Job 38
1 And Jehovah answered Job out of the whirlwind and said,
Then Yahweh spoke to Job from inside a great windstorm. He said to him,
2 Who is this that darkeneth counsel by words without knowledge?
“(Who are you to question what I plan to do?/You have no right/authority to question what I plan to do.) [RHQ] You are speaking ignorantly!
3 Gird up now thy loins like a man; and I will demand of thee, and inform thou me.
I want to ask you [some] questions, so, just like men prepare themselves for a difficult task [MET], prepare to answer my questions.
4 Where wast thou when I founded the earth? Declare, if thou hast understanding.
(“Where were you/Were you there with me) [long ago] when I (laid the foundations of/created) the earth? Since you know so much, tell me [where you were at that time].
5 Who set the measures thereof — if thou knowest? or who stretched a line upon it?
Do you know how I decided how large the earth would be? Do you know who stretched a measuring tape around the earth? Surely [since you think that you know so much, ] you should know that!
6 Whereupon were the foundations thereof sunken? or who laid its corner-stone,
What supports the pillars on which the earth rests? When the stars [that shine early] in the morning sang together, and someone put in place the stone that causes the earth to stay in its place, and all the angels shouted joyfully [when they saw that happening], who laid that cornerstone? [Did you?]
7 When the morning stars sang together, and all the sons of God shouted for joy?
8 And who shut up the sea with doors, when it burst forth, issuing out of the womb?
“When the seas poured forth from inside the earth, who prevented the water from flooding over the land?
9 When I made the cloud its garment, and thick darkness a swaddling band for it;
It was I, [not you, ] who caused clouds to come over the seas and caused it to become very dark [under those clouds].
10 When I cut out for it my boundary, and set bars and doors,
I set limits for the seas, and I put barriers [so that the water would not come over the land].
11 And said, Hitherto shalt thou come and no further, and here shall thy proud waves be stayed?
[I pointed to the shore] and said to the water, ‘I permit you to come up to here, but I do not permit you to come any farther. Your powerful waves must stop there!’
12 Hast thou since thy days commanded the morning? hast thou caused the dawn to know its place,
“Job, have you [ever] commanded the morning [to begin]? Have you [ever] told the dawn to start a new day?
13 That it might take hold of the ends of the earth, and the wicked might be shaken out of it?
Have you [ever] told the dawn to spread out over the whole earth, with the result that wicked people run away from the light?
14 It is changed like the signet-clay; and [all things] stand forth as in a garment:
When it becomes light after the dawn, the hills and the valleys become clear like the folds in a cloth.
15 And from the wicked their light is withholden, and the uplifted arm is broken.
When it becomes daylight, the wicked do not have the darkness [that they like]; [in the daylight] they no longer are able to raise up their arms, ready to hurt people.
16 Hast thou entered as far as the springs of the sea? and hast thou walked in the recesses of the deep?
“[Job, ] have you traveled to the springs [in the bottom of the ocean] from which the water in the seas comes? Have you investigated/explored the very bottom of the oceans?
17 Have the gates of death been revealed unto thee? and hast thou seen the gates of the shadow of death?
Has someone shown you the gates to the place where dead people are, the gates to the place where it is very dark?
18 Hath thine understanding compassed the breadths of the earth? Declare if thou knowest it all.
Do you know how big the earth is? Tell me, if you know all these things!
19 Where is the way to where light dwelleth? and the darkness, where is its place,
“Where is the road to the place where light comes from? And [can you tell me] where darkness lives?
20 That thou shouldest take it to its bound, and that thou shouldest know the paths to its house?
Can take me to its home? Do you know where the road is that goes there?
21 Thou knowest, for thou wast then born, and the number of thy days is great!
I am sure that you know these things, because you [talk as though you] were born before the time when all things were created; you [must] be very old!
22 Hast thou entered into the storehouses of the snow, and hast thou seen the treasuries of the hail,
“Have you entered the place where I store the snow and the place where I keep the hail?
23 Which I have reserved for the time of distress, for the day of battle and war?
I store the snow and the hail [in order that I can use them to help my people] when [they have] troubles, in times when [they are fighting] wars [DOU].
24 By what way is the light parted, [and] the east wind scattered upon the earth?
And where is the road to the place from which I cause the lightning to flash? Where is the place from where the east wind begins to blow over all the earth?
25 Who hath divided a channel for the rain-flood, and a way for the thunder's flash;
Who created the channels in which the rain comes down from the sky? Who makes the roads for the thunder/lightning?
26 To cause it to rain on the earth, where no one is; on the wilderness wherein there is not a man;
Who causes rain to fall in the desert, in places where no one lives?
27 To satisfy the desolate and waste [ground], and to cause the sprout of the grass to spring forth?
Who sends the rain that gives moisture/water to areas where nothing has grown, with the result that grass begins to grow again?
28 Hath the rain a father? or who begetteth the drops of dew?
Does the rain have a father? Does the dew [also] have a father?
29 Out of whose womb cometh the ice? and the hoary frost of heaven, who bringeth it forth?
And from whose womb does ice come [in the (winter/cold season)]? Who gives birth to the frost that comes down from the sky?
30 When the waters lie hidden as in stone, and the face of the deep holdeth fast together.
[In the winter, ] the water [freezes and] becomes hard, like a rock, and the surface of lakes becomes frozen.
31 Canst thou fasten the bands of the Pleiades, or loosen the cords of Orion?
“[Job], can you fasten the chains that hold the stars together in clusters/groups in the sky?
32 Dost thou bring forth the constellations each in its season? or dost thou guide the Bear with her sons?
Can you tell the stars when they should shine? Can you guide [the stars in the groups in the northern sky whose names are] the Big Bear and the Little Bear?
33 Knowest thou the ordinances of the heavens? dost thou determine their rule over the earth?
Do you know the laws that the stars must obey? Can you cause those same laws to rule [everything here] on the earth?
34 Dost thou lift up thy voice to the clouds, that floods of waters may cover thee?
“Can you shout to the clouds and cause rain to pour down on you?
35 Dost thou send forth lightnings that they may go, and say unto thee, Here we are?
Can you cause flashes of lightning to come down and strike where you want it to strike? Do those flashes say to you, ‘Where do you want us to strike next?’
36 Who hath put wisdom in the inward parts? or who hath given understanding to the mind?
Who enables the clouds to know when they should cause rain to fall?
37 Who numbereth the clouds with wisdom? or who poureth out the bottles of the heavens,
And who is skilled/wise enough to be able to count the clouds? Who can tilt the jugs of water in the sky [to cause the rain to fall],
38 When the dust runneth as into a molten mass, and the clods cleave fast together?
with the result that the dry ground becomes hard as the dry (clods/lumps of soil) [become wet and] stick together?
39 Dost thou hunt the prey for the lioness, and dost thou satisfy the appetite of the young lions,
“When a lioness and her cubs crouch in their dens or hide in a thicket, [waiting for some animal to pass by that they can kill, ] can you find animals for a lioness to kill so that [she and] her cubs can [eat the meat and] not be hungry any more?
40 When they crouch in [their] dens, [and] abide in the thicket to lie in wait?
41 Who provideth for the raven his food, when his young ones cry unto God, [and] they wander for lack of meat?
Who provides dead animals for crows, when the baby crows are calling out to me [for food], [when they are so weak] because of their lack of food [that] they (stagger around/can hardly stand up) [in their nests]?”
