Ecclesiasticus 40:16

Nova Vulgata

Et Libanus non sufficiet ad succendendum, et animalia eius non sufficient ad holocaustum.

Parallel Translations

Clementine Latin Vulgate (1592)
Et Libanus non sufficiet ad succendendum ; et animalia ejus non sufficient ad holocaustum.

Jerome's Latin Vulgate (405)
Et Libanus non sufficiet ad succendendum,
et animalia ejus non sufficient ad holocaustum.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

nor: Psalms 40:6, Psalms 50:10-12, Micah 6:6, Micah 6:7, Hebrews 10:5-10

Reciprocal: 1 Kings 3:4 - a thousand 2 Chronicles 1:6 - a thousand Nehemiah 10:34 - the wood offering

Gill's Notes on the Bible

And Lebanon is not sufficient to burn,.... The trees of it, as the Targum; these are not sufficient to burn a sacrifice with, suitable to the dignity and majesty of God, and as his justice can require for offences committed:

nor the beasts thereof sufficient for a burnt offering, though it was a mountain and forest which abounded with trees, and especially cedars, and there was a great quantity of cattle in it, yet neither were sufficient to furnish out a proper burnt offering to the Lord; he only himself could provide a Lamb sufficient for a burnt offering, and he has done it, the only begotten Son of God; he has offered himself an offering and a sacrifice to God, of a sweet smelling savour, by which he has put away sin, and made full atonement for it, Jarchi thinks this is said to aggravate the sins of men, of the wicked, which were so great, that Lebanon with all its wood and cattle could not furnish out a sacrifice sufficient to expiate them.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

And Lebanon - The expression here refers to the trees or the cedars of Lebanon. Thus it is rendered by the Chaldee: ‘And the trees of Lebanon.’ For a description of Lebanon, see the note at Isaiah 10:34. It is probable that the word Lebanon here is not used in the limited sense in which it is sometimes employed, to denote a single mountain, or a single range of mountains, but includes the entire ranges lying north of Palestine, and which were comprehended under the general name of Libanus. The idea here is, that all these ranges of mountains, abounding in magnificent trees and forests, would not furnish fuel sufficient to burn the sacrifices which would be an appropriate offering to the majesty and glory of God.

To burn - To burn for the purpose of consuming the sacrifice.

Nor the beasts thereof for a burnt-offering - As the mountains of Lebanon were extensive forests, they would abound with wild animals. The idea is, that all those animals, if offered in sacrifice, would not be an appropriate expression of what was due to God. It may be remarked here, if all the vast forests of Lebanon on fire, and all its animals consumed as an offering to God, were not sufficient to show forth his glory, how little can our praises express the proper sense of his majesty and honor! How profound should be our reverence for God! With what awful veneration should we come before him! The image employed here by Isaiah is one of great poetic beauty; and nothing, perhaps, could give a deeper impression of the majesty and honor of the great Yahweh.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse Isaiah 40:16. And Lebanon is not sufficient — The image is beautiful and uncommon. It has been imitated by an apocryphal writer, who however comes far short of the original: -

"For all sacrifice is too little for a sweet savour unto thee:

And all the fat is not sufficient for thy burnt-offering."

Judith 16:16.

Does not the prophet mean here that all the burnt-offerings and sacrifices that could be offered were insufficient to atone for sin? That the nations were as nothing before him, not merely because of his immensity, but because of their insufficiency to make any atonement by their oblations for the iniquities which they had committed? Therefore the Redeemer was to come to Zion, &c.