Job 38
1 Forsothe the Lord answeride fro the whirlewynd to Joob,
Then the LORD answered Job out of the whirlwind and said:
2 and seide, Who is this man, wlappynge sentences with vnwise wordis?
“Who is this who obscures My counsel by words without knowledge?
3 Girde thou as a man thi leendis; Y schal axe thee, and answere thou to me.
Now brace yourself like a man; I will question you, and you shall inform Me.
4 Where were thou, whanne Y settide the foundementis of erthe? schewe thou to me, if thou hast vndurstondyng.
Where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth? Tell Me, if you have understanding.
5 Who settide mesures therof, if thou knowist? ethir who stretchide forth a lyne theronne?
Who fixed its measurements? Surely you know! Or who stretched a measuring line across it?
6 On what thing ben the foundementis therof maad fast? ether who sente doun the corner stoon therof,
On what were its foundations set, or who laid its cornerstone,
7 whanne the morew sterris herieden me togidere, and alle the sones of God sungun ioyfuli?
while the morning stars sang together and all the sons of God shouted for joy?
8 Who closide togidere the see with doris, whanne it brak out comynge forth as of the wombe?
Who enclosed the sea behind doors when it burst forth from the womb,
9 Whanne Y settide a cloude the hilyng therof, and Y wlappide it with derknesse, as with clothis of yong childhed.
when I made the clouds its garment and thick darkness its blanket,
10 Y cumpasside it with my termes, and Y settide a barre, and doris;
when I fixed its boundaries and set in place its bars and doors,
11 and Y seide, `Til hidur thou schalt come, and thou schalt not go forth ferthere; and here thou schalt breke togidere thi bolnynge wawis.
and I declared: ‘You may come this far, but no farther; here your proud waves must stop’?
12 Whethir aftir thi birthe thou comaundist to the bigynnyng of dai, and schewidist to the morewtid his place?
In your days, have you commanded the morning or assigned the dawn its place,
13 Whethir thou heldist schakynge togidere the laste partis of erthe, and schakedist awei wickid men therfro?
that it might spread to the ends of the earth and shake the wicked out of it?
14 A seeling schal be restorid as cley, and it schal stonde as a cloth.
The earth takes shape like clay under a seal; its hills stand out like the folds of a garment.
15 The liyt of wickid men schal be takun awey fro hem, and an hiy arm schal be brokun.
Light is withheld from the wicked, and their upraised arm is broken.
16 Whethir thou entridist in to the depthe of the see, and walkidist in the laste partis of the occian?
Have you journeyed to the vents of the sea or walked in the trenches of the deep?
17 Whether the yatis of deeth ben openyd to thee, and `siest thou the derk doris?
Have the gates of death been revealed to you? Have you seen the gates of the shadow of death?
18 Whethir thou hast biholde the brede of erthe? Schewe thou to me, if thou knowist alle thingis,
Have you surveyed the extent of the earth? Tell Me, if you know all this.
19 in what weie the liyt dwellith, and which is the place of derknesse;
Where is the way to the home of light? Do you know where darkness resides,
20 that thou lede ech thing to hise termes, and thou vndurstonde the weies of his hows.
so you can lead it back to its border? Do you know the paths to its home?
21 Wistist thou thanne, that thou schuldist be borun, and knew thou the noumbre of thi daies?
Surely you know, for you were already born! And the number of your days is great!
22 Whethir thou entridist in to the tresours of snow, ether biheldist thou the tresours of hail?
Have you entered the storehouses of snow or observed the storehouses of hail,
23 whiche thingis Y made redy in to the tyme of an enemy, in to the dai of fiytyng and of batel.
which I hold in reserve for times of trouble, for the day of war and battle?
24 Bi what weie is the liyt spred abrood, heete is departid on erthe?
In which direction is the lightning dispersed, or the east wind scattered over the earth?
25 Who yaf cours to the strongeste reyn,
Who cuts a channel for the flood or clears a path for the thunderbolt,
26 and weie of the thundur sownynge? That it schulde reyne on the erthe with out man in desert, where noon of deedli men dwellith?
to bring rain on a barren land, on a desert where no man lives,
27 That it schulde fille a lond with out weie and desolat, and schulde brynge forth greene eerbis?
to satisfy the parched wasteland and make it sprout with tender grass?
28 Who is fadir of reyn, ether who gendride the dropis of deew?
Does the rain have a father? Who has begotten the drops of dew?
29 Of whos wombe yede out iys, and who gendride frost fro heuene?
From whose womb does the ice emerge? Who gives birth to the frost from heaven,
30 Watris ben maad hard in the licnesse of stoon, and the ouer part of occian is streyned togidere.
when the waters become hard as stone and the surface of the deep is frozen?
31 Whether thou schalt mowe ioyne togidere schynynge sterris Pliades, ethir thou schalt mowe distrie the cumpas of Arturis?
Can you bind the chains of the Pleiades or loosen the belt of Orion?
32 Whether thou bryngist forth Lucifer, `that is, dai sterre, in his tyme, and makist euene sterre to rise on the sones of erthe?
Can you bring forth the constellations in their seasons or lead out the Bear and her cubs?
33 Whether thou knowist the ordre of heuene, and schalt sette the resoun therof in erthe?
Do you know the laws of the heavens? Can you set their dominion over the earth?
34 Whethir thou schalt reise thi vois in to a cloude, and the fersnesse of watris schal hile thee?
Can you command the clouds so that a flood of water covers you?
35 Whethir thou schalt sende leitis, and tho schulen go, and tho schulen turne ayen, and schulen seie to thee, We ben present?
Can you send the lightning bolts on their way? Do they report to you, ‘Here we are’?
36 Who puttide wisdoom in the entrailis of man, ethir who yaf vndurstondyng to the cok?
Who has put wisdom in the heart or given understanding to the mind?
37 Who schal telle out the resoun of heuenes, and who schal make acordyng of heuene to sleep?
Who has the wisdom to count the clouds? Or who can tilt the water jars of the heavens
38 Whanne dust was foundid in the erthe, and clottis weren ioyned togidere?
when the dust hardens into a mass and the clods of earth stick together?
39 Whether thou schalt take prey to the lionesse, and schalt fille the soulis of hir whelpis,
Can you hunt the prey for a lioness or satisfy the hunger of young lions
40 whanne tho liggen in caues, and aspien in dennes?
when they crouch in their dens and lie in wait in the thicket?
41 Who makith redi for the crowe his mete, whanne hise briddis crien to God, and wandren aboute, for tho han not meetis?
Who provides food for the raven when its young cry out to God as they wander about for lack of food?
