38 Then Jehovah answered Job out of the whirlwind, and said,
2 Who is this that darkeneth counsel
By words without knowledge?
3 Gird up now thy loins like a man;
For I will demand of thee, and declare thou unto me.
4 Where wast thou when I laid the foundations of the earth?
Declare, [a]if thou hast understanding.
5 Who determined the measures thereof, [b]if thou knowest?
Or who stretched the line upon it?
6 Whereupon were the [c]foundations thereof [d]fastened?
Or who laid the corner-stone thereof,
7 When the morning stars sang together,
And all the sons of God shouted for joy?
8 Or who shut up the sea with doors,
When it brake forth, [e]as if it had issued out of the womb;
9 When I made clouds the garment thereof,
And thick darkness a swaddling-band for it,
10 And [f]marked out for it my bound,
And set bars and doors,
11 And said, Hitherto shalt thou come, but no further;
And here shall thy proud waves be stayed?
12 Hast thou commanded the morning since thy days began,
And caused the dayspring to know its place;
13 That it might take hold of the ends of the earth,
And the wicked be shaken out of it?
14 It is changed as clay under the seal;
And all things stand forth [g]as a garment:
15 And from the wicked their light is withholden,
And the high arm is broken.
16 Hast thou entered into the springs of the sea?
Or hast thou walked in the [h]recesses of the deep?
17 Have the gates of death been revealed unto thee?
Or hast thou seen the gates of the shadow of death?
18 Hast thou comprehended the earth in its breadth?
Declare, if thou knowest it all.
19 Where is the way to the dwelling of light?
And as for darkness, where is the place thereof,
20 That thou shouldest take it to the bound thereof,
And that thou shouldest discern the paths to the house thereof?
21 Doubtless, thou knowest, for thou wast then born,
And the number of thy days is great!
22 Hast thou entered the treasuries of the snow,
Or hast thou seen the treasures of the hail,
23 Which I have reserved against the time of trouble,
Against the day of battle and war?
24 [i]By what way is the light parted,
Or the east wind scattered upon the earth?
25 Who hath cleft a channel for the waterflood,
Or the way for the lightning of the thunder;
26 To cause it to rain on a land where no man is;
On the wilderness, wherein there is no man;
27 To satisfy the waste and desolate ground,
And to cause the [j]tender grass to spring forth?
28 Hath the rain a father?
Or who hath begotten the drops of dew?
29 Out of whose womb came the ice?
And the hoary frost of heaven, who hath [k]gendered it?
30 The waters [l]hide themselves and become like stone,
And the face of the deep [m]is frozen.
31 Canst thou bind the [n]cluster of the Pleiades,
Or loose the bands of Orion?
32 Canst thou lead forth [o]the Mazzaroth in their season?
Or canst thou guide the Bear with her [p]train?
33 Knowest thou the ordinances of the heavens?
Canst thou establish the dominion thereof in the earth?
34 Canst thou lift up thy voice to the clouds,
That abundance of waters may cover thee?
35 Canst thou send forth lightnings, that they may go,
And say unto thee, Here we are?
36 Who hath put wisdom in the [q]inward parts?
Or who hath given understanding to the [r]mind?
37 Who can number the clouds by wisdom?
Or who can [s]pour out the bottles of heaven,
38 When the dust runneth into a mass,
And the clods cleave fast together?
39 Canst thou hunt the prey for the lioness,
Or satisfy the appetite of the young lions,
40 When they couch in their dens,
And abide in the covert to lie in wait?
41 Who provideth for the raven his prey,
When his young ones cry unto God,
And wander for lack of food?
Footnotes
- Job 38:4 Hebrew if thou knowest understanding.
- Job 38:5 Or, seeing
- Job 38:6 Hebrew sockets.
- Job 38:6 Hebrew made to sink.
- Job 38:8 Or, and issued
- Job 38:10 Hebrew brake.
- Job 38:14 Or, as in a garment
- Job 38:16 Or, search
- Job 38:24 Or, Which is the way to the place where the light is etc.
- Job 38:27 Or, greensward
- Job 38:29 Or, given it birth
- Job 38:30 Or, are congealed like stone
- Job 38:30 Hebrew cohereth.
- Job 38:31 Or, chain Or, sweet influences
- Job 38:32 Or, the signs of the Zodiac
- Job 38:32 Hebrew sons.
- Job 38:36 Or, dark clouds
- Job 38:36 Or, meteor
- Job 38:37 Hebrew cause to lie down.