To whom will ye liken me, and make me equal, and compare me, that we may be like?
Parallel translations
- WEB “To whom will you liken me, and consider my equal, and compare me, that we may be equal?
- BSB To whom will you liken Me or count Me equal? To whom will you compare Me, that we should be alike?
- NKJV “Towhom will you liken Me, and make Me equal And compare Me, that we should be alike?
- NASB ¶“To whom would you liken Me And make Me equal, and compare Me, That we would be alike?
- NLT “To whom will you compare me? Who is my equal?
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
God asks to whom he could possibly be compared, for nothing is his equal. He is utterly unique.
Overview
Yahweh challenges his hearers to find any rival worthy of comparison, knowing none exists. The rhetorical question exposes the absurdity of likening the Creator to handmade idols. His incomparable majesty undergirds the worship due to him alone, the God revealed fully in Christ.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 12
- Isa 40:18To whom then will ye liken God? or what likeness will ye compare unto him?
- Isa 40:25To whom then will ye liken me, or shall I be equal? saith the Holy One.
- Ps 89:6For who in the heaven can be compared unto the LORD? who among the sons of the mighty can be likened unto the LORD?
- Ps 113:5Who is like unto the LORD our God, who dwelleth on high,
- Ps 86:8Among the gods there is none like unto thee, O Lord; neither are there any works like unto thy works.
- Phil 2:6Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God:
- Col 1:15Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature:
- Jer 10:16The portion of Jacob is not like them: for he is the former of all things; and Israel is the rod of his inheritance: The LORD of hosts is his name.
- Jer 10:6–7Forasmuch as there is none like unto thee, O LORD; thou art great, and thy name is great in might.
- Exod 15:11Who is like unto thee, O LORD, among the gods? who is like thee, glorious in holiness, fearful in praises, doing wonders?
- Ps 89:8O LORD God of hosts, who is a strong LORD like unto thee? or to thy faithfulness round about thee?
- Heb 1:3Who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high;
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Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.
Christ at the center
Isaiah sees him most clearly: the virgin's son Immanuel, the child on David's throne, the shoot from Jesse, the light to the nations, and above all the Suffering Servant pierced for our transgressions (ch. 53).
How Isaiah 46:5 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.