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Texts -- Job 37:1-18 (NET)

Context
37:1 At this also my heart pounds and leaps from its place . 37:2 Listen carefully to the thunder of his voice , to the rumbling that proceeds from his mouth . 37:3 Under the whole heaven he lets it go , even his lightning to the far corners of the earth . 37:4 After that a voice roars ; he thunders with an exalted voice , and he does not hold back his lightning bolts when his voice is heard . 37:5 God thunders with his voice in marvelous ways; he does great things beyond our understanding . 37:6 For to the snow he says , ‘Fall to earth ,’ and to the torrential rains , ‘Pour down .’ 37:7 He causes everyone to stop working , so that all people may know his work . 37:8 The wild animals go to their lairs , and in their dens they remain . 37:9 A tempest blows out from its chamber , icy cold from the driving winds. 37:10 The breath of God produces ice , and the breadth of the waters freeze solid . 37:11 He loads the clouds with moisture ; he scatters his lightning through the clouds . 37:12 The clouds go round in circles, wheeling about according to his plans , to carry out all that he commands them over the face of the whole inhabited world . 37:13 Whether it is for punishment for his land , or whether it is for mercy , he causes it to find its mark. 37:14 “Pay attention to this , Job ! Stand still and consider the wonders God works . 37:15 Do you know how God commands them, how he makes lightning flash in his storm cloud ? 37:16 Do you know about the balancing of the clouds , that wondrous activity of him who is perfect in knowledge ? 37:17 You, whose garments are hot when the earth is still because of the south wind, 37:18 will you, with him, spread out the clouds , solid as a mirror of molten metal?

Pericope

NET

Bible Dictionary

  • God

    [nave] GOD. List of Sub-Topics Miscellany; Unclassified Scriptures Relating to; Access to; Compassion of; Creator; Creator of Mankind; Eternity of; Faithfulness of; Fatherhood of; Favor of; Foreknowledge of; Glory of; Goodness of...

  • Religion

    [nave] RELIGION. False Deut. 32:31-33. See: Idolatry; Intolerance; Teachers, False. Family See: Family. National Supported by taxes, Ex. 30:11-16; 38:26. Priests supported by the State, 1 Kin. 18:19; 2 Chr. 11:13-15. Subve...

  • Job

    [nave] JOB 1. A man who dwelt in Uz, Job 1:1. Righteousness of, Job 1:1, 5, 8; 2:3; Ezek. 14:14, 20. Riches of, Job 1:3. Trial of, by affliction of Satan, Job 1:13-19; 2:7-10. Fortitude of, Job 1:20-22; 2:10; Jas. 5:11. Visite...

  • Philosophy

    [nave] PHILOSOPHY The nature of things, Eccl. 1-7. A philosophical inquiry on wisdom, Job. 28. Philosophical inductions and deductions relating to God and his providence, Job 5:8-20; 9; 10:2-21; 12:6-24; 33:12-30; 37. Reveals th...

  • Elihu

    [nave] ELIHU 1. A Buzite and one of Job's three friends, Job 32-37. 2. Son of Tohu, 1 Sam. 1:1. Probably identical with Eliel, 1 Chr. 6:34, and Eliab, 1 Chr. 6:27. 3. A Manassite warrior, who joined David at Ziklag, 1 Chr. 12:20...

  • Meteorology and Celestial Phenomena

    [nave] METEOROLOGY AND CELESTIAL PHENOMENA. Gen. 2:5, 6; Gen. 27:39; Job 9:7; Job 26:7, 8, 11; Job 27:20, 21; Job 28:24-27; Job 29:19; Job 36:27-33; Job 37:6-22; Job 38:9 [with vs. 8-11.] Job 38:22, 24-29, 31-35, 37; Psa. 18:8-15;...

  • Blessing

    [nave] BLESSING For blessing before eating, See: Prayer, Thanksgiving Before Taking Food. See also Benedictions. Responsive Blessings of the Law Deut. 28:1-14 For the responsive Curses of the law, See: Curse. Divine, Contingent...

  • THUNDER

    [ebd] often referred to in Scripture (Job 40:9; Ps. 77:18; 104:7). James and John were called by our Lord "sons of thunder" (Mark 3:17). In Job 39:19, instead of "thunder," as in the Authorized Version, the Revised Version transla...
    [isbe] THUNDER - thun'-der (ra`am (1 Sam 2:10; Job 26:14; 39:19; 40:9; Ps 77:18; 81:7; 104:7; Isa 29:6), qol, "a voice" (Ex 9:23; 1 Sam 7:10; 12:17; Job 28:26; 38:25)): Thunder is the noise resulting from the lightning discharge. I...
    [smith] is hardly ever heard in Palestine form the middle of April to the middle of September; hence it was selected by Samuel as a striking expression of the divine displeasure toward the Israelites. (1 Samuel 12:17) Rain in harv...

  • WORLD, COSMOLOGICAL

    [isbe] WORLD, COSMOLOGICAL - wurld, koz-mo-loj'-i-kal: 1. Terms and General Meaning 2. Hebrew Idea of the World 3. Its Extent 4. Origin of the World--Biblical and Contrasted Views 5. The Cosmogony of Genesis 1--Comparison with Baby...

  • Wind

    [isbe] WIND - wind (anemos: 1. Causes: Unequal distribution of heat in the atmosphere causes currents of air or wind. The heated air rises and the air from around rushes in. The direction from which a current comes determines its n...
    [nave] WIND, blasting, 2 Kin. 19:7, 35. East: Hot and blasting in Egypt, Gen. 41:6; in the valley of the Euphrates, Ezek. 19:12; in Canaan, Hos. 13:15; Luke 12:55; at Nineveh, Jonah 4:8; tempestuous in Uz, Job 27:21. West: Took aw...

  • Ignorance

    [nave] IGNORANCE. Job 8:9; Job 11:7, 8, 12; Job 28:12, 13, 20, 21; Job 36:26, 29; Job 37:5, 15, 16, 19, 23 Job 38; 39. Psa. 139:6; Prov. 7:6-23; Prov. 8:5; Prov. 9:14-18; Prov. 19:2; Prov. 20:24; Prov. 22:3 Prov. 27:12. Prov. 27:1...

  • Lightning

    [ebd] frequently referred to by the sacred writers (Nah. 1:3-6). Thunder and lightning are spoken of as tokens of God's wrath (2 Sam. 22:15; Job 28:26; 37:4; Ps. 135:7; 144:6; Zech. 9:14). They represent God's glorious and awful m...
    [isbe] LIGHTNING - lit'-ning (baraq, chaziz; astrape): Lightning is caused by the discharge of electricity between clouds or between clouds and the earth. In a thunder-storm there is a rapid gathering of particles of moisture into ...
    [nave] LIGHTNING, Job 28:26; 37:3; 38:25, 35; Psa. 18:14; 77:18; 78:48; 97:4; 135:7; 144:6; Jer. 10:13; 51:16; Ezek. 1:13, 14; Dan. 10:6; Nah. 2:4; Zech. 9:14; 10:1; Matt. 24:27; 28:3; Luke 10:18; Rev. 4:5; 8:5; 11:19; 16:18.

  • Heaven

    [ebd] (1.) Definitions. The phrase "heaven and earth" is used to indicate the whole universe (Gen. 1:1; Jer. 23:24; Acts 17:24). According to the Jewish notion there were three heavens, (a) The firmament, as "fowls of the heaven" ...
    [nave] HEAVEN. God's Dwelling Place Deut. 26:15 Zech. 2:13; Isa. 63:15. 1 Kin. 8:30 vs. 39,43,49;; 2 Chr. 6:18, 21, 27, 30, 33, 35, 39; Jer. 23:24. 1 Chr. 16:31; 1 Chr. 21:26 2 Chr. 7:14; Neh. 9:27. 2 Chr. 2:6; 2 Chr. 30:27; Job ...

  • FROST

    [ebd] (Heb. kerah, from its smoothness) Job 37:10 (R.V., "ice"); Gen. 31:40; Jer. 36:30; rendered "ice" in Job 6:16, 38:29; and "crystal" in Ezek. 1:22. "At the present day frost is entirely unknown in the lower portions of the va...
    [isbe] FROST - frost (kephor, "hoar-frost," Ex 16:14; Job 38:29; chanamal, perhaps "the aphis," Ps 78:47; qerach, "cold," Gen 31:40; Job 37:10 the King James Version; Jer 36:30): 1. Formation: A temperature of freezing or lower is ...

  • DEN

    [ebd] a lair of wild beasts (Ps. 10:9; 104:22; Job 37:8); the hole of a venomous reptile (Isa. 11:8); a recess for secrecy "in dens and caves of the earth" (Heb. 11:38); a resort of thieves (Matt. 21:13; Mark 11:17). Daniel was ca...
    [isbe] DEN - (ma`on, me`onah, "habitation"; me`arah, and spelaion, "cave"; me'urah (Isa 11:8), "a light-hole," from 'or, "light," perhaps for me`arah; cokh (Ps 10:9 the King James Version), and cukkah (Job 38:40), "a covert," elsew...

  • Weather

    [nave] WEATHER Signs of, Matt. 16:2, 3. Sayings concerning, Job 37:9, 17, 22. See: Meteorology.

  • Whirlwind

    [isbe] WHIRLWIND - hwurl'-wind (cuphah (Prov 1:27; 10:25; Isa 5:28; 17:13; 66:15; Hos 8:7; Am 1:14; Nab 1:3), ca`ar (Hab 3:14; Zec 7:14; Hos 13:3; Ps 58:9; Dan 11:40), ce`arah (2 Ki 2:1; Job 38:1; 40:6; Isa 40:24; 41:16; Zec 9:14))...
    [nave] WHIRLWIND Destructive, Prov. 1:27. From the south in the land of Uz, Job 37:9; in the valley of the Euphrates, Isa. 21:1; in the land of Canaan, Zech. 9:14. From the north, Ezek. 1:4. Elijah translated in, 2 Kin. 2:1, 11....

  • Mirror

    [smith] (Exodus 38:8; Job 37:18) The Hebrew women on coming out of Egypt probably brought with them mirrors like those which were used by the Egyptians, and were made of a mixed metal, chiefly copper, wrought with admirable skill, an...
    [nave] MIRROR Of bronze, Job 37:18. Given by the Israelite women to be melted for the bowls, Ex. 38:8. Figurative 1 Cor. 13:12; 2 Cor. 3:18; Jas. 1:23, 24.

  • WINDS

    [ebd] blowing from the four quarters of heaven (Jer. 49:36; Ezek. 37:9; Dan. 8:8; Zech. 2:6). The east wind was parching (Ezek. 17:10; 19:12), and is sometimes mentioned as simply denoting a strong wind (Job 27:21; Isa. 27:8). Thi...
    [smith] That the Hebrews recognized the existence of four prevailing winds as issuing, broadly speaking, from the four cardinal points, north, south, east and west, may be inferred from their custom of using the expression "four wind...

  • SOUTH

    [ebd] Heb. Negeb, that arid district to the south of Palestine through which lay the caravan route from Central Palestine to Egypt (Gen. 12:9; 13:1, 3; 46:1-6). "The Negeb comprised a considerable but irregularly-shaped tract of c...
    [isbe] SOUTH - south: (1) neghebh, according BDB from [?] naghabh, meaning "to be dry," the word most often used, in the Revised Version (British and American) capitalized (South) in those places where it seems to denote a particul...
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Resources/Books

Expository Notes on the Bible (Constable)

  • What this book is all about has been the subject of considerable debate. Many people think God gave it to us to provide His answer to the age-old problem of suffering. In particular, many believe it is in the Bible to help us...
  • I. Prologue chs. 1-2A. Job's character 1:1-5B. Job's calamities 1:6-2:101. The first test 1:6-222. The second test 2:1-10C. Job's comforters 2:11-13II. The dialogue concerning the basis of the divine-human relationship 3:1-42...
  • The writer composed the prologue and epilogue of this book in prose narrative and the main body (3:1-42:6) in poetry. The prologue and epilogue form a frame around the main emphasis of the revelation, the poetic section, and ...
  • Because the speech in this chapter is more soliloquy than dialogue some scholars have concluded that someone other than Job spoke it: Zophar, Bildad, or God. One writer argued for its being a speech by none of the characters,...
  • Many critical scholars believe that a later editor inserted chapters 32-37 in the text of Job.135Most conservatives believe there is ample external and internal evidence indicating that this section of chapters fits into the ...
  • Elihu began by voicing his respect for Job's three friends (vv. 6-10). They were older than he, and for this reason he said he had refrained from speaking until now. However he had become convinced that advancing age does not...
  • Elihu focused next on God's activities in nature. There may be reference to autumn conditions in 36:27-33, winter in 37:1-13, and summer in 37:17-18.150Elihu's third "Behold"(36:26) draws attention to the infinite wisdom of G...
  • Andersen, Francis I. Job. Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries series. Leicester, Eng. and Downers Grove, Ill.: InterVarsity Press, 1976.Archer, Gleason L., Jr. A Survey of Old Testament Introduction. Revised ed. Chicago: Moody...
  • 1:22 Ezekiel also saw something like a clear expanse (Heb. raqia', firmament, Gen. 1:6; Ps. 19:1; 150:1; Dan. 12:3) of ice (Heb. qerah, crystal) over the heads of these four living creatures. Rather than being empty space thi...
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