Original Word: מָתַח
Part of Speech: Verb
Transliteration: mathach
Pronunciation: maw-thakh'
Phonetic Spelling: (maw-thakh')
KJV: spread out
NASB: spreads
Word Origin: [a primitive root]

1. to stretch out

spread out

A primitive root; to stretch out -- spread out.

Word Origin
a prim. root
Definition
to spread out
NASB Translation
spreads (1).

[מָתַח] verb spread out (Late Hebrew id.; Aramaic , מְתַח; Arabic be long, long (probably load-word); compare perhaps Assyrian matâ—u, direct the eyes toward); — only

Qal Imperfect3masculine singular suffix וַיִּמְתָּחֵם Isaiah 40:22 and he (׳י) hath spread them (the heavens) out as a tent to dwell in.

Conceptual Overview

The verb מָתַח portrays the deliberate act of “spreading out” or “extending.” It evokes a craftsman’s careful unrolling of cloth, a builder’s plumb line, or an archer’s taut bowstring. In Isaiah 40:22 the prophet ascribes this purposeful stretching to God: “He stretches out the heavens like a curtain, and spreads them out like a tent to dwell in”. With a single stroke, the word links cosmic architecture, covenant shelter, and divine sovereignty.

Literary Context in Isaiah 40

Isaiah 40 marks a transition from oracles of judgment to consolation. The chapter invites exiles to lift their eyes from Babylonian idols to the incomparable Creator. Within the piling of rhetorical questions—“Do you not know? Have you not heard?”—מָתַח stands as evidence: the sky itself is a testimonial banner unfurled by God. The verb complements other verbs in the passage (“sits,” “brings,” “calls”) to paint God as both enthroned King and engaged Craftsman.

Theology of Creation and Sustenance

1. Divine Transcendence: מָתַח underscores distance between Creator and creation. The heavens, vast to humans, are no more than fabric in His hand (Isaiah 40:12, 22).
2. Immanence and Hospitality: The tent imagery reveals a God who not only forms but also furnishes a dwelling place for His creatures (compare Psalm 104:2).
3. Continuous Providence: The present tense sense of the Hebrew verb suggests ongoing action. God did not merely stretch the universe once; He continually upholds its expanse (Colossians 1:17).

Comparative Scriptural Motifs

While מָתַח appears only here, parallel verbs enrich the theme:
• nāṭāh, “stretch out,” in Job 9:8.
• rāqaʿ, “spread out,” in Isaiah 42:5.

Together these verbs form a tapestry of texts affirming a universe purposefully arranged, not emergent by chance.

Historical Perspective

Isaiah’s original audience lived amid Ancient Near Eastern myths that depicted the sky as a slain god’s carcass or a mere battleground of capricious deities. By contrast, מָתַח offers a polemic: Israel’s God is unrivaled in power, yet personal enough to make the cosmos a dwelling place for humanity. Post-exilic readers, rebuilding under Persian rule, would find comfort in the reminder that imperial policies are transient but the One who stretched the heavens remains enthroned forever.

Christological and Eschatological Echoes

John asserts that “through Him all things were made” (John 1:3), tying the Logos to Isaiah’s Creator. Revelation 6:14 pictures the sky receding like a scroll—an inverse מָתַח—signaling the consummation of history. The act of stretching heralds both the beginning and the end, framing redemption’s account around the One who “declares the end from the beginning” (Isaiah 46:10).

Practical Ministry Applications

• Worship: Invite congregations to contemplate night skies as living liturgy pointing to God’s majesty.
• Pastoral Care: Use Isaiah 40:22 to assure believers of God’s limitless capacity when earthly circumstances feel confining.
• Apologetics: Engage seekers by contrasting the biblical cosmology of intentional design with impersonal origins theories, stressing the rationality and beauty inherent in מָתַח.
• Mission: The universal canopy underscores God’s global concern; every nation beneath the “tent” becomes a field ripe for Gospel proclamation (Matthew 28:19).

Conclusion

מָתַח may appear only once in the Hebrew text, yet it unfurls a panorama of doctrine—creation’s grandeur, God’s governance, and redemptive hope. Each time believers lift their eyes, the stretched-out heavens silently repeat Isaiah’s sermon: the world is not a random expanse but a tent lovingly prepared by its Maker.

וַיִּמְתָּחֵ֥ם וימתחם vaiyimtaChem way·yim·tā·ḥêm wayyimtāḥêmInterlinear Greek • Interlinear Hebrew • Strong's Numbers • Englishman's Greek Concordance • Englishman's Hebrew Concordance • Parallel Texts