when I asked of them - In the manner referred to in this chapter. There is no one of whom it could be inquired what would take place in future times. Could answer a word - They were unable to discern what would come to pass, or to predict the events which are referred to here.
The words behind it
9 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וְאֵ֙רֶא֙ | veere' | and [when] I may look | H7200 → | 1300 times |
| וְאֵ֣ין | veein | and there not | H369 → | 789 times |
| אִ֔ישׁ | ʾish | [is] a person | H376 → | 1663 times |
| וּמֵאֵ֖לֶּה | umeeleh | and from these | H428 → | 746 times |
| וְאֵ֣ין | veein | and there not | H369 → | 789 times |
| יוֹעֵ֑ץ | yoetz | [is] a counselor | H3289 → | 79 times |
| וְאֶשְׁאָלֵ֖ם | veeshalem | and I will ask them | H7592 → | 171 times |
| וְיָשִׁ֥יבוּ | veyashivu | and they may bring back | H7725 → | 1056 times |
| דָבָֽר׃ | davar | a word | H1697 → | 1440 times |
וְאֵ֙רֶא֙and [when] I may look
veere'H7200 →1300 times
וְאֵ֣יןand there not
veeinH369 →789 times
אִ֔ישׁ[is] a person
ʾishH376 →1663 times
וּמֵאֵ֖לֶּהand from these
umeelehH428 →746 times
וְאֵ֣יןand there not
veeinH369 →789 times
יוֹעֵ֑ץ[is] a counselor
yoetzH3289 →79 times
וְאֶשְׁאָלֵ֖םand I will ask them
veeshalemH7592 →171 times
וְיָשִׁ֥יבוּand they may bring back
veyashivuH7725 →1056 times
דָבָֽר׃a word
davarH1697 →1440 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Isaiah 59:16He saw that there was no man; He was amazed that there was no one to intercede. So His own arm brought salvation, and His own righteousness sustained Him.
it leads to
- Psalms 98:1
Sing to the LORD a new song, for He has done wonders; His right hand and holy arm have gained Him the victory.
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Ezekiel 22:30
I searched for a man among them to repair the wall and stand in the gap before Me on behalf of the land, so that I should not destroy it. But I found no…
- Isaiah 64:7
No one calls on Your name or strives to take hold of You. For You have hidden Your face from us and delivered us into the hand of our iniquity.
- Psalms 106:23
So He said He would destroy them— had not Moses His chosen one stood before Him in the breach to divert His wrath from destroying them.
- Isaiah 52:10
The LORD has bared His holy arm in the sight of all the nations; all the ends of the earth will see the salvation of our God.
- Psalms 98:1
Through
Isaiah 63:5I looked, but there was no one to help; I was appalled that no one assisted. So My arm brought Me salvation, and My own wrath upheld Me.
it leads to
- Psalms 44:3
For it was not by their sword that they took the land; their arm did not bring them victory. It was by Your right hand, Your arm, and the light of Your face, because…
- Hosea 1:7
Yet I will have compassion on the house of Judah, and I will save them—not by bow or sword or war, not by horses and cavalry, but by the LORD their God.”
- Psalms 44:3
Through
Daniel 5:8So all the king’s wise men came in, but they could not read the inscription or interpret it for him.
it leads to
- Daniel 2:27
Daniel answered the king, “No wise man, enchanter, medium, or magician can explain to the king the mystery of which he inquires.
- Daniel 2:27
Where this verse is studied
About Isaiah
This page draws on 10 works. Open the list of works
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Cyril of Alexandria, COMMENTARY ON ISAIAH 3:5.41:27-28; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; Jerome, Commentary on Isaiah; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament; Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible and Thomas Aquinas, Commentary on Isaiah.