Job 39
1 Have you knowledge of the rock-goats? or do you see the roes giving birth to their young?
Knowest thou the season when the Wild Goats of the crags beget? The bringing forth of the hinds, canst thou observe?
2 Is the number of their months fixed by you? or is the time when they give birth ordered by you?
Canst thou count the months they fulfil? Or knowest thou the time when they give birth?
3 They are bent down, they give birth to their young, they let loose the fruit of their body.
They kneel down, their young, they bring forth; their pains, they throw off;
4 Their young ones are strong, living in the open country; they go out and do not come back again.
Their young become strong, they grow up in the open field, they go out, and return not unto them.
5 Who has let the ass of the fields go free? or made loose the bands of the loud-voiced beast?
Who hath sent forth the Wild Ass free? And, the bands of the swift-runner, who hath loosed?
6 To whom I have given the waste land for a heritage, and the salt land as a living-place.
Whose house I have made the waste plain, and his dwellings, the land of salt:
7 He makes sport of the noise of the town; the voice of the driver does not come to his ears;
He laugheth at the throng of the city, The shoutings of the driver, he heareth not;
8 He goes looking for his grass-lands in the mountains, searching out every green thing.
He espieth the mountains, his pasture-ground, and, after every green thing, maketh search.
9 Will the ox of the mountains be your servant? or is his night's resting-place by your food-store?
Will the Wild-Ox be pleased to be thy servant? or lodge for the night by thy crib?
10 Will he be pulling your plough with cords, turning up the valleys after you?
Canst thou bind the wild-ox, so that—with the ridge—shall run his cord? Or will he harrow the furrows after thee?
11 Will you put your faith in him, because his strength is great? will you give the fruit of your work into his care?
Wilt thou trust in him, because of the greatness of his strength? Wilt thou leave unto him thy toil?
12 Will you be looking for him to come back, and get in your seed to the crushing-floor?
Wilt thou put faith in him, that he will bring back thy seed? and that, corn for thy threshing-floor, he will gather?
13 Is the wing of the ostrich feeble, or is it because she has no feathers,
The wing of the Ostrich that waveth itself joyfully, Is it the pinion of lovingkindness or the plumage?
14 That she puts her eggs on the earth, warming them in the dust,
For she leaveth—to the earth—her eggs, and, on the dust, she letteth them be warmed;
15 Without a thought that they may be crushed by the foot, and broken by the beasts of the field?
And hath forgotten, that, a foot, may crush them, —or, the wild beast, tread on them!
16 She is cruel to her young ones, as if they were not hers; her work is to no purpose; she has no fear.
Dealing hardly with her young, as none-of-hers, In vain, her labour, without dread.
17 For God has taken wisdom from her mind, and given her no measure of knowledge.
For GOD hath suffered her to forget wisdom, and given her no share in understanding.
18 When she is shaking her wings on high, she makes sport of the horse and of him who is seated on him.
What time, on high, she vibrateth her wings, she laugheth at the horse and his rider.
19 Do you give strength to the horse? is it by your hand that his neck is clothed with power?
Couldst thou give—to the Horse—strength? Couldst thou clothe his neck with the quivering mane?
20 Is it through you that he is shaking like a locust, in the pride of his loud-sounding breath?
Couldst thou cause him to leap like a locust? The majesty of his snort, is a terror!
21 He is stamping with joy in the valley; he makes sport of fear.
He diggeth into the plain, and rejoiceth in vigour, he goeth forth to meet armour;
22 In his strength he goes out against the arms of war, turning not away from the sword.
He laugheth at dread, and is not dismayed, neither turneth he back, from the face of the sword;
23 The bow is sounding against him; he sees the shining point of spear and arrow.
Against him, whiz [the arrows of] the quiver, the flashing head of spear and javelin;
24 Shaking with passion, he is biting the earth; he is not able to keep quiet at the sound of the horn;
With stamping and rage, he drinketh up the ground, —he will not stand still when the horn soundeth;
25 When it comes to his ears he says, Aha! He is smelling the fight from far off, and hearing the thunder of the captains, and the war-cries.
As oft as the horn soundeth, he saith, Aha! And, from afar, he scenteth the battle, —the thunder of commanders and the war-cry.
26 Is it through your knowledge that the hawk takes his flight, stretching out his wings to the south?
Is it, by thine understanding, that the Bird of Passage betaketh him to his pinions? spreadeth out his wings to the south?
27 Or is it by your orders that the eagle goes up, and makes his resting-place on high?
Or, at thy bidding, that the Eagle mounteth, and that he setteth on high his nest?
28 On the rock is his house, and on the mountain-top his strong place.
The crag, he inhabiteth, and so lodgeth himself, on the tooth of the crag, and high fort;
29 From there he is watching for food; his eye sees it far off.
From thence, he searcheth out food, far away, his eyes do pierce;
30 His young have blood for their drink, and where the dead bodies are, there is he to be seen.
And, his young brood, suck up blood, and, where the slain are, there, is he.
