326 JILL MIDDLEMAS better assess the correspondence between prophetic and priestly atti- tudes towards the image of God. At first glance, the daring assertion that human beings bear the im- age of God in Genesis seems at odds with expressions of incompara- bility in Isaiah 40–48 that appear in the form of declaration (46,9, cf. Jer 10,6.7) and rhetorical question (40,18.25; 44,7; 46,5) 21. In a declarative statement, the deity unequivocally asserts by the use of the comparative particle that “there is no one like me (ynwmk)” (46,9). This sentiment will be reiterated in one of the rhetorical questions, “To whom will you liken me (ynwmk)?” (44,7), but the other queries where the comparative k is not found stress divine incomparability primarily through verbal force. One of the questions is asked by an anonymous third-person eyewitness, presumably the prophet: “To what then will you liken God or what likeness can you make comparable to [God]?” (40,18). The other two questions are presented as stemming directly from the deity in first-person address: “‘To what then will you com- pare me so that I may be equalled?’, says the Holy One” (40,25); and similarly, “To what will you liken me and make me equal and compare me, as though we were alike?” (46,5). A lengthy exegetical discussion is outside the scope of this article, but we should note that resemblance is expressed through the use of verbs in the main in the rhetorical questions, with the favorite term be- ing hmd “to resemble, compare” 22. In addition, we find a series of rare terms including the hiphil of hwv “to make or treat as the same” 23, the rare sense of %r[ “to bring into comparison” 24 which is found else- where in divine incomparable statements in the Psalms (40,6[5]; 89,6[7]), and the hapax legomenon lvm in the hiphil “to be alike” 25. Only once is a noun present to express the comparison, and it is twmd “image, likeness” 26, which appears in two of the three imago Dei pas- 21 C.J. LABuSCHAGNE, The Incomparability of Yahweh in the Old Testament (Pretoria Oriental Series V; Leiden 1966) 20-21, 27, 29-30, 67-79. See MIDDLE- MAS, The Divine Image, 99-100. 22 Isa 40,18.25 piel; 46,5 piel and qal. 23 40,25 qal, which is more common than 46,5 hiphil. 24 40,18 qal. Cf. Ps 40,6[5]; 89,6[7]. Ps 89,6[7] also has hmd. 25 Isa 46,5b. 26 On the translation of twmd as of a fixed form or something specific rather than general, see KuTSKO, Between Heaven and Earth, 67; W.R. GARR, “‘Image’ and ‘Likeness’ in the Inscription from Tell fakhariyeh”, IEJ 50 (2000) 227-234; ID., In His Own Image and Likeness, 124-131; MIDDLEMAS, “Exclusively yahweh”, 318; ID., “Transformation of the Image”, 131-134; and ID., The Divine Image, 98-99.