Job 38

Job Chapter 38 ESV

1God out of the whirlwind challengeth Job to answer; 4and by an enumeration of his mighty works convinceth Job of ignorance, 31and of weakness.
1 Then the Lord 1answered Job out of the whirlwind and said:
2 “Who is this that 1darkens counsel by words 2without knowledge?
3 1Dress for actiona like a man; I will question you, and you make it known to me.
4 “Where were you when I 1laid the foundation of the earth? Tell me, if you have understanding.
5 Who determined its measurements—surely you know! Or who stretched the line upon it?
6 On what were its bases sunk, or who laid its cornerstone,
7 when the morning stars 1sang together and all 2the sons of God 3shouted for joy?
8 “Or who 1shut in the sea with doors when it burst out from the womb,
9 when I made clouds its garment and 1thick darkness its swaddling band,
10 and prescribed 1limits for it and set bars and doors,
11 and said, ‘Thus far shall you come, and no farther, and here shall your 1proud waves be stayed’?
12 “Have you 1commanded the morning since your days began, and caused the dawn to know its place,
13 that it might take hold of 1the skirts of the earth, and the wicked be 2shaken out of it?
14 It is changed like clay under the seal, and its features stand out like a garment.
15 From the wicked their 1light is withheld, and 2their uplifted arm is broken.
16 “Have you 1entered into the springs of the sea, or walked in the recesses of the deep?
17 Have 1the gates of death been revealed to you, or have you seen the gates of 2deep darkness?
18 Have you comprehended the expanse of the earth? Declare, if you know all this.
19 “Where is the way to the dwelling of light, and where is the place of darkness,
20 that you may take it to its territory and that you may discern 1the paths to its home?
21 You know, for 1you were born then, and the number of your days is great!
22 “Have you entered 1the storehouses of the snow, or have you seen 2the storehouses of the hail,
23 which I have reserved 1for the time of trouble, 2for the day of battle and war?
24 What is the way to the place where the light is distributed, or where the east wind is scattered upon the earth?
25 “Who has cleft a channel for the torrents of rain and 1a way for the thunderbolt,
26 to bring rain on 1a land where no man is, on 2the desert in which there is no man,
27 to satisfy the waste and desolate land, and to make the ground sprout with 1grass?
28 “Has 1the rain a father, or who has begotten the drops of dew?
29 From whose womb did 1the ice come forth, and who has given birth to 2the frost of heaven?
30 The waters become hard like stone, and the face of the deep is 1frozen.
31 “Can you bind the chains of 1the Pleiades or loose the cords of 2Orion?
32 Can you lead forth the Mazzarotha in their season, or can you guide 1the Bear with its children?
33 Do you know 1the ordinances of the heavens? Can you establish their rule on the earth?
34 “Can you lift up your voice to the clouds, that 1a flood of waters may cover you?
35 Can you send forth lightnings, that they may go and say to you, ‘Here we are’?
36 Who has 1put wisdom in 2the inward partsa or given understanding to the mind?b
37 Who can number the clouds by wisdom? Or who can tilt the waterskins of the heavens,
38 when the dust runs into a mass and 1the clods stick fast together?
39 “Can you hunt the prey for the lion, or 1satisfy the appetite of the young lions,
40 when they crouch in their 1dens or lie in wait 2in their thicket?
41 Who provides for 1the raven its prey, when its young ones cry to God for help, and wander about for lack of food?
Job 38

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