Much has been made of whether Isaiah 40:22 teaches that the earth is a sphere or not. The verse says that God “sits above the circle of the earth.” The Hebrew word for “circle” probably does not itself indicate a spherical shape, but (1) there is other sufficient evidence for the earth as a sphere, and (2) that’s not even the overall point of the passage.
Isaiah was trying to impress upon the Jews the magnitude of the God of heaven: “Behold, the Lord God” (40:10). Isaiah emphasized the power of God (40:10), the reward of God (40:10), the compassion of God (40:11), the immensity of God (40:12), the wisdom of God (40:13-14), the sovereignty of God (40:15-21). This is YOUR God,
“who sits above the circle of the earth…who stretches out the heavens like a curtain…[who] brings the princes to nothing…who has created these things” (40:22-25).
He “neither faints nor is weary. His understanding is unsearchable” (40:28). That’s YOUR God! He made the sphere of the earth…He is over it…and He “shall renew [the] strength” of those who trust in Him (40:31). Get the big picture of your God!
