Isaiah 45:12
in Isaiah 45It is I who made the earth and created man upon it. It was My hands that stretched out the heavens, and I ordained all their host.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
I have made the earth, and created man upon it: I, even my hands, have stretched out the heavens; and all their host have I commanded.
KJV
I have made the earth, and created man upon it: I, even my hands, have stretched out the heavens, and all their host have I commanded.
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This verse in Isaiah 45
Commentary
9 notes on this verse(Verse 9 and following) Woe to those who contradict their maker, a pot made of clay, and say to the one who formed them, 'What are you making?' or 'Your work has no hands.' Woe to those who say to their father, 'What are you begetting?' or to their mother, 'What are you in labor with?' This is what the Lord says, the Holy One of Israel, and its maker: Ask me about the things to come, concerning my children, and about the work of my hands, give me orders.
This site's exposition
question Me about My sons
on Isaiah 45:11-13
In verse 11 the LORD asks who would “question Me about My sons, or instruct Me in the work of My hands”. Verse 12 restates the creation claim. Verse 13 returns to Cyrus, who “will rebuild My city and set My exiles free, but not for payment or reward.”
This site's exposition
It is I who made the earth
Jamieson, Fausset and Brown compare Isaiah 40:26 to 31, where the Maker of the starry host also gives strength to the weary. The power that ordained the host of heaven can grant any request made of it. The Hebrew sets the speaker beside his own hands.
The record, by era
The Medieval Church1 voice
864. Second, he foretells their liberation, showing his power, who promises it: I made the earth; all their, namely, the heavens', host, I have commanded, fixing for each its office and nature, above: who brings out their host by number (Isa 40:26).
The Puritans and the Awakening3 voices
A challenge given to the worshippers of idols and their doom read, and satisfaction given to the worshippers of the true God and their comfort secured, with an eye to the Mediator, who is made of God to us both righteousness and sanctification,
Their help stands in the name of the Lord, who made heaven and earth, which he mentions here, not only for his own glory, but for their comfort. The heavens and earth shall contribute, if he please, to the deliverance of the church (
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — unbalanced-parens
I have made the earth,....
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
The same argument for prayer, drawn from God's omnipotence and consequent power, to grant any request, occurs in Isa 40:26-31. I, even my hands--so Hebrew (Ps 41:2), "Thou . . . thy hand" (both nominatives, in apposition).
1 more voice on this verse
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
proposed
I have made the earth - God here asserts that he had made all things, doubtless with a view to show that he was able to hear their cry, and to grant an answer to their requests. His agency was visible everywhere, alike in forming and sustaining all things, and in raising up for them a deliverer. They might, therefore, go before him with confidence, and spread out all their needs. Have stretched out the heavens - (See the notes at Isa 40:26). And all their host - The stars (see the notes at Isa 40:26).
How the passage was read
What the Jewish commentators add
I made the earth and gave it to whoever pleased Me [lit. was straight in My eyes].
This section is reception history: how the passage was read and kept in the Jewish tradition. Where a reading parts from an essential of the Christian faith, the section says so at that point.
Texts and citation data: Sefaria; each excerpt follows its version’s licence. 5 further sources are cited on this chapter that carry no English text this site may quote or only restate the verse.
The words behind it
13 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| אָֽנֹכִי֙ | ʾanokhi | I | H595 → | 359 times |
| עָשִׂ֣יתִי | ʾasiti | I made | H6213 → | 2628 times |
| אֶ֔רֶץ | ʾeretz | [the] earth | H776 → | 2504 times |
| וְאָדָ֖ם | veadam | and humankind | H120 → | 551 times |
| עָלֶ֣יהָ | ʾaleiha | on it | H5921 → | 5755 times |
| בָרָ֑אתִי | varati | I created | H1254 → | 55 times |
| אֲנִ֗י | ʾani | I | H589 → | 874 times |
| יָדַי֙ | yadai | hands my | H3027 → | 1618 times |
| נָט֣וּ | natu | they stretched out | H5186 → | 214 times |
| שָׁמַ֔יִם | shamayim | [the] heavens | H8064 → | 421 times |
| וְכָל־ | vekhol | and all | H3605 → | 5413 times |
| צְבָאָ֖ם | tzevaam | host their | H6635 → | 485 times |
| צִוֵּֽיתִי׃ | tziveiti | I commanded | H6680 → | 494 times |
אָֽנֹכִי֙I
ʾanokhiH595 →359 times
עָשִׂ֣יתִיI made
ʾasitiH6213 →2628 times
אֶ֔רֶץ[the] earth
ʾeretzH776 →2504 times
וְאָדָ֖םand humankind
veadamH120 →551 times
עָלֶ֣יהָon it
ʾaleihaH5921 →5755 times
בָרָ֑אתִיI created
varatiH1254 →55 times
אֲנִ֗יI
ʾaniH589 →874 times
יָדַי֙hands my
yadaiH3027 →1618 times
נָט֣וּthey stretched out
natuH5186 →214 times
שָׁמַ֔יִם[the] heavens
shamayimH8064 →421 times
וְכָל־and all
vekholH3605 →5413 times
צְבָאָ֖םhost their
tzevaamH6635 →485 times
צִוֵּֽיתִי׃I commanded
tziveitiH6680 →494 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 42:5This is what God the LORD says—He who created the heavens and stretched them out, who spread out the earth and its offspring, who gives breath to the people on it and life to…
it leads to
- Isaiah 40:22
He sits enthroned above the circle of the earth; its dwellers are like grasshoppers. He stretches out the heavens like a curtain, and spreads them out like a tent to dwell in.
- Jeremiah 10:12
The LORD made the earth by His power; He established the world by His wisdom and stretched out the heavens by His understanding.
- Zechariah 12:1
This is the burden of the word of the LORD concerning Israel. Thus declares the LORD, who stretches out the heavens and lays the foundation of the earth, who forms the spirit of man…
- Isaiah 48:13
Surely My own hand founded the earth, and My right hand spread out the heavens; when I summon them, they stand up together.
- Psalms 104:2–35
He wraps Himself in light as with a garment; He stretches out the heavens like a tent,
- Isaiah 40:22
Through
Nehemiah 9:6You alone are the LORD. You created the heavens, the highest heavens with all their host, the earth and all that is on it, the seas and all that is in them. You give…
it leads to
- Genesis 1:1
In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Isaiah 37:16
“O LORD of Hosts, God of Israel, enthroned above the cherubim, You alone are God over all the kingdoms of the earth. You made the heavens and the earth.
- Genesis 1:1
Through
Isaiah 44:24Thus says the LORD, your Redeemer who formed you from the womb: “I am the LORD, who has made all things, who alone stretched out the heavens, who by Myself spread out the earth,
it leads to
- Isaiah 45:18
For thus says the LORD, who created the heavens—He is God; He formed the earth and fashioned it; He established it; He did not create it to be empty, but formed it to be…
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Isaiah 45:18
Where this verse is studied
About Isaiah
This page draws on Albert Barnes, Notes on the Book of Isaiah; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Franz Delitzsch, Biblical Commentary on the Prophecies of Isaiah; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; Jerome, Commentary on Isaiah; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible and Thomas Aquinas, Commentary on Isaiah.