"Does God ever tire?" (Alleged Contradiction #E3349)
Hast thou not known? hast thou not heard, that the everlasting God, the LORD, the Creator of the ends of the earth, fainteth not, neither is weary? there is no searching of his understanding. He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might he increaseth strength.
Isaiah 40:28
Your new moons and your appointed feasts my soul hateth: they are a trouble unto me; I am weary to bear them.
Isaiah 1:14
See also: Exodus 31:17; Isaiah 43:24; Jeremiah 15:6
Response
Like many words, “weary” can have multiple definitions. Here are a two of them, taken from Webster’s 1828 dictionary: 1
- Having the strength much exhausted by toil or violent exertion; tired; fatigued. [It should be observed however that this word expresses less than tired, particularly when applied to a beast; as a tired horse. It is followed by of, before the cause of fatigue; as, to be weary of marching; to be weary of reaping; to be weary of study.]
- Having the patience exhausted, or the mind yielding to discouragement. He was weary of asking for redress.
- …
Isaiah 40:28 refers to definition #1. God never runs out of physical or mental strength; He is infinite in power, and so He is always ready to “[give] power to the faint”, since He “fainteth not”. Isaiah 1:14, on the other hand, is speaking of definition #2; God’s patience with Israel is wearing thin because of their hypocrisy.
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Notes
- http://webstersdictionary1828.com/, accessed 23 March 2015 ↩