Job 38
1 Then Jehovah answered Job out of the whirlwind, and said,
Then the Lord answered Job out of the whirlwind,
2 Who is this that darkens counsel by words without knowledge?
“Who is this who questions my wisdom by talking so ignorantly?
3 Gird up now thy loins like a man, for I will demand of thee, and declare thou to me.
Prepare yourself, be strong, for I am going to question you, and you must answer me.
4 Where were thou when I laid the foundations of the earth? Declare, if thou have understanding.
Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth? Tell me, if you have such knowledge!
5 Who determined the measures of it, if thou know? Or who stretched the line upon it?
Who decided its dimensions? Don't you know? Who stretched out a measuring line?
6 Upon what were the foundations of it fastened? Or who laid the cornerstone of it
What do its foundations rest upon? Who laid its cornerstone,
7 when the morning stars sang together, and all the sons of God shouted for joy?
when the stars of the morning sang together and all the angels shouted for joy.
8 Or who shut up the sea with doors when it broke forth, like it had issued out of the womb,
Who laid down the boundaries of the sea when it was born?
9 when I made clouds the garment of it, and thick darkness a swaddling-band for it,
Who clothed it with clouds, and wrapped it in a blanket of deep darkness?
10 and marked out for it my bound, and set bars and doors,
I set its limits, marking its borders.
11 and said, This far thou shall come, but no farther, and here thy proud waves shall be stayed?
I said, ‘You may come here, but no farther. Here is where your proud waves stop.’
12 Have thou commanded the morning since thy days began, and caused the dayspring to know its place
During your lifetime, have you ever ordered the morning to begin?
13 that it might take hold of the ends of the earth, and the wicked be shaken out of it?
Have you ever told the dawn where to appear that it might take hold of the corners of the earth and shake the wicked out?
14 It is changed as clay under the seal, and all things stand forth as a garment.
The earth is changed like clay under a seal; its features stand out like a crumpled garment.
15 And from the wicked their light is withheld, and the high arm is broken.
The ‘light’ of the wicked is taken away from them; their acts of violence are stopped.
16 Have thou entered into the springs of the sea? Or have thou walked in the recesses of the deep?
Have you entered the sources of the sea? Have you explored their hidden depths?
17 Have the gates of death been revealed to thee? Or have thou seen the gates of the shadow of death?
Have you been shown where the gates of death are? Have you seen the gates of utter darkness?
18 Have thou comprehended the earth in its breadth? Declare, if thou know it all.
Do you know how far the earth extends? Tell me if you know all this!
19 Where is the way to the dwelling of light? And as for darkness, where is the place of it
In which direction does light live? Where does darkness dwell?
20 that thou should take it to the bound of it, and that thou should discern the paths to the house of it?
Can you take them home? Do you know the way to where they live?
21 Thou know, for thou were born then, and the number of thy days is great!
Of course you know, because you were already born then! You've lived so long!
22 Have thou entered the treasuries of the snow, or have thou seen the treasures of the hail,
Have you been to where the snow is kept? Have you seen where the hail is held?
23 which I have reserved against the time of trouble, against the day of battle and war?
I have stored them up for the time of trouble, for the day of war and battle.
24 By what way is the light divided, or the east wind scattered upon the earth?
Do you know the way to where light comes from, or to where the east wind blows over the earth?
25 Who has cleft a channel for the water flood, or the way for the lightning of the thunder,
Who cuts a channel for the rain to flow? Who creates a path for the thunderbolt?
26 to cause it to rain on a land where no man is, on the wilderness, in which there is no man,
Who brings rain to an uninhabited land, to a desert where nobody lives,
27 to satisfy the waste and desolate ground, and to cause the tender grass to spring forth?
to water a parched wasteland to make the green grass grow?
28 Has the rain a father? Or who has begotten the drops of dew?
Does the rain have a father? Who was the father of the dewdrops?
29 Out of whose womb came the ice? And the hoary frost of heaven, who has engendered it?
Who was the mother of ice? Does the frost of the air have a mother?
30 The waters hide themselves and become like stone, and the face of the deep is frozen.
Water turns into rock-hard ice; its surface freezes solid.
31 Can thou bind the cluster of the Pleiades, or loose the bands of Orion?
Can you tie together the stars of the Pleiades? Can you loosen the belt of the Orion constellation?
32 Can thou lead forth the Mazzaroth in their season? Or can thou guide the Bear with her train?
Can you guide the stars of Mazzaroth at the right time? Can you direct the Great Bear constellation and its other stars?
33 Do thou know the ordinances of the heavens? Can thou establish the dominion of it on the earth?
Do you know the laws of the heavens? Can you apply them to the earth?
34 Can thou lift up thy voice to the clouds, that abundance of waters may cover thee?
Can you shout to the clouds and command them to pour rain down on you?
35 Can thou send forth lightnings, that they may go, and say to thee, Here we are?
Can you send out bolts of lightning and direct them, so that they can answer you saying, ‘Here we are’?
36 Who has put wisdom in the inward parts? Or who has given understanding to the mind?
Who has placed wisdom inside people? Who has given understanding to the mind?
37 Who can number the clouds by wisdom? Or who can pour out the bottles of heaven
Who is clever enough to count the clouds? Who can turn heaven's water jars on their sides
38 when the dust runs into a mass, and the clods cleave fast together?
when the dust has baked into a solid mass?
39 Can thou hunt the prey for the lioness, or satisfy the appetite of the young lions
Can you hunt prey for the lion? Can you feed the lion cubs
40 when they couch in their dens, and abide in the covert to lie in wait?
as they crouch down in their dens and lie in wait in the bushes?
41 Who provides for the raven his prey when his young ones cry to God, and wander for lack of food?
Who provides food for the raven when its young cry out to God, weak from starvation?
