Job 38
1 Then spake Jehovah to Job out of the whirlwind, and said:
Then the Lord answered Job out of a whirlwind, and said:
2 Who is this that darkeneth counsel by words without knowledge?
Who is this that wrappeth up sentences in unskillful words?
3 Gird up thy loins like a man! I will ask thee, and answer thou me!
Gird up thy loins like a man: I will ask thee, and answer thou me.
4 Where wast thou when I laid the foundations of the earth? Declare, if thou hast understanding!
Where wast thou when I laid up the foundations of the earth? tell me if thou hast understanding.
5 Who fixed its dimensions, that thou shouldst know it! Or who stretched out the line upon it?
Who hath laid the measures thereof, if thou knowest? or who hath stretched the line upon it?
6 Upon what were its foundations fixed? And who laid its corner-stone,
Upon what are its bases grounded? or who laid the corner stone thereof,
7 When the morning stars sang together, And all the sons of God shouted for joy?
When the morning stars praised me together, and all the sons of God made a joyful melody?
8 And who shut up the sea with doors, When it burst forth as from the womb?
Who shut up the sea with doors, when it broke forth as issuing out of the womb:
9 When I made the clouds its mantle, And thick darkness its swaddling-band;
When I made a cloud the garment thereof, and wrapped it in a mist as in swaddling bands?
10 When I appointed for it my bound, And fixed for it bars and doors;
I set my bounds around it, and made it bars and doors:
11 And said, Thus far shalt thou come, and no farther, And here shall thy proud waves be stayed!
And I said: Hitherto thou shalt come, and shalt go no further, and here thou shalt break thy swelling waves.
12 Hast thou, in thy life, given charge to the morning, Or caused the day-spring to know its place,
Didst thou since thy birth command the morning, and shew the dawning of the day its place?
13 That it should lay hold of the ends of the earth, And shake the wicked out of it?
And didst thou hold the extremities of the earth shaking them, and hast thou shaken the ungodly out of it?
14 It is changed as clay by the seal; And all things stand forth as in rich apparel.
The seal shall be restored as clay, and shall stand as a garment:
15 But from the wicked their light is withheld, And the high-raised arm is broken.
From the wicked their light shall be taken away, and the high arm shall be broken.
16 Hast thou visited the springs of the sea, And walked through the recesses of the deep?
Hast thou entered into the depths of the sea, and walked in the lowest parts of the deep?
17 Have the gates of death been disclosed to thee, And hast thou seen the gates of the shadow of death?
Have the gates of death been opened to thee, and hast thou seen the darksome doors?
18 Hast thou surveyed the breadth of the earth? Declare, if thou knowest it all!
Hast thou considered the breadth of the earth? tell me, if thou knowest all things?
19 Where is the way to the abode of light? And darkness—where is its dwelling-place?
Where is the way where light dwelleth, and where is the place of darkness:
20 That thou shouldst lead it to its boundary, And that thou shouldst know the paths to its mansion!
That thou mayst bring every thing to its own bounds, and understand the paths of the house thereof.
21 Surely thou knowest; for thou wast then born! And the number of thy years is great!
Didst thou know then that thou shouldst be born? and didst thou know the number of thy days?
22 Hast thou visited the storehouses of the snow, Or seen the treasuries of the hail,
Hast thou entered into the storehouses of the snow, or has thou beheld the treasures of the hail:
23 Which I have reserved against the time of trouble, —Against the day of battle and war?
Which I have prepared for the time of the enemy, against the day of battle and war?
24 What is the way to where light is distributed, And the east wind spread abroad upon the earth?
By what way is the light spread, and heat divided upon the earth?
25 Who hath prepared channels for the rain, And a path for the thunder-flash,
Who gave a course to violent showers, or a way for noisy thunder:
26 To give rain to the land without an inhabitant, To the wilderness wherein is no man;
That it should rain on the earth without man in the wilderness, where no mortal dwelleth:
27 To satisfy the desolate and waste ground, And cause the tender herb to spring forth?
That it should fill the desert and desolate land, and should bring forth green grass?
28 Hath the rain a father? Or who hath begotten the drops of the dew?
Who is the father of rain? or who begot the drops of dew?
29 Out of whose womb came the ice? And who hath gendered the hoar-frost of heaven?
Out of whose womb came the ice; and the frost from heaven who hath gendered it?
30 The waters are hid as under stone, And the face of the deep becometh solid.
The waters are hardened like a stone, and the surface of the deep is congealed.
31 Canst thou fasten the bands of the Pleiades, Or loosen the chains of Orion?
Shalt thou be able to join together the shining stars the Pleiades, or canst thou stop the turning about of Arcturus?
32 Canst thou lead forth the Signs in their season, Or guide the Bear with her sons?
Canst thou bring forth the day star in its time, and make the evening star to rise upon the children of the earth?
33 Knowest thou the ordinances of the heavens? Hast thou appointed their dominion over the earth?
Dost thou know the order of heaven, and canst thou set down the reason thereof on the earth?
34 Canst thou lift up thy voice to the clouds, So that abundance of waters will cover thee?
Canst thou lift up thy voice to the clouds, that an abundance of waters may cover thee?
35 Canst thou send forth lightnings, so that they will go, And say to thee, “Here we are”?
Canst thou send lightnings, and will they go, and will they return and say to thee: Here we are?
36 Who hath put understanding in the reins, And given intelligence to the mind?
Who hath put wisdom in the heart of man? or who gave the cock understanding?
37 Who numbereth the clouds in wisdom? And who poureth out the bottles of heaven,
Who can declare the order of the heavens, or who can make the harmony of heaven to sleep?
38 When the dust floweth into a molten mass, And the clods cleave fast together?
When was the dust poured on the earth, and the clods fastened together?
39 Canst thou hunt prey for the lioness, Or satisfy the hunger of the young lions,
Wilt thou take the prey for the lioness, and satisfy the appetite of her whelps,
40 When they couch in their dens, And lie in wait in the thicket?
When they couch in the dens and lie in wait in holes?
41 Who provideth for the raven his food, When his young ones cry unto God, While they wander about without food?
Who provideth food for the raven, when her young ones cry to God, wandering about, because they have no meat?
