Job 38 - New American Standard Bible (NASB)

God Speaks Now to Job

38 Then the Lord (A)answered Job from the whirlwind and said,

2 “Who is this who (B)darkens the divine plan
By words without knowledge?
3 Now [a](C)tighten the belt on your waist like a man,
And (D)I shall ask you, and you inform Me!
4 Where were you (E)when I laid the foundation of the earth?
Tell Me, if you [b]have understanding,
5 Who set its (F)measurements? Since you know.
Or who stretched the measuring line over it?
6 On what (G)were its bases sunk?
Or who laid its cornerstone,
7 When the morning stars sang together
And all the (H)sons of God shouted for joy?

8 “Or who (I)enclosed the sea with doors
When it went out from the womb, bursting forth;
9 When I made a cloud its garment,
And thick darkness its swaddling bands,
10 And I [c](J)placed boundaries on it
And set a bolt and doors,
11 And I said, ‘As far as this point you shall come, but no farther;
And here your proud waves shall stop’?

God’s Mighty Power

12 “Have you [d]ever in your life commanded the morning,
And made the dawn know its place,
13 So that it would take hold of (K)the ends of the earth,
And (L)the wicked would be shaken off from it?
14 It is changed like clay under the seal;
And they stand out like a garment.
15 (M)Their light is withheld from the wicked,
And the (N)uplifted arm is broken.

16 “Have you entered (O)the springs of the sea,
And walked [e]in the depth of the ocean?
17 Have the gates of death been revealed to you,
And have you seen the gates of (P)deep darkness?
18 Have you understood the [f]expanse of (Q)the earth?
Tell Me, if you know all this.

19 “Where is the way to the dwelling of light?
And darkness, where is its place,
20 That you would take it to (R)its territory,
And discern the paths to its [g]home?
21 You know, for (S)you were born then,
And the number of your days is great!
22 Have you entered the storehouses (T)of the snow,
And have you seen the storehouses of the (U)hail,
23 Which I have reserved for a time of distress,
For a day of war and battle?
24 Where is the way that (V)the light is divided,
And the east wind scattered on the earth?

25 “Who has split open a channel for the flood,
And a way for the thunderbolt,
26 To bring (W)rain on a land without [h]people,
On a desert without a person in it,
27 To (X)satisfy the waste and desolate land,
And to make the [i]seeds of grass to sprout?
28 Does (Y)the rain have a father?
Or who has fathered the drops of dew?
29 From whose womb has come the (Z)ice?
And the frost of heaven, who has given it birth?
30 Water [j]becomes hard like stone,
And the surface of the deep is imprisoned.

31 “Can you tie up the chains of the (AA)Pleiades,
Or untie the cords of Orion?
32 Can you bring out a [k]constellation in its season,
And guide the Bear with her [l]satellites?
33 Do you know the (AB)ordinances of the heavens,
Or do you establish their rule over the earth?

34 “Can you raise your voice to the clouds,
So that an (AC)abundance of water will cover you?
35 Can you (AD)send flashes of lightning, so that they may go
And say to you, ‘Here we are’?
36 Who has (AE)put wisdom in the innermost being,
Or given (AF)understanding to the [m]mind?
37 Who can count the clouds by wisdom,
And (AG)pour out the water jars of the heavens,
38 When the dust hardens into a mass
And the clods stick together?

39 “Can you hunt the (AH)prey for the lioness,
Or satisfy the appetite of young lions,
40 When they (AI)crouch in their hiding places,
And lie in wait in their lair?
41 Who prepares [n]feed for (AJ)the raven
When its young cry to God,
And wander about without food?

Footnotes

  1. Job 38:3 I.e., as if for battle
  2. Job 38:4 Lit know understanding
  3. Job 38:10 Lit broke My decree on it
  4. Job 38:12 Lit from your days commanded
  5. Job 38:16 Or in search of the deep
  6. Job 38:18 Or width
  7. Job 38:20 Lit house
  8. Job 38:26 Lit man
  9. Job 38:27 Or growth
  10. Job 38:30 Lit hides itself like
  11. Job 38:32 Heb Mazzaroth
  12. Job 38:32 Lit sons
  13. Job 38:36 Or rooster
  14. Job 38:41 Lit its feed

Cross references

  1. Job 38:1 : Job 40:6
  2. Job 38:2 : Job 35:16; 42:3
  3. Job 38:3 : Job 40:7
  4. Job 38:3 : Job 42:4
  5. Job 38:4 : Job 15:7; Ps 104:5; Prov 8:29; 30:4
  6. Job 38:5 : Prov 8:29; Is 40:12
  7. Job 38:6 : Job 26:7
  8. Job 38:7 : Job 1:6
  9. Job 38:8 : Gen 1:9; Ps 104:6-9; Prov 8:29; Jer 5:22
  10. Job 38:10 : Gen 1:9; Ps 33:7; 104:9; Prov 8:29; Jer 5:22
  11. Job 38:13 : Job 28:24; 37:3
  12. Job 38:13 : Job 34:25, 26; 36:6
  13. Job 38:15 : Job 5:14
  14. Job 38:15 : Num 15:30; Ps 10:15; 37:17
  15. Job 38:16 : Gen 7:11; 8:2; Prov 8:24, 28
  16. Job 38:17 : Job 10:21; 26:6; 34:22
  17. Job 38:18 : Job 28:24
  18. Job 38:20 : Job 26:10
  19. Job 38:21 : Job 15:7
  20. Job 38:22 : Job 37:6
  21. Job 38:22 : Ex 9:18; Josh 10:11; Is 30:30; Ezek 13:11, 13; Rev 16:21
  22. Job 38:24 : Job 26:10
  23. Job 38:26 : Job 36:27
  24. Job 38:27 : Ps 104:13, 14; 107:35
  25. Job 38:28 : Job 36:27, 28; Ps 147:8; Jer 14:22
  26. Job 38:29 : Job 37:10; Ps 147:17
  27. Job 38:31 : Job 9:9; Amos 5:8
  28. Job 38:33 : Ps 148:6; Jer 31:35, 36
  29. Job 38:34 : Job 22:11; 36:27, 28; 38:37
  30. Job 38:35 : Job 36:32; 37:3
  31. Job 38:36 : Job 9:4; Ps 51:6; Eccl 2:26
  32. Job 38:36 : Job 32:8
  33. Job 38:37 : Job 38:34
  34. Job 38:39 : Ps 104:21
  35. Job 38:40 : Job 37:8
  36. Job 38:41 : Ps 147:9; Matt 6:26; Luke 12:24

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