Job 39-40

39 “Do you know when the mountain goats give birth?
    Do you observe the calving of the does?
² Can you number the months that they fulfill,
    and do you know the time when they give birth,
³ when they crouch, bring forth their offspring,
    and are delivered of their young?
⁴ Their young ones become strong; they grow up in the open;
    they go out and do not return to them.

⁵ “Who has let the wild donkey go free?
    Who has loosed the bonds of the swift donkey,
⁶ to whom I have given the arid plain for his home
    and the salt land for his dwelling place?
⁷ He scorns the tumult of the city;
    he hears not the shouts of the driver.
⁸ He ranges the mountains as his pasture,
    and he searches after every green thing.

⁹ “Is the wild ox willing to serve you?
    Will he spend the night at your manger?
¹⁰ Can you bind him in the furrow with ropes,
    or will he harrow the valleys after you?
¹¹ Will you depend on him because his strength is great,
    and will you leave to him your labor?
¹² Do you have faith in him that he will return your grain
    and gather it to your threshing floor?

¹³ “The wings of the ostrich wave proudly,
    but are they the pinions and plumage of love?^[a]
14 For she leaves her eggs to the earth
    and lets them be warmed on the ground,
¹⁵ forgetting that a foot may crush them
    and that the wild beast may trample them.
¹⁶ She deals cruelly with her young, as if they were not hers;
    though her labor be in vain, yet she has no fear,
¹⁷ because God has made her forget wisdom
    and given her no share in understanding.
¹⁸ When she rouses herself to flee,^[b]
    she laughs at the horse and his rider.

¹⁹ “Do you give the horse his might?
    Do you clothe his neck with a mane?
²⁰ Do you make him leap like the locust?
    His majestic snorting is terrifying.
²¹ He paws^[c] in the valley and exults in his strength;
    he goes out to meet the weapons.
²² He laughs at fear and is not dismayed;
    he does not turn back from the sword.
²³ Upon him rattle the quiver,
    the flashing spear, and the javelin.
²⁴ With fierceness and rage he swallows the ground;
    he cannot stand still at the sound of the trumpet.
²⁵ When the trumpet sounds, he says ‘Aha!’
    He smells the battle from afar,
    the thunder of the captains, and the shouting.

²⁶ “Is it by your understanding that the hawk soars
    and spreads his wings toward the south?
²⁷ Is it at your command that the eagle mounts up
    and makes his nest on high?
²⁸ On the rock he dwells and makes his home,
    on the rocky crag and stronghold.
²⁹ From there he spies out the prey;
    his eyes behold it from far away.
³⁰ His young ones suck up blood,
    and where the slain are, there is he.”

40 And the Lord said to Job:

² “Shall a faultfinder contend with the Almighty?
    He who argues with God, let him answer it.”

Job Promises Silence

³ Then Job answered the Lord and said:

⁴ “Behold, I am of small account; what shall I answer you?
    I lay my hand on my mouth.
⁵ I have spoken once, and I will not answer;
    twice, but I will proceed no further.”

The Lord Challenges Job

⁶ Then the Lord answered Job out of the whirlwind and said:

⁷ “Dress for action^[d] like a man;
    I will question you, and you make it known to me.
⁸ Will you even put me in the wrong?
    Will you condemn me that you may be in the right?
⁹ Have you an arm like God,
    and can you thunder with a voice like his?

¹⁰ “Adorn yourself with majesty and dignity;
    clothe yourself with glory and splendor.
¹¹ Pour out the overflowings of your anger,
    and look on everyone who is proud and abase him.
¹² Look on everyone who is proud and bring him low
    and tread down the wicked where they stand.
¹³ Hide them all in the dust together;
    bind their faces in the world below.^[e]
14 Then will I also acknowledge to you
    that your own right hand can save you.

¹⁵ “Behold, Behemoth,^[f]
    which I made as I made you;
    he eats grass like an ox.
¹⁶ Behold, his strength in his loins,
    and his power in the muscles of his belly.
¹⁷ He makes his tail stiff like a cedar;
    the sinews of his thighs are knit together.
¹⁸ His bones are tubes of bronze,
    his limbs like bars of iron.

¹⁹ “He is the first of the works^[g] of God;
    let him who made him bring near his sword!
²⁰ For the mountains yield food for him
    where all the wild beasts play.
²¹ Under the lotus plants he lies,
    in the shelter of the reeds and in the marsh.
²² For his shade the lotus trees cover him;
    the willows of the brook surround him.
²³ Behold, if the river is turbulent he is not frightened;
    he is confident though Jordan rushes against his mouth.
²⁴ Can one take him by his eyes,^[h]
    or pierce his nose with a snare?

Footnotes

1. Job 39:13 The meaning of the Hebrew is uncertain
2. Job 39:18 The meaning of the Hebrew is uncertain
3. Job 39:21 Hebrew They paw
4. Job 40:7 Hebrew Gird up your loins
5. Job 40:13 Hebrew in the hidden place
6. Job 40:15 A large animal, exact identity uncertain
7. Job 40:19 Hebrew ways
8. Job 40:24 Or in his sight

God Continues to Challenge Job

39 “Do you know the time when the wild mountain goats bear young?
Or can you mark when the deer gives birth?
² Can you number the months that they fulfill?
Or do you know the time when they bear young?
³ They bow down,
They bring forth their young,
They deliver their ^[a]offspring.
⁴ Their young ones are healthy,
They grow strong with grain;
They depart and do not return to them.

⁵ “Who set the wild donkey free?
Who loosed the bonds of the ^[b]onager,
⁶ Whose home I have made the wilderness,
And the ^[c]barren land his dwelling?
⁷ He scorns the tumult of the city;
He does not heed the shouts of the driver.
⁸ The range of the mountains is his pasture,
And he searches after every green thing.

⁹ “Will the wild ox be willing to serve you?
Will he bed by your manger?
¹⁰ Can you bind the wild ox in the furrow with ropes?
Or will he plow the valleys behind you?
¹¹ Will you trust him because his strength is great?
Or will you leave your labor to him?
¹² Will you trust him to bring home your ^[d]grain,
And gather it to your threshing floor?

¹³ “The wings of the ostrich wave proudly,
But are her wings and pinions like the kindly stork’s?
¹⁴ For she leaves her eggs on the ground,
And warms them in the dust;
¹⁵ She forgets that a foot may crush them,
Or that a wild beast may break them.
¹⁶ She treats her young harshly, as though they were not hers;
Her labor is in vain, without ^[e]concern,
¹⁷ Because God deprived her of wisdom,
And did not endow her with understanding.
¹⁸ When she lifts herself on high,
She scorns the horse and its rider.

¹⁹ “Have you given the horse strength?
Have you clothed his neck with ^[f]thunder?
²⁰ Can you ^[g]frighten him like a locust?
His majestic snorting strikes terror.
²¹ He paws in the valley, and rejoices in his strength;
He gallops into the clash of arms.
²² He mocks at fear, and is not frightened;
Nor does he turn back from the sword.
²³ The quiver rattles against him,
The glittering spear and javelin.
²⁴ He devours the distance with fierceness and rage;
Nor does he come to a halt because the trumpet has sounded.
²⁵ At the blast of the trumpet he says, ‘Aha!’
He smells the battle from afar,
The thunder of captains and shouting.

²⁶ “Does the hawk fly by your wisdom,
And spread its wings toward the south?
²⁷ Does the eagle mount up at your command,
And make its nest on high?
²⁸ On the rock it dwells and resides,
On the crag of the rock and the stronghold.
²⁹ From there it spies out the prey;
Its eyes observe from afar.
³⁰ Its young ones suck up blood;
And where the slain are, there it is.”

God’s Power and Wisdom

40 Moreover the Lord answered Job, and said:

² “Shall the one who contends with the Almighty correct Him?
He who rebukes God, let him answer it.”

Job’s Response to God

³ Then Job answered the Lord and said:

⁴ “Behold, I am vile;
What shall I answer You?
I lay my hand over my mouth.
⁵ Once I have spoken, but I will not answer;
Yes, twice, but I will proceed no further.”

God’s Challenge to Job

⁶ Then the Lord answered Job out of the whirlwind, and said:

⁷ “Now ^[h]prepare yourself like a man;
I will question you, and you shall answer Me:

⁸ “Would you indeed ^[i]annul My judgment?
Would you condemn Me that you may be justified?
⁹ Have you an arm like God?
Or can you thunder with a voice like His?
¹⁰ Then adorn yourself with majesty and splendor,
And array yourself with glory and beauty.
¹¹ Disperse the rage of your wrath;
Look on everyone who is proud, and humble him.
¹² Look on everyone who is proud, and bring him low;
Tread down the wicked in their place.
¹³ Hide them in the dust together,
Bind their faces in hidden darkness.
¹⁴ Then I will also confess to you
That your own right hand can save you.

¹⁵ “Look now at the ^[j]behemoth, which I made along with you;
He eats grass like an ox.
¹⁶ See now, his strength is in his hips,
And his power is in his stomach muscles.
¹⁷ He moves his tail like a cedar;
The sinews of his thighs are tightly knit.
¹⁸ His bones are like beams of bronze,
His ribs like bars of iron.
¹⁹ He is the first of the ways of God;
Only He who made him can bring near His sword.
²⁰ Surely the mountains yield food for him,
And all the beasts of the field play there.
²¹ He lies under the lotus trees,
In a covert of reeds and marsh.
²² The lotus trees cover him with their shade;
The willows by the brook surround him.
²³ Indeed the river may rage,
Yet he is not disturbed;
He is confident, though the Jordan gushes into his mouth,
²⁴ Though he takes it in his eyes,
Or one pierces his nose with a snare.

Footnotes

1. Job 39:3 Lit. pangs
2. Job 39:5 A species of wild donkey
3. Job 39:6 Lit. salt land
4. Job 39:12 Lit. seed
5. Job 39:16 Lit. fear
6. Job 39:19 Or a mane
7. Job 39:20 make him spring
8. Job 40:7 Lit. gird up your loins
9. Job 40:8 nullify
10. Job 40:15 A large animal, exact identity unknown