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Texts -- Job 37:5-24 (NET)

Context
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? 37:19 Tell us what we should say to him. We cannot prepare a case because of the darkness . 37:20 Should he be informed that I want to speak ? If a man speaks , surely he would be swallowed up! 37:21 But now , the sun cannot be looked at– it is bright in the skies – after a wind passed and swept the clouds away . 37:22 From the north he comes in golden splendor ; around God is awesome majesty . 37:23 As for the Almighty , we cannot attain to him! He is great in power , but justice and abundant righteousness he does not oppress . 37:24 Therefore people fear him, for he does not regard all the wise in heart .”

Pericope

NET

Bible Dictionary

  • 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...

  • 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...

  • SKY

    [isbe] SKY - ski (shachaq, "fine dust" or "cloud," apparently from [?] shachaq, "to rub," "to pulverize"; Samaritan: shechaqayyah instead of Hebrew shamayim; sachq = "cloud," "small dust"): 1. In the Old Testament: The Revised Vers...

  • SHOWER

    [isbe] SHOWER - shou'-er: (1) rebhibhim, a plural form apparently denoting gentle rain, usually used figuratively, as in Dt 32:2; Ps 72:6; Mic 5:7. (2) geshem, used of gentle rain in Job 37:6: "shower of rain," the King James Versi...

  • RAINFALL IN JERUSALEM IN INCHES

    [isbe] RAINFALL IN JERUSALEM IN INCHES - Year Amount 1861 27.30" 1862 21.86" 1863 26.54" 1864 15.51" 1865 18.19" 1866 18.55" 1867 29.42" 1868 29.10" 1869 18.61" 1870 13.19" 1871 23.17" 1872 22.26" 1873 22.72" 1874 29.75" 1875 27.01...

  • PLACE

    [isbe] PLACE - plas: Normally for maqom, Old Testament, and topos, New Testament, but in the King James Version "place" represents a great number of Hebrew and Greek words, often used with no difference in force (e.g. 2 Ch 35:10,15...

  • ORDER

    [isbe] ORDER - or'-der (`arakh, "to arrange"; tassein (> diatassein, taxis, tagma)): "Order" in Biblical phrases may indicate (1) arrangement in rows, (2) sequence in time, (3) classification and organization, (4) likeness or manne...

  • MARVEL; MARVELOUS

    [isbe] MARVEL; MARVELOUS - mar'-vel, mar'-vel-us (tamah, pala'; thaumazo, thaumastos): "To marvel" is the translation of tamah, "to wonder" (Gen 43:33; Ps 48:5, the Revised Version (British and American) "were amazed"; Eccl 5:8); o...

  • ICE

    [isbe] ICE - is (qerach): Ice is almost unknown in Palestine and Syria except on the highest mountains. At moderate heights of less than 4,000 ft. a little ice may form during the night in winter, but the warm rays of the sun melt ...

  • HOW

    [isbe] HOW - Represents various Hebrew and Greek words, interrogative, interjectional and relative. Its different uses refer to (1) the manner or way, e.g. Gen 44:34, "How shall I go up to my father?" ('ekh); Mt 6:28, "how they gro...

  • Gizonite

    [ebd] a name given to Hashem, an inhabitant of Gizoh, a place somewhere in the mountains of Judah (1 Chr. 11:34; 2 Sam. 23:32, 34).

  • 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 ...

  • 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...

  • 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...

  • COMPREHEND

    [isbe] COMPREHEND - kom-pre-hend': Used in a twofold sense in both the Old Testament and New Testament. This double meaning appears in two Hebrew and two Greek words which signify in turn (1) mental or spiritual perception, (2) cap...

  • CLOUD

    [isbe] CLOUD - kloud (`anan, `abh; nephele, nephos): I. Clouds in Palestine. In the Bible few references are found of particular clouds or of clouds in connection with the phenomena of the weather conditions. The weather in Palesti...

  • BALANCINGS

    [isbe] BALANCINGS - bal'-ans-ins: "The balancings of the clouds" (Job 37:16), the manner in which they are poised and supported in the air, alike with their mysterious spreadings and motions, challenge the strongest intellect to ex...

  • ASTRONOMY, III

    [isbe] ASTRONOMY, III - III. Physiography. 1. The Circle of the Earth: It has generally been assumed that the Hebrews considered the earth to be a vast circular plain, arched over by a solid vault--"the firmament"--above which were...

  • ASTRONOMY, II

    [isbe] ASTRONOMY, II - II. The Constellations. The principal achievement of the science of astronomy in the centuries during which the books of the Old Testament were written was the arrangement and naming of the constellations, an...

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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