4752. mar
Lexical Summary
mar: Bitter

Original Word: מַר
Part of Speech: Noun Masculine
Transliteration: mar
Pronunciation: mar
Phonetic Spelling: (mar)
KJV: drop
NASB: drop
Word Origin: [from H4843 (מָרַר - bitter) in its original sense of distillation]

1. a drop

Strong's Exhaustive Concordance
drop

From marar in its original sense of distillation; a drop -- drop.

see HEBREW marar

NAS Exhaustive Concordance
Word Origin
from an unused word
Definition
a drop
NASB Translation
drop (1).

Brown-Driver-Briggs
II. [מַר] noun [masculine] drop, only גּוֺיִם כְּמַר מִדְּלִי Isaiah 40:15 nations are like a drop hanging from a bucket.

Topical Lexicon
Biblical context

Isaiah 40:15 is situated within the larger oracle of comfort that begins with “Comfort, comfort My people” (Isaiah 40:1). As the exile loomed and the people’s perspective of God had shrunk, the prophet broadened their vision: “Surely the nations are like a drop in a bucket” (Isaiah 40:15). By employing מַר, Isaiah reduces the combined might of every empire to a single droplet falling from a water-carrier’s pail. In the alternating cadence of consolation and confrontation that characterizes Isaiah 40, this vivid comparison magnifies God’s sovereignty and exposes the pretension of human power.

Theological significance of the “drop” metaphor

1. God’s incomparability. The infinitesimal size of a drop juxtaposed with the immensity of the “Holy One” (Isaiah 40:25) underscores that no political confederacy or cultural achievement can rival the Creator.
2. Human humility. The picture calls every generation to recognize dependence upon God rather than national strength (compare Psalm 2:1–4).
3. Divine faithfulness. If whole nations are but a drop, then the covenant God who redeems Israel (Isaiah 40:11) will certainly accomplish His promises without hindrance.

Historical and cultural background

Ancient water-carriers often transported large clay jars or leather skins. A slight slosh that spilled over the rim would evaporate on the dry ground, unnoticed and unrecovered. Isaiah’s audience, familiar with the value of every drop in an arid land, would perceive the insignificance Isaiah intended. The imagery also engages the ancient Near-Eastern practice of weighing trade goods: “they are regarded as dust on the scales” (Isaiah 40:15). Together, the drop and the dust nullify any claim that geopolitical forces can thwart God’s redemptive agenda.

Intertextual echoes

Though מַר appears only here, Scripture frequently employs the motif of a small “drop” to display God’s power:

Deuteronomy 32:2 – “Let my teaching fall as rain, my speech drop as the dew.”
2 Samuel 14:14 – “We must die; we are like water spilled on the ground.”
Job 36:27 – “He draws up the drops of water.”

Each passage, using different Hebrew terms, enriches Isaiah’s proclamation: from revelation (Deuteronomy) to mortality (2 Samuel) to providence (Job), God presides over every particle of liquid.

Ministry applications

• Worship: Meditating on Isaiah 40:15 leads believers to exalt God above cultural, political, or personal anxieties.
• Discipleship: The verse provides a corrective against nationalistic pride by reminding Christians that their ultimate citizenship is in Heaven (Philippians 3:20).
• Missions: If the nations are a mere drop, then none is too formidable for the gospel. The Great Commission rests on a God before whom empires evaporate (Matthew 28:18–20).
• Pastoral care: Those overwhelmed by global events can find solace in the assurance that the Lord’s counsel endures when worldly powers pass away like mist (James 4:14).

Christological perspective

Isaiah’s message culminates in the revelation of the Servant who will “bring justice to the nations” (Isaiah 42:1). The One before whom emperors shrink to a drop is also the Good Shepherd who “gathers the lambs in His arms” (Isaiah 40:11). In Jesus Christ, the grandeur of deity and the gentleness of redemption meet. The “nations” reduced to a drop are the same nations He purchases with His blood (Revelation 5:9).

Practical reflection

When believers grasp that the Lord holds the oceans in the hollow of His hand (Isaiah 40:12) and counts the nations as a drop, personal fears and communal challenges recede. Prayer, preaching, and daily obedience are emboldened by the certainty that God’s purposes prevail irresistibly.

Suggestions for further study

• Trace God’s sovereignty over nations in Isaiah 13–23; Jeremiah 46–51; Daniel 2; Acts 17:26–31.
• Explore the tension between divine transcendence and immanence in Isaiah 40–55.
• Examine New Testament appropriations of Isaiah 40, such as John the Baptist’s ministry (Matthew 3:3) and Peter’s teaching on the Word’s enduring power (1 Peter 1:23–25).

Forms and Transliterations
כְּמַ֣ר כמר kə·mar keMar kəmar
Links
Interlinear GreekInterlinear HebrewStrong's NumbersEnglishman's Greek ConcordanceEnglishman's Hebrew ConcordanceParallel Texts
Englishman's Concordance
Isaiah 40:15
HEB: הֵ֤ן גּוֹיִם֙ כְּמַ֣ר מִדְּלִ֔י וּכְשַׁ֥חַק
NAS: the nations are like a drop from a bucket,
KJV: Behold, the nations [are] as a drop of a bucket,
INT: Behold the nations A drop A bucket A speck

1 Occurrence

Strong's Hebrew 4752
1 Occurrence


kə·mar — 1 Occ.

4751
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