Job 38

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God Speaks to Job

38 <1> Then the Lord spoke to Job from a

whirlwind and said:

<2> "Who is this ignorant person

saying these foolish things?"[88]

<3> Brace yourself[89]

and get ready to answer the questions that I will ask you.

<4> "Where were you when I made the earth?

If you are so smart, answer me.

<5> If you are so smart,

Who decided how big the world would be?

Who measured the world with a measuring line?

<6> What is the earth resting on?

Who put the first stone in its place

<7> when the morning stars sang together

and the angels[90] shouted with joy!

<8> "Who closed the flood gates

as the sea gushed from the womb.

<9> Who covered it with clouds

and wrapped it in darkness.

<10> I set the limits for the sea

and put it behind locked gates.

<11> I said to the sea,

'You can come this far, but no farther.

This is where your proud waves will stop.'

<12> "Did you ever in your life

command the morning to start

or the day to begin?

<13> Did you ever tell the morning light

to grab the earth and shake those who are evil out of their hiding places?

<14> The morning light makes the hills

and the valleys easy to see.

When the daylight comes to the earth,

the shapes of these places stand out like the folds of a coat.

They take shape like soft clay

that is pressed with a stamp.

<15> Evil people don't like the daylight.

When it shines bright, it stops them

from doing their bad things.

<16> "Have you ever gone

to the deepest parts of the sea?

Have you ever walked

on the ocean bottom?

<17> Have you ever seen the gates

leading to the world of the dead?

Have you ever seen the gates

leading to that dark place of death?

<18> Do you really understand

how large the earth is?

Tell me, if you know all this.

<19> "Where does light come from?

Where does darkness come from?

<20> Can you take light and dark

back to where they came from?

Do you know how to get there?

<21> Surely you know these things.

You are very old and wise.

You were alive when I made them, weren't you?[91]

<22> "Have you ever gone into

the storerooms where I keep

the snow and the hail?

<23> I save the snow and the hail

for times of trouble,

for the times of war and battle.

<24> Have you ever gone to the place

where the sun comes up,

where it makes the east wind blow all over the earth?[92]

<25> Who dug ditches in the sky for the heavy rain?

Who made a path for the thunderstorm?

<26> Who makes it rain even in places

where no one lives?

<27> That rain gives plenty of water

to that empty land and grass begins to grow.

<28> Does the rain have a father?

Who produces the drops of dew?

<29> Does ice have a mother?

Who gives birth to the frost?

<30> Water freezes as hard as a rock.

Even the ocean freezes over!

<31> "Can you tie up the Pleiades?[93]

Can you unfasten the belt of Orion?[94]

<32> Can you bring out the constellations[95]

at the right times?

Or can you lead out the Bear[96] with its cubs?

<33> Do you know the laws that control the sky?

Can you put each star in its place above the earth?[97]

<34> "Can you shout at the clouds

and command them to cover you with rain?

<35> Can you give a command to the lightning?

Will it come to you and say,

'Here we are.

What do you want, sir?'

Will it go wherever you want it to go?

<36> "Who makes people wise?

Who puts wisdom deep inside of them?

<37> Who is wise enough to count the clouds

and tip them over to pour out their rain?

<38> So the dust becomes mud

and the clods of dirt stick together.

<39> "Do you find food for the lions?

Do you feed their hungry babies?

<40> No. Lions lie down in their caves,

they crouch down in the grass ready to attack their prey.

<41> Who feeds the ravens

when their babies yell out to God

and wander around without food?