Text -- Job 38:4--39:30 (NET)

God’s questions to Job

38:4 “Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth? Tell me, if you possess understanding! 38:5 Who set its measurements– if you know– or who stretched a measuring line across it? 38:6 On what were its bases set, or who laid its cornerstone– 38:7 when the morning stars sang in chorus, and all the sons of God shouted for joy? 38:8 “Who shut up the sea with doors when it burst forth, coming out of the womb, 38:9 when I made the storm clouds its garment, and thick darkness its swaddling band, 38:10 when I prescribed its limits, and set in place its bolts and doors, 38:11 when I said, ‘To here you may come and no farther, here your proud waves will be confined’? 38:12 Have you ever in your life commanded the morning, or made the dawn know its place, 38:13 that it might seize the corners of the earth, and shake the wicked out of it? 38:14 The earth takes shape like clay under a seal; its features are dyed like a garment. 38:15 Then from the wicked the light is withheld, and the arm raised in violence is broken. 38:16 Have you gone to the springs that fill the sea, or walked about in the recesses of the deep? 38:17 Have the gates of death been revealed to you? Have you seen the gates of deepest darkness? 38:18 Have you considered the vast expanses of the earth? Tell me, if you know it all! 38:19 “In what direction does light reside, and darkness, where is its place, 38:20 that you may take them to their borders and perceive the pathways to their homes? 38:21 You know, for you were born before them; and the number of your days is great! 38:22 Have you entered the storehouse of the snow, or seen the armory of the hail, 38:23 which I reserve for the time of trouble, for the day of war and battle? 38:24 In what direction is lightning dispersed, or the east winds scattered over the earth? 38:25 Who carves out a channel for the heavy rains, and a path for the rumble of thunder, 38:26 to cause it to rain on an uninhabited land, a desert where there are no human beings, 38:27 to satisfy a devastated and desolate land, and to cause it to sprout with vegetation? 38:28 Does the rain have a father, or who has fathered the drops of the dew? 38:29 From whose womb does the ice emerge, and the frost from the sky, who gives birth to it, 38:30 when the waters become hard like stone, when the surface of the deep is frozen solid? 38:31 Can you tie the bands of the Pleiades, or release the cords of Orion? 38:32 Can you lead out the constellations in their seasons, or guide the Bear with its cubs? 38:33 Do you know the laws of the heavens, or can you set up their rule over the earth? 38:34 Can you raise your voice to the clouds so that a flood of water covers you? 38:35 Can you send out lightning bolts, and they go? Will they say to you, ‘Here we are’? 38:36 Who has put wisdom in the heart, or has imparted understanding to the mind? 38:37 Who by wisdom can count the clouds, and who can tip over the water jars of heaven, 38:38 when the dust hardens into a mass, and the clumps of earth stick together? 38:39 “Do you hunt prey for the lioness, and satisfy the appetite of the lions, 38:40 when they crouch in their dens, when they wait in ambush in the thicket? 38:41 Who prepares prey for the raven, when its young cry out to God and wander about for lack of food? 39:1 “Are you acquainted with the way the mountain goats give birth? Do you watch as the wild deer give birth to their young? 39:2 Do you count the months they must fulfill, and do you know the time they give birth? 39:3 They crouch, they bear their young, they bring forth the offspring they have carried. 39:4 Their young grow strong, and grow up in the open; they go off, and do not return to them. 39:5 Who let the wild donkey go free? Who released the bonds of the donkey, 39:6 to whom I appointed the steppe for its home, the salt wastes as its dwelling place? 39:7 It scorns the tumult in the town; it does not hear the shouts of a driver. 39:8 It ranges the hills as its pasture, and searches after every green plant. 39:9 Is the wild ox willing to be your servant? Will it spend the night at your feeding trough? 39:10 Can you bind the wild ox to a furrow with its rope, will it till the valleys, following after you? 39:11 Will you rely on it because its strength is great? Will you commit your labor to it? 39:12 Can you count on it to bring in your grain, and gather the grain to your threshing floor? 39:13 “The wings of the ostrich flap with joy, but are they the pinions and plumage of a stork? 39:14 For she leaves her eggs on the ground, and lets them be warmed on the soil. 39:15 She forgets that a foot might crush them, or that a wild animal might trample them. 39:16 She is harsh with her young, as if they were not hers; she is unconcerned about the uselessness of her labor. 39:17 For God deprived her of wisdom, and did not impart understanding to her. 39:18 But as soon as she springs up, up, she laughs at the horse and its rider. 39:19 “Do you give the horse its strength? Do you clothe its neck with a mane? 39:20 Do you make it leap like a locust? Its proud neighing is terrifying! 39:21 It paws the ground in the valley, exulting mightily, it goes out to meet the weapons. 39:22 It laughs at fear and is not dismayed; it does not shy away from the sword. 39:23 On it the quiver rattles; the lance and javelin flash. 39:24 In excitement and impatience it consumes the ground; it cannot stand still when the trumpet is blown. 39:25 At the sound of the trumpet, it says, ‘Aha!’ And from a distance it catches the scent of battle, the thunderous shouting of commanders, and the battle cries. 39:26 “Is it by your understanding that the hawk soars, and spreads its wings toward the south? 39:27 Is it at your command that the eagle soars, and builds its nest on high? 39:28 It lives on a rock and spends the night there, on a rocky crag and a fortress. 39:29 From there it spots its prey, its eyes gaze intently from a distance. 39:30 And its young ones devour the blood, and where the dead carcasses are, there it is.”

Commentary -- Word/Phrase Notes (per phrase)

Wesley: Job 38:4

Thou art but of yesterday; and dost thou presume to judge of my eternal counsels! When - When I settled it as firm upon its own center as if it had been built upon the surest foundations.

Wesley: Job 38:5

Who hath prescribed how long and broad and deep it should be.

Wesley: Job 38:5

the measuring line to regulate all its dimensions.

Wesley: Job 38:6

This strong and durable building hath no foundations but God's power, which hath marvelously established it upon itself.

Wesley: Job 38:6

By which the several walls are joined and fastened together, and in which, next to the foundations, the stability of a building consists. The sense is, who was it that built this goodly fabrick, and established it so firmly that it cannot be moved.

Wesley: Job 38:7

The angels, who may well be called morning - stars, because of their excellent lustre and glory.

Wesley: Job 38:7

The angels called the sons of God, because they had their whole being from him, and because they were made partakers of his Divine and glorious image.

Wesley: Job 38:7

Rejoiced in and blessed God for his works, whereby he intimates, that they neither did advise or any way assist him, nor dislike or censure any of his works, as Job had presumed to do.

Wesley: Job 38:8

Who was it, that set bounds to the vast and raging ocean, and shut it up, as it were with doors within its proper place, that it might not overflow the earth? Break forth - From the womb or bowels of the earth, within which the waters were for the most part contained, and out of which they were by God's command brought forth into the channel which God had appointed for them.

Wesley: Job 38:9

When I covered it with vapours and clouds which rise out of the sea, and hover above it, and cover it like a garment.

Wesley: Job 38:9

Black and dark clouds.

Wesley: Job 38:9

Having compared the sea to a new - born infant, he continues the metaphor, and makes the clouds as swaddling - bands, to keep it within its bounds: though indeed neither clouds, nor air, nor sands, nor shores, can bound the sea, but God alone.

Wesley: Job 38:10

Made those hollow places in the earth, which might serve for a cradle to receive and hold this great and goodly infant when it came out of the womb.

Wesley: Job 38:10

Fixed its bounds as strongly as if they were fortified with bars and doors.

Wesley: Job 38:12

Didst thou create the sun, and appoint the order and succession of day and night.

Wesley: Job 38:12

Since thou wast born: this work was done long before thou wast born.

Wesley: Job 38:12

To observe the punctual time when, and the point of the heavens where it should arise; which varies every day.

Wesley: Job 38:13

That this morning light should in a moment spread itself, from one end of the hemisphere to the other.

Wesley: Job 38:13

From the face of the earth.

Wesley: Job 38:13

light hath upon the wicked, because it discovers them, whereas darkness hides them; and because it brings them to condign punishment, the morning being the usual time for executing judgment.

Wesley: Job 38:14

The earth.

Wesley: Job 38:14

Is changed in its appearance.

Wesley: Job 38:14

The seal makes a beautiful impression upon the clay, which in itself hath no form, or comeliness. So the earth, which in the darkness of night lies like a confused heap without either form or beauty, when the light arises and shines upon it, appears in excellent order and glory.

Wesley: Job 38:14

The men and things of the earth, whether natural, as living creatures, herbs and trees; or artificial, as houses or other buildings.

Wesley: Job 38:14

Present themselves to our view.

Wesley: Job 38:14

Wherewith the earth is in a manner clothed and adorned.

Wesley: Job 38:15

That light which enjoyed by others is withholden from them, either by their own choice, because they chuse darkness rather than light; or by the judgment of God, or the magistrate, by whom they are cut off from the light of the living.

Wesley: Job 38:15

Their great strength which they used to the oppression of others.

Wesley: Job 38:16

Heb. the tears; the several springs out of which the waters of the sea flow as tears do from the eyes.

Wesley: Job 38:16

Hast thou found out the utmost depth of the sea, which in divers places could never be reached by the wisest mariner? And how then canst thou fathom the depths of my counsels?

Wesley: Job 38:17

Hast thou seen, or dost thou know the place and state of the dead; the depths and bowels of that earth in which the generality of dead men are buried. Death is a grand secret? We know not when or by what means we shall be brought to death: by what road we must go the way, whence we shall not return. We cannot describe what death is; how the knot is untied between soul and body, or how the spirit goes "To be we know not what, and live we know not how." With what dreadful curiosity does the soul launch out into an untried abyss? We have no correspondence with separate souls, nor any acquaintance with their state. It is an unknown, undiscovered region, to which they are removed. While we are here in a world of sense, we speak of the world of spirits, as blind men do of colours, and when we remove thither, shall be amazed to find how much we were mistaken.

Wesley: Job 38:18

The whole compass and all the parts of it?

Wesley: Job 38:19

Hath its constant and settled abode. Whether goes the sun when it departs from this hemisphere? Where is the tabernacle and the chamber in which he is supposed to rest? And seeing there was a time when there was nothing but gross darkness upon the face of the earth, what way came light into the world? Which was the place where light dwelt at that time, and whence was it fetched? And whence came that orderly constitution and constant succession of light and darkness? Was this thy work? Or wast thou privy to it, or a counsellor, or assistant in it?

Wesley: Job 38:20

Bring or lead it: and this it refers principally to the light, and to darkness, as the consequent of the other.

Wesley: Job 38:20

Its whole course from the place of its abode whence it is supposed to come, to the end of its journey.

Wesley: Job 38:20

Where thou mayst find it, and whence thou mayst fetch it.

Wesley: Job 38:22

Dost thou know where I have laid up those vast quantities of snow and hail which I draw forth when I see fit?

Wesley: Job 38:23

When I intend to bring trouble upon any people for their sins.

Wesley: Job 38:24

In the air, and upon the face of the earth. This is variously distributed in the world, shining in one place and time, when it doth not shine in another, or for a longer time, or with greater brightness and power than it doth in another. All which are the effects of God's infinite wisdom and power, and such as were out of Job's reach to understand.

Wesley: Job 38:24

Which light scattereth, raises the east - wind, and causes it to blow hither and thither upon the earth? For as the sun is called by the poets, the father of the winds, because he draws up those exhalations which give matter to the winds, so in particular the east - wind is often observed to rise together with the sun.

Wesley: Job 38:25

For the showers of rain which come down orderly, and gradually, as if they were conveyed in pipes or channels; which, without the care of God's providence, would fall confusedly, and overwhelm the earth.

Wesley: Job 38:25

For lightning and thunder? Who opened a passage for them out of the cloud in which they were imprisoned? And these are joined with the rain, because they are commonly accompanied with great showers of rain.

Wesley: Job 38:26

That the clouds being broken by lightning and thunder might pour down rain.

Wesley: Job 38:26

To water those parts by art and industry, as is usual in cultivated places.

Wesley: Job 38:27

Hitherto God has put such questions to Job, as were proper to convince him of his ignorance. Now he comes to convince him of his impotence. As it is but little that he can know, and therefore he ought not to arraign the Divine counsels, so it is but little he can do; and therefore he ought not to oppose Divine providence.

Wesley: Job 38:28

Is there any man that can beget or produce rain at his pleasure?

Wesley: Job 38:31

Restrain or hinder them.

Wesley: Job 38:31

The seven stars, which bring in the spring.

Wesley: Job 38:31

By which it binds up the air and earth, by bringing storms of rain and hail or frost and snow.

Wesley: Job 38:31

This constellation rises in November, and brings in winter. Both summer and winter will have their course? God indeed can change them when he pleases, can make the spring cold, and so bind the influences of Pleiades, and the winter warm, and so loose the bands of Orion; but we cannot.

Wesley: Job 38:32

Canst thou make the stars in the southern signs arise and appear? Arcturus - Those in the northern.

Wesley: Job 38:32

The lesser stars, which are placed round about them; and attend upon them, as children upon their parents.

Wesley: Job 38:33

The laws which are firmly established concerning their order, motion, or rest, and their powerful influences upon this lower world.

Wesley: Job 38:33

Manage and over rule their influences.

Wesley: Job 38:34

Thy land when it needs rain.

Wesley: Job 38:38

By reason of much rain.

Wesley: Job 38:39

Is it by thy care that the lions who live in desert places are furnished with necessary provisions? This is another wonderful work of God.

Wesley: Job 38:41

Having mentioned the noblest of brute creatures, he now mentions one of the most contemptible; to shew the care of God's providence over all creatures, both great and small. Their young ones are so soon forsaken by their dams, that if God did not provide for them in a more than ordinary manner, they would be starved to death. And will he that provides for the young ravens, fail to provide for his own children.

Wesley: Job 39:4

Notwithstanding their great weakness caused by their hard entrance into the world.

Wesley: Job 39:4

As with corn, that is, as if they were fed with corn.

Wesley: Job 39:4

Finding sufficient provisions abroad by the care of God's providence.

Wesley: Job 39:5

Who hath given him this disposition that he loves freedom, and hates that subjection which other creatures quietly endure? Loosed - Who keeps him from receiving the bands, and submitting to the service of man.

Wesley: Job 39:7

He feareth them not when they pursue him, because he is swift, and can easily escape them.

Wesley: Job 39:7

He will not be brought to receive his yoke, nor to do his drudgery.

Wesley: Job 39:8

He prefers that mean provision with his freedom, before the fattest pastures with servitude.

Wesley: Job 39:9

It is disputed whether this be the Rhinoceros; or a kind of wild bull.

Wesley: Job 39:16

In laying her eggs is in vain, because she hath not the fear and tender concern for them, which she should have.

Wesley: Job 39:17

Because God hath not implanted in her that instinct, and affection, which he hath put into other birds and beasts toward their young.

Wesley: Job 39:18

To flee from her pursuer: to which end she lifts up her head and body, and spreads her wings.

Wesley: Job 39:18

She despises them thro' her swiftness; for though she cannot fly, yet by the aid of her wings she runs so fast, that horse - men cannot reach her.

Wesley: Job 39:19

A strong metaphor, to denote force and terror.

Wesley: Job 39:21

Battles used to be pitched in valleys, or low grounds, especially horse battles.

Wesley: Job 39:23

The quiver is here put for the arrows contained in it, which being shot against the horse and rider, make a rattling noise.

Wesley: Job 39:24

He is so full of rage and fury, that he not only champs his bridle, but is ready to tear and devour the very ground on which he goes.

Wesley: Job 39:24

He is so pleased with the approach of the battle, and the sound of the trumpet calling to it, that he can scarce believe his ears for gladness.

Wesley: Job 39:25

An expression of joy and alacrity declared by his proud neighings.

Wesley: Job 39:25

The loud and joyful clamour begun by the commanders, and followed by the soldiers when they are ready to join battle.

Wesley: Job 39:26

So strongly, constantly, unweariedly, and swiftly.

Wesley: Job 39:26

At the approach of winter, when wild hawks fly into warmer countries, as being impatient of cold. The birds of the air are proofs of the wonderful providence of God, as well as the beasts of the earth. God instances in two stately ones.

Wesley: Job 39:27

Flies directly upward 'till she be out of thy sight; which no other bird can do.

Wesley: Job 39:29

Her sight is exceeding sharp and strong, so that she is able to look upon the sun with open eyes, and to behold the smallest prey upon the earth or sea, when she is mounted out of our sight.

JFB: Job 38:4

To understand the cause of things, man should have been present at their origin. The finite creature cannot fathom the infinite wisdom of the Creator (Job 28:12; Job 15:7-8).

JFB: Job 38:4

"knowest."

JFB: Job 38:4

(Pro 4:1).

JFB: Job 38:5

Of its proportions. Image from an architect's plans of a building.

JFB: Job 38:5

Of measurement (Isa 28:17). The earth is formed on an all-wise plan.

JFB: Job 38:6

Not "sockets," as Margin.

JFB: Job 38:6

Literally, "made to sink," as a foundation-stone let down till it settles firmly in the clay (Job 26:7). Gravitation makes and keeps the earth a sphere.

JFB: Job 38:7

So at the founding of Zerubbabel's temple (Ezr 3:10-13). So hereafter at the completion of the Church, the temple of the Holy Ghost (Zec 4:7); as at its foundation (Luk 2:13-14).

JFB: Job 38:7

Especially beautiful. The creation morn is appropriately associated with these, it being the commencement of this world's day. The stars are figuratively said to sing God's praises, as in Psa 19:1; Psa 148:3. They are symbols of the angels, bearing the same relation to our earth, as angels do to us. Therefore they answer to "sons of God," or angels, in the parallel. See on Job 25:5.

JFB: Job 38:8

Floodgates; these when opened caused the flood (Gen 8:2); or else, the shores.

JFB: Job 38:8

Of chaos. The bowels of the earth. Image from childbirth (Job 38:8-9; Eze 32:2; Mic 4:10). Ocean at its birth was wrapped in clouds as its swaddling bands.

JFB: Job 38:10

That is, appointed it. Shores are generally broken and abrupt cliffs. The Greek for "shore" means "a broken place." I broke off or measured off for it my limit, that is, the limit which I thought fit (Job 26:10).

JFB: Job 38:11

Hebrew, "a limit shall be set to."

JFB: Job 38:12-15

Passing from creation to phenomena in the existing inanimate world.

JFB: Job 38:12-15

As God daily does.

JFB: Job 38:12-15

To rise.

JFB: Job 38:12-15

Since thou hast come into being.

JFB: Job 38:12-15

It varies in its place of rising from day to day, and yet it has its place each day according to fixed laws.

JFB: Job 38:13

Spread itself over the earth to its utmost bounds in a moment.

JFB: Job 38:13

Who hate the light, and do their evil works in the dark (Job 24:13).

JFB: Job 38:13

The corners (Hebrew, "wings" or "skirts") of it, as of a garment, are taken hold of by the dayspring, so as to shake off the wicked.

JFB: Job 38:14

Explaining the first clause of Job 38:13, as Job 38:15 does the second clause. As the plastic clay presents the various figures impressed on it by a seal, so the earth, which in the dark was void of all form, when illuminated by the dayspring, presents a variety of forms, hills, valleys, &c.

JFB: Job 38:14

(Hebrew, "turns itself") alludes to the rolling cylinder seal, such as is found in Babylon, which leaves its impressions on the clay, as it is turned about; so the morning light rolling on over the earth.

JFB: Job 38:14

The forms of beauty, unfolded by the dawn, stand forth as a garment, in which the earth is clad.

JFB: Job 38:15

By which they work; namely, darkness, which is their day (Job 24:17), is extinguished by daylight.

JFB: Job 38:15

Rather, "The arm uplifted" for murder or other crime is broken; it falls down suddenly, powerless, through their fear of light.

JFB: Job 38:16

Fountains beneath the sea (Psa 95:4-5).

JFB: Job 38:16

Rather, "the inmost recesses"; literally, "that which is only found by searching," the deep caverns of ocean.

JFB: Job 38:17

The second clause heightens the thought in the first. Man during life does not even "see" the gates of the realm of the dead ("death," Job 10:21); much less are they "opened" to him. But those are "naked before God" (Job 26:6).

JFB: Job 38:18

As God doth (Job 28:24).|| 13813||1||20||0||The marvels in heaven. "What is the way (to the place wherein) light dwelleth?" The origin of light and darkness. In Gen 1:3-5, Gen 1:14-18, "light" is created distinct from, and previous to, light-emitting bodies, the luminaries of heaven.

JFB: Job 38:20

Dost thou know its place so well as to be able to guide, ("take" as in Isa 36:17) it to (but UMBREIT, "reach it in") its own boundary, that is, the limit between light and darkness (Job 26:10)?

JFB: Job 38:21

Or without the interrogation, in an ironical sense [UMBREIT].

JFB: Job 38:21

When I created light and darkness (Job 15:7).

JFB: Job 38:22

Storehouses, from which God draws forth snow and hail. Snow is vapor congealed in the air before it is collected in drops large enough to form hail. Its shape is that of a crystal in endless variety of beautiful figures. Hail is formed by rain falling through dry cold air.

JFB: Job 38:23

The time when I design to chastise men (Exo 9:18; Jos 10:11; Rev 16:21; Isa 28:17; Psa 18:12-13; Hag 2:17).

JFB: Job 38:24

Parts, so as to diffuse itself over the whole earth, though seeming to come from one point. Light travels from the sun to the earth, ninety millions of miles, in eight minutes.

JFB: Job 38:24

Rather, "And by what way the east wind (personified) spreads (scattereth) itself." The light and east wind are associated together, as both come from one quarter, and often arise together (Jon 4:8).

JFB: Job 38:25

Rain falls, not in a mass on one spot, but in countless separate canals in the air marked out for them.

JFB: Job 38:25

(Job 28:26).

JFB: Job 38:26

Since rain fails also on places uninhabited by man, it cannot be that man guides its course. Such rain, though man cannot explain the reason for it, is not lost. God has some wise design in it.

JFB: Job 38:27

As though the desolate ground thirsted for God's showers. Personification. The beauty imparted to the uninhabited desert pleases God, for whom primarily all things exist, and He has ulterior designs in it.

JFB: Job 38:28

In the night--lower temperature of objects on the earth.

JFB: Job 38:29

Job 37:10.

JFB: Job 38:30

The unfrozen waters are hid under the frozen, as with a covering of stone.

JFB: Job 38:30

Literally, "is taken"; the particles take hold of one another so as to cohere.

JFB: Job 38:31

The joy diffused by spring, the time when the Pleiades appear. The Eastern poets, Hafiz, Sadi, &c., describe them as "brilliant rosettes." GESENIUS translates: "bands" or "knot," which answers better the parallelism. But English Version agrees better with the Hebrew. The seven stars are closely "bound" together (see on Job 9:9). "Canst thou bind or loose the tie?" "Canst thou loose the bonds by which the constellation Orion (represented in the East as an impious giant chained to the sky) is held fast?" (See on Job 9:9).

JFB: Job 38:32

The twelve lodgings in which the sun successively stays, or appears, in the sky?

JFB: Job 38:32

Ursa Major.

JFB: Job 38:32

The three stars in his tail. Canst thou make them appear in the sky? (Job 9:9). The great and less Bear are called by the Arabs "Daughters of the Bier," the quadrangle being the bier, the three others the mourners.

JFB: Job 38:33

Which regulate the alternations of seasons, &c. (Gen 8:22).

JFB: Job 38:33

Controlling influence of the heavenly bodies, the sun, moon, &c., on the earth (on the tides, weather) (Gen 1:16; Psa 136:7-9).

JFB: Job 38:34

Jer 14:22; above Job 22:11, metaphorically.

JFB: Job 38:35

At thy disposal (Isa 6:8).

JFB: Job 38:36

But "dark clouds" ("shining phenomena") [UMBREIT]; "meteor" [MAURER], referring to the consultation of these as signs of weather by the husbandman (Ecc 11:4). But Hebrew supports English Version. The connection is, "Who hath given thee the intelligence to comprehend in any degree the phenomena just specified?"

JFB: Job 38:36

Not the usual Hebrew word, but one from a root "to view"; perception.

JFB: Job 38:37

Who appoints by his wisdom the due measure of the clouds?

JFB: Job 38:37

Rather, "empty"; literally, "lay down" or "incline" so as to pour out.

JFB: Job 38:37

Rain-filled clouds.

JFB: Job 38:38

Rather, pour itself into a mass by the rain, like molten metal; then translate Job 38:38, "Who is it that empties," &c., "when," &c.? The English Version, however, is tenable: "Is caked into a mass" by heat, like molten metal, before the rain falls; "Who is it that can empty the rain vessels, and bring down rain at such a time?" (Job 38:38).

JFB: Job 38:39

At Job 38:39-39:30, the instincts of animals. Is it thou that givest it the instinct to hunt its prey? (Psa 104:21).

JFB: Job 38:39

Literally, "life," which depends on the appetite" (Job 33:20).

JFB: Job 38:40

For their prey (Psa 10:9).

JFB: Job 38:41

Luk 12:24. Transition from the noble lioness to the croaking raven. Though man dislikes it, as of ill omen, God cares for it, as for all His creatures.

JFB: Job 39:1

(Job 39:1-30)

Even wild beasts, cut off from all care of man, are cared for by God at their seasons of greatest need. Their instinct comes direct from God and guides them to help themselves in parturition; the very time when the herdsman is most anxious for his herds.

JFB: Job 39:1

Ibex (Psa 104:18; 1Sa 24:2).

JFB: Job 39:1

Fawns; most timid and defenseless animals, yet cared for by God.

JFB: Job 39:2

They bring forth with ease and do not need to reckon the months of pregnancy, as the shepherd does in the case of his flocks.

JFB: Job 39:3

In parturition; bend on their knees (1Sa 4:19).

JFB: Job 39:3

Literally, "cause their young to cleave the womb and break forth."

JFB: Job 39:3

Their young ones, the cause of their momentary pains.

JFB: Job 39:4

In good condition, grow up strong.

JFB: Job 39:4

Rather, "in the field," without man's care.

JFB: Job 39:4

Being able to provide for themselves.

JFB: Job 39:5

Two different Hebrew words are here used for the same animal, "the ass of the woods" and "the wild ass." (See on Job 6:5; Job 11:12; Job 24:5; and Jer 2:24).

JFB: Job 39:5

Given its liberty to. Man can rob animals of freedom, but not, as God, give freedom, combined with subordination to fixed laws.

JFB: Job 39:6

Literally, "salt," that is, unfruitful. (So Psa 107:34, Margin.)

JFB: Job 39:7

Rather, "din"; he sets it at defiance, being far away from it in the freedom of the wilderness.

JFB: Job 39:7

Who urges on the tame ass to work. The wild ass is the symbol of uncontrolled freedom in the East; even kings have, therefore, added its name to them.

JFB: Job 39:8

Literally, "searching," "that which it finds by searching is his pasture."

JFB: Job 39:9

PLINY [Natural History, 8.21], mentions such an animal; its figure is found depicted in the ruins of Persepolis. The Hebrew reem conveys the idea of loftiness and power (compare Ramah; Indian, Ram; Latin, Roma). The rhinoceros was perhaps the original type of the unicorn. The Arab rim is a two-horned animal. Sometimes "unicorn" or reem is a mere poetical symbol or abstraction; but the buffalo is the animal referred to here, from the contrast to the tame ox, used in ploughing (Job 39:10, Job 39:12).

JFB: Job 39:9

Literally, "pass the night."

JFB: Job 39:9

(Isa 1:3).

JFB: Job 39:10

Fastened to the horns, as its chief strength lies in the head and shoulders.

JFB: Job 39:10

Obedient to thee; willing to follow, instead of being goaded on before thee.

JFB: Job 39:11

Rustic work.

JFB: Job 39:12

Trust.

JFB: Job 39:12

Produce (1Sa 8:15).

JFB: Job 39:12

Rather, "gather (the contents of) thy threshing-floor" [MAURER]; the corn threshed on it.

JFB: Job 39:13

Literally, "the crying bird"; as the Arab name for it means "song"; referring to its night cries (Job 30:29; Mic 1:8) vibrating joyously. "Is it not like the quill and feathers of the pious bird" (the stork)? [UMBREIT]. The vibrating, quivering wing, serving for sail and oar at once, is characteristic of the ostrich in full course. Its white and black feathers in the wing and tail are like the stork's. But, unlike that bird, the symbol of parental love in the East, it with seeming want of natural (pious) affection deserts its young. Both birds are poetically called by descriptive, instead of their usual appellative, names.

JFB: Job 39:14-15

Yet (unlike the stork) she "leaveth," &c. Hence called by the Arabs "the impious bird." However, the fact is, she lays her eggs with great care and hatches them, as other birds do; but in hot countries the eggs do not need so constant incubation; she therefore often leaves them and sometimes forgets the place on her return. Moreover, the outer eggs, intended for food, she feeds to her young; these eggs, lying separate in the sand, exposed to the sun, gave rise to the idea of her altogether leaving them. God describes her as she seems to man; implying, though she may seem foolishly to neglect her young, yet really she is guided by a sure instinct from God, as much as animals of instincts widely different.

JFB: Job 39:16

On a slight noise she often forsakes her eggs, and returns not, as if she were "hardened towards her young."

JFB: Job 39:16

In producing eggs, is in vain, (yet) she has not disquietude (about her young), unlike other birds, who, if one egg and another are taken away, will go on laying till their full number is made up.

JFB: Job 39:17

Such as God gives to other animals, and to man (Job 35:11). The Arab proverb is, "foolish as an ostrich." Yet her very seeming want of wisdom is not without wise design of God, though man cannot see it; just as in the trials of the godly, which seem so unreasonable to Job, there lies hid a wise design.

JFB: Job 39:18

Notwithstanding her deficiencies, she has distinguishing excellences.

JFB: Job 39:18

For running; she cannot mount in the air. GESENIUS translates: "lashes herself" up to her course by flapping her wings. The old versions favor English Version, and the parallel "scorneth" answers to her proudly "lifting up herself."

JFB: Job 39:19

The allusion to "the horse" (Job 39:18), suggests the description of him. Arab poets delight in praising the horse; yet it is not mentioned in the possessions of Job (Job 1:3; Job 42:12). It seems to have been at the time chiefly used for war, rather than "domestic purposes."

JFB: Job 39:19

Poetically for, "he with arched neck inspires fear as thunder does." Translate, "majesty" [UMBREIT]. Rather "the trembling, quivering mane," answering to the "vibrating wing" of the ostrich (see on Job 39:13) [MAURER]. "Mane" in Greek also is from a root meaning "fear." English Version is more sublime.

JFB: Job 39:20

Rather, "canst thou (as I do) make him spring as the locust?" So in Joe 2:4, the comparison is between locusts and war-horses. The heads of the two are so similar that the Italians call the locusts cavaletta, "little horse."

JFB: Job 39:20

Snorting furiously.

JFB: Job 39:21

Where the battle is joined.

JFB: Job 39:21

Goeth forth (Num 1:3; Num 21:23).

JFB: Job 39:23

For the arrows, which they contain, and which are directed "against him."

JFB: Job 39:23

Literally, "glittering of the spear," like "lightning of the spear" (Hab 3:11).

JFB: Job 39:23

Rather, "lance."

JFB: Job 39:24

Fretting with impatience, he draws the ground towards him with his hoof, as if he would swallow it. The parallelism shows this to be the sense; not as MAURER, "scours over it."

JFB: Job 39:24

For joy. Rather, "he will not stand still, when the note of the trumpet (soundeth)."

JFB: Job 39:25

Poetically applied to his mettlesome neighing, whereby he shows his love of the battle.

JFB: Job 39:25

Snuffeth; discerneth (Isa 11:3, Margin).

JFB: Job 39:25

Thundering voice.

JFB: Job 39:26

The instinct by which some birds migrate to warmer climes before winter. Rapid flying peculiarly characterizes the whole hawk genus.

JFB: Job 39:27

It flies highest of all birds: thence called "the bird of heaven."

JFB: Job 39:28

Securely (Psa 91:1); it occupies the same abode mostly for life.

JFB: Job 39:28

Literally, "tooth" (1Sa 14:5, Margin).

JFB: Job 39:28

Citadel, fastness.

JFB: Job 39:29

Is on the lookout for.

JFB: Job 39:29

The eagle descries its prey at an astonishing distance, by sight, rather than smell.

JFB: Job 39:30

Quoted partly by Jesus Christ (Mat 24:28). The food of young eagles is the blood of victims brought by the parent, when they are still too feeble to devour flesh.

JFB: Job 39:30

As the vulture chiefly feeds on carcasses, it is included probably in the eagle genus.

He had paused for a reply, but Job was silent.

Clarke: Job 38:4

Where wast thou when I laid the foundations of the earth? - Thou hast a limited and derived being; thou art only of yesterday; what canst thou know? Didst thou see me create the world?

Clarke: Job 38:5

Who hath laid the measures thereof - Who hath adjusted its polar and equatorial distances from the center

Clarke: Job 38:5

Who hath stretched the line - Who hath formed its zones and its great circles, and adjusted the whole of its magnitude and gravity to the orbit in which it was to move, as well as its distance from that great center about which it was to revolve? These questions show the difficulty of the subject; and that there was an unfathomable depth of counsel and design in the formation of the earth.

Clarke: Job 38:6

Whereupon are the foundations thereof fastened? - How does it continue to revolve in the immensity of space? What supports it? Has it foundations like a building, and is it fastened with a key-stone, to keep the mighty fabric in union?

Clarke: Job 38:7

When the morning stars sang together - This must refer to some intelligent beings who existed before the creation of the visible heavens and earth: and it is supposed that this and the following clause refer to the same beings; that by the sons of God, and the morning stars, the angelic host is meant; as they are supposed to be first, though perhaps not chief, in the order of creation. For the latter clause the Chaldee has, "All the troops of angels."Perhaps their creation may be included in the term heavens, Gen 1:1 : "In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth."These witnessed the progress of the creation; and, when God had finished his work, celebrated his wisdom and power in the highest strains.

Clarke: Job 38:8

Who shut up the sea with doors - Who gathered the waters together into one place, and fixed the sea its limits, so that it cannot overpass them to inundate the earth

Clarke: Job 38:8

When it brake forth, as if it had issued out of the womb? - This is a very fine metaphor. The sea is represented as a newly born infant issuing from the womb of the void and formless chaos; and the delicate circumstance of the liquor amnii, which bursts out previously to the birth of the foetus, alluded to. The allusion to the birth of a child is carried on in the next verse.

Clarke: Job 38:9

When I make the cloud the garment - Alluding to the cloth in which the new-born infant is first received. The cloud was the same to the newly raised vapor, as the above recipient to the new-born child

Clarke: Job 38:9

And thick darkness a swaddlingband for it - Here is also an allusion to the first dressings of the new-born child: it is swathed in order to support the body, too tender to bear even careful handling without some medium between the hand of the nurse and the flesh of the child. "The image,"says Mr. Good, "is exquisitely maintained: the new-born ocean is represented as issuing from the womb of chaos; and its dress is that of the new-born infant."There is here an allusion also to the creation, as described in Gen 1:1, Gen 1:2. Darkness is there said to be on the face of the Deep. Here it is said, the thick darkness was a swaddlingband for the new-born Sea.

Clarke: Job 38:10

And brake up for it my decreed place - This refers to the decree, Gen 1:9 : "Let the waters under the heavens be gathered together unto one place.

Clarke: Job 38:10

And set bars and doors - And let the dry land appear. This formed the bars and doors of the sea; the land being everywhere a barrier against the encroachments and inundations of the sea; and great rivers, bays, creeks, etc., the doors by which it passes into the interior of continents, etc.

Clarke: Job 38:11

Hitherto shalt thou come - Thus far shall thy flux and reflux extend. The tides are marvellously limited and regulated, not only by the lunar and solar attractions, but by the quantum of time also which is required to remove any part of the earth’ s surface from under the immediate attractive influence of the sun and moon. And this regulation takes place by means of the rotation of the earth round its own axis, which causes one thousand and forty-two miles of its equator to pass from under any given point in the heavens in one hour; and about five hundred and eighty miles in the latitude of London: so that the attracted fluid parts are every moment passing from under the direct attractive influence, and thus the tides cannot generally be raised to any extraordinary height. The attraction of the sun and moon, and the gravitation of its own parts to its own center, which prevent too great a flux on the one hand, and too great a reflux on the other; or, in other words, too high a tide, and too deep an ebb, are also some of those bars and doors by which its proud waves are stayed, and prevented from coming farther; all being regulated by these laws of attraction by the sun and moon, the gravitation of its own parts from the sun and moon, and the diurnal motion round its own axis, by which the fluid parts, easily yielding to the above attraction, are continually moving from under the direct attractive influence. Here a world of wisdom and management was necessary, in order to proportion all these things to each other, so as to procure the great benefits which result from the flux and reflux of the sea, and prevent the evils that must take place, at least occasionally, were not those bars and doors provided. It is well known that the spring-tides happen at the change and full of the moon, at which time she is in conjunction with and opposition to the sun. As these retire from their conjunction, the tides neap till about three days after the first quadrature, when the tides begin again to be more and more elevated, and arrive at their maximum about the third day after the opposition. From this time the tides neap as before till the third day after the last quadrature; and afterwards their daily elevations are continually increased till about the third day after the conjunction, when they recommence their neaping; the principal phenomena of the tides always taking place at or near the some points of every lunar synodic revolution.

Clarke: Job 38:12

Hast thou commanded the morning - This refers to dawn or morning twilight, occasioned by the refraction of the solar rays by means of the atmosphere; so that we receive the light by degrees, which would otherwise burst at once upon our eyes, and injure, if not destroy, our sight; and by which even the body of the sun himself becomes evident several minutes before he rises above the horizon

Clarke: Job 38:12

Caused the dayspring to know his place - This seems to refer to the different points in which daybreak appears during the course of the earth’ s revolution in its orbit; and which variety of points of appearing depends on this annual revolution. For, as the earth goes round the sun every year in the ecliptic, one half of which is on the north side of the equinoctial, and the other half on its south side, the sun appears to change his place every day. These are matters which the wisdom of God alone could plan, and which his power alone could execute. It may be just necessary to observe that the dawn does not appear, nor the sun rise exactly in the same point of the horizon, two successive days in the whole year, as he declines forty-three degrees north, and forty-three degrees south, of east; beginning on the 21st of March, and ending on the 22d of December; which variations not only produce the places of rising and setting, but also the length of day and night. And by this declination north and south, or approach to and recession from the tropics of Cancer and Capricorn, the solar light takes hold of the ends of the earth, Job 38:13, enlightens the arctic and antarctic circles in such a way as it would not do were it always on the equinoctial line; these tropics taking the sun twenty-three and a half degrees north, and as many south, of this line.

Clarke: Job 38:13

That the wicked might be shaken out of it? - The meaning appears to be this: as soon as the light begins to dawn upon the earth, thieves, assassins, murderers, and adulterers, who all hate and shun the light, fly like ferocious beasts to their several dens and hiding places; for such do not dare to come to the light, lest their works be manifest, which are not wrought in God. To this verse the fifteenth appears to belong, as it connects immediately with it, which connection the introduction of the fourteenth verse disturbs. "And from the wicked,"such as are mentioned above "their light is withholden;"they love darkness rather than light, because their deeds are evil; and as they prowl after their prey in the night-season, they are obliged to sleep in the day, and thus its "light is withholden"from them. "And the high arm shall be broken;"or, as Mr. Good translates, "The roving of wickedness is broken off."They can no longer pursue their predatory and injurious excursions.

Clarke: Job 38:14

It is turned as clay to the seal - The earth, like soft clay, is capable of modifying itself in endless ways, and assuming infinite forms. As a proof of this, see the astonishing variety of plants, flowers, and fruits, and the infinitely diversified hues, odours, tastes, consistency, and properties, of its vegetable productions. There seems to be an allusion here to the sealing of clay, which I believe has been, and is now, frequent in the East. Six of those Eastern seals for sealing clay, made of brass, the figures and characters all in relief, the interstices being entirely perforated and cut out, so that the upper side of the seal is the same as the lower, now lie before me. They seem to have been used for stamping pottery, as some of the fine clay still appears in the interstices

Clarke: Job 38:14

And they stand as a garment - The earth receiving these impressions from the solar light and heat, plants and flowers spring up, and decorate its surface as the most beautiful stamped garment does the person of the most sumptuously dressed female. Mr. Good translates the whole verse thus: - "Canst thou cause them to bend round as clay to the mould, so that they are made to sit like a garment?"He supposes that reference is here made to the rays of light; but take his own words: "The image, as it appears to me, is taken directly from the art of pottery, an image of very frequent recurrence in Scripture; and in the present instance admirably forcible in painting the ductility with which the new light of the morning bends round like clay to the mould, and accompanies the earth in every part of its shape so as to fit it, as we are expressly told in the ensuing metaphor, like a garment, as the clay fits the mould itself."Mr. Good supposes that a mould in which the pottery is formed, not a seal by which it is impressed, is referred to here. In this sense I do not see the metaphor consistent, nor the allusion happy. It is well known that the rays of light never bend. They may be reflected at particular angles, but they never go out of a straight course. A gun might as well be expected to shoot round a corner, as a ray of light to go out of a straight line, or to follow the sinuous or angular windings of a tube, canal, or adit. But if we take in the sun as he advances in his diurnal voyage, or rather the earth, as it turns round its axis from west to east, the metaphor of Mr. Good will be correct enough; but we must leave out bending and ductility, as every part of the earth’ s surface will be at least successively invested with the light.

Clarke: Job 38:16

Hast thou entered into the springs of the sea? - Of these springs, inlets, or outlets of the sea, we know just as much as Job. There was prevalent among philosophers an opinion, that through a porous bottom fresh matter was constantly oozing by which the sea was supplied with new materials. But through such pores these materials might as well ooze out as ooze in

Clarke: Job 38:16

Walked in the search of the depth? - Hast thou walked from the shallow beach through the great ocean’ s bed, till thou hast arrived at its profoundest depths? In other words, Dost thou know the depths of the sea? Job, we may presume, did not. No man since him has found them out. In multitudes of places they are unfathomed by any means hitherto used by man.

Clarke: Job 38:17

Have the gates of death been opened unto thee? - Dost thou know in what the article of death consists? This is as inexplicable as the question, What is animal life

Clarke: Job 38:17

The doors of the shallow of death? - צלמות tsalmaveth , the intermediate state, the openings into the place of separate spirits. Here two places are distinguished: מות maveth , death, and צלמות tsalmaveth , the shadow of death. It will not do to say, death is the privation of life, for what then would be the shadow of that privation?

Clarke: Job 38:18

The breadth of the earth? - At that time the circumference of the globe was not known, because the earth itself was supposed to be a vast extended plain, bordered all round with the ocean and the sky.

Clarke: Job 38:19

Where light dwelleth - What is the source of light? Yea, what is light itself? It is not in the sun, for light was before the sun; but what is light? It is no doubt a substance; but of what kind? and of what are its particles? As to darkness, what is It? Is it philosophical to say, it is the mere privation of light? I shall think philosophy has made some advances to general accuracy and perfection when it proves to us what cold is, and what darkness is, leaving mere privations out of the question.

Clarke: Job 38:20

Shouldest take it to the bound thereof? - Or, as Mr. Good, translates, "That thou shouldest lay hold of it in its boundary."That thou shouldest go to the very spot where light commences, and where darkness ends; and see the house where each dwells. Here darkness and light are personified, each as a real intelligent being, having a separate existence and local dwelling. But poetry animates everything. It is the region of fictitious existence. I believe this verse should be translated thus: - "For thou canst take Us to its boundary; for thou knowest the paths to its house."This is a strong irony, and there are several others in this Divine speech. Job had valued himself too much on his knowledge; and a chief object of this august speech is to humble his "knowing pride,"and to cause him to seek true wisdom and humility where they are to be found.

Clarke: Job 38:21

Knowest thou - This is another strong and biting irony, and the literal translation proves it: "Thou knowest, because thou was then born; and the number of thy days is great,"or multitudinous, רבים rabbim , multitudes.

Clarke: Job 38:22

The treasures of the snow - The places where snow is formed, and the cause of that formation. See on Job 37:6 (note)

Clarke: Job 38:22

Treasures of the hail - It is more easy to account for the formation of snow than of hail. Hail, however, is generally supposed to be drops of rain frozen in their passage through cold regions of the air; and the hail is always in proportion to the size of the raindrop from which it was formed. But this meteor does not appear to be formed from a single drop of water, as it is found to be composed of many small spherules frozen together, the center sometimes soft like snow, and at other times formed of a hard nucleus, which in some cases has been of a brown color, capable of ignition and explosion. In the description given of snow, Job 37:6, it has been stated that both snow and hail owe their formation to electricity; the hail being formed in the higher regions of the air, where the cold is intense, and the electric matter abundant. By this agency it is supposed that a great number of aqueous particles are brought together and frozen, and in their descent collect other particles, so that the density of the substance of the hailstone grows less and less from the center, this being formed first in the higher regions, and the surface being collected in the lower. This theory is not in all cases supported by fact, as in some instances the center has been found soft and snow-like, when the surface has been hard. Hail is the only meteor of this kind, from which no apparent good is derived. Rain and dew invigorate and give life to the whole vegetable world; frost, by expanding the water contained in the earth, pulverizes and renders the soil fertile; snow covers and defends vegetables from being destroyed by too severe a frost; but hail does none of these. It not only does no good, but often much harm - always some. It has a chilling, blasting effect in spring and summer, and cuts the tender plants so as to injure or totally destroy them. In short, the treasures of hail are not well known; and its use in the creation has not yet been ascertained. But frost is God’ s universal plough, by which he cultivates the whole earth.

Clarke: Job 38:23

Reserved against the time of trouble - לעת צר leeth tsar , "to the season of strictness,"i.e., the season when the earth is constringed or bound by the frost

Clarke: Job 38:23

Against the day of battle and war? - Hailstones being often employed as instruments of God’ s displeasure against his enemies, and the enemies of his people. There is probably an allusion here to the plague of hail sent on the Egyptians. See Exo 9:23 (note), and the notes there, for more particulars concerning hailstones, remarkable showers of them, etc. There may be also a reference to Jos 10:10-11 (note), where a destructive shower of what are called hailstones fell upon the Canaanitish kings who fought against Israel. See the note there also.

Clarke: Job 38:24

By what way is the light parted - Who can accurately describe the cause and operation of a thunder cloud, the cause, nature, and mode of operation of the lightning itself? Is it a simple element or compound substance? What is its velocity? and why not conductible by every kind of substance, as it is known to exist in all, and, indeed, to be diffused through every portion of nature? How is it parted? How does it take its zigzag form? this is the curious, indescribable, and unknown parting. Are all the causes of positive and negative electricity found out? What are its particles, and how do they cohere, and in what order are they propagated? Much has been said on all these points, and how little of that much satisfactorily

Clarke: Job 38:24

Scattereth the east wind upon the earth? - קדים kadim , the eastern storm, euroclydon, or levanter.

Clarke: Job 38:25

Divided a water-course - The original תעלה tealah , from עלה alah , to ascend, may signify rather a cloud, or clouds in general, where the waters are stored up. I cannot see how the overflowings or torrents of water can be said to ascend any other way than by evaporation; and it is by this Divine contrivance that the earth is not only irrigated, but even dried; and by this means too much moisture is not permitted to lie upon the ground, which would not only be injurious to vegetation, but even destroy it. But query, may not a waterspout be intended

Clarke: Job 38:25

A way for the lightning of thunder - " A path for the bolt of thunder."God is represented as directing the course even of the lightning; he launches the bolt, and makes the path in which it is to run. To grasp, manage, and dart the thunderbolt or lightning, was a work which heathenism gave to Jupiter, its supreme god. None of the inferior deities were capable of this. But who can thunder with a voice like the Almighty? He is The Thunderer.

Clarke: Job 38:26

To cause it to rain on the earth - It is well known that rain falls copiously in thunder-storms. The flash is first seen, the clap is next heard, and last the rain descends. The lightning travels all lengths in no perceivable succession of time. Sound is propagated at the rate of 1142 feet in a second. Rain travels still more slowly, and will be seen sooner or later according to the weight of the drops, and the distance of the cloud from the place of the spectator. Now the flash, the clap, and the rain, take place all in the same moment, but are discernible by us in the succession already mentioned, and for the reasons given above; and more at large in the note on Job 36:29, etc. But how are these things formed? The lightning is represented as coming immediately from the hand of God. The clap is the effect of the lightning, which causes a vacuum in that part of the atmosphere through which it passes; the air rushing in to restore the equilibrium may cause much of the noise that is heard in the clap. An easy experiment on the airpump illustrates this: Take a glass receiver open at both ends, over one end tie a piece of sheep’ s bladder wet, and let it stand till thoroughly dry. Then place the open end on the plate of the airpump, and exhaust the air slowly from under it. The bladder soon becomes concave, owing to the pressure of the atmospheric air on it, the supporting air in the receiver being partly thrown out. Carry on the exhaustion, and the air presses at the rate of fifteen pounds on every square inch; see on Job 28:28 (note). The fibres of the bladder, being no longer capable of bearing the pressure of the atmospheric column upon the receiver, are torn to pieces, with a noise equal to the report of a musket, which is occasioned by the air rushing in to restore the equilibrium. Imagine a rapid succession of such experiments, and you have the peal of thunder, the rupture of the first bladder being the clap. But the explosion of the gases (oxygen and hydrogen) of which water is composed will also account for the noise. See below. But how does the thunder cause rain? By the most accurate and incontestable experiments it is proved that water is a composition of two elastic airs or gases as they are called, oxygen and hydrogen. In 100 parts of water there are 88 1/4 of oxygen, and 11 3/4 of hydrogen. Pass a succession of electric sparks through water by means of a proper apparatus, and the two gases are produced in the proportions mentioned above. To decompose water by galvanism: - Take a narrow glass tube three or four inches long; fit each end with a cork penetrated by a piece of slender iron wire, and fill the tube with water. Let the ends of the two wires within the tube be distant from each other about three quarters of an inch, and let one be made to communicate with the top, the other with the bottom of a galvanic pile in action. On making this communication, bubbles of air will be formed, and ascend to the top of the tube, the water decreasing as it is decomposed. The oxygen and hydrogen formed by this experiment may be recomposed into the same weight of water. Take any quantity of the oxygen and hydrogen gases in the proportions already mentioned; ignite them by the electric spark, and they produce a quantity of water equal in weight to the gases employed. Thus, then, we can convert water into air, and reconvert this air into water; and the proportions hold as above. I have repeatedly seen this done, and assisted in doing it, but cannot, in this place, describe every thing in detail. Now to the purpose of this note: the rain descending after the flash and the peal. The electric spark or matter of lightning, passing through the atmosphere, ignites and decomposes the oxygen and hydrogen, which explode, and the water which was formed of these two falls down in the form of rain. The explosion of the gases, as well as the rushing in of the circumambient air to restore the equilibrium, will account for the clap and peal: as the decomposition and ignition of them will account for the water or rain which is the attendant of a thunder storm. Thus by the lightning of thunder God causes it to rain on the earth. How marvellous and instructive are his ways!

Clarke: Job 38:27

To satisfy the desolate and waste - The thunder cloud not only explodes over inhabited countries, that the air may be purified and the rain sent down to fertilize the earth, but it is conducted over deserts where there is no human inhabitant; and this to cause the bud of the tender herb to spring forth: for there are beasts, fowls, and insects, that inhabit the desert and the wilderness, and must be nourished by the productions of the ground. Every tribe of animals was made by the hand of God, and even the lowest of them is supported by his kind providence.

Clarke: Job 38:28

Hath the rain a father? - Or, Who is the father of the rain? We have seen above one part of the apparatus by which God produces it; other causes have been mentioned on Job 36:27, etc

Clarke: Job 38:28

The drops of dew? - אגלי egley , the sphericles, the small round drops or globules. Dew is a dense moist vapor, found on the earth in spring and summer mornings, in the form of a mizzling rain. Dr. Hutton defines it, "a thin, light, insensible mist or rain, descending with a slow motion, and falling while the sun is below the horizon. It appears to differ from rain as less from more. Its origin and matter are doubtless from the vapours and exhalations that rise from the earth and water."Various experiments have been instituted to ascertain whether dew arises from the earth, or descends from the atmosphere; and those pro and con have alternately preponderated. The question is not yet decided; and we cannot yet tell any more than Job which hath begotten the drops of dew, the atmosphere or the earth. Is it water deposited from the atmosphere, when the surface of the ground is colder than the air?

Clarke: Job 38:29

Out of whose womb came the ice? - Ice is a solid, transparent, and brittle body, formed of water by means of cold. Some philosophers suppose that ice is only the re-establishment of water in its natural state; that the mere absence of fire is sufficient to account for this re-establishment; and that the fluidity of water is a real fusion, like that of metals exposed to the action of fire; and differing only in this, that a greater portion of fire is necessary to one than the other. Ice, therefore, is supposed to be the natural state of water; so that in its natural state water is solid, and becomes fluid only by the action of fire, as solid metallic bodies are brought into a state of fusion by the same means. Ice is lighter than water, its specific gravity being to that of water as eight to nine. This rarefaction of ice is supposed to be owing to the air-bubbles produced in water by freezing, and which, being considerably larger in proportion to the water frozen, render the body so much specifically lighter; hence ice always floats on water. The air-bubbles, during their production, acquire a great expansive power, so as to burst the containing vessels, be they ever so strong. See examples in the note on Job 37:10 (note)

Clarke: Job 38:29

The hoary frost of heaven, who hath gendered it? - Hoar-frost is the congelation of dew, in frosty mornings, on the grass. It consists of an assemblage of little crystals of ice, which are of various figures, according to the different disposition of the vapours when met and condensed by the cold. Its production is owing to some laws with which we are not yet acquainted. Of this subject, after the lapse and experience of between two and three thousand years, we know about as much as Job did. And the question, What hath engendered the hoar-frost of heaven! is, to this hour, nearly as inexplicable to us as it was to him! Is it enough to say that hoar-frost is water deposited from the atmosphere at a low temperature, so as to produce congelation?

Clarke: Job 38:30

The waters are hid as with a stone - Here is a reference to freezing in the winter, as we may learn from some of the constellations mentioned below, which arise above our horizon, in the winter months. The word יתחבאו yithchabbau is understood by the versions in general as implying hardening or congelation; and we know in some intense frosts the ice becomes as hard as a stone; and even the face of the deep - the very seas themselves, not only in the polar circles, but even in northern countries, Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Holland, and parts of Germany, are really frozen, and locked up from all the purposes of navigation for several months in winter.

Clarke: Job 38:31

Canst thou bind the sweet influences of Pleiades - The Pleiades are a constellation in the sign Taurus. They consist of six stars visible to the naked eye; to a good eye, in a clear night, seven are discernible; but with a telescope ten times the number may be readily counted. They make their appearance in the spring. Orion may be seen in the morning, towards the end of October, and is visible through November, December, and January; and hence, says Mr. Good, it becomes a correct and elegant synecdoche for the winter at large. The Pleiades are elegantly opposed to Orion, as the vernal renovation of nature is opposed to its wintry destruction; the mild and open benignity of spring, to the severe and icy inactivity of winter. I have already expressed my mind on these supposed constellations, and must refer to my notes on Job 9:9, etc., and to the learned notes of Doctor Hales and Mr. Mason Good on these texts. They appear certain, where I am obliged to doubt; and, from their view of the subject, make very useful and important deductions. I find reluctance in departing from the ancient versions. In this case, these learned men follow them; I cannot, because I do not see the evidence of the groundwork; and I dare not draw conclusions from premises which seem to me precarious, or which I do not understand. I wish, therefore, the reader to examine and judge for himself

Coverdale renders the Job 38:31 and Job 38:32 verses thus

Hast thou brought the VII starres together? Or, Art thou able to breake the circle of heaven? Canst thou bringe forth the morynge starre, or the evenynge starre, at convenient tyme, and conveye them home agayne?

Clarke: Job 38:32

Mazzaroth in his season? - This is generally understood to mean the signs of the zodiac. מזרות Mazzaroth , according to Parkhurst, comes from מזר mazar , to corrupt; and he supposes it to mean that pestilential wind in Arabia, called simoom, the season of which is the summer heats.

Clarke: Job 38:33

Knowest thou the ordinances of heaven? - Art thou a thorough astronomer? Art thou acquainted with all the laws of the planetary system? Canst thou account for the difference of their motions, and the influence by which they are retained and revolve in their orbits? And canst thou tell what influence or dominion they exercise on the earth? Sir Isaac Newton has given us much light on many of these things; but to his system, which is most probably the true one, gravity is essential; and yet what this gravity is he could neither explain nor comprehend; and his followers are not one whit wiser than he. No man has ever yet fully found out the ordinances of heaven, and the dominion thereof on the earth.

Clarke: Job 38:34

Canst thou lift up thy voice to the clouds - Canst thou produce lightning and thunder, that water may be formed, and poured down upon the earth? Thunder is called קלות koloth , voices; for it is considered the voice of God: here then Job’ s voice, קולך kolecha , is opposed to the voice of Jehovah!

Clarke: Job 38:35

Canst thou send lightnings - We have already seen that the lightning is supposed to be immediately in the hand and under the management of God. The great god of the heathen, Jupiter Brontes, is represented with the forked lightnings and thunderbolt in his hand. He seems so to grasp the bickering flame that, though it struggles for liberty, it cannot escape from his hold. Lightnings - How much like the sound of thunder is the original word: ברכים Berakim ! Here are both sense and sound

Clarke: Job 38:35

Here we are? - Will the winged lightnings be thy messengers, as they are mine?

Clarke: Job 38:36

Who hath put wisdom in the in ward parts? - Who has given לשכוי lasechvi , to the contemplative person, understanding? Even the most sedulous attention to a subject, and the deepest contemplation, are not sufficient to investigate truth, without the inspiration of the Almighty, which alone can give understanding. But who has given man the power to conceive and understand? A power which he knows he has, but which he cannot comprehend. Man knows nothing of his own mind, nor of the mode of its operations. This mind we possess, these operations we perform; - and of either do we know any thing? If we know not our own spirit, how can we comprehend that Spirit which is infinite and eternal? Mr. Good thinks that this verse is a continuation of the subject above, relative to the lightnings, and therefore translates thus: -

Who putteth understanding into the vollies

And who giveth to the shafts discernment

All the versions, except the Septuagint, which trifles here, understand the place as we do. Either makes a good sense. The Septuagint has, "Who hath given the knowledge of weaving to women; or the science of embroidery?"Instead of understanding to the heart, the Vulgate has, understanding to the cock; that it might be able to distinguish and proclaim the watches of the night.

Clarke: Job 38:37

Who can number the clouds - Perhaps the word ספר saphar , which is commonly rendered to number, may here mean, as in Arabic, to irradiate, as Mr. Good contends; and may refer to those celestial and inimitable tinges which we sometimes behold in the sky

Clarke: Job 38:37

Bottles of heaven - The clouds: it is an allusion to the girbahs, or bottles made of skin, in which they are accustomed to carry their water from wells and tanks.

Clarke: Job 38:38

When the dust groweth into hardness - That is, Who knows how the dust - the elementary particles of matter, were concreted; and how the clods - the several parts of the earth, continue to cohere? What is the principle of cohesion among the different particles of matter, in all metals and minerals? Even water, in a solid form, constitutes a part of several gems, called thence water of crystallization. Who can solve this question? How is it that 90 parts of alumine, 7 of silex, and 1.2 of oxide of iron, constitute the oriental ruby? and that 90 parts of silex and 19 of water, form the precious opal? And how can 46 parts of silex, 14 of alumine, 28 of carbonate of lime, 6.5 of sulphate of lime, 3 of oxide of iron, and 2 of water, enter into the constitution, and form the substance, of the lapis lazuli? How do these solids and fluids of such differing natures grow into hardness, and form this curious mineral? Take another example from that beautiful precious stone, the emerald. Its analysis shows it to be composed of glucine 13, silex 64.5, alumine 16, lime 1.6, and oxide of chrome 3.25. Now how can these dusts, utterly worthless in themselves, grow into hardness, combine, and form one of the most beautiful, and, next to the diamond, the most precious, of all the gems? The almighty and infinitely wise God has done this in a way only known to and comprehensible by himself.

Clarke: Job 38:39

Wilt thou hunt the prey for the lion? - Rather the lioness, or strong lion. Hast thou his instinct? Dost thou know the habits and haunts of such animals as he seeks for his food? Thou hast neither his strength, his instinct nor his cunning. In the best Hebrew Bibles, the thirty-ninth chapter begins with this verse, and begins properly, as a new subject now commences, relating to the natural history of the earth, or the animal kingdom; as the preceding chapter does to astronomy and meteorology.

Clarke: Job 38:40

When they couch in their dens - Before they are capable of trusting themselves abroad

Clarke: Job 38:40

Abide in the covert - Before they are able to hunt down the prey by running. It is a fact that the young lions, before they have acquired sufficient strength and swiftness, lie under cover, in order to surprise those animals which they have not fleetness enough to overtake in the forest; and from this circumstance the כפירים kephirim , "young lions, or lions’ whelps,"have their name: the root is כפר caphar , to cover or hide. See the note on Job 4:11, where six different names are given to the lion, all expressing some distinct quality or state.

Clarke: Job 38:41

Who provideth for the raven - This bird is chosen, perhaps, for his voracious appetite, and general hunger for prey, beyond most other fowls. He makes a continual cry, and the cry is that of hunger. He dares not frequent the habitations of men, as he is considered a bird of ill omen, and hated by all. This verse is finely paraphrased by Dr. Young: -

"Fond man! the vision of a moment made

Dream of a dream, and shadow of a shade

What worlds hast thou produced, what creatures framed

What insects cherish’ d, that thy God is blamed

When pain’ d with hunger, the wild raven’ s broo

Calls upon God, importunate for food

Who hears their cry? Who grants their hoarse request

And stills the glamours of the craving nest?

On which he has this note: - "The reason given why the raven is particularly mentioned as the care of Providence is, because by her clamorous and importunate voice she particularly seems always calling upon it; thence κορασσω, α κοραξ, is to ask earnestly - Aelian. lib. ii., c. 48. And since there were ravens on the banks of the Nile, more clamorous than the rest of that species, those probably are meant in this place.

The commencement of Cicero’ s oration against Catiline, to which I have referred on Job 38:3, is the following: -

Quousque tandem abutere, Catilina, patientia nostra? Quamdiu etiam furor iste tuus nos eludet? Quem ad finem sese effrenata jactabit audacia? Nihilne te nocturnum praesidium palatii-nihil urbis vigiliae, - nihil timor popuii, - nihii concursus bonorum omnium, - nihil hic munitissimus habendi senatus locus-nihil horum ora, vultusque moverunt? Patere tua consilia nan sentis? Constrictam jam omnium horum conscientia teneri conjurationem tuam non vides? Quid proxima, quid superiore nocte egeris, - ubi fueris, quos convocaveris, - quid consilii ceperis, quem nostrum ignorare arbitraris? O tempora! O mores! Senatus haec intelligit, - consul videt; hic tamen vivit! Vivit? immo vero eitam in senatum venit; fit publici consilii particeps; notat et designat oculis ad caedem unumquemque nostrum! Nos autem, viri fortes, satisfacere reipublicae videmur, si istius furorem ac tela vitemus

"How long wilt thou, O Catiline, abuse our patience? How long shall thy madness out-brave our justice? To what extremities art thou resolved to push thy unbridled insolence of guilt? Canst thou behold the nocturnal arms that watch the palatium, - the guards of the city, - the consternation of the citizens, - all the wise and worthy clustering into consultation, - the impregnable situation of the seat of the senate, - and the reproachful looks of the fathers of Rome? Canst thou behold all this, and yet remain undaunted and unabashed? Art thou insensible that thy measures are detected? Art thou insensible that this senate, now thoroughly informed, comprehend the whole extent of thy guilt? Show me the senator ignorant of thy practices during the last and preceding night, of the place where you met, the company you summoned, and the crime you concerted. The senate is conscious, - the consul is witness to all this; yet, O how mean and degenerate! the traitor lives! Lives? he mixes with the senate; he shares in our counsels; with a steady eye he surveys us; he anticipates his guilt; he enjoys the murderous thought, and coolly marks us to bleed! Yet we, boldly passive in our country’ s cause, think we act like Romans, if we can escape his frantic rage!

The reader will perceive how finely Cicero rushes into this invective, as if the danger had been too immediate to give him leisure for the formality of address and introduction. See Guthrie’ s Orations of Cicero. Here is eloquence! Here is nature! And in thus speaking her language, the true orator pierces with his lightnings the deepest recesses of the heart. The success of this species of oratory is infallible in the pulpit, when the preacher understands how to manage it.

Clarke: Job 39:1

Knowest thou the time - To know time, etc., only, was easy, and has nothing extraordinary in it; but the meaning of these questions is, to know the circumstances, which have something peculiarly expressive of God’ s providence, and make the questions proper in this place. Pliny observes, that the hind with young is by instinct directed to a certain herb, named seselis, which facilitates the birth. Thunder, also, which looks like the more immediate hand of Providence, has the same effect. Psa 29:9 : "The Voice of the Lord maketh the Hinds to Calve."See Dr. Young. What is called the wild goat, יעל yael , from עלה alah , to ascend, go or mount up, is generally understood to be the ibex or mountain goat, called yael, from the wonderful manner in which it mounts to the tops of the highest rocks. It is certain, says Johnston, there is no crag of the mountains so high, prominent or steep, but this animal will mount it in a number of leaps, provided only it be rough, and have protuberances large enough to receive its hoofs in leaping. This animal is indigenous to Arabia, is of amazing strength and agility, and considerably larger than the common goat. Its horns are very long, and often bend back over the whole body of the animal; and it is said to throw itself from the tops of rocks or towers, and light upon its horns, without receiving any damage. It goes five months with young

Clarke: Job 39:1

When the hinds do calve? - The hind is the female of the stag, or cervus elaphus , and goes eight months with young. They live to thirty-five or forty years. Incredible longevity has been attributed to some stags. One was taken by Charles VI., in the forest of Senlis, about whose neck was a collar with this inscription, Caesar hoc mihi donavit , which led some to believe that this animal had lived from the days of some one of the twelve Caesars, emperors of Rome. I have seen the following form of this inscription: -

Tempore quo Caesar Roma dominatus in alt

Aureolo jussit collum signare monili

Nehemiah depascentem quisquis me gramina laedat

Caesaris heu! caussa periturae parcere vitae

Which has been long public in the old English ballad strain, thus: -

"When Julius Caesar reigned king

About my neck he put this ring

That whosoever should me tak

Would save my life for Caesar’ s sake.

Aristotle mentions the longevity of the stag, but thinks it fabulous.

Clarke: Job 39:3

They bow themselves - In order to bring forth their young ones

Clarke: Job 39:3

They cast out their sorrows - חבליהם chebleyhem ; the placenta, afterbirth, or umbilical cord. So this word has been understood.

Clarke: Job 39:4

In good liking - After the fawns have sucked for some time, the dam leads them to the pastures, where they feed on different kinds of herbage; but not on corn, for they are not born before harvest-time in Arabia and Palestine, and the stag does not feed on corn, but on grass, moss, and the shoots of the fir, beech, and other trees: therefore the word בר bar , here translated corn, should be translated the open field or country. See Parkhurst. Their nurslings bound away - Mr. Good. In a short time they become independent of the mother, leave her, and return no more. The spirit of the questions in these verses appears to be the following: - Understandest thou the cause of breeding of the mountain goats, etc.? Art thou acquainted with the course and progress of the parturition, and the manner in which the bones grow, and acquire solidity in the womb? See Mr. Good’ s observations. Houbigant’ s version appears very correct: (Knowest thou) "how their young ones grow up, increase in the fields, and once departing, return to them no more?"

Clarke: Job 39:5

Who hath sent out the wild ass free? - פרא pere , which we translate wild ass, is the same as the ονος αγριος of the Greeks, and the onager of the Latins; which must not, says Buffon, be confounded with the zebra, for this is an animal of a different species from the ass. The wild ass is not striped like the zebra, nor so elegantly shaped. There are many of those animals in the deserts of Libya and Numidia: they are of a gray color; and run so swiftly that no horse but the Arab barbs can overtake them. Wild asses are found in considerable numbers in East and South Tartary, in Persia, Syria, the islands of the Archipelago, and throughout Mauritania. They differ from tame asses only in their independence and liberty, and in their being stronger and more nimble: but in their shape they are the same. See on Job 6:5 (note)

Clarke: Job 39:5

The bands of the wild ass? - ערוד arod , the brayer, the same animal, but called thus because of the frequent and peculiar noise he makes. But Mr. Good supposes this to be a different animal from the wild ass, (the jichta or equus hemionus), which is distinguished by having solid hoofs, a uniform color, no cross on the back, and the tail hairy only at the tip. The ears and tail resemble those of the zebra; the hoofs and body, those of the ass; and the limbs, those of the horse. It inhabits Arabia, China, Siberia, and Tartary, in glassy saline plains or salt wastes, as mentioned in the following verse.

Clarke: Job 39:6

Whose house - Habitation, or place of resort

Clarke: Job 39:6

The barren land - מלחה melechah , the salt land, or salt places, as in the margin. See above.

Clarke: Job 39:7

He scorneth the multitude - He is so swift that he cannot be run or hunted down. See the description in Job 39:5 (note).

Clarke: Job 39:8

The range of the mountains - The mountains and desert places are his peculiar places of pasture; and he lives on any thing that is green, or any kind of vegetable production.

Clarke: Job 39:9

Will the unicorn be willing to serve thee? - The "fine elegant animal like a horse, with one long rich curled horn growing out of his forehead,"commonly called the unicorn, must be given up as fabulous. The heralds must claim him as their own; place him in their armorial bearings as they please, to indicate the unreal actions, fictitious virtues, and unfought martial exploits of mispraised men. It is not to the honor of the royal arms of Great Britain that this fabulous animal should be one of their supporters. The animal in question, called רים reim , is undoubtedly the rhinoceros, who has the latter name from the horn that grows on his nose. The rhinoceros is known by the name of reim in Arabia to the present day. He is allowed to be a savage animal, showing nothing of the intellect of the elephant. His horn enables him to combat the latter with great success; for, by putting his nose under the elephant’ s belly, he can rip him up. His skin is like armor, and so very hard as to resist sabres, javelins, lances, and even musket-balls; the only penetrable parts being the belly, the eyes, and about the ears

Clarke: Job 39:9

Or abide by thy crib? - These and several of the following expressions are intended to point out his savage, untameable nature.

Clarke: Job 39:10

Canst thou bind the unicorn - in the furrow? - He will not plough, nor draw in the yoke with another? nor canst thou use him singly, to harrow the ground.

Clarke: Job 39:12

That he will bring home thy seed - Thou canst make no domestic nor agricultural use of him.

Clarke: Job 39:13

The goodly wings unto the peacocks? - I believe peacocks are not intended here; and the Hebrew word רננים renanim should be translated ostriches; and the term חסידה chasidah , which we translate ostrich, should be, as it is elsewhere translated, stork; and perhaps the word נצה notsah , rendered here feathers, should be translated hawk, or pelican. The Vulgate has, Penna struthionis similis est pennis herodii et accipitris ; "the feather of the ostrich is like to that of the stork and the hawk."The Chaldee has, "The wing of the wild cock, who crows and claps his wings, is like to the wing of the stork and the hawk."The Septuagint, not knowing what to make of these different terms, have left them all untranslated, so as to make a sentence without sense. Mr. Good has come nearest both to the original and to the meaning, by translating thus: -

"The wing of the ostrich tribe is for flapping

But of the stork and falcon for flight.

Clarke: Job 39:13

Though the wings of the ostrich, says he, cannot raise it from the ground, yet by the motion here alluded to, by a perpetual vibration, or flapping - by perpetually catching or drinking in the wind, (as the term נעלסה neelasah implies, which we render goodly), they give it a rapidity of running beyond that possessed by any other animal in the world. Adanson informs us, that when he was at the factory in Padore, he was in possession of two tame ostriches; and to try their strength, says he, "I made a full-grown negro mount the smallest, and two others the largest. This burden did not seem at all disproportioned to their strength. At first they went a pretty high trot; and, when they were heated a little, they expanded their wings, as if it were to catch the wind, and they moved with such fleetness as to seem to be off the ground. And I am satisfied that those ostriches would have distanced the fleetest race-horses that were ever bred in England.

As to נצה notsah , here translated falcon, Mr. Good observes, that the term naz is used generally by the Arabian writers to signify both falcon and hawk; and there can be little doubt that such is the real meaning of the Hebrew word; and that it imports various species of the falcon family, as jer-falcon, gos-hawk, and sparrow-hawk

"The argument drawn from natural history advances from quadrupeds to birds; and of birds, those only are selected for description which are most common to the country in which the scene lies, and at the same time are most singular in their properties. Thus the ostrich is admirably contrasted with the stork and the eagle, as affording us an instance of a winged animal totally incapable of flight, but endued with an unrivalled rapidity of running, compared with birds whose flight is proverbially fleet, powerful, and persevering. Let man, in the pride of his wisdom, explain or arraign this difference of construction

"Again, the ostrich is peculiarly opposed to the stork and to some species of the eagle in another sense, and a sense adverted to in the verses immediately ensuing; for the ostrich is well known to take little or no care of its eggs, or of its young, while the stork ever has been, and ever deserves to be, held in proverbial repute for its parental tenderness. The Hebrew word חסידה chasidah , imports kindness or affection; and our own term stork, if derived from the Greek στοργη, storge, as some pretend, has the same original meaning."- Good’ s Job.

Clarke: Job 39:14

Which leaveth her eggs in the earth - This want of parental affection in the ostrich is almost universally acknowledged. Mr. Jackson, in his Account of Morocco, observes: "The ostrich, having laid her eggs, goes away, forgetting or forsaking them: and if some other ostrich discover them, she hatches them as if they were her own, forgetting probably whether they are or are not; so deficient is the recollection of this bird."This illustrates Job 39:15 : "And forgetteth that the foot may crush them, or that the wild beast may break them."The poet seems well acquainted with every part of the subject on which he writes; and facts incontestable confirm all he says. For farther illustration, see the account from Dr. Shaw at the end of the chapter, Job 39:30 (note).

Clarke: Job 39:16

She is hardened against her young - See before, and the extracts from Dr. Shaw at the end of the chapter, Job 39:30 (note). She neglects her little ones, which are often found half starved, straggling, and moaning about, like so many deserted orphans, for their mother.

Clarke: Job 39:17

God hath deprived her of wisdom - Of this foolishness we have an account from the ancients; and here follow two instances

1.    It covers its head in the reeds, and thinks itself all out of sight because itself cannot see. So Claudian: -

- ‘ Stat lumine claus

Ridendum revoluta caput: creditque later

Quad non ipsa videt.’

2.    They who hunt them draw the skin of an ostrich’ s neck on one hand, which proves a sufficient lure to take them with the other. They have so little brain that Heliogabalus had six hundred heads for his supper. Here we may observe, that our judicious as well as sublime author just touches the great points of distinction in each creature, and then hastens to another. A description is exact when you cannot add but what is common to another thing; nor withdraw, but something peculiarly belonging to the thing described. A likeness is lost in too much description, as a meaning is often in too much illustration."- Dr. Young.

Clarke: Job 39:18

She lifteth up herself - When she raiseth up herself to run away. Proofs of the fleetness of this bird have already been given. It neither flies nor runs distinctly, but has a motion composed of both; and, using its wings as sails, makes great speed. So Claudian: -

Vasta velut Libyae venantum vocibus ale

Cum premitur, calidas cursu transmittit arenas

Inque modum veli sinuatis flamine penni

Pulverulenta volat

"Xenophon says, Cyrus had horses that could overtake the goat and the wild ass; but none that could reach this creature. A thousand golden ducats, or a hundred camels, was the stated price of a horse that could equal their speed."- Dr. Young.

Clarke: Job 39:19

Hast thou given the horse strength? - Before I proceed to any observations, I shall give Mr. Good’ s version of this, perhaps inimitable, description: -

Clarke: Job 39:19

Job 39:19     Hast thou bestowed on the horse mettle?
Hast thou clothed his neck with the thunder flash

Job 39:20     Hast thou given him to launch forth as an arrow?
Terrible is the pomp of his nostrils

Job 39:21     He paweth in the valley, and exulteth.
Boldly he advanceth against the clashing host

Job 39:22     He mocketh at fear, and trembleth not:
Nor turneth he back from the sword

Job 39:23     Against him rattleth the quiver,
The glittering spear, and the shield

Job 39:24     With rage and fury he devoureth the ground;
And is impatient when the trumpet soundeth

Job 39:25     He exclaimeth among the trumpets, Aha!
And scenteth the battle afar off,
The thunder of the chieftains, and the shouting

In the year 1713, a letter was sent to the Guardian, which makes No. 86 of that work, containing a critique on this description, compared with similar descriptions of Homer and Virgil. I shall give the substance of it here: -

The great Creator, who accommodated himself to those to whom he vouchsafed to speak, hath put into the mouths of his prophets such sublime sentiments and exalted language as must abash the pride and wisdom of man. In the book of Job, the most ancient poem in the world, we have such paintings and descriptions as I have spoken of in great variety. I shall at present make some remarks on the celebrated description of the horse, in that holy book; and compare it with those drawn by Homer and Virgil

Homer hath the following similitude of a horse twice over in the Iliad, which Virgil hath copied from him; at least he hath deviated less from Homer than Mr. Dryden hath from him: -

Ὡς δ ’ ὁτε τις στατος ἱππος, ακοστησας επι φατνη

Δεσμον απορῥηξας θειει πεδιοιο κροαινων

Ειωθως λουεσθαι εΰρῥειος ποταμοιο

Κυδιοων· ὑψου δε καρη εχει, αμοι δε χαιτα

Ωμοις αΐσσονται· ὁ δ ’ αγλαΐῃφι πεποιθω

Ῥιμφα ἑ γουνα φερει μετα τ ’ ηθεα και νομον ἱππων

Hom. Il. lib. vi., ver. 506; and lib. xv., ver. 263

Freed from his keepers, thus with broken rein

The wanton courser prances o’ er the plains

Or in the pride of youth o’ erleaps the mound

And snuffs the female in forbidden ground

Or seeks his watering in the well-known flood

To quench his thirst, and cool his fiery blood

He swims luxuriant in the liquid plain

And o’ er his shoulders flows his waving mane

He neighs, he snorts, he bears his head on high

Before his ample chest the frothy waters fly

Virgil’ s description is much fuller than the foregoing, which, as I said, is only a simile; whereas Virgil professes to treat of the nature of the horse: -

- Tum, si qua sonum procul arma dedere

Stare loco nescit: micat auribus, et tremit artu

Collectumque premens volvit sub naribus ignem

Densa juba, et dextro jactata recumbit in armo

At duplex agitur per lumbos spina, cavatqu

Tellurem, et solido graviter sonat ungula cornu.

Virg. Georg. lib. iii., ver. 83

Which is thus admirably translated: -

The fiery courser, when he hears from fa

The sprightly trumpets, and the shouts of war

Pricks up his ears; and, trembling with delight

Shifts pace, and paws, and hopes the promised fight

On his right shoulder his thick mane reclined

Ruffles at speed, and dances in the wind

His horny hoofs are jetty black and round

His chin is double: starting with a bound

He turns the turf, and shakes the solid ground

Fire from his eyes, clouds from his nostrils flow

He bears his rider headlong on the foe

Now follows that in the Book of Job, which, under all the disadvantages of having been written in a language little understood, of being expressed in phrases peculiar to a part of the world whose manner of thinking and speaking seems to us very uncouth; and, above all, of appearing in a prose translation; is nevertheless so transcendently above the heathen descriptions, that hereby we may perceive how faint and languid the images are which are formed by human authors, when compared with those which are figured, as it were, just as they appear in the eye of the Creator. God, speaking to Job, asks him: - [To do our translators as much justice as possible, and to help the critic, I shall throw it in the hemistich form, in which it appears in the Hebrew, and in which all Hebrew poetry is written.

Job 39:19    Hast thou given to the Horse strength?
Hast thou clothed his neck with thunder

Job 39:20    Canst thou make him afraid as a grasshopper?
The glory of his nostrils is terrible

Job 39:21    He paweth in the valley, and rejoiceth in strength:
He goeth on to meet the armed men

Job 39:22    He mocketh at fear, and is not affrighted:
Neither turneth he back from the sword

Job 39:23    Against him rattleth the quiver,
The glittering spear and the shield

Job 39:24    He swalloweth the ground with rage and fierceness:
Nor doth he believe that it is the sound of the trumpet

Job 39:25    He saith among the trumpets, Heach!
And from afar he scenteth the battle,
The thunder of the captains, and the shouting

Here are all the great and sprightly images that thought can form of this generous beast, expressed in such force and vigor of style as would have given the great wits of antiquity new laws for the sublime, had they been acquainted with these writings. I cannot but particularly observe that whereas the classical poets chiefly endeavor to paint the outward figure, lineaments, and motions, the sacred poet makes all the beauties to flow from an inward principle in the creature he describes; and thereby gives great spirit and vivacity to his description. The following phrases and circumstances are singularly remarkable: -

Job 39:19 Hast thou clothed his neck with thunder

Homer and Virgil mention nothing about the neck of the horse but his mane. The sacred author, by the bold figure of thunder, not only expresses the shaking of that remarkable beauty in the horse, and the flakes of hair, which naturally suggest the idea of lightning; but likewise the violent agitation and force of the neck, which in the oriental tongues had been flatly expressed by a metaphor less bold than this

Job 39:20 Canst thou make him afraid as a grasshopper? - There is a twofold beauty in this expression, which not only marks the courage of this beast, by asking if he can be scared; but likewise raises a noble image of his swiftness, by insinuating that, if he could be frightened, he would bound away with the nimbleness of a grasshopper

The glory of his nostrils is terrible - This is more strong and concise than that of Virgil, which yet is the noblest line that was ever written without inspiration: -

Collectumque premens volvit sub naribus ignem.

And in his nostrils rolls collected fire

Geor. iii., ver. 85

Job 39:21    He rejoiceth in his strength

Job 39:22    He mocketh at fear

Job 39:24    Neither believeth he that it is the sound of the trumpet

Job 39:25    He saith among the trumpets, Ha! ha

These are signs of courage, as I said before, flowing from an inward principle. There is a peculiar beauty in his not believing it is the sound of the trumpet: that is, he cannot believe it for joy; but when he is sure of it, and is among the trumpets, he saith, Ha! ha! He neighs, he rejoices. His docility is elegantly painted in his being unmoved at the rattling quiver, the glittering spear, and the shield, Job 39:23, and is well imitated by Oppian, - who undoubtedly read Job, as Virgil did, - in his Poem on Hunting: -

Πως μεν γαρ τε μαχαισιν αρηΐος εκλυεν ἱππο

Ηχον εγερσιμοθον δολιχων πολεμηΐον αυλων

Η πως αντα δεδορκεν ασκαρδαμυκτοισιν οπωπαι

Αιζηοισι λοχον πεπυκασμενον ὁπλιτησι

Και χαλκον σελαγευντα, και αστραπτοντα σιδηρον

Και μαθεν ευτε μενειν χρειω, ποτε δ ’ αυτις αρουειν

Oppian Cyneget, lib. i., ver. 206

Now firm the managed war-horse keeps his ground

Nor breaks his order though the trumpet sound

With fearless eye the glittering host surveys

And glares directly at the helmet’ s blaze

The master’ s word, the laws of war, he knows

And when to stop, and when to charge the foes

He swalloweth the ground, Job 39:24, is an expression for prodigious swiftness in use among the Arabians, Job’ s countrymen, to the present day. The Latins have something like it: -

Latumque fuga consumere campum

Nemesian

In flight the extended champaign to consume

Carpere prata fuga.

Virg. Georg. III., Ver. 142

In flight to crop the meads

- Campumque volat

Cum rapuere, pedum vestigia quaeras

When, in their fight, the champaign they have snatch’ d

No track is left behind

It is indeed the boldest and noblest of images for swiftness; nor have I met with any thing that comes so near it as Mr. Pope’ s, in Windsor Forest: -

Th’ impatient courser pants in every vein,

And pawing, seems to beat the distant plain

Hills, vales, and floods, appear already cross’ d

And ere he starts, a thousand steps are lost

He smelleth the battle afar off, and what follows about the shouting, is a circumstance expressed with great spirit by Lucan: -

So when the ring with joyful shouts resounds

With rage and pride th’ imprison’ d courser bounds

He frets, he foams, he rends his idle rein

Springs o’ er the fence, and headlong seeks the plain

This judicious and excellent critique has left me little to say on this sublime description of the horse: I shall add some cursory notes only. In Job 39:19 we have the singular image, clothed his neck with thunder. How thunder and the horse’ s neck can be well assimilated to each other, I confess I cannot see. The author of the preceding critique seems to think that the principal part of the allusion belongs to the shaking of this remarkable beauty (the mane) in a horse; and the flakes of hair, which naturally suggest the idea of lightning. I am satisfied that the floating mane is here meant. The original is רעמה ramah , which Bochart and other learned men translate as above. How much the mane of a horse shaking and waving in the wind adds to his beauty and stateliness, every one is sensible; and the Greek and Latin poets, in their description of the horse, take notice of it. Thus Homer: -

- Αμφι δε χαιται

Ωμοις αΐσσονται

Iliad vi., ver. 509

"His mane dishevell’ d o’ er his shoulders flies.

And Virgil: -

Luduntque per colla, per armos

Aen. xi., ver. 497

The verb רעם raam signifies to toss, to agitate; and may very properly be applied to the mane, for reasons obvious to all. Virgil has seized this characteristic in his fine line, Georg. iii. ver. 86: -

Densa juba, et dextro jactata recumbit in armo

"His toss’ d thick mane on his right shoulder falls.

Naturally, the horse is one of the most timid of animals; and this may be at once accounted for from his small quantity of brain. Perhaps there is no animal of his size that has so little. He acquires courage only from discipline; for naturally he starts with terror and affright at any sudden noise. It requires much discipline to bring him to hear the noise of drums and trumpets, and especially to bear a pair of kettle drums placed on each side his neck, and beaten there, with the most alarming variety of sounds. Query, Does the sacred text allude to any thing of this kind? I have been led to form this thought from the following circumstance. In some ancient MSS. of the Shah Nameh, a most eminent heroic poem, by the poet Ferdoosy, the Homer of India, in my own collection, adorned with paintings, representing regal interviews, animals, battles, etc., there appear in some places representations of elephants, horses, and camels, with a pair of drums, something like our kettle drums, hanging on each side of the animal’ s neck, and beaten, by a person on the saddle, with two plectrums or drumsticks; the neck itself being literally clothed with the drums and the housings on which they are fixed. Who is it then that has framed the disposition of such a timid animal, that by proper discipline it can bear those thundering sounds, which at first would have scared it to the uttermost of distraction? The capacity to receive discipline and instruction is as great a display of the wisdom of God as the formation of the bodies of the largest, smallest, or most complex animals is of his power. I leave this observation without laying any stress upon it. On such difficult subjects conjecture has a lawful range.

Clarke: Job 39:21

He paweth in the valley - יחפרו yachperu , "they dig in the valley,"i.e., in his violent galloping, in every pitch of his body, he scoops up sods out of the earth. Virgil has seized this idea also, in his cavat tellurem; "he scoops out the ground."See before.

Clarke: Job 39:25

He saith among the trumpets, Ha, ha - The original is peculiarly emphatical: האח Heach ! a strong, partly nasal, partly guttural sound, exactly resembling the first note which the horse emits in neighing. The strong, guttural sounds in this hemistich are exceedingly expressive: האח ומרחוק יריח מלחמה Heach ! umerachok yariach milchamah ; "Heach, for from afar he scenteth the battle.

The reader will perceive that Mr. Good has given a very different meaning to Job 39:20 from that in the present text, Canst thou make him afraid as a grasshopper? by translating the Hebrew thus: -

"Hast thou given him to launch forth as an arrow?

The word ארבה arbeh , which we translate locust or grasshopper, and which he derives from רבה rabah , the א aleph being merely formative, he says, "may as well mean an arrow as it does in Job 16:13, רביו rabbaiv , ‘ His arrows fly around me.’ "The verb רעש raash in the word התועישנו hatharishennu , "Canst thou make him afraid?’ he contends, "signifies to tremble, quiver, rush, launch, dart forth; and, taken in this sense, it seems to unite the two ideas of rapidity and coruscation."This is the principal alteration which this learned man has made in the text

I shall conclude on this subject by giving Coverdale’ s translation: Hast thou geven the horse his strength, or lerned him how to bow down his neck with feare; that he letteth himself be dryven forth like a greshopper, where as the stout neyenge that he maketh is fearfull? He breaketh the grounde with the hoffes of his fete chearfully in his strength, and runneth to mete the harnest men. He layeth aside all feare, his stomach is not abated, neither starteth he aback for eny swerde. Though the qyvers rattle upon him, though the speare and shilde glistre: yet russheth he in fearsley, and beateth upon the grounde. He feareth not the noise of the trompettes, but as soone as he heareth the shawmes blowe, Tush (sayeth he) for he smelleth the batell afarre of, the noyse, the captaynes, and the shoutinge. This is wonderfully nervous, and at the same time accurate.

Clarke: Job 39:26

Doth the hawk fly by thy wisdom - The hawk is called נץ nets , from its swiftness in darting down upon its prey; hence its Latin name, nisus, which is almost the same as the Hebrew. It may very probably mean the falcon, observes Dr. Shaw. The flight of a strong falcon is wonderfully swift. A falcon belonging to the Duke of Cleves flew out of Westphalia into Prussia in one day; and in the county of Norfolk, a hawk has made a flight at a woodcock of near thirty miles in an hour. Thuanus says, "A hawk flew from London to Paris in one night."It was owing to its swiftness that the Egyptians in their hieroglyphics made it the emblem of the wind

Clarke: Job 39:26

Stretch her wings toward the south? - Most of the falcon tribe pass their spring and summer in cold climates; and wing their way toward warmer regions on the approach of winter. This is what is here meant by stretching her wings toward the south. Is it through thy teaching that this or any other bird of passage knows the precise time for taking flight, and the direction in which she is to go in order to come to a warmer climate? There is much of the wisdom and providence of God to be seen in the migration of birds of passage. This has been remarked before. There is a beautiful passage in Jeremiah, Jer 8:7, on the same subject: "The stork in the heavens knoweth her appointed times; and the turtle, and the crane, and the swallow, observe the time of their coming: but my people know not the judgment of the Lord."

Clarke: Job 39:27

Doth the eagle mount up - The eagle is said to be of so acute a sight, that when she is so high in the air that men cannot see her, she can discern a small fish in the water! See on Job 39:29 (note).

Clarke: Job 39:28

Upon the crag of the rock - שן סלע shen sela , the tooth of the rock, i.e., some projecting part, whither adventurous man himself dares not follow her

Clarke: Job 39:28

And the strong place - ומצודה umetsudah . Mr. Good translates this word ravine, and joins it to Job 39:29, thus: "And thence espieth the ravine: her eyes trace the prey afar off."

Clarke: Job 39:29

Her eyes behold afar off - The eagle was proverbial for her strong and clear sight. So Horace, lib. i., sat. iii., ver. 25: -

Cum tua pervideas oculis mala lippus inunctis

Cur in amicorum vitas tam cernis acutum

Quam aut aquila, aut serpens Epidaurius

"For wherefore while you carelessly pass b

Your own worst vices with unheeding eye

Why so sharp-sighted in another’ s fame

Strong as an eagle’ s ken, or dragon’ s beam?

Francis

So Aelian, lib. i., cap. 42. And Homer, Iliad xvii., calls the eagle οξυτατον ὑπουρανιων πετεηνων, "The most quick-sighted of all fowls under heaven."

Clarke: Job 39:30

Her young ones also suck up blood - The eagle does not feed her young with carrion, but with prey newly slain, so that they may suck up blood

Clarke: Job 39:30

Where the slain are, there is she - These words are quoted by our Lord. "Wheresoever the carcass is, there will the eagles be gathered together,"Mat 24:28 (note). It is likely, however, that this was a proverbial mode of expression; and our Lord adapts it to the circumstances of the Jewish people, who were about to fall a prey to the Romans. See the notes there

In the preceding notes I have referred to Dr. Shaw’ s account of the ostrich as the most accurate and authentic yet published. With the following description I am sure every intelligent reader will be pleased

"In commenting therefore upon these texts it may be observed, that when the ostrich is full grown, the neck, particularly of the male, which before was almost naked, is now very beautifully covered with red feathers. The plumage likewise upon the shoulders, the back, and some parts of the wings, from being hitherto of a dark grayish color, becomes now as black as jet, whilst the rest of the feathers retain an exquisite whiteness. They are, as described Job 39:13, the very feathers and plumage of the stork, i.e., they consist of such black and white feathers as the stork, called from thence hdysx chasidah, is known to have. But the belly, the thighs, and the breast, do not partake of this covering, being usually naked, and when touched are of the same warmth as the flesh of quadrupeds

"Under the joint of the great pinion, and sometimes under the less, there is a strong pointed excrescence like a cock’ s spur, with which it is said to prick and stimulate itself, and thereby acquire fresh strength and vigor whenever it is pursued. But nature seems rather to have intended that, in order to prevent the suffocating effects of too great a plethora, a loss of blood should be consequent thereupon, especially as the ostrich appears to be of a hot constitution, with lungs always confined, and consequently liable to be preter-naturally inflamed upon these occasions

"When these birds are surprised by coming suddenly upon them whilst they are feeding in some valley, or behind some rocky or sandy eminence in the deserts, they will not stay to be curiously viewed and examined. Neither are the Arabs ever dexterous enough to overtake them, even when they are mounted upon their jinse, or horses, as they are called, of family. They, when they raise themselves up for flight, (Job 39:18), laugh at the horse and his rider. They afford him an opportunity only of admiring at a distance the extraordinary agility and the stateliness of their motions, the richness of their plumage, and the great propriety there was of ascribing to them (Job 30:13) an expanded quivering wing. Nothing, certainly, can be more beautiful and entertaining than such a sight! The wings, by their repeated though unwearied vibrations, equally serving them for sails and oars; whilst their feet, no less assisting in conveying them out of sight, are in no degree sensible of fatigue

"By the repeated accounts which I often had from my conductors, as well as from Arabs of different places, I have been informed that the ostrich lays from thirty to fifty eggs. Aelian mentions more than eighty, but I never heard of so large a number. The first egg is deposited in the center; the rest are placed as conveniently as possible round about it. In this manner it is said to lay-deposit or thrust (Job 39:14) - her eggs in The Earth, and to warm them in the sand, and forgetteth, as they are not placed, like those of some other birds, upon trees or in the clefts of rocks, etc., that the foot of the traveler may crush them, or that the wild beasts may break them

"Yet notwithstanding the ample provision which is hereby made for a numerous offspring, scarce one quarter of these eggs are ever supposed to be hatched; and of those that are, no small share of the young ones may perish with hunger, from being left too early by their dams to shift for themselves. For in these the most barren and desolate recesses of the Sahara, where the ostrich chooses to make her nest, it would not be enough to lay eggs and hatch them, unless some proper food was near at hand, and already prepared for their nourishment. And accordingly we are not to consider this large collection of eggs as if they were all intended for a brood; they are, the greatest part of them, reserved for food, which the dam breaks and disposes of according to the number and the cravings of her young ones

"But yet, for all this, a very little share of that στοργη, or natural affection, which so strongly exerts itself in most other creatures, is observable in the ostrich. For, upon the least distant noise or trivial occasion, she forsakes her eggs, or her young ones, to which perhaps she never returns, or if she do, it may be too late either to restore life to the one, or to preserve the lives of the other. Agreeably to this account, the Arabs meet sometimes with whole nests of these eggs undisturbed; some of which are sweet and good, others are addle and corrupted, others again have their young ones of different growths, according to the time it may be presumed they have been forsaken by the dam. They oftener meet a few of the little ones, no bigger than well-grown pullets, half starved, straggling, and moaning about, like so many distressed orphans, for their mother. And in this manner the ostrich may be said (Job 39:16) to be hardened against her young ones, as though they were not hers; her labor in hatching and attending them so far being vain without fear, or the least concern of what becomes of them afterwards. This want of affection is also recorded, Lam 4:3 : The daughter of my people, says the prophet, is cruel, like the ostriches in the wilderness

"Neither is this the only reproach that may be due to the ostrich; she is likewise inconsiderate and foolish in her private capacity; particularly in the choice of food, which is frequently highly detrimental and pernicious to her; for she swallows every thing greedily and indiscriminately, whether it be pieces of rags, leather, wood, stone, or iron. When I was at Oram, I saw one off these birds swallow, without any seeming uneasiness or inconvenience, several leaden bullets, as they were thrown upon the floor, scorching hot from the mould, the inner coats of the aesophapus and stomach being probably better stocked with glands and juices than in other animals with shorter necks. They are particularly fond of their own excrement, which they greedily eat up as soon as it is voided. No less fond are they of the dung of hens and other poultry. It seems as if their optic as well as olfactory nerves were less adequate and conducive to their safety and preservation than in other creatures. The Divine providence in this, no less than in other respects, (Job 39:17), having deprived them of wisdom, neither hath it imparted to them understanding

"Those parts of the Sahara which these birds chiefly frequent are destitute of all manner of food and herbage, except it be some few tufts of coarse grass, or else a few other solitary plants of the laureola, apocynum, and some other kinds; each of which is equally destitute of nourishment; and, in the psalmist’ s phrase, (Psa 129:6), even withereth afore it groweth up. Yet these herbs, notwithstanding their dryness, and want of moisture in their temperature, will sometimes have both their leaves and their stalks studded all over with a great variety of land snails, which may afford them some little refreshment. It is very probable, likewise, that they may sometimes seize upon lizards, serpents, together with insects and reptiles of various kinds. Yet still, considering the great voracity and size of this camel-bird, it is wonderful, not only how the little ones, after they are weaned from the provisions I have mentioned, should be brought up and nourished, but even how those of fuller growth and much better qualified to look out for themselves, are able to subsist

"Their organs of digestion, and particularly the gizzards, which, by their strong friction, will wear away iron itself, show them indeed to be granivorous; but yet they have scarce ever an opportunity to exercise them in this way, unless when they chance to stray, which is very seldom, towards those parts of the country which are sown and cultivated, For these, as they are much frequented by the Arabs at the several seasons of grazing, ploughing, and gathering in the harvest; so they are little visited by as indeed they would be an improper abode for this shy, timorous bird; φιλερημος, a lover of the deserts. This last circumstance in the behavior of the ostrich is frequently alluded to in the Holy Scriptures; particularly Isa 13:21; Isa 34:13; Isa 43:20; Jer 50:39; where the word, יענה yaanah , instead of being rendered the ostrich, as it is rightly put in the margin, is called the owl; a word used likewise instead of yaanah or the ostrich, Lev 11:16, and Deu 14:15

"Whilst I was abroad, I had several opportunities of amusing myself with the actions and behavior of the ostrich. It was very diverting to observe with what dexterity and equipoise of body it would play and frisk about on all occasions. In the heat of the day, particularly it would strut along the sunny side of the house with great majesty. It would be perpetually fanning and priding itself with its quivering expanded wings; and seem at every turn to admire and be in love with its shadow. Even at other times whether walking about or resting itself upon the ground, the wings would continue these fanning vibrating motions, as if they were designed to mitigate and assuage that extraordinary heat wherewith their bodies seem to be naturally affected

"Notwithstanding these birds appear tame and tractable to such persons of the family as were more known and familiar to them, yet they were often very rude and fierce to strangers, especially the poorer sort, whom they would not only endeavor to push down by running furiously upon them; but would not cease to peck at them violently with their bills, and to strike them with their feet; whereby they were frequently very mischievous. For the inward claw, or hoof rather as we may call it, of this avis bisulca, being exceedingly strong pointed and angular, I once saw an unfortunate person who had his belly ripped open by one of these strokes. Whilst they are engaged in these combats and assaults, they sometimes make a fierce, angry, and hissing noise with their throats inflated, and their mouths open; at other times, when less resistance is made they have a chuckling or cackling voice, as in the poultry kind; and thereby seem to rejoice and laugh as it were at the timorousness of their adversary. But during the lonesome part of the night, as if their organs of voice had then attained a quite different tone, they often made a very doleful and hideous noise; which would be sometimes like the roaring of a lion; at other times it would bear a near resemblance to the hoarser voices of other quadrupeds, particularly of the bull and the ox. I have often heard them groan, as if they were in the greatest agonies; an action beautifully alluded to by the Prophet Micah, Mic 1:8, where it is said, I will make a mourning like the yaanah or ostrich. Yaanah, therefore, and רננים renanim , the names by which the ostrich is known in the Holy Scriptures, may very properly be deduced from ענה anah , and רנן ranan , words which the lexicographi explain by exclamare or clamare fortiter; for the noise made by the ostrich being loud and sonorous, exclamare or clamare fortiter may, with propriety enough, be attributed to it, especially as those words do not seem to denote any certain or determined mode of voice or sound peculiar to any one particular species of animals, but such as may be applicable to them all, to birds as well as to quadrupeds and other creatures.

Shaw’ s Travels, p. 541, edit. 4th. 1757

The subjects in this chapter have been so various and important, that I have been obliged to extend the notes and observations to an unusual length; and yet much is left unnoticed which I wished to have inserted. I have made the best selection I could, and must request those readers who wish for more information to consult zoological writers.

Defender: Job 38:4

This first question is a rebuke to those who try to explain origins by present processes - that is, by uniformitarianism (2Pe 3:3-6). The creation of the entire universe had been completed in all perfection by God Himself, by processes no longer in operation (Gen 2:1-4). Ever since Nimrod, however, men have tried to explain origins by innate evolutionary processes, and this is impossible as well as blasphemous."

Defender: Job 38:7

The "morning stars" were the same as the "sons of God," or the angels (Job 1:6; Job 2:1); this verse is an example of Hebrew poetic parallelism."

Defender: Job 38:8

The Lord next reminds Job of the great Flood, when mighty waters "brake forth" from both the skies and the subterranean deep. This also could not be explained by uniformitarianism, but only by divine power and revelation."

Defender: Job 38:9

Prior to the Flood, there had been no rain (Gen 2:5), but as the great vapor blanket condensed into thick clouds, the earth suddenly was darkened for at least forty days while the torrents poured down all over the world."

Defender: Job 38:10

After the Flood, great topographic changes confined the waters in great ocean basins, from which they can never escape."

Defender: Job 38:11

In accord with God's covenant with Noah, the Flood (Hebrew mabbul) can never again return to cover the earth (Gen 9:11). These two great events of the past - creation and the Flood - constitute a permanent barrier to any proposed explanation of origins by evolutionary uniformitarianism."

Defender: Job 38:14

This figurative expression refers to God's initiation of the earth's rotation and the day-night cycle. Each night, like a rotating clay cylinder exposing the impressions of the seal, the earth turns to the sun (or "dayspring"), exposing the wicked and their works of the night."

Defender: Job 38:16

It is only in recent years that springs have been discovered on the sea bottom. Many such scientific mysteries as "the breadth of the earth" (Job 38:18) have been explained in recent years by modern science, but many of God's questions are still unanswered today."

Defender: Job 38:19

A remarkable discovery of modern physics is that light dwells along a way, continually traveling at an immense speed. Darkness, on the other hand, dwells in any place where no light is on its way."

Defender: Job 38:22

Snow is considered white gold in desert regions, replenishing their annual water supply. Apparently, snow and hail are yet to provide some unknown, but great, contribution to the battles of future days (Job 38:23). Indeed, hail was significant in Joshua's battle with the Amorites (Jos 10:11) and will be in the future tribulation (Rev 16:21). Snow contributed to Napoleon's defeat in Russia."

Defender: Job 38:26

God cares for the lands He created, even though the men who were given dominion over them do not."

Defender: Job 38:29

This unusual picture of a sheet of ice slowly coming forward as if emerging from a womb may well refer to the ice sheet of the great Ice Age that covered the northern latitudes for many centuries following the Flood. The book of Job has more references to snow, ice and cold than any other book of the Bible."

Defender: Job 38:30

Job and his friends had never seen the "face of the deep frozen," in their southern latitudes, but they could surely have heard from travelers about the great ice sheets far to the north."

Defender: Job 38:31

The word translated "sweet influences" (Hebrew maadannah) is used only once in the Bible. Its basic meaning seems to be "cluster." It is known now that the stars in the constellation Pleiades, anciently known as the "seven sisters" (although the telescope reveals many more stars in this group), are bound together gravitationally. The stars in the bright constellation Orion, on the other hand, are not so bound. Only God can either bind or release the stars, as He is the one who created them and placed them in the heavens."

Defender: Job 38:32

"Mazzaroth" refers to the signs of the Zodiac. As already noted, God formed the constellations, as well as the stars, as "signs" (Gen 1:14; Job 9:8, Job 9:9; Job 26:13; Job 38:31-33; Amo 5:8). Although the present corrupt astrological use of the signs of the Zodiac is forbidden by God (Isa 47:12-14), the original message of Mazzaroth, "brought forth by God season after season," centered on the promised victorious coming of the Redeemer."

Defender: Job 38:35

One of the most remarkable discoveries of modern engineering science is that electrical currents may be used (radio, television, etc.) to transmit information with "lightning" speed."

Defender: Job 38:41

In Job 39, as well as the last verses of Job 38, God's questions center on His providential care of His animal creation. Again the implication of these rhetorical questions is that man should have given more attention to the care of these creatures, since they had been placed under man's dominion."

Defender: Job 39:9

The unicorn is supposedly a mythological animal; actually the creature referred to here is the extinct aurochs, or wild ox, a fierce animal that once inhabited this region. Many of the animals mentioned in this chapter, as well as other parts of the Old Testament, are of very uncertain identity, and various translators have tied them to a considerable diversity of modern animals. The probable reason for this uncertainty is that many of the animals, like the "unicorn," are now extinct, because they could not long survive the drastically changed environments following the great Flood. Modern Bible scholars, however, for the most part, accept the standard system of evolutionary geological ages, and never consider the very real possibility that the many now-extinct animals of the past still existed on the earth in Old Testament times."

TSK: Job 38:4

Where : Pro 8:22, Pro 8:29, Pro 8:30, Pro 30:4

I : Gen 1:1; Psa 102:25, Psa 104:5; Heb 1:2, Heb 1:10

hast : Heb. knowest

TSK: Job 38:5

laid : Job 11:9, Job 28:25; Pro 8:27; Isa 40:12, Isa 40:22

who hath stretched : Psa 19:4, Psa 78:55; Isa 34:11; Zec 2:1, Zec 2:2; 2Co 10:16

TSK: Job 38:6

Whereupon : Job 26:7; 1Sa 2:8; Psa 24:2, Psa 93:1, Psa 104:5; Zec 12:1; 2Pe 3:5

foundations : Heb. sockets, Exo 26:18-25

fastened : Heb. made to sink, or, Psa 118:22, Psa 144:12; Isa 28:16; Eph 2:20, Eph 2:21

TSK: Job 38:7

the morning : Rev 2:28, Rev 22:16

the sons : Job 1:6, Job 2:1; Psa 104:4; Rev 5:11

shouted : Ezr 3:11, Ezr 3:12; Zec 4:7

TSK: Job 38:8

who : Job 38:10; Gen 1:9; Psa 33:7, Psa 104:9; Pro 8:29; Jer 5:22

out : Job 38:29

TSK: Job 38:9

thick : Gen 1:2

TSK: Job 38:10

brake up for it my decreed place : or, established my decree upon it, Job 26:10; Gen 1:9, Gen 1:10, Gen 9:15; Psa 104:9; Jer 5:22

TSK: Job 38:11

Hitherto : Thus far shall thy flux and reflux extend. The tides are marvellously limited and regulated, not only by the lunar and solar attraction, but by the quantum of time required to remove any part of the earth’ s surface, by its rotation round its axis, from under the immediate attractive influence of the sun and moon. Hence the attraction of the sun and moon, and the gravitation of the sea to its own centre, which prevent too great a flux on the one hand, and too great reflux on the other, are some of those bars and doors by which its proud waves are stayed, and prevented from coming farther. Psa 65:6, Psa 65:7, Psa 93:3, Psa 93:4; Pro 8:29; Mar 4:39-41

but : Job 1:22, Job 2:6; Psa 76:10, Psa 89:9; Isa 27:8; Luk 8:32, Luk 8:33; Rev 20:2, Rev 20:3, Rev 20:7, Rev 20:8

thy proud waves : Heb. the pride of thy waves

TSK: Job 38:12

commanded : Gen 1:5; Psa 74:16, Psa 136:7, Psa 136:8, Psa 148:3-5

since : Job 38:4, Job 38:21, Job 8:9, Job 15:7

the dayspring : Luk 1:78; 2Pe 1:19

TSK: Job 38:13

take : Psa 19:4-6, Psa 139:9-12

ends : Heb. wings, Job 37:3 *marg.

the wicked : Job 24:13-17; Exo 14:27; Psa 104:21, Psa 104:22, Psa 104:35

TSK: Job 38:14

as a : Psa 104:2, Psa 104:6

TSK: Job 38:15

from : Job 5:14, Job 18:5, Job 18:18; Exo 10:21-23; 2Ki 6:18; Pro 4:19; Isa 8:21, Isa 8:22; Jer 13:16; Act 13:10, Act 13:11

the high : Psa 10:15, Psa 37:17; Eze 30:22

TSK: Job 38:16

the springs : Psa 77:19; Pro 8:24; Jer 51:36

walked : Job 26:5, Job 26:6

TSK: Job 38:17

the gates : Psa 9:13, Psa 107:18, Psa 116:3

the shadow : Job 3:5, Job 12:22; Psa 23:4, Psa 107:10, Psa 107:14; Amo 5:8; Mat 4:16

TSK: Job 38:18

Psa 74:17, Psa 89:11, Psa 89:12; Isa 40:28; Jer 31:37; Rev 20:9

TSK: Job 38:19

the way : Job 38:12, Job 38:13; Gen 1:3, Gen 1:4, Gen 1:14-18; Deu 4:19; Isa 45:7; Joh 1:9, Joh 8:12

darkness : Psa 18:11, Psa 104:20, Psa 105:28; Jer 13:16; Eze 32:8; Amo 4:13; Mat 27:45

TSK: Job 38:20

it to : or, it at

the bound : Gen 10:19, Gen 23:17

TSK: Job 38:21

Job 38:4, Job 38:12, Job 15:7

TSK: Job 38:22

Job 6:16, Job 37:6; Psa 33:7, Psa 135:7

TSK: Job 38:23

Job 36:31, Job 36:13; Exo 9:18, Exo 9:24; Jos 10:11; Isa 30:30; Eze 13:11-13; Mat 7:27; Rev 16:21

TSK: Job 38:24

Job 38:12, Job 38:13; Jon 4:8; Mat 24:27

TSK: Job 38:25

Job 28:26, Job 36:27, Job 36:28, Job 37:3-6; Psa 29:3-10

TSK: Job 38:26

To cause : It is well known that rain falls copiously in thunder storms. The flash is first seen, the clap is next heard, and last the rain descends; though in fact they all take place at the same time. The lightning traverses all space in no perceivable succession of time. Sound is propagated at the rate of 1,142 feet in a second. Rain travels still more slowly, and will be seen sooner or later according to the weight of the drops, and the distance of the cloud. Now as water is composed of two elastic airs or gases, called oxygen and hydrogen, in the proportion of 88+ of the former and 11, 3/4 of the latter in 100 parts, the electric spark, or matter of lightning, passing through the atmosphere, ignites and decomposes those gases, which explode; and the water falls down in the form of rain. This explosion, as well as the rushing in of the circumambient air to restore the equilibrium, will account for the clap and peal; and thus by the lightning of thunder God causes it to rain on the earth.

on the wilderness : Psa 104:10-14, Psa 107:35, Psa 147:8, Psa 147:9; Isa 35:1, Isa 35:2, Isa 41:18, Isa 41:19, Isa 43:19, Isa 43:20; Jer 14:22; Heb 6:7, Heb 6:8

TSK: Job 38:28

Hath the : Job 38:8, Job 5:9, Job 5:10; 1Sa 12:17, 1Sa 12:18; Psa 65:9, Psa 65:10; Jer 5:24, Jer 10:13, Jer 14:22; Joe 2:23; Amo 4:7; Mat 5:45

dew : Job 29:19; Gen 27:28, Gen 27:39; Deu 33:13, Deu 33:28; 2Sa 1:21; 1Ki 17:1; Pro 3:20; Hos 14:5

TSK: Job 38:29

Job 38:8, Job 6:16, Job 37:10; Psa 147:16, Psa 147:17

TSK: Job 38:30

the face : Job 37:10

frozen : Heb. taken

TSK: Job 38:31

Pleiades : or, the seven stars, Heb. Cimah, Job 9:9 *marg. Amo 5:8

Orion : or, Cesil

TSK: Job 38:32

Mazzaroth : or, the twelve signs, Probably the same as mazzaloth . 2Ki 23:5

guide Arcturus : Heb. guide them, Job 9:9

TSK: Job 38:33

the ordinances : Gen 1:16, Gen 8:22; Psa 119:90, Psa 119:91; Jer 31:35, Jer 31:36, Jer 33:25

canst : Job 38:12, Job 38:13

TSK: Job 38:34

1Sa 12:18; Amo 5:8; Zec 10:1; Jam 5:18

TSK: Job 38:35

Canst : Exo 9:23-25, Exo 9:29; Lev 10:2; Num 11:1, Num 16:35; 2Ki 1:10, 2Ki 1:14; Rev 11:5, Rev 11:6

Here we are : Heb. Behold us, 1Sa 22:12; Isa 6:8 *marg. Isa 65:1

TSK: Job 38:36

Who hath put : Job 32:8; Psa 51:6; Pro 2:6; Ecc 2:26; Jam 1:5, Jam 1:17

who hath given : Exo 31:3, Exo 36:1, Exo 36:2; Isa 28:26

TSK: Job 38:37

number : Gen 15:5; Psa 147:4

or who : Gen 8:1, Gen 9:15

stay : Heb. cause to lie down

TSK: Job 38:38

groweth into hardness : or, is turned into mire, Heb. is poured

TSK: Job 38:39

Wilt : Job 4:10, Job 4:11; Psa 34:10, Psa 104:21, Psa 145:15, Psa 145:16

appetite : Heb. life

TSK: Job 38:40

Gen 49:9; Num 23:24, Num 24:9

TSK: Job 38:41

Psa 104:27, Psa 104:28, Psa 147:9; Mat 6:26; Luk 12:24

TSK: Job 39:1

the wild : 1Sa 24:2; Psa 104:18

when : Psa 29:9; Jer 14:5

TSK: Job 39:2

Jer 2:24

TSK: Job 39:5

the wild : Job 6:5, Job 11:12, Job 24:5; Gen 16:12; Psa 104:11; Isa 32:14; Jer 2:24, Jer 14:6; Dan 5:21; Hos 8:9

who hath loosed : Gen 49:14

TSK: Job 39:6

barren land : Heb. salt places, Deu 29:23; Psa 107:34; Jer 17:6; Eze 47:11

TSK: Job 39:7

scorneth : Job 39:18, Job 3:18; Isa 31:4

driver : Heb. exactor, Exo 5:13-16, Exo 5:18; Isa 58:3

TSK: Job 39:8

Job 40:15, Job 40:20-22; Gen 1:29, Gen 1:30; Psa 104:27, Psa 104:28, Psa 145:15, Psa 145:16

TSK: Job 39:9

the : Num 23:22; Deu 33:17; Psa 22:21, Psa 92:10

or : Isa 1:3

TSK: Job 39:10

Job 39:5, Job 39:7, Job 1:14, Job 41:5; Psa 129:3; Hos 10:10, Hos 10:11; Mic 1:13

TSK: Job 39:11

trust : Psa 20:7, Psa 33:16, Psa 33:17, Psa 147:10; Isa 30:16, Isa 31:1-3

leave : Gen 1:26, Gen 1:28, Gen 9:2, Gen 42:26; Psa 144:14; Pro 14:4; Isa 30:6, Isa 46:1

TSK: Job 39:12

he : Neh 13:15; Amo 2:13

gather : Pro 3:16; Hag 2:19; Mat 3:2, Mat 13:30

TSK: Job 39:13

peacocks : 1Ki 10:22; 2Ch 9:21

wings and feathers unto the : or, the feathers of the stork and, Job 30:29 *marg. Lev 11:19; Psa 104:17; Jer 8:7; Zec 5:9

TSK: Job 39:16

hardened : Lam 4:3

as : Deu 28:56, Deu 28:57; 1Ki 3:26, 1Ki 3:27; 2Ki 6:28, 2Ki 6:29; Lam 2:20; Rom 1:31

her labour : Ecc 10:15; Hab 2:13

TSK: Job 39:17

Job 17:4, Job 35:11; Deu 2:30; 2Ch 32:31; Isa 19:11-14, Isa 57:17; Jam 1:17

TSK: Job 39:18

Job 39:7, Job 39:22, Job 5:22, Job 41:29; 2Ki 19:21

TSK: Job 39:19

the horse : Exo 15:1; Psa 147:10

clothed : Psa 93:1, Psa 104:1

thunder : Job 39:25; Mar 3:17

TSK: Job 39:20

the glory : Job 41:20, Job 41:21; Jer 8:16

terrible : Heb. terrors

TSK: Job 39:21

He paweth : or, His feet dig, Jdg 5:22

and : 1Sa 17:4-10, 1Sa 17:42; Psa 19:5; Jer 9:23

he goeth : Pro 21:31; Jer 8:6

armed men : Heb. armour

TSK: Job 39:22

Job 39:16, Job 39:18, Job 41:33

TSK: Job 39:23

Job 41:26-29

TSK: Job 39:24

He swalloweth : Job 37:20; Hab 1:8, Hab 1:9

neither : Job 9:16, Job 29:24; Luk 24:41

TSK: Job 39:25

ha : Psa 70:3; Eze 26:2, Eze 36:2

TSK: Job 39:26

the hawk : Netz , Arabic naz , Latin nisus , the hawk, so called from natzah , to shoot away, fly, because of the rapidity of its flight. It probably comprehends various species of the falcon family, as the ger-falcon, goshawk, and sparrowhawk. Lev 16:11; Deu 14:15

stretch : Is it through thy teaching that the falcon, or any other bird of passage, knows the precise time for taking flight, and the direction in which she is to go to arrive at a warmer climate? Son 2:12; Jer 8:7

TSK: Job 39:27

the eagle : Exo 19:4; Lev 11:13; Psa 103:5; Pro 23:5; Isa 40:31; Hos 8:1

at thy command : Heb. by thy mouth

make : Jer 49:16; Oba 1:4

TSK: Job 39:28

upon : 1Sa 14:4

TSK: Job 39:29

she : Job 9:26

her : The eagle is proverbial for her strong and clear sight.

TSK: Job 39:30

where : Eze 39:17-19; Mat 24:28; Luk 17:37

Commentary -- Word/Phrase Notes (per Verse)

Barnes: Job 38:4

Where wast thou when I laid the foundations of the earth? - The first appeal is to the creation. The question here, "Where wast thou?"implies that Job was not present. He had not then an existence. He could not, therefore, have aided God, or counselled him, or understood what he was doing. How presumptuous, therefore, it was in one so short-lived to sit in judgment on the doings of him who had formed the world! How little could he expect to be able to know of him! The expression, "laid the foundations of the earth,"is taken from building an edifice. The foundations are first laid, and the super-structure is then reared. It is a poetic image, and is not designed to give any intimation about the actual process by which the earth was made, or the manner in which it is sustained.

If thou hast understanding - Margin, as in Hebrew "if thou knowest."That is, "Declare how it was done. Explain the manner in which the earth was formed and fixed in its place, and by which the beautiful world grew up under the hand of God."If Job could not do this, what presumption was it to speak as he had done of the divine adminisitration!

Barnes: Job 38:5

Who hath laid the measures thereof - That is, as an architect applies his measures when he rears a house.

If thou knowest - Or rather, "for thou knowest."The expression is wholly ironical, and is designed to rebuke Job’ s pretensions of being able to explain the divine administration.

Or who hath stretched the line upon it - As a carpenter uses a line to mark out his work; see the notes at Isa 28:17. The earth is represented as a building, the plan of which was laid out beforehand, and which was then made according to the sketch of the architect. It is not, therefore, the work of chance or fate. It is laid out and constructed according to a wise plan, and in a method evincing infinite skill.

Barnes: Job 38:6

Whereupon are the foundations - Margin, "sockets."The Hebrew word ( אדן 'eden ) means "a basis,"as of a column, or a pedestal; and then also the foundation of a building. The language here is evidently figurative, comparing the earth with an edifice. In building a house, the securing of a proper foundation is essential to its stability; and here God represents himself as rearing the earth on the most permanent and solid basis. The word is not used in the sense of sockets, as it is in the margin.

Fastened - Margin, "made to sink."The margin rather expresses the sense of the Hebrew word הטבעוּ hāṭâba‛û . It is rendered "sink"and "sunk"in Psa 69:2, Psa 69:14; Psa 9:15; Lam 2:9; Jer 38:6, Jer 38:22; "drowned"in Exo 15:4; and were settled in Pro 8:25. The word does not elsewhere occur in the Scriptures, and the prevailing sense is that of "sinking,"or "settling down,"and hence, to "impress"- as a seal "settles down"into wax. The reference here is to a foundation-stone that sinks or settles down into clay or mire until it becomes solid.

Or who laid the corner stone thereof - Still an allusion to a building. The cornerstone sustains the principal weight of an edifice, as the weight of two walls is concentrated on it, and hence, it is of such importance that it should be solid and firmly fixed. The question proposed for the solution of Job is, On what the earth is founded? On this question a great variety of opinions waft entertained by the ancients, and of course no correct solution could be given of the difficulty. It was not known that it was suspended and held in its place by the laws of gravitation. The meaning here is, that if Job could not solve this inquiry, he ought not to presume to sit in judgment on the government of God, and to suppose that he was qualified to judge of his secret counsels.

Barnes: Job 38:7

When the morning-stars - There can be little doubt that angelic beings are intended here, though some have thought that the stars literally are referred to, and that they seemed to unite in a chorus of praise when another world was added to their number. The Vulgate renders it, astra matutina , morning-stars; the Septuagint, ὅτε ἐγενήθηναι ἄστρα hote egenēthēnai astra - "when the stars were made:"the Chaldee, "the stars of the zephyr,"or "morning"- צפר כוכבי . The comparison of a prince, a monarch, or an angel, with a star, is not uncommon; compare the notes at Isa. 14. The expression "the morning-stars"is used on account of the beauty of the principal star which, at certain seasons of the year, leads on the morning. It is applied naturally to those angelic beings that are of distinguished glory and rank in heaven. That it refers to the angels, seems to be evident from the connection; and this interpretation is demanded in order to correspond with the phrase "sons of God"in the other member of the verse.

Sang together - United in a grand chorus or concert of praise. It was usual to celebrate the laying of a cornerstone, or the completion of an edifice, by rejoicing; see Zec 4:7; Ezr 3:10.

And all the sons of God - Angels - called the sons of God from their resemblance to him, or their being created by him.

Shouted for joy - That is, they joined in praise for so glorious a work as the creation of a new world. They saw that it was an event which was fitted to honor God. It was a new manifestation of his goodness and power; it was an enlargement of his empire; it was an exhibition of benevolence that claimed their gratitude. The expression in this verse is one of uncommon, perhaps of unequalled beauty. The time referred to is at the close of the creation of the earth, for the whole account relates to the formation of this world, and not of the stars. At that period, it is clear that other worlds had been made, and that there were holy beings then in existence who were of such a rank as appropriately to be called "morning-stars"and "sons of God."It is a fair inference therefore, that the "whole"of the universe was not made at once, and that the earth is one of the last of the worlds which have been called into being.

No one can demonstrate that the work of creation may not now be going on in some remote part of the universe, nor that God may not yet form many more worlds to be the monuments of his wisdom and goodness, and to give occasion for augmented praise. Who can tell but that this process may be carried on forever, and that new worlds and systems may continue to start into being, and there be continually new displays of this inexhaustible goodness and wisdom of the Creator? When this world was made, there was occasion for songs of praise among the angels. It was a beautiful world. All was pure, and lovely, and holy. Man was made like his God, and everything was full of love. Surveying the beautiful scene, as the world arose under the plastic hand of the Almighty - its hills, and vales, and trees, and flowers, and animals, there was occasion for songs and rejoicings in heaven. Could the angels have foreseen, as perhaps they did, what was to occur here, there was also occasion for songs of praise such as would exist in the creation of no other world. This was to be the world of redeeming love; this the world where the Son of God was to become incarnate and die for sinners; this the world where an immense host was to be redeemed to praise God in a song unknown to the angels - the song of redemption, in the sweet notes which shall ascend from the lips of those who shall have been ransomed from death by the great work of the atonement.

Barnes: Job 38:8

Or who shut up the sea with doors - This refers also to the act of the creation, and to the fact that God fixed limits to the raging of the ocean. The word "doors"is used here rather to denote gates, such as are made to shut up water in a dam. The Hebrew word properly refers, in the dual form which is used here דלתים delethiym ), to "double doors,"or to folding doors, and is also applied to the gates of a city; Deu 3:5; 1Sa 23:7; Isa 45:1. The idea is, that the floods were bursting forth from the abyss or the center of the earth, and were checked by placing gates or doors which restrained them. Whether this is designed to be a poetic or a real description of what took place at the creation, it is not easy to determine. Nothing forbids the idea that something like this may have occurred when the waters in the earth were pouring forth tumultuously, and when they were restrained by obstructions placed there by the hand of God, as if he had made gates through which they could pass only when he should open them. This supposition also would accord well with the account of the flood in Gen 7:11, where it is said that "the fountains of the great deep were broken up,"as if those flood-gates had been opened, or the obstructions which God had placed there had been suffered to be broken through, and the waters of their own accord flowed over the world. We know as yet too little of the interior of the earth, to ascertain whether this is to be understood as a literal description of what actually occurred.

When it brake forth, as if it had issued out of the womb - All the images here are taken from child-birth. The ocean is represented as being born, and then as invested with clouds and darkness as its covering and its swaddling-bands. The image is a bold one, and I do not know that it is any where else applied to the formation of the ocean.

Barnes: Job 38:9

When I made the cloud the garment thereof - Referring to the garment in which the new-born infant is wrapped up. This image is one of great beauty. It is that of the vast ocean just coming into being, with a cloud resting upon it and covering it. Thick darkness envelopes it, and it is swathed in mists; compare Gen 1:2,"And darkness was upon the face of the deep."The time here referred to is that before the light of the sun arose upon the earth, before the dry land appeared, and before annuals and people had been formed. Then the new-born ocean lay carefully enveloped in clouds and darkness under the guardian care of God. The dark night rested upon it, and the mists hovered over it.

Barnes: Job 38:10

And brake up for it my decreed place - Margin, "established my decree upon it."So Herder, "I fixed my decrees upon it."Luther renders it, "Da ich ihm den Lauf brach mit meinem Damm "- "then I broke its course with my barrier."Umbreit renders it, "I measured out to it my limits;"that is, the limits or bounds which I judged to be proper. So the Vulgate, "Circumdedi illud terminis meis" - "I surrounded it with my limits,"or with such limits as I chose to affix. The Septuagint renders it, "I placed boundaries to it."Coverdale, "I gave it my commandment."This is undoubtedly the sense which: the connection demands; and the idea in the common version, that God had broken up his fixed plans in order to accommodate the new-born ocean, is not in accordance with the parallelism. The Hebrew word ( שׁבר shâbar ) indeed commonly means "to break, to break in pieces."But, according to Gesenius, and as the place here demands, it may have the sense of measuring off, defining, appointing, "from the idea of breaking into portions;"and then the sense will be, "I measured for it (the sea) my appointed bound."

This meaning of the word is, however, more probably derived from the Arabic, where the word שׁבר shâbar means to measure with the span (Castell), and hence, the idea here of measuring out the limits of the ocean. The sense is, that God measured out or determined the limits of the sea. The idea of breaking up a limit or boundary which had been before fixed, it is believed, is not in the text. The word rendered "my decreed place"( חקי chuqiy ) refers commonly to a law, statute, or ordinance, meaning originally anything that was "engraved"( חקק châqaq ) and then, because laws were engraved on tablets of brass or stone, any statute or decree. Hence, it means anything prescribed or appointed, and hence, a "bound,"or "limit;"see the notes at Job 26:10; compare Pro 8:29, "When he gave to the sea his decree ( חקו chuqô ) that the waters should not pass his commandment."The idea in the passage before us is, that God fixed the limits of the ocean by his own purpose or pleasure.

And set bars - Doors were formerly fastened, as they are often now, by cross-bars; and the idea here is, that God had inclosed the ocean, and so fastened the doors from where, it would issue out, that it could not pass.

Barnes: Job 38:11

And said, Hitherto shalt thou come - This is a most sublime expression, and its full force can be felt only by one who has stood on the shores of the ocean, and seen its mighty waves roll toward the beach as if in their pride they would sweep everything away, and how they are checked by the barrier which God has made. A voice seems to say to them that they may roll in their pride and grandeur so far, but no further. No increase of their force or numbers can sweep the barrier away, or make any impression on the limits which God has fixed.

And here shall they proud waves be stayed - Margin, as in Hebrew, "the pride of thy waves."A beautiful image. The waves seem to advance in pride and self-confidence, as if nothing could stay them. They come as if exulting in the assurance that they will sweep everything away. In a moment they are arrested and broken, and they spread out humbly and harmlessly on the beach. God fixes the limit or boundary which they are not to pass, and they lie prostrate at his feet.

Barnes: Job 38:12

Hast thou commanded the morning since thy days - That is, in thy lifetime hast thou ordered the light of the morning to shine, and directed its beams over the world? God appeals to this as one of the proofs of his majesty and power - and who can look upon the spreading light of the morning and be insensible to the force and beauty of the appeal? The transition from the ocean to the morning may have been partly because the light of the morning is one of the striking exhibitions of the power of God, and partly because in the creation of the world the light of the sun was made to dawn soon after the gathering together of the waters into seas; see Gen 1:10, Gen 1:14. The phrase "since thy days,"implies that the laws determining the rising of the sun were fixed long before the time of Job. It is asked whether this had been done since he had an existence, and whether he had an agency in effecting it - implying that it was an ancient and established ordinance long before he was born.

Caused the day-spring to know his place - The day-spring ( שׁחר shachar ) means the "aurora, the dawn, the morning."The mention of its "place"here seems to be an allusion to the fact that it does not always occupy the same position. At one season of the year it appears on the equator, at another north, and at another south of it, and is constantly varying its position. Yet it always knows its place. It never fails to appear where by the long-observed laws it ought to appear. It is regular in its motions, and is evidently under the control of an intelligent Being, who has fixed the laws of its appearing.

Barnes: Job 38:13

That it might take hold of the ends of the earth - Margin, as in Hebrew "wings."Wings are in the Scriptures frequently given to the earth, because it seems to be spread out, and the expression refers to its extremities. The language is derived from the supposition that the earth was a plain, and had limits or bounds. The idea here is, that God causes the light of the morning suddenly to spread to the remotest parts of the world, and to reveal everything which was there.

That the wicked might be shaken out of it - Out of the earth; that is, by the light which suddenly shines upon them. The sense is, that the wicked perform their deeds in the darkness of the night, and that in the morning light they flee away. The effect of the light coming upon them is to disturb their plans, to fill them with alarm, and to cause them to flee. The idea is highly poetic. The wicked are engaged in various acts of iniquity under cover of the night. Robbers, thieves, and adulterers, go forth to their deeds of darkness as though no one saw them. The light of the morning steals suddenly upon them, and they flee before it under the apprehension of being detected. "The dawn,"says Herder, "is represented as a watchman, a messenger of the Prince of heaven, sent to chase away the bands of robbers."It may illustrate this to observe that it is still the custom of the Arabs to go on plundering excursions before the dawn. When on their way this faithful watchman, the aurora, goes out to spread light about them, to intimidate them, and to disperse them; compare the notes at Job 24:13-17.

Barnes: Job 38:14

It is turned as clay to the seal - A great variety of interpretations has been given to this passage. Schultens enumerates no less than twenty, and of course it is not easy to determine the meaning. The Septuagint renders it, "Didst thou take clay of the earth, and form an animal, and place on the earth a creature endowed with speech?"Though this would agree well with the connection, yet it is a wide departure from the Hebrew. The reference is, undoubtedly, to some effect or impression produced upon the earth by the light of the morning, which bears a resemblance, in some respects, to the impression produced on clay by a seal. Probably the idea is, that the spreading light serves to render visible and prominent the forms of things, as the seal when impressed on clay produces certain figures.

One form of a Babylonian seal was an engraved cylinder, fixed on an axle, with a handle in the manner of a garden roller, which produced the impression "by being rolled on the softened wax. Mr. Rich (Second Memoir on the Ruins of Babylon, p. 59) remarks, "The Babylonian cylinders are among the most interesting and remarkable of the antiques. They are from one to three inches in length; some are of stone, and others apparently of paste or composition of various kinds. Sculptures from several of these cylinders have been published in different works. Some of them have cuneiform writing,"(for the "arrow-headed"character, p. 48), "but it has the remarkable peculiarity that it is reversed, or written from right to left, every other kind of cuneiform writing being incontestably to be read from left to right. This can only be accounted for by supposing that they were intended to roll off impressions. The cylinders are said to be chiefly found in the ruins of Jabouiga. The people of America are fond of using them as amulets, and the Persian pilgrims who came to the shrines of Ali and Hossein frequently carry back with them some of these curiosities."

It may be observed, also, in the explanation of the passage, that clay was often used for the purpose of a seal in Oriental countries. The manner in which it was used was to daub a mass of it over the door or lock of a house, a caravansera, a room, or any place where anything valuable was deposited, and to impress upon it a rude seal. This indeed would not make the goods safe from a robber, but it would be an indication that the place is not to be entered, and show that if it had been entered it was by violence; compare Mat 27:66. This impression on clay would be produced by the "revolving"or Babyionian seal, by turning it about, or rolling it on clay, and thus bringing the figures out prominently, and this will explain the passage here. The passing of the light over the earth in the morning, seems to be like rolling a cylinder-seal on soft clay. It leaves distinct impressions; raises up prominent figures; gives form and beauty to what seemed before a dark undistinguished mass. The word rendered "it is turned"( תתהפך tithâphak ), means properly "it turns itself"- and the idea is that, like the revolving seal, it seems to roll over the face of the earth, and to leave a distinct and beautiful impression. Before, the face of the earth was obscure. Nothing, in the darkness of the night, could be distinguished. Now, when the dawn arises and the light spreads abroad, the figures of hills, and trees, and tents, and cities, rise before it as if a seal had been rolled on yielding clay. The image is one, therefore, of high poetic character, and of great beauty. If this be the correct interpretation, the passage does not refer to the revolution of the earth on its axis, or to any change in appearance or form which it assumes when the wicked are shaken out of it, as Schultens supposes, but to the beautiful change in appearance which the face of the earth seems to undergo when the aurora passes over it.

And they stand as a garment - This passage is perhaps even more difficult than the former part of the verse. Prof. Lee renders it, "And that men be set up as if accoutred for battle,"and according to him the idea is, that people, when the light shines, set themselves up for the prosecution of their designs. Coverdale renders it, "Their tokens and weapons hast thou turned like clay, and set them up again as the changing of a garment."Grotius supposes it means that things by the aurora change their appearance and color like a variegated garment. The true idea of the passage is probably that adopted by Schultens, Herder, Umbreit, Rosenmuller, and Noyes, that it refers to the beautiful appearance which the face of nature seems to put on when the morning light shines upon the world. Before, all was dark and undistinguished. Nature seemed to be one vast blank, with no prominent objects, and with no variety of color. When the light dawns on the earth, the various objects - the hills, trees, houses, fields, flowers, seem to stand forth, or to raise themselves up ( יתיצבו yityâtsabû ), and to put on the appearance of gorgeous and variegated vestments. It is as if the earth were clothed with beauty, and what was before a vast blank were now arrayed in splendid vestments. Thus understood, there is no need of supposing that garments were ever made, as has been sometimes supposed, with so much in-wrought silver and gold that they would "stand upright themselves."It is a beautiful conception of poetry - that the spreading light seems to clothe the dark world with a gorgeous robe, by calling forth the objects of creation from the dull and dark uniformity of night to the distinctness of day.

Barnes: Job 38:15

And from the wicked their light is withholden - While the light thus spreads over the earth, rendering every object beautiful and blessing the righteous, light and prosperity are withheld from the wicked; see the notes at Job 24:17. Or, the meaning may be, that when the light shines upon the world, the wicked, accustomed to perform their deeds in the night, flee from it, and retreat to their dark hiding-places.

And the high arm - Of the wicked. The arm is a symbol of strength. It is that by which we accomplish our purposes, and the idea here is, that the haughty power of the oppressor shall be crushed. The connection here seems to be this. In Job 38:12-14, there is a beautiful description of the light, and of its effects upon the appearance of natural objects. It was such as to clothe the world with beauty, and to fill the heart of the pious with gladness. In order now to show the greatness of the punishment of the wicked, it is added that all this beauty will be hidden from them. They will be driven away by the light into their dark hiding-places, and will be met there with the withdrawal of all the tokens of prosperity, and their power will be crushed.

Barnes: Job 38:16

Hast thou entered into the springs of the sea? - The word here rendered "springs"( נבך nêbek ), occurs nowhere else in the Scriptures. It is rendered by the Vulgate "profunda," the deep parts; and by the Septuagint πηγὴν pēgēn - "fountains."The reference seems to be to the deep fountains at the bottom of the sea, which were supposed to supply it with water. A large portion of the water of the ocean is indeed conveyed to it by rivers and streams that run on the surface of the earth. But it is known, also, that there are fountains at the bottom of the ocean, and in some places the amount of water that flows from them is so great, that its action is perceptible at the surface. One such fountain exists in the Atlantic ocean near the coast of Florida.

Or hast thou walked in the search of the depth? - Or, rather, in the deep places or caverns of the ocean. The word rendered "search"here ( חקר chêqer ), means "searching,"investigation, and then an object that is to be searched out, and hence, that which is obscure, remote, hidden. Then it may be applied to the deep caverns of the ocean, or the bottom of the sea. This is to man unsearchable. No line has been found long enough to fathom the ocean, and of course what is there is unknown. It is adduced, therefore, with great propriety as a proof of the wisdom of God, that he could look on the deep caverns of the ocean, and was able to search out all that was there. A sentiment similar to this occurs in Homer, when speaking of Atlas:

Ὅατε θαλάσσης;

Πάσης βένθεα οἷδεν.

Hoate thalassēs ;

Pasēs benthea oiden .

Odyssey Job 1:5.

"Who knows the depths of every sea."

Barnes: Job 38:17

Have the gates of death been opened unto thee - That is, the gates of the world where death reigns; or the gates that lead to the abodes of the dead. The allusion here is to "Sheol,"or "Hades,"the dark abodes of the dead. This was supposed to be beneath the ground, and was entered by the grave, and was inclosed by gates and bars; see the notes at Job 10:21-22. The transition from the reference to the bottom of the sea to the regions of the dead was natural, and the mind is carried forward to a subject further beyond the ken of mortals than even the unfathomable depths of the ocean. The idea is, that God saw all that occurred in that dark world beneath us, where the dead were congregated, and that his vast superiority to man was evinced by his being able thus to penetrate into, and survey those hidden regions. It is common in the Classical writers to represent those regions as entered by gates. Thus, Lucretius, i. 1105,

- Haec rebus erit para janua letl,

Hae se turba foras dabit omnis materai .

- "The doors of death are ope,

And the vast whole unbounded ruin whelms."

Good.

So Virgil, Aeneid ii. 661,

- Pater isti janua leto ,

"The door of death stands open."

Or hast thou seen the doors of the shadow of death? - The doors which lead down to the gloomy realms where death spreads its dismal shades. This expression is more emphatic than the former, for the word צלמות tsalmâveth "shadow of death,"is more intensive in its meaning than the word מות mâveth , "death."There is the superadded idea of a deep and dismal shadow; of profound and gloomy darkness; see the word explained in the notes at Job 3:5; compare Job 10:21-22. Man was unable to penetrate those gloomy abodes and to reveal what was there; but God saw all with the clearness of noon-day.

Barnes: Job 38:18

Hast thou perceived the breadth of the earth? - How far the earth extends. To see the force of this, we must remember that the early conception of the earth was that it was a vast plain, and that in the time of Job its limits were unknown. One of the earliest and most obvious inquiries would naturally be, What was the extent of the earth? By what was it bounded? And what was the character of the regions beyond those which were then known? All this was hidden from man at that time, and God, therefore, asks with emphasis whether Job had been able to determine this great inquiry. The knowledge of this is put on the same foundation as that of the depths of the sea, and of the dark regions of the dead, and in the time of Job the one was as much unknown as the other. God, who knew all this, must, therefore, be infinitely exalted above man.

Barnes: Job 38:19

Where is the way where light dwelleth? - Or, rather, where is the way or path to the place where light dwells? Light is conceived of as coming from a great distance, and as having a place which might be regarded as its home. It comes in the morning, and is withdrawn at evening, and it seems as if it came from some far distant dwelling-place in the morning to illuminate the world, and then retired to its home in the evening, and thus gave place for darkness to visit the earth. The idea is this, "Dost thou know, when the light withdraws from the world, to what place it betakes itself as its home? Canst thou follow it to its distant abodes, and tell where they are? And when the shadows of night come forth, and take its place, canst thou tell whence they come; and when they withdraw again in the morning, canst thou follow them, and tell where they are congregated together to abide?"The thought is highly poetic, and is not to be taken literally. The meaning is, that God only could know what was the great fountain of light, and where that was; and the question substantially may be asked of man with as much force and propriety now as in the time of Job. Who knows what is the great fountain of light to the universe? Who knows what light is? Who can explain the causes of its rapid flight from world to world? Who can tell what supplies it, and prevents it from being exhausted? Who but God, after all the discoveries of science, can fully understand this?

And as for darkness, where is the place thereof? - Darkness here is personified. It is represented as having a place of abode as coming forth to take the place of light when that is withdrawn, and again as retiring to its dwelling when the light reappears.

Barnes: Job 38:20

That thou shouldest take it to the bounds thereof - Margin, "or, at."The sense seems to be this: God asks Job whether he was so well acquainted with the sources of light, and the place where it dwelt, that he could take it under his guidance and reconduct it to its place of abode.

And that thou shouldest know the paths to the house thereof? - The same idea is repeated here. Light has a home; a place of abode. It was far distant - in some region unknown to man. Did Job know the way in which it came, and the place where it dwelt so well, that he could conduct it back again to its own dwelling? Umbreit, Noyes, and Herder, suppose that this is to be understood ironically.

"For thou hast reached its boundaries!

For then knowest the path to its dwelling!"

But it has been commonly regarded as a question, and thus understood it accords better with the connection.

Barnes: Job 38:21

Knowest thou it, because thou wast then born? - This may either be a question, or it may be spoken ironically. According to the former mode of rendering it, it is the same as asking Job whether he had lived long enough to understand where the abode of light was, or whether he had an existence when it was created, and knew where its home was appointed. According to the latter mode, it is keen sarcasm. "Thou must know all this, for thou art so old. Thou hast had an opportunity of observing all this, for thou hast lived through all these changes, and observed all the works of God."This latter method of interpreting it is adopted by Umbreit, Herder, Noyes, Rosenmuller, and Wemyss. The former, however, seems much better to accord with the connection, and with the dignity and character of the speaker. It is not desirable to represent God as speaking in the language of irony and sarcasm unless the rules of interpretation imperatively demand it.

Barnes: Job 38:22

Hast thou entered into the treasures of snow? - Snow is here represented as something which is laid up like treasure, and kept in reserve for use when God shall require it. Silver and gold were thus laid up for occasions when they would be wanted, and the figurative sentiment here is, that snow and hail were thus preserved for the use to which the Almighty might devote them, or for those great occasions when it would be proper to bring them forth to execute his purposes. Of course, it was to be expected that God would speak in the language which people commonly used when speaking of his works, and would not go into a philosophical or scientific explanation of the phenomena of nature. His object was not to teach science, but to produce a solemn impression of his greatness, and that is secured by such an appeal whether the laws of nature are understood or not. The simple appeal to Job here is, whether he could explain the phenomena of snow and hail?

Could he tell how they were formed? Whence they came? Where they were preserved, and how they were sent forth to execute the purposes of God? The idea is, that all that pertained to the snow was distinctly understood by God, and that these were facts which Job did not know of, and which he could not explain. The effect of time and of scientific investigation, in this as in other cases to which reference is made in this book, has been only to increase the force of this question. The effect of the discoveries which are made in the works of God is not to diminish our sense of his wisdom and majesty, but to change mere wonder to praise; to transform blind amazement to intelligent adoration. Every new discovery of a law of nature is fitted more to impress the mind with awe, and at the same time it becomes the basis of a new act of intelligent confidence in God. This is true of snow as of other things.

In the time and country of Job it came doubtless from the north. Vast quantities seemed to be poured forth from those regions at certain seasons of the year, as if it were reserved there in vast store-houses, or treasuries. Science has, however, told us that it is congealed vapor formed in the air, by the vapor being frozen there before it is collected into drops large enough to form hail. In the descent of the vapor to the earth it is frozen and descends in the numerous variety of crystallized forms in which the flakes appear. Perhaps there is nothing more fitted to excite pleasing conceptions of the wisdom of God - not even the variety of beauty in flowers - than the various forms of crystals in which snow appears. Those crystals present an almost endless variety of forms, Descartes and Dr. Hook were among the first whose minds seem to have been drawn to the figures of the crystals in snow, and since their investigations the suhject has excited great interest in others.

Captain Scoresby, who gave much attention to this subject and to other arctic phenomena, has given a delineation of 96 of these crystals. He adds, "The extreme beauty and the endless variety of the microsopic objects perceived in the animal and vegetable kingdoms, are perhaps fully equalled, if not surpassed, in both particulars of beauty and variety, by the crystals of snow. The principal configurations are the stelliform and the hexagonal; though almost every variety of shape of which the generating angle of 60 degrees and 120 degrees are susceptible, may, in the course of a few years’ observation, be discovered. Some of the general varieties in the figures of the crystals may be referred to the temperature of the air; but the particular and endless modifications of the same classes of crystals can only be referred to the will and pleasure of the First Great Cause, whose works, even the most minute and evanescent, and in regions the most remote from human observation, are altogether admirable."See the Edinburgh Encyclopedia, "Snow."

Or hast thou seen the treasures of the hail - As if the hail were reserved in storehouses, like the weapons of war, to be called forth when God should please, in order to execute his purposes. Hail - so well known in its nature and form - consists of masses of ice or frozen vapor, falling from the clouds in showers or storms. These masses consist of little spherules united, but not all of the same consistence; some being as hard and solid as perfect ice, others soft like frozen snow. Hail-stones assume various figures; some are round, others angular, others pyramidal, others flat, and sometimes they are stellated, with six radii, like crystals of snow - Encylopedia as quoted in Webster’ s Dictionary. Snow and hail are formed in the clouds when they are at an elevation where the temperature is below 32 degrees. The particles of moisture become congealed and fall to the earth. When the temperature below the clouds is more than 32 degrees, the flakes of snow often melt, and descend in the form of rain.

But hailstones, from their greater solidity and more rapid descent, often reach the earth even when the temperature is much higher; and hence, we have storms of hail in the summer. The difference in the formation of snow and hail is, that in the former case the vapor in the clouds is congealed before it is collected into drops; in the case of hail, the vapor is collected into drops or masses, and then frozen. "If we examine,"says Mr. Leslie, "the structure of a hailstone, we shall perceive a snowy kernel encased by a harder crust. It has very nearly the appearance of a drop of water suddenly frozen, the particles of air being driven from the surface toward the center, where they form a spongy texture. This circumstance suggests the probable origin of hail, which is perhaps occasioned by rain falling through a dry and very cold stratum of air"- Edinburgh Encyclopedia, "Meteorology."

All the facts about the formation of hail were unknown in the time of Job, and hence, God appeals to them as evidence of his superior wisdom and greatness, and in proof of the duty of man to submit to him. These phenomena, which were constantly occurring, man could not explain; and how much less qualified, therefore, was he to sit in judgment on the secret counsels of the Almighty! The same observation may be made now, for though science has done something to explain the laws by which snow and hail are formed, yet those discoveries have tended to enlarge our conceptions of the wisdom of God, and have shown us, to an extent which was not then suspected, how much is still unknown. We see a few of the laws by which God does these things, but who is prepared to explain these laws themselves, or to tell why and how the particles of vapor arrange themselves into such beautiful crystallized forms?

Barnes: Job 38:23

Which I have reserved - As if they were carefully treasured up to be brought forth as they shall be needed. The idea is, that they were entirely under the direction of God.

The time of trouble - Herder "the time of need."The meaning probably is, that he had kept them in reserve for the time when he wished to bring calamity on his enemies, or that he made use of them to punish his foes; compare the notes at Job 36:31-33.

Against the day of battle and war - Hailstones were employed by God sometimes to overwhelm his foes, and were sent against them in time of battle; see Jos 10:11; Exo 9:22-26; Psa 18:12-13; compare the notes at Isa 29:6.

Barnes: Job 38:24

By what way is the light parted - The reference here is to the light of the morning, that seems to come from one point, and to spread itself at once over the whole earth. It seems to be collected in the east, or, as it were, condensed or concentrated there, and then to divide itself, and to expand over the face of the world. God here asks Job whether he could explain this, or show in what manner it was done. This was one of the subjects which might be supposed early to excite inquiry, and is one which can be as little explained now as then. The causes of the propagation of light, which seems to proceed from a center and to spread rapidly in every direction, are perhaps as little known now as they were in the time of Job. Philosophy has done little to explain this, and the mode in which light is made to travel in eight minutes from the sun to the earth - a distance of ninety million miles - and the manner in which it is "divided"or "parted"from that great center, and spread over the solar system, is as much of a real mystery as it was in the days of Job, and the question proposed here may be asked now with as much emphasis as it was then.

Which scattereth the east wind upon the earth - According to this translation, the idea would be that somehow light is the cause of the east wind. But it may be doubted whether this is the true interpretation, and whether it is meant to be affirmed that light has any agency in causing the wind to blow. Herder renders it:

"When doth the light divide itself,

When the east wind streweth it upon the earth?"

According to this, the idea would be that the light of the morning seemed to be borne along by the wind. Umbreit renders it, "Where is the way upon which the east wind flows forth upon the earth?"That is, the east wind, like the light, comes from a certain point, and seems to spread abroad over the world; and the question is, whether Job could explain this? This interpretation is adopted by Rosenmuller and Noyes, and seems to be demanded by the parallelism, and by the nature of the case. The cause of the rapid spreading of the wind from a certain point of the compass, was involved in as much obscurity as the propagation of the light, nor is that cause much better understood now. There is no reason to suppose that the spread of the light, has any particular agency in causing the east wind, as our common version seems to suppose, nor is that idea necessarily in the Hebrew text. The east wind is mentioned here either because the light comes from the east, and the wind from that quarter was more naturally suggested than any other, or because the east wind was remarkable for its violence. The idea that a strong east wind was somehow connected with the dawn of day or the rising of the sun, was one that prevailed, at least to some extent, among the ancients. Thus, Catullus (lxiv. 270ff) says:

Hic qualis flatu placidum mare matutino

Horrificans zephyrus proclivas incitat undas

Aurora exoriente, vagi sub lumina solis .

Barnes: Job 38:25

Who hath divided a water-course for the overflowing of waters - That is, for the waters that flow down from the clouds. The idea seems to be this, that the waters of heaven, instead of pouring down in floods, or all coming down together, seemed to flow in certain canals formed for them; as if they had been cut out through the clouds for that purpose. The causes of rain, the manner in which water was suspended in the clouds, and the reasons why the rain did not come down altogether in floods, early attracted attention, and gave occasion to investigation. The subject is more than once referred to in this book; see the notes at Job 26:8.

Or a way for the lightning of thunder - For the thunder-flash. The idea is this: a path seems to be opened in the dark cloud for the passage of the flash of lightning. How such a path was made, by what agency or by what laws, was the question proposed for inquiry. The lightning seemed at once to burst through the dark cloud where there was no opening and no sign of a path before, and pursue its zig-zag journey as if all obstructions were removed, and it passed over a beaten path. The question is, who could have traced out this path for the thunder-flash to go in? Who could do it but the Almighty? And still, with all the light that science has cast on the subject, we may repeat the question.

Barnes: Job 38:26

To cause it to rain on the earth, where no man is - This is designed to heighten the conception of the power of God. It could not be pretended that this was done by man, for the rain was caused to fall in the desolate regions where no one dwelt. In the lonely desert, in the wastes remote from the dwellings of people, the rain is sent down, evidently by the providential care of God, and far beyond the reach of the agency of man. There is very great beauty in this whole description of God as superintending the falling rain far away from the homes of people, and in those lonely wastes pouring down the waters, that the tender herb may spring up, and the flowers bloom under his hand. All this may seem to be wasted, but it is not so in the eye of God. Not a drop of rain falls in the sandy desert or on the barren rock, however useless it may seem to be, that is not seen to be of value by God, and that is not designated to accomplish some important purpose there.

Barnes: Job 38:27

To satisfy the desolate and waste ground - As if it lifted an imploring voice to God, and he sent down the rain to satisfy it. The desert is thus like a thirsty pilgrim. It is parched, and thirsty, and sad, and it appeals to God, and he meets its needs, and satisfies it.

Or to cause the bud of the tender herb to spring forth - In the desert. There God works alone. No man is there to cultivate the extended wilds, and yet an unseen agency is going forward. The grass springs up; the bud opens; the leaf expands; the flowers breathe forth their fragrance as if they were under the most careful cultivation. All this must be the work of God, since it cannot even be pretended that man is there to produce these effects. Perhaps one would be more deeply impressed with a sense of the presence of God in the pathless desert, or on the boundless prairie, where no man is, than in the most splendid park, or the most tastefully cultivated garden which man could make. In the one case, the hand of God alone is seen; in the other, we are constantly admiring the skill of man.

Barnes: Job 38:28

Hath the rain a father? - That is, it is produced by God and not by man. No one among men can claim that he causes it, or can regard it as his offspring. The idea is, that the production of rain is among the proofs of the wisdom and agency of God, and that it is caused in a way that demonstrates his own agency. It is not by any power of man; and it is not in such a way as to constitute a relation like that between a father and a son. The rain is often appealed to in this book as something whose cause man could not explain, and as demonstrating the wisdom and supremacy of God. Among philosophic and contemplative minds it would early excite inquiry, and give occasion for wonder. What caused it? Whence came the water which fell? How was it suspended? How was it borne from place to place? How was it made to descend in drops, and why was it not poured down at once in floods?

Questions like these would early excite inquiry, and we are not to suppose that in the time of Job science was so far advanced that they could be answered; see the notes at Job 26:8; compare Job 38:37 notes. The laws of the production of rain are now better understood, but like all other laws discovered by science, they are adapted to elevate, not to diminish, our conceptions of the wisdom of God. It may be of interest, and may serve to explain the passages in this book which refer to rain, as illustrating the wisdom of God, to state what is now the commonly received theory of its cause. That theory is the one proposed by Dr. James Hutton, and first published in the Philosophical Transactions of Edinburgh, in 1784. In this theory it is supposed that the cause consists in the vapor that is held dissolved in the air, and is based on this principle - "that the capacity of the air for holding water in a state of vapor increases in a greater ratio than its temperature;"that is, that if there are two portions of air which would contain a certain quantity of water in solution if both were heated in an equal degree, the capacity for holding water would be alike; but if one of them be heated more than the other, the amount of water which it would hold in solution is not exactly in proportion to the heat applied, but increases much more rapidly than the heat.

It will hold much more water when the temperature is raised than is proportionate to the amount of heat applied. From the experiments which were made by Sanssure and others, it was found that while the temperature of the air rises in arithmetical progression, the dissolving power of the air increases nearly in geometrical progression; that is, if the temperature be represented by the figures 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, etc., the capacity for holding moisture will be nearly represented by the figures 2, 8, 16, 32, 64, etc. Rain is caused in the following manner. When two portions of air of different temperature, and each saturated with moisture, are intermixed, the quantity of moisture in the air thus intermixed, in consequence of the decrease of temperature, will be greater than the air will contain in solution, and will be condensed in a cloud or precipitated to the earth. This law of nature was of course unknown to Job, and is an arrangement which could have been formed only by the all-wise Author of nature; see "Edin. Ency., Art. Meteorology, p. 181."

Or who hath begotten the drops of the dew? - Who has produced them - implying that they were caused only by the agency of God. No one among mortals could claim that he had caused the dew to fall. God appeals to the dew here, the causes of which were then unknown, as an evidence of his wisdom and supremacy. Dew is the moisture condensed from the atmosphere, and that settles on the earth. It usually falls in clear and calm nights, and is caused by a reduction of the temperature of that on which the dew falls. Objects on the surface of the earth become colder than the atmosphere above them, and the consequence is, that the moisture that was suspended in the atmosphere near the surface of the earth is condensed - in the same way as in a hot day moisture will form on the outside of a tumbler or pitcher that is filled with water. The coldness of the vessel containing the water condenses the moisture that was suspended in the surrounding atmosphere.

The cold, therefore, which accompanies dew, precedes instead of following it. The reason why the surface of the earth becomes cooler than the surrounding atmosphere at night, so as to form dew, has been a subject of considerable inquiry. The theory of Dr. Wells, which is now commonly adopted, is, that the earth is continually radiating its heat to the high and colder regions of the atmosphere; that in the day-time the effects of this radiation are not sensible, being more than counterbalanced by the greater influx of heat from the direct influence of the sun; but that during the night, when the counteracting cause is removed, these effects become sensible, and produce the reduction of temperature which causes dew. The surface of the earth becomes cool by the heat which is radiated to the upper regions of the atmosphere, and the moisture in the air adjacent to the surface of the earth is condensed. This occurs only in a clear and calm night. When the sky is cloudy, the clouds operate as a screen, and the radiation of the heat to the higher regions of the atmosphere is prevented, and the surface of the earth and the surrounding atmosphere are kept at the same temperature; see the Edinburgh Encyclopedia, "Meteorology,"pp. 185-188. Of course, these laws were unknown to Job, but now that they are known to us, they constitute no less properly a proof of the wisdom of God.

Barnes: Job 38:29

Out of whose womb came the ice? - That is, who has caused or produced it? The idea is, that it was not by any human agency, or in any known way by which living beings were propagated.

And the hoary frost of heaven - Which seems to fall from heaven. The sense is, that it is caused wholly by God; see the notes at Job 37:10.

Barnes: Job 38:30

The waters are hid as with a stone - The solid ice is laid as a stone upon them, wholly concealing them from view.

And the face of the deep is frozen - Margin, "taken."The idea is, they seem to take hold of one another ( יתלכדוּ yitlâkadû ); they hold together, or cohere. The formation of ice is thus appealed to as a proof of the wisdom of God, and as a thing which Job could not explain. No man could produce this effect; nor could Job explain how it was done.

Barnes: Job 38:31

Canst thou bind the sweet influences of Pleiades? - The seven stars. On the meaning of the word used here ( כימה kı̂ymâh ), see the notes at Job 9:9. In regard to the meaning of the word rendered "sweet influences,"there has been considerable variety of interpretation. The Septuagint renders it, "Dost thou understand the band ( δεσμόν desmon ) of Pleiades?"The Hebrew word ( מעדנה ma‛ădannâh ) is naturally derived from a word signifying "pleasures,"or "delights"( מעדן ma‛âdan , from עדן ‛âdan , "to be soft, or pliant; to enjoy pleasure or delight"; hence, the word "Eden"), and then it would mean, as in our translation, the delightful influences of the Pleiades; or the influences supposed to be produced by this constellation in imparting happiness, particularly the pleasures enjoyed in the spring time, when that constellation makes its appearance. But Gesenius supposes that the word is derived from ענד ‛ânad , "to bind,"and that it is used by transposition for מענדות mā‛nadôth .

It would then refer to the "bands of Pleiades,"and the question would be whether Job had created the band which united the stars composing that constellation in so close union; whether he had bound them together in a cluster or bundle. This idea is adopted by Rosenmuller, Umbreit, and Noyes. Herder renders it, "the brilliant Pleiades."The word "bands"applied to the Pleiades is not unfrequently used in Persian poetry. They were spoken of as a band or ornament for the forehead - or compared with a headband made up of diamonds or pearls. Thus, Sadi, in his Gullstan, p. 22, (Amsterdam, 1651), speaking of a garden, says,"The earth is strewed, as it were, with emeralds, and the bands of Pleiades appear upon the boughs of the trees."So Hafiz, another Persian poet, says, in one of his odes, "Over thy songs heaven has strewed the bands of the Pleiades as a seal of immortality."The Greenlanders call the Pleiades killukturset, a name given to them because they appear to be bound together.

"Egede’ s Account of the Greenland Mission, p. 57;"see Rosenmuller, "Alte u. neue Morgenland, No. 768."There seems, however, no good reason for departing from the usual meaning of the word, and then the reference will be to the time when the Pleiades or the seven stars make their appearance - the season of spring. Then the winter disappears; the streams are unlocked; the earth is covered with grass and flowers; the air is sweet and balmy; and a happy influence seems to set in upon the world. There may be some allusion here to the influence which the stars were supposed to exert over the seasons and the affairs of this world, but it is not necessary to suppose this. All that is required in the interpretation of the passage is, that the appearance of certain constellations was connected with certain changes in the seasons; as with spring, summer, or winter. It was not unnatural to infer from that fact, that the constellations exerted an influence in causing those changes, and hence, arose the pretended science of astrology. But there is no necessary connection between the two. The Pleiades appear in the spring, and seem to lead on that joyous season. These stars, so closely set together, seem to be bound to one another in a sisterly union (Herder), and thus joyously usher in the spring. God asks Job whether he were the author of that band, and had thus united them for the purpose of ushering in happy influences on the world.

Or loose the bands of Orion - In regard to this constellation, see the notes at Job 9:9. The word bands here has been supposed to refer to the girdle with which it is usually represented. Orion is here described as a man girded for action, and is the pioneer of winter. It made its appearance early in the winter, and was regarded as the precursor of storms and tempests; see the quotations in the notes at Job 9:9. Thus appearing in the autumn, this constellation seems to lead on the winter. It comes with strength. It spreads its influence over the air, the earth, the waters, and binds everything at its pleasure. God here asks Job whether he had power to disarm this giant; to unloose his girdle; to divest him of strength; to control the seasons? Had he power over summer and winter, so as to cause them to go or come at his bidding, and to control all those laws which produced them?

Barnes: Job 38:32

Canst thou bring forth Mazzaroth in his season? - Margin, "the twelve signs;"that is, the twelve signs of the zodiac. There has been much diversity of opinion about the meaning of this word. It occurs nowhere else in the Scriptures, and of course it is not easy to determine its signification. The Septuagint retains the word μαξσυρὠθ maxsurōth , without attempting to translate it. Jerome renders it, " Luciferum - Lucifer,"the morning-star. The Chaldee, מזליא שטרי - the constellations of the planets. Coverdale, "the morning-star;"and so Luther renders it. Rosenmuller, "signa celestia" - the celestial signs, and so Herder, Umbreit, Gesenius, and Noyes, "the zodiac."Gesenius regards the word מזרה mazzârâh , as the same as מזלה mazzâlâh , properly "lodgings, inns;"and hence, the "lodgings"of the sun, or the places or "houses"in which he appears in the heavens, and thus as meaning the signs in the zodiac. Most of the Hebrew interpreters adopt this view, but it rests on no certain foundation, and as we are not certain as to the meaning of the word, the only safe way is to retain the original, as is done in our common version. I do not see how it is possible to determine its meaning with certainty, and probably it is to be regarded as a name given to some constellation or cluster of stars supposed to exert an influence over the seasons, or connected with some change in the seasons, which we cannot now accurately understand.

Or canst thou guide Arcturus? - On the constellation "Arcturus"( עשׁ ‛ayish ), see the notes at Job 9:9. The word rendered "guide"in the text, is in the margin "guide them."The Hebrew is, "and עשׁ ‛ayish upon (or near - על ‛al ) her sons, canst thou lead them?"Herder and Umbreit render it, "And lead forth the Bear with her young,"or her children. The reference is to the constellation Arcturus, or Ursa Major, in the northern sky. The "sons"referred to are the stars that accompany it, probably the stars that are now called the"tail of the bear.""Umbreit."Another interpretation is suggested by Herder, which is that this constellation is represented as a nightly wanderer - a mother, who is seeking her lost children, the stars that are no longer visible, and that thus revolves around the heavens. But the probable reference is to the constellation conducted round and round the pole as by some unseen hand, like a mother with her children, and the question is, whether Job had skill and power to do this? God appeals to it as a manifestation of his majesty and power, and as far above the skill of man. Who ever looked upon that beautiful constellation and marked its regular revolutions, without feeling that its position and movements were such as God only could produce?

Barnes: Job 38:33

Knowest thou the ordinances of heaven? - The laws or statutes by which the motions of the heavenly bodies are governed. These were wholly unknown in the time of Job, and the discovery of some of those laws - for only a few of them are yet known - was reserved to be the glory of the modern system of astronomy. The suggestion of the great principles of the system gave immortality to the name Copernicus; and the discovery of those laws in modern times has conferred immortality on the names of Brahe, Kepler, and Newton. The laws which control the heavenly bodies are the most sublime that are known to man, and have done more to impress the human mind with a sense of the majesty of God than any other: discoveries made in the material universe. Of course, all those laws were known to God himself, and he appeals to them in proof of his greatness and majesty. The grand and beautiful movements of the heavenly bodies in the time of Job were fitted to produce admiration; and one of the chief delights of those that dwelt under the splendor of an Oriental sky was to contemplate those movements, and to give names to those moving lights. The discoveries of science have enlarged the conceptions of man in regard to the starry heavens far toward immensity; have shown that these twinkling lights are vast worlds and systems, and at the same time have so disclosed the laws by which they are governed as to promote, where the heart is right, intelligent piety, and elevate the mind to more glorious views of the Creator.

Canst thou set the dominion thereof in the earth? - That is, "dost thou assign the dominion of the heavens over the earth?"The reference is, undoubtedly, to the influence of the heavenly bodies upon sublunary objects. The exact extent of that cannot be supposed to have been known in the days of Job, and it is probable that much more was ascribed to the influence of the stars on human affairs than the truth would justify. Nor is its extent now known. It is known that the moon has an influence over the tides of the ocean; it may be that it has to some extent over the weather; and it is not impossible that the other heavenly bodies may have some effect on the changes observed in the earth which is not understood. Whatever it is, it was and is all known to God, and the idea here is, that it was a proof of his immense superiority over man.

Barnes: Job 38:34

Canst thou lift up thy voice to the clouds, that abundance of waters may cover thee? - That is, canst thou command the clouds so that they shall send down abundant rain? Bouillier supposes that there is an allusion here to the incantations which were pretended to be practiced by the Magi, by which they claimed the power of producing rain at pleasure; compare Jer 14:22, "Are there any among the vanities of the Gentiles (the idols that they worship) that can cause rain? Art not thou he, O Lord our God?"The idea is, that it is God only who can cause rain, and that the control of the clouds from which rain descends is wholly beyond the reach of man.

Barnes: Job 38:35

Canst thou send lightnings? - That is, lightning is wholly under the control of God. So it is now; for after all that man has done to discover its laws, and to guard against it, yet still man has made no advances toward a power to wield it, nor is it possible that he ever should. It is one of the agencies in the universe that is always to be under the divine direction, and however much man may subsidize to his purposes wind, and water, and steam, and air, yet there can be no prospect that the forked lightning can be seized by human hands and directed by human skill to purposes of utility or destruction among people; compare the notes at Job 36:31-33.

And say unto thee, Here we are - Margin, "Behold us."That is, we are at your disposal. This language is derived from the condition, of servants presenting themselves at the call of their masters, and saying that they stood ready to obey their commands; compare 1Sa 3:4, 1Sa 3:6,1Sa 3:9; Isa 6:8.

Barnes: Job 38:36

Who hath put wisdom in the inward parts? - There is great variety in the interpretation of this passage. Jerome renders it, Quis posuit in visceribus heminis sapienttam? Vel quis dedit gallo intelligentiam? "Who hath put wisdom in the inner parts of man? Or who has given to the cock intelligence?"Just as strangely, the Septuagint has: "Who hath given to women skill in weaving, and a knowledge of the art of embroidering?."One of the Targums renders it, "Who has given to the woodcock intelligence that he should praise his Master?"Herder renders it,

"Who gave understanding to the flying clouds,

Or intelligence to the meteors of the air?"

Umbreit,

"Who placed wisdom in the dark clouds?

Who gave understanding to the forms of the air?"

Schultens and Rosenmuller explain it of the various phenomena that appear in the sky - as lightning, thunder, meteoric lights, etc. So Prof. Lee explains the words as referring to the "tempest"and the "thunder-storm."According to that interpretation, the idea is, that these phenomena appear to be endowed with intelligence, There is proof of plan and wisdom in their arrangement and connection, and they show that it is not by chance that they are directed. One reason assigned for this interpretation is, that it accords with the connection. The course of the argument, it is remarked, relates to the various phenomena that appear in the sky - to the lightnings, tempests, and clouds. It is unnatural to suppose that a remark would be interposed here respecting the intellectual endowments of man, when the appeal to the clouds is again Job 38:37 immediately resumed. There can be no doubt that there is much weight in this observation, and that the connection demands this interpretation, and that it should be adopted if the words which are used will admit of it.

The only difficulty relates to the words rendered "inward parts,"and "heart."The former of these ( טחות ṭûchôt ) according to the Hebrew interpreters, is derived from טוח ṭûach , "to cover over, to spread, to besmear"; and is hence given to the veins, because covered with fat. It occurs only in this place, and in Psa 51:6, "Behold thou desirest truth in the inward parts,"where it undoubtedly refers to the seat of the affections or thoughts in man. The verb is often used as meaning to daub, overlay, or plaster, as in Lev 14:42; Eze 22:28; Eze 13:12, Eze 13:14. Schultens, Lee, Umbreit, and others, have recourse in the explanation to the use of the Arabic word of the same letters with the Hebrew, meaning to wander, to make a random shot, etc., and thence, apply it to lightning, and to meteors. Umbreit supposes that there is allusion to the prevalent opinion in the East that the clouds and the phenomena of the air could be regarded as furnishing prophetic indications of what was to occur; or to the custom of predicting future events by the aspects of the sky.

It is a sufficient objection to this, however, that it cannot be supposed that the Almighty would lend his sanction to this opinion by appealing to it as if it were so. After all that bas been written on the passage, and all the force of the difficulty which is urged, I do not see evidence that we are to depart from the common interpretation, to wit, that God means to appeal to the fact that he has endowed man with intelligence as a proof of his greatness and supremacy. The connection is, indeed, not very apparent. It may be, however, as Noyes suggests, that the reference is to the mind of Job in particular, and to the intelligence with which he was able to perceive, and in some measure to comprehend, these various phenomena. The connection may be something like this: "Look to the heavens, and contemplate these wonders. Explain them, if possible; and then ask who it is that has so endowed the mind of man that it can trace in them such proofs of the wisdom and power of the Almighty. The phenomena themselves, and the capacity to contemplate them, and to be instructed by them, are alike demonstrations of the supremacy of the Most High."

Understanding to the heart - To the mind. The common word to denote "heart"- לב lêb is not used here, but a word ( שׂכוי śekvı̂y from שכה ) meaning "to look at, to view"; and hence, denoting the mind; the intelligent soul. "Gesenius."

Barnes: Job 38:37

Who can number the clouds? - The word here rendered "clouds"( שׁחקים shachaqiym ) is applied to the clouds as made up of "small particles"- as if they were composed of fine dust, and hence, the word number is applied to them, not as meaning that the clouds themselves were innumerable, but that no one could estimate the number of particles which enter into their formation.

In wisdom - By his wisdom. Who has sufficient intelligence to do it?

Or who can stay the bottles of heaven? - Margin, as in Hebrew "cause to lie down."The clouds are here compared with bottles, as if they held the water in the same manner; compare the notes at Job 26:8. The word rendered "stay"in the text, and in the margin "cause to lie down,"is rendered by Umbreit, "pour out,"from an Arabic signification of the word. Gesenius supposes that the meaning to "pour out"is derived from the idea of "causing to lie down,"from the fact that a bottle or vessel was made to lie down or was inclined to one side when its contents were poured out. This explanation seems probable, though there is no other place in the Hebrew where the word is used in this signification. The sense of pouring out agrees well with the connection.

Barnes: Job 38:38

When the dust groweth into hardness - Margin, "is poured, or, is turned into mire."The words used here relate often to metals, and to the act of pouring them out when fused, for the purpose of casting. The proper idea here is, "when the dust flows into a molten mass;"that is, when wet with rain it flows together and becomes hard. The sense is, that the rain operates on the clay as heat does on metals, and that when it is dissolved it flows together and thus becomes a solid mass. The object is to compare the effect of rain with the usual effect in casting metals.

And the clods cleave fast together - That is, they are run together by the rain. They form one mass of the same consistency, and then are baked hard by the sun.

Barnes: Job 38:39

Wilt thou hunt the prey for the lion? - The appeal here is to the instincts with which God has endowed animals, and to the fact that he had so made them that they would secure their own food. He asks Job whether he would undertake to do what the lion did by instinct in finding his food, and by his power and skill in seizing his prey. There was a wise adaptation of the lion for this purpose which man could neither originate nor explain.

Or fill the appetite of the young lions - Margin, as in Hebrew "life."The word life is used here for hunger, as the appetite is necessarily connected with the preservation of life. The meaning here is, "Wouldst thou undertake to supply his needs? It is done by laws, and in a manner which thou canst not explain. There are in the arrangement by which it is accomplished marks of wisdom which far surpass the skill of man to originate, and the instinct and power by which it is done are proof of the supremacy of the Most High."No one can study the subject of the instincts of animals, or become in the least acquainted with Natural History, without finding every where traces of the wisdom and goodness of God.

Barnes: Job 38:40

When they couch in their dens - For the purpose of springing upon their prey.

And abide in the covert to lie in wait? - The usual posture of the lion when he seeks his prey. He places himself in some unobserved position in a dense thicket, or crouches upon the ground so as not to be seen, and then springs suddenly upon his victim. The common method of the lion in taking his prey is to spring or throw himself upon it from the place of his ambush, with one vast bound and to inflict the mortal blow with one stroke of his paw. If he misses his aim, however, he seldom attempts another spring at the same object, but deliberately returns to the thicket in which he lay in concealment. See the habits of the lion illustrated in the Edinburgh Encyclopedia, "Mazology."

Barnes: Job 38:41

Who provideth for the raven his food? - The same thought is expressed in Psa 147:9,

He giveth to the beast his food,

And to the young ravens which cry.

Compare Mat 6:26. Scbeutzer ( in loc .) suggests that the reason why the raven is specified here rather than other fowls is, that it is an offensive bird, and that God means to state that no object, however regarded by man, is beneath his notice. He carefully provides for the needs of all his creatures.

When his young ones cry unto God, they wander for lack of meat - Bochart observes that the raven expels the young from the nest as soon as they are able to fly. In this condition, being unable to obtain food by their own exertions, they make a croaking noise, and God is said to hear it, and to supply their needs. "Noyes."There are various opinions expressed in regard to this subject by the rabbinical writers, and by the ancients generally. Eliezer (cap. 21) says that, "When the old ravens see the young coming into the world which are not black, they regard them as the offspring of serpents, and flee away from them, and God takes care of them."Solomon says that in this condition they are nourished by the flies and worms that are generated in their nests, and the same opinion was held by the Arabian writers, Haritius, Alkuazin, and Damir. Among the fathers of the church, Chrysostom, Olympiodorus, Gregory, and Isidorus, supposed that they were nurtured by dew descending from heaven.

Pliny (Lib. x. c. 12) says, that the old ravens expel the strongest of their young from the nest, and compel them to fly. This is the time, according to many of the older commentators, when the young ravens are represented as calling upon God for food. See Scheutzer, Physica Sacra, in loc . and Bochart, Hieroz. P. ii. L. ii. c. ii. I do not know that there is now supposed to be sufficient evidence to substantiate this fact in regard to the manner in which the ravens treat their young, and all the circumstances of the place before us will be met by the supposition that young birds seem to call upon God, and that he supplies their needs. The last three verses in this chapter should not have been separated from the following. The appeal in this is to the animal creation, and this is continued through the whole of the next chapter. The proper place for the division would have been at the close of Job 38:38, where the argument from the great laws of the material universe was ended. Then commences an appeal to his works of a higher order - the region of instinct and appetites, where creatures are governed by other than mere physical laws.

Barnes: Job 39:1

Knowest thou, the time when the wild goats of the rock bring forth? - That is, the particular season when the mountain goats bring forth their young. Of domestic animals - the sheep, the tame goat, etc., the habits would be fuIly understood. But the question here relates to the animals that roamed at large on inaccessible cliffs; that were buried in deep forests; that were far from the dwellings and observation of people; and the meaning is, that there were many facts in regard to such points of Natural History which Job could not explain. God knew all their instincts and habits, and on the inaccessible cliffs, in the deep dell, in the dark forest, he was with them, and they were the objects of his care. He not only regarded the condition of the domestic animals that had been brought into the service of man, and where man perhaps might be disposed to claim that they owed much of their comfort to his care, but he regarded also the wild, wandering beast of the mountain, where no such pretence could be advanced.

The providence of God is over them; and in the periods of their lives when they seem most to need attention, when every shepherd and herdsmen is most solicitous about his flocks and herds, then God is present, and his care is seen in their preservation. The particular point in the inquiry here is, not in regard to the time when these animals produced their young or the period of their gestation, which might probably be known, but in regard to the attention and care which was needful for them when they were so far removed from the observance of man, and had no human aid. The "wild goat of the rock"here referred to, is, doubtless, the Ibex, or mountain goat, that has its dwellings among the rocks, or in stony places. The Hebrew term is יעל yâ‛êl , from יעל ya‛al , "to ascend, to go up."They had their residence in the lofty rocks of mountains; Psa 104:18. "The high hills are a refuge for the wild goats."

Hebrew "For the goats of the rocks"- סלעים יעלים yâ‛êliym sela‛iym . So in 1Sa 24:2 (3), "Saul went to seek David and his men upon the rocks of the wild goats;"that is, where were the wild goats - היעלים hayâ‛êliym . For a description of the wild goat, see Bochart, Hieroz. P. i. Lib. iii. c. xxiii. The animal here referred to is, doubtless, the same which Burckhardt saw on the summit of Mount Catharine, adjacent to Mount Sinai, and which he thus describes in his Travels in Syria, p. 571: "As we approached the summit of the mountain (Catharine, adjacent to Mount Sinai), we saw at a distance a small flock of mountain goats feeding among the rocks. One of our Arabs left us, and by a widely circuitous route endeavored to get to the leeward of them, and near enough to fire at them. He enjoined us to remain in sight of them, and to sit down in order not to alarm them. He had nearly reached a favorable spot behind a rock, when the goats suddenly took to flight. They could not have seen the Arab, but the wind changed, and thus they smelt him. The chase of the beden, as the wild goat is called, resembles that of the chamois of the Alps, and requires as much enterprise and patience. The Arabs make long circuits to surprise them, and endeavor to come upon them early in the morning, when they feed.

The goats have a leader who keeps watch, and on any suspicious smell, sound, or object, makes a noise, which is a signal to the flock to make their escape. They have much decreased of late, if we may believe the Arabs; who say that fifty years ago, if a stranger came to a tent, and the owner of it had no sheep to kill, he took his gun and went in search of a beden. They are, however, even now more common here than in the Alps, or in the mountains to the east of the Red Sea. I had three or four of them brought to me at the convent, which I bought at three-fourths of a dollar each. The flesh is excellent, and has nearly the same flavor as that of the deer. The Bedouins make water bags of their skins, and rings of their horns, which they wear on their thumbs. When the beden is met with in the plains, the dogs of the hunters easily catch him; but they cannot come up with him among the rocks, where he can make leaps of 20 feet."

Or Canst thou mark when the hinds do calve? - The reference here is to the special care and protection of God manifested for them. The meaning is, that this animal seems to be always timid and apprehensive of danger, and that there is special care bestowed upon an animal so defenseless in enabling it to rear its young. The word hinds denotes the deer, the fawn, the most timid and defenseless, perhaps, of all animals.

Barnes: Job 39:2

Canst thou number the months ... - That is, as they wander in the wilderness, as they live in inaccessible crags and cliffs of the rocks, it is impossible for man to be acquainted with their habits as he can with those of the domestic animals.

Barnes: Job 39:3

They bow themselves - literally, they curve or bend themselves; that is, they draw their limbs together.

They cast out their sorrows - That is, they cast forth the offspring of their pains, or the young which cause their pains. The idea seems to be, that they do this without any of the care and attention which shepherds are obliged to show to their flocks at such seasons. They do it when God only guards them; when they are in the wilderness or on the rocks far away from the abodes of man. The leading thought in all this seems to be, that the tender care of God was over his creatures, in the most perilous and delicate state, and that all this was exercised where man could have no access to them, and could not even observe them.

Barnes: Job 39:4

Their young ones are in good liking - Hebrew "they are fat;"and hence, it means that they are strong and robust.

They grow up with corn - Herder, Gesenius, Noyes, Umbreit, and Rosenmuller render this, "in the wilderness,"or "field."The proper and usual meaning of the word used here ( בר bâr ) is corn (grain); but in Chaldee it has the sense of open fields, or country. The same idea is found in the Arabic, and this sense seems to be required by the connection. The idea is not that they are nurtured with grain, which would require the care of man, but that they are nurtured under the direct eye of God far away from human dwellings, and even when they go away from their dam and return no more to the place of their birth. This is one of the instances, therefore, in which the connection seems to require us to adopt a signification that does not elsewhere occur in the Hebrew, but which is found in the cognate languages.

They go forth, and return not unto them - God guards and preserves them, even when they wander away from their dam, and are left helpless. Many of the young of animals require long attention from man, many are kept for a considerable period by the side of the mother, but the idea here seems to be, that the young of the wild goat and of the fawn are thrown early on the providence of God, and are protected by him alone. The particular care of Providence over these animals seems to be specified because there are no others that are exposed to so many dangers in their early life. "Every creature then is a formidable enemy. The eagle, the falcon, the osprey, the wolf, the dog, and all the rapacious animals of the cat kind, are in continual employment to find out their retreat. But what is more unnatural still, the stag himself is a professed enemy, and she, the hind, is obliged to use all her arts to conceal her young from him, as from the most dangerous of her pursuers.""Goldsmith’ s Nat. His."

Barnes: Job 39:5

Who hath sent out the wild ass free? - For a description of the wild ass, see the notes at Job 11:12. On the meaning of the word rendered "free"( חפשׁי chophshı̂y ), see the notes at Isa 58:6. These animals commonly "inhabit the dry and mountainous parts of the deserts of Great Tartary, but not higher than about latitude 48 degrees. They are migratory, and arrive in vast troops to feed, during the summer, on the tracts to the north and east of the sea of Aral. About autumn they collect in herds of hundreds, and even thousands, and direct their course southward toward India to enjoy a warm retreat during winter. But they more usually retire to Persia, where they are found in the mountains of Casbin; and where part of them remain during the whole year. They are also said to penetrate to the southern parts of India, to the mountains of Malabar and Gelconda. These animals were anciently found in Palestine, Syria, Arabia Deserta, Mesopotamia, Phrygia, and Lycaonia, but they rarely occur in those regions at the present time, and seem to be almost entirely confined to Tartary, some parts of Persia and India, and Africa. Their manners resemble those of the wild horse.

They assembIe in troops under the conduct of a leader or sentinel; and are extremely shy and vigilant. They will, however, stop in the midst of their course, and even suffer the approach of man for an instant, and then dart off with the utmost rapidity. They have been at all times celebrated for their swiftness. Their voice resembles that of the common ass, but is shriller.""Rob. Calmet."The Onager or wild ass is doubtless "the parent stock from which we have derived the useful domestic animal, which seems to have degenerated the further it has been removed from its parent seat in Central Asia. It is greatly distinguished in spirit and grace of form from the domestic ass. It is taller and more dignified; it holds the head higher, and the legs are more elegantly shaped. Even the head, though large in proportion to the body, has a finer appearance, from the forehead being more arched; the neck by which it is sustained is much longer, and has a more graceful bend. It has a short mane of dark and woolly hair; and a stripe of dark bushy hair also runs along the ridge of the back from the mane to the tail. The hair of the body is of a silver gray, inclining to flaxen color in some parts, and white under the belly.

The hair is soft and silken, similar in texture to that of the camel."- The Pictorial Bible. It is of this animal, so different in spirit, energy, agility, and appearance, from the domestic animal of that name, that we must think in order to understand this passage. We must think of them fleet as the wind, untamed and unbroken, wandering over vast plains in groups and herds, assembled by thousands under a leader or guide, and bounding off with uncontrollable rapidity on the approach of man, if we would feel the force of the appeal which is here made. God asks of Job whether he - who could not even subdue and tame this wild creature - had ordained the laws of its freedom; had held it as a captive, and then set it at liberty to exult over boundless plains in its conscious independence. The idea is, that it was one of the creatures of God, under no laws but such as he had been pleased to impose upon it, and wholly beyond the government of man.

Or who hath loosed the bands of the wild ass? - As if he had been once a captive, and then set free. The illustration is derived from the feeling which attends a restoration to liberty. The freedom of this animal seems to be as productive of exhilaration as if it had been a prisoner or slave, and had been suddenly emancipated.

Barnes: Job 39:6

Whose house I have made - God had appointed its home in the desert.

And the barren land his dwellings - Margin, as in Hebrew "salt places."Such places were usually barren. Psa 107:34, "he turneth a fruitful land into barrenness."Hebrew "saltness."Thus, Virgil, Geor. ii. 238-240:

Salsa antem tellus, et quae, perhibetur amara.

Frugibus infelix: ea nec mansuescit arando;

Nec Baccho genus, aut pomis sua nomina servat .

Compare Pliny, Nat. His. 31, 7, Deu 29:23.

Barnes: Job 39:7

He scorneth the multitude of the city - That is, he sets all this at defiance; he is not intimidated by it. He finds his home far away from the city in the wild freedom of the wilderness.

Neither regardeth he the crying of the driver - Margin, "exacter."The Hebrew word properly means a collector of taxes or revenue, and hence, an oppressor, and a driver of cattle. The allusion here is to a driver, and the meaning is, that he is not subject to restraint, but enjoys the most unlimited freedom.

Barnes: Job 39:8

The range of the mountains is his pasture - The word rendered "range" יתור yâthûr , means properly a "searching out,"and then that which is obtained by search. The word "range"expresses the idea with sufficient exactness. The usual range of the wild ass is the mountains. Pallas, who has given a full description of the habits of the Onager, or wild ass, states, that it, especially loves desolate hills as its abode. "Acts of the Society of Sciences of Petersburg,"for the year 1777.

Barnes: Job 39:9

Will the unicorn be willing to serve thee? - In the previous part of the argument, God had appealed to the lion, the raven, the goats of the rock, the hind, and the wild ass; and the idea was, that in the instincts of each of these classes of animals, there was some special proof of wisdom. He now turns to another class of the animal creation in proof of his own supremacy and power, and lays the argument in the great strength and in the independence of the animal, and in the fact that man had not been able to subject his great strength to the purposes of husbandry. In regard to the animal here referred to, there has been great diversity of opinion among interpreters, nor is there as yet any one prevailing sentiment. Jerome renders it "rhinoceros;"the Septuagint, μονόκερως monokerōs , the "unicorn;"the Chaldee and the Syraic retain the Hebrew word; Gesenius, Herder, Umbreit, and Noyes, render it the "buffalo;"Schultens, "alticornem;" Luther and Coverdale, the "unicorn;"Rosenmuller, the "onyx,"a large and fierce species of the antelope; Calmet supposes that the rhinoceros is intended; and Prof. Robinson, in an extended appendage to the article of Calmet (art. Unicorn), has endeavored to show that the wild buffalo is intended.

Bochart, also, in a long and learned argument, has endeavored to show; that the rhinoceros cannot be meant. Hieroz. P. i. Lib. iii. chapter xxvi. He maintains that a species of antelope is referred to, the "rim"of the Arabs. DeWette (Com. on Psa 22:21) accords with the opinion of Gesenius, Robinson, and others, that the animal referred to is the buffalo of the Eastern continent, the bos bubalus of Linnaeus, an animal which differs from the American buffalo only in the shape of the horns and the absence of the dewlap. The word which occurs here, and which is rendered "unicorn"( רים rêym or ראם r^e 'êm , is used in the Scriptures only in the following places, where in the singular or plural it is uniformly rendered "unicorn,"or "unicorns"- Num 23:22; Deu 33:17; Job 39:9-10; Psa 22:21; Psa 29:6; Psa 92:10; and Isa 34:7. By a reference to these passages, it will be found that the animal had the following characteristics:

(1) It was distinguished for its strength; see Job 39:11 of this chapter. Num 23:22, "he (that is, Israel, or the Israelites) hath as it were the strength of a unicorn - ראם r^e 'êm . In Num 24:8, the same declaration is repeated. It is true that the Hebrew word in both these places ( תועפה tô‛âphâh ) may denote rapidity of motion, speed; but in this place the notion of strength must be principally intended, for it was of the power of the people, and their ability manifested in the number of their hosts, that Balaam is speaking. Bochart, however (Hieroz. P. i. Lib. iii. c. xxvii.), supposes that the word means, not strength, or agility, but height, and that the idea is, that the people referred to by Balaam was a lofty or elevated people. If the word means strength, it was most appropriate to compare a vast host of people with the vigor and force of an untamable wild animal. The idea of speed or of loftiness does not so well suit the connection.

(2) It was an animal that was not subjected to the service of tilling the soil, and that was supposed to be incapable of being so trained. Thus, in the place before us it is said, that he could not be so domesticated that he would remain like the ox at the crib; that he could not be yoked to the plow; that he could not be employed and safely left to pursue the work of the field; and that he could not be so subdued that it would be safe to attempt to bring home the harvest by his aid. From all these declarations, it is plain that he was regarded as a wild and untamed animal; an animal that was not then domesticated, and that could not be employed in husbandry. This characteristic would agree with either the antelope, the onyx, the buffalo, the rhinoceros, or the supposed unicorn, With which of them it will best accord, we may be able to determine when all his characteristics are examined.

(3) The strength of the animal was in his horns. This was one of his special characteristics, and it is evidently by this that he is designed to be distinguished. Deu 33:17, "his glory is like the firstling of a bullock, and his horns like the horns of unicorns."Psa 92:10, "my horn shalt thou exalt like the horn of an unicorn."Psa 22:21, "thou hast heard me (saved me) from the horns of the unicorns."It is true, indeed, as Prof. Robinson has remarked (Calmet, art. "Unicorn"), the word ראם r^e 'êm has in itself no reference to horns, nor is there in the Hebrew an illusion any where to the supposition that the animal here referred to has only one horn. Wherever, in the Scriptures, the animal is spoken of with any allusion to this member, the expression is in the plural, "horns."The only variation from this, even in the common version, is in Psa 92:10, where the Hebrew is simply, "My horn shalt thou exalt like an unicorn, "where the word horn, as it stands in the English version, is not expressed. There is, indeed, in this passage, some obvious allusion to the horns of this animal, but all the force of the comparison will be retained if the word inserted in the ellipsis is in the plural number. The horn or horns of the ראם r^e 'êm were, however, beyond question, the principal seat of strength, and the instruments of assault and defense. See the passage in Deu 33:17, "With them he shall push the people together to the ends of the earth."

(4) There was some special majesty or dignity in the horns of this animal that attracted attention, and that made them the proper symbol of dominion and of royal authority. Thus, in Psa 92:10, "My horn shalt thou exalt like the horn of an unicorn,"where the reference seems to be to a kingly authority or dominion, of which the horn was an appropriate symbol. These are all the characteristics of the animal referred to in the Scriptures, and the question is, With what known animal do they best correspond? The principal animals referred to by those who have examined the subject at length are, the onyx or antelope; the buffalo; the animal commonly referred to as the unicorn, and the rhinoceros. The principal characteristic of the unicorn was supposed to be, that it had a long, slender horn projecting from the forehead; the horn of the rhinoceros is on the snout, or the nose.

I. In regard to the antelope, or the "rim"of the modern Arabs, supposed by Bochart to be the animal here referred to, it seems clear that there are few characteristics in common between the two animals. The onyx or antelope is not distinguished as this animal is for strength, nor for the fact that it is especially untamable, nor that its strength is in its horns, nor that it is of such size and proportions that a comparison would naturally be suggested between it and the ox. In all that is said of the animal, we think of one greater in bulk, in strength, in untamableness, than the onyx; an animal more distinguished for conquest and subduing other animals before him. Bochart has collected much that is fabulous respecting this animal, from the rabbis and the Arabic writers, which it is not needful here to repeat; see the Hieroz. P. i. Lib. iii. c. xxvii.; or Scheutzer, Physi. Sac. on Num 23:22.

II. The claims of the "buffalo"to be regarded as the animal here referred to, are much higher than those of the onyx, and the opinion that this is the animal intended is entertained by such names as those of Gesenius, DeWette, Robinson, Umbreit, and Herder. But the objections to this seem to me to be insuperable, and the arguments are not such as to carry conviction. The principal objections to the opinion are:

(1) That the account in regard to the horns of the ראם r^e 'êm by no means agrees with the fact in regard to the bison, or buffalo. The buffalo is an animal of the cow kind (Goldsmith), and the horns are short and crooked, and by no means distinguished for strength. They do not in fact surpass in this respect the horns of many other animals, and are not such as would occur ordinarily as the prominent characteristic in their description. It is true that there are instances where the horns of the wild buffalo are large, but this does not appear to be the case ordinarily. Mr. Pennant mentions a pair of horns in the British Museum, which are six feet and a half long, and the hollow of which will hold five quarts. Lobo affirms that some of the horns of the buffalo in Abyssinia will hold ten quarts; and Dillon saw some in India that were ten feet long. But these were manifestly extraordinary cases.

(2) The animal here referred to was evidently a stronger and a larger animal than the wild ox or the buffalo. "The Oriental buffalo appears to be so closely allied to our common ox, that without an attentive examination it might be easily mistaken for a variety of that animal. In point of size, it is rather superior to the ox; and upon an accurate inspection, it is observed to differ in the shape and magnitude of the head, the latter being larger than in the ox.""Robinson, in Calmet."The animal here referred to was such as to make the contrast particularly striking between him and the ox. The latter could be employed for labor; the former, though greatly superior in strength, could not.

(3) The ראם r^e 'êm , it was supposed, could not be tamed and made to subserve domestic purposes. The buffalo, however, can be made as serviceable as the ox, and is actually domesticated and employed in agricultural purposes. Niebuhr remarks that he saw buffalo not only in Egypt, but also at Bombay, Surat, on the Euphrates, Tigris, Orontes, and indeed in all marshy regions and near large rivers. Sonnini remarks that in Egypt the buffalo, though but recently domesticated, is more numerous than the common ox, and is there equally domestic, and in Italy they are known to be commonly employed in the Pontine marshes, where the fatal nature of the climate acts on common cattle, but affects buffalo less. It is true that the animal has been comparatively recently domesticated, and that it was doubtless known in the time of Job only as a wild, savage, ferocious animal; but still the description here is that of an animal not only that was not then tamed, but obviously of one that could not well be employed in domestic purposes.

We are to remember that the language here is that of God himself, and that therefore it may be regarded as descriptive of what the essential nature of the animal was, rather than what it was supposed to be by the persons to whom the language was addressed. One of the principal arguments alleged for supposing that the animal here referred to by the ראם r^e 'êm was the buffalo, is, that the rhinoceros was probably unknown in the land where Job resided, and that the unicorn was altogether a fabulous animal. This difficulty will be considered in the remarks to be made on the claims of each of those animals.

III. It was an early opinion, and the opinion was probably entertained by the authors of the Septuagint translation, and by the English translators as well as by others, that the animal here referred to was the unicorn. This animal was long supposed to be a fabulous animal, and it has not been until recently that the evidences of its existence have been confirmed. These evidences are adduced by Rosenmuller, "Morgenland, ii. p. 269, following,"and by Prof. Robinson, "Calmet, pp. 908, 909."They are, summarily, the following:

(1) Pliny mentions such an animal, and gives a description of it, though from his time for centuries it seems to have been unknown. "His. Nat. 8, 21."His language is, Asperrimam autem feram monocerotem reliquo corpore equo similem, capite cervo, pedibus elephanti, cauda apro, mugitu gravi, uno cornu nigro media fronte cubitorum duum eminente. IIanc feram vivam negant capi . "The unicorn is an exceeding fierce animal, resembling a horse as to the rest of his body, but having the head like a stag, the feet like an elephant, and the tail like a wild boar; its roaring is loud; and it has a black horn of about two cubits projecting from the middle of the forehead."

(2) The figure of the unicorn, in various attitudes, according to Niebuhr, is depicted on almost all the staircases in the ruins of Persepolis. "Reisebeschreib. ii. S. 127."

(3) In 1530, Ludovice de Bartema, a Roman patrician, visited Mecca under the assumed character of a Mussulman, and among other curiosities that he mentions, he says, "On the other side of the caaba is a walled court, in which we saw two unicorns that were pointed out to us as a rarity; and they are indeed truly remarkable. The larger of the two is built like a three-year-old colt, and has a horn upon the forehead about three ells long. This animal has the color of a yellowish-brown horse, a head like a stag, a neck not very long, with a thin mane; the legs are small and slender like those of a hind or roe; the hoofs of the fore feet are divided, and resemble the hoofs of a goat. Rosenmuller. "Alte u. neue Morgenland, No. 377. Thes ii. S. 271, 272."

(4) Don Juan Gabriel, a Portuguese colonel, who lived several years in Abyssinia, assures us that in the region of Agamos, in the Abyssinian province of Darners, he had seen an animal of the form and size of a middle-sized horse, of a dark, chestnut-brown color, and with a whitish horn about five spans long upon its forehead; the mane and tail were black, and the legs long and slender. Several other Portuguese, who were placed in confinement upon a high mountain in the district Namna, by the Abyssinian king Saghedo, related that they had seen at the mountain several unicorns feeding. These accounts are confirmed by Lobe, who lived for a long time as a missionary in Abyssinia.

(5) Dr. Sparrman the Swedish naturalist, who visited the Cape of Good Hope and the adjacent regions in 1772-1776, gives, in his Travels, the following account: Jacob Kock an observing peasant on Hippopotamus river, who had traveled over a considerable part of Southern Africa, found on the face of a perpendicular rock, a drawing made by the Hotttentots of an animal with a single horn. The Hottentots told him that the animal there represented was very like the horse on which he rode, but had a straight horn upon the forehead. They added, that these one-horned animals were rare; that they ran with great rapidity, and that they were very fierce.

(6) A similar animal is described as having been killed by a party of Hottentots in pursuit of the savage Bushmen in 1791. The animal resembled a horse, was of a light grey color, and with white stripes under the jaw. It had a single horn directly in front, as long as one’ s arm, and at the base about as thick. Toward the middle the horn was somewhat flattened, but had a sharp point; it was not attached to the bone of the forehead, but was fixed only in the skin. The head was like that of the horse, and the size about the same. These authorities are collected by Rosenmuller, "Alte u. nerve Morgenland,"vol. ii. p. 269ff, ed. Leipz. 1818.

(7) To these proofs one other is added by Prof. Robinson. It is copied from the Quarterly Review for Oct. 1820 (vol. xxiv. p. 120), in a notice of Frazer’ s Tour through the Himalaya mountains. The information is contained in a letter from Maj. Latter, commanding in the rajah of Sikkim’ s territories, in the hilly country east of Nepaul. This letter states that the unicorn, so long considered as a fabulous animal, actually exists in the interior of Thibet, where it is well known to the inhabitants. "In a Thibetian manuscript,"says Maj. Latter, "containing the names of different animals, which I procured the other day from the hills, the unicorn is classed under the head of those whose hoofs are divided: it is called the one-horned "tso’ po."Upon inquiring what kind of an animal it was, to our astonishment, the person who brought the manuscript described exactly the unicorn of the ancients; saying that it was a native of the interior of Thibet, about the size of a tattoo (a horse from twelve to thirteen hands high,) fierce and extremely wild; seldom if ever caught alive, but frequently shot; and that the flesh was used for food. They go together in herds, like wild buffalo, and are frequently to be met with on the borders of the great desert, in that part of the country inhabited by wandering Tartars.’

(8) To these proofs I add another, taken from the Narrative of the Rev. John Campbell, who thus speaks of it, in his "Travels in South Africa,"vol. ii. p. 294. "While in the Mashow territory, the Hottentots brought in a head different from any rhinoceros that had been previously killed. The common African rhinoceros has a crooked horn resembling a cock’ s spur, which rises about nine or ten inches above the nose, and inclines backward; immediately behind this is a short thick horn. But the head they brought us had a straight horn projecting three feet from the forehead, about ten inches above the tip of the nose. The projection of this great horn very much resembles that of the fanciful unicorn in the British arms. It has a small, thick, horny substance, eight inches long, immediately behind it, and which can hardly be observed on the animal at the distance of 100 yards, and seems to be designed for keeping fast that which is penetrated by the long horn; so that this species must look like the unicorn (in the sense ‘ one-horned’ ) when running in the field.

The head resembled in size a nine-gallon cask, and measured three feet from the mouth to the ear; and being much larger than that of the one with the crooked horn, and which measured eleven feet in length, the animal itself must have been still larger and more formidable. From its weight, and the position of the horn, it appears capable of overcoming any creature hitherto known."A fragment of the skull, with the horn, is deposited in the Museum of the London Missionary Society. These testimonies from so many witnesses from different parts of the world, who write without concert, and yet who concur so almost entirely in the account of the size and figure of the animal, leave little room to doubt its real existence. That it is not better known, and that its existence has been doubted, is not wonderful. It is to be remembered that all accounts agree in the representation that it is an animal whose residence is in deserts or mountains, and that large parts of Africa and Asia are still unexplored. We are to remember, also, that the giraffe has been discovered only within a few years, and that the same is true of the gnu, which until recently was held to be a fable of the ancients.

At the same time, however, that the existence of such an animal as that of the unicorn is in the highest degree probable, it is clear that it is not the animal referred to in the passage before us; for

(1) It is in the highest degree improbable that it was so well known as is supposed in the description here; and

(2) The characteristics do not at all agree with the account of the ראם r^e 'êm of the Scriptures. Neither in regard to the size of the animal, its strength, or the strength of its horns, does it coincide with the account of that animal in the Bible.

IV. If neither of the opinions above referred to be correct, then the only remaining opinion that has weight is, that it refers to the rhinoceros. Besides the considerations above suggested, it may be added that the characteristics of the animal given in the Scriptures all agree with the rhinoceros. In size, strength, wildness, untamableness, and in the power and use of the horn, those characteristics agree accurately with the rhinoceros. The only argument of much weight against this opinion is presented by Prof. Robinson in the following language: "The ראם r^e 'êm was obviously an animal well known to the Hebrews, being everywhere mentioned with other animals common to the country, while the rhinoceros was never an inhabitant of the country, is nowhere else spoken of by the sacred writers, nor, according to Bochart, either by Aristotle in his treatise of animals, nor by Arabian writers."In reply to this we may observe:

(1) that the ראם r^e 'êm is mentioned in the Scriptures only in seven places (see above), showing at least that it was probably an animal not very well known in that country, or it would have been alluded to more often;

(2) it is not clear that in those places it is "everywhere mentioned with other animals common to that country,"as in the passage before us there is no allusion to any domestic animal; nor is there in Num 23:22; Num 24:8; Psa 92:10. In Psa 22:21, they are mentioned in the same verse with "lions;"in Psa 29:6, in connection with "calves;"and in Isa 34:7, with bullocks and bulls - wild animals inhabiting Idumea. But the entire account is that of an animal that was untamed and that was evidently a foreign animal.

(3) What evidence is there that the Hebrews were well acquainted, as Prof. Robinson supposes, with "the wild buffalo?"Is this animal an inhabitant of Palestine? Is it "elsewhere"mentioned in the Scriptures? Is there any more evidence from the Bible that they were acquainted with it than with the rhinoceros?

(4) It cannot be reasonably supposed that the Hebrews were so unacquainted with the rhinoceros that there could be no allusion to it in their writings. This animal was found in Egypt and in the adjacent countries, and whoever was the writer of the book of Job, there are frequent references in the book to what was well known in Egypt; and at all events, the Hebrews had lived too long in Egypt, and had had too much contact with the Egyptians, to be wholly ignorant of the existence and general character of an animal well known there, and we in fact find just about as frequent mention of it as we should on this supposition. It does not seem, therefore, to admit of reasonable doubt that the rhinoceros is referred to in the passage before us. This animal next to the elephant, is the most powerful of animals. It is usually about twelve feet long; from six to seven feet high; and the circumference of its body is nearly equal to its length.

Its bulk of body, therefore, is about that of the elephant. Its head is furnished with a horn, growing from the snout, sometimes three and a half feet long. This horn is erect, and perpendicular to the bone on which it stands, and it has thus a greater purchase or power than it could have in any other position. "Bruce."Occasionally it is found with a double horn, one above the other, though this is not common. The horn is entirely solid, formed of the hardest bony substance, and so firmly growing on the upper maxillary bone as seemingly to make but a part of it, and so powerful as to justify all the allusions in the Scriptures to the horn of the ראם r^e 'êm . The skin of this animal is naked, rough, and knotty, lying upon the body in folds, and so thick as to turn the edge of a scimetar, or to resist a musket-ball. The legs are short, strong, and thick, and the hoofs divided into three parts, each pointing forward. It is a native of the deserts of Asia and Africa, and is usually found in the extensive forests which are frequented by the elephant and the lion. It has never been domesticated; never employed in agricultural purposes; and thus, as well as in size and strength, accords with the account which is given of the animal in the passage before us. The following cut will furnish a good illustration of this animal:

Be willing to serve thee. - In plowing and harrowing thy land, and conveying home the harvest, Job 39:12.

Or abide by thy crib - As the ox will. The word used here ( ילין yālı̂yn ) means properly to pass the night; and then to abide, remain, dwell. There is propriety in retaining here the original meaning of the word, and the sense is, Can he be domesticated or tamed? The rhinoceros never has been.

Barnes: Job 39:10

Canst thou bind the unicorn with his band in the furrow? - That is, with the common traces or cords which are employed in binding oxen to the plow.

Or will he harrow the valleys after thee? - The word "valleys"here is used to denote such ground as was capable of being plowed or harrowed. Hills and mountains could not thus be cultivated, though the spade was in common use in planting the vine there, and even in preparing them for seed, Isa 7:25. The phrase "after thee"indicates that the custom of driving cattle in harrowing then was the same as that practiced now with oxen, when the person who employs them goes in advance of them. It shows that they were entirely under subjection, and it is here implied that the ראם r^e 'êm could not be thus tamed.

Barnes: Job 39:11

Wilt thou trust him? - As thou dost the ox. In the domestic animals great confidence is of necessity placed, and the reliance on the fidelity of the ox and the horse is not usually misplaced. The idea here is, that the unicorn could not be so tamed that important interests could be safely entrusted to him.

Because his strength is great? - Wilt thou consider his strength as a reason why important interests might be entrusted to him? The strength of the ox, the camel, the horse, and the elephant was a reason why their aid was sought by man to do what he could not himself do. The idea is, that man could not make use of the same reason for employing the rhinoceros.

Wilt thou leave thy labour to him? - Or, rather, the avails of thy labor - the harvest.

Barnes: Job 39:12

Wilt thou believe him? - That is, wilt thou trust him with the productions of the field? The idea is, that he was an untamed and unsubdued animal. He could not be governed, like the camel or the ox. If the sheaves of the harvest were laid on him, there would be no certainty that he would convey them where the farmer wished them.

And gather it into thy barn? - Or, rather, "to thy threshing-floor,"for so the word used here ( גרן gôren ) means. It was not common to gather a harvest into a barn, but it was usually collected on a hard-trod place and there threshed and winnowed. For the use of the word, see Rth 3:2; Jdg 6:37; Num 18:30; Isa 21:10.

Barnes: Job 39:13

Gavest thou the goodly wings unto the peacocks? - In the previous verses the appeal had been to the wild and untamable animals of the desert. In the prosecution of the argument, it was natural to allude to the feathered tribes which resided there also, and which were distinguished for their strength or fleetness of wing, as proof of the wisdom and the superintending providence of God. The idea is, that these animals, far away from the abodes of man, where it could not be pretended that man had anything to do with their training, had habits and instincts special to themselves, which showed great variety in the divine plans, and at the same time consummate wisdom. The appeal in the following verses Job 39:13-18 is to the remarkable habits of the ostrich, as illustrating the wisdom and the superintending providence of God. There has been very great variety in the translation of this verse, and it is important to ascertain its real meaning, in order to know whether there is any allusion here to the peacock, or whether it refers wholly to the ostrich. The Septuagint did not understand the passage, and a part of the words they endeavored to translate, but the others are retained without any attempt to explain them. Their version is, Πτέρυξ τερπομένων νεέλασσα, ἐὰν συλλάβῃ ἀσιδα καὶνέσσα Pterux terpomenōn neelassa , ean sullabē asida kai nessa - the wing of the exulting Neelassa if she conceives or comprehends the Asia and Nessa."Jerome renders it,"The wing of the ostrich is like the wings of the falcon and the hawk."Schultens renders it, "The wing of the ostrich is exulting; but is it the wing and the plumage of the stork?"He enumerates no less than twenty different interpretations of the passage. Herder renders it,

"A wing with joyous cry is uplifted yonder;

Is it the wing and feather of the ostrich?"

Umbreit renders it,

"The wing of the ostrich, which lifts itselfjoyfully,

Does it not resemble the tail and feather of the stork?"

Rosenmuller renders it,

"The wing of the ostrich exults!

Truly its wing and plumage is like that of the stork!"

Prof. Lee renders it, "Wilt thou confide in the exulting of the wings of the ostrich? Or in her choice feathers and head-plumage, when she leaveth her eggs to the earth,"etc. So Coverdale renders it, "The ostrich (whose feathers are fairer than the wings of the sparrow-hawk), when he hath laid his eggs upon the ground, he breedeth them in the dust, and forgetteth them."In none of these versions, and in none that I have examined except that of Luther and the common English version, is there any allusion to the peacock; and amidst all the variety of the rendering, and all the difficulty of the passage, there is a common sentiment that the ostrich alone is referred to as the particular subject of the description. It is certain that the description proceeds with reference only to the habits of the ostrich, and it is very evident to my mind that in the whole passage there is no allusion whatever to the peacock.

Neither the scope of the passage, nor the words employed, it is believed, will admit of such a reference. There is great difficulty in the Hebrew text, which no one has been able fully to explain, but it is sufficiently clear to make it manifest that the ostrich, and not the peacock, is the subject of the appeal. The word which is rendered "peacock," רננים reneniym , is derived from רנן rânan , "to give forth a tremulous and stridulous sound;"and then to give forth the voice in vibrations; to shake or trill the voice; and then, as in lamentation or joy the voice is often given forth in that manner, the word comes to mean to utter cries of joy; Isa 12:6; Isa 35:6; and also cries of lamentation or mourning, Lam 2:19. The prevailing sense of the word in the Scriptures is to rejoice; to shout for joy; to exult. The name is here given to the bird referred to, evidently from the sound which it made, and probably from its exulting or joyful cry.

The word does not elsewhere occur in the Scriptures as applicable to a bird, and there is no reason whatever, either from its etymology, or from the connection in which it is found here, to suppose that it refers to the peacock. Another reason is suggested by Scheutzer (Phys. Sac. in loc .), why the peacock cannot be intended here. It is, that the peacock is originally an East Indian fowl, and that it was imported at comparatively a late period in the Jewish history, and was doubtless unknown in the time of Job. In 1Ki 10:22, and 2Ch 9:21, it appears that peacocks were among the remarkable productions of distant countries that were imported for use or luxury by Solomon, a fact which would not have occurred had they been common in the patriarchal times. To these reasons to show that the peacock is not referred to here, Bochart, whose chapters on the subject deserve a careful attention (Hieroz. P. ii. L. ii. c. xvi. xvii.), has added the following:

(1) That if the peacock had been intended here, the allusion would not have been so brief. Of so remarkable a bird there would have been an extended description as there is of the ostrich, and of the unicorn and the horse. If the allusion is to the peacock, it is by a bare mention of the name, and by no argument, as in other cases, from the habits and instincts of the fowl.

(2) The word which is used here as a description of the bird referred to, רננים reneniym , derived from the musical properties of the bird, is by no means applicable to the peacock. It is of all fowls, perhaps, least distinguished for beauty of voice.

(3) The property ascribed to the fowl here of "exulting in the wing,"by no means agrees with the peacock. The glory and beauty of that bird is in the tail, and not in the wing. Yet the wing is here, from some cause, particularly specified. Bochart has demonstrated at great length, and with entire clearness, that the peacock was a foreign fowl, and that it must have been unknown in Judea and Arabia, as it was in Greece and Rome, at a period long after the time in which the book of Job is commonly supposed to have been written. The proper translation of the Hebrew here then would be, The wing of the exulting fowls "moves joyfully"- נעלסה ne‛âlasâh . The attention seems to be directed to the wing, as being lifted up, or as vibrating with rapidity, or as being triumphant in its movement in eluding the pursuer. It is not its beauty particularly that attracts the attention, but its exulting, joyful, triumphant, appearance.

Or wings and feathers unto the ostrich? - Margin, "or, the feathers of the stork and ostrich."Most commentators have despaired of making any sense out of the Hebrew in this place, and there have been almost as many conjectures as there have been expositors. The Hebrew is, ונצה חסידה אם־אברה 'im'ebrâh chăsı̂ydâh v^e nôtsâh . A literal translation of it would be, "Is it the wing of the stork, and the plumage,"or feathers? The object seems to be to institute a comparison of some kind between the ostrich and the stork. This comparison, it would seem, relates partly to the wings and plumage of the two birds, and partly to their habits and instincts; though the latter point of comparison appears to be couched in the mere name. So far as I can understand the passage, the comparison relates first to the wings and plumage. The point of vision is that of the sudden appearance of the ostrich with exulting wing, and the attention is directed to it as in the bounding speed of its movements when in rapid flight.

In this view the usual name is not given to the bird - יענה בנות b^e nôth ya‛ănâh , Isa 13:21; Isa 34:13; Isa 43:20; Jer 50:39, but merely the name of fowls making a stridulous or whizzing sound - רננים reneniym . The question is then asked whether it has the wing and plumage of the stork - evidently implying that the wing of the stork might be supposed to be adapted to such a flight, but that it was remarkable that without such wings the ostrich was able to outstrip even the fleetest animal. The question is designed to turn the attention to the fact that the ostrich accomplishes its flight in this remarkable manner without being endowed with wings like the stork, which is capable of sustaining by its wings a long and rapid flight. The other point of the comparison seems couched in the name given to the stork, and the design is to contrast the habits of the ostrich with those of this bird - particularly in reference to their care for their young. The name given to the stork is חסידה chăsı̂ydâh , meaning literally "the pious,"a name usually given to it - "avis pia," from its tenderness toward its young - a virtue for which it was celebrated by the ancients, Pliny "Hist. Nat. x;"Aelian "Hist. An. 3, 23."On the contrary, the Arabs call the ostrich the impious or ungodly bird, on account of its neglect and cruelty toward its young. The fact that the ostrich thus neglects its young, is dwelt upon in the passage before us Job 39:14-17, and in this respect she is placed in strong contrast with the stork. The verse then, I suppose, may be rendered thus:

"A wing of exulting fowls moves joyfully!

Is it the wing and the plumage of the pious bird?"

This means that with both (in regard to the wing and the habits of the two) there was a strong contrast, and yet designing to show that what seems to be a defect in the size and rigor of the wing, and what seems to be stupid forgetfulness of the bird in regard to its young, is proof of the wisdom of the Creator, who has so made it as to be able to outstrip the fleetest horse, and to be adapted to its shy and timid mode of life in the desert. The ostrich, whose principal characteristics are beautifully and strikingly detailed in this passage in Job, is a native of the torrid regions of Arabia and Africa. It is the largest of the feathered tribes and is the connecting link between quadrupeds and fowls. It has the general properties and outlines of a bird, and yet retains many of the marks of the quadruped. In appearance, the ostrich resembles the camel, and is almost as tall; and in the East is called "the camel-bird"(Calmet).

It is covered with a plumage that resembles hair more nearly than feathers; and its internal parts bear as near a resemblance to those of the quadruped as of the bird creation - Goldsmith. See also Poiret’ s "Travels in the Barbary States,"as quoted by Rosenmuller, "Alte u. neue Morgenland,"No. 770. A full description is there given of the appearance and habits of the ostrich. Its head and bill resemble those of a duck; the neck may be compared with that of the swan, though it is much longer; the legs and thighs resemble those of a hen, but are fleshy and large. The end of the foot is cloven, and has two very large toes, which like the leg are covered with scales. The height of the ostrich is usually seven feet from the head to the ground; but from the back it is only four, so that the head and the neck are about three feet long. From the head to the end of the tail, when the neck is stretched in a right line, the length is seven feet.

One of the wings with the feathers spread out is three feet in length. At the end of the wing there is a species of spur almost like the quill of a porcupine. It is an inch long, and is hollow, and of a bony substance. The plumage is generally white and black, though some of them are said to be gray. There are no feathers on the sides of the thighs, nor under the wings. It has not, like most birds, feathers of various kinds, but they are all bearded with detached hairs or filaments, without consistence and reciprocal adherence. The feathers of the ostrich are almost as soft as down, and are therefore wholly unfit for flying, or to defend the body from external injury. The feathers of other birds have the web broader on one side than the other, but those of the ostrich have the shaft exactly in the middle. In other birds, the filaments that compose the feathers of the wings are firmly attached to each other, or are "hooked together,"so that they are adapted to catch and resist the air; on those of the ostrich no such attachments are found.

The consequence is, that they cannot oppose to the air a suitable resistance, as is the case with other birds, and are therefore incapable of flying, and in fact never mount on the wing. The wing is used (see the notes at Job 39:18) only to balance the bird, and to aid it in running. The great size of the bird - weighing 75 or 80 pounds - would require an immense power of wing to elevate it in the air, and it has, therefore, been furnished with the means of surpassing all other animals in the rapidity with which it runs, so that it may escape its pursuers. The ostrich is made to live in the wilderness, and it was called by the ancients "a lover of the deserts."It is shy and timorous in no common degree, and avoids the cultivated fields and the abodes of man, and retreats into the utmost recesses of the desert. In those dreary wastes its subsistence is the few tufts of coarse grass which are scattered here and there, but it will eat almost anything that comes in its way.

It is the most voracious of animals, and will devour leather, glass, hair, iron, stones, or anything that is given. Valisnieri found the first stomach filled with a quantity of incongruous substances; grass, nuts, cords, stones, glass, brass, copper, iron, tin, lead, and wood, and among the rest, a piece of stone that weighed more than a pound. It would seem that the ostrich is obliged to fill up the great capacity of its stomach in order to be at ease; but that, nutritious substances not occurring, it pours in whatever is at hand to supply the void. The flesh of the ostrich was forbidden by the laws of Moses to be eaten Lev 11:13, but it is eaten by some of the savage nations of Africa, who hunt them for their flesh, which they regard as a dainty. The principal value of the ostrich, however, and the principal reason why it is hunted. is in the long feathers that compose the wing and the tail, and which are used so extensively for ornaments, The ancients used these plumes in their helmets; the ladies, in the East, as well as in the West, use them to decorate their persons, and they have been extensively employed also as badges of mourning on hearses. The Arabians assert that the ostrich never drinks, and the chosen place of its habitation - the waste, sandy desert - seems to confirm the assertion. As the ostrich, in the passage before us, is contrasted with the stork, the accompanying illustrations will serve to explain the passage.

Barnes: Job 39:14

Which leaveth her eggs in the earth - That is, she does not build a nest, as most birds do, but deposits her eggs in the sand. The ostrich, Dr. Shaw remarks, lays usually from thirty to fifty eggs. The eggs are very large, some of them being above five inches in diameter, and weighing fifteen pounds - Goldsmith. "We are not to consider,"says Dr. Shaw, "this large collection of eggs as if they were all intended for a brood. They are the greatest part of them reserved for food, which the dam breaks, and disposeth of according to the number and cravings of her young ones."The idea which seems to be conveyed in our common version is, that the ostrich deposits her eggs in the sand, and then leaves them, without further care, to be hatched by the heat of the sun. This idea is not, however, necessarily implied in the original, and is contrary to fact. The truth is, that the eggs are deposited with great care, and with so much attention to the manner in which they are placed, that a line drawn from those in the extremities would just touch the tops of the intermediate ones (see Damir, as quoted by Bochart, "Hieroz."P. ii. Lib. ii. c. xvii. p. 253), and that they are hatched, as the eggs of other birds are, in a great measure by the heat imparted by the incubation of the parent bird.

It is true that in the hot climates where these birds live, there is less necessity for constant incubation than in colder latitudes, and that the parent bird is more frequently absent; but she is accustomed regularly to return at night, and carefully broods over her eggs. See Le Valliant, "Travels in the Interior of Africa,"ii. 209, 305. It is true also that the parent bird wanders sometimes far from the place where the eggs are deposited, and forgets the place, and in this case if another nest of eggs is seen, she is not concerned whether they are her own or not, for she is not endowed with the power of distinguishing between her own eggs and those of another. This fact seems to have given rise to all the fables stated by the Arabic writers about the stupidity of the ostrich; about her leaving her eggs; and about her disposition to sit on the eggs of others. Bochart has collected many of these opinions from the Arabic writers, among which are the following: Alkazuinius says, "They say that no bird is more foolish than the ostrich, for while it forsakes its own eggs, it sits on the eggs of others; from the proverb, "Every animal loves its own young except the ostrich."

Ottomanus says, "Every animal loves its own progeny except the ostrich. But that pertains only to the male. For although the common proverb imputes folly to the female, yet with her folly she loves her young, and feeds them, and teaches them to fly, the same as other animals."Damir, an Arabic writer, says, "When the ostrich goes forth from her nest, that she may seek food, if she finds the egg of another ostrich, she sits on that, and forgets her own. And when driven away by hunters, she never returns; whence, it is that she is described as foolish, and that the proverb in regard to her has originated.

And warmeth them in dust - The idea which was evidently in the mind of the translators in this passage was, that the ostrich left her eggs in the dust to be hatched by the heat of the sun. This is not correct, and is not necessarily implied in the Hebrew, though undoubtedly the heat of the sand is made to contribute to the process of hatching the egg, and allows the parent bird to be absent longer from her nest than birds in colder climates. This seems to be all that is implied in the passage.

Barnes: Job 39:15

And forgetteth that the foot may crush them - She lays her eggs in the sand, and not, as most birds do, in nests made on branches of trees, or on the crags of rocks, where they would be inaccessible, as if she was forgetful of the fact that the wild beast might pass along and crush them. She often wanders away from them, also, and does not stay near them to guard them, as most parent birds do, as if she were unmindful of the danger to which they might be exposed when she was absent. The object of all this seems to be, to call the attention to the uniqueness in the natural history of this bird, and to observe that there were laws and arrangements in regard to it which seemed to show that she was deprived of wisdom, and yet that everything was so ordered as to prove that she was under the care of the Almighty. The great variety in the laws pertaining to the animal kingdom, and especially their lack of resemblance to what would have occurred to man, seems to give the special force and point to the argument used here.

Barnes: Job 39:16

She is hardened against her young ones - The obvious meaning of this passage, which is a fair translation of the Hebrew, is, that the ostrich is destitute of natural affection for her young; or that she treats them as if she had not the usual natural affection manifested in the animal creation. This sentiment also occurs in Lam 4:3, "The daughter of my people is become cruel, like the ostriches in the wilderness."This opinion is controverted by Buffon, but seems fully sustained by those who have most attentively observed the habits of the ostrich. Dr. Shaw, as quoted by Paxton, and in Robinson’ s Calmet, says, "On the least noise or trivial occasion she forsakes her eggs or her young ones, to which perhaps she never returns; or if she does, it may be too late either to restore life to the one, or to preserve the lives of the others.""Agreeable to this account,"says Paxton, "the Arabs meet sometimes with whole nests of these eggs undisturbed, some of which are sweet and good, and others addle and corrupted; others again have their young ones of different growths, according to the time it may be presumed they have been forsaken by the dam. They oftener meet a few of the little ones, not bigger than well-grown pullets, half-starved, straggling and moaning about like so many distressed orphans for their mothers."

Her labour is in vain without fear - Herder renders this,"In vain is her travail, but she regards it not."The idea in the passage seems to be this; that the ostrich has not that apprehension or provident care for her young which others birds have. It does not mean that she is an animal remarkably bold and courageous, for the contrary is the fact, and she is, according to the Arabian writers, timid to a proverb; but that she has none of the anxious solicitude for her young which others seem to have - the dread that they may be in want, or in danger, which leads them, often at the peril of their own lives, to provide for and defend them.

Barnes: Job 39:17

Because God hath deprived her of wisdom ... - That is, he has not imparted to her the wisdom which has been conferred on other animals. The meaning is, that all this remarkable arrangement, which distinguished the ostrich so much from other animals was to be traced to God. It was not the result of chance; it could not be pretended that it was by a human arrangement, but it was the result of divine appointment. Even in this apparent destitution of wisdom, there were reasons which had led to this appointment, and the care and good providence of God could be seen in the preservation of the animal. Particularly, though apparently so weak, and timid, and unwise, the ostrich had a noble hearing Job 39:18, and when aroused, would scorn the fleetest horse in the pursuit, and show that she was distinguished for properties that were expressive of the goodness of God toward her, and of his care over her.

Barnes: Job 39:18

What time she lifteth up herself on high - In the previous verses reference had been made to the fact that in some important respects the ostrich was inferior to other animals, or had special laws in regard to its habits and preservation. Here the attention is called to the fact that, notwithstanding its inferiority in some respects, it had properties such as to command the highest admiration. Its lofty carriage, the rapidity of its flight, and the proud scorn with which it would elude the pursuit of the fleetest coursers, were all things that showed that God had so endowed it as to furnish proof of his wisdom. The phrase "what time she lifteth up herself,"refers to the fact that she raises herself for her rapid flight. It does not mean that she would mount on her wings, for this the ostrich cannot do; but to the fact that this timid and cowardly bird would, when danger was near, rouse herself, and assume a lofty courage and bearing. The word here translated "lifteth up"( תמריא tamâriy' ) means properly "to lash, to whip,"as a horse, to increase its speed, and is here supposed by Gesenius to be used as denoting that the ostrich by flapping her wings lashes herself up as it were to her course. All the ancient interpretations, however, as well as the common English version, render it as if it were but another form of the word רום rûm , to raise oneself up, or to rise up, as if the ostrich aroused herself up for her flight. Herder renders it, "At once she is up, and urges herself forward."Taylor (in Calmet) renders it:

"Yet at the time she haughtily assumes courage;

She scorneth the horse and his rider."

The leading idea is, that she rouses herself to escape her pursuer; she lifts up her head and body, and spreads her wings, and then bids defiance to anything to overtake her.

She scorneth the horse and his rider - In the pursuit. That is, she runs faster than the fleetest horse, and easily escapes. The extraordinary rapidity of the ostrich has always been celebrated, and it is well known that she can easily outstrip the fleetest horse. Its swiftness is mentioned by Xenophon, in his Anabasis; for, speaking of the desert of Arabia, he says, that ostriches are frequently seen there; that none could overtake them; and that horsemen who pursued them were obliged soon to give over, "for they escaped far away, making use both of their feet to run, and of their wings, when expanded, as a sail, to waft them along."Marmelius, as quoted by Bochart (see above), speaking of a remarkable kind of horses, says, "that in Africa, Egypt, and Arabia, there is but one species of that kind which they call the Arabian, and that those are produced only in the deserts of Arabia. Their velocity is wonderful, nor is there any better evidence of their remarkable swiftness, than is furnished when they pursue the camel-bird."

It is a common sentiment of the Arabs, Boehart remarks, that there is no animal which can overcome the ostrich in its course. Dr. Shaw says, "Notwithstanding the stupidity of this animal, its Creator hath amply provided for its safety by endowing it with extraordinary swiftness, and a surprising apparatus for escaping from its enemy. ‘ They, when they raise themselves up for flight, laugh at the horse and his rider.’ They afford him an opportunity only of admiring at a distance the extraordinary agility, and the stateliness likewise of their motions, the richness of their plumage, and the great propriety there was in ascribing to them an expanded, quivering wing. Nothing, certainly, can be more entertaining than such a sight; the wings, by their rapid but unwearied vibrations, equally serving them for sails and for oars; while their feet, no less assisting in conveying them out of sight, are no less insensible of fatigue.""Travels,"8vo., vol. ii. p. 343, as quoted by Noyes. The same representation is confirmed by the writer of a voyage to Senegal, who says,"She sets off at a hand gallop; but after being excited a little, she expands her wings, as if to catch the wind, and abandons herself to a speed so great, that she seems not to touch the ground.

I am persuaded she would leave far behind the swiftest English courser"- Rob. Calmet. Buffon also admits that the ostrich runs faster than the horse. These unexceptionable testimonies completely vindicate the assertion of the inspired writer. The proofs and illustrations here furnished at considerable length are designed to show that the statements here made in the book of Job are such as are confirmed by all the investigations in Natural History since the time the book was written. If the statements are to be regarded as an indication of the progress made in the science of Natural History at the time when Job lived, they prove that the observations in regard to this animal had been extensive and were surprisingly accurate. They show that the minds of sages at that time had been turned with much interest to this branch of science, and that they were able to describe the habits of animals with an accuracy which would do the highest credit to Pliny or to Buffon. If, however, the account here is to be regarded as the mere result of inspiration, or as the language of God speaking and describing what he had done, then the account furnishes us with an interesting proof of the inspiration of the book. Its minute accuracy is confirmed by all the subsequent inquiries into the habits of the animal referred to, and shows that the statement is based on simple truth. The general remark may here be made, that all the notices in the Bible of the subjects of science - which are indeed mostly casual and incidental - are such as are confirmed by the investigations which science in the various departments makes. Of what other ancient book but the Bible can this remark be made?

Barnes: Job 39:19

Hast thou given the horse strength? - The incidental allusion to the horse in comparison with the ostrich in the previous verse, seems to have suggested this magnificent description of this noble animal - a description which has never been surpassed or equalled. The horse is an animal so well known, that a particular description of it is here unnecessary. The only thing which is required is an explanation of the phrases used here, and a confirmation of the particular qualities here attributed to the war-horse, for the description here is evidently that of the horse as he appears in war, or as about to plunge into the midst of a battle. The description which comes the nearest to this before us, is that furnished in the well known and exquisite passage of Virgil, Georg. iii. 84ff:

- Turn, si qua sonum procul arma dedere,

Stare loco nescitedmientauribns, et tremitartus,

Collectumq; premens volvit sub naribusignem.

Densa. iuba, et dextrojuctata recumbat in armo.

At duplex agitur, per lumbos spina; cavatque

Tellurem, et solidograviter sonat ungulacornu .

"But at the clash of arms, his ear afar

Drinks the deep sound, and vibrates to the war;

Flames from each nostril roll in gathered stream,

His quivering limbs with restless motion gleam;

O’ er his right shoulder, floating full and fair,

Sweeps his thick mane, and spreads his pomp of hair;

Swift works his double spine; and earth around

Rings to his solid hoof that wears the ground."

Sotheby

Many of the circumstances here enumerated have a remarkable resemblance to the description in Job. Other descriptions and correspondences between this passage and the Classical writers may be seen at length in Bochart, "Hieroz."P. i. L. i. c. viii.; in Scheutzer, "Physica Sacra, in loc .;"and in the "Scriptorum variorum Sylloge (Vermischte Schriften,"Goetting. l 82), of Godofr. Less. A full account of the habits of the horse is also furnished by Michaelis in his "Dissertation on the most ancient history of horses and horse-breeding,"etc. Appendix to Art. clxvi. of the Commentary of the Laws of Moses, vol. ii. According to the results of the investigations of Michaelis, Arabia was not, as is commonly supposed, the native country of the horse, but its origin is rather to be sought in Egypt; and in the account which is given of the riches of Job, Job 1:3; Job 42:12, it is remarkable that the horse is not mentioned. It is, therefore, in a high degree probable that the horse was not known in his time as a domestic animal, and that, in his country at least, it was employed chiefly in war.

Hast thou clothed his neck with thunder? - There seems to be something incongruous in the idea of making thunder the clothing of the neck of a horse, and there as been considerable diversity in the exposition of the passage. There is evidently some allusion to the mane, but exactly in what respect is not agreed. The Septuagint renders it, "Hast thou clothed his neck with terror"- φόβον phobon ? Jerome refers it to the "neighing"of the horse - "aut circumdabis collo ejus hinnitum" Prof. Lee renders it, "Clothest thou his neck with scorn?"Herder, "And clothed its neckwith its flowing mane."Umbreit, "Hast thou clothed his neck with loftiness?"Noyes, "Hast thou clothed his neck with its quivering mane?"Schultens, "convestis cervicem ejus tremore alacri" - "with rapid quivering;"and Dr. Good, "with the thunder-flash."In this variety of interpretation, it is easy to perceive that the common impression has been that the mane is in some way referred to, and that the allusion is not so much to a sound as of thunder, as to some motion of the mane that attracted attention.

The mane adds much to the majesty and beauty of the horse, and perhaps it was in some way decorated by the ancients so as to set it off with increased beauty. The word which is used here, and which is rendered "thunder"( רעמה ra‛mâh ), is from the verb רעם râ‛am , meaning to rage, to roar, as applied to the sea, Psa 96:11; Psa 98:7, and then to thunder. It has also the idea of trembling or quaking, Eze 27:35, and also of provoking to anger, 1Sa 1:6. The verb and the noun are more commonly referred to thunder than anything else, Job 37:4-5; Job 40:9; 2Sa 22:14; 1Sa 2:10; 1Sa 7:10; Psa 18:13; Psa 29:3; Psa 77:18; Psa 104:7; Isa 29:6. A full investigation of the meaning of the passage may be seen in Bochart, "Hieroz."P. i. Lib. ii. c. viii. It seems to me to be very difficult to determine its meaning, and none of the explanations given are quite satisfactory. The word used requires us to understand the appearance of the neck of the horse as having some resemblance to thunder, but in what respect is not quite so apparent.

It may be this; the description of the war-horse is that of an animal fitted to inspire terror. He is caparisoned for battle; impatient of restraint; rushing forward into the thickest of the fight; tearing up the earth; breathing fire from his nostrils; and it was not unnatural, therefore, to compare him with the tempest. The majestic neck, with the erect and shaking mane, is likened to the thunder of the tempest that shakes everything, and that gives so much majesty and tearfulness to the gathering storm, and the description seems to be this - that his very neck is fitted to produce awe and alarm, like the thunder of the tempest. We are required, therefore, it seems to me, to adhere to the proper meaning of the word; and though in the coolness of criticism there may appear to be something incongruous in the application of thunder to the neck of the horse, yet it might not appear to be so if we saw such a war-horse - and if the thought, not an unnatural one, should strike us, that in majesty and fury he bore a strong resemblance to an approaching tempest.

Barnes: Job 39:20

Canst thou make him afraid as a grasshopper? - Or, rather, "as a locust"- כארבה kā'arbeh . This is the word which is commonly applied to the locust considered as gregarious, or as appearing in great numbers (from רבה râbâh , "to be multiplied"). On the variety of the species of locusts, see Bochart "Hieroz."P. ii. Lib. iv. c. 1ff The Hebrew word here rendered "make afraid"( רעשׁ râ‛ash ) means properly "to be moved, to be shaken,"and hence, to tremble, to be afraid. In the Hiphil, the form used here, it means to cause to tremble, to shake; and then "to cause to leap,"as a horse; and the idea here is, Canst thou cause the horse, an animal so large and powerful, to leap with the agility of a locust? See Gesenius, "Lex."The allusion here is to the leaping or moving of the locusts as they advance in the appearance of squadrons or troops; but the comparison is not so much that of a single horse to a single locust, as of cavalry or a company of war-horses to an army of locusts; and the point of comparison turns on the elasticity or agility of the motion of cavalry advancing to the field of battle.

The sense is, that God could cause that rapid and beautiful movement in animals so large and powerful as the horse, but that it was wholly beyond the power of man to effect it. It is quite common in the East to compare a horse with a locust, and travelers have spoken of the remarkable resemblance between the heads of the two. This comparison occurs also in the Bible; see Joe 2:4, "The appearance of them is as the appearance of horses; and as horsemen so shall they run;"Rev 9:7. The Italians, from this resemblance, call the locust "cavaletta,"or little horse. Sir W. Ouseley says, "Zakaria Cavini divides the locusts into two classes, like horsemen and footmen, ‘ mounted and pedestrian.’ "Niebuhr says that he heard from a Bedouin near Bassorah, a particular comparison of the locust with other animals; but he thought it a mere fancy of the Arabs, until he heard it repeated at Bagdad. He compared the head of a locust to that of a horse, the breast to that of a lion, the feet to those of a camel, the belly with that of a serpent, the tail with that of a scorpion, and the feelers with the hair of a virgin; see the Pictorial Bible on Joe 2:4.

The glory of his nostrils is terrible - Margin, as in Hebrew, "terrors."That is, it is fitted to inspire terror or awe. The reference is to the wide-extended and fiery looking nostrils of the horse when animated, and impatient, for action. So Lucretius, L. v.:

Et fremitum patulis sub naribus edit ad arma .

So Virgil, "Georg."iii. 87:

Collectumque premens voluit sub naribus ignem .

Claudian, in iv. "Consulatu Honorii:"

Ignescunt patulae nares .

Barnes: Job 39:21

He paweth in the valley - Margin, "or, His feet dig."The marginal reading is more in accordance with the Hebrew. The reference is to the well known fact of the "pawing"of the horse with his feet, as if he would dig up the ground. The same idea occurs in Virgil, as quoted above:

caavatque

Tellurem, et solido graviter solar ungula cornu .

Also in Apollonius, L. iii. "Argonauticon:"

Ὡς δ ̓ ἀρήΐος ἵππος, ἐελδόμενος πολεμοίο ,

Σκαρθμῷ ἐπιχρεμέθων κρούει πέδον.

Hōs d' arēios hippos , eeldomenos polemoio ,

Skarthmō epichremethōn krouei pedon .

"As a war-horse, impatient for the battle,

Neighing beats the ground with bis hoofs"

He goeth on to meet the armed men - Margin, "armor."The margin is in accordance with the Hebrew, but still the idea is substantially the same. The horse rushes on furiously against the weapons of war.

Barnes: Job 39:22

He mocketh at fear - He laughs at that which is fitted to intimidate; that is, he is not afraid.

Neither turneth he back from the sword - He rushes on it without fear. Of the fact here stated, and the accuracy of the description, there can be no doubt.

Barnes: Job 39:23

The quiver rattleth against him - The quiver was a case made for containing arrows. It was usually slung over the shoulder, so that it could be easily reached to draw out an arrow. Warriors on horseback, as well as on foot, fought with bows and arrows, as well as with swords and spears; and the idea here is, that the war-horse bore upon himself these instruments of war. The rattling of the quiver was caused by the fact that the arrows were thrown somewhat loosely into the case or the quiver, and that in the rapid motion of the warrior they were shaken against each other. Thus, Virgil, Aeneid ix. 660:

- pharetramque fuga sensere sonantem .

Silius, L. 12:

Plena tenet et resonante pharetra .

And again:

Turba ruunt stridentque sagittiferi coryti .

So Homer ("Iliad, a."), when speaking of Apollo:

Τόξ ὤμοισιν ἔχων, ἀμφηρεφέα τε φαρέτρην

Ἔκλαγξαν δ ̓ ἄῤ ὀΐστοὶ ἐπ ̓ ὤμων χωομένοιο.

Tox́ ōmoisin echōn , amfērefea te faretrēn

Eklangxan d' aŕ oistoi ep' ōmōn chōmenoio .

See Seheutzer’ s "Phys. Sac., in loc ."

Barnes: Job 39:24

He swalloweth the ground - He seems as if he would absorb the earth. That is, he strikes his feet into it with such fierceness, and raises up the dust in his prancing, as if he would devour it. This figure is unusual with us, but it is common in the Arabic. See Schultens, " in loc .,"and Bochart, "Hieroz,"P. i. L. ii. c. viii. pp. 143-145. So Statius:

Stare loco nescit, pereunt vestigia mille

Ante fugam, absentemque ferit gravis ungula campum .

Th’ impatient courser pants in every’ vein,

And pawing seems to beat the distant plain;

Hills, vales, and floods, appear already cross’ d,

And ere he starts a thousand steps are lost.

Pope

Neither believeth he that it is the sound of the trumpet - This translation by no means conveys the meaning of the original. The true sense is probably expressed by Umbreit. "He standeth not still when the trumpet soundeth; "that is, he becomes impatient; he no longer confides in the voice of the rider and remains submissive, but he becomes excited by the martial clangor, and rushes into the midst of the battle. The Hebrew word which is employed ( יאמין ya'âmiyn ) means properly "to prop, stay, support"; then "to believe, to be firm, stable"; and is that which is commonly used to denote an act of "faith,"or as meaning "believing."But the original sense of the word is here to be retained, and then it refers to the fact that the impatient horse no longer stands still when the trumpet begins to sound for battle.

Barnes: Job 39:25

He saith among the trumpets, Ha, ha - That is,"When the trumpet sounds, his voice is heard "as if"he said, Aha - or said that he heard the sound calling him to the battle."The reference is to the impatient neighing of the war horse about to rush into the conflict.

And he smelleth the battle afar off - That is, he snuffs, as it were, for the slaughter. The reference is to the effect of an approaching army upon a spirited war-horse, as if he perceived the approach by the sense of smelling, and longed to be in the midst of the battle.

The thunder of the captains - literally, "the war-cry of the princes."The reference is to the loud voices of the leaders of the army commanding the hosts under them. In regard to the whole of this magnificent description of the war-horse, the reader may consult Bochart, "Hieroz."P. i. L. ii. c. viii., where the phrases used are considered and illustrated at length. The leading idea. here is, that the war-horse evinced the wisdom and the power of God. His majesty, energy, strength, impatience for the battle, and spirit, were proofs of the greatness of Him who had made him, and might be appealed to as illustrating His perfections. Much as people admire the noble horse, and much as they take pains to train him for the turf or for battle, yet how seldom do they refer to it as illustrating the power and greatness of the Creator; and, it may be added, how seldom do they use the horse as if he were one of the grand and noble works of God!

Barnes: Job 39:26

Doth the hawk fly by thy wisdom - The appeal here is to the hawk, because it is among the most rapid of the birds in its flight. The particuIar thing specified is its flying, and it is supposed that there was something special in that which distinguished it from other birds. Whether it was in regard to its speed, to its manner of flying, or to its habits of flying at periodical seasons, may indeed be made a matter of inquiry, but it is clear that the particular thing in this bird which was adapted to draw the attention, and which evinced especially the wisdom of God, was connected with its flight. The word here rendered "hawk,"( נץ nêts ) is probably generic, and includes the various species of the falcon or hawk tribe, as the jet-falcon, the goshawk, the sparrow, hawk, the lanner, the saker, the hobby, the kestril, and the merlin. Not less than one hundred and fifty species of the hawk, it is said, have been described, but of these many are little known, and many of them differ from others only by very slight distinctions.

They are birds of prey, and, as many of them are endowed with remarkable docility, they are trained for the diversions of falconry - which has been quite a science among sportsmen. The falcon, or hawk, is often distinguished for fleetness. One, belonging to a Duke of Cleves, flew out of Westphalia into Prussia in one day; and in the county of Norfolk (England) one was known to make a flight of nearly thirty miles in an hour. A falcon which belonged to Henry IV. of France, having escaped from Fontainebleau, was found twenty-four hours after in Malta, the space traversed being not less than one thousand three hundred and fifty miles; being a velocity of about fifty-seven miles an hour, on the supposition that the bird was on the wing the whole time. It is this remarkable velocity which is here appealed to as a proof of the divine wisdom. God asks Job whether he could have formed these birds for their rapid flight. The wisdom and skill which has done this is evidently far above any that is possessed by man.

And stretch her wings toward the south - Referring to the fact that the bird is migratory at certain seasons of the year. It is not here merely the rapidity of its flight which is referred to, but that remarkable instinct which leads the feathered tribes to seek more congenial climates at the approach of winter. In no way is this to be accounted for, except by the fact that God has so appointed it. This great law of the winged tribes is one of the clearest proofs of divine wisdom and agency.

Barnes: Job 39:27

Doth the eagle mount up at thy command? - Margin, as in Hebrew, "by thy mouth."The meaning is, that Job had not power to direct or order the eagle in his lofty flight. The eagle has always been celebrated for the height to which it ascends. When Ramond had reached the summit of Mount Perdu, the highest of the Pyrenees, he perceived no living creature but an eagle which passed above him, flying with inconceivable rapidity in direct opposition to a furious wind. "Edin. Ency.""Of all animals, the eagle flies highest; and from thence the ancients have given him the epithet of "the bird of heaven.""Goldsmith."What is particularly worth remarking here is, the accuracy with which the descriptions in Job are made. If these are any indications of the progress of the knowledge of Natural History, that science could not have been then in its infancy. Just the things are adverted to here which all the investigations of subsequent ages have shown to characterize the classes of the feathered creation referred to.

And make her nest on high - " The nest of the eagle is usually built in the most inaccessible cliff of the rock, and often shielded from the weather by some jutting crag that hangs over it.""Goldsmith.""It is usually placed horizontally, in the hollow or fissure, of some high and abrupt rock, and is constructed of sticks of five or six feet in length, interlaced with pliant twigs, and covered with layers of rushes, heath, or moss. Unless destroyed by some accident, it is supposed to suffice, with occasional repairs, for the same couple during their lives.""Edin. Ency."

Barnes: Job 39:28

She dwelleth and abideth on the rock - " He rarely quits the mountains to descend into the plains. Each pair live in an insulated state, establishing their quarters on some high and precipitous cliff, at a respectful distance from others of the same species.""Edin. Ency."They seem to occupy the same cliff, or place of abode, during their lives; and hence, it is that they are represented as having a permanent abode on the lofty rock. In Damir it is said that the blind poet Besar, son of Jazidi, being asked, if God would give him the choice to be an animal, what he would be, said that he would wish to be nothing else than an "alokab,"a species of the eagle, for they dwelt in places to which no wild animal could have access. Scheutzer, "Phys. Sac. in loc ."The word rendered "abideth"means commonly "to pass the night,"and here refers to the fact that the high rock was its constant abode or dwelling. By night as well as by day, the eagle had his home there.

Upon the crag of the rock - Hebrew, "Upon the tooth of the rock"- from the resemblance of the crag of a rock to a tooth.

Barnes: Job 39:29

From, thence she seeketh the prey, and her eyes behold afar off - " When far aloft, and no longer discernible by the human eye, such is the wonderful acuteness of its sight, that from the same elevation it will mark a hare, or even a smaller animal, and dart down on it with unerring aim.""Edin. Ency.""Of all animals, the eagle has the quickest eye; but his sense of smelling is far inferior to that of the vulture. He never pursues, therefore, but in sight.""Goldsmith."This power of sight was early known, and is celebrated by the ancients. Thus, Homer, r’ - . verse 674.

- ὥστ ̓ ἀιετός ὄν ῥά τε φασὶν

Ὀξύσατον δέρκεσθαι ὑπουρανίων πετεηνῶν.

- hōst' aietos on ra te fasin

Oxusaton derkesthai hupouraniōn peteēnōn .

"As the eagle of whom it is said that it enjoys the keenest vision of

All the fowls under heaven."

So Aelian, II. L. i. 32. Also Horace "Serm."L. i. Sat. 3:

- tam cernit acutum

Quam aut aquila, aut serpeus Epidaurus .

The Arabic writers say that the eagle can see "four hundred parasangs.""Damir,"as quoted by Scheutzer. It is now ascertained that birds of prey search out or discern their food rather by the sight than the smell. No sooner does a camel fall and die on the plains of Arabia, than there may be seen in the far-distant sky apparently a black speck, which is soon discovered to be a vulture hastening to its prey. From that vast distance the bird, invisible to human eye, has seen the prey stretched upon the sand and immediately commences toward it its rapid flight.

Barnes: Job 39:30

Her young ones also suck up blood - The word used here ( יעלעוּ y^e ‛âl‛û ) occurs nowhere else in the Scriptures. It is supposed to mean, to sup up greedily; referring to the fact that the young ones of the eagle devour blood voraciously. They are too feeble to devour the flesh, and hence, they are fed on the blood of the victim. The strength of the eagle consists in the beak, talons, and wings; and such is their power, that they are able to convey animals of considerable size, alive, to their places of abode. They often bear away in this manner, lambs, kids, and the young of the gazelle. Three instances, at least, are known, where they have carried off children. In the year 1737, in Norway, a boy upward of two years of age was carried off by an eagle in the sight of his parents. Anderson, in his history of Iceland, asserts that in that island children of four and five years of age have experienced the same fate; and Ray mentions that in one of the Orkheys an infant of a year old was seized in the talons of an eagle, and conveyed about four miles to its eyry. "Edin. Ency."The principal food of the young eagle is blood. The proof of this fact may be seen in Scheutzer’ s "Phys. Sac., in loc ."

And where the slain are, there is she - Hebrew, "the slain;"referring perhaps primarily to a field of battle - where horses, camels, and human beings, lie in confusion. It is not improbable that the Savior had this passage in view when he said, speaking of the approaching destruction of Jerusalem, "For wheresoever the carcase is, there will the eagles be gathered together; "Mat 24:28. Of the fact that they thus assemble, there can be no doubt. The "argument"in proof of the wisdom and majesty of the Almighty in these references to the animal creation, is derived from their strength, their instincts, and their special habits. We may make two remarks, in view of the argument as here stated:

(1) One relates to the remarkable accuracy with which they are referred to. The statements are not vague and general, but are minute and characteristic, about the habits and the instincts of the animals referred to. The very things are selected which are now known to distinguish those animals, and which are not found to exist in the same degree, if at all, in others. Subsequent investigations have served to confirm the accuracy of these descriptions, and they may be taken now as a correct account even to the letter of the natural history of the different animals referred to. If, therefore, as has already been stated, this is to be regarded as an indication of the state of natural science in the time of Job. it shows quite an advanced state; if it is not an indication of the existing state of knowledge in his time, if there was no such acquaintance with the animal creation as the result of observation, then it shows that these were truly the words of God, and are to be regarded as direct inspiration. At all events, the statement was evidently made under the influence of inspiration, and is worthy of the origin which it claims.

(2) The second remark is, that the progress of discovery in the science of natural history has only served to confirm and expand the argument here adverted to. Every new fact in regard to the habits and instincts of animals is a new proof of the wisdom and greatness of God and we may appeal now, with all the knowledge which we have on these subjects, with unanswerable force to the habits and instincts of the wild goats of the rock, the wild ass, the rhinoceros, the ostrich, the horse, the hawk, and the eagle, as each one furnishing some striking and special proof of the wisdom, goodness, superintending providence and power of the great Creator.

Poole: Job 38:4

Then thou wast no where, thou hadst no being; thou art but of yesterday; and dost thou presume to judge of my eternal counsels? I made the world without thy help, and therefore can govern it without thy counsel, and I do not need thee to be the controller or censurer of my works.

When I laid the foundations of the earth when I made the earth, which is as the foundation or lower part of the whole world, and settled it as firm and fast upon its own centre as if it had been built upon the surest foundations. But if thou art ignorant of these manifest and visible works, do. not pretend to the exact knowledge of my secret counsels and mysterious providences.

Poole: Job 38:5

Who hath prescribed how long and broad and deep it should be?

Or who hath stretched the line to wit, the measuring line, to regulate all its dimensions, so as might be most convenient both for beauty and use?

Poole: Job 38:6

This strong and durable building hath no foundations but in God’ s power and word, which hath marvellously established it upon itself.

Or who laid the cornerstone thereof by which the several walls and parts of the building are joined and fastened together, and in which, next to the foundations, the stability of any building does consist? The sense is, Who was it that did build this goodly fabric, and established it so firmly that it cannot be moved without a miracle?

Poole: Job 38:7

The morning stars either,

1. The stars properly so called, who are said to sing and praise God, objectively, because they give men ample occasion to do it in regard of their glorious light and stupendous motions, &c. Compare Psa 19:1 148:1 , &c. But,

1. These stars are not here the objects or matter, but the authors or instruments, of God’ s praises for the founding of the earth.

2. The stars were not created when the earth was founded, but upon the fourth day.

3. There is no satisfactory reason given why all the stars should be called

morning stars especially when there is but one star known by that name. Or rather,

2. The sons of God, as it here follows, the latter clause of the verse being explicatory of the former, as is most frequent in this and some other books of Scripture, to wit, the angels, who may well be called stars , as even men of eminent note, and particularly ministers of God’ s word, are called, Dan 8:10 12:3 Rev 1:16,20 ; and morning stars , because of their excellent lustre and glory, for which they are called angels of light , 2Co 11:14 , and Christ for the same reason is called the Morning Star , Rev 22:16 . The sons of God ; the blessed angels; for man not being yet made, God had then no other sons; and these are called the sons of God, partly because they had their whole being from him, and partly because they were made partakers of his Divine and glorious image. And all these are said to join in this work of praising God, probably because none of the angels were as yet fallen from their first estate, though they did fall within a very little time after.

Shouted for joy rejoiced in and blessed God for his works; whereby he intimates that they neither did advise or any way assist him in his works, nor dislike or censure any of his works, as Job had presumed to do with the works of his providence, which are not inferior to those of creation.

Poole: Job 38:8

Who was it, thou or I, that did set bounds to the vast and raging ocean, and shut it up as it were with doors within its proper place and storehouse, that it might not overflow the earth; which without God’ s powerful restraint it would do? See Psa 33:7 104:9 . This sense seems most proper, and to be confirmed by the following verses.

When it brake forth or, after it had broken forth , to wit, from the womb or bowels of the earth, within which the waters were for the most part contained, Gen 1:2 ; compare 2Pe 3:5 ; and out of which they were by God’ s command brought forth into the proper place or channel which God had appointed for them.

Poole: Job 38:9

When I covered it with vapours and clouds which arise out of the sea. and by God’ s appointment hover above it, and cover it like a garment.

Thick darkness i. e. black and dark clouds, called darkness by a usual metonymy of the adjunct. So the same thing is repeated in other words, after the manner. Having compared the sea to a new-born infant, he continues in the same metaphor, and makes the clouds as swaddling-bands to keep the sea within its bounds; though indeed neither clouds, nor air, nor sands and shores can bound the sea, but it is God alone who doth it in and with these things.

Poole: Job 38:10

Brake up for it my decreed place i.e. made those valleys, or channels, and hollow places in the earth, which might serve for a cradle to receive and hold this great and goodly infant when it came out of the womb. See Gen 1:9,10 Ps 33:7 . Or, ordained or established my decree upon or concerning it. Set bars and doors, i.e. fixed its bounds as strongly as if they were fortified with bars and doors.

Poole: Job 38:11

To wit, at the sand and shore of the sea, Jer 5:22 .

Thy proud waves which rage and swell as if they would overwhelm all the earth.

Poole: Job 38:12

The morning i.e. the morning light, or the sun, which is the cause of it. Didst thou create the sun, and appoint the order and succession of day and night?

Since thy days since thou wast born. This work was not done by thee, but by me, and that long before thou wast born.

To know his place to observe the punctual time when, and the point of the heavens where, it should arise; which varies every day. Was this thy contrivance or mine?

Poole: Job 38:13

That this morning light should in a moment spread itself over the face of the whole earth, from one end of the hemisphere to the other.

Shaken out of it from the face of the earth. And this effect the morning light hath upon the wicked, partly because it discovers them, and drives them into their lurking holes; whereas the darkness hides them, and draws them forth, and gives them opportunity to execute their villanies without observation, Job 24:15-17 ; and partly because it brings them to condign punishment, the morning being the most fit and the most usual time for executing judgment; of which see Psa 101:8 Jer 21:12 .

Poole: Job 38:14

It to wit, the earth, mentioned in the next foregoing verse.

Is turned is transformed and changed in its shape and appearance.

To the seal or, by the seal , which makes a beautiful or valuable impression upon that clay, which in itself hath no form, nor worth, nor comeliness in it. So the earth, which in the darkness of the night lies like a confused heap, without either form or beauty, when the light ariseth and shineth upon it, appears in excellent order and great glory.

They either,

1. The inhabitants of the earth, and particularly the wicked, mentioned both in the foregoing and following verses. Or,

2. More generally, the men and things of the earth, whether natural, as living creatures, herbs, and trees, &c.; or artificial, as houses or other buildings.

Stand i. e. present themselves to our view, for which that posture of standing is most convenient. Or, consist , or abide , or are constituted .

As a garment wherewith the earth is in a manner clothed and adorned as with a garment; as the blessed God himself is said to cover himself with light as with a garment , Psa 104:2 .

Poole: Job 38:15

And or but ; for the following words seem to be added by way of opposition to what went before. The earth, and the men, and the things in it have the comfort and benefit of the light, but so have not the wicked. Their light , i.e. their portion of light. That light which is enjoyed by others is withholden from them, either by their own choice, because they love and choose darkness rather than light; or by the judgment of God, or the magistrate, by whom they are cut off from the light of the living , as it is called, Job 33:30 , or at least deprived of their peace, and comfort, and prosperity, which frequently goes under the name of

light in Scripture, and may be so called here by an elegant allusion to the natural light of the sun mentioned before.

The high arms their great strength, which they used tyrannically, to the oppression and crushing of others.

Poole: Job 38:16

The springs Heb. the tears , i.e. the several springs out of which the waters of the sea flow as tears do from the eyes. Hast thou found out the utmost depth and bottom of the sea, which in divers places could never be reached by the wisest mariner, or the longest cables? And how then canst thou fathom the depths of my counsels?

Poole: Job 38:17

Hast thou seen, or dost thou perfectly know, the place and state of the dead, the depths and bowels of that earth in which the generality of dead men are buried, or the several ways and methods of death, or the various states and conditions of men after death? And the same thing is repeated.

Poole: Job 38:18

Dost thou exactly know the whole compass and all parts of the earth, and the state and quality of all countries, and of the men and things in them? Give me an answer to these questions, which is far more easy to do, than to answer me to many other questions which I could put to thee about my secret counsels and providences, and the reasons of my dealing with thee as I do.

Poole: Job 38:19

The way or rather, the place , as the next clause explains it, and the Hebrew phrase will bear.

Where light dwelleth i.e. hath its constant and settled abode; for in the place where Job lived, and in most other parts of the inhabited world, it is like a traveller, that cometh and goeth continually every day. This may be referred either,

1. To the place under the two poles, where first the light, and then the darkness, continues for six months together. Or rather,

2. To the sun, the fountain of light. And as this is a poetical book, so this may be a poetical expression and question, Whither goes the sun, when it departs from this hemisphere? Where is the tabernacle and the chamber in which both sacred, as Psa 19:4,5 , and profane poets suppose the sun to rest? Dost thou know the place where the sun when it sets may be found, and whence thou canst fetch it back again. For it is to be carefully observed, that he speaks not here of a bare and simple knowledge of this matter, which was plain and easy to Job, and many others, who were not ignorant that the sun was the fountain of light, from whose approach light comes, and by whose departure darkness is caused; but of an operative knowledge, even such as could and did enable him to take it to the bound thereof , as it follows, Job 38:20 . And withal, he seems here to speak not only of the daily course and motion of the sun, and the vicissitude of day and night, but also and especially of the first production of the light, which was before Job was born, as is evident from Job 38:21 . And this makes the question more difficult and more considerable, the sense whereof may be this: Seeing there was a time when there was nothing but gross and comfortless darkness upon the face of the earth, what way came light into the world? which was the place where light dwelt at that time, and whence it was fetched? and whence came that orderly constitution and constant succession of light and darkness? Was this thy work? or wast thou privy to it, or a counsellor or assistant in it? or was it not done by me alone long before thou hadst a being?

Poole: Job 38:20

That thou shouldest take it i.e. taking, bring or lead it, as this verb is oft used, as Exo 25:2 Psa 68:29 , compared with Eph 4:11 1Ki 3:24 17:10 Hos 14:2 . And many other such pregnant verbs there are in the Hebrew language, having the signification of two verbs included in one, And this it refers principally to the light , and secondarily to darkness, as the consequent of the other.

To the bound thereof i.e. its whole course, from the place of its abode whence it is supposed to come, to the end of its journey which it is to go. Didst thou direct or guide the light or the sun, that he should at first take, and afterward constantly continue, in that course which now it holds; that it should go from east to west, and rise sometimes in one point or part of the heaven, and sometimes in another, and that its day’ s journey should be longer in one season of the year, and shorter in another? This regular and excellent course must needs be the effect of great wisdom. And whose wisdom was it? thine or mine?

That thou shouldest know to wit, practically, so as to direct or lead it in the manner now expressed.

The paths to the house thereof where thou mayst find it, and whence thou mayst fetch it.

Poole: Job 38:21

An ironical question: If thou pretendest that thou knowest these things, and canst readily answer these questions, how comest thou by this knowledge? Was it from hence, because thou wast born when I made the world, and that first constitution of the light and darkness in that order and succession which continues to this day, and thereby hadst the opportunity of inspecting my works, and seeing whence the light came, and because thou hast gained this knowledge by long experience, as having lived ever since the creation of the world until this time? whereas in truth thou art but of yesterday, and knowest nothing , as was said, Job 8:9 . But the words are and may be otherwise rendered, Dost or didst thou know , either by thy own remembrance, or by the information of others,

that thou wast then born? (to wit, when I made the world. Or, Didst thou know that thou shouldest then be born? then , to wit, when thou wast born. Or, Didst thou then know , the two Hebrew particles being transplaced, as is not unusual in that language, that thou shouldest be born ? How couldst thou know this, when thou hadst no being?) and that the number of thy days should be great ? that thou shouldst live so long as thou hast lived? Thou couldst neither foreknow the time of thy birth, nor the length of thy life. Or, and is the number of thy days great , i.e. so great that it reacheth to the time of the world’ s creation?

Poole: Job 38:22

Dost thou know where I have laid up those vast quantities of snow and hail which I draw forth when I see fit? Dost thou know the causes of them, and the way to produce them? But if thou art unacquainted with these treasures, it is intolerable presumption in thee to pretend that thou knowest those treasures of wisdom which lie hid in my own breast.

Poole: Job 38:23

Which i.e. which snow, and especially hail.

Against the time of trouble i.e. when I intend to bring trouble or calamity upon any country or people for their sins, or for their trial. Or, against the time of the enemy , i.e. when I intend to punish mine or my people’ s enemies, and to fight against them with these weapons; of which see instances Exo 9:14 Jos 10:11 . Compare 1Sa 7:10 Job 36:31 Isa 30:30 .

Poole: Job 38:24

By what way dost thou know all the causes, means, methods, and circumstances of this work of God? Is the light parted or dispersed or distributed, to wit , in the air, or upon the face of the earth? By

light he understands either,

1. The lightning, which breaks forth suddenly out of a cloud, and with strange swiftness disperseth itself, and fleeth from east to west, as is noted, Mat 24:27 . But this word light put by itself, and being understood properly, is constantly used in this book for the light of the sun, and never for the lightning; and where it is meant of the lightning, there is some other word added to it, as Job 37:15 , where it is called the light of his cloud . And besides, he speaks of the lightning in the next verse; which were superfluous, if it were here mentioned. Or rather,

2. Of the light of the sun, which is commonly called light without any other word added to it, as Job 3:4,9,16 24:14 25:3 , &c. And this light of the sun is variously parted or distributed in the world, shining in one place and time, when it doth not shine in another; or for a longer time, or with greater brightness, and power, and virtue, than it doth in another; all which are the effects of God’ s infinite wisdom and power, and such as were out of Job’ s reach to understand, or at least to effect.

Which scattereth the east wind upon the earth i.e. which light scattereth , &c., i.e. raiseth, the east wind, and causeth it to blow hither and thither upon the earth. For as the sun is justly called by the poets and others the father of the winds , because he draws up those exhalations which give matter to the winds, and for other reasons; so in particular the east wind is oft observed to rise together with the sun, from which also it hath both its Latin and Greek name. But some make this a distinct question from the former, and render the words thus; and (repeat, by which way )

the east wind (under which all the other winds may be comprehended) scattereth itself upon the earth, i.e. whence the winds come, and whither they go, which is mentioned as a secret in nature, Joh 3:8 , and how it comes to pass that they blow in such several manners, and with such various and even contrary effects. Or thus, and by which way the east wind scattereth (to wit, the clouds, or other light things; for this is noted in Scripture to be a most vehement wind, and to scatter the clouds, Exo 14:21 Jon 4:8 )

upon the earth i.e. whence it comes to pass that the east wind was so violent and furious. But the words may be rendered thus, which (i.e. which light of the sun, or when it, to wit, this light) scattereth itself (as divers here render this word, that conjugation being often used reciprocally, as is confessed) from (the prefix mem being understood, as it is very frequently in the Hebrew text)

the east (for this Hebrew word doth not only signify the eastern wind , but also the east , or the eastern part of the heavens or earth, as Eze 40:19 42:16 Hab 1:9 , and in many other places; and kedem , the root of this word, is constantly so used) upon or over the earth, all over the earth . And this is justly mentioned as a wonderful work of God, that as soon as ever the sun ariseth, it parteth or scattereth its light in an instant from one end of the hemisphere to another. But this I propose with submission.

Poole: Job 38:25

For the overflowing of waters for the showers of rain which come down out of the clouds, orderly, moderately, and gradually, as if they were conveyed in pipes or channels; which, without the care of God’ s providence, would fall confusedly, and all together; and, instead of refreshing, would overwhelm the earth.

For the lightning of thunder i.e. for that lightning which, breaking out of the cloud with violence, causeth thunder. Or, for lightning and thunder . Who opened a passage for them out of the cloud in which they were imprisoned? And these are here joined with the rain, because they are commonly accompanied with great showers of rain; which is here noted as a wonderful work of God, that fire and water should come out of the same cloud.

Poole: Job 38:26

To cause it to rain that the clouds being broken by lightning and thunder might pour down rain.

Wherein there is no man , to wit, to water those parts by art and industry, as is usual in cultivated and inhabited places; which makes this work of Divine Providence more necessary and more remarkable, in providing for the relief of the wild beasts, and plants, and other fruits of these forsaken lands, which otherwise would perish with drought.

Poole: Job 38:27

To satisfy by raining, not sparingly, but liberally and abundantly upon it.

To cause the bud of the tender herb to springforth there being many excellent and useful herbs found in desert places, which otherwise would be utterly neglected and despised.

Poole: Job 38:28

To wit, besides me. Is there any man upon earth than can beget or produce rain at his pleasure? No, this is my peculiar work. And therefore seeing thou knowest and canst do nothing as to the government of these ordinary effects of nature, how great presumption is it to arrogate to thyself the knowledge and management of the secret and mysterious affairs of my providence in the disposal of men!

Poole: Job 38:29

What man either can produce them, or doth fully understand where or how they are engendered? For philosophers speak of these things only by guess, and the reasons which some assign for them are confuted by others; and so they will confute one another to the end of the world, and prove nothing solidly but their own ignorance and the reasonableness of these questions.

Poole: Job 38:30

As with a stone i.e. with ice as hard as a stone.

The face of the deep i.e. the great sea, which is oft called the deep , as Gen 7:11 Psa 107:24 Isa 51:10 63:13 2Co 11:25 , which in some parts is frozen, which is a wonderful work of God.

Poole: Job 38:31

Bind i.e. restrain or hinder them. Canst thou bind or shut up the earth when they open it?

The sweet influences or, the delights ; because this constellation by its benign and opening influences brings in the spring, the herbs and flowers, and other delights of the earth.

Pleiades called also the Seven Stars. Of this and the following constellation, see Job 9:9 .

The bands by which it binds up the air and earth, by bringing storms of rain or hail, or frost and snow; and withal binds or seals the hands of workmen, as is noted, Job 37:7 .

Orion: this is another constellation, which riseth in November, and brings in winter. So the sense of the verse is, Thou canst not bind the earth when the one looseth or openeth it, nor loose or open it when the other binds or shutteth it up.

Poole: Job 38:32

Canst thou bring forth to wit, into view? canst thou make him to arise and appear in thy hemisphere?

Mazzaroth by which he designs either,

1. All the constellations, and especially the twelve sign of the zodiac; or rather

2. Some particular constellation, as all the rest here mentioned are understood. But whether this be that which is called the chambers of the south , Job 9:9 , or the Dog Star, or some other visible in Job’ s country, but not in ours we may be safely and contentedly ignorant, seeing even the Hebrew doctors are not agreed therein.

Arcturus a northern constellation, of which See Poole "Job 9:9" .

With his sons to wit, the lesser stars which belong to it, and are placed round about it, and attend upon it, as children upon their parents.

Poole: Job 38:33

Knowest thou? either,

1. Simply, and by speculation, dost thou understand them? Or,

2. Practically, or operatively, so as to establish or rule them, as the next clause implies.

The ordinances of heaven the laws, which are firmly established concerning their order, motion, or rest and their powerful influences upon this lower world. Didst thou give these laws? or dost thou perfectly know them?

Canst thou set the dominion thereof in the earth? canst manage and overrule their influences, that they shall bring such seasons and such weather as thou wouldst have?

Poole: Job 38:34

Canst thou lift up thy voice to the clouds either thundering in them, or calling to them with a loud voice, commanding them to rain?

May cover thee i.e. thy land, when it needs and requires rain.

Poole: Job 38:35

Canst thou send at thy pleasure, and upon thy errand?

Here we are an expression of servants, declaring their readiness to obey their masters’ commands; of which See Poole "Gen 22:1" See Poole "Isa 6:8" .

Poole: Job 38:36

In the inward parts to wit, of a man. Compare Job 19:27 Psa 51:6 . Who gave thee that wit and understanding which thou hast, and which thou now usest so arrogantly and wickedly, to contend with me, and to censure my actions?

Who hath given understanding to the heart so he limits the former general expression of the inward parts. The heart is made by the Hebrews the seat of the understanding, and is commonly put for it in Scripture.

Poole: Job 38:37

Who can wisely search out and exactly find the number of the clouds? They are numberless, and filled with water, as the next clause implies.

Who can stay the bottles of heaven to wit, the clouds? in which the rain is kept as in bottles, out of which God poureth it when he sees fit.

Poole: Job 38:38

This verse containeth a description either,

1. Of a great drought, when the earth grows hard, and close, and compact; or

2. Of the condition of the earth presently after the fall of the rain, when the earth, which in time of drought was much of it dissolved into dust, is now by the rain cemented or united together. In either of these cases it is the work of God alone to keep the clouds from pouring down more rain upon the earth.

Poole: Job 38:39

Is it by thy care and providence that the lions, who live in desert places, are furnished with necessary provisions? This is justly mentioned as another wonderful work of God.

Poole: Job 38:40

When through age and infirmity they cannot range abroad for prey, as the young lions do; but lie still in their dens, as if they were expecting their food from God, from whom also they receive it.

To lie in wait watching till some beast come that way upon which they may prey.

Poole: Job 38:41

Having mentioned the noblest of brute creatures, he now mentions one of the most contemptible and loathsome, to show the care of God’ s providence over all creatures, both great and small; which is more remarkable in ravens, because,

1. They devour flesh, which it is not easy for them to find.

2. They are greedy, and eat very much.

3. They are generally neglected and forsaken by mankind.

4. Their young ones are so soon forsaken by their dams, that if God did not provide for them in a more than ordinary manner, they would be starved to death.

Poole: Job 39:1

Knowest thou the time that thou mayst then go to them, and afford them thy help in their hard work?

The wild goats of the rock which dwell in high and steep rocks, where no man can come. See 1Sa 24:2 Psa 104:18 .

Bring forth which they do with great difficulty, as is implied, Psa 29:9 , and noted by philosophers, wherein they have no assistance from men, but only from God.

When the hinds do calve when God by his secret instinct directs them to a certain herb called seseli , which, as naturalists report, doth hasten and help forward their birth.

Poole: Job 39:2

Dost thou exactly know when they did conceive, and when they will bring forth? which is more uncertain in these than in other creatures, because there fall out many accidents which cause them to bring forth before their time, as thunder, Psa 29:9 , and other like causes of sudden fear, which may be many and various in those desert places where they live.

Poole: Job 39:3

They bow themselves being taught by a Divine instinct to dispose themselves in such a posture as may be fittest for their safe and easy bringing forth.

They bring forth their young ones to wit, with great pain, being almost torn or rent asunder with the birth, as the word signifies; or, without any of that help which tame beasts oft have.

Their sorrows i.e. their young ones, and their sorrows together. Or, though (which particle is oft understood) they remit or put away their sorrows , i.e. though instead of cherishing and furthering their sorrows, which for their own ease and safety they should do, they foolishly hinder them, and so increase their own danger; yet by God’ s good providence to them they are enabled to bring forth, as was now said.

Poole: Job 39:4

Are in good liking or, grow strong , or fat ; notwithstanding their great weakness caused by their hard entrance into the world.

With corn which they find and feed upon in the fields. Or, as with corn , i.e. as if they were fed with corn; the particle as being oft deficient, and to be supplied. Or, in the field , as this word in the Chaldee or Syriac dialect signifies.

Return not unto them finding sufficient provisions abroad by the care and conduct of God’ s providence.

Poole: Job 39:5

Who hath sent out the wild ass free? who hath given him this disposition, that he loves freedom, and avoids and hates that subjection which other creatures quietly and contentedly endure?

Who hath loosed the bands of the wild ass? which is not to be understood privatively, as if God took off the bands which men had put upon him; but negatively, that he keeps him from receiving the bands and submitting to the service of man. Who hath made him so untractable and unmanageable? Which is the more strange, because home-bred asses are so tame and tractable.

Poole: Job 39:6

Who useth and loveth to dwell in desert lands, Jer 2:24 Hos 8:3,9 .

The barren land called barren , not simply, for then he must be starved there; but comparatively, unmanaged, and therefore in a great measure unfruitful land.

Poole: Job 39:7

He scorneth either,

1. He feareth them not when they pursue him, because he is swift, and can easily escape them. Or,

2. He values them not, nor any provisions or advantages which he may have from them, but prefers a vagrant and solitary life in the wilderness before them. Or,

3. He disdains to submit himself to them, and resolutely maintains his own freedom.

The multitude of the city: he mentions the city rather than the country, partly because there is the greatest multitude of people to pursue, and overtake, and subject him; and partly because there is the greatest plenty of all things to invite him; the fruits of the country being laid up in cities in greatest abundance.

Neither regardeth Heb. heareth , i.e. obeyeth. Of the driver , Heb. of the taskmaster , or exactor of labour, i.e. he will not be brought to receive his yoke, nor to do his drudgery, nor to answer to his cries or commands, as tame asses are forced to do.

Poole: Job 39:8

The range of the mountains that which he searcheth out or findeth in the mountains. He prefers that mean provision and hardship with his freedom, before the fattest pastures with servitude. Why so weak and harmless a creature as the wild ass should be untamable, when the most savage lions and tigers have been tamed, and how there comes to be so vast a difference between the tame and the wild ass, thou canst give no reason, but must refer it wholly to my good pleasure; to which also thou shouldst upon the same grounds refer all the various methods of my providence and dealings with thee, and with other men, and not so boldly censure what thou dost not understand.

Poole: Job 39:9

It is much disputed among the learned, but is not needful to be known by others, whether there be or ever was such a creature as we call the unicorn; or whether this reem , which is the Hebrew name of it, be the rhinoceros , as some would have it; or a certain kind of wild goat, called oryx , which is very tall, and strong, and untractable; or one of that kind of wild oxen or bulls called uri ; which may seem most probable, both from the description of this creature here and elsewhere in Scripture, which exactly agrees with its description given by other authors; and from the description of his work in this place, which must in all reason be agreeable to creatures of that general kind; and from the conjunction of this creature with bullocks in Scripture, Deu 33:17 ; and especially Isa 34:6,7 , where having put lambs , and goats , and rams together, Job 39:6 , as creatures of the same or very like sort, he mentions bullocks , and bulls , and reems , Job 39:7 , as belonging to the same general sort of creatures. But this I shall not positively determine here. He that would know more, may see what the reverend and learned Mr. Caryl hath upon this text out of Boetius and others, and my Latin Synopsis on Num 23:22 .

Be willing to serve thee canst thou tame him, and bring him into subjection to thy command?

Abide by thy crib will he suffer himself to be tied or confined there all night, and to be reserved to the work of the next day, as the oxen do? Surely no. And if thou canst not rule such a creature as this, much less art thou able to govern the world, or to teach me how to govern it, which thou presumest to do.

Poole: Job 39:10

In the furrow i.e. in thy furrowed field, by a metonymy. Or, to or for (as the prefix beth is oft used, as Gen 11:4 Lev 16:22 Job 24:5 )

the furrow i.e. to make furrows, or to plough; for which work cattle use to be bound together, that they may be directed by the husbandman, and may make right furrows.

The valleys to wit, the low grounds, which are most proper for and most employed in the work of ploughing.

After thee under thy conduct, following thee step by step.

Poole: Job 39:11

Wilt thou trust him to wit, for the doing of these works, because he is very able for thy work? And wilt thou by thy power make him willing, or force him, to put forth and spend his strength in thy service?

Thy labour either,

1. Thy work of ploughing and harrowing. Or rather,

2. The fruit of thy labour, or the goods gotten by thy labour, as this word is oft used, as Deu 28:33 Job 20:18 Psa 78:46 128:2 Joh 4:38 , to wit, the fruits of the earth procured by God’ s blessing upon thy industry.

To him to be brought home by him into thy barns, as the next verse explains it.

Poole: Job 39:12

Will bring home thy seed Heb. will return thy seed ; either,

1. By ploughing and harrowing thy land so well that it shall make a good return to thee for thy seed. Or rather,

2. By bringing into thy barn, as it follows, thy seed, i.e. the product of thy seed, or thy sheaves of corn, as this word is used, Hag 2:19 .

Poole: Job 39:13

Gavest thou: the style of this book is very concise, and some verb is manifestly wanting to supply the sense; and this seems to be fitly understood out of Job 39:19 , where it is expressed. The goodly ; or, triumphant ; that wherein it triumpheth or prideth itself. Wings , or feathers ; Heb. wing or feather . The peacock’ s beauty lies in its tail; which may well enough be comprehended under this name, as it is confessed that the Latin word ala , which properly signifies a wing , is used by Martial and Claudian to express the peacock’ s tail.

The peacocks or, as some render it, to the ostrich , whose wings are much more great and goodly than those of the peacock. And for the other word in the next clause, which is rendered

ostrich they translate it another way; for that the Hebrew word hasidah doth not signify an ostrich , seems plain from the mention and description of that bird, Psa 104:17 Jer 8:7 Lam 4:3 Zec 5:9 , which doth not at all agree to the ostrich. And forasmuch as the following verses do evidently speak of the ostrich, and it is absurd to discourse of a bird which had not been so much as named, and consequently the name of it must be found in this verse, and there is no other word in this verse which bids so fair for it, it may seem probable that this word is not to be rendered the peacock , (though it be so taken by most,) but the ostrich . Nor is it likely that both the peacock and the ostrich should be crowded together into one verse, especially when all the following characters belong only to the latter of them. Add to this, that it is confessed, even by the Hebrew writers themselves, that there is a great uncertainty in the signification of the names of birds and beasts; and therefore it is not strange if many interpreters were mistaken in the signification of this word. Or

wings and feathers unto the ostrich: or, or the wings or feathers of the stork (or, or ) the ostrich . Or, didst thou give (which may be repeated out of the former branch)

the wings and feathers to the stork? Or, verily (the particle im being oft used as a note of confirmation, as Psa 59:16 63:7 Pro 3:34 23:18 ) it hath

wings and feathers like those of a stork ; for so indeed they are, black and white like them. And this may be noted as a great and a remarkable work of God, that it should really have wings and feathers as other birds have, and particularly the stork, who comes nearest to it in bulk and colour, although otherwise, by its vast bulk, it might seem to be a beast rather than a bird, as it is also called by Aristotle, and Pliny, and others.

Poole: Job 39:14

Which i.e. which ostrich; whose property this is noted to be by naturalists. Or, but ; for this unnatural quality is opposed to the goodliness of her wings or feathers.

In the earth in the place where she lays them; where she leaves them, either,

1. From care, lest she should crush and break them, if her vast body should sit upon them; or rather,

2. From forgetfulness, or carelessness, or unnaturalness, or folly; to which it is manifestly ascribed in the following verses.

Warmeth them in the dust either,

1. Covering them with sand, that they may be warmed and hatched by that, together with the heat of the sun. But this is judged a fabulous report; for the Arabians, amongst whom this bird is most frequent and best known, affirm that such eggs do quickly perish and putrefy. Or rather,

2. Exposing them to the heat of the sun, which being excessive in those hot countries, doth and must needs quickly destroy or spoil them. And the ostrich is said to warm them, because her leaving them there is not only the occasion, but im some sort the cause, of the sun’ s warming them.

Poole: Job 39:15

The feet to wit, of wild beasts as it follows passing that way.

Poole: Job 39:16

She is hardened or, he , i.e. God, hardens her ; or, she hardeneth herself. Against her young ones , i.e. against her eggs, which he calls her

young ones emphatically, to aggravate her fault and folly in destroying those eggs, which, if not neglected, would have been young ones.

As though they were not hers as if they were laid by some other bird. Or, that they may not be to her , i.e. that they may be utterly lost and destroyed; or as if it were her design to destroy their very being.

Her labour to wit, in laying her egg’ s, is wholly lost. In vain

without fear: this may be added as a further aggravation. She doth this, not because she is compelled to forsake her eggs for fear of men or beasts, but merely ont of an unnatural carelessness. Or, she is without fear , or for want of fear , to wit, of a provident fear and care about them.

Poole: Job 39:17

Because God hath not implanted in her that natural instinct, and providence, and affection, which he hath put into other birds and beasts towards their young. And yet no man presumes to reproach me for making this difference in my creatures. And as little reason hast thou to blame me for afflicting thee, when others not so bad as thou for the present go unpunished; because I have no less authority over thee than over them, and can dispose of all my creatures according to my good pleasure. The great folly of this bird is noted by Arabic writers, who best know her, and that not only for this property of forsaking her own eggs, but also for other things, as that she eats any thing which is offered to her, as iron, stones, glass, hot coals, &c., whereas other birds and beasts have so much sagacity, as to reject improper and unwholesome things; that being pursued by the hunter, she thinks herself safe and unseen by hiding her head in the sand; for which, and other such qualities, it is a proverb among the Arabians, More foolish than an ostrich.

Poole: Job 39:18

She lifteth up herself on high to flee from her pursuer; to which end she lifteth up her head and body, and spreads her wings.

She scorneth the horse and his rider she despiseth them in regard of her greater swiftness; for though she cannot fly because of her great bulk, being said to be as big as a new-born camel, yet by the aid of her wings she runs so fast that horsemen cannot reach her, as both Greek and other authors have noted.

Poole: Job 39:19

Strength either strength of body; or rather, courage and generous confidence, for which the horse is highly commended.

With thunder i.e. with snorting and neighing; in the making of which nereid the neck, in regard of the throat, which is within it, and a part of it, is a principal instrument; which noise may not unfitly be called thunder , because of the great vehemency and rage wherewith it is attended, and the great terror which it causeth, especially in war and battle, of which see Jer 8:16 ; and compare 1Sa 12:17,18 , where this very term of thundering is ascribed to a far lower and less terrible noise. Nor is this, as some allege, an improper speech, because this thunder or neighing is rather clothed with the neck, as being within it, than the neck with it ; for nothing is more common in Scripture than to say that men are clothed with righteousness , humility , and other graces, which yet are in strictness of speech within the man, and not he within them. But because this word in this form is not elsewhere extant, some render it otherwise, with a mane , with a thick, and full and deep mane, as the phrase of being clothed with it implies; for this is mentioned by all writers of horses as a notable mark of a generous horse; which therefore they conceive would not be omitted here, where so many several properties and excellencies are described. And the verb raam , whence this comes, in the Syriac language signifies not only to thunder , but also to be high or lofty ; which fitly agrees to the mane, which is in the highest part of the horse.

Poole: Job 39:20

As a grasshopper which is easily affrighted, and chased away by the least noise of a man. Or, as divers others render the place, Didst thou make him to move like a grasshopper , skipping and leaping as he goes? So he describes the posture of a gallant and generous horse, who curvets, and pranceth, and as it were danceth as he walks.

The glory of his nostrils that snorting, or sound, and smoke which cometh out of his nostrils, especially when he is enraged and engaged in battle, which is another note of a generous horse, and strikes a terror into his adversary. Or, the vehemency , or majesty , or magnificence of his snorting , or snoring , as this word is rendered, Jer 8:16 .

Poole: Job 39:21

He paweth or, he diggeth . Through courage and wantonness he cannot stand still, but is beating, as it were digging, up the earth with his feet.

In the valley: this he adds, partly because the ground being there more plain and smooth, he hath the better conveniency for his prancing and pawing with his feet, which in hilly and uneven ground he cannot so well do; and partly because battles use to be pitched in valleys, or low grounds, especially horse battles.

Rejoiceth in his strength making semblance of great pride and complacency in it.

He goeth on to meet the armed men with great readiness and undaunted courage.

Poole: Job 39:22

At fear i.e. at all instruments and objects of terror, as fear is oft used, as Pro 1:26 10:21 . He despiseth what other creatures dread.

From the sword or, because of the sword ; or, for fear of the sword , as this phrase is used, Isa 21:15 31:8 Jer 14:16 1:16 .

Poole: Job 39:23

The quiver or although the quiver &c. So this comes in as an aggravation of his courage, notwithstanding the just causes of fear which are mentioned in this verse. And the quiver is here put for the arrows contained in it, by a metonymy, very usual in this very case, and in all sorts of authors, which being shot against the horse and rider, make this rattling noise here mentioned.

The glittering spear and the shield or rather, the lance or javelin . For that this was not a defensive, but an offensive weapon, seems plain, both from this place, where it is mentioned among such, and as an object of fear, which the shield is not, and from Jos 8:18 1Sa 17:45 , where it is so used.

Poole: Job 39:24

The sense is either,

1. He is so earnest and eager upon the battle, that he rusheth into it with all speed; and runs over the ground so swiftly, that he might seem to have swallowed it tap. Or,

2. He is so full of war-like rage and fury, that he not only champs his bridle, but is ready to tear and devour the very ground on which he goes. And the phrase here used is not unusual, both in Arabic and in other authors; of which see my Latin Synopsis on this place.

He is so pleased with the approach of the battle, and the sound of the trumpet calling to it, that he could scarce believe his cars for gladness: compare Gen 45:26 Luk 24:41 . Or thus, he cannot stand still , or firm , (as this verb and Hie derivative from it is used, not only in the Chaldee and Syriac dialect, but also in the Hebrew, as Deu 28:59 1Sa 2:35 ) when the trumpet soundeth ; his rider can hardly keep him still, but he strives and longs to run to the fight.

Poole: Job 39:25

Ha, ha an expression of joy and alacrity, declared by his proud neighings; whereby he doth in some sort answer the sound of the trumpets, in way of scorn and challenge.

He smelleth i.e. he perceiveth, as this phrase is used, Jud 16:9 .

Afar off at some distance, either of place, or rather of time, as the word is most frequently used. He perceives by the motion of the soldiers, and the clattering of the arms, that the battle is at hand, which is very welcome to him.

The thunder of the captains by which he understands, either the military orations which the captains make and deliver with a loud voice to animate their soldiers to the battle; or rather the loud and joyful clamour begun by the commanders, and followed by the soldiers, when they are ready to join battle, that thereby they may both daunt their enemies, and encourage themselves.

Poole: Job 39:26

Doth the hawk fly in so singular a manner, so strongly and steadily, so constantly and unweariedly, so swiftly and speedily, so regularly and cunningly, to catch her prey, by thy wisdom ; didst thou inspire her with that wisdom?

Stretch her wings toward the south which she doth, either.

1. When she casts her old feathers, and gets new ones, which is furthered either by the warmth of southerly winds, or by the heat of the sun, which was southward from Job’ s country, as it is from ours; whence it is, that as wild hawks do this by natural instinct, so the places which men build for the keeping of tame hawks are built towards the south. Or,

2. In or towards winter, when wild hawks fly into warmer countries, as being impatient of cold weather.

Poole: Job 39:27

Mount up fly directly upward, till she be out of thy sight; which no other bird can do.

On high in the highest and inaccessible rocks. Compare Jer 49:16 Oba 1:4 .

Poole: Job 39:28

Which she doth partly for the security of herself and her young; and partly that she may thence have the better prospect to discern her prey, as it followeth.

Poole: Job 39:29

Her sight is exceeding sharp and strong, so that she is able to look upon the sun with open eyes, and to behold the smallest prey upon the earth or sea, when she is mounted out of our sight; which when she spies, she flies to it with incredible swiftness, even like an arrow out of a bow.

Poole: Job 39:30

Blood either of the prey which the eagle hath brought to her nest for them, or of that which themselves catch and kill, being betimes inured to this work by their dams. Naturalists note of the eagle, that she drinketh no water, but blood only.

Where the slain are where any dead carcasses are, yea, or are like to be; for natural historians write of the eagles, that they can presage or smell a battle some days before it be fought. And although some writers affirm that there are divers eagles who do not feed upon carcasses, and will not meddle with them, yet that many eagles do feed on them is sufficiently evident, by the testimony both of Scripture, as Mat 24:28 , and of divers both ancient and later writers.

There is she to wit, in an instant, flying thither with admirable celerity.

PBC: Job 38:4

Job, did I need to consult you when I created the universe? Did I need your advice then? Could you have helped me make the world better than I made it without your input? You thought I knew nothing of your calamity. You wanted a hearing to tell me your problem. Job, if I created the universe, do you think for a minute that I do not know what takes place in your life? That I don’t care?

Haydock: Job 38:4

Foundations. The Hebrews placed the earth in the centre of the universe, resting upon nothing, (chap. xxvi. 7., and xxxvi. 30.) or upon itself. See Hesiod, Theog. 325. (Calmet) ---

These questions seem intended to shew, that if God has created all things for man, he will not surely neglect to watch over him. (Menochius)

Haydock: Job 38:5

Upon it. He speaks of the world as of a vast house, (Calmet) or palace, (Menochius) in which the Architect has shewn his art. (Haydock)

Haydock: Job 38:7

Sons. Septuagint, "all my angels." Hence it appears that the angels were among the first of God's works, formed probably at the same time with the heavens, (Calmet) or light, Genesis i. 3. (Haydock) ---

The praise of the stars is figurative, (Calmet) as they tend to raise our hearts to God by their beauty, (Haydock) whereas that of the angels is real. (Calmet)

Haydock: Job 38:8

Shut. Hebrew also, (Haydock) "facilitated the birth of the sea," as a midwife. (Grotius) (Calmet) ---

Forth. Septuagint, "raged." (Haydock) ---

God represents the waters ready to overwhelm all when first produced out of nothing, if he had not shut them up in the abyss, like a child in a cradle, or a wild beast in its den, ver. 10. (Calmet)

Haydock: Job 38:9

Mist. So Moses says darkness was on the face of the abyss. Obscurity covered it, as swaddling bands do a child's body. (Calmet)

Haydock: Job 38:10

Set. Protestants, "brake up for it my decreed place." Marginal note, "established my decree upon it;" (Haydock) or, "I gave order to break it," against the shore, Jeremias v. 22., and Amos v. 8.

Haydock: Job 38:12

Place. Thou art but as yesterday: where is thy power? (Calmet)

Haydock: Job 38:13

And didst. Some explain Hebrew, "that it (Aurora) might spread at once to the extremities of the earth. Then the wicked flee before it;" as they hate the light, chap. xxxiv. 26., and John iii. 20. (Calmet) ---

Septuagint and Protestants may be understood in this sense. (Haydock) ---

Allusion may also be made to the shaking of a sieve, to separate the wheat from the chaff; (Amos ix. 9., and Luke xxii. 31.; Calmet) or of a carpet, to clean it from the dust. (Du Hamel) ---

Did God ask thee to help him to exterminate the wicked? The short digression in these three verses, shews the punishment exercised on offenders. It is not contrary to the true spirit of poetry. (Menochius)

Haydock: Job 38:14

Seal. Men, formed to the image of God, shall die; and others shall be place in their stead, (Menochius) with as much ease as an impression is made upon clay. (Haydock) ---

Garment. The body seems to be the clothing of the soul, and will be changed, Psalm ci. 27. (Menochius) ---

Chaldean, "their form will be changed to clay, and they shall resemble a tattered garment." Hebrew, "their seal shall be changed like clay," &c. All their glory shall perish. (Calmet) ---

Septuagint, "hast thou taken earth or clay, and formed a living creature, and endued it with speech on the earth?" Is man the workd of thy hands? (Haydock)

Haydock: Job 38:17

Doors? Septuagint, "through fear; or have the porters of hell flown away at thy sight?" (Haydock)

Haydock: Job 38:19

Darkness. The poetical style of this book represents these things as real beings, in the same manner (Calmet) as the house, (ver. 20) or palace of the sun, &c., are described by the ancients. (Haydock)

Haydock: Job 38:23

War. Hail, &c., are like the arrows of God, Jeremias x. 13., and l. 25. (Calmet)

Haydock: Job 38:25

Noisy. Hebrew, "for lightning, which accompanies thunder?" By these questions, respecting things which to man are impossible, and many inexplicable, God humbles (Calmet) the pride of the human heart. (Haydock)

Haydock: Job 38:26

Dwelleth. This shews the magnificence of God, (Menochius) at least. (Haydock)

Haydock: Job 38:31

Pleiades. The seven stars. ---

Arcturus. A bright star in the north. (Challoner) ---

The same terms occur, and are explained, chap. ix. 9. (Haydock)

Haydock: Job 38:32

Day-star. Hebrew mazzaroth, (Haydock) corresponds with the "inner parts of the south;" (chap. ix. 9) though some translate, "the signs of the zodiac, or the influences," &c. The antarctic constellations could not be seen in Idumea, while those of the north pole (Calmet) must appear to those who live on that side of the line, (Haydock) as the perpetual sentinels of the sky. ---

Evening-star. Hebrew, "Wilt thou make hayish and her daughters go to rest?" These indicate the arctic stars. Here two quite opposite stars are meant; (Calmet) though (Haydock) with us the evening and morning star be the same, being so styled according as it appears after or before the sun. (Menochius) ---

Protestants, "Canst thou bring forth Mazzaroth (Septuagint also retain the original term, Greek: Mazouroth ) in his season, or canst thou guide Arcturus, with his sons?" The former term signifies things "scattered," the planets, (Haydock) or "the grains of gross air dispersed" to all the extremities, which returning to the centre, occasion cold, chap. xxxvii. 9. (Parkhurst)

Haydock: Job 38:33

Reason. Hebrew, "dominion," (Haydock) or influence upon the earth. Mathematicians thought they had discovered these laws, and the number of the stars; but daily experience evinces their error. (Menochius)

Haydock: Job 38:34

Voice, to mimic the thunder of God, (Calmet) or to order it to rain. (Haydock)

Haydock: Job 38:36

Understanding. That is, to distinguish the hours of the night. (Challoner) ---

Septuagint, "Who gave to women the knowledge of the loom, and the art of embroidering?" (Haydock) ---

It was the part of women to weave, as appears from the conduct of queen Penelope. But the best interpreters translate, "Who has placed wisdom in the reins, or who hath given understanding to the heart," or soul? (Calmet) ---

God gives wisdom to man, and an instinct to cocks, (Haydock) or the skill, of which the former is deprived, (Worthington) to know the approach of day. (Du Hamel)

Haydock: Job 38:37

Sleep. The ancients have celebrated this harmony. (Cic.[Cicero?] Somn. Scip.) ---

Septuagint, "Who numbereth the clouds in wisdom, or hath bent the sky down to the earth?" Protestants, "or who can stay the bottles of heaven?" (Haydock) ---

Canst thou cause it to rain, or to be fair? (Calmet) or make the celestial bodies (Haydock) rest from motion? (Worthington)

Haydock: Job 38:38

Together. When was the water separated from the earth? (Haydock) ---

Where wast thou when I gave consistency to the rocks? (Calmet)

Haydock: Job 38:39

And satisfy. Septuagint, "or fill the souls of the dragons?" (Haydock) ---

Here Hebrew editions commence the following chapter, (Calmet) and are followed by Protestants (Haydock) and others, as the proof of God's superior knowledge begins to be established by the consideration of various animals. (Worthington)

Haydock: Job 38:41

Wandering. Sixtus V reads vagientes, (Calmet) "crying like children." (Haydock) ---

The ravens presently drive their young away to seek for fresh habitations. (Pliny, [Natural History?] x. 12.) (Psalm cxlvi. 9.) (Calmet) ---

If God provide for such creatures, He will shew still greater attention to man. (Worthington)

Haydock: Job 39:1

Goats ( Ibex. Hebrew Yahale.; Haydock) frequent rocks, and places which are almost inaccessible to man. (Calmet)

Haydock: Job 39:3

Roarings. They pretend that these animals bring forth with great difficulty, Psalm xxviii. 9. (Vatable, &c.) ---

Aristotle (v. 2., and vi. 29.) asserts, that they receive the male bending down, as Hebrew may be here explained. "They bend, they divide their young," as they have often two; "and they leave their strings" at the navel, &c. (Calmet)

Haydock: Job 39:4

Feed. Being weaned very soon. (Pliny, [Natural History?] viii. 32.)

Haydock: Job 39:5

Wild ass, described, chap. vi. 5. The industry of man cannot make this beautiful and strong animal serviceable to him. The like would be the case (Calmet) with many others, if Providence had not ordered it otherwise. (Haydock)

Haydock: Job 39:6

Barren. Literally, "salt." (Haydock) ---

This is of a nitrous quality, which renders those countries barren. The salt in snow and dung gives warmth and fruitfulness.

Haydock: Job 39:9

Rhinoceros. See Deuteronomy xxxiii. 17., and Numbers xxiii. 22. Sanchez says they are untameable. (Menochius) ---

But this is not true, when they have been taken young. (Malvenda) (Calmet)

Haydock: Job 39:10

Valleys, or furrows. Can he be made to harrow?

Haydock: Job 39:13

Hawk. We may also read, "Is the wing of the ostrich like?" Septuagint or Theodotion, "The bird of Neelasa is rejoicing, if she take the Asida, &c., the Neessa." (Haydock) ---

Hebrew is variously translated, "The ostrich lifts itself up with its wings, which have feathers, as well as those of the stork." (Bochart) ---

It flutters, running like a partridge, swifter than any horse. (Adamson) ---

"Canst thou give to the stork and the ostrich their feathers," which form all their beauty? (Calmet) ---

Protestants, " Gavest thou the goodly wings upon the peacock, or wings and feathers unto the ostrich?" (Haydock) ---

The import of these names is uncertain. (Menochius) ---

Renanim, (from Ron, "to cry, or move quickly,") may signify peacocks, ostriches, &c. Chasida, "a stork, (Haydock; Jer.[Jeremias?]) falcon, (Worthington) or heron; notsa "a hawk, or a feather." (Haydock) ---

The first term occurs no where else, and may denote any singing birds or grasshoppers, as the last may be applied to the ostrich, which has "wings," though it fly not. (Grotius) (Calmet) ---

Acknowledge the wisdom of Providence, which has thus enabled such a huge animal to travel so fast. (Menochius) ---

See Parkhurst, alcs. (Haydock)

Haydock: Job 39:14

Dust. This might help to hatch them. (Calmet) ---

Hebrew, "earth, and warmeth them in the dust." (Protestants)

Haydock: Job 39:16

Ones, or eggs which she leaves. (Calmet) ---

Ælian (xiv. 6.) asserts that this bird will expose her own life to defend her young. Yet the neglect of her eggs, will suffice to make her deemed cruel, Lamentations iv. 3. (Haydock) ---

Her. Other birds leave their nests through fear; (Calmet) but this, after sitting a while, will depart carelessly, (Haydock) and if she meet with other eggs on her road, will take to them, thus rendering her own useless. (Bochart)

Haydock: Job 39:17

Understanding. This bird has a head disproportionately small; insomuch, that Heliogabalus served up the brains of 600 at one supper. It greedily eats iron, &c., which may help its digestion, as sand does that of other birds. (Calmet) ---

When it is hunted, it hides its head only, as if this would be a sufficient defence, (Pliny, [Natural History?] x. 1.) and is taken alive by a man, clothed in the skin of an ostrich, who moves the head with his hand. (Strabo xvi.) ---

All which proves its stupidity. (Calmet)

Haydock: Job 39:18

High. With her head erect, the ostrich is taller than a man on horseback. (Pliny x. 1.) ---

Its wings are used like sails, and enable it to run as fast as many birds can fly, (Calmet0 while it hurls stones at the pursuer with its feet, so as frequently to kill them. (Diodorus ii.) ---

Rider, as they can travel with equal speed. (Menochius) (Ver. 13.) ---

Adamson (Senegal) placed two negroes on one, and testified that it still went faster than any English horse. (Haydock)

Haydock: Job 39:19

Neighing. Hebrew, "thunder," to denote the fierceness of the horse; or "with a mane," (Bochart) "armour," (Syriac) or "terror." (Septuagint) (Calmet) ---

Wilt thou enable the horse to neigh, (Menochius) when he appears so terrible? (Haydock)

Haydock: Job 39:20

Up. Hebrew, "frighten," (Haydock) or "make him leap." (Bochart) (Calmet) ---

Nostrils. Septuagint, "of his chest, or shoulders, is boldness." (Haydock) ---

This inspires the rider with courage, and the enemy with fear. But the Vulgate is more followed. (Calmet) ----- Frænoque teneri

Impatiens crebros expirat naribus ignes. (Silius vi.)

Haydock: Job 39:21

Hoof. Ploughing, or rather prancing, through impatience. (Calmet) ---

Boldly. Hebrew, "he exults in his strength," being sensible of glory and commendation. (Calmet) ---

Non dubie intellectum adhortationis et gloriæ fatentur. (Pliny vii. 43.)

Haydock: Job 39:23

Shield, or lance, Josue viii. 18. (Calmet) ---

The din of armour does not disturb the horse, which has been inured to such things. (Haydock) ---

It is of singular courage. (Worthington)

Haydock: Job 39:24

Ground. This expression is still used by the Arabs, to denote velocity. (Grotius) ---

Septuagint, "in wrath he will make the earth disappear." (Haydock) ---

Mox sanguis venis melior calet, ire viarum

Longa volunt latumque fuga consumere campum. (Nemesianus)

--- Account. Hebrew, "believe that," or "stops not when." He is so eager to rush forward to battle.

Si qua sonum procul arma dedere,

Stare loco nescit, micat auribus et tremit artus. (Georg. iii.)

Haydock: Job 39:25

Ha. Literally, "Vah," a sound of joy, (Menochius) or of contempt. Septuagint, The trumpet having given the sign, he will say, Well: Euge. Nothing could be more poetically descriptive of the war-horse. (Haydock)

Haydock: Job 39:26

Feathered. Hebrew, "fly." (Haydock) ---

South, at the approach of "winter retiring" to warmer regions. (Pliny x. 8.) ---

Septuagint, "spreading her wings, looking unmoved, towards the south." The hawk alone can stare at the sun, and fly to a great height. (Ælian x. 14.) ---

Hence the Egyptians consecrated this bird to the sun. (Calmet) ---

The eagle is of the same species, and has the same properties. (Haydock) Aristotle mentions 10, and Pliny 16 species of hawks. (Worthington)

Haydock: Job 39:28

Access. See Abdias iv.; Aristotle, anim. ix. 32.

Haydock: Job 39:29

Off. The eagle was remarkably (Calmet) quick-sighted, (Worthington) as well as the serpent. (Horace i. Sat. iii.; Homer, Iliad xvii.) ---

They say it can discern a fly or a fish from the highest situation; (Bochart) and if its young seem dazzled with the sun-beams, it hurls them down as spurious. (Pliny x. 3.)

Haydock: Job 39:30

Blood, gushing forth from the animals, which the eagle brings. (Menochius) ---

St. Chrysostom explains this of the vulture, (Matthew xxiv. 28.; Calmet) which is of the same species. (Menochius) ---

Some eagles will not touch carcasses, but others are greedy of them. (Pliny x. 3.) (Proverbs xxx. 17.) ---

There. Our Saviour quotes this passage, Luke xvii. 37. (Calmet)

Gill: Job 38:4

Where wast thou when I laid the foundations of the earth?.... The earth has foundations, and such firm ones that it cannot be moved; but what are they, since it is hung in the air on nothing! No other than the power and will of God, who laid these foundations, and the Son of God, who has created and upholds all things by the word of his power, Heb 1:3. Where was Job then? In a state of nothingness, a mere nonentity: he was not present when this amazing work of nature was done, and saw not how the Lord went about it; and yet takes upon him to dive into the secret works and ways of Providence, for which he is rebuked by this question and the following;

declare, if thou hast understanding: Job had the understanding of a man in things natural and civil, and of a good man in things spiritual and divine; but he had no understanding of this, of what he is questioned about; could not declare in what place he was, and where he stood, when the earth was founded.

Gill: Job 38:5

Who hath laid the measures thereof, if thou knowest?.... Did God or a creature? The Lord, no doubt. He laid them out in his divine mind, and laid them forth by his divine power; who does all things by weight and measure. He fixed the dimensions of the earth, how long, how thick, and how broad it should be; he settled the borders and boundaries of it. This Job might know that the Lord did; but he laid them, and what they are that are laid, he knew not. Mathematicians pretend to give us the circumference and diameter of the earth; but in their accounts are not agreed, but widely differ; which shows they are at no certainty about them ^e; and Job and the men of his age might be still less knowing: though the words may be rendered, "for thou knowest" ^f; surely such a knowing man as thou art must needs know this and so are a severe sarcasm upon him;

or who hath stretched the line upon it? The measuring line being formed according to rule, with exact symmetry and proportion. This may be the same with the circle of the earth, and the compass set upon the face of the deep or terraqueous globe, Pro 8:27. And with the same exactness and just proportion are the ways and works of Providence, which Job ought to have acquiesced in as being well and wisely done.

Gill: Job 38:6

Whereupon are the foundations thereof fastened?.... Or the pillars of it, as Ben Gersom interprets it; see Psa 75:3; and which Aben Ezra understands of the mountains: but be they what they may, on what can they be fastened or sunk into, when the earth hangs on nothing, and there is nothing visible to support it, nothing but the mighty hand of God?

or who laid the corner stone thereof? which unites, cements, and keeps the fabric together, and is the ornament and beauty of it; but who can tell what that is? Aben Ezra interprets it of the point or centre of the earth.

Gill: Job 38:7

When the morning stars sang together,.... Either all the stars in a literal sense; for though, strictly speaking, there is but one morning star, yet all may be called so, because early created in the morning of the world; and are all stars of light, shine till the morning; and it is observed by some, that the nearer the morning the brighter they shine: and these in their way sing the praises of God, and set forth the glory of his perfections, and occasion songs of praise in men; see Psa 148:3. Or figuratively, either angels, as most interpret them, comparable to stars for their glory, purity, and light, for their constancy, permanency, and numbers: or good men, particularly ministers of the word, and angels of the churches; who are stars in Christ's right hand, Rev 1:20; but the principal morning star is Christ himself, Rev 22:16;

and all the sons of God shouted for joy; which are usually understood of angels also, so the Targum; who are the sons of God, not by birth, as Christ, nor by adoption, as saints; but by creation, as Adam, Luk 3:38. And because they bear some likeness to God, as holy spirits, and honour and obey him in doing his will; though the character of sons of God, as distinct from the children of men, given to professors of religion, obtained before the times of Job; see Gen 6:2; and who might be said to sing together, and shout for joy, when they met for social worship; see Job 1:6; and especially when any fresh discoveries were made to them of the Messiah, and salvation by him. Thus Abraham, one of these sons of God, saw Christ's day and was glad, and shouted for joy, Joh 8:56. For these words are not necessarily to be restrained to the laying of the foundation and cornerstone of the earth, as our version directs; though indeed the angels then might be present, being created as soon as the heavens were, and with the stars, as Capellus on this place observes; and rejoiced, when the foundations of the earth were laid, on beholding such a display of the power, wisdom, and goodness of God therein; and which may be said of them, in allusion to what is done at the laying of the foundation of any building of note; see Ezr 3:10; for it may be repeated from Job 38:4; "where wast thou when the morning stars", &c. and so may refer to any rejoicing, whether of angels or men, before the times of Job, at which he was not present.

Gill: Job 38:8

Or who shut up the sea with doors,.... From the earth the transition is to the sea, according to the order of the creation; and this refers not to the state and case of the sea as at the flood, of which some interpret it, but as at its first creation; and it is throughout this account represented as an infant, and here first as in embryo, shut up in the bowels of the earth, where it was when first created with it, as an infant shut up in its mother's womb, and with the doors of it; see Job 3:10; the bowels of the earth being the storehouses where God first laid up the deep waters, Psa 33:7; and when the chaos, the misshapen earth, was like a woman big with child;

when it brake forth out of the abyss, as the Targum, with force and violence, as Pharez broke out of his mother's womb; for which reason he had his name given, which signifies a breach, Gen 38:29; so it follows,

as if it had issued out of the womb; as a child out of its mother's womb; so the sea burst forth and issued out of the bowels of the earth, and covered it all around, as in Psa 104:6; and now it was that the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters, before they were drained off the earth; this was the first open visible production of the sea, and nay be called the birth of it; see Gen 1:2. Something like this the Heathen philosopher Archelaus had a notion of, who says ^g, the sea was shut up in hollow places, and was as it were strained through the earth.

Gill: Job 38:9

When I made the cloud the garment thereof,.... For this newborn babe, the sea;

and thick darkness a swaddling band for it; which was the case of the sea when it burst out of the bowels of the earth and covered it, for then darkness was upon the face of the deep, a dark, foggy, misty air, Gen 1:2; and this was before its separation from the land, and in this order it stands in this account; though since, clouds, fogs, and mists, which rise out of the sea, are as garments to it, and cover it at times, and the surrounding atmosphere, as it presses the whole terraqueous globe, and keeps the parts of the earth together, so the waters of the sea from spilling out; and these are the garments and the swaddling bands with which the hands and arms of this big and boisterous creature are wreathed; it is said of the infant in Eze 16:4 that it was neither "salted nor swaddled at all"; but both may be said of the sea; that it is salted is sufficiently known, and that it is swaddled is here affirmed; but who except the Lord Almighty could do this? and who has managed, and still does and can manage, this unruly creature, as easily as a nurse can turn about and swaddle a newborn babe upon her lap.

Gill: Job 38:10

And brake up for it my decreed place,.... Or, as Mr. Broughton translates it, "and brake the earth for it by my decree": made a vast chasm in the earth to hold the waters of the sea, which was provided as a sort of cradle to put this swaddled infant in; God cleaved the earth, raised the hills and sank the valleys, which became as channels to convey the waters that ran off the earth to their appointed place, which beautifully expressed in Psa 104:7; and refers there, as here, to the work of creation on the second day, Gen 1:9 ^h;

and set bars and doors; to keep it in its decreed appointed place, that the waters might not go over the earth; these are the shores, as the Targum, the cliffs and rocks upon them, the boundaries of the sea; to which may be added, and what is amazing, the sand upon the seashore is such a boundary to it that it cannot pass, Jer 5:22; but these would be insufficient was it not for the power and will of God, next expressed.

Gill: Job 38:11

And said, hitherto shalt thou come, but no further,.... The waters of the sea shall spread themselves to such and such shores, and wash them, but go no further; its rolling tides shall go up so far in rivers that go out of it, and then return, keeping exactly to time and place; this is said by Jehovah, the Word of God, and through his almighty power is tended to;

and here shall thy proud waves be stayed; so high and no higher shall they lift up themselves; so far and no farther shall they roll on, than to the boundaries fixed for them; and though they may toss up themselves as proud men toss up their heads, for which, reason pride is ascribed to them, yet they shall not prevail, Jer 5:22; all this may be accommodated to the afflictions of God's people, which are sometimes compared to the waves and billows of the sea, Psa 42:7; and these issue out of the womb of God's purposes and decrees, and are not the effects of chance; they are many, and threaten to overwhelm, but God is with his people in them, and preserves them from being overflowed by them; he has set the bounds and measures of them, beyond which they cannot go; see Isa 27:8; and also to the world, and to the men of it, who are like a troubled sea, Dan 7:2; and who rise, and swell, and dash against the people of God, being separated from them who were originally mixed with them; but the Lord restrains their wrath and fury, and suffers them not to do his people any harm; whom he has placed in the munition of rocks out of their reach, that those proud waters cannot go over them as they threaten to do; see Psa 76:10.

Gill: Job 38:12

Hast thou commanded the morning since thy days;.... Job had lived to see many a morning, but it never was in his power to command one; he had been in such circumstances as to wish for morning light before it was, but was obliged to wait for it, could not hasten it, or cause it to spring before its time; see Job 7:3; one of the Targums is,

"wast thou in the days of the first creation, and commandedst the morning to be?''

he was not, God was; he was before the first morning, and commanded it into being, Gen 1:3;

and caused the dayspring to know his place; the first spring of light or dawn of day; which though it has a different place every day in the year, as the sun ascends or descends in the signs of the Zodiac, yet it knows and observes its exact place, being taught of God.

Gill: Job 38:13

That it might take hold of the ends of the earth,.... As when the morning light springs forth, it quickly does, reaching in a short time the extreme part of the hemisphere; which, and what goes before, may be applied to the light of the Gospel, and the direction of that under divine Providence in the several parts of the world, and unto the ends of it; see Psa 19:4;

that the wicked might be shaken out of it? the earth, by means of the light; which may be understood either of wicked men who have been all night upon works of darkness, and be take themselves on the approach of light to private lurking places, like beasts of prey, so that the earth seems to be, as it were, clear of them; or of their being taken up in the morning for deeds done in the night, and brought to justice, which used to be exercised in mornings, Jer 21:12; and so the earth rid of them: thus wicked men shun the light, of the Gospel, and are condemned by it; and in the latter day light and glory they will cease from the earth; see Joh 3:19.

Gill: Job 38:14

It is turned as clay to the seal,.... As the clay receives a different form by the impress of the seal upon it, so the earth appears in a different manner by the spring of morning light upon it; in the darkness of the night nothing of its form and beauty is to be seen; it is a mere "tohu" and "bohu", like the chaos, Gen 1:2; its rising hills, and spreading dales, and beautiful landscapes, cannot be observed with pleasure; but when the light breaks forth in the morning, it is seen in all its beauty and glory: of the change the light of the Gospel makes in men, see 2Co 3:18;

and they stand as a garment; or things stand upon it as a garment, as Mr. Broughton renders the words; herbs, plants, and trees, unseen in the night, stand up like a vesture to the earth in the morning light; and as they are clothed themselves, they are a garment to that, which now puts on another and beautiful habit; the pastures are clothed with flocks, and the valleys covered with corn, and the whole earth with light itself, as with a garment: and as beautifully do men made light in the Lord appear; see Isa 41:10.

Gill: Job 38:15

And from the wicked their light is withholden,.... Whose light is darkness, and whose day is the night, of which they are deprived when the morning light breaks forth; see Job 24:17; it may be figuratively understood of the light of prosperity being removed from them, or the light of life, when they shall be sent into utter darkness;

and the high arm shall be broken; their power weakened and made useless; even the power of such wicked men who have had a large share of it, and have used it in a tyrannical manner; and especially this will be their case at death; see Isa 14:10.

Gill: Job 38:16

Hast thou entered into the springs of the sea?.... The subterraneous passages through which the waters flow into the sea and supply it; or the springs and fountains that rise up at the bottom of it ⁱ; and some tell us of springs of sweet water that rise there, even though the water at the bottom of the sea is saltier than on the surface ^k: some render it "the drops of the sea" ^l; hast thou considered them and counted them? art thou able to do it? no: others the "perplexities" of it ^m, so the Targum, the word being used in this sense, Exo 14:3; the thickets of it; some speak of woods and forests in it; see Gill on Exo 10:19; others "rocks" and shelves ⁿ, and others the "borders" of it ^o; and the sense then is, hast thou entered into and travelled through the main ocean, observed the forests in it, the shelving rocks and sandy mountains in it, and gone to the utmost borders of it?

or hast thou walked in the search of the depth? to find out the deepest place of it, where no sounding line can reach ^p; or walked in quest of the curiosities of it, animals, plants and minerals, unknown to men; or of the riches that lie at the bottom of it, for which now the diving bell is used, but not invented and known in the times of Job; and if Job had not done and could not do all this, how should he be able to enter into the secret springs of Providence, or trace the ways of God, whose way is in the sea, and whose paths are in the great waters, and his footsteps not known? Psa 77:19.

Gill: Job 38:17

Have the gates of death been opened unto thee?.... Meaning not by which death has entered into the world, and which have been the causes and occasion of it; as the sin of man, the appointment of God, and various providences, calamities and diseases; but by which men enter into the state of the dead. Men know not experimentally what death is, nor in what way they shall go out of the world, nor at what time, nor in what place; they know not what the state of the dead is, there is no correspondence between them and the living; they do not know either what they enjoy or endure, or who precisely and with certainty are in the separate abodes of bliss or misery; the gates of these dark and invisible regions to us have never been thrown open, for mortals to look into them;

or hast thou seen the doors of the shadow of death? the same thing in other words; the Targum and Jarchi interpret this of hell.

Gill: Job 38:18

Hast thou perceived the breadth of the earth?.... Which may be put for all the dimensions of it, length, breadth, diameter, and circumference, but especially it regards the surface of it, and the measurement of that; hast thou gone over the whole face of the earth and measured it, all its parts, its hills and dales, rocks and mountains, and took a survey of all the cities, towns and villages, woods, forests, fountains, rivers, &c? no; if a man lived as long as Methuselah, and spent all his days in this way, he could never be able to do it; and some parts are inaccessible, and not to be measured by the most skilful geometer;

declare, if thou knowest it all; the whole earth and every part of it, and all that is in it. Whether the other hemisphere and the antipodes were known in Job's time is a question; however not America, or the new world, which is a late discovery; and even now, in our most exact maps of the world, some parts are marked with "terra incognita", the unknown land.

Gill: Job 38:19

Where is the way where light dwelleth?.... Or the way to the place where it dwells, and what that is;

and as for darkness, where is the place thereof? where these were placed when they were first separated at the creation? where light goes and dwells, when it departs from us at sun setting? and where the darkness betakes itself, and makes its abode at sun rising? What is the chamber of the sun, and the tabernacle of it? from whence it sets out, and whither it returns? And though these questions may be answered by geographers and astronomers in their way; yet they seem to respect chiefly the disposal of light and darkness, in such a manner as to cause the revolution of them, and the inequality of days and nights in different seasons and climates; and which is not in the power of men to effect, but depends on the sovereign will of God.

Gill: Job 38:20

That thou shouldest take it to the bound thereof,.... Either darkness, or rather the light; take it as it were by the hand, and guide and direct its course to its utmost bound. This only the Lord can do and does: he has set a tabernacle for the sun, which goes forth at his command as a strong man to run a race; whose going forth is from the end of the heavens, and his circuit unto the ends of it: in which his course is so steered and directed by the Lord, that he never misses his way or errs from it; but keeps his path exactly, as well as knows its rising and setting, its utmost bounds;

and that thou shouldest know the paths to the house thereof? from whence it sets out, and whither it returns; see Psa 19:4. And so the light and darkness of prosperity and adversity, as well as natural light and darkness, are of God, at his disposal, and bounded by him, and therefore his will should be submitted to; which is the doctrine the Lord would teach Job by all this.

Gill: Job 38:21

Knowest thou it, because thou wast then born?.... When light and darkness were first separated, and had their several apartments assigned them; their laws and rules given them, and their bounds and limits set them? No; he was not: and, had he been the first man, could not have been early enough to have been present at the doing of this, and so come at the knowledge thereof; since man was not made until the sixth day of the creation;

or because the number of thy days is great; reach to the beginning of time, and so as old as the creation. This was not the case. Some understand these words ironically; "thou knowest" the places and bounds of light and darkness, since thou art a very old man, born as soon as the world was. Whereas he was of yesterday, and knew nothing; which to convince him of is the design of this biting, cutting, expression. The Targum is,

"didst thou know then that thou shouldest be born, and the number of thy days many?''

No, Job did not know when he was born, nor of whom, and in what circumstances, but by the relation of others; and much less could he know before he was born, that he should be, or how long he should live in the world: but God knows all this beforehand; when men shall come into the world, at what period and of what parents, and how long they shall continue in it.

Gill: Job 38:22

Hast thou entered into the treasures of the snow? or hast thou seen the treasures of the hail? The vapours raised, and clouds formed in the atmosphere, which is the storehouse of those meteors; and may be called treasures, because hidden in the clouds, and not seen by man until the fall of them; and because they are in the keeping, and at the command and direction of the Lord the proprietor of them; and because rich and enriching, especially snow, which falling keeps the earth warm, and makes it fruitful; and because of the abundance thereof which sometimes falls. Now we are not to imagine that the Lord has stores of these laid up in heaps, in times past for time to come; but that he can and does as easily and as soon produce them when he pleases, as one that has treasures laid up can bring them forth at once.

Gill: Job 38:23

Which I have reserved against the time of trouble,.... For the punishment or affliction of men; and is explained as follows,

against the day of battle and war? as his artillery and ammunition to light his enemies with. Of hail we have instances in Scripture, as employed against the Egyptians and Canaanites, Exo 9:25; and of a reserve of it in the purposes of God, and in prophecy against the day of battle with antichrist, Rev 16:21; and so Jarchi interprets it here of the war of Gog and Magog. And though there are no instances of snow being used in this way in Scripture, yet there is in history. Strabo ^s reports, that at Corzena and Cambysena, which join to Mount Caucasus, such snows have fallen, that whole companies of men have been swallowed up in them; and even armies have been overwhelmed with them, as the army of the Gauls ^t; and such quantities have been thrown down from mountains, on which they have been lodged, that towns, towers, and villages, have been laid prostrate by them ^u; and in the year 443, a vast snow destroyed many ^w. Frequently do we hear in our parts of the disasters occasioned by them. The Targum particularly makes mention of snow; and renders it, "which snow I have reserved", &c. though absurdly applies it to punishment in hell.

Gill: Job 38:24

By what way is the light parted,.... That is, dost thou know by what way it is parted or divided? as at the first creation, when God divided the light from darkness, Gen 1:4; or at sun rising and sun setting; and so in the two hemispheres, when there is darkness on the one, and light on the other; or under the two poles, when there are interchangeably six months light and six months darkness. Or how it is parted in an unequal distribution of day and night, at different seasons and in different climates; or how on one and the same day, and at the same time, the sun shall shine in one part of the earth, and not another; and more especially if this had been now a fact, and known, that there should be darkness all over the land of Egypt, and light in Goshen. Some understand this of lightning, but that is later mentioned;

which scattereth the east wind upon the earth? that rising sometimes with the sun, or first spring of light; see Jon 4:8; or which light spreads and diffuses itself "from the east", as it may be rendered. The sun rises in the east, and in a very quick and surprising manner spreads and diffuses its light throughout the hemisphere. Or this may respect the east wind itself, which scatters the clouds; and either spreads them in the heavens over the earth, or disperses them and drives away rain ^x, as the north wind does: or as Mr. Broughton renders the words, "and the east wind scattereth itself over the earth"; it blowing invisibly and without our knowledge, goes and returns as other winds do, Joh 3:8.

Gill: Job 38:25

Who hath divided a watercourse for the overflowing of waters,.... For a very large shower of rain, as the Vulgate Latin version: for this is not to be understood of an aqueduct, channel, or canal made on earth, either for the draining of waters off of land overflowed thereby, or for the conveyance of it to different parts to overflow it; such as were cut out of the Nile in Egypt, for the overflowing of the land, to make it fruitful; such may be and have been made by men: but of a watercourse in the air or atmosphere, as a canal or channel, for the rain to come down upon the earth; and this is the work of God, and him only, who directs and steers the course of rain, that it falls regularly and gently, not in spouts and floods, but in drops larger or lesser, on what spot of ground, or part of the earth, he pleases: and if what Jarchi says true, that every drop has its course, its canal, through which it passes, it is still more wonderful;

or a way for the lightning of thunder: which generally go together, and are of God. His fire and voice, and for which he makes a way, by which they burst and break forth out of the cloud, and their course is directed by him under the whole heavens; see Job 28:26. So the Gospel, compared to rain and lightning, has its direction and its course steered to what part of the world, he pleases; see Psa 19:4.

Gill: Job 38:26

To cause it to rain on the earth, where no man is; on the wilderness, wherein there is no man. Which is uninhabited by men, being so dry and barren; where there is no man to cultivate and water it, as gardens are; and where is no man to receive any advantage by the rain that comes upon it; and yet the Lord sends it for the use of animals that dwell there; which shows his care and providence with respect even to the wild beasts of the earth. This may be an emblem of the rain of the Gospel upon the Gentile world, comparable to a wilderness; see Isa 35:1.

Gill: Job 38:27

To satisfy the desolate and waste ground,.... Which is exceeding desolate, and therefore two such words are used to express it; which is so dry and thirsty that it is one of the four things that say not it is enough, Pro 30:16; and yet God can and does give it rain to its full satisfaction, Psa 104:13; so the Lord satisfies souls, comparable to dry and thirsty ground, by his word and ordinances, with the goodness and fatness of his house; see Psa 63:1;

and to cause the bud of the tender herb to spring forth? grass for the cattle, and herb for the service of men, Psa 104:14; of like use is the word in a spiritual sense for the budding and increase of the graces of the Spirit in the Lord's people; see Deu 32:2.

Gill: Job 38:28

Hath the rain a father?.... None but God; hence the Heathens themselves call God γετιος ^y, and ομβριος ^z; see Jer 14:22; he that is our Father in heaven is the Father of rain, and him only; whatever secondary causes there be, God only is the efficient cause, parent, and producer of it: so the Gospel is not of men but of God, is a gift of his, comes down from heaven, tarries not for men, and is a great blessing, as rain is;

or who hath begotten the drops of the dew? which are innumerable; he that is the parent of the rain is of the dew also, and he only ^a; to which sometimes not only the word of God, and his free favour and good will, but the people of God themselves are compared for their number, influence, and use; see Psa 110:3; and their new birth is similar to the generation of dew, it being not of the will of man, but of God, according to his abundant mercy, free favour, and good will, is from above, from heaven, and is effected silently, secretly, suddenly, at an unawares; Joh 1:13.

Gill: Job 38:29

Out of whose womb came the ice?.... The parent of the rain and dew is the parent of the ice also, and he only; it is therefore called "his ice", his child, his offspring, Psa 147:17. Here the Lord is represented as a mother, and so he is by Orpheus ^b called "metropator", or "mother-father";

and the hoary frost of heaven, who hath gendered it? this is of God, and by his breath; see Job 37:10.

Gill: Job 38:30

The waters are hid as with a stone,.... The surface of the waters by frost become as hard as a stone, and will bear great burdens, and admit of carriages to pass over them ^c where ships went before; so that the waters under them are hid and quite out of sight: an emblem of the hard heart of man, which can only be thawed by the power and grace of God, by the south wind of the Spirit blowing, and the "sun of righteousness" rising on it;

and the face of the deep is frozen; or bound together by the frost, as the Targum; it is taken, laid hold on, and kept together, as the word signifies, so that it cannot flow. Historians speak of seas being frozen up, as some parts of the Scythian sea, reported by Mela ^d, and the Cimmerian Bosphorus, by Herodotus ^e, and the northern seas by Olaus Magnus ^f; as that men might travel over them on foot or on horseback, from one country to another; and Strabo relates ^g, that where a sea fight has been in the summer time, armies and hosts have met and fought in the winter. In Muscovy the ice is to six and ten feet deep ^h; in the year 401 the Euxine sea ⁱ was frozen over for the space of twenty days; and in the year 763 the seas at Constantinople were frozen one hundred miles from the shore, so thick as to bear the heaviest carriages ^k.

Gill: Job 38:31

Canst thou bind the sweet influences of Pleiades,.... Of which See Gill on Job 9:9; and this constellation of the seven stars which is meant, rising in the spring, the pleasantnesses of the season, as the word may be rendered, may be intended here; which cannot be restrained or hindered from taking place in the proper course of the year; which is beautifully described in Son 2:12; and may in a spiritual sense relate to the effects of powerful and efficacious grace, the influences of which are irresistible, and cause a springtime in the souls of men, where it was before winter, a state of darkness, deadness, coldness, hardness, and unfruitfulness, but now the reverse. Some versions read, "the bands of the Pleiades" ^l, as if the sense was, canst thou gather and bind, or cluster together, such a constellation as the seven stars be, as I have done? thou canst not; and so not stop their rising or hinder their influences, according to the other versions:

or loose the bands of Orion? of which See Gill on Job 9:9 and Amo 5:8. This constellation appears in the winter, and brings with it stormy winds, rain, snow, and frost, which latter binds up the earth, that seeds and roots in it cannot spring up; and binds the hands of men from working, by benumbing them, or rendering their materials or utensils useless; for which reasons bands are ascribed to Orion, and are such strong ones that it is not in the power of men to loose: the seasons are not to be altered by men; and, Job might be taught by this that it was not in his power to make any change in the dispensations of Providence; to turn the winter of adversity into the spring of prosperity; and therefore it was best silently to submit to the sovereignty of God, and wait his time for a change of circumstances.

Gill: Job 38:32

Canst thou bring forth Mazzaroth in his season?.... Which are thought to be the same with "the chambers of the south", Job 9:9; the southern pole ^m with its stars, signified by chambers, because hidden from our sight in this part of the globe; and here by Mazzaroth, from, "nazar", to separate, because separated and at a distance from us; some think ⁿ the twelve signs of the Zodiac are meant, each of which are brought forth in their season, not by men, but by the Lord; see Isa 40:26;

or canst thou guide Arcturus with his sons? a constellation of many stars called its sons, of which see Job 9:9. Schmidt conjectures that Jupiter and his satellites are meant; but rather what we call the greater and lesser Bear, in the tail of which is the north pole star, the guide of mariners, said ^o to be found out by Thales, by which the Phoenicians sailed, but is not to be guided by men; this, constellation is fancied to be in the form of a wain or wagon, and is called Charles's wain; could this be admitted, there might be thought to be an allusion to it ^p, and the sense be, canst thou guide and lead this constellation, as a wagon or team of horses can be guided and led? stars have their courses, Jdg 5:20; but are not steered, guided, and directed by men, but by the Lord himself.

Gill: Job 38:33

Knowest thou the ordinances of heaven?.... Settled by the decree, purpose, and will of God, and are firm and stable; see Psa 148:6; the laws and statutes respecting their situation, motion, operation, influence, and use, which are constantly observed; these are so far from being made by men, and at their direction, that they are not known by them, at least not fully and perfectly;

canst thou set the dominion thereof in the earth? or over it; of the heavens over the earth; not such an one as judicial astrologers ascribe unto them, as to influence the bodies of men, especially the tempers and dispositions of their minds; to affect their wills and moral actions, the events and occurrences of their lives, and the fate of nations and kingdoms; their dominion is not moral and civil, but physical or natural, as to make the revolutions of night and day, and of the several seasons of the year; and to affect and influence the fruits of the earth, &c. see Gen 1:16; but this dominion is solely under God, and at his direction, and is not of men's fixing.

Gill: Job 38:34

Canst thou lift up thy voice to the clouds, that abundance of waters may cover thee? Thy gardens, fields, and farms; canst thou, in a magisterial way, call to and demand of the clouds to let down rain in large quantities, sufficient to water them and make them fruitful? no, thou canst not: thou mayest cry and call as long as thou wilt, not a cloud will stir, nor a drop of water be let down; rain is to be had in a suppliant way, through the prayer of faith, as by Elijah, but not in a dictatorial authoritative way: the clouds and rain are only at the disposal of the Lord; ask of him, and he will give them; but they are not to be commanded, Zec 10:1; see Amo 5:8.

Gill: Job 38:35

Canst thou send lightnings, that they may go, and say unto thee, Here we are? Thy humble servants; we have been where thou didst send us, and have executed what we were bid to do, and are returned, and here we are waiting further orders; see Mat 8:9; no; lightnings are only at the command of God, and there have been some awful instances of it, Lev 10:1; but not in the power of men; indeed we have an extraordinary instance in Elijah, who, at the motion, and under the impulse of the spirit of prophecy in him, called for fire, or lightning, to consume captains with their fifties, and it came down on them, and consumed them, 2Ki 1:10; but he is not to be imitated herein: when the disciples of Christ desired the same upon a provocation, they were severely reproved by him, Luk 9:54; were these at the call and dispose of men, what dreadful things would be done in the world! for if good men, when provoked, would make use of such a power to destroy the lives of men, much more bad men; and our eyes would continually behold the flashes of lighting, and our ears hear the roarings of thunder, and the terrible effects thereof; but neither mercies nor judgments are at the command of men, but of God.

Gill: Job 38:36

Who hath put wisdom in the inward parts?.... That is, of man, in his heart, as explained in the next clause; such wisdom as to guide the stars, know the ordinances of heaven, set their dominion on earth, manage and direct the clouds and lightning; no such wisdom is put in man:

or who hath, given understanding to the heart? to understand all the above things, and answer to the several questions put in this chapter; though, as these clauses may respect much one and the same thing, they may be understood of wisdom and understanding in man, whether natural or spiritual; and seeing they are found there, the question is, who put them there, or how came they there? who gave them to him? the answer must be, God himself, and no other; man has his rational soul, his intellectual powers, the light of nature and reason in him; all his understanding in arts and sciences, trades and manufactures, is of the Lord, and not of himself or another, see Job 32:8; all spiritual wisdom and understanding which lies in a man's concern for his eternal welfare in the knowledge of himself, and of his state and condition by nature, and of the way of life and salvation by Christ, and of the truths and doctrines of the Gospel, is all of God and Christ, and by the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him; no man, therefore, has any reason to glory in his wisdom and knowledge, of whatsoever kind, as though he had not received it; nor should he dare to arraign the wisdom of God in his providential dealings with men; since he that teaches man knowledge must needs know better than man how to govern the world he has made, and dispose of all things in it. The last clause is in the Vulgate Latin rendered, "who hath given to the cock understanding?" and so the Targums and other Jewish writers ^p interpret it; and they observe ^q, that in Arabia a cock is called by the word that is here used; and in their morning prayers, and at hearing a cock crow ^r,

"Blessed be the Lord, who giveth to the cock understanding to distinguish between the day and the night:''

but however remarkable the understanding of this creature is, which God has given it, and which is even taken notice of by Heathen writers ^s; that it should know the stars, distinguish the hours of the night by crowing, and express its joy at the rising of the sun and moon; yet such a sense of the text seems impertinent, as well as that of the Septuagint version, of giving to women the wisdom and knowledge of weaving and embroidery.

Gill: Job 38:37

Who can number the clouds in wisdom?.... Or has such wisdom as to be able to count them when the heavens are full of them; hence they are used to denote a great multitude, Isa 55:8; or "declare" them ^t, set forth and explain the nature of them, their matter, motion, and use; none can do this perfectly or completely. Aben Ezra interprets it, who can make them as sapphire? in which he is followed by Mr. Broughton and others ^u; the sapphire is a precious stone, very clear and lucid, of a sky colour. And then the sense is, who can make a clear and serene sky, when it is cloudy? None but the Lord; see Job 37:11;

or who can stay the bottles of heaven? or "barrels", as Mr. Broughton; the clouds in which the rain is bottled or barrelled up; and when it is the pleasure of God to pour them out, who can stay, stop, or restrain them? or who can "cause them to lie down" ^w? that is, on the earth; to descend or "distil" on it, as the same translator. Who can do this, when it is the will of God to withhold them? To stop or unstop, those bottles, to restrain rain, or pour it forth, is entirely at his dispose, and not man's; see Job 38:34.

Gill: Job 38:38

When the dust groweth into hardness, and the clods cleave fast together? When the dust is attenuated, and ground, as it were, into powder; and the clods cleave together, as if glued, as in a drought for want of rain: or the bottles of heaven being unstopped and poured out; or

"sprinkling the dust with this sprinkling,''

as Mr. Broughton. Or rather, pouring on the dust with pouring; that is, pouring down rain, by unstopping the bottles of heaven. The dust, as meal, by water poured into it, cements, unites, and is compacted, and becomes earth, that may be cultivated; is clodded and cleaves together, and may be ploughed and sown.

Gill: Job 38:39

Wilt thou hunt the prey for the lion?.... From meteors the Lord passes to animals, beasts, and birds, wherefore some here begin the thirty ninth chapter, which only treats of such; and he begins with the lion, the strongest among beasts, and most fierce; cruel, and voracious; and asks, who hunts his prey for him? Not man, who cannot; and if he could, durst not: but the Lord does; and, according to some writers ^x, he has provided a small creature, between a fox and a wolf, called a jackal; which goes before the lion, and hunts the prey for him. And could this be understood particularly of the old lion, as Cocceius and others, naturalists ^y observe, that young lions hunt for the old ones, when they are not able to go in search of prey; and when they have got it, either bring it to them, or call them to partake of it with them;

or fill the appetite of the young lions, whose appetite is sharp and keen, and requires a great deal to fill it, and especially to satisfy a great many of them; herds of them, as Mr. Broughton renders the word, and which signifies a company; see Psa 68:30. Men cannot feed them, but God can and does; there being some ends in Providence to be answered thereby, see Psa 104:21; see also Psa 34:8.

Gill: Job 38:40

When they couch in their dens, and abide in the covert to lie in wait? Which some understand of old lions, who, for want of strength, lie couchant in their dens, or in some covert place, waiting for any prey that passes by, to seize upon it. But the same pasture and places are used by younger lions, as well as old ones; who are emblems of wicked men, cruel persecutors, and bloodthirsty tyrants, who fill their palaces and kingdoms with murder and rapine; see Psa 10:8, Nah 2:11.

Gill: Job 38:41

Who provideth for the raven his food?.... Not man, but God; he feeds the ravens, creatures very voracious, mean, and useless, Luk 12:24;

when his young ones cry unto God; cry for want of food; which is interpreted by the Lord as a cry unto him, and he relieves them, Psa 147:9; when deserted by the old ones; either left in their nests through forgetfulness, as some ^z; or because they are not, till fledged, black like them, as others ^a; when God feeds them, as some say ^b, with a kind of dew from heaven, or with flies that fly about them, and fall into their mouths; or with worms bred out of their dung but these things are not to be depended on; it may rather respect them when cast out of the nest by the old ones, when able to fly, which is testified by naturalists ^c; and with this agrees what follows:

they wander for lack of meat; being obliged to shift for themselves, when God takes care of them; which is an instance of his providential goodness; and how this is to be improved, see Mat 6:26.

Gill: Job 39:1

Knowest thou the time when the wild goats of the rock bring forth?.... Which creatures are so called, because they dwell among the rocks ^d and run upon them; and though their heads are loaded with a vast burden of horns upon them, yet can so poise themselves, as with the greatest swiftness, to leap from mountain to mountain, as Pliny says ^e: and if they bring forth their young in the rocks, as Olympiodorus asserts, and which is not improbable, it is not to be wondered, that the time of their bringing forth should not be known by men, to whom the rocks they run upon are inaccessible;

or canst thou mark the time when the hinds do calve? that is, precisely and exactly, and so as to direct, order, and manage, and bring it about, as the Lord does: and it is wonderful that they should calve, and not cast their young before their time, when they are continually in flight and fright, through men or wild beasts, and are almost always running and leaping about; and often scared with thunder, which hastens birth, Psa 29:9; otherwise the time of their bringing forth in general is known by men, as will be observed in Job 39:2.

Gill: Job 39:2

Canst thou number the months that they fulfil?.... Which some understand both of wild goats and hinds. Common goats fulfil five months, they conceive in November, and bring forth in March, as Pliny ^f observes; but how many the wild goats of the rock fulfil is not said by him or any other I know of: the same writer says ^g of hinds, that they go eight months;

or knowest thou the time when they bring forth? naturalists ^h tell us, that the hinds conceive after the rise of the star Arcturus, which rises eleven days before the autumnal equinox; so that they conceive in September; and as they go eight months, they bring forth in April; but then the exact time to a day and hour is not known. Besides, who has fixed the time for their bringing forth, and carries them in it through so many dangers and difficulties? None but the Lord himself. Now if such common things in nature were not known perfectly by Job, how should he be able to search into and find out the causes and reasons of God's providential dealings with men, or what is in the womb of Providence?

Gill: Job 39:3

They bow themselves,.... That they may bring forth their young with greater ease and more safety: for it seems the hinds bring forth their young with great difficulty; and there are provisions in nature made to lessen it; as thunder, before observed, which causes them to bring forth the sooner; and there is an herb called "seselis", which it is said ⁱ they feed upon before birth, to make it the easier; as well as they use that, and another called "aros", after the birth, to ease them of their later pains;

they bring forth their young ones; renting and cleaving asunder the membrane, as the word signifies, in which their young is wrapped;

they cast out their sorrows; either their young, which they bring forth in pains and which then cease; or the secundines, or afterbirth, in which the young is wrapped, and which the philosopher says ^k they eat, and is supposed to be medical to them. None but a woman seems to bring forth with more pain than this creature; and a wife is compared to it, Pro 5:19.

Gill: Job 39:4

Their young ones are in good liking,.... Plump, fat, and sleek, as fawns are:

they grow up with corn; by which they grow, or without in the field, as the word also signifies; and their growth and increase is very quick, as Aristotle observes ^l;

they go forth, and return not unto them: they go forth into the fields, and shift and provide for themselves, and trouble their dams no more; and return not to them, nor are they known by them.

Gill: Job 39:5

Who hath sent out the wild ass free?.... Into the wide waste, where it is, ranges at pleasure, and is not under the restraint of any; a creature which, as it is naturally wild, is naturally averse to servitude, is desirous of liberty and maintains it: not but that it may be tamed, as Pliny ^m speaks of such as are; but it chooses to be free, and, agreeably to its nature, it is sent out into the wilderness as such: not that it is set free from bondage, for in that it never was until it is tamed; but its nature and inclination, and course it pursues, is to be free. And now the question is, who gave this creature such a nature, and desire after liberty? and such power to maintain it? and directs it to take such methods to secure it, and keep clear of bondage? It is of God;

or who hath loosed the bands of the wild ass? not that it has any naturally upon it, and is loosed from them; but because it is as clear of them as such creatures are, which have been in bands and are freed from them: therefore this mode of expression is used, and which signifies the same as before.

Gill: Job 39:6

Whose house I have made the wilderness,.... Appointed that to be his place of residence, as being agreeable to his nature, at a distance from men, and in the less danger of being brought into subjection by them. Such were the deserts of Arabia; where, as Xenophon ⁿ relates, were many of these creatures, and which he represents as very swift: and Leo Africanus ^o says, great numbers of them are found in deserts, and on the borders of deserts; hence said to be used to the wilderness Jer 2:24;

and the barren land his dwellings; not entirely barren, for then it could not live there; but comparatively, with respect to land that is fruitful: or "salt land" ^p; for, as Pliny ^q says, every place where salt is, is barren.

Gill: Job 39:7

He scorneth the multitude of the city,.... Choosing rather to be alone in the wilderness and free than to be among a multitude of men in a city, and be a slave as the tame ass; or it despises and defies a multitude of men, that may come out of cities to take it, Leo Africanus says ^r it yields to none for swiftness but Barbary horses: according to Xenophon ^s, it exceeds the horse in swiftness; and when pursued by horsemen, it will outrun them, and stand still and rest till they come near it, and then start again; so that there is no taking it, unless many are employed. Aristotle ^t says it excels in swiftness; and, according to Bochart ^u, it has its name in Hebrew from the Chaldee word פדא, "to run". Or it may be rendered, "the noise of the city", so Cocceius; the stir and bustle in it, through a multiplicity of men in business;

neither regardeth he the crying of the driver; or "hears" ^w: he neither feels his blows, nor hears his words; urging him to move faster and make quicker dispatch, as the tame ass does; he being neither ridden nor driven, nor drawing in a cart or plough.

Gill: Job 39:8

The range of the mountains is his pasture,.... It ranges about the mountains for food; it looks about for it, as the word signifies, and tries first one place and then another to get some, it having short commons there;

and he searcheth after every green thing; herb or plant, be it what it will that is green, it seeks after; and which being scarce in deserts and mountains, it searches about for and feeds upon it, wherever it can find it; grass being the peculiar food of these creatures, see Job 6:5; and which is observed by naturalists ^x.

Gill: Job 39:9

Will the unicorn be willing to serve thee,.... Whether there is or ever was such a creature, as described under the name of an unicorn, is a question: it is thought the accounts of it are for the most part fabulous; though Vartomannus ^y says he saw two at Mecca, which came from Ethiopia, the largest of which had a horn in his forehead three cubits long. There are indeed several creatures which may be called "monocerots", who have but one horn; as the "rhinoceros", and the Indian horses and asses ^z. The Arabic geographer ^a speaks of a beast in the Indies, called "carcaddan", which is lesser than an elephant and bigger than a buffalo; having in the middle of the forehead an horn long and thick, as much as two hands can grasp: and not only on land, but in the sea are such, as the "nahr whal", or Greenland whale ^b; but then they do not answer to the creature so called in Scripture: and, besides, this must be a creature well known to Job, as it was to the Israelites; and must be a strong creature, from the account that gives of it, and not to be taken as here. And Solinus ^c speaks of such "monocerots" or unicorns, which may be killed, but cannot be taken, and were never known to be in any man's possession alive; and so Aelianus ^d says of the like creature, that it never was remembered that anyone of them had been taken. Some think the "rhinoceros" is meant; but that, though a very strong creature, and so may be thought fit for the uses after mentioned, yet may be tamed; whereas the creature here is represented as untamable, and not to be subdued, and brought under a yoke and managed; and besides, it is not very probable that it was known by Job. Bochart ^e takes it to be the "oryx", a creature of the goat kind; but to me it seems more likely to be of the ox kind, to be similar to them, and so might be thought to do the business of one; and the rather, because of its great strength, and yet could not be brought to do it, nor be trusted with it: for the questions concerning it relate to the work of oxen; and as the wild ass is opposed to the tame one in the preceding paragraph, so here the wild ox to a tame one. And both Strabo ^f and Diodorus Siculus ^g relate, that among the Troglodytes, a people that dwelt near the Red sea, and not far from Arabia, where Job lived, were abundance of wild oxen or bulls, and which far exceeded the common ones in size and swiftness; and the creature called the seem in the original, has its name from height. Now the question is, could Job take one of these wild bulls or oxen, and tame it, and make it willing to do any work or service he should choose to put it to? No, he could not;

or abide by thy crib? manger or stall, as the tame or common ox will; who, when it has done its labour, is glad to be led to its stall and feed, and then lie down and rest, and there abide; see Isa 1:3; but not so the wild ox.

Gill: Job 39:10

Canst thou bind the unicorn with his band in the furrow?.... Put the yoke and harness upon him, and fasten it to the plough to draw it, that he may make furrows with it in the field, or plough up the ground as the tame ox does? thou canst not;

or will he harrow the valleys after thee? draw the harrow which is used after ploughing to break the clods, and make the land smooth and even? he will not: valleys are particularly mentioned, because arable land is usually in them; see Psa 65:13.

Gill: Job 39:11

Wilt thou trust him, because his strength is great?.... No; tame oxen are employed because they are strong to labour, Psa 144:14; and they are to be trusted, in ploughing or treading out the corn, under direction, because they are manageable, and will attend to business with constancy; but the wild ox, though stronger, and so fitter for labour, is yet not to be trusted, because unruly and unmanageable: if that sort of wild oxen called "uri" could be thought to be meant, for which Bootius ^h contends, Caesar's account of them would agree with this character of the "reem", as to his great strength: he says of them ⁱ, they are in size a little smaller than elephants, of the kind, colour, and shape of a bull; they are of great strength and of great swiftness, and not to be tamed;

or wilt thou leave thy labour to him? to plough thy fields, to harrow thy lands, and to bring home the ripe corn? as in Job 39:12; thou wilt not.

Gill: Job 39:12

Wilt thou believe him that he will bring home thy seed?.... Draw in the cart, and bring home the ripe sheaves of corn, as the tame ox does? no; thou knowest him too well to believe he will bring it home in safety;

and gather it into thy barn; to be trodden out, which used to be done by oxen in those times: if therefore Job could not manage such unruly creatures as the wild ass and the wild ox, and make them serviceable to him, how unfit must he be to govern the world, or to direct in the affairs of Providence?

Gill: Job 39:13

Gavest thou the goodly wings unto the peacocks?.... Rather "ostriches", as the Vulgate Latin and Tigurine versions render it; some render it, "the wing of those that exult is joyful", so Montanus; that is, of the ostriches; who, in confidence of their wings, exult and glory over the horse and his rider, Job 39:18; for peacocks are not remarkable for their wings, but for their tails; whereas the wings of the ostrich are as sails unto them, as several writers observe ^k; and with which they rather run, or row, than fly: hence it is called by Plautus ^l "passer marinus", the sea sparrow: and the feathers of it are more goodly than those of the wings of the peacock; and besides, it is a question whether the peacock was where Job lived, and in his times; since it is originally from the Indies, and from thence it was brought to Judea in the times of Solomon; and was not known in Greece and Rome ^m until later ages. Alexander the Great, when he first saw them in India, was surprised at them; and yet Solon ⁿ speaks of them in his time as seen by him, which was at least two hundred years before Alexander; though at Rome not common in the times of Horace ^o, who calls a peacock "rara avis"; and speaks of them as sold for a great price; but ostriches were well known in Arabia, where Job lived, as is testified by Xenophon ^p, Strabo ^q, and Diodorus Siculus ^r. Moreover, what is said in the following verses is only true of the ostrich, and that only is spoken of here and there, as it follows;

or wings and feathers unto the ostrich; or whose wings and feathers are like the storks; and so Bochart renders the words, truly they have "the wing and feather of the stork"; the colours of which are black and white, from whence it has its name πελαγρος ^s in Greek; and so Leo Africanus ^t says of the ostriches, that they have in their wings large feathers of a black and white colour; and this was a creature well known in Arabia ^u, in which Job lived.

Gill: Job 39:14

Which leaveth her eggs in the earth,.... Lays them and leaves them there. Aelianus, agreeably to this, says ^w, that it builds a low nest in the ground, making a hollow in the sand with its feet; though he seems to be mistaken as to the number of its eggs, which he makes to be more than eighty; more truly Leo Africanus ^x, who reckons them ten or twelve; which, he says, it lays in the sand, and each of them are of the size of a cannon ball, and weigh fifteen pounds, more or less. Hence, with the Arabs, it is called

"the mother of eggs,''

because of the large eggs it lays; and with them it is a proverb,

"meaner, or of a lesser account, than the eggs of an ostrich,''

because its eggs are neglected by it ^y;

and warmeth them in the dust; not that she leaves them to be warmed by the hot sand, or by the heat of the sun upon them, by which they are hatched, as has been commonly said, for thereby they would rather be corrupted and become rotten; but she herself warms them and hatches them, by sitting upon them in the dust and sand: and for this the above historian is express, who says ^z, the female lighting on these eggs, whether her own or another's, sits on them and heats them. Concerning the ostrich hatching its eggs, Vansleb ^a, from an Arabic manuscript, relates what is incredible, that they are hatched by the male and female with their eye only; that one or other of them keep continually looking at them until they are all hatched; and this I observe is asserted also by another writer ^b.

Gill: Job 39:15

And forgetteth that the foot may crush them,.... The foot of the traveller, they being laid in the ground, where he may walk, or on the sand of the seashore, where he may tread and trample upon them unawares, and crush them to pieces; to prevent which this creature has no foresight;

or that the wild beast may break them; supposing they may be, though not where men walk, yet where wild beasts frequent, they may be as easily broken by the one as the other; against which it guards not, having no instinct in nature, as some creatures have, to direct to the preservation of them.

Gill: Job 39:16

She is hardened against her young ones, as though they were not hers,.... Hence said to be cruel, Lam 4:3; not against the young ones she hatches, for Aelianus ^c reports her as very tender of her young, and exposing herself to danger for the preservation of them; but being a very forgetful creature, having laid its eggs in the sand, where it leaves them, forgets where it has laid them; and finding other eggs sits on them and hatches them, and regards the young as its own, and is hardened against its true and real young, as not belonging to her;

her labour is in vain without fear; in laying her eggs and leaving them in the dust, without fear of their being crushed and broken, which yet they are, and so her labour is in vain; or her labour in hatching the eggs of others, without any fear or care of their belonging to others, which yet they do, and so she labours in vain.

Gill: Job 39:17

Because God hath deprived her of wisdom,.... Or "made her to forget" ^d what she had; an instance of her forgetfulness is mentioned Job 39:15; and so Leo Africanus ^e says of it, that it is of a very short memory, and presently forgets the place where its eggs are laid;

neither hath he imparted to her understanding; many instances are given of its stupidity by historians, as that it will take anything that is offered to it to eat, stones, iron, &c. ^f; that it will thrust its head and neck into a thicket, fancying: it is hid and covered, and that none can see it; which Pliny ^g remarks as an instance of its foolishness; though Diodorus Siculus ^h takes this to be a point of prudence, for the preservation of those parts of it which are weakest. Strabo gives ⁱ another instance of its stupidity, its being so easily deceived by sportsmen, who, by putting the skin of an ostrich on their hands, and reaching out fruits or seeds to it, it will receive them of them, and be taken. Others observe the smallness of their heads, and so of their brains, as an argument of their want of understanding; and it has been remarked, as a proof of their having but few brains, that Heliogabalus, the Roman emperor, had six hundred heads of ostriches dressed at once for his supper, for the sake of their brains ^k.

Gill: Job 39:18

What time she lifted up herself on high,.... It is sometimes eight foot high ^l; when alarmed with approaching danger she raises up herself, being sitting on the ground, and erects her wings for flight, or rather running;

she scorneth the horse and his rider; being then, as Pliny ^m says, higher than a man on horseback, and superior to a horse in swiftness; and though horsemen have been able to take wild asses and goats, very swift creatures, yet never ostriches, as Xenophon relates ⁿ of those in Arabia; and this creature has another method, when pursued, by which it defies and despises, as well as hurts and incommodes its pursuers, which is by casting stones backward at them with its feet as out of a sling ^o.

Gill: Job 39:19

Hast thou given the horse strength?.... Not only to bear burdens and draw carriages, but for war; for it is the war horse that is here spoken of, as what follows shows, and his strength denotes; not strength of body only, but fortitude and courage; for which, as well as the other, the horse is eminent, and both are the gift of God, and not of men;

hast thou clothed his neck with thunder? or with strength, as the Targum; the horse having particularly great strength in its neck, as well as in other parts; or with strength of voice, as Ben Gersom explains it; and it has been generally understood of the neighing of horses, which comes through and out of their neck, and makes a vehement sound: some render it, "with a mane" ^p; and could it be made to appear that the word is so used in any other place, or in any other writings, or in any of the dialects, it would afford a very good sense, since a fine large mane to a horse is a great ornament and recommendation: the Septuagint render it by "fear", and Jarchi interprets it of "terror"; and refers to the sense of, he word in Eze 27:35; and it may signify such a tremor as thunder makes, from whence that has its name; and it may be observed that between the neck and shoulder bone of an horse there is a tremulous and quavering motion; and which is more vehement in battle, not from any fearfulness of it, but rather through eagerness to engage in it; and therefore Schultens translates the words, "hast thou clothed his neck with a cheerful tremor?"

Gill: Job 39:20

Canst thou make him afraid as a grasshopper?.... Which is frightened at every noise, and at any approach of men; but not so the horse; or canst thou move him, or cause him to skip and jump, or rather leap like a grasshopper? that is, hast thou given, or canst thou give him the faculty of leaping over hedges and ditches, for which the horse is famous? so Neptune's war horses are said ^q to be ευσκαρθμοι, good leapers;

the glory of his nostrils is terrible: which may be understood of his sneezing, snorting, pawing, and neighing, when his nostrils are broad, spread, and enlarged; and especially when enraged and in battle, when he foams and fumes, and his breath comes out of his nostrils like smoke ^r, and is very terrible.

Gill: Job 39:21

He paweth in the valley,.... Where armies are usually pitched and set in battle army, and especially the cavalry, for which the valley is most convenient; and here the horse is impatient of engaging, cannot stand still, but rises up with his fore feet and paws and prances, and, as the word signifies, digs the earth and makes it hollow, by a continual striking upon it; so generally horses are commonly described in this manner ^s;

and rejoiceth in his strength; of which he is sensible, and glories in it; marches to the battle with pride and stateliness, defying, as it were, the enemy, and as if sure of victory, of which he has knowledge when obtained; for Lactantius says ^t of horses, when conquerors they exult, when conquered they grieve; it has its name in the Hebrew language from rejoicing ^u;

he goeth on to meet the armed men; without any fear or dread of them, as follows.

Gill: Job 39:22

He mocketh at fear, and is not affrighted,.... At those things which cause fear and fright to men; as arms, though ever so terrible, and armies, though never so numerous;

neither turneth he back from the sword; the naked sword, when it is drawn against him, and ready to be thrust into him; the horse being so bold and courageous was with the Egyptians a symbol of courage and boldness ^v.

Gill: Job 39:23

The quiver rattleth against him,.... The quiver is what arrows are put into and carried in, and seems here to be put for arrows, which being shot by the enemy come whizzing about him, but do not intimidate him; unless this is to be understood of arrows rattling in the quiver when carried by the rider "upon him", so some render the last word; and thus Homer ^w and Virgil ^x speak of the rattling quiver and sounding arrows in it, as carried on the back or shoulder; but the first sense seems best, in which another poet uses it ^y;

the glittering spear and the shield; the lance or javelin, as Mr. Broughton renders it, and others; that is, he does not turn back from these, nor is he frightened at them when they are pointed to him or flung at him; so Aelianus ^z speaks of the Persians training their horses and getting them used to noises, that in battle they might not be frightened at the clashing of arms, of swords and shields against each other; in like manner as our war horses are trained, not to start at the firing of a gun, or the explosion of a cannon.

Gill: Job 39:24

He swalloweth the ground with fierceness and rage,.... Being so eager for the battle, and so full of fierceness and rage, he bounds the plain with such swiftness that he seems rather to swallow up the ground than to run upon it;

neither believeth he that it is the sound of the trumpet; for joy at hearing it; or he will not trust to his ears, but will see with his eyes whether the battle is ready, and therefore pushes forward. Mr. Broughton and others read it, "he will not stand still at the noise of the trumpet"; and the word signifies firm and stable, as well as to believe; when he hears the trumpet sound, the alarm of war, as a preparation for the battle, he knows not how to ^a stand; there is scarce any holding him in, but he rushes into the battle at once, Jer 8:6.

Gill: Job 39:25

He saith among the trumpets, ha, ha,.... As pleased with the sound of them, rejoicing thereat, and which he signifies by neighing;

and he smelleth the battle afar off; which respects not so much the distance of place as of time; he perceives beforehand that it is near, by the preparations making for it, and particularly by what follows; so Pliny ^b says of horses, they presage a fight. The thunder of the captains, and the shouting; they understand an engagement is just about to start by the loud and thundering voice of the captains, exhorting and spiralling up their men, and giving them the word of command; and by the clamorous shout of the soldiers echoing to the speech of their captains; and which are given forth upon an onset, both to animate one another, and intimidate the enemy. Bootius ^c observes, that Virgil ^d and Oppianus ^e say most of the same things in praise of the horse which are here said, and seem to have taken them from hence; and some ^f give the horse the preference to the lion, which, when it departs from a fight, never returns, whereas the horse will. This is an emblem both of good men, Zec 10:3; and of bad men, Jer 8:6.

Gill: Job 39:26

Doth the hawk fly by thy wisdom,.... With so much swiftness, steadiness, and constancy, until she has seized her prey. The Vulgate Latin version and some others read, "does she become feathered", or "begin to have feathers?" and so Bochart: either when first fledged; or when, as it is said ^d she casts her old feathers and gets new ones, and this every year. Now neither her flight nor her feathers, whether at one time or the other, are owing to men, but to the Lord, who gives both;

and stretch her wings towards the south? Being a bird of passage, she moves from colder climates towards the winter, and steers her course to the south towards warmer ones ^e; which she does by an instinct in nature, put into her by the Lord, and not through the instruction of man. Or, as some say, casting off her old feathers, she flies towards the south for warmth; and that her feathers may be cherished with the heat, and grow the sooner and better. Hence it is, perhaps, as Aelianus reports ^f, that this bird was by the Egyptians consecrated to Apollo or the sun; it being able to look upon the rays of it wistly, constantly, and easily, without being hurt thereby. Porphyry ^g says, that this bird is not only acceptable to the sun; but has divinity in it, according to the Egyptians; and is no other than Osiris, or the sun represented by the image of it ^h. Strabo ⁱ speaks of a city of the hawks, where this creature is worshipped. It has its name in Greek from the sacredness of it; and according to Hesiod ^k, is very swift, and has large wings. It is called ωκυπτερος, swift in flying, by Manetho ^l; and by Homer, ωκιστος πετεηνων, the swiftest of fowls ^m. It has its name from נצה, to "fly", as Kimchi observes ⁿ. Cyril of Jerusalem, on the authority of the Greek version, affirms ^o, that by a divine instinct or order, the hawk, stretching out its wings, stands in the midst of the air unmoved, looking towards the south. All accounts show it to be a bird that loves warmth, which is the reason of the expression in the text.

Gill: Job 39:27

Doth the eagle mount up at thy command,.... No; but by an instinct which God has placed in it, and a capacity he has given it above all other birds. They take a circuit in their flight, and bend about before they soar aloft: but the eagle steers its course directly upwards towards heaven, till out of sight; and, as Apuleius says ^p, up to the clouds, where it rains and snows, and beyond which there is no place for thunder and lightning;

and make her nest on high? so the philosopher says ^q; eagles make their nests not in plains, but in high places, especially in cragged rocks, as in Job 39:28.

Gill: Job 39:28

She dwelleth and abideth on the rock, upon the crag of the rock, and the strong place. Where she and her young are safe: so Pliny ^r says, eagles make their nests in rocks, even in the precipices of them, as the philosopher quoted in the preceding verse; and here on the tooth, edge, or precipice of the rock, which is inaccessible, and so like a strong fortified place.

Gill: Job 39:29

From thence she seeketh the prey,.... From the high rock; from whence she can look down into valleys, and even into the sea; and spy what is for her purpose, and descend and seize upon them; as lambs, fawns, geese, shellfish, &c. though they may lie in the most hidden and secret places. Wherefore in the original text it is, "she diggeth the prey or food" ^s; as treasure hid in secret is dug or diligently searched for; and for which she is qualified by the sharpness of her sight, as follows:

and her eyes behold afar off; from the high rocks and higher clouds, even from the high sky, as Aelianus ^t expresses it; and who observes that she is the most sharp sighted of all birds; and so, Homer ^u says, some affirm.

Gill: Job 39:30

Her young ones also suck up blood,.... As well as herself, being brought up to it by her. The eagle cares not for water, but drinks the blood of her prey; and so her young ones after her, as naturalists report ^w. And Aelianus says ^x the same of the hawk, that it eats no seeds, but devours flesh and drinks blood, and nourishes her young ones with the same.

And where the slain are, there is she; where there has been a battle, and carcasses left on the field, the eagles will gather to them. This is particularly true of that kind of eagles called vulture eagles, as Aristotle ^y and Pliny ^z observe; see Mat 24:28. Now since Job was so ignorant of the nature of these creatures, and incapable of governing and directing them; and what they had of any excellency were of God, and not of him, nor of any man; how unfit must he be to dispute with God, and contend with him about his works of providence? which to convince him of was the design of this discourse about the creatures; and which had its intended effect, as appears in the next chapter.

Commentary -- Verse Notes / Footnotes

NET Notes: Job 38:4

¹ tn The construction is the infinitive construct in a temporal clause, using the preposition and the subjective genitive suffix.

² tn The verb is the imperative; it has no object “me” in the text.

NET Notes: Job 38:5

¹ tn The particle כּ (ki) is taken here for a conditional clause, “if you know” (see GKC 498 §159.dd). Others take it as “surely” with a biting irony.

NET Notes: Job 38:6

¹ tn For the interrogative serving as a genitive, see GKC 442 §136.b.

² sn The world was conceived of as having bases and pillars, but these poetic descriptions should not be pressed too far (e.g., see Ps 24:2, which may be worded as much for its polemics against Canaanite mythology as anything).

NET Notes: Job 38:7

¹ sn The expression “morning stars” (Heb “stars of the morning”) is here placed in parallelism to the angels, “the sons of God.” It may refer to the angels under the imagery of the stars, or, as some prefer, it may poetically include all creation. There is a parallel also with the foundation of the temple which was accompanied by song (see Ezra 3:10,11). But then the account of the building of the original tabernacle was designed to mirror creation (see M. Fishbane, Biblical Text and Texture).

² tn The construction, an adverbial clause of time, uses רָנָן (ranan), which is often a ringing cry, an exultation. The parallelism with “shout for joy” shows this to be enthusiastic acclamation. The infinitive is then continued in the next colon with the vav (ו) consecutive preterite.

³ tn Heb “together.” This is Dhorme’s suggestion for expressing how they sang together.

⁴ tn See Job 1:6.

NET Notes: Job 38:8

¹ tn The MT has “and he shut up.” The Vulgate has “Who?” and so many commentaries and editions adopt this reading, if not from the Vulgate, then from the sense of the sequence in the text itself.

² tn The line uses two expressions, first the temporal clause with גִּיחַ (giakh, “when it burst forth”) and then the finite verb יֵצֵא (yetse’, “go out”) to mark the concomitance of the two actions.

NET Notes: Job 38:9

¹ tn The temporal clause here uses the infinitive from שִׂים (sim, “to place; to put; to make”). It underscores the sovereign placing of things.

² tn This noun is found only here. The verb is in Ezek 16:4, and a related noun is in Ezek 30:21.

NET Notes: Job 38:10

¹ tc The MT has “and I broke,” which cannot mean “set, prescribed” or the like. The LXX and the Vulgate have such a meaning, suggesting a verb עֲשִׁית (’ashiyt, “plan, prescribe”). A. Guillaume finds an Arabic word with a meaning “measured it by span by my decree.” Would God give himself a decree? R. Gordis simply argues that the basic meaning “break” develops the connotation of “decide, determine” (2 Sam 5:24; Job 14:3; Dan 11:36).

² tn Dhorme suggested reversing the two verbs, making this the first, and then “shatter” for the second colon.

NET Notes: Job 38:11

¹ tn The imperfect verb receives the permission nuance here.

² tn The text has תֹסִיף (tosif, “and you may not add”), which is often used idiomatically (as in verbal hendiadys constructions).

³ tn The MT literally says, “here he will put on the pride of your waves.” The verb has no expressed subject and so is made a passive voice. But there has to be some object for the verb “put,” such as “limit” or “boundary”; the translations “confined; halted; stopped” all serve to paraphrase such an idea. The LXX has “broken” at this point, suggesting the verse might have been confused – but “breaking the pride” of the waves would mean controlling them. Some commentators have followed this, exchanging the verb in v. 11 with this one.

NET Notes: Job 38:12

¹ tn The Hebrew idiom is “have you from your days?” It means “never in your life” (see 1 Sam 25:28; 1 Kgs 1:6).

² tn The verb is the Piel of יָדַע (yada’, “to know”) with a double accusative.

NET Notes: Job 38:13

¹ sn The poetic image is that darkness or night is like a blanket that covers the earth, and at dawn it is taken by the edges and shaken out. Since the wicked function under the cover of night, they are included in the shaking when the dawn comes up.

NET Notes: Job 38:14

¹ sn The verse needs to be understood in the context: as the light shines in the dawn, the features of the earth take on a recognizable shape or form. The language is phenomenological.

² tn Heb “they”; the referent (the objects or features on the earth) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

³ tc The MT reads “they stand up like a garment” (NASB, NIV) or “its features stand out like a garment” (ESV). The reference could be either to embroidered decoration on a garment or to the folds of a garment (REB: “until all things stand out like the folds of a cloak”; cf. J. E. Hartley, Job [NICOT], 497, “the early light of day makes the earth appear as a beautiful garment, exquisite in design and glorious in color”). Since this is thought to be an odd statement, some suggest with Ehrlich that the text be changed to תִּצָּבַּע (titsabba’, “is dyed [like a garment]”). This reference would be to the colors appearing on the earth’s surface under daylight. The present translation follows the emendation.

NET Notes: Job 38:15

¹ tn Heb “the raised arm.” The words “in violence” are not in the Hebrew text, but are supplied in the translation to clarify the metaphor.

² sn What is active at night, the violence symbolized by the raised arm, is broken with the dawn. G. R. Driver thought the whole verse referred to stars, and that the arm is the navigator’s term for the line of stars (“Two astronomical passages in the Old Testament,” JTS 4 [1953]: 208-12).

NET Notes: Job 38:16

¹ tn Heb “the springs of the sea.” The words “that fill” are supplied in the translation to clarify the meaning of the phrase.

NET Notes: Job 38:17

¹ tn Heb “uncovered to you.”

² tn Some still retain the traditional phrase “shadow of death” in the English translation (cf. NIV). The reference is to the entrance to Sheol (see Job 10:21).

NET Notes: Job 38:19

¹ tn The interrogative with דֶרֶךְ (derekh) means “in what road” or “in what direction.”

NET Notes: Job 38:20

¹ tn The suffixes are singular (“that you may take it to its border…to its home”), referring to either the light or the darkness. Because either is referred to, the translation has employed plurals, since singulars would imply that only the second item, “darkness,” was the referent. Plurals are also employed by NAB and NIV.

NET Notes: Job 38:21

¹ tn The imperfect verb after the adverb אָז (’az, “then”) functions as a preterite: “you were born.” The line is sarcastic.

NET Notes: Job 38:22

¹ sn Snow and ice are thought of as being in store, brought out by God for specific purposes, such as times of battle (see Josh 10:11; Exod 9:2ff.; Isa 28:17; Isa 30:30; and Ps 18:12 [13]).

² tn The same Hebrew term (אוֹצָר, ’otsar), has been translated “storehouse” in the first line and “armory” in the second. This has been done for stylistic variation, but also because “hail,” as one of God’s “weapons” (cf. the following verse) suggests military imagery; in this context the word refers to God’s “ammunition dump” where he stockpiles hail.

NET Notes: Job 38:23

¹ sn The terms translated war and battle are different Hebrew words, but both may be translated “war” or “battle” depending on the context.

NET Notes: Job 38:24

¹ tn Because the parallel with “light” and “east wind” is not tight, Hoffmann proposed ‘ed instead, “mist.” This has been adopted by many. G. R. Driver suggests “parching heat” (“Problems in the Hebrew text of Job,” VTSup 3 [1955]: 91-92).

NET Notes: Job 38:26

¹ tn Heb “on a land, no man.”

² tn Heb “a desert, no man in it.”

NET Notes: Job 38:27

¹ tn Heb “to cause to sprout a source of vegetation.” The word מֹצָא (motsa’) is rendered “mine” in Job 28:1. The suggestion with the least changes is Wright’s: צָמֵא (tsame’, “thirsty”). But others choose מִצִּיָּה (mitsiyyah, “from the steppe”).

NET Notes: Job 38:29

¹ tn Or “heavens.” The Hebrew term שָׁמַיִם (shamayim) may be translated “heaven(s)” or “sky” depending on the context.

NET Notes: Job 38:30

¹ tn Several suggest that the verb is not from חָבָא (khava’, “to hide”) but from a homonym, “to congeal.” This may be too difficult to support, however.

NET Notes: Job 38:31

¹ tn This word is found here and in 1 Sam 15:32. Dhorme suggests, with others, that there has been a metathesis (a reversal of consonants), and it is the same word found in Job 31:36 (“bind”). G. R. Driver takes it as “cluster” without changing the text (“Two astronomical passages in the Old Testament,” JTS 7 [1956] :3).

NET Notes: Job 38:32

¹ tn The word מַזָּרוֹת (mazzarot) is taken by some to refer to the constellations (see 2 Kgs 23:5), and by others as connected to the word for “crown,” and so “corona.”

² sn See Job 9:9.

NET Notes: Job 38:34

¹ tc The LXX has “answer you,” and some editors have adopted this. However, the reading of the MT makes better sense in the verse.

NET Notes: Job 38:36

¹ tn This verse is difficult because of the two words, טֻחוֹת (tukhot, rendered here “heart”) and שֶׂכְוִי (sekhvi, here “mind”). They have been translated a number of ways: “meteor” and “celestial appearance”; the stars “Procyon” and “Sirius”; “inward part” and “mind”; even as birds, “ibis” and “cock.” One expects them to have something to do with nature – clouds and the like. The RSV accordingly took them to mean “meteor” (from a verb “to wander”) and “a celestial appearance.” But these meanings are not well-attested.

NET Notes: Job 38:37

¹ tn The word actually means “to cause to lie down.”

NET Notes: Job 38:38

¹ tn The word means “to flow” or “to cast” (as in casting metals). So the noun developed the sense of “hard,” as in cast metal.

NET Notes: Job 38:39

¹ tn Heb “fill up the life of.”

NET Notes: Job 38:41

¹ tn The verse is difficult, making some suspect that a line has dropped out. The little birds in the nest hardly go wandering about looking for food. Dhorme suggest “and stagger for lack of food.”

NET Notes: Job 39:1

¹ tn The text uses the infinitive as the object: “do you know the giving birth of?”

² tn Or “ibex.”

NET Notes: Job 39:2

¹ tn Here the infinitive is again a substantive: “the time of their giving birth.”

NET Notes: Job 39:3

¹ tc The Hebrew verb used here means “to cleave,” and this would not have the object “their young.” Olshausen and others after him change the ח (khet) to ט (tet) and get a verb “to drop,” meaning “drop [= give birth to] young” as used in Job 21:10. G. R. Driver holds out for the MT, arguing it is an idiom, “to breach the womb” (“Problems in the Hebrew text of Job,” VTSup 3 [1955]: 92-93).

² tn Heb “they cast forth their labor pains.” This word usually means “birth pangs” but here can mean what caused the pains (metonymy of effect). This fits better with the parallelism, and the verb (“cast forth”). The words “their offspring” are supplied in the translation for clarity; direct objects were often omitted when clear from the context, although English expects them to be included.

NET Notes: Job 39:4

¹ tn The idea is that of the open countryside. The Aramaism is found only here.

NET Notes: Job 39:7

¹ sn The animal is happier in open countryside than in a busy town, and on its own rather than being driven by a herdsman.

NET Notes: Job 39:10

¹ tn Some commentators think that the addition of the “wild ox” here is a copyist’s error, making the stich too long. They therefore delete it. Also, binding an animal to the furrow with ropes is unusual. So with a slight emendation Kissane came up with “Will you bind him with a halter of cord?” While the MT is unusual, the sense is understandable, and no changes, even slight ones, are absolutely necessary.

NET Notes: Job 39:11

¹ tn Heb “leave.”

NET Notes: Job 39:12

¹ tn The word is normally translated “believe” in the Bible. The idea is that of considering something dependable and acting on it. The idea of reliability is found also in the Niphal stem usages.

² tc There is a textual problem here: יָשׁוּב (yashuv) is the Kethib, meaning “[that] he will return”; יָשִׁיב (yashiv) is the Qere, meaning “that he will bring in.” This is the preferred reading, since the object follows it. For commentators who think the line too unbalanced for this, the object is moved to the second colon, and the reading “returns” is taken for the first. But the MT is perfectly clear as it stands.

³ tn Heb “your seed”; this must be interpreted figuratively for what the seed produces.

⁴ tn Heb “gather it”; the referent (the grain) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

⁵ tn Simply, the MT has “and your threshing floor gather.” The “threshing floor” has to be an adverbial accusative of place.

NET Notes: Job 39:13

¹ tc This whole section on the ostrich is not included in the LXX. Many feel it is an interpolation and should therefore be deleted. The pattern of the chapter changes from the questions being asked to observations being made.

² tn The word occurs only here and means “shrill cries.” If the MT is correct, this is a poetic name for the ostrich (see Lam 4:3).

³ tn Many proposals have been made here. The MT has a verb, “exult.” Strahan had “flap joyously,” a rendering followed by the NIV. The RSV uses “wave proudly.”

⁴ tn The point of this statement would be that the ostrich cannot compare to the stork. But there are many other proposals for this line – just about every commentator has a different explanation for it. Of the three words here, the first means “pinion,” the third “plumage,” and the second probably “stork,” although the LXX has “heron.” The point of this whole section is that the ostrich is totally lacking in parental care, whereas the stork is characterized by it. The Hebrew word for “stork” is the same word for “love”: חֲסִידָה (khasidah), an interpretation followed by the NASB. The most likely reading is “or are they the pinions and plumage of the stork?” The ostrich may flap about, but cannot fly and does not care for its young.

NET Notes: Job 39:14

¹ tn The meaning may have the connotation of “lays; places,” rather than simply abandoning (see M. Dahood, “The Root ’zb II in Job,” JBL 78 [1959]: 307f.).

NET Notes: Job 39:15

¹ tn Heb “an animal of the field.”

NET Notes: Job 39:16

¹ sn This verb, “to deal harshly; to harden; to treat cruelly,” is used for hardening the heart elsewhere (see Isa 63:17).

NET Notes: Job 39:18

¹ tn The colon poses a slight problem here. The literal meaning of the Hebrew verb translated “springs up” (i.e., “lifts herself on high”) might suggest flight. But some of the proposals involve a reading about readying herself to run.

NET Notes: Job 39:19

¹ tn The second half of the verse contains this hapax legomenon, which is usually connected with the word רַעְמָה (ra’mah, “thunder”). A. B. Davidson thought it referred to the quivering of the neck rather than the mane. Gray thought the sound and not the movement was the point. But without better evidence, a reading that has “quivering mane” may not be far off the mark. But it may be simplest to translate it “mane” and assume that the idea of “quivering” is part of the meaning.

NET Notes: Job 39:20

¹ sn The same ideas are found in Joel 2:4. The leaping motion is compared to the galloping of the horse.

² tn The word could mean “snorting” as well (see Jer 8:16). It comes from the root “to blow.” If the horse is running and breathing hard, this could be the sense here.

NET Notes: Job 39:21

¹ tc The Hebrew text has a plural verb, “they paw.” For consistency and for stylistic reasons this is translated as a singular.

² tn The armies would prepare for battles that were usually fought in the valleys, and so the horse was ready to charge. But in Ugaritic the word `mk means “force” as well as “valley.” The idea of “force” would fit the parallelism here well (see M. Dahood, “Value of Ugaritic for textual criticism,” Bib 40 [1959]: 166).

³ tn Or “in strength.”

NET Notes: Job 39:23

¹ tn This may be the scimitar (see G. Molin, “What is a kidon?” JSS 1 [1956]: 334-37).

NET Notes: Job 39:24

¹ tn “Swallow the ground” is a metaphor for the horse’s running. Gray renders the line: “quivering and excited he dashes into the fray.”

² tn The use of אָמַן (’aman) in the Hiphil in this place is unique. Such a form would normally mean “to believe.” But its basic etymological meaning comes through here. The verb means “to be firm; to be reliable; to be dependable.” The causative here would mean “to make firm” or “to stand firm.”

NET Notes: Job 39:26

¹ tn This word occurs only here. It is connected to “pinions” in v. 13. Dhorme suggests “clad with feathers,” but the line suggests more the use of the wings.

NET Notes: Job 39:27

¹ tn Heb “your mouth.”

NET Notes: Job 39:28

¹ tn Heb “upon the tooth of a rock.”

² tn The word could be taken as the predicate, but because of the conjunction it seems to be adding another description of the place of its nest.

NET Notes: Job 39:29

¹ tn The word means “search,” but can be used for a wide range of matters, including spying.

² tn Heb “food.”

NET Notes: Job 39:30

¹ tn The word חֲלָלִים (khalalim) designates someone who is fatally wounded, literally the “pierced one,” meaning anyone or thing that dies a violent death.

Geneva Bible: Job 38:4

Where wast thou when I ^{( d )} laid the foundations of the earth? declare, if thou hast understanding.

^{( d )} Seeing he could not judge those things which were done so long before he was born, he was not able to comprehend all God's works: much less the secret causes of his judgments.

Geneva Bible: Job 38:7

When the morning stars ^{( e )} sang together, and all the ^{( f )} sons of God shouted for joy?

^{( e )} The stars and dumb creatures are said to praise God, because his power, wisdom and goodness is manifest and known in it.

^{( f )} Meaning the angels.

Geneva Bible: Job 38:9

When I made the cloud the garment thereof, and thick darkness a ^{( g )} swaddlingband for it,

^{( g )} As though the great sea was but as a little baby in the hands of God to turn to and fro.

Geneva Bible: Job 38:11

And said, Hitherto shalt thou come, but no further: and here shall thy proud waves be ^{( h )} stayed?

^{( h )} That is, God's decree and commandment as in (Job 38:10).

Geneva Bible: Job 38:12

Hast thou commanded the ^{( i )} morning since thy days; [and] caused the dayspring to know his place;

^{( i )} That is, to rise, since you were born?

Geneva Bible: Job 38:13

That it might take hold of the ends of the earth, that the wicked might be ^{( k )} shaken out of it?

^{( k )} Who having in the night been given to wickedness, cannot abide the light, but hide themselves.

Geneva Bible: Job 38:14

It is turned as clay [to] the seal; ^{( l )} and they stand as a garment.

^{( l )} The earth which seemed in the night to have no form by the rising of the sun, is as it were created anew, and all things in it clad with new beauty.

Geneva Bible: Job 38:16

Hast thou entered into the springs of the sea? or hast thou walked in the search of the ^{( m )} depth?

^{( m )} If you are not able to seek out the depth of the sea, how much less are you able to comprehend the counsel of God?

Geneva Bible: Job 38:20

That thou ^{( n )} shouldest take it to the bound thereof, and that thou shouldest know the paths [to] the house thereof?

^{( n )} That you might appoint its highways and limits.

Geneva Bible: Job 38:23

Which I have reserved ^{( o )} against the time of trouble, against the day of battle and war?

^{( o )} To punish my enemies with them, (Exo 9:18; Jos 10:11).

Geneva Bible: Job 38:30

The waters are hid ^{( p )} as [with] a stone, and the face of the deep is frozen.

^{( p )} The ice covers it, as though it were paved with stone.

Geneva Bible: Job 38:31

Canst thou bind the sweet influences ^{( q )} of Pleiades, or loose the bands of ^{( r )} Orion?

^{( q )} Which rise when the sun is in Taurus, which is the spring, and brings flowers.

^{( r )} Which comes in winter.

Geneva Bible: Job 38:32

Canst thou bring forth ^{( s )} Mazzaroth in his season? or canst thou guide ^{( t )} Arcturus with his sons?

^{( s )} Certain stars so called, some think they were the twelve signs.

^{( t )} The north star with those that are about him.

Geneva Bible: Job 38:33

Knowest thou the ordinances of heaven? canst thou set the ^{( u )} dominion thereof in the earth?

^{( u )} Can you cause the heavenly bodies to have any power over the earthly bodies?

Geneva Bible: Job 38:36

Who hath put wisdom in the ^{( x )} inward parts? or who hath given understanding to the heart?

^{( x )} In the secret parts of man.

Geneva Bible: Job 38:37

Who can number the clouds in wisdom? or who can stay the ^{( y )} bottles of heaven,

^{( y )} That is, the clouds in which the water is contained as in bottles.

Geneva Bible: Job 38:38

When the dust groweth into hardness, ^{( z )} and the clods cleave fast together?

^{( z )} For when God does not open these bottles, the earth comes to this inconvenience.

Geneva Bible: Job 38:39

Wilt ^{( a )} thou hunt the prey for the lion? or fill the appetite of the young lions,

^{( a )} After he had declared God's works in the heavens, he shows his marvellous providence in earth, even toward the brute beasts.

Geneva Bible: Job 38:41

Who provideth for the raven his food? when his young ones ^{( b )} cry unto God, they wander for lack of meat.

^{( b )} Read (Psa 147:9).

Geneva Bible: Job 39:2

Canst thou number the months [that] they ^{( d )} fulfil? or knowest thou the time when they bring forth?

^{( d )} That is, how long they go with young?

Geneva Bible: Job 39:3

They bow themselves, they ^{( e )} bring forth their young ones, they cast out their sorrows.

^{( e )} They bring forth with great difficulty.

Geneva Bible: Job 39:6

Whose house I have made the wilderness, and the ^{( f )} barren land his dwellings.

^{( f )} That is, the barren ground where no good fruit grows.

Geneva Bible: Job 39:9

Will the unicorn be willing to ^{( g )} serve thee, or abide by thy crib?

^{( g )} Is it possible to make the unicorn tame? signifying that if man cannot rule a creature, that it is much more impossible that he should appoint the wisdom of God, by which he governs all the world.

Geneva Bible: Job 39:14

Which leaveth her eggs in the earth, and ^{( h )} warmeth them in dust,

^{( h )} They write that the ostrich covers her eggs in the sand, and because the country is hot and the sun still keeps them warm, they are hatched.

Geneva Bible: Job 39:16

She is hardened against her young ones, as though [they were] not hers: her labour is ^{( i )} in vain without fear;

^{( i )} If he should take care of them.

Geneva Bible: Job 39:17

Because God hath deprived her of ^{( k )} wisdom, neither hath he imparted to her understanding.

^{( k )} That is, to have a care and natural affection toward his young.

Geneva Bible: Job 39:18

What ^{( l )} time she lifteth up herself on high, she scorneth the horse and his rider.

^{( l )} When the young ostrich is grown up, he outruns the horse.

Geneva Bible: Job 39:19

Hast thou given the horse strength? hast thou clothed his neck with ^{( m )} thunder?

^{( m )} That is, given him courage? which is meant by neighing and shaking his neck.

Geneva Bible: Job 39:21

He ^{( n )} paweth in the valley, and rejoiceth in [his] strength: he goeth on to meet the armed men.

^{( n )} He beats with his hoof.

Geneva Bible: Job 39:24

He ^{( o )} swalloweth the ground with fierceness and rage: neither believeth he that [it is] the sound of the trumpet.

^{( o )} He so rides the ground that it seems nothing under him.

Geneva Bible: Job 39:26

Doth the hawk fly by thy wisdom, [and] stretch her wings toward the ^{( p )} south?

^{( p )} That is, when cold comes, to fly into the warm countries.

Commentary -- Verse Range Notes

TSK Synopsis: Job 38:1-41

1 God challenges Job to answer.

4 God, by his mighty works, convinces Job of ignorance,

31 and of imbecility.

TSK Synopsis: Job 39:1-30

1 Of the wild goats and hinds.

5 Of the wild ass.

9 The unicorn.

13 The peacock, stork, and ostrich.

19 The horse.

26 The hawk.

27 The eagle.

MHCC: Job 38:4-11

For the humbling of Job, God here shows him his ignorance, even concerning the earth and the sea. As we cannot find fault with God's work, so we need not fear concerning it. The works of his providence, as well as the work of creation, never can be broken; and the work of redemption is no less firm, of which Christ himself is both the Foundation and the Corner-stone. The church stands as firm as the earth.

MHCC: Job 38:12-24

The Lord questions Job, to convince him of his ignorance, and shame him for his folly in prescribing to God. If we thus try ourselves, we shall soon be brought to own that what we know is nothing in comparison with what we know not. By the tender mercy of our God, the Day-spring from on high has visited us, to give light to those that sit in darkness, whose hearts are turned to it as clay to the seal, 2Co 4:6. God's way in the government of the world is said to be in the sea; this means, that it is hid from us. Let us make sure that the gates of heaven shall be opened to us on the other side of death, and then we need not fear the opening of the gates of death. It is presumptuous for us, who perceive not the breadth of the earth, to dive into the depth of God's counsels. We should neither in the brightest noon count upon perpetual day, nor in the darkest midnight despair of the return of the morning; and this applies to our inward as well as to our outward condition. What folly it is to strive against God! How much is it our interest to seek peace with him, and to keep in his love!

MHCC: Job 38:25-41

Hitherto God had put questions to Job to show him his ignorance; now God shows his weakness. As it is but little that he knows, he ought not to arraign the Divine counsels; it is but little he can do, therefore he ought not to oppose the ways of Providence. See the all-sufficiency of the Divine Providence; it has wherewithal to satisfy the desire of every living thing. And he that takes care of the young ravens, certainly will not be wanting to his people. This being but one instance of the Divine compassion out of many, gives us occasion to think how much good our God does, every day, beyond what we are aware of. Every view we take of his infinite perfections, should remind us of his right to our love, the evil of sinning against him, and our need of his mercy and salvation.

MHCC: Job 39:1-30

In these questions the Lord continued to humble Job. In this chapter several animals are spoken of, whose nature or situation particularly show the power, wisdom, and manifold works of God. The wild ass. It is better to labour and be good for something, than to ramble and be good for nothing. From the untameableness of this and other creatures, we may see, how unfit we are to give law to Providence, who cannot give law even to a wild ass's colt. The unicorn, a strong, stately, proud creature. He is able to serve, but not willing; and God challenges Job to force him to it. It is a great mercy if, where God gives strength for service, he gives a heart; it is what we should pray for, and reason ourselves into, which the brutes cannot do. Those gifts are not always the most valuable that make the finest show. Who would not rather have the voice of the nightingale, than the tail of the peacock; the eye of the eagle and her soaring wing, and the natural affection of the stork, than the beautiful feathers of the ostrich, which can never rise above the earth, and is without natural affection? The description of the war-horse helps to explain the character of presumptuous sinners. Every one turneth to his course, as the horse rushes into the battle. When a man's heart is fully set in him to do evil, and he is carried on in a wicked way, by the violence of his appetites and passions, there is no making him fear the wrath of God, and the fatal consequences of sin. Secure sinners think themselves as safe in their sins as the eagle in her nest on high, in the clefts of the rocks; but I will bring thee down from thence, saith the Lord, Jer 49:16. All these beautiful references to the works of nature, should teach us a right view of the riches of the wisdom of Him who made and sustains all things. The want of right views concerning the wisdom of God, which is ever present in all things, led Job to think and speak unworthily of Providence.

Matthew Henry: Job 38:4-11

For the humbling of Job, God here shows him his ignorance even concerning the earth and the sea. Though so near, though so bulky, yet he could give no account of their origination, much less of heaven above or hell beneath, which are at such a distance, or of the several parts of matter which are so minute, and then, least of all, of the divine counsels.

I. Concerning the founding of the earth. "If he have such a mighty insight, as he pretends to have, into the counsels of God, let him give some account of the earth he goes upon, which is given to the children of men."

1. Let him tell where he was when this lower world was made, and whether he was advising of assisting in that wonderful work (Job 38:4): " Where wast thou when I laid the foundations of the earth? Thy pretensions are high; canst thou pretend to his? Wast thou present when the world was made?"See here, (1.) The greatness and glory of God: I laid the foundations of the earth. This proves him to be the only living and true God, and a God of power (Isa 40:21, Jer 10:11, Jer 10:12), and encourages us to trust in him at all times, Isa 51:13, Isa 51:16. (2.) The meanness and contemptibleness of man: " Where wast thou then? Thou that hast made such a figure among the children of the east, and settest up for an oracle, and a judge of the divine counsels, where was thou when the foundations of the earth were laid?"So far were we from having any hand in the creation of the world, which might entitle us to a dominion in it, or so much as being witnesses of it, by which we might have gained an insight into it, that we were not then in being. The first man was not, much less were we. It is the honour of Christ that he was present when this was done (Pro 8:22, etc., Joh 1:1, Joh 1:2); but we are of yesterday and know nothing. Let us not therefore find fault with the works of God, nor prescribe to him. He did not consult us in making the world, and yet it is well made; why should we expect then that he should take his measures from us in governing it?

2. Let him describe how this world was made, and give a particular account of the manner in which this strong and stately edifice was formed and erected: " Declare, if thou hast so much understanding as thou fanciest thyself to have, what were the advances of that work."Those that pretend to have understanding above others ought to give proof of it. Show my thy faith by thy works, thy knowledge by thy words. Let Job declare it if he can, (1.) How the world came to be so finely framed, with so much exactness, and such an admirable symmetry and proportion of all the parts of it (Job 38:5): "Stand forth, and tell who laid the measures thereof and stretched out the line upon it. "Wast thou the architect that formed the model and then drew the dimensions by rule according to it? The vast bulk of the earth is moulded as regularly as if it had been done by line and measure; but who can describe how it was cast into this figure? Who can determine its circumference and diameter, and all the lines that are drawn on the terrestrial globe? It is to this day a dispute whether the earth stands still or turns round; how then can we determine by what measures it was first formed? (2.) How it came to be so firmly fixed. Though it is hung upon nothing, yet it is established, that it cannot be moved; but who can tell upon what the foundations of it are fastened, that it may not sink with its own weight, or who laid the corner-stone thereof, that the parts of it may not fall asunder? Job 38:6. What God does, it shall be for ever (Ecc 3:14); and therefore, as we cannot find fault with God's work, so we need not be in fear concerning it; it will last, and answer the end, the works of his providence as well as the work of creation; the measures of neither can never be broken; and the work of redemption is no less firm, of which Christ himself is both the foundation and the corner-stone. The church stands as fast as the earth.

3. Let him repeat, if he can, the songs of praise which were sung at that solemnity (Job 38:7), when the morning-stars sang together, the blessed angels (the first-born of the Father of light), who, in the morning of time, shone as brightly as the morning star, going immediately before the light which God commanded to shine out of darkness upon the seeds of this lower world, the earth, which was without form and void. They were the sons of God, who shouted for joy when they saw the foundations of the earth laid, because, though it was not made for them, but for the children of men, and though it would increase their work and service, yet they knew that the eternal Wisdom and Word, whom they were to worship (Heb 1:6), would rejoice in the habitable parts of the earth, and that much of his delight would be in the sons of men, Pro 8:31. The angels are called the sons of God because they bear much of his image, are with him in his house above, and serve him as a son does his father. Now observe here, (1.) The glory of God, as the Creator of the world, is to be celebrated with joy and triumph by all his reasonable creatures; for they are qualified and appointed to be the collectors of his praises from the inferior creatures, who can praise him merely as objects that exemplify his workmanship. (2.) The work of angels is to praise God. The more we abound in holy, humble, thankful, joyful praise, the more we do the will of God as they do it; and, whereas we are so barren and defective in praising God, it is a comfort to think that they are doing it in a better manner. (3.) They were unanimous in singing God's praises; they sang together with one accord, and there was no jar in their harmony. The sweetest concerts are in praising God. (4.) They all did it, even those who afterwards fell and left their first estate. Even those who have praised God may, by the deceitful power of sin, be brought to blaspheme him, and yet God will be eternally praised.

II. Concerning the limiting of the sea to the place appointed for it, Job 38:8, etc. This refers to the third day's work, when God said (Gen 1:9), Let the waters under the heaven be gathered together unto one place, and it was so. 1. Out of the great deep or chaos, in which earth and water were intermixed, in obedience to the divine command the waters broke forth like a child out of the teeming womb, Job 38:8. Then the waters that had covered the deep, and stood above the mountains, retired with precipitation. At God's rebuke they fled, Psa 104:6, Psa 104:7. 2. This newborn babe is clothed and swaddled, Job 38:9. The cloud is made the garment thereof, with which it is covered, and thick darkness (that is, shores vastly remote and distant from one another and quite in the dark one to another) is a swaddling-band for it. See with what ease the great God manages the raging sea; notwithstanding the violence of its tides, and the strength of its billows, he manages it as the nurse does the child in swaddling clothes. It is not said, He made rocks and mountains its swaddling bands, but clouds and darkness, something that we are not aware of and should think least likely for such a purpose. 3. There is a cradle too provided for this babe: I broke up for it my decreed place, Job 38:10. Valleys were sunk for it in the earth, capacious enough to receive it, and there it is laid to sleep; and, if it be sometimes tossed with winds, that (as bishop Patrick observes) is but the rocking of the cradle, which makes it sleep the faster. As for the sea, so for every one of us, there is a decreed place; for he that determined the times before appointed determined also the bounds of our habitation. 4. This babe being made unruly and dangerous by the sin of man, which was the original of all unquietness and danger in this lower world, there is also a prison provided for it; bars and doors are set, Job 38:10. And it is said to it, by way of check to its insolence, Hitherto shalt thou come, but no further. The sea is God's for he made it, he restrains it; he says to it, Here shall thy proud waves be stayed, Job 38:11. This may be considered as an act of God's power over the sea. Though it is so vast a body, and though its motion is sometimes extremely violent, yet God has it under check. Its waves rise no higher, its tides roll no further, than God permits; and this is mentioned as a reason why we should stand in awe of God (Jer 5:22), and yet why we should encourage ourselves in him, for he that stops the noise of the sea, even the noise of her waves, can, when he pleases, still the tumult of the people, Psa 65:7. It is also to be looked upon as an act of God's mercy to the world of mankind and an instance of his patience towards that provoking grace. Though he could easily cover the earth again with the waters of the sea (and, methinks, every flowing tide twice a day threatens us, and shows what the sea could do, and would do, if God would give it leave), yet he restrains them, being not willing that any should perish, and having reserved the world that now is unto fire, 2Pe 3:7.

Matthew Henry: Job 38:12-24

The Lord here proceeds to ask Job many puzzling questions, to convince him of his ignorance, and so to shame him for his folly in prescribing to God. If we will but try ourselves with such interrogatories as these, we shall soon be brought to own that what we know is nothing in comparison with what we know not. Job is here challenged to give an account of six things: -

I. Of the springs of the morning, the day-spring from on high, Job 38:12-15. As there is no visible being of which we may be more firmly assured that it is, so there is none which we are more puzzled in describing, nor more doubtful in determining what it is, than the light. We welcome the morning, and are glad of the day-spring; but, 1. It is not commanded since our days, but what it is it was long before we were born, so that it was neither made by us nor designed primarily for us, but we take it as we find it and as the many generations had it that went before us. The day-spring knew its place before we knew ours, for we are but of yesterday. 2. It was not we, it was not any man that commanded the morning-light at first, or appointed the place of its springing up and shining forth, or the time of it. The constant and regular succession of day and night was no contrivance of ours; it is the glory of God that it shows, and his handy work, not ours, Psa 19:1, Psa 19:2. 3. It is quite out of our power to alter this course: " Hast thou countermanded the morning since thy days? Hast thou at any time raised the morning light sooner than its appointed time, to serve thy purpose when thou hast waited for the morning, or ordered the day-spring for thy convenience to any other place than its own? No, never. Why then wilt thou pretend to direct the divine counsels, or expect to have the methods of Providence altered in favour of thee?"We may as soon break the covenant of the day and of the night as any part of God's covenant with his people, and particularly this, I will chasten them with the rod of men. 4. It is God that has appointed the day-spring to visit the earth, and diffuses the morning light through the air, which receives it as readily as the clay does the seal (Job 38:14), immediately admitting the impressions of it, so as of a sudden to be all over enlightened by it, as the seal stamps its image on the wax; and they stand as a garment, or as if they were clothed with a garment. The earth puts on a new face every morning, and dresses itself as we do, puts on light as a garment, and is then to be seen. 5. This is made a terror to evil-doers. Nothing is more comfortable to mankind than the light of the morning; it is pleasant to the eyes, it is serviceable to life and the business of it, and the favour of it is universally extended, for it takes hold of the ends of the earth (Job 38:13), and we should dwell, in our hymns to the light, on its advantages to the earth. But God here observes how unwelcome it is to those that do evil, and therefore hate the light. God makes the light a minister of his justice as well as of his mercy. It is designed to shake the wicked out of the earth, and for that purpose it takes hold of the ends of it, as we take hold of the ends of a garment to shake the dust and moths out of it. Job had observed what a terror the morning light is to criminals, because it discovers them (Job 24:13, etc.), and God here seconds the observation, and asks him whether the world was indebted to him for that kindness? No, the great Judge of the world sends forth the beams of the morning light as his messengers to detect criminals, that they may not only be defeated in their purposes and put to shame, but that they may be brought to condign punishment (Job 38:15), that their light may be withholden from them (that is, that they may lose their comfort, their confidence, their liberties, their lives) and that their high arm, which they have lifted up against God and man, may be broken, and they deprived of their power to do mischief. Whether what is here said of the morning light was designed to represent, as in a figure, the light of the gospel of Christ, and to give a type of it, I will not say; but I am sure it may serve to put us in mind of the encomiums given to the gospel just at the rising of its morning-star by Zecharias in his Benedictus (Luk 1:78, By the tender mercy of our God the day-spring from on high has visited us, to give light to those that sit in darkness, whose hearts are turned to it as clay to the seal, 2Co 4:6), and by the virgin Mary in her Magnificat (Luk 1:51), showing that God, in his gospel, has shown strength with his arm, scattered the proud, and put down the mighty, by that light by which he designed to shake the wicked, to shake wickedness itself out of the earth, and break its high arm.

II. Of the springs of the sea (Job 38:16): " Hast thou entered into them, or hast thou walked in the search of the depth? Knowest thou what lies in the bottom of the sea, the treasures there hidden in the sands? Or canst thou give an account of the rise and original of the waters of the sea? Vapours are continually exhaled out of the sea. Dost thou know how the recruits are raised by which it is continually supplied? Rivers are constantly poured into the sea. Dost thou know how they are continually discharged, so as not to overflow the earth? Art thou acquainted with the secret subterraneous passages by which the waters circulate?"God's way in the government of the world is said to be in the sea, and in the great waters (Psa 77:19), intimating that it is hidden from us and not to be pried into by us.

III. Of the gates of death: Have these been open to thee? Job 38:16. Death is a grand secret. 1. We know not beforehand when, and how, and by what means, we or others shall be brought to death, by what road we must go the way whence we shall not return, what disease or what disaster will be the door to let us into the house appointed for all living. Man knows not his time. 2. We cannot describe what death is, how the knot is untied between body and soul, nor how the spirit of a man goes upward (Ecc 3:21), to be we know not what and live we know not how, as Mr. Norris expresses; with what dreadful curiosity (says he) does the soul launch out into the vast ocean of eternity and resign to an untried abyss! Let us make it sure that the gates of heaven shall be opened to us on the other side death, and then we need not fear the opening of the gates of death, though it is a way we are to go but once. 3. We have no correspondence at all with separate souls, nor any acquaintance with their state. It is an unknown undiscovered region to which they are removed; we can neither hear from them nor send to them. While we are here, in a world of sense, we speak of the world of spirits as blind men do of colours, and when we remove thither we shall be amazed to find how much we are mistaken.

IV. Of the breadth of the earth (Job 38:18): Hast thou perceived that? The knowledge of this might seem most level to him and within his reach; yet he is challenged to declare this if he can. We have our residence on the earth, God has given it to the children of men. But who ever surveyed it, or could give an account of the number of its acres? It is but a point to the universe? yet, small as it is, we cannot be exact in declaring the dimensions of it. Job had never sailed round the world, nor any before him; so little did men know the breadth of the earth that it was but a few ages ago that the vast continent of America was discovered, which had, time out of mind, lain hidden. The divine perfection is longer than the earth and broader than the sea; it is therefore presumption for us, who perceive not the breadth of the earth, to dive into the depth of God's counsels.

V. Of the place and way of light and darkness. Of the day-spring he had spoken before (Job 38:12) and he returns to speak of it again (Job 38:19): Where is the way where light dwells? And again (Job 38:24): By what way is the light parted? He challenges him to describe, 1. How the light and darkness were at first made. When God, in the beginning, first spread darkness upon the face of the deep, and afterwards commanded the light to shine out of darkness, by that mighty word, Let there be light, was Job a witness to the order, to the operation? can he tell where the fountains of light and darkness are, and where those mighty princes keep their courts distance, while in one world they rule alternately? Though we long ever so much either for the shining forth of the morning or the shadows of the evening, we know not whither to send, or go, to fetch them, nor can tell the paths to the house thereof, Job 38:20. We were not then born, nor is the number of our days so great that we can describe the birth of that first-born of the visible creation, Job 38:21. Shall we then undertake to discourse of God's counsels, which were from eternity, or to find out the paths to the house thereof, to solicit for the alteration of them? God glories in it that he forms the light and creates the darkness; and if we must take those as we find them, take those as they come, and quarrel with neither, but make the best of both, then we must, in like manner, accommodate ourselves to the peace and the evil which God likewise created. Isa 45:7. 2. How they still keep their turns interchangeably. It is God that makes the outgoings of the morning and of the evening to rejoice (Psa 65:8); for it is his order, and no order of ours, that is executed by the outgoings of the morning light and the darkness of the night. We cannot so much as tell whence they come nor whither they go (Job 38:24): By what way is the light parted in the morning, when, in an instant, it shoots itself into all the parts of the air above the horizon, as if the morning light flew upon the wings of an east wind, so swiftly, so strongly, is it carried, scattering the darkness of the night, as the east wind does the clouds? Hence we read of the wings of the morning (Psa 139:9), on which the light is conveyed to the uttermost parts of the sea, and scattered like an east wind upon the earth. It is a marvellous change that passes over us every morning by the return of the light and every evening by the return of the darkness; but we expect them, and so they are no surprise nor uneasiness to us. If we would, in like manner, reckon upon changes in our outward condition, we should neither in the brightest noon expect perpetual day nor in the darkest midnight despair of the return of the morning. God has set the one over against the other, like the day and night; and so must we, Ecc 7:14.

VI. Of the treasures of the snow and hail (Job 38:22, Job 38:23): " Hast thou entered into these and taken a view of them?"In the clouds the snow and hail are generated, and thence they come in such abundance that one would think there were treasures of them laid up in store there, whereas indeed they are produced extempore - suddenly, as I may say, and pro re nata - for the occasion. Sometimes they come so opportunely, to serve the purposes of Providence, in God's fighting for his people and against his and their enemies, that one would think they were laid up as magazines, or stores of arms, ammunition, and provisions, against the time of trouble, the day of battle and war, when God will either contend with the world in general (as in the deluge, when the windows of heaven were opened, and the waters fetched out of these treasures to drown a wicked world, that waged war with Heaven) or with some particular persons or parties, as when God out of these treasures fetched great hail-stones wherewith to fight against the Canaanites, Jos 10:11. See what folly it is to strive against God, who is thus prepared for battle and war, and how much it is our interest to make our peace with him and to keep ourselves in his love. God can fight as effectually with snow and hail, if he please, as with thunder and lightning or the sword of an angel!

Matthew Henry: Job 38:25-41

Hitherto God had put such questions to Job as were proper to convince him of his ignorance and short-sightedness. Now he comes, in the same manner, to show his impotency and weakness. As it is but little that he knows, and therefore he ought not to arraign the divine counsels, so it is but little that he can do, and therefore he ought not to oppose the proceedings of Providence. Let him consider what great things God does, and try whether he can do the like, or whether he thinks himself an equal match for him.

I. God has thunder, and lightning, and rain, and frost, at command, but Job has not, and therefore let him not dare to compare himself with God, or to contend with him. Nothing is more uncertain than what weather it shall be, nor more out of our reach to appoint; it shall be what weather pleases God, not what pleases us, unless, as becomes us, whatever pleases God pleases us. Concerning this observe here,

1. How great God is.

(1.) He has a sovereign dominion over the waters, has appointed them their course, even then when they seem to overflow and to be from under his check, Job 38:25. He has divided a water-course, directs the rain where to fall, even when the shower is most violent, with as much certainty as if it were conveyed by canals or conduit-pipes. Thus the hearts of kings are said to be in God's hand; and as the rains, those rivers of God, he turns them whithersoever he will. Every drop goes as it is directed. God has sworn that the waters of Noah shall no more return to cover the earth; and we see that he is able to make good what he has promised, for he has the rain in a water-course.

(2.) He has dominion over the lightning and the thunder, which go not at random, but in the way that he directs them. They are mentioned here because he prepares the lightnings for the rain, Psa 135:7. Let not those that fear God be afraid of the lightning or the thunder, for they are not blind bullets, but go the way that God himself, who means no hurt to them, directs.

(3.) In directing the course of the rain he does not neglect the wilderness, the desert land (Job 38:26, Job 38:27), where no man is. [1.] Where there is no man to be employed in taking care of the productions. God's providence reaches further than man's industry. If he had not more kindness for many of the inferior creatures than man has, it would go ill with them. God can make the earth fruitful without any art or pains of ours, Gen 2:5, Gen 2:6. When there was not a man to till the ground, yet there went up a mist and watered it. But we cannot make it fruitful without God; it is he that gives the increase. [2.] Where there is no man to be provided for nor to take the benefit of the fruits that are produced. Though God does with very peculiar favour visit and regard man, yet he does not overlook the inferior creatures, but causes the bud of the tender herb to spring forth for food for all flesh, as well as for the service of man. Even the wild asses shall have their thirst quenched, Psa 104:11. God has enough for all, and wonderfully provides even for those creatures that man neither has service from nor makes provision for.

(4.) He is, in a sense, the Father of the rain, Job 38:28. It has no other father. He produces it by his power; he governs and directs it, and makes what use he pleases of it. Even the small drops of the dew he distils upon the earth, as the God of nature; and, as the God of grace, he rains righteousness upon us and is himself as the dew unto Israel. See Hos 14:5, Hos 14:6; Mic 5:7.

(5.) The ice and the frost, by which the waters are congealed and the earth incrustrated, are produced by his providence, Job 38:29, Job 38:30. These are very common things, which lessens the strangeness of them. But, considering what a vast change is made by them in a very little time, how the waters are hid as with a stone, as with a grave-stone, laid upon them (so thick, so strong, is the ice that covers them), and the face even of the deep is sometimes frozen, we may well ask, " Out of whose womb came the ice? What created power could produce such a wonderful work?"No power but that of the Creator himself. Frost and snow come from him, and therefore should lead our thoughts and meditations to him who does such great things, past finding out. And we shall the more easily bear the inconveniences of winter-weather if we learn to make this good use of it.

2. How weak man is. Can he do such things as these? Could Job? No, v. 34, 35. (1.) He cannot command one shower of rain for the relief of himself or his friends: " Canst thou lift up thy voice to the clouds, those bottles of heaven, that abundance of waters may cover thee, to water thy fields when they are dry and parched?"If we lift up our voice to God, to pray for rain, we may have it (Zec 10:1); but if we lift up our voice to the clouds, to demand it, they will soon tell us they are not at our beck, and we shall go without it, Jer 14:22. The heavens will not her the earth unless God hear them, Hos 2:21. See what poor, indigent, depending creatures we are; we cannot do without rain, nor can we have it when we will. (2.) He cannot commission one flash of lightning, if he had a mind to make use of it for the terror of his enemies (Job 38:35): " Canst thou send lightnings, that they may go on thy errand, and do the execution thou desirest? Will they come at thy call, and say unto thee, Here we are? "No, the ministers of God's wrath will not be ministers of ours. Why should they, since the wrath of man works not the righteousness of God? See Luk 9:55.

II. God has the stars of heaven under his command and cognizance, but we have them not under ours. Our meditations are now to rise higher, far above the clouds, to the glorious lights above. God mentions particularly, not the planets, which move in lower orbs, but the fixed stars, which are much higher. It is supposed that they have an influence upon this earth, notwithstanding their vast distance, not upon the minds of men or the events of providence (men's fate is not determined by their stars), but upon the ordinary course of nature; they are set for signs and seasons, for days and years, Gen 1:14. And if the stars have such a dominion over this earth (Job 38:33), though they have their place in the heavens and are but mere matter, much more has he who is their Maker and ours, and who is an Eternal Mind. Now see how weak we are. 1. We cannot alter the influences of the stars (Job 38:31), not theirs that are instrumental to produce the pleasures of the spring: Canst thou loose the bands of Orion? - that magnificent constellation which makes so great a figure (none greater), and dispenses rough and unpleasing influences, which we cannot control nor repel. Both summer and winter will have their course. God can change them when he pleases, can make the spring cold, and so bind the sweet influences of Pleiades, and the winter warm, and so loose the bands of Orion; but we cannot. 2. It is not in our power to order the motions of the stars, nor are we entrusted with the guidance of them. God, who calls the stars by their names (Psa 147:4), calls them forth in their respective seasons, appointing them the time of their rising and setting. But this is not our province; we cannot bring forth Mazzaroth - the stars in the southern signs, nor guide Arcturus - those in the northern, Job 38:32. God can bring forth the stars to battle (as he did when in their courses they fought against Sisera) and guide them in the attacks they are ordered to make; but man cannot do so. 3. We are not only unconcerned in the government of the stars (the government they are under, and the government they are entrusted with, for they both rule and are ruled), but utterly unacquainted with it; we know not the ordinances of heaven, Job 38:33. So far are we from being able to change them that we can give no account of them; they are a secret to us. Shall we then pretend to know God's counsels, and the reasons of them? If it were left to us to set the dominion of the stars upon the earth, we should soon be at a loss. Shall we then teach God how to govern the world?

III. God is the author and giver, the father and fountain, of all wisdom and understanding, Job 38:36. The souls of men are nobler and more excellent beings than the stars of heaven themselves, and shine more brightly. The powers and faculties of reason with which man is endued, and the wonderful performances of thought, bring him into some alliance to the blessed angels; and whence comes this light, but from the Father of lights? Who else has put wisdom into the inner parts of man, and given understanding to the heart? 1. The rational soul itself, and its capacities, come from him as the God of nature; for he forms the spirit of man within him. We did not make our own souls, nor can we describe how they act, nor how they are united to our bodies. He only that made them knows them, and knows how to manage them. He fashioneth men's hearts alike in some things, and yet unlike in others. 2. True wisdom, with its furniture and improvement, comes from him as the God of grace and the Father of every good and perfect gift. Shall we pretend to be wiser than God, when we have all our wisdom from him? Nay, shall we pretend to be wise above our sphere, and beyond the limits which he that gave us our understanding sets to it? He designed we should with it serve God and do our duty, but never intended we should with it set up for directors of the stars or the lightning.

IV. God has the clouds under his cognizance and government, but so have not we, Job 38:37. Can any man, with all his wisdom, undertake to number the clouds, or (as it may be read) to declare and describe the nature of them? Though they are near us, in our own atmosphere, yet we know little more of them than of the stars which are at so great a distance. And when the clouds have poured down rain in abundance, so that the dust grows into solid mire and the clods cleave fast together (Job 38:38), who can stay the bottles of heaven? Who can stop them, that it may not always rain? The power and goodness of God are herein to be acknowledged, that he gives the earth rain enough, but does not surfeit it, softens it, but does not drown it, makes it fit for the plough, but not unfit for the seed. As we cannot command a shower of rain, so we cannot command a fair day, without God; so necessary, so constant, is our dependence upon him.

V. God provides food for the inferior creatures, and it is by his providence, not by any care or pains of ours, that they are fed. The following chapter is wholly taken up with the instances of God's power and goodness about animals, and therefore some transfer to it the last three verses of this chapter, which speak of the provision made, 1. For the lions, Job 38:39, Job 38:40. "Thou dost not pretend that the clouds and stars have any dependence upon thee, for they are above thee; but on the earth thou thinkest thyself paramount; let us try that then: Wilt thou hunt the prey for the lion? Thou valuest thyself upon thy possessions of cattle which thou wast once owner of, the oxen, and asses, and camels, that were fed at thy crib; but wilt thou undertake the maintenance of the lions, and the young lions, when they couch in their dens, waiting for a prey? No, needest not do it, they can shift for themselves without thee: thou canst not do it, for thou hast not wherewithal to satisfy them: thou darest not do it; shouldst thou come to feed them, they would seize upon thee. But I do it."See the all-sufficiency of the divine providence: it has wherewithal to satisfy the desire of every living thing, even the most ravenous. See the bounty of the divine Providence, that, wherever it has given life, it will give livelihood, even to those creatures that are not only not serviceable, but dangerous, to man. And see its sovereignty, that it suffers some creatures to be killed for the support of other creatures. The harmless sheep are torn to pieces, to fill the appetite of the young lions, who yet sometimes are made to lack and suffer hunger, to punish them for their cruelty, while those that fear God want no good thing. 2. For the young ravens, Job 38:41. As ravenous beasts, so ravenous birds, are fed by the divine Providence. Who but God provides for the raven his food? Man does not; he takes care only of those creatures that are, or may be, useful to him. But God has a regard to all the works of his hands, even the meanest and least valuable. The ravens' young ones are in a special manner necessitous, and God supplies them, Psa 147:9. God's feeding the fowls, especially these fowls (Mat 6:26), is an encouragement to us to trust him for our daily bread. See here, (1.) What distress the young ravens are often in: They wander for lack of meat. The old ones, they say, neglect them, and do not provide for them as other birds do for their young: and indeed those that are ravenous to others are commonly barbarous to their own, and unnatural. (2.) What they are supposed to do in that distress: They cry, for they are noisy clamorous creatures, and this is interpreted as crying to God. It being the cry of nature, it is looked upon as directed to the God of nature. The putting of so favourable a construction as this upon the cries of the young ravens may encourage us in our prayers, though we can but cry, Abba, Father. (3.) What God does for them. Some way or other he provides for them, so that they grow up, and come to maturity. And he that takes this care of the young ravens certainly will not be wanting to his people or theirs. This, being but one instance of many of the divine compassion, may give us occasion to think how much good our God does, every day, beyond what we are aware of.

Matthew Henry: Job 39:1-12

God here shows Job what little acquaintance he had with the untamed creatures that run wild in the deserts and live at large, but are the care of the divine Providence. As,

I. The wild goats and the hinds. That which is taken notice of concerning them is the bringing forth and bringing up of their young ones. For, as every individual is fed, so every species of animals is preserved, by the care of the divine Providence, and, for aught we know, none extinct to this day. Observe here, 1. Concerning the production of their young, (1.) Man is wholly ignorant of the time when they bring forth, Job 39:1, Job 39:2. Shall we pretend to tell what is in the womb of Providence, or what a day will bring forth, who know not the time of the pregnancy of a hind or a wild goat? (2.) Though they bring forth their young with a great deal of difficulty and sorrow, and have no assistance from man, yet, by the good providence of God, their young ones are safely produced, and their sorrows cast out and forgotten, Job 39:3. Some think it is intimated (Psa 29:9) that God by thunder helps the hinds in calving. Let it be observed, for the comfort of women in labour, that God helps even the hinds to bring forth their young; and shall he not much more succour them, and save them in child-bearing, who are his children in covenant with him? 2. Concerning the growth of their young, (Job 39:4): They are in good liking; though they are brought forth in sorrow, after their dams have suckled them awhile they shift for themselves in the corn-fields, and are no more burdensome to them, which is an example to children, when they have grown up, not to be always hanging upon their parents and craving from them, but to put forth themselves to get their own livelihood and to requite their parents.

II. The wild ass, a creature we frequently read of in Scripture, some say untameable. Man is said to be born as the wild ass's colt, so hard to be governed. Two things Providence has allotted to the wild ass: - 1. An unbounded liberty (Job 39:5): Who but God has sent out the wild ass free? He has given a disposition to it, and therefore a dispensation for it. The tame ass is bound to labour; the wild ass has no bonds on him. Note, Freedom from service, and liberty to range at pleasure, are but the privileges of a wild ass. It is a pity that any of the children of men should covet such a liberty, or value themselves on it. It is better to labour and be good for something than ramble and be good for nothing. But if, among men, Providence sets some at liberty and suffers them to live at ease, while others are doomed to servitude, we must not marvel at the matter: it is so among the brute-creatures. 2. An unenclosed lodging (Job 39:6): Whose house I have made the wilderness, where he has room enough to traverse his ways, and snuff up the wind at his pleasure, as the wild ass is said to do (Jer 2:24), as if he had to live upon the air, for it is the barren land that is his dwelling. Observe, The tame ass, that labours, and is serviceable to man, has his master's crib to go to both for shelter and food, and lives in a fruitful land: but the wild ass, that will have his liberty, must have it in a barren land. He that will not labour, let him not eat. He that will shall eat the labour of his hands, and have also to give to him that needs. Jacob, the shepherd, has good red pottage to spare, when Esau, a sportsman, is ready to perish for hunger. A further description of the liberty and livelihood of the wild ass we have, Job 39:7, Job 39:8. (1.) He has no owner, nor will he be in subjection: He scorns the multitude of the city. If they attempt to take him, and in order to that surround him with a multitude, he will soon get clear of them, and the crying of the driver is nothing to him. He laughs at those that live in the tumult and bustle of cities (so bishop Patrick), thinking himself happier in the wilderness; and opinion is the rate of things. (2.) Having no owner, he has no feeder, nor is any provision made for him, but he must shift for himself: The range of the mountains is his pasture, and a bare pasture it is; there he searches after here and there a green thing, as he can find it and pick it up; whereas the labouring asses have green things in plenty, without their searching for them. From the untameableness of this and other creatures we may infer how unfit we are to give law to Providence, who cannot give law even to a wild ass's colt.

III. The unicorn - rhem , a strong creature (Num 23:22), a stately proud creature, Psa 112:10. He is able to serve, but not willing; and God here challenges Job to force him to it. Job expected every thing should be just as he would have it. "Since thou dost pretend"(says God) "to bring every thing beneath thy sway, begin with the unicorn, and try thy skill upon him. Now that thy oxen and asses are all gone, try whether he will be willing to serve thee in their stead (Job 39:9) and whether he will be content with the provision thou usedst to make for them: Will he abide by thy crib? No;"1. "Thou canst not tame him, nor bind him with his band, nor set him to draw the harrow, "Job 39:10. There are creatures that are willing to serve man, that seem to take a pleasure in serving him, and to have a love for their masters; but there are such as will never be brought to serve him, which is the effect of sin. Man has revolted from his subjection to his Maker, and is therefore justly punished with the revolt of the inferior creatures from their subjection to him; and yet, as an instance of God's good-will to man, there are some that are still serviceable to him. Though the wild bull (which some think is meant here by the unicorn) will not serve him, nor submit to his hand in the furrows, yet there are tame bullocks that will, and other animals that are not ferae naturae - of a wild nature, in whom man may have a property, for whom he provides, and to whose service he is entitled. Lord, what is man, that thou art thus mindful of him? 2. "Thou darest not trust him; though his strength is great, yet thou wilt not leave thy labour to him, as thou dost with thy asses or oxen, which a little child may lead or drive, leaving to them all the pains. Thou wilt never depend upon the wild bull, as likely to come to thy harvest-work, much less to go through it, to bring home thy seed and gather it into thy barn, "Job 39:11, Job 39:12. And, because he will not serve about the corn, he is not so well fed as the tame ox, whose mouth was not to be muzzled in treading out the corn; but therefore he will not draw the plough, because he that made him never designed him for it. A disposition to labour is as much the gift of God as an ability for it; and it is a great mercy if, where God gives strength for service, he gives a heart; it is what we should pray for, and reason ourselves into, which the brutes cannot do; for, as among beasts, so among men, those may justly be reckoned wild and abandoned to the deserts who have no mind either to take pains or to do good.

Matthew Henry: Job 39:13-18

The ostrich is a wonderful animal, a very large bird, but it never flies. Some have called it a winged camel. God here gives an account of it, and observes,

I. Something that it has in common with the peacock, that is, beautiful feathers (Job 39:13): Gavest thou proud wings unto the peacocks? so some read it. Fine feathers make proud birds. The peacock is an emblem of pride; when he struts, and shows his fine feathers, Solomon in all his glory is not arrayed like him. The ostrich too has goodly feathers, and yet is a foolish bird; for wisdom does not always go along with beauty and gaiety. Other birds do not envy the peacock or the ostrich their gaudy colours, nor complain for want of them; why then should we repine if we see others wear better clothes than we can afford to wear? God gives his gifts variously, and those gifts are not always the most valuable that make the finest show. Who would not rather have the voice of the nightingale than the tail of the peacock, the eye of the eagle and her soaring wing, and the natural affection of the stork, than the beautiful wings and feathers of the ostrich, which can never rise above the earth, and is without natural affection?

II. Something that is peculiar to itself,

1. Carelessness of her young. It is well that this is peculiar to herself, for it is a very bad character. Observe, (1.) How she exposes her eggs; she does not retire to some private place, and make a nest there, as the sparrows and swallows do (Psa 84:3), and there lay eggs and hatch her young. Most birds, as well as other animals, are strangely guided by natural instinct in providing for the preservation of their young. But the ostrich is a monster in nature, for she drops her eggs any where upon the ground and takes no care to hatch them. If the sand and the sun will hatch them, well and good; they may for her, for she will not warm them, Job 39:14. Nay, she takes no care to preserve them: The foot of the traveller may crush them, and the wild beast break them, Job 39:15. But how then are any young ones brought forth, and whence is it that the species has not perished? We must suppose either that God, by a special providence, with the heat of the sun and the sand (so some think), hatches the neglected eggs of the ostrich, as he feeds the neglected young ones of the raven, or that, though the ostrich often leaves her eggs thus, yet not always. (2.) The reason why she does thus expose her eggs. It is, [1.] For want of natural affection (Job 39:16): She is hardened against her young ones. To be hardened against any is unamiable, even in a brute-creature, much more in a rational creature that boasts of humanity, especially to be hardened against young ones, that cannot help themselves and therefore merit compassion, that give no provocation and therefore merit no hard usage: but it is worst of all for her to be hardened against her own young ones, as though they were not hers, whereas really they are parts of herself. Her labour in laying her eggs is in vain and all lost, because she has not that fear and tender concern for them that she should have. Those are most likely to lose their labour that are least in fear of losing it. [2.] For want of wisdom (Job 39:17): God has deprived her of wisdom. This intimates that the art which other animals have to nourish and preserve their young is God's gift, and that, where it exists not, God denies it, that by the folly of the ostrich, as well as by the wisdom of the ant, we may learn to be wise; for, First, As careless as the ostrich is of her eggs so careless many people are of their own souls; they make no provision for them, no proper nest in which they may be safe, leave them exposed to Satan and his temptations, which is a certain evidence that they are deprived of wisdom. Secondly, So careless are many parents of their children; some of their bodies, not providing for their own house, their own bowels, and therefore worse than infidels, and as bad as the ostrich; but many more are thus careless of their children's souls, take no care of their education, send them abroad into the world untaught, unarmed, forgetting what corruption there is in the world through lust, which will certainly crush them. Thus their labour in rearing them comes to be in vain; it were better for their country that they had never been born. Thirdly, So careless are too many ministers of their people, with whom they should reside; but they leave them in the earth, and forget how busy Satan is to sow tares while men sleep. They overlook those whom they should oversee, and are really hardened against them.

2. Care of herself. She leaves her eggs in danger, but, if she herself be in danger, no creature shall strive more to get out of the way of it than the ostrich, Job 39:18. Then she lifts up her wings on high (the strength of which then stands her in better stead than their beauty), and, with the help of them, runs so fast that a horseman at full speed cannot overtake her: She scorneth the horse and his rider. Those that are least under the law of natural affection often contend most for the law of self-preservation. Let not the rider be proud of the swiftness of his horse when such an animal as the ostrich shall out-run him.

Matthew Henry: Job 39:19-25

God, having displayed his own power in those creatures that are strong and despise man, here shows it in one scarcely inferior to any of them in strength, and yet very tame and serviceable to man, and that is the horse, especially the horse that is prepared against the day of battle and is serviceable to man at a time when he has more than ordinary occasion for his service. It seems, there was, in Job's country, a noble generous breed of horses. Job, it is probable, kept many, though they are not mentioned among his possessions, cattle for use in husbandry being there valued more than those for state and war, which alone horses were then reserved for, and they were not then put to such mean services as with us they are commonly put to. Concerning the great horse, that stately beast, it is here observed, 1. That he has a great deal of strength and spirit (v. 19): Hast thou given the horse strength? He uses his strength for man, but has it not from him: God gave it to him, who is the fountain of all the powers of nature, and yet he himself delights not in the strength of the horse (Psa 147:10), but has told us that a horse is a vain thing for safety, Psa 33:17. For running, drawing, and carrying, no creature that is ordinarily in the service of man has so much strength as the horse has, nor is of so stout and bold a spirit, not to be made afraid as a grasshopper, but daring and forward to face danger. It is a mercy to man to have such a servant, which, though very strong, submits to the management of a child, and rebels not against his owner. But let not the strength of a horse be trusted to, Hos 14:3; Psa 20:7; Isa 31:1, Isa 31:3. 2. That his neck and nostrils look great. His neck is clothed with thunder, with a large and flowing mane, which makes him formidable and is an ornament to him. The glory of his nostrils, when he snorts, flings up his head, and throws foam about, is terrible, Job 39:20. Perhaps there might be at that time, and in that country, a more stately breed of horses than any we have now. 3. That he is very fierce and furious in battle, and charges with an undaunted courage, though he pushes on in imminent danger of his life. (1.) See how frolicsome he is (Job 39:21): He paws in the valley, scarcely knowing what ground he stands upon. He is proud of his strength, and he has much more reason to be so as using his strength in the service of man, and under his direction, than the wild ass that uses it in contempt of man, and in a revolt from him Job 39:8. (2.) See how forward he is to engage: He goes on to meet the armed men, animated, not by the goodness of the cause, or the prospect of honour, but only by the sound of the trumpet, the thunder of the captains, and the shouting of the soldiers, which are as bellows to the fire of his innate courage, and make him spring forward with the utmost eagerness, as if he cried, Ha! ha! Job 39:25. How wonderfully are the brute-creatures fitted for and inclined to the services for which they were designed. (3.) See how fearless he is, how he despises death and the most threatening dangers, (Job 39:22): He mocks at fear, and makes a jest of it; slash at him with a sword, rattle the quiver, brandish the spear, to drive him back, he will not retreat, but press forward, and even inspires courage into his rider. (4.) See how furious he is. He curvets and prances, and runs on with so much violence and heat against the enemy that one would think he even swallowed the ground with fierceness and rage, Job 39:24. High mettle is the praise of a horse rather than of a man, whom fierceness and rage ill become. This description of the war-horse will help to explain that character which is given of presumptuous sinners, Jer 8:6. Every one turneth to his course, as the horse rusheth into the battle. When a man's heart is fully set in him to do evil, and he is carried on in a wicked way by the violence of inordinate appetites and passions, there is no making him afraid of the wrath of God and the fatal consequences of sin. Let his own conscience set before him the curse of the law, the death that is the wages of sin, and all the terrors of the Almighty in battle-array; he mocks at this fear, and is not affrighted, neither turns he back from the flaming sword of the cherubim. Let ministers lift up their voice like a trumpet, to proclaim the wrath of God against him, he believes not that it is the sound of the trumpet, nor that God and his heralds are in earnest with him; but what will be in the end hereof it is easy to foresee.

Matthew Henry: Job 39:26-30

The birds of the air are proofs of the wonderful power and providences of God, as well as the beasts of the earth; God here refers particularly to two stately ones: - 1. The hawk, a noble bird of great strength and sagacity, and yet a bird of prey, Job 39:26. This bird is here taken notice of for her flight, which is swift and strong, and especially for the course she steers towards the south, whither she follows the sun in winter, out of the colder countries in the north, especially when she is to cast her plumes and renew them. This is her wisdom, and it was God that gave her this wisdom, not man. Perhaps the extraordinary wisdom of the hawk's flight after her prey was not used then for men's diversion and recreation, as it has been since. It is a pity that the reclaimed hawk, which is taught to fly at man's command and to make him sport, should at any time be abused to the dishonour of God, since it is from God that she receives that wisdom which makes her flight entertaining and serviceable. 2. The eagle, a royal bird, and yet a bird of prey too, the permission of which, nay, the giving of power to which, may help to reconcile us to the prosperity of oppressors among men. The eagle is here taken notice of, (1.) For the height of her flight. No bird soars so high, has so strong a wind, nor can so well bear the light of the sun. Now, " Doth she mount at thy command? Job 39:27. Is it by any strength she has from thee? or dost thou direct her flight? No; it is by the natural power and instinct God has given her that she will soar out of thy sight, much more out of thy call."(2.) For the strength of her nest. Her house is her castle and strong-hold; she makes it on high and on the rock, the crag of the rock (Job 39:28), which sets her and her young out of the reach of danger. Secure sinners think themselves as safe in their sins as the eagle in her nest on high, in the clefts of the rock; but I will bring thee down thence, saith the Lord, Jer 49:16. The higher bad men sit above the resentments of the earth the nearer they ought to think themselves to the vengeance of Heaven. (3.) For her quicksightedness (Job 39:29): Her eyes behold afar off, not upwards, but downwards, in quest of her prey. In this she is an emblem of a hypocrite, who, while, in the profession of religion, he seems to rise towards heaven, keeps his eye and heart upon the prey on earth, some temporal advantage, some widow's house or other that he hopes to devour, under pretence of devotion. (4.) For the way she has of maintaining herself and her young. She preys upon living animals, which she seizes and tears to pieces, and thence carries to her young ones, which are taught to suck up blood; they do it by instinct, and know no better; but for men that have reason and conscience to thirst after blood is what could scarcely be believed if there had not been in every age wretched instances of it. She also preys upon the dead bodies of men: Where the slain are, there is she, These birds of prey (in another sense than the horse, Job 39:25) smell the battle afar off. Therefore, when a great slaughter is to be made among the enemies of the church, the fowls are invited to the supper of the great God, to eat the flesh of kings and captains, Rev 19:17, Rev 19:18. Our Saviour refers to this instinct of the eagle, Mat 24:28. Wheresoever the carcase is, there will the eagles be gathered together. Every creature will make towards that which is its proper food; for he that provides the creatures their food has implanted in them that inclination. These and many such instances of natural power and sagacity in the inferior creatures, which we cannot account for, oblige us to confess our own weakness and ignorance and to give glory to God as the fountain of all being, power, wisdom, and perfection.

Keil-Delitzsch: Job 38:4-7

4 Where wast thou when I established the earth?

Say, if thou art capable of judging!

5 Who hath determined its measure, if thou knowest it,

Or who hath stretched the measuring line over it?

6 Upon what are the bases of its pillars sunk in,

Or who hath laid its corner-stone,

7 When the morning stars sang together

And all the sons of God shouted for joy?

The examination begins similarly to Job 15:7. In opposition to the censurer of God as such the friends were right, although only negatively, since their conduct was based on self-delusion, as though they were in possession of the key to the mystery of the divine government of the world. ידע בּינה signifies to understand how to judge, to possess a competent understanding, 1Ch 12:32; 2Ch 2:12, or ( ידע taken not in the sense of novisse , but cognoscere ) to appropriate to one's self, Pro 4:1; Isa 29:24. כּי , Job 38:5 , interchanges with אם (comp. Job 38:18), for כּי תדע signifies: suppose that thou knowest it, and this si forte scias is almost equivalent to an forte scis , Pro 30:4. The founding of the earth is likened altogether to that of a building constructed by man. The question: upon what are the bases of its pillars or foundations sunk ( טבע , Arab. ṭb‛ , according to its radical signification, to press with something flat upon something, comp. Arab. ṭbq , to lay two flat things on one another, then both to form or stamp by pressure, and to press into soft pliant stuff, or let down into, immergere , or to sink into, immergi ), points to the fact of the earth hanging free in space, Job 26:7. Then no human being was present, for man was not yet created; the angels, however, beheld with rejoicing the founding of the place of the future human family, and the mighty acts of God in accordance with the decree of His love (as at the building of the temple, the laying of the foundation, Ezr 3:10, and the setting of the head-stone, Zec 4:7, were celebrated), for the angels were created before the visible world ( Psychol . S. 63; Genesis , S. 105), as is indeed not taught here, but still (vid., on the other hand, Hofmann, Schriftbew . i. 400) is assumed. For בּני אלהים are, as in Job 1-2, the angels, who proceeded from God by a mode of creation which is likened to begetting, and who with Him form one πατριά ( Genesis , S. 121). The "morning stars,"however, are mentioned in connection with them, because between the stars and the angels, which are both comprehended in צבא השׁמים ( Genesis , S. 128), a mysterious connection exists, which is manifoldly attested in Holy Scripture (vid., on the other hand, Hofm. ib . S. 318). כּוכב בּקר is the morning star which in Isa 14:12 is called הילל (as extra-bibl. נגהּ ) from its dazzling light, which exceeds all other stars in brightness, and בּן־שׁחר , son of the dawn, because it swims in the dawn as though it were born from it. It was just the dawn of the world coming into being, which is the subject spoken of, that gave rise to the mention of the morning star; the plur., however, does not mean the stars which came into being on that morning of the world collectively (Hofm., Schlottm.), but Lucifer with the stars his peers, as כּסילים , Isa 13:10, Orion and the stars his peers. Arab. suhayl (Canopus) is used similarly as a generic name for stars of remarkable brilliancy, and in general suhêl is to the nomads and the Hauranites the symbol of what is brilliant, glorious, and beautiful;

(Note: A man or woman of great beauty is called suhêli , suhelı̂je . Thus I heard a Hauranitish woman say to her companion: nahâr el -jôm nedâ ,shuft ledsch (Arab. lk ) wâhid Suhêli , To-day is dew, I saw a Suhêli , i.e., a very handsome man, for thee. - Wetzst.)

so that even the beings of light of the first rank among the celestial spirits might be understood by כוכבי בקר . But if this ought to be the meaning, Job 38:7 and Job 38:7 would be in an inverted order. They are actual stars, whether it is intended of the sphere belonging to the earth or to the higher sphere comprehended in השׁמים , Gen 1:1. Joy and light are reciprocal notions, and the scale of the tones of joy is likened to the scale of light and colours; therefore the fulness of light, in which the morning stars shone forth all together at the founding of the earth, may symbolize one grandly harmonious song of joy.

Keil-Delitzsch: Job 38:8-11

8 And who shut up the sea with doors,

When it broke through, issued from the womb,

9 When I put clouds round it as a garment,

And thick mist as its swaddling clothes,

10 And I broke for it my bound,

And set bars and doors,

11 And said: Hitherto come, and no further,

And here be thy proud waves stayed!?

The state of תהו ובהו was the first half, and the state of תהום the second half of the primeval condition of the forming earth. The question does not, however, refer to the תהום , in which the waters of the sky and the waters of the earth were as yet not separated, but, passing over this intermediate condition of the forming earth, to the sea, the waters of which God shut up as by means of a door and bolt, when, first enshrouded in thick mist (which has remained from that time one of its natural peculiarities), and again and again manifesting its individuality, it broke forth ( גּיח of the foetus, as Psa 22:10) from the bowels of the, as yet, chaotic earth. That the sea, in spite of the flatness of its banks, does not flow over the land, is a work of omnipotence which broke over it, i.e., restraining it, a fixed bound ( חק as Job 26:10; Pro 8:29; Jer 5:22, = גּבוּל , Psa 104:9), viz., the steep and rugged walls of the basin of the sea, and which thereby established a firm barrier behind which it should be kept. Instead of וּפה , Jos 18:8, Job 38:11 has the Chethib וּפא . חק is to be understood with ישׁית , and "one set"is equivalent to the passive (Ges. §137*): let a bound be set (comp. שׁת , Hos 6:11, which is used directly so) against the proud rising of thy waves.

Keil-Delitzsch: Job 38:12-15

12 Hast thou in thy life commanded a morning,

Caused the dawn to know its place,

13 That it may take hold of the ends of the earth,

So that the evil-doers are shaken under it?

14 That it changeth like the clay of a signet-ring,

And everything fashioneth itself as a garment.

15 Their light is removed from the evil-doers,

And the out-stretched arm is broken.

The dawn of the morning, spreading out from one point, takes hold of the carpet of the earth as it were by the edges, and shakes off from it the evil-doers, who had laid themselves to rest upon it the night before. נער , combining in itself the significations to thrust and to shake, has the latter here, as in the Arab. nâ‛ûra , a water-wheel, which fills its compartments below in the river, to empty them out above. Instead of ידּעתּה שׁחר with He otians, the Keri substitutes ידּעתּ השׁחר . The earth is the subj. to Job 38:14 : the dawn is like the signet-ring, which stamps a definite impress on the earth as the clay, the forms which floated in the darkness of the night become visible and distinguishable. The subj. to Job 38:14 are not morning and dawn (Schult.), still less the ends of the earth (Ew. with the conjecture: יתיבצו , "they become dazzlingly white"), but the single objects on the earth: the light of morning gives to everything its peculiar garb of light, so that, hitherto overlaid by a uniform darkness, they now come forth independently, they gradually appear in their variegated diversity of form and hue. In כּמו לבוּשׁ , לבוש is conceived as accusative (Arab. kemâ libâsan , or thauban ), while in כלבושׁ (Psa 104:6, instar vestis ) it would be genitive. To the end of the strophe everything is under the logical government of the ל of purpose in Job 38:13 . The light of the evil-doers is, according to Job 24:17, the darkness of the night, which is for them in connection with their works what the light of day is for other men. The sunrise deprives them, the enemies of light in the true sense (Job 24:13), of this light per antiphrasin , and the carrying out of their evil work, already prepared for, is frustrated. The ע of רשׁעים , Job 38:13 and Job 38:15, is תלויה עין [ Ayin suspensum, ] which is explained according to the Midrash thus: the רשׁעים , now עשׁירים (rich), become at a future time רשׁים (poor); or: God deprives them of the עין (light of the eye), by abandoning them to the darkness which they loved.

Keil-Delitzsch: Job 38:16-21

16 Hast thou reached the fountains of the sea,

And hast thou gone into the foundation of the deep?

17 Were the gates of death unveiled to thee,

And didst thou see the gates of the realm of shades?

18 Hast thou comprehended the breadth of the earth?

Speak, in so far as thou knowest all this!

19 Which is the way to where the light dwelleth,

And darkness, where is its place,

20 That thou mightest bring it to its bound,

And that thou mightest know the paths of its house?

21 Thou knowest it, for then wast thou born,

And the number of thy days is great! -

The root נב has the primary notion of obtruding itself upon the senses (vid., Genesis , S. 635), whence נבך in Arabic of a rising country that pleases the eye ( nabaka , a hill, a hillside), and here (cognate in root and meaning נבע , Syr. Talmud. נבג , Arab. nbg , nbṭ , scatuirire ) of gushing and bubbling water. Hitzig's conjecture, approved by Olsh., נבלי , sets aside a word that is perfectly clear so far as the language is concerned. On חקר vid., on Job 11:7. The question put to Job in Job 38:17, he must, according to his own confession, Job 26:6, answer in the negative. In order to avoid the collision of two aspirates, the interrogative ה is wanting before התבּננתּ , Ew. §324, b ; התבנן עד signifies, according to Job 32:12, to observe anything carefully; the meaning of the question therefore is, whether Job has given special attention to the breadth of the earth, and whether he consequently has a comprehensive and thorough knowledge of it. כּלּהּ refers not to the earth (Hahn, Olsh., and others), but, as neuter, to the preceding points of interrogation. The questions, Job 38:19, refer to the principles of light and darkness, i.e., their final causes, whence they come forth as cosmical phenomena. ישׁכּן־אור is a relative clause, Ges. §123, 3, c ; the noun that governs (the Regens ) this virtual genitive, which ought in Arabic to be without the art . as being determined by the regens , is, according to the Hebrew syntax, which is freer in this respect, הדּרך (comp. Ges. §110, 2). That which is said of the bound of darkness, i.e., the furthest point at which darkness passes away, and the paths to its house, applies also to the light, which the poet perhaps has even prominently (comp. Job 24:13) before his mind: light and darkness have a first cause which is inaccessible to man, and beyond his power of searching out. The admission in Job 38:21 is ironical: Verily! thou art as old as the beginning of creation, when light and darkness, as powers of nature which are distinguished and bounded the one by the other (vid., Job 26:10), were introduced into the rising world; thou art as old as the world, so that thou hast an exact knowledge of its and thine own contemporaneous origin (vid., Job 15:7). On the fut . joined with אז htiw denioj . regularly in the signification of the aorist , vid., Ew. §134, b . The attraction in connection with מספּר is like Job 15:20; Job 21:21.

Keil-Delitzsch: Job 38:22-27

22 Hast thou reached the treasures of the snow,

And didst thou see the treasures of the hail,

23 Which I have reserved for a time of trouble,

For the day of battle and war?

24 Which is the way where the light is divided,

Where the east wind is scattered over the earth?

25 Who divideth a course for the rain-flood

And the way of the lightning of thunder,

26 That it raineth on the land where no one dwelleth,

On the tenantless steppe,

27 To satisfy the desolate and the waste,

And to cause the tender shoot of the grass to spring forth?

The idea in Job 38:22 is not that - as for instance the peasants of Menîn , four hours' journey from Damascus, garner up the winter snow in a cleft of the rock, in order to convey it to Damascus and the towns of the coast in the hot months - God treasures up the snow and hail above to cause it to descend according to opportunity. אצרות (comp. Psa 135:7) are the final causes of these phenomena which God has created - the form of the question, the design of which (which must not be forgotten) is ethical, not scientific, is regulated according to the infancy of the perception of natural phenomena among the ancients; but at the same time in accordance with the poet's task, and even, as here, in the choice of the agents of destruction, not merely hail, but also snow, according to the scene of the incident. Wetzstein has in his possession a writing of Muhammed el-Chatîb el-Bosrâwi, in which he describes a fearful fall of snow in Hauran, by which, in February 1860, innumerable herds of sheep, goats, and camels, and also many human beings perished.

(Note: Since the Hauranites say of snow as of fire: jahrik , it burns ( brûlant in French is also used of extreme cold), Job 1:16 might also be understood of a fall of snow; but the tenor of the words there requires it to be understood of actual fire.)

עת־צר might, according to Job 24:1; Job 19:11, signify a time of judgment for the oppressor, i.e., adversary; but it is better to be understood according to Job 36:16; Job 21:30, a time of distress: heavy falls of snow and tempestuous hail-storms bring hard times for men and cattle, and sometimes decide a war as by a divine decree (Jos 10:11, comp. Isa 28:17; Isa 30:30; Eze 13:13).

In Job 38:24 it is not, as in Job 38:19 , the place whence light issues, but the mode of the distribution of light over the earth, that is intended; as in Job 38:24 , the laws according to which the east wind flows forth, i.e., spreads over the earth. אור is not lightning (Schlottm.), but light in general: light and wind (instead of which the east wind is particularized, vid., p. 533) stand together as being alike untraceable in their courses. הפיץ , se diffundere , as Exo 5:12; 1Sa 13:8, Ges. §53, 2. In Job 38:25 the descent of torrents of rain inundating certain regions of the earth is intended - this earthward direction assigned to the water-spouts is likened to an aqueduct coming downwards from the sky - and it is only in Job 38:25 , as in Job 28:26, that the words have reference to the lightning, which to man is untraceable, flashing now here, now there. This guiding of the rain to chosen parts of the earth extends also to the tenantless steppe. לא־אישׁ (for בּלא ) is virtually an adj. (vid., on Job 12:24). The superlative combination שׁאה וּמשׁאה (from שׁוא = שׁאה , to be desolate, and to give forth a heavy dull sound, i.e., to sound desolate, vid., on Job 37:6), as Job 30:3 (which see). Not merely for the purposes of His rule among men does God direct the changes of the weather contrary to human foresight; His care extends also to regions where no human habitations are found.

Keil-Delitzsch: Job 38:28-30

28 Hath the rain a father,

Or who begetteth the drops of dew?

29 Out of whose womb cometh the ice forth,

And who bringeth forth the hoar-frost of heaven?

30 The waters become hard like stone,

And the face of the deep is rolled together.

Rain and dew have no created father, ice and hoar-frost no created mother. The parallelism in both instances shows that מי הוליד asks after the one who begets, and מי ילדו the one who bears (vid., Hupfeld on Psa 2:7). בּטן is uterus , and meton. (at least in Arabic) progenies uteri; ex utero cujus is מבטן מי , in distinction from מאי־זה בטן , ex quo utero . אגלי־טל is excellently translated by the lxx, Codd. Vat. and Sin., βώλους (with Omega ) δρόσου ; Ges. and Schlottm. correct to βόλους , but βῶλος signifies not merely a clod, but also a lump and a ball. It is the particles of the dew holding together (lxx, Cod. Alex.: συνοχὰς καὶ βω. δρ. ) in a globular form, from אגל , which does not belong to גּלל , but to Arab. 'jil , retinere , II colligere (whence agı̂l , standing water, ma'‛gal , a pool, pond); אגלי is constr., like עגלי from עגל . The waters "hide themselves,"by vanishing as fluid, therefore: freeze. The surface of the deep (lxx ἀσεβοῦς , for which Zwingli has in marg. ἀβύσσου ) "takes hold of itself,"or presses together (comp. Arab. lekda , crowding, synon. hugûm , a striking against) by forming itself into a firm solid mass ( continuum , Job 41:9, comp. Job 37:10). Moreover, the questions all refer not merely to the analysis of the visible origin of the phenomena, but to their final causes.

Keil-Delitzsch: Job 38:31-33

31 Canst thou join the twistings of the Pleiades,

Or loose the bands of Orion?

32 Canst thou bring forth the signs of the Zodiac at the right time,

And canst thou guide the Bear with its children?

33 Knowest thou the laws of heaven,

Or dost thou define its influence on the earth?

That מעדגּות here signifies bindings or twistings (from עדן = ענד , Job 31:36) is placed beyond question by the unanimous translations of the lxx ( δεσμόν ) and the Targ. ( שׁירי = σειράς ), the testimony of the Masora, according to which the word here has a different signification from 1Sa 15:32, and the language of the Talmud, in which מעדנין , Kêlim , c. 20, signifies the knots at the end of a mat, by loosing which it comes to pieces, and Succa , 13 b , the bands (formed of rushes) with which willow-branches are fastened together above in order to form a booth ( succa ); but מדאני , Sabbat , 33 a , signifies a bunch of myrtle (to smell on the Sabbath). מעדנות כּימה is therefore explained according to the Persian comparison of the Pleiades with a bouquet of jewels, mentioned on Job 9:9, and according to the comparison with a necklace ( ‛ipd -eth -thurajja ), e.g., in Sadi in his Gulistan , p. 8 of Graf's translation: "as though the tops of the trees were encircled by the necklace of the Pleiades."The Arabic name thurajja (diminutive feminine of tharwân ) probably signifies the richly-adorned, clustered constellation. But כּימה signifies without doubt the clustered group,

(Note: The verb כום is still in general use in the Piel (to heap up, form a heap, part. mukauwam , heaped up) and Hithpa . (to accumulate) in Syria, and kôm is any village desolated in days of yore whose stones form a desolate heap comp. Fleischer, De Glossis Habichtianis , p. 41f.]. If, according to Kamus, in old Jemanic kı̂m in the sense of mukâwim signifies a confederate (synon. chilt , gils ), the כּימה would be a confederation, or a heap, assemblage (coetus) of confederates. Perhaps the כימה was regarded as a troop of camels; the Beduins at least call the star directly before the seven-starred constellation of the Pleiades the hâdi , i.e., the singer riding before the procession, who cheers the camels by the sound of the hadwa ( חדוה ), and thereby urges them on. - Wetzst.

On πλειάδες , which perhaps also bear this name as a compressed group (figuratively γότρυς ) of several stars ( ὅτι πλείους ὁμοῦ κατὰ συναγωγήν εἰσι ), vid., Kuhn's Zeitschr . vi. 282-285.)

and Beigel (in Ideler, Sternnamen , S. 147) does not translate badly: "Canst thou not arrange together the rosette of diamonds (chain would be better) of the Pleiades?"

As to כּסיל , we firmly hold that it denotes Orion (according to which the Greek versions translate Ὠρίων , the Syriac gaboro , the Targ. נפלא or נפילא , the Giant). Orion and the Pleiades are visible in the Syrian sky longer in the year than with us, and there they come about 17º higher above the horizon than with us. Nevertheless the figure of a giant chained to the heavens cannot be rightly shown to be Semitic, and it is questionable whether כסיל is not rather, with Saad., Gecat., Abulwalid, and others, to be regarded as the Suhêl , i.e., Canopus, especially as this is placed as a sluggish helper ( כסיל , Hebr. a fool, Arab. the slothful one, ignavus ) in mythical relation to the constellation of the Bear, which here is called עישׁ , as Job 9:9 עשׁ , and is regarded as a bier, נעשׁ (even in the present day this is the name in the towns and villages of Syria), which the sons and daughters forming the attendants upon the corpse of their father, slain by Gedî , the Pole-star. Understood of Orion, משׁכות (with which Arab. msk , tenere , detinere , is certainly to be compared) are the chains (Arab. masakat , compes ), with which he is chained to the sky; understood of Suhêl, the restraints which prevent his breaking away too soon and reaching the goal.

(Note: In June 1860 I witnessed a quarrel in an encampment of Mo'gil -Beduins, in which one accused the others of having rendered it possible for the enemy to carry off his camels through their negligence; and when the accused assured him they had gone forth in pursuit of the marauders soon after the raid, and only turned back at sunset, the man exclaimed: Ye came indeed to my assistance as Suhêl to Gedî ( פזעתם לי פזע סהיל ללגדי ). I asked my neighbour what the words meant, and was informed they are a proverb which is very often used, and has its origin as follows: The Gedî (i.e., the Pole-star, called mismâr , משׂמר , in Damascus) slew the Na‛sh ( נעשׁ ), and is accordingly encompassed every night by the children of the slain Na‛sh , who are determined to take vengeance on the murderer. The sons (on which account poets usually say benı̂ instead of benât Na‛sh ) go first with the corpse of their father, and the daughters follow. One of the latter is called waldâne , a lying-in woman; she has only recently given birth to a child, and carries her child in her bosom, and she is still pale from her lying-in. (The clear atmosphere of the Syrian sky admits of the child in the bosom of the waldâne being distinctly seen.) In order to give help to the Gedî in this danger, the Suhêl appears in the south, and struggles towards the north with a twinkling brightness, but he has risen too late; the night passes away ere he reaches his goal. Later I frequently heard this story, which is generally known among the Hauranites. - Wetzst.

We add the following by way of explanation. The Pleiades encircle the Pole-star as do all stars, since it stands at the axis of the sky, but they are nearer to it than to Canopus by more than half the distance. This star of the first magnitude culminates about three hours later than the Pleiades, and rises, at the highest, only ten moon's diameters above the horizon of Damascusa significant figure, therefore, of ineffectual endeavour.)

מזּרות is not distinct from מזּלות , 2Ki 23:5 (comp. מזּרך , "Thy star of fortune,"on Cilician coins), and denotes not the twenty-eight menâzil (from Arab. nzl , to descend, turn in, lodge) of the moon,

(Note: Thus A. Weber in his Abh. über die vedischen Nachrichten von den naxatra (halting-places of the moon), 1860 (comp. Lit. Centralbl. 1859, col. 665), refuted by Steinschneider, Hebr. Bibliographie , 1861, Nr. 22, S. 93f.)

but the twelve signs of the Zodiac, which were likewise imagined as menâzil , i.e., lodging-houses or burûg , strongholds, in which one after another the sun lodges as it describes the circle of the year.

(Note: The names "the Ram, the Bull,"etc., are, according to Epiphanius, Opp . i. p. 34f. ( ed. Petav .), transferred from the Greek into the Jewish astrology, vid., Wissenschaft Kunst Judenthum , S. 220f.)

The usage of the language transferred lzm also to the planets, which, because they lie in the equatorial plane of the sun, as the sun (although more irregularly), run through the constellations of the Zodiac. The question in Job 38:32 therefore means: canst thou bring forth the appointed zodiacal sign for each month, so that (of course with the variation which is limited to about two moon's diameters by the daily progress of the sun through the Zodiac) it becomes visible after sunset and is visible before sunset? On Job 38:33 vid., on Gen 1:14-19. משׁטר is construed after the analogy of רדה בּ , עצר , משׁל ; and שׁמים , as sing. (Ew. §318, b ).

Keil-Delitzsch: Job 38:34-38

34 Dost thou raise thy voice to the clouds

That an overflow of waters may cover thee?

35 Dost thou send forth lightnings, and they go,

And say to thee: Here we are?

36 Who hath put wisdom in the reins,

Or who hath given understanding to the cock?

37 Who numbereth the strata of the clouds with wisdom

And the bottles of heaven, who emptieth them,

38 When the dust flows together into a mass,

And the clods cleave together?

As Job 38:25 was worded like Job 28:26, so Job 38:34 is worded like Job 22:11; the ך of תכסך is dageshed in both passages, as Job 36:2, Job 36:18, Hab 2:17. What Jehovah here denies to the natural power of man is possible to the power which man has by faith, as the history of Elijah shows: this, however, does not come under consideration here. In proof of divine omnipotence and human feebleness, Elihu constantly recurs to the rain and the thunder-storm with the lightning, which is at the bidding of God. Most moderns since Schultens therefore endeavour, with great violence, to make טחות and שׂכרי mean meteors and celestial phenomena. Eichh. (Hirz., Hahn) compares the Arabic name for the clouds, tachâ ( tachwa ), Ew. Arab. ḍiḥḥ , sunshine, with the former; the latter, whose root is שׂכה ( סכה ), spectare , is meant to be something that is remarkable in the heavens: an atmospheric phenomenon, a meteor (Hirz.), or a phenomenon caused by light (Ew., Hahn), so that e.g., Umbr. translates: "Who hath put wisdom in the dark clouds, and given understanding to the meteor?"But the meaning which is thus extorted from the words in favour of the connection borders closely upon absurdity. Why, then, shall טחות , from טוּח , Arab. ṭı̂ych , oblinere , adipe obducere , not signify here, as in Psa 51:8, the reins (embedded in a cushion of fat), and in fact as the seat of the predictive faculty, like כּליות , Job 19:27, as the seat of the innermost longing for the future; and particularly since here, after the constellations and the influences of the stars have just been spoken of, the mention of the gift of divination is not devoid of connection; and, moreover, as a glance at the next strophe shows, the connection which has been hitherto firmly kept to is already in process of being resolved?

If טחות signifies the reins, it is natural to interpret שׂכוי also psychologically, and to translate the intellect (Targ. I, Syr., Arab.), or similarly (Saad., Gecat.), as Ges., Carey, Renan, Schlottm. But there is another rendering handed down which is worthy of attention, although not once mentioned by Rosenm., Hirz., Schlottm., or Hahn, according to which שׂכוי signifies a cock, gallum . We read in b. Rosch ha-Schana, 26 a : "When I came to Techûm-Kên-Nishraja, R. Simeon b. Lakish relates, the bride was there called נינפי and the cock שׂכוי , according to which Job 38:36 is to be interpreted: שׂכוי = תרנגול ."The Midrash interprets in the same way, Jalkut , §905, beginning: "R. Levi says: In Arabic the cock is called סכוא ."We compare with this, Wajikra rabba , c. 1: " סוכו is Arabic; in Arabia a prophet is called סכוא ;"whence it is to be inferred that שׂכוי , as is assumed, describes the cock as a seer, as a prophet.

As to the formation of the word, it would certainly be without parallel (Ew., Olsh.) if the word had the tone on the penult., but Codd. and the best old editions have the Munach by the final syllable; Norzi, who has overlooked this, at least notes שׂכוי with the accent on the ult . as a various reading. It is a secondary noun, Ges. §86, 5, a so-called relative noun (De Sacy, Gramm. Arabe , §768): שׂכרי , speculator , from שׂכו ( שׂכוּ , שׂכה ), speculatio , as פּלאי , Jdg 13:18 (comp. Psa 139:6), miraculosus , from פּלא , a cognate form to the Chald. סכוי ( סכואה ), of similar meaning. In connection with this primary signification, speculator , it is intelligible how סכוי in Samaritan (vid., Lagarde on Proverbs, S. 62) can signify the eye; here, however, in a Hebrew poet, the cock, of which e.g., Gregory says: Speculator semper in altitudine stat, ut quidquid venturum sit longe prospiciat . That this signification speculator = gallus

(Note: No Arab. word offers itself here for comparison: tuchaj , a cock, has different consonants, and if Arab. škâ in the sense of Arab. šâk , fortem esse , were to be supposed, שׂכוי would be a synon. of גּבר , which is likewise a name of the cock.)

was generally accepted at least in the Talmudic age, the Beracha prescribed to him who hears the cock crow: "Blessed be He who giveth the cock ( שׂכוי ) knowledge to distinguish between day and night!"shows. In accordance with this, Targ. II translates: who has given understanding לתרנגול בּרא , gallo sylvestri (whereas Targ. I ללבּא , cordi, scil. hominis ), to praise his Lord? and Jer.: ( quis posuit in visceribus hominis sapientiam) et quis dedit gallo intelligentiam . This traditional rendering, condemned as talmudicum commentum (Ges.), we follow rather than the "phenomenon"of the moderns who guess at a meaning. What is questioned in Cicero, de divin . ii. 26: Quid in mentem venit Callistheni dicere, Deos gallis signum dedisse cantandi, quum id vel natura vel casus efficere potuisset , Jehovah here claims for Himself. The weather-prophet κατ ̓ ἐξοχήν among animals appropriately appears in this astrologico-meteorological connection by the side of the reins as, according to the Semitic view, a medium of augury ( Psychol . S. 268f.). The Koran also makes the cock the watchman who wakes up the heavenly hosts to their duty; and Masius, in his Studies of Nature , has shown how high the cock is placed as being prophetically (for divination) gifted, Moreover, the worship of cocks in the idolatry of the Semites was a service rendered to the stars: the Sabians offered cocks, probably (vid., Chwolsohn, ii. 87) as the white cock of Jezides, regarded by them as a symbol of the sun ( Deutsch. Morgenländ. Zeitschr. 1862, S. 365f.).

In Job 38:37 Jerome translates: et concentum coelorum quis dormire faciet ; נבלי , however, does not here signify harps, but bottles; and השׁכּיב is not: to lay to rest, but to lay down = to empty, pour out, which the Kal also, like the Arab. sakaba , directly signifies. בּצקת might be taken actively: when it pours, but according to 1Ki 22:35 the intransitive rendering is also possible: when the dust pours forth, i.e., flows together, למוּצק , to what is poured out, i.e., not: to the fluid, but in contrast: to a molten mass, i.e., as cast metal (to be explained not according to Job 22:16, but according to Job 37:18), for the dry, sandy, dusty earth is made firm by the downfall of the rain (Arab. ruṣidat , firmata est terra imbre , comp. Arab. lbbd , pluviam emisit donec arena cohaereret ). רגבים , glebae , as Job 21:33, from רגב , Arab. rjb , in the primary signification, which as it seems must be supposed: to bring together, from which the significations branch off, to thicken, become firm ( muraggab , supported), and to be seized with terror.

Keil-Delitzsch: Job 38:39-41

39 Dost thou hunt for the prey of the lioness

And still the desire of the young lions,

40 When they couch in the dens,

Sit in the thicket lying in wait for prey?

41 Who provideth for the raven its food,

When its young ones cry to God,

They wander about without food?

On the wealth of the Old Testament language in names for the lion, vid., on Job 4:10. לביא can be used of the lioness; the more exact name of the lioness is לביּה , for לביא is = לבי , whence לבאים , lions, and לבאות , lionesses. The lioness is mentioned first, because she has to provide for her young ones ( גּוּרים ); then the lions that are still young, but yet are left to themselves, כּפירים . The phrase מלּא חיּה (comp. חיּה of life that needs nourishment, Job 33:20) is equivalent to מלּא נפשׁ , Pro 6:30 ( Psychol . S. 204 ad fin .). The book of Psalms here furnishes parallels to every word: comp. on Job 38:39 , Psa 104:21; on ישׁחוּ , Psa 10:10;

(Note: The Semitic is rich in such words as describe the couching posture of beasts of prey lying in wait for their prey, which then in general signify to lie in wait, lurk, wait ( רצד , רבץ , Arab. rbṣ , lbd , wkkd ); Arab. q‛d lh , subsedit ei, i.e., insidiatus est ei , which corresponds to ישׁבו , Job 38:40 , also belongs here, comp. Psalter , i. 500 note.)

on מעונות , lustra , Psa 104:22 (compared on Job 37:8 already); on סכּה , סך , which is used just in the same way, Psa 10:9; Jer 25:38. The picture of the crying ravens has its parallel in Psa 147:9. כּי , quum , is followed by the fut . in the signif. of the praes., as Psa 11:3. As here, in the Sermon on the Mount in Luk 12:24 the ravens, which by their hoarse croaking make themselves most observed everywhere among birds that seek their food, are mentioned instead of the fowls of heaven.

Keil-Delitzsch: Job 39:1-4

1 Dost thou know the bearing time of the wild goats of the rock?

Observest thou the circles of the hinds?

2 Dost thou number the months which they fulfil,

And knowest thou the time of their bringing forth?

3 They bow down, they let their young break through,

They cast off their pains.

4 Their young ones gain strength, grow up in the desert,

They run away and do not return.

The strophe treats of the female chamois or steinbocks, ibices (perhaps including the certainly different kinds of chamois), and stags. The former are called יעלים , from יעל , Arab. w‛l (a secondary formation from עלה , Arab. ‛lâ ), to mount, therefore: rock-climbers. חולל is inf. Pil.: τὸ ὠδίνειν , comp. the Pul . Job 15:7. שׁמר , to observe, exactly as Ecc 11:4; 1Sa 1:12; Zec 11:11. In Job 39:2 the question as to the expiration of the time of bearing is connected with that as to the time of bringing forth. תּספּור , plene , as Job 14:16; לדתּנה ( littâna , like עת = עדתּ ) with an euphonic termination for לדתּן , as Gen 42:36; Gen 21:29, and also out of pause, Rth 1:19, Ges. §91, 1, rem. 2. Instead of תּפלּחנה Olsh. wishes to read תּפלּטנה , but this (synon. תמלטנה ) would be: they let slip away; the former (synon. תבקענה ): they cause to divide, i.e., to break through (comp. Arab. felâh , the act of breaking through, freedom, prosperity). On כּרע , to kneel down as the posture of one in travail, vid., 1Sa 4:19. "They cast off their pains"is not meant of an easy working off of the after-pains (Hirz., Schlottm.), but חבל signifies in this phrase, as Schultens has first shown, meton. directly the foetus, as Arab. ḥabal , plur. ahbâl , and ὠδίν , even of a child already grown up, as being the fruit of earlier travail, e.g., in Aeschylus, Agam . 1417f.; even the like phrase, ῥίψαι ὠδῖνα = edere foetum , is found in Euripides, Ion 45. Thus born with ease, the young animals grow rapidly to maturity ( חלם , pinguescere , pubescere , whence חלום , a dream as the result of puberty, vid., Psychol . S. 282), grow in the desert ( בּבּר , Targ. = בּחוּץ , vid., i. 329, note), seek the plain, and return not again למו , sibi h. e. sui juris esse volentes (Schult.), although it might also signify ad eas , for the Hebr. is rather confused on the question of the distinction of gender, and even in חבליהם and בניהם the masc . is used ἐπικοίνως . We, however, prefer to interpret according to Job 6:19; Job 24:16. Moreover, Bochart is right: Non hic agitur de otiosa et mere speculativa cognitione, sed de ea cognitione, quae Deo propria est, qua res omnes non solum novit, sed et dirigit atque gubernat .

Keil-Delitzsch: Job 39:5-8

5 Who hath sent forth the wild ass free,

And who loosed the bands of the wild ass,

6 Whose house I made the steppe,

And his dwelling the salt country?

7 He scorneth the tumult of the city,

He heareth not the noise of the driver.

8 That which is seen upon the mountains is his pasture,

And he sniffeth after every green thing.

On the wild ass (not: ass of the forest).

(Note: It is a dirty yellow with a white belly, single-hoofed and long-eared; its hornless head somewhat resembles that of the gazelle, but is much later; its hair has the dryness of the hair of the deer, and the animal forms the transition from the stag and deer genus to the ass. It is entirely distinct from the mahâ or baqar el-wahsh , wild ox, whose large soft eyes are so much celebrated by the poets of the steppe. This latter is horned and double-hoofed, and forms the transition from the stag to the ox distinct from the ri'm , ראם , therefore perhaps an antelope of the kind of the Indian nîlgau , blue ox, Portax tragocamelus . I have not seen both kinds of animals alive, but I have often seen their skins in the tents of the Ruwalâ . Both kinds are remarkable for their very swift running, and it is especially affirmed of the ferâ that no rider can overtake it. The poets compare a troop of horsemen that come rushing up and vanish in the next moment to a herd of ferâ . In spite of its difficulty and hazardousness, the nomads are passionately given to hunting the wild ass, and the proverb cited by the Kâmûs: kull es -sêd bigôf el -ferâ (every hunt sticks in the belly of the ferâ , i.e., compared with that, every other hunt is nothing), is perfectly correct. When the approach of a herd, which always consists of several hundred, is betrayed by a cloud of dust which can be seen many miles off, so many horsemen rise up from all sides in pursuit that the animals are usually scattered, and single ones are obtained by the dogs and by shots. The herd is called gemı̂le , and its leader is called ‛anûd ( ענוּד ),as with gazelles. - Wetzst.)

In Hebr. and Arab. it is פּרא ( ferâ or himâr el -wahsh , i.e., asinus ferus ), and Aram. ערוד ; the former describes it as a swift-footed animal, the latter as an animal shy and difficult to be tamed by the hand of man; "Kulan"is its Eastern Asiatic name. lxx correctly translates: τίς δὲ ἐστιν ὁ ἀφεὶς ὄνον ἄγριον ἐλεύθερον . חפשׁי is the acc . of the predicate (comp. Gen 33:2; Jer 22:30). Parallel with ערבה (according to its etymon perhaps, land of darkness, terra incognita ) is מלחה , salt adj . or (sc. ארץ ) a salt land, i.e., therefore unfruitful and incapable of culture, as the country round the Salt Sea of Palestine: that the wild ass even gladly licks the salt or natron of the desert, is a matter of fact, and may be assumed, since all wild animals that feed on plants have a partiality, which is based on chemical laws of life, for licking slat. On Job 39:8 Ew. observes, to render יתוּר as "what is espied"is insecure, "on account of the structure of the verse"( Gramm . S. 419, Anm.). This reason is unintelligible; and in general there is no reason for rendering יתוּר , after lxx, Targ., Jer., and others, as an Aramaic 3 fut . with a mere half vowel instead of Kametz before the tone = יתוּר , which is without example in Old Testament Hebrew (for יהוּא , Ecc 11:3, follows the analogy of יהי ), but יתוּר signifies either abundantia (after the form יבוּל , לחוּם Job 20:23, from יתר , Arab. wtr , p. 571) or investigabile , what can be searched out (after the form יקוּם , that which exists, from תּוּר , Arab. târ , to go about, look about), which, with Olsh. §212, and most expositors, we prefer.

Keil-Delitzsch: Job 39:9-12

9 Will the oryx be willing to serve thee,

Or will he lodge in thy crib?

10 Canst thou bind the oryx in the furrow with a leading rein,

Or will he harrow the valleys, following thee?

11 Wilt thou trust him because his strength is great,

And leave thy labour to him?

12 Wilt thou confide in him to bring in thy sowing,

And to garner thy threshing-floor?

In correct texts רים has a Dagesh in the Resh , and היאבה the accent on the penult., as Pro 11:21 ינּקה רע , and Jer 39:12 רּע מאוּמה . The tone retreats according to the rule, Ges. §29, 3, b ; and the Dagesh is, as also when the second word begins with an aspirate,

(Note: The National Grammarians call this exception to the rule, that the muta is aspirated when the preceding word ends with a vowel, אתי מרחיק ( veniens e longinquo ), i.e., the case, where the word ending with a vowel is Milel , whether from the very first, or, when the second word is a monosyllable or has the tone on the penult., on account of the accent that has retreated (in order to avoid two syllables with the chief tone coming together); in this case the aspirate, and in general the initial letter (if capable of being doubled) of the second monosyllabic or penultima -accented word, takes a Dagesh; but this is not without exceptions that are quite as regular. Regularly, the second word is not dageshed if it begins with ו , כ , ל , ב , or if the first word is only a bare verb, e.g., עשׂה לו , or one that has only ו before it, e.g., ועשׂה פסח ; the tone of the first word in both these examples retreats, but without the initial of the second being doubled. This is supplementary, and as far as necessary a correction, to what is said in Psalter , i 392, Anm.)

Dag. forte conj., which the Resh also takes, Pro 15:1 מענה־רּך , exceptionally, according to the rule, Ges. §20, 2, a . In all, it occurs thirteen times with Dagesh in the Old Testament - a relic of a mode of pointing which treated the ר (as in Arabic) as a letter capable of being doubled (Ges. §22, 5), that has been supplanted in the system of pointing that gained the ascendency. רים (Psa 22:22, רם ) is contracted from ראם (Psa 92:11, plene , ראים ), which (= ראם ) is of like form with Arab. ri'm (Olsh. §154, a ).

(Note: Since ra'ima , inf. ri'mân , has the signification assuescere , ראם , רים , רימנא (Targ.) might describe the oryx as a gregarious animal, although all ruminants have this characteristic in common. On ראם , Arab. r'm , vid., Seetzen's Reise, iii. S. 393, Z 9ff., and also iv. 496.)

Such, in the present day in Syria, is the name of the gazelle that is for the most part white with a yellow back and yellow stripes in the face ( Antilope leucoryx , in distinction from Arab. ‛ifrı̂ , the earth-coloured, dirty-yellow Antilope oryx , and Arab. ḥmrı̂ , himrı̂ , the deer-coloured Antilope dorcas ); the Talmud also ( b. Zebachim , 113b; Bathra , 74 b ) combines ראימא and אורזילא or ארזילא , a gazelle (Arab. gazâl ), and therefore reckons the reêm to the antelope genus, of which the gazelle is a species; and the question, Job 39:10 , shows that an animal whose home is on the mountains is intended, viz., as Bochart, and recently Schlottm. (making use of an academic treatise of Lichtenstein on the antelopes, 1824), has proved, the oryx, which the lxx also probably understands when it translates μονοκέρως ; for the Talmud. קרש , mutilated from it, is, according to Chullin , 59 b , a one-horned animal, and is more closely defined as טביא דבי עילאי , "gazelle (antelope) of Be (Beth)-Illâi"(comp. Lewysohn, Zoologie des Talmuds , 1858, §146).

The oryx also appears on Egyptian monuments sometimes with two horns, but mostly with one variously curled; and both Aristotle

(Note: Vid., Sundevall, Die Thierarten des Aristoteles (Stockholm, 1863), S. 64f.)

and Pliny describe it as a one-horned cloven-hoof; so that one must assent to the supposition of a one-horned variety of the oryx (although as a fact of natural history it is not yet fully established), as then there is really tolerably certain information of a one-horned antelope both in Upper Asia and in Central Africa;

(Note: J. W. von Müller ( Das Einhorn von gesch. u. naturwiss. Standpunkte betrachtet, 1852) believed that in a horn in the Ambras Collection at Vienna he recognised a horn of the Monocerôs (comp. Fechner's Centralblatt, 1854, Nr. 2), but he is hardly right. J. W. von Müller, Francis Galton ( Narrative of an Explorer in Tropical South Africa, 1853), and other travellers have heard the natives speak ingenuously of the unicorn, but without seeing it themselves. On the other hand, Huc and Gabet ( Journeyings through Mongolia and Thibet , Germ. edition) tell us "a horn of this animal was sent to Calcutta: it was 50 centimetres long and 11 in circumference; from the root it ran up to a gradually diminishing point. It was almost straight, black, etc ... . Hodgson, when English consul at Nepal, had the good fortune to obtain an unicorn ... . It is a kind of antelope, which in southern Thibet, that borders on Nepal, is called Tschiru . Hodgson sent a skin and horn to Calcutta; they came from an unicorn that died in the menagerie of the Raja of Nepal."The detailed description follows, and the suggestion is advanced that this Antilope Hodgsonii , as it has been proposed to call the Tschiru , is the one-horned oryx of the ancients. The existence of one-horned wild sheep (not antelopes), attested by R. von Schlagintweit ( Zoologischer Garten , 1st year, S. 72), the horn of which consists of two parts gradually growing together, covered by one horn-sheath, does not depreciate the credibility of the account given by Huc-Gabet (to which Prof. Will has called my attention as being the most weighty testimony of the time). Another less minute account is to be found in the Arabic description of a journey (communicated to me by Prof. Fleischer) by Selîm Bisteris (Beirût, 1856): In the menagerie of the Viceroy of Egypt he saw an animal of the colour of a gazelle, but the size and form of an ass, with a long straight horn between the ears, and what, as he says, seldom go together) with hoofs, viz. - and as the expression Arab. ḥâfr , horse's hoof (not Arab. chuff , a camel's hoof), also implies - proper, uncloven hoofs, - therefore an one-horned and at the same time one-hoofed antelope.)

and therefore there is sufficient ground for seeking the origin of the tradition of the unicorn in an antelope, - perhaps rather like a horse, - with one horn rising out of the two points of ossification over the frontal suture. The proper buffalo, Bos bubalus, cannot therefore be intended, because it only came from India to Western Asia and Europe at a more recent date, but also not any other species whatever of this animal (Carey and others), which is recognisable by its flat horns, which are also near together, and its forbidding, staring, bloodshot eyes; for it is tameable, and is (even in modern Syria) used as a domestic animal. On the other hand there are antelopes which somewhat resemble the horse, others the ox (whence βούβαλος , βούβαλις , is a name for the antelope), others the deer and the ass. Schultens erroneously considers ראם to be the buffalo, being misled by a passage in the Divan of the Hudheilites, which gives the ri'm the by-name of dhu chadam , i.e., oxen-like white-footed, which exactly applies to the A. oryx or even the A. leucoryx; for the former has white feet and legs striped lengthwise with black stripes, the latter white feet and legs. Just as little reason is there for imagining the rhinoceros after Aquila (and in part Jerome); ῥινοκέρως is nothing but an unhappy rendering of the μονοκέρως of the lxx. The question in Job 39:10 , as already observed, requires an animal that inhabits the mountains.

On אבה , to be willing = to take up, receive. The "furrow ( תּלם , sulcus , not porca , the ridge between the furrows) of his cord"is that which it is said to break up by means of the ploughshare, being led by a rein. אחריך refers to the leader, who goes just before or at the side; according to Hahn, to one who has finished the sowing which precedes the harrowing; but it is more natural to imagine the leader of the animal that is harrowing, which is certainly not left to itself. On כּי , Job 39:12 , as an exponent of the obj. vid., Ew. §336, b . The Chethib here uses the Kal שׁוּב transitively: to bring back (viz., that which was sown as harvested), which is possible (vid., Job 42:10). גרנך , Job 39:12 , is either a locative (into thy threshing-floor) or acc . of the obj. per synecd. continentis pro contento , as Rth 3:2; Mat 3:12. The position of the question from beginning to end assumes an animal outwardly resembling the yoke-ox, as the ראם is also elsewhere put with the ox, Deu 33:17; Psa 29:6; Isa 34:7. But the conclusion at length arrived at by Hahn and in Gesenius' Handwörterbuch , that on this very account the buffalo is to be understood, is a mistake: A. oryx and leucoryx are both (for this very reason not distinguished by the ancients) entirely similar to the ox; they are not only ruminants, like the ox, with a like form of the hoof, but also of a plump form, which makes them appear to be of the ox tribe.

Keil-Delitzsch: Job 39:13-18

13 The wing of the ostrich vibrates joyously,

Is she pious, wing and feather?

14 No, she leaveth her eggs in the earth

And broodeth over the dust,

15 Forgetting that a foot may crush them,

And the beast of the field trample them.

16 She treateth her young ones harshly as if they were not hers;

In vain is her labour, without her being distressed.

17 For Eloah hath caused her to forget wisdom,

And gave her no share of understanding.

18 At the time when she lasheth herself aloft,

She derideth the horse and horseman.

As the wild ass and the ox-like oryx cannot be tamed by man, and employed in his service like the domestic ass and ox, so the ostrich, although resembling the stork in its stilt-like structure, the colour of its feathers, and its gregarious life, still has characteristics totally different from those one ought to look for according to this similarity. רננים , a wail, prop. a tremulous shrill sound (vid., Job 39:23), is a name of the female ostrich, whose peculiar cry is called in Arabic zimâr ( זמר ). נעלס (from עלס , which in comparison with עלץ , עלז , rarely occurs) signifies to make gestures of joy. אם , Job 39:13 , is an interrogative an; חסידה , pia , is a play upon the name of the stork, which is so called: pia instar ciconiae (on this figure of speech, comp. Mehren's Rehtorik der Araber, S. 178). כּי , Job 39:14 , establishes the negation implied in the question, as e.g., Isa 28:28. The idea is not that the hen-ostrich abandons the hatching of her eggs to the earth ( עזב ל as Psa 16:10), and makes them "glow over the dust"(Schlottm.), for the maturing energy compensating for the sitting of the parent bird proceeds from the sun's heat, which ought to have been mentioned; one would also expect a Hiph . instead of the Piel תּחמּם , which can be understood only of hatching by her own warmth. The hen-ostrich also really broods herself, although from time to time she abandons the חמּם to the sun.

(Note: It does, however, as it appears, actually occur, that the female leaves the work of hatching to the sun by day, and to the male at night, and does not sit at all herself; vid., Funke's Naturgeschichte , revised by Taschenberg (1864), S. 243f.)

That which contrasts with the φιλοστοργία of the stork, which is here made prominent, is that she lays here eggs in a hole in the ground, and partly, when the nest is full, above round about it, while חסידה ברושׁים ביתה , Psa 104:17. רננים is construed in accordance with its meaning as fem. sing., Ew. §318, a . Since she acts thus, what next happens consistently therewith is told by the not aoristic but only consecutive ותּשׁכּח : and so she forgets that the foot may crush ( זוּר , to press together, break by pressure, as הזּוּרה , Isa 59:5 = הזּוּרה , that which is crushed, comp. לנה = לנה , Zec 5:4) them (i.e., the eggs, Ges. §146, 3), and the beast of the field may trample them down, crush them ( דּוּשׁ as Arab. dâs , to crush by treading upon anything, to tread out).

Job 39:16

The difficulty of הקשׁיח (from קשׁח , Arab. qsḥ , hardened from קשׁה , Arab. qsâ ) being used of the hen-ostrich in the masc., may be removed by the pointing הקשׁיח (Ew.); but this alteration is unnecessary, since the Hebr. also uses the masc . for the fem . where it might be regarded as impossible (vid., Job 39:3 , and comp. e.g., Isa 32:11.). Jer. translates correctly according to the sense: quasi non sint sui , but ל is not directly equivalent to כּ ; what is meant is, that by the harshness of her conduct she treats her young as not belonging to her, so that they become strange to her, Ew. §217, d . In Job 39:16 the accentuation varies: in vain ( לריק with Rebia mugrasch ) is her labour that is devoid of anxiety; or: in vain is her labour ( לריק( ruobal r with Tarcha , יגיעהּ with Munach vicarium ) without anxiety (on her part); or: in vain is her labour ( לריק with Mercha , יגיעה with Rebia mugrasch ), yet she is without anxiety. The middle of these renderings ( לריק in all of them, like Isa 49:4 = לריק , Isa 65:23 and freq.) seems to us the most pleasing: the labour of birth and of the brooding undertaken in places where the eggs are put beyond the danger of being crushed, is without result, without the want of success distressing her, since she does not anticipate it, and therefore also takes no measures to prevent it. The eggs that are only just covered with earth, or that lie round about the nest, actually become a prey to the jackals, wild-cats, and other animals; and men can get them for themselves one by one, if they only take care to prevent their footprints being recognised; for if the ostrich observes that its nest is discovered, it tramples upon its own eggs, and makes its nest elsewhere (Schlottm., according to Lichtenstein's Südafrik. Reise ). That it thus abandons its eggs to the danger of being crushed and to plunder, arises, according to Job 39:17, from the fact that God has caused it to forget wisdom, i.e., as Job 39:17 explains, has extinguished in it, deprived it of, the share thereof ( ב as Isa 53:12, lxx ἐν , as Act 8:21) which it might have had. It is only one of the stupidities of the ostrich that is made prominent here; the proverbial ahmaq min en -na‛âme , "more foolish than the ostrich,"has its origin in more such characteristics. But if the care with which other animals guard their young ones is denied to it, it has in its stead another remarkable characteristic: at the time when ( כּעת here followed by an elliptical relative clause, which is clearly possible, just as with בּעת , Job 6:17) it stretches (itself) on high, i.e., it starts up with alacrity from its ease (on the radical signification of המריא = המרה ), and hurries forth with a powerful flapping of its wings, half running half flying, it derides the horse and its rider - they do not overtake it, it is the swiftest of all animals; wherefore Arab. '‛ dâ mn 'l -dlı̂m ‛ zalı̂m , equivalent to delı̂m according to a less exact pronunciation, supra , p. 582, note) and Arab. 'nfr mn 'l -n‛âmt , fleeter than the ostrich, is just as proverbial as the above Arab. 'ḥmq mn 'l -wa‛nat ; and "on ostrich's wings"is equivalent to driving along with incomparable swiftness. Moreover, on תּמריא and תּשׂחק , which refer to the female, it is to be observed that she is very anxious, and deserts everything in her fright, while the male ostrich does not forsake his young, and flees no danger.

(Note: We take this remark from Doumas, Horse of the Sahara . The following contribution from Wetzstein only came to hand after the exposition was completed: "The female ostriches are called רננים not from the whirring of their wings when flapped about, but from their piercing screeching cry when defending their eggs against beasts of prey (chiefly hyaenas), or when searching for the male bird. Now they are called rubd , from sing. rubda (instead of rabdâ ), from the black colour of their long wing-feathers; for only the male, which is called חיק (pronounce hêtsh ), has white. The ostrich-tribe has the name of בּת יענה bat (Arab. bdt 'l -wa‛nat ), 'inhabitant of the desert,' because it is only at home in the most lonely parts of the steppe, in perfectly barren deserts. Neshwân the Himjarite, in his 'Shems el-'olûm' (MSS in the Royal Library at Berlin, sectio Wetzst . I No. 149, Bd. i.f. 110 b ), defines the word el -wa‛na by: ארץ ביצא לא תנבת שׁיא , a white (chalky or sandy) district, which brings forth nothing; and the Kâmûs explains it by ארץ צלבּה , a hard (unfruitful) district. In perfect analogy with the Hebr. the Arabic calls the ostrich abu (and umm ) es -sahârâ , 'possessor of the sterile deserts.' The name יענים , Lam 4:3, is perfectly correct, and corresponds to the form יעלים (steinbocks); the form פעל (Arab. f‛l ) is frequently the Nisbe of פעל and פעלה , according to which יען = בּת היענה and יעל = בּת היּעלה , 'inhabitant of the inaccessible rocks.' Hence, says Neshwân (against the non-Semite Firûzâbâdi ), wa‛l ( יעל and wa‛la ) is exclusively the high place of the rocks, and wa‛il ( יעל exclusively the steinbock. The most common Arabic name of the ostrich is na‛âme , נעמה , collective na‛âm , from the softness ( nu‛ûma , נעוּמה ) of its feathers, with which the Arab women (in Damascus frequently) stuff cushions and pillows. Umm thelâthin , 'mother of thirty,' is the name of the female ostrich, because as a rule she lays thirty eggs. The ostrich egg is called in the steppe dahwa , דּחוה (coll. dahû ), a word that is certainly very ancient. Nevertheless the Hauranites prefer the word medha , מדחה . A place hollowed out in the ground serves as a nest, which the ostrich likes best to dig in the hot sand, on which account they are very common in the sandy tracts of Ard ed-Dehanâ ( דהנא ), between the Shemmar mountains and the Sawâd (Chaldaea). Thence at the end of April come the ostrich hunters with their spoil, the hides of the birds together with the feathers, to Syria. Such an unplucked hide is called gizze ( גזּה ). The hunters inform us that the female sits alone on the nest from early in the day until evening, and from evening until early in the morning with the male, which wanders about throughout the day. The statement that the ostrich does not sit on its eggs, is perhaps based on the fact that the female frequently, and always before the hunters, forsakes the eggs during the first period of brooding. Even. Job 39:14 and Job 39:15 do not say more than this. But when the time of hatching (called el -faqs , פקץ ) is near, the hen no longer leaves the eggs. The same observation is also made with regard to the partridge of Palestine ( el -hagel , חגל ), which has many other characteristics in common with the ostrich.

That the ostrich is accounted stupid (Job 39:17) may arise from the fact, that when the female has been frightened from the eggs she always seeks out the male with a loud cry; she then, as the hunters unanimously assert, brings him forcibly back to the nest (hence its Arabic name zalı̂m , 'the violent one'). During the interval the hunter has buried himself in the sand, and on their arrival, by a good shot often kills both together in the nest. It may also be accounted as stupidity, that, when the wind is calm, instead of flying before the riding hunters, the bird tries to hide itself behind a mound or in the hollows of the ground. But that, when escape is impossible, it is said to try to hide its head in the sand, the hunters regard as an absurdity. If the wind aids it, the fleeing ostrich spreads out the feathers of its tail like a sail, and by constantly steering itself with its extended wings, it escapes its pursuers with ease. The word המריא , Job 39:18, appears to be a hunting expression, and (without an accus. objecti ) to describe this spreading out of the feathers, therefore to be perfectly synonymous with the תערישׁ (Arab. t'rı̂š ) of the ostrich hunters of the present day. Thus sings the poet Râshid of the hunting race of the Sulubât: 'And the head (of the bride with its loosened locks) resembles the (soft and black) feathers of the ostrich-hen, when she spreads them out ( ‛arrashannâ ). They saw the hunter coming upon them where there was no hiding-place, And stretched their legs as they fled.' The prohibition to eat the ostrich in the Thora (Lev 11:16; Deu 14:15) is perhaps based upon the cruelty of the hunt; for it is with the rarest exceptions always killed only on its eggs. The female, which, as has been said already, does not flee towards the end of the time of brooding, stoops on the approach of the hunter, inclines the head on one side and looks motionless at her enemy. Several Beduins have said to me, that a man must have a hard heart to fire under such circumstances. If the bird is killed, the hunter covers the blood with sand, puts the female again upon the eggs, buries himself at some distance in the sand, and waits till evening, when the male comes, which is now shot likewise, beside the female. The Mosaic law might accordingly have forbidden the hunting of the ostrich from the same feeling of humanity which unmistakeably regulated it in other decisions (as Exo 23:19; Deu 22:6., Lev 22:28, and freq.).)

Keil-Delitzsch: Job 39:19-25

19 Dost thou give to the horse strength?

Dost thou clothe his neck with flowing hair?

20 Dost thou cause him to leap about like the grasshopper?

The noise of his snorting is a terror!

21 He paweth the ground in the plain, and boundeth about with strength.

He advanceth to meet an armed host.

22 He laugheth at fear, and is not affrighted,

And turneth not back from the sword.

23 The quiver rattleth over him,

The glittering lance and spear.

24 With fierceness and rage he swalloweth the ground,

And standeth not still, when the trumpet soundeth.

25 He saith at every blast of the trumpet: Ha, ha!

And from afar he scenteth the battle,

The thundering of the captains and the shout of war.

After the ostrich, which, as the Arabs say, is composed of the nature of a bird and a camel, comes the horse in its heroic beauty, and impetuous lust for the battle, which is likewise an evidence of the wisdom of the Ruler of the world - a wisdom which demands the admiration of men. This passage of the book of Job, says K. Löffler, in his Gesch. des Pferdes (1863), is the oldest and most beautiful description of the horse. It may be compared to the praise of the horse in Hammer-Purgstall's Duftkörner; it deserves more than this latter the praise of majestic simplicity, which is the first feature of classic superiority. Jer. falsely renders Job 39:19 : aut circumdabis collo ejus hinnitum ; as Schlottm., who also wishes to be so understood: Dost thou adorn his neck with the voice of thunder? The neck ( צוּאר , prop. the twister, as Persic gerdân , gerdan , from צוּר , Arab. ṣâr , to twist by pressure, to turn, bend, as Pers. from gerdı̂den , to turn one's self, twist) has nothing to do with the voice of neighing. But רעמה also does not signify dignity (Ew. 113, d ), but the mane, and is not from רעם = ראם = רם , the hair of the mane, as being above, like λοφιά , but from רעם , tremere , the mane as quivering, trembling (Eliz. Smith: the shaking mane); like φόβη , according to Kuhn, cogn. with σόβη , the tail, from φοβεῖν ( σοβεῖν ), to wag, shake, scare, comp. άΐ́σσεσθαι of the mane, Il . vi. 510.

Job 39:20

The motion of the horse, which is intended by תרעישׁנּוּ ( רעשׁ , Arab. r‛s , r‛š , tremere , trepidare ), is determined according to the comparison with the grasshopper: what is intended is a curved motion forwards in leaps, now to the right, now to the left, which is called the caracol, a word used in horsemanship, borrowed from the Arab. hargala -l-farasu (comp. חרגּל ), by means of the Moorish Spanish; moreover, Arab. r‛s is used of the run of the ostrich and the flight of the dove in such "successive lateral and oblique motions"(Carey). nachar, Job 39:20 , is not the neighing of the horse, but its snorting through the nostrils (comp. Arab. nachı̂r , snoring, a rattling in the throat), Greek φρύαγμα , Lat. fremitus (comp. Aeschylus, Septem c. Th. 374, according to the text of Hermann: ἵππος χαλινῶν δ ̓ ὡς κατασθμαίνων βρέμει ); הוד , however, might signify pomp (his pompous snorting), but perhaps has its radical signification, according to which it corresponds to the Arab. hawı̂d , and signifies a loud strong sound, as the peal of thunder ( hawı̂d er -ra‛d ),' the howling of the stormy wind ( hawı̂d er -rijâh ), and the like.

(Note: A verse of a poem of Ibn-Dûchi in honour of Dôkân ibn-Gendel runs: Before the crowding ( lekdata ) of Taijâr the horses fled repulsed, And thou mightest hear the sound of the bell-carriers ( hawı̂da mubershemât ) of the warriors ( el -menâir , prop. one who thrusts with the lance). Here hawı̂d signifies the sound of the bells which those who wish to announce themselves as warriors hang about their horses, to draw the attention of the enemy to them. Mubershemât are the mares that carry the burêshimân , i.e., the bells. The meaning therefore is: thou couldst hear this sound, which ought only to be heard in the fray, in flight, when the warriors consecrated to death fled as cowards. Taijâr ( Têjâr ) is Sâlih the son of Cana'an (died about 1815), mentioned in p. 456, note 1, a great warrior of the wandering tribe of the 'Aneze . - Wetzst.)

The substantival clause is intended to affirm that its dull-toned snort causes or spreads terror. In Job 39:21 the plur . alternates with the sing., since, as it appears, the representation of the many pawing hoofs is blended with that of the pawing horse, according to the well-known line,

Quadrupedante putrem sonitu quatit ungula campum

(Virgil, Aen. viii. 596);

or, since this is said of the galloping horse, according to the likewise Virgilian line,

qc Cavatque

Tellurem, et solido graviter sonat ungula cornu

qc (Georg. iii. 87 f).

חפר is, as the Arab. hâfir , hoof, shows, the proper word for the horse's impatient pawing of the ground (whence it then, as in Job 39:29, signifies rimari , scrutari ). עמק is the plain as the place of contest; for the description, as now becomes still more evident, refers to the war-horse. The verb שׂישׂ ( שׂוּשׂ ) has its radical signification exsultare (comp. Arab. s]âts , skirta'n , of the foetus) here; and since בּכח , not בּכּח , is added to it, it is not to be translated: it rejoices in its strength, but: it prances or is joyous with strength, lxx γαυριᾷ ἐν Ἰσχύΐ . The difference between the two renderings is, however, scarcely perceptible. נשׁק , armament, Job 39:21 , is meton. the armed host of the enemy; אשׁפּה , "the quiver,"is, however, not used metonymically for the arrows of the enemy whizzing about the horse (Schult.), but Job 39:23 is the concluding description of the horse that rushes on fearlessly, proudly, and impetuously in pursuit, under the rattle and glare of the equipment of its rider (Schlottm. and others). רנה (cogn. of רנן ), of the rattling of the quiver, as Arab. ranna , ranima , of the whirring of the bow when the arrow is despatched; to point it תּרנּה (Pro 1:20; Pro 8:3), instead of תּרנה , would be to deprive the language of a word supported by the dialects (vid., Ges. Thes .). On Job 39:24 we may compare the Arab. iltahama -l -farasu -l -arda , the horse swallows up the ground, whence lahimm , lahı̂m , a swallower = swift-runner; so here: with boisterous fierceness and angry impatience ( בּרעשׁ ורגז ) it swallows up the ground, i.e., passes so swiftly over it that long pieces vanish so rapidly before it, as though it greedily sucked them up ( גּמּא intensive of גּמא , whence גּמא , the water-sucking papyrus); a somewhat differently applied figure is nahab -el -arda , i.e., according to Silius' expression, rapuit campum . The meaning of Job 39:24 is, as in Virgil, Georg. iii. 83f.:

Tum si qua sonum procul arma dedere,

Stare loco nescit ;

and in Aeschylus, Septem , 375: ὅστις βοὴν σάλπιγγος ὁρμαίνει (Hermann, ὀργαίνεἰ μένων (impatiently awaiting the call of the trumpet). האמין signifies here to show stability (vid., Genesis , S. 367f.) in the first physical sense (Bochart, Rosenm., and others): it does not stand still, i.e., will not be held, when ( כּי , quum ) the sound of the war-trumpet, i.e., when it sounds. שׁופר is the signal-trumpet when the army was called together, e.g., Jdg 3:27; to gather the army that is in pursuit of the enemy, 2Sa 2:28; when the people rebelled, 2Sa 20:1; when the army was dismissed at the end of the war, 2Sa 20:22; when forming for defence and for assault, e.g., Amo 3:6; and in general the signal of war, Jer 4:19. As often as this is heard ( בּדי , in sufficiency, i.e., happening at any time = quotiescunque ), it makes known its lust of war by a joyous neigh, even from afar, before the collision has taken place; it scents ( praesagit according to Pliny's expression) the approaching conflict, (scents even in anticipation) the thundering command of the chiefs that may soon be heard, and the cry of battle giving loose to the assault. "Although,"says Layard ( New Discoveries , p. 330), "docile as a lamb, and requiring no other guide than the halter, when the Arab mare hears the war-cry of the tribe, and sees the quivering spear of her rider, her eyes glitter with fire, her blood-red nostrils open wide, her neck is nobly arched, and her tail and mane are raised and spread out to the wind. The Bedouin proverb says, that a high-bred mare when at full speed should hide her rider between her neck and her tail."

Keil-Delitzsch: Job 39:26-30

26 Doth the hawk fly by thy wisdom,

Doth it spread its wings towards the south?

27 Or is it at thy command that the eagle soareth aloft,

And buildeth its nest on high?

28 It inhabiteth the rock, and buildeth its nest

Upon the crag of the rock and fastness.

29 From thence it seeketh food,

Its eyes see afar off.

30 And its young ones suck up blood;

And where the slain are, there is it.

The ancient versions are unanimous in testifying that, according to the signification of the root, נץ signifies the hawk (which is significant in the Hieroglyphics): the soaring one, the high-flyer (comp. Arab. nṣṣ , to rise, struggle forwards, and Arab. nḍḍ , to raise the wings for flight). The Hiph . יאבר- (jussive form in the question, as Job 13:27) might signify: to get feathers, plumescere (Targ., Jer.), but that gives a tame question; wherefore Gregory understands the plumescit of the Vulgate of moulting, for which purpose the hawk seeks the sunny side. But האביר alone, by itself, cannot signify "to get new feathers;" moreover, an annual moulting is common to all birds, and prominence is alone given to the new feathering of the eagle in the Old Testament, Psa 103:5; Mic 1:16, comp. Isa 40:31 (lxx πτεροφυήσουσιν ὡς ἀετοί ).

(Note: Less unfavourable to this rendering is the following, that אברה signifies the long feathers, and אבר the wing that is composed of them (perhaps, since the Talm. אברים signifies wings and limbs, artus , from אבר = הבר , Arab. hbr , to divide, furnish with joints), although נוצה (from נצה , to fly) is the more general designation of the feathers of birds.)

Thus, then, the point of the question will lie in לתימן : the hawk is a bird of passage, God has endowed it with instinct to migrate to the south as the winter season is approaching.

In Job 39:27 the circle of the native figures taken from animal life, which began with the lion, the king of quadrupeds, is now closed with the eagle, the king of birds. It is called נשׁר , from נשׁר , Arab. nsr , vellere ; as also vultur (by virtue of a strong power of assimilation = vultor ) is derived from vellere , - a common name of the golden eagle, the lamb's vulture, the carrion-kite ( Cathartes percnopterus ), and indeed also of other kinds of kites and falcons. There is nothing to prevent our understanding the eagle κατ ̓ εξοχήν , viz., the golden eagle ( Aquila chrysaëtos ), in the present passage; for even to this, corpses, though not already putrified, are a welcome prey. In Job 39:27 we must translate either: and is it at thy command that ... ? or: is it so that (as in הכי ) at thy command ... ? The former is more natural here. מצוּדה , Job 39:28 , signifies prop. specula (from צוּד , to spy); then, however, as Arab. masâd (referred by the original lexicons to masada ), the high hill, and the mountain-top. The rare form יעלעוּ , for which Ges., Olsh., and others wish to read לעלעוּ or ילעלעוּ (from לוּע , deglutire ), is to be derived from עלע , a likewise secondary form out of עלעל (from עוּל , to suck, to give suck),

(Note: The Arab. ‛alla does not belong here: it gains the signification iterum bibere from the primary signification of "coming over or upon anything,"which branches out in various ways: to take a second, third, etc., drink after the first. More on this point on Isa 3:4.

Supplementary note: The quadriliteral עלעל to be supposed, is not to be derived from עלל , and is not, as it recently has been, to be compared with Arab. ‛ll , "to drink."This Arab. verb does not signify "to drink"at all, but, among many other branchings out of its general primary signification, related to עלה , Arab. ‛lâ , also signifies: "to take a second, third, etc., drink after the first,"concerning which more details will be given elsewhere. עלעל goes back to עוּל , lactare , with the middle vowel, whence also עויל , Job 16:11; Job 12:18; Job 21:11 (which see). The Hauran dialect has ‛âlûl (plur. ‛awâlı̂l ), like the Hebr. עולל ( עולל = מעולל ), in the signification juvenis , and especially juvencus (comp. infra , p. 689, note 3, "but they are heifers,"Arab. illâ ‛awâlı̂l ).)

like שׁרשׁ out of שׁרשׁר (from שׁרר , Arab. srr , to make firm), Ew. §118, a , comp. Fürst, Handwörterbuch, sub עוּל , since instances are wanting in favour of עלע being formed out of לעלע ( Jesurun , p. 164). Schult. not inappropriately compares even גלג = גלגל in גּלגּתא , Γολγοθᾶ = גּלגּלתּא . The concluding words, Job 39:30 , are perhaps echoed in Mat 24:28. High up on a mountain-peak the eagle builds its eyrie, and God has given it a remarkably sharp vision, to see far into the depth below the food that is there for it and its young ones. Not merely from the valley in the neighbourhood of its eyrie, but often from distant plains, which lie deep below on the other side of the mountain range, it seizes its prey, and rises with it even to the clouds, and bears it home to its nest.

(Note: Vid., the beautiful description in Charles Boner's Forest Creatures , 1861.)

Thus does God work exceeding strangely, but wonderously, apparently by contradictions, but in truth most harmoniously and wisely, in the natural world.

Constable: Job 38:1--42:7

G. The Cycle of Speeches between Job and God chs. 38:1-42:6

Finally God spoke to Job and gave revelation that Job had been demanding for so long (cf. 13:22; 31:35). There was now no need for the middle-man that Job had requested who could mediate between them (cf. 9:33; 16:19). Yahweh spoke directly to Job, and Job had the opportunity to respond directly to God.

What God did not say to Job is as surprising as what He did say. He did not mention Job's suffering, He gave no explanation of the problem of evil, and He did not defend Himself against Job's charge of injustice. God simply revealed Himself to Job and his companions to a greater degree than they had known, and that greater revelation dissolved their difficulties.

"The reader is told why Job was suffering in the Prologue, but that is to show that Job was innocent. Job was never told this; had he been told, the book would immediately lose its message to all other sufferers. So the book is teaching us through the divine theophany that there is something more fundamental than an intellectual solution to the mystery of innocent suffering. Though the message reaches Job through his intellect, it is for his spirit."¹⁵³

"To Elihu the suffering may bring enrichment; to the author of the book of Job it is the presence of God that is enriching, and that presence is given to men of integrity and piety in prosperity and in adversity alike."¹⁵⁴

". . . whereas the advice of Elihu is to learn his lessons that his prosperity may be restored, the effect of the Divine speeches is to make Job realize that he may have the Divine fellowship in his sufferings, and not merely when he has been delivered from them."¹⁵⁵

God's role in His speeches was not that of the defendant on trial whom prosecutor Job was charging with injustice. Rather He was the prosecutor who was asking the questions of Job, the defendant. He asked him more than 70 unanswerable questions and proved him both ignorant and impotent. Since Job could not understand or determine God's ways with nature, he obviously could not comprehend or control God's dealings with people.

Constable: Job 38:1--40:3

1. God's first speech 38:1-40:2

God's first speech "transcends all other descriptions of the wonders of creation or the greatness of the Creator, which are to be found either in the Bible or elsewhere."¹⁵⁶

Constable: Job 38:4--40:1

God's questions of Job 38:4-39:30

As Job's friends had done, God began to break Job down blow by verbal blow. Finally all his pride was gone. However where Job's friends had failed, God succeeded.

"The function of the questions needs to be properly understood. As a rhetorical device, a question can be another way of making a pronouncement, much favoured by orators. For Job, the questions in the Lord's speeches are not such roundabout statements of fact; they are invitations, suggestions about discoveries he will make as he tries to find his own answers. They are not catechetical, as if Job's knowledge is being tested. They are educative, in the true and original meaning of that term. Job is led out into the world. The questions are rhetorical only in the sense that none of them has any answer ventured by Job. But this is not because the questions have no answers. Their initial effect of driving home to Job his ignorance is not intended to humiliate him. On the contrary the highest nobility of every person is to be thus enrolled by God Himself in His school of Wisdom. And the schoolroom is the world! For Job the exciting discoveries to which God leads him bring a giant advance in knowledge, knowledge of himself and of God, for the two always go together in the Bible."¹⁵⁸

God gave Job an oral science examination covering aspects of cosmology, oceanography, meteorology, astronomy, and zoology.

He began with the origin of the earth (38:4-7). God's point was that since Job was absent when He had created the earth he lacked information that God had and that enabled Him to govern the earth better than Job could. The phrase "sons of God" (v. 7) evidently refers to the angels (cf. 1:6; Ps. 148:2-3). The "morning stars" may be stars or planets God created before the earth. Nevertheless it seems more likely that they, too, are angels since there is synonymous parallelism in this verse.

God next asked Job about the origin of the oceans (38:8-11). Obviously Job had nothing to do with this major aspect of God's creative activity, so his knowledge again proved inferior.¹⁵⁹

Job had no experience causing the sun to rise and thereby sustaining the earth either (38:12-15). The rising sun shakes the wicked out of the ends of the earth (38:13) in the sense that the wicked love darkness rather than light (cf. John 3:19). The "light" of the wicked (38:15), that element in which they flourish, is darkness. By causing the sun to rise God withholds the darkness, their "light," and so frustrates (breaks) their work. Another interpretation holds that this verse (38:15) may be an ironic statement saying that God does not break the wicked but only controls them.

Even though "the dawn of every day provides an occasion to punish the wicked . . . this possibility is not in practice realized and is therefore not in the plan of the world."¹⁶⁰

"Although a major thrust of the Lord's speeches (38:1-40:2; 40:6-41:34) was to polemicize against all potential rivals to His lordship over the cosmos, there is also a subtle refutation of the dogma of divine retribution. Although granting that the control of chaotic forces of evil (which in some instances is inherent in the design of the universe--38:12-15) is somewhat consistent with the principle of divine retribution, God demonstrates that the universe is not always geared to this principle."¹⁶¹

Job was likewise ignorant of the springs of the sea, the gates of death, and the scope of the earth (38:16-18) none of which he had seen. Nor had he knowledge of where the light (sun) went when it apparently set or where the darkness came from and went at sunset and sunrise (38:19-20). Verse 21 presents Yahweh as a master of sarcasm.

The next subject on God's quiz was the weather (38:22-38). "Light" (38:24) may refer to "lightning." The "channel for the flood" appears to be the "path" through the sky that rain takes on its way to the earth (38:25).

Yahweh referred to the constellations to impress Job's lack of insight and his impotence on the patriarch further (38:31-33; cf. 9:9).

Next God turned to the animal world and pointed out six beasts and four birds only one of which was evidently a domesticated creature in Job's day: the horse (38:39-39:30). They include "the ferocious, the helpless, the shy, the strong, the bizarre, the wild."¹⁶² They illustrate God's creative genius and his providential care. The animal world exists for partially unknown reasons, not merely to meet the needs of humankind. People cannot explain why animals live as they do. This is another mystery that only God understands fully.

Animals	References	Questions
Lion and raven	38:39-41	How do they get food?
Goat and deer	39:1-4	How do they bear young?
Donkey and ox	39:5-12	How are they tamed?
Ostrich and horse	39:13-25	Why do they act strangely?
Hawk and vulture	39:26-30	How do they fly?

One writer wrote the following about the wild ox (or aurochs, 39:9-12).

"Extinct since 1627, this enormous animal was the most powerful of all hoofed beasts, exceeded in size only by the hippopotamus and elephant."¹⁶³

God's point in asking Job to consider each of these animals was this. Even upon careful examination there are many things about their individual characteristics, behavior, and life that people simply cannot explain. That is still true today. For reasons unknown to Job God allowed each animal to experience what was His will for that one. Just so, he permits every human being to experience what he or she does for reasons partially unknown to us. Only Yahweh is powerful enough and wise enough to do this.

"A main function of the Lord's speeches is to show the absurdity of Job's attempt to manipulate God by a lawsuit,' which assumed that his relationship to God is a juridical one."¹⁶⁴

God rarely used legal metaphors, which Job had employed so often, in His speeches to Job. From now on Job stopped using them. This is an important observation because it shows that the basis of Job and God's relationship was not a legal one, as Job had assumed. A legal relationship requires equal compensation by both parties for what each of them has done to the other. The basis of God's dealings with Job was gracious, not legal (cf. 1 Cor. 6:7).

Introduction / Outline

JFB: Job (Book Introduction)

JOB A REAL PERSON.--It has been supposed by some that the book of Job is an allegory, not a real narrative, on account of the artificial character of many of its statements. Thus the sacred numbers, three and seven, often occur. He had seven thousand sheep, seven sons, both before and after his trials; his three friends sit down with him seven days and seven nights; both before and after his trials he had three daughters. So also the number and form of the speeches of the several speakers seem to be artificial. The name of Job, too, is derived from an Arabic word signifying repentance.

But Eze 14:14 (compare Eze 14:16, Eze 14:20) speaks of "Job" in conjunction with "Noah and Daniel," real persons. St. James (Jam 5:11) also refers to Job as an example of "patience," which he would not have been likely to do had Job been only a fictitious person. Also the names of persons and places are specified with a particularity not to be looked for in an allegory. As to the exact doubling of his possessions after his restoration, no doubt the round number is given for the exact number, as the latter approached near the former; this is often done in undoubtedly historical books. As to the studied number and form of the speeches, it seems likely that the arguments were substantially those which appear in the book, but that the studied and poetic form was given by Job himself, guided by the Holy Spirit. He lived one hundred and forty years after his trials, and nothing would be more natural than that he should, at his leisure, mould into a perfect form the arguments used in the momentous debate, for the instruction of the Church in all ages. Probably, too, the debate itself occupied several sittings; and the number of speeches assigned to each was arranged by preconcerted agreement, and each was allowed the interval of a day or more to prepare carefully his speech and replies; this will account for the speakers bringing forward their arguments in regular series, no one speaking out of his turn. As to the name Job--repentance (supposing the derivation correct)--it was common in old times to give a name from circumstances which occurred at an advanced period of life, and this is no argument against the reality of the person.

WHERE JOB LIVED.--"Uz," according to GESENIUS, means a light, sandy soil, and was in the north of Arabia-Deserta, between Palestine and the Euphrates, called by PTOLEMY (Geography, 19) Ausitai or Aisitai. In Gen 10:23; Gen 22:21; Gen 36:28; and 1Ch 1:17, 1Ch 1:42, it is the name of a man. In Jer 25:20; Lam 4:21; and Job 1:1, it is a country. Uz, in Gen 22:21, is said to be the son of Nahor, brother of Abraham--a different person from the one mentioned (Gen 10:23), a grandson of Shem. The probability is that the country took its name from the latter of the two; for this one was the son of Aram, from whom the Arameans take their name, and these dwelt in Mesopotamia, between the rivers Euphrates and Tigris. Compare as to the dwelling of the sons of Shem in Gen 10:30, "a mount of the East," answering to "men of the East" (Job 1:3). RAWLINSON, in his deciphering of the Assyrian inscriptions, states that "Uz is the prevailing name of the country at the mouth of the Euphrates." It is probable that Eliphaz the Temanite and the Sabeans dwelt in that quarter; and we know that the Chaldeans resided there, and not near Idumea, which some identify with Uz. The tornado from "the wilderness" (Job 1:19) agrees with the view of it being Arabia-Deserta. Job (Job 1:3) is called "the greatest of the men of the East"; but Idumea was not east, but south of Palestine: therefore in Scripture language, the phrase cannot apply to that country, but probably refers to the north of Arabia-Deserta, between Palestine, Idumea, and the Euphrates. So the Arabs still show in the Houran a place called Uz as the residence of Job.

THE AGE WHEN JOB LIVED.--EUSEBIUS fixes it two ages before Moses, that is, about the time of Isaac: eighteen hundred years before Christ, and six hundred after the Deluge. Agreeing with this are the following considerations: 1. Job's length of life is patriarchal, two hundred years. 2. He alludes only to the earliest form of idolatry, namely, the worship of the sun, moon, and heavenly hosts (called Saba, whence arises the title "Lord of Sabaoth," as opposed to Sabeanism) (Job 31:26-28). 3. The number of oxen and rams sacrificed, seven, as in the case of Balaam. God would not have sanctioned this after the giving of the Mosaic law, though He might graciously accommodate Himself to existing customs before the law. 4. The language of Job is Hebrew, interspersed occasionally with Syriac and Arabic expressions, implying a time when all the Shemitic tribes spoke one common tongue and had not branched into different dialects, Hebrew, Syriac, and Arabic. 5. He speaks of the most ancient kind of writing, namely, sculpture. Riches also are reckoned by cattle. The Hebrew word, translated "a piece of money," ought rather be rendered "a lamb." 6. There is no allusion to the exodus from Egypt and to the miracles that accompanied it; nor to the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah (PATRICK, however, thinks there is); though there is to the Flood (Job 22:17); and these events, happening in Job's vicinity, would have been striking illustrations of the argument for God's interposition in destroying the wicked and vindicating the righteous, had Job and his friends known of them. Nor is there any undoubted reference to the Jewish law, ritual, and priesthood. 7. The religion of Job is that which prevailed among the patriarchs previous to the law; sacrifices performed by the head of the family; no officiating priesthood, temple, or consecrated altar.

THE WRITER.--All the foregoing facts accord with Job himself having been the author. The style of thought, imagery, and manners, are such as we should look for in the work of an Arabian emir. There is precisely that degree of knowledge of primitive tradition (see Job 31:33, as to Adam) which was universally spread abroad in the days of Noah and Abraham, and which was subsequently embodied in the early chapters of Genesis. Job, in his speeches, shows that he was much more competent to compose the work than Elihu, to whom LIGHTFOOT attributes it. The style forbids its being attributed to Moses, to whom its composition is by some attributed, "whilst he was among the Midianites, about 1520 B.C." But the fact, that it, though not a Jewish book, appears among the Hebrew sacred writings, makes it likely that it came to the knowledge of Moses during the forty years which he passed in parts of Arabia, chiefly near Horeb; and that he, by divine guidance, introduced it as a sacred writing to the Israelites, to whom, in their affliction, the patience and restoration of Job were calculated to be a lesson of especial utility. That it is inspired appears from the fact that Paul (1Co 3:19) quotes it (Job 5:13) with the formula, "It is written." Our Savior, too Mat 24:28), plainly refers to Job 29:30. Compare also Jam 4:10 and 1Pe 5:6 with Job 22:29; Rom 11:34-35 with Job 15:8. It is probably the oldest book in the world. It stands among the Hagiographa in the threefold division of Scripture into the Law, the Prophets, and the Hagiographa ("Psalms," Luk 24:44).

DESIGN OF THE BOOK.--It is a public debate in poetic form on an important question concerning the divine government; moreover the prologue and epilogue, which are in prose, shed the interest of a living history over the debate, which would otherwise be but a contest of abstract reasonings. To each speaker of the three friends three speeches are assigned. Job having no one to stand by him is allowed to reply to each speech of each of the three. Eliphaz, as the oldest, leads the way. Zophar, at his third turn, failed to speak, thus virtually owning himself overcome (Job 27:1-23). Therefore Job continued his reply, which forms three speeches (Job 26:1-14; Job 27:1-23; Job 28:1-28; Job 29:1-31:40). Elihu (Job 32:1-37:24) is allowed four speeches. Jehovah makes three addresses (Job 38:1-41:34). Thus, throughout there is a tripartite division. The whole is divided into three parts--the prologue, poem proper, and epilogue. The poem, into three--(1) The dispute of Job and his three friends; (2) The address of Elihu; (3) The address of God. There are three series in the controversy, and in the same order. The epilogue (Job 42:1-17) also is threefold; Job's justification, reconciliation with his friends, restoration. The speakers also in their successive speeches regularly advance from less to greater vehemence. With all this artificial composition, everything seems easy and natural.

The question to be solved, as exemplified in the case of Job, is, Why are the righteous afflicted consistently with God's justice? The doctrine of retribution after death, no doubt, is the great solution of the difficulty. And to it Job plainly refers in Job 14:14, and Job 19:25. The objection to this, that the explicitness of the language on the resurrection in Job is inconsistent with the obscurity on the subject in the early books of the Old Testament, is answered by the fact that Job enjoyed the divine vision (Job 38:1; Job 42:5), and therefore, by inspiration, foretold these truths. Next, the revelations made outside of Israel being few needed to be the more explicit; thus Balaam's prophecy (Num 24:17) was clear enough to lead the wise men of the East by the star (Mat 2:2); and in the age before the written law, it was the more needful for God not to leave Himself without witness of the truth. Still Job evidently did not fully realize the significance designed by the Spirit in his own words (compare 1Pe 1:11-12). The doctrine, though existing, was not plainly revealed or at least understood. Hence he does not mainly refer to this solution. Yes, and even now, we need something in addition to this solution. David, who firmly believed in a future retribution (Psa 16:10; Psa 17:15), still felt the difficulty not entirely solved thereby (Psa. 83:1-18). The solution is not in Job's or in his three friends' speeches. It must, therefore, be in Elihu's. God will hold a final judgment, no doubt, to clear up all that seems dark in His present dealings; but He also now providentially and morally governs the world and all the events of human life. Even the comparatively righteous are not without sin which needs to be corrected. The justice and love of God administer the altogether deserved and merciful correction. Affliction to the godly is thus mercy and justice in disguise. The afflicted believer on repentance sees this. "Via crucis, via salutis" ["The way of the cross, the way of deliverance"]. Though afflicted, the godly are happier even now than the ungodly, and when affliction has attained its end, it is removed by the Lord. In the Old Testament the consolations are more temporal and outward; in the New Testament, more spiritual; but in neither to the entire exclusion of the other. "Prosperity," says BACON, "is the blessing of the Old Testament; adversity that of the New Testament, which is the mark of God's more especial favor. Yet even in the Old Testament, if you listen to David's harp, you shall hear as many hearse-like airs as carols; and the pencil of the Holy Ghost has labored more in describing the afflictions of Job than the felicities of Solomon. Prosperity is not without many fears and distastes; and adversity is not without comforts and hopes." This solution of Elihu is seconded by the addresses of God, in which it is shown God must be just (because He is God), as Elihu had shown how God can be just, and yet the righteous be afflicted. It is also acquiesced in by Job, who makes no reply. God reprimands the "three" friends, but not Elihu. Job's general course is approved; he is directed to intercede for his friends, and is restored to double his former prosperity.

POETRY.--In all countries poetry is the earliest form of composition as being best retained in the memory. In the East especially it was customary for sentiments to be preserved in a terse, proverbial, and poetic form (called maschal). Hebrew poetry is not constituted by the rhythm or meter, but in a form peculiar to itself: 1. In an alphabetical arrangement somewhat like our acrostic. For instance, Lam. 1:1-22. 2. The same verse repeated at intervals; as in Psa 42:1-11; Psa. 107:1-43. 3. Rhythm of gradation. Psalms of degrees, Psa. 120:1-134:3, in which the expression of the previous verse is resumed and carried forward in the next (Psa 121:1-8). 4. The chief characteristic of Hebrew poetry is parallelism, or the correspondence of the same ideas in the parallel clauses. The earliest instance is Enoch's prophecy (Jud 1:14), and Lamech's parody of it (Gen 4:23). Three kinds occur: (1) The synonymous parallelism, in which the second is a repetition of the first, with or without increase of force (Psa 22:27; Isa 15:1); sometimes with double parallelism (Isa 1:15). (2) The antithetic, in which the idea of the second clause is the converse of that in the first (Pro 10:1). (3) The synthetic, where there is a correspondence between different propositions, noun answering to noun, verb to verb, member to member, the sentiment, moreover, being not merely echoed, or put in contrast, but enforced by accessory ideas (Job 3:3-9). Also alternate (Isa 51:19). "Desolation and destruction, famine and sword," that is, desolation by famine, and destruction by the sword. Introverted; where the fourth answers to the first, and the third to the second (Mat 7:6). Parallelism thus often affords a key to the interpretation. For fuller information, see LOWTH (Introduction to Isaiah, and Lecture on Hebrew Poetry) and HERDER (Spirit of Hebrew Poetry, translated by Marsh). The simpler and less artificial forms of parallelism prevail in Job--a mark of its early age.

JFB: Job (Outline)

• THE HOLINESS OF JOB, HIS WEALTH, &c. (Job 1:1-5)
• SATAN, APPEARING BEFORE GOD, FALSELY ACCUSES JOB. (Job 1:6-12)
• SATAN FURTHER TEMPTS JOB. (Job 2:1-8)
• JOB REPROVES HIS WIFE. (Job 2:9-13)
• JOB CURSES THE DAY OF HIS BIRTH AND WISHES FOR DEATH. (Job 3:1-19)
• HE COMPLAINS OF LIFE BECAUSE OF HIS ANGUISH. (Job 3:20-26)
• FIRST SPEECH OF ELIPHAZ. (Job 4:1-21)
• ELIPHAZ' CONCLUSION FROM THE VISION. (Job 5:1-27)
• REPLY OF JOB TO ELIPHAZ. (Job 6:1-30)
• JOB EXCUSES HIS DESIRE FOR DEATH. (Job 7:1-21)
• THE ADDRESS OF BILDAD. (Job 8:1-22)
• REPLY OF JOB TO BILDAD. (Job 9:1-35)
• JOB'S REPLY TO BILDAD CONTINUED. (Job 10:1-22)
• FIRST SPEECH OF ZOPHAR. (Job 11:1-20) Zophar assails Job for his empty words, and indirectly, the two friends, for their weak reply. Taciturnity is highly prized among Orientals (Pro 10:8, Pro 10:19).
• JOB'S REPLY TO ZOPHAR. (Job 12:1-14:22)
• JOB'S REPLY TO ZOPHAR CONTINUED. (Job 13:1-28)
• JOB PASSES FROM HIS OWN TO THE COMMON MISERY OF MANKIND. (Job 14:1-22)
• SECOND SPEECH OF ELIPHAZ. (Job 15:1-35)
• JOB'S REPLY. (Job 16:1-22) (Job 13:4).
• JOB'S ANSWER CONTINUED. (Job 17:1-16)
• REPLY OF BILDAD. (Job 18:1-21)
• JOB'S REPLY TO BILDAD. (Job 19:1-29)
• REPLY OF ZOPHAR. (Job 20:1-29)
• JOB'S ANSWER. (Job 21:1-34)
• AS BEFORE, ELIPHAZ BEGINS. (Job 22:1-30) Eliphaz shows that man's goodness does not add to, or man's badness take from, the happiness of God; therefore it cannot be that God sends prosperity to some and calamities on others for His own advantage; the cause of the goods and ills sent must lie in the men themselves (Psa 16:2; Luk 17:10; Act 17:25; 1Ch 29:14). So Job's calamities must arise from guilt. Eliphaz, instead of meeting the facts, tries to show that it could not be so.
• JOB'S ANSWER. (Job 23:1-17)
• BILDAD'S REPLY. (Job 25:1-6) Power and terror, that is, terror-inspiring power.
• JOB'S REPLY. (Job 26:1-14)
• JOB'S SPEECH CONTINUED. (Job 28:1-28)
• SPEECH OF ELIHU. (Job 32:1-37:24) Prose (poetry begins with "I am young").
• ADDRESS TO JOB, AS (Job 32:1-22) TO THE FRIENDS. (Job 33:1-33)
• GOD'S SECOND ADDRESS. (Job 40:1-24)
• JOB'S PENITENT REPLY. (Job 42:1-6) In the first clause he owns God to be omnipotent over nature, as contrasted with his own feebleness, which God had proved (Job 40:15; Job 41:34); in the second, that God is supremely just (which, in order to be governor of the world, He must needs be) in all His dealings, as contrasted with his own vileness (Job 42:6), and incompetence to deal with the wicked as a just judge (Job 40:8-14).

TSK: Job (Book Introduction)

A large aquatic animal, perhaps the extinct dinosaur, plesiosaurus, the exact meaning is unknown. Some think this to be a crocodile but from the description in Job 41:1-41:34 this is patently absurd. It appears to be a large fire breathing animal of some sort. Just as the bomardier beetle has an explosion producing mechanism, so the great sea dragon may have an explosive producing mechanism to enable it to be a real fire breathing dragon.

TSK: Job 38 (Chapter Introduction)

Overview

Job 38:1, God challenges Job to answer; Job 38:4, God, by his mighty works, convinces Job of ignorance, Job 38:31, and of imbecility.

TSK: Job 39 (Chapter Introduction)

Overview

Job 39:1, Of the wild goats and hinds; Job 39:5, Of the wild ass; Job 39:9, The unicorn; Job 39:13, The peacock, stork, and ostrich; Job 39:19, The horse; Job 39:26, The hawk; Job 39:27, The eagle.

Poole: Job 38 (Chapter Introduction)

CHAPTER 38

The Lord answers Job, Job 38:1-3 : declareth his works of creation; the foundation and the measures of the earth, Job 38:4-6 ; the stars; the sea, and its bounds, Job 38:7-11 ; the morning, and its light, Job 38:12-15 ; the depth of the sea; the gates and shadow of death; the breadth of the earth, Job 38:16-18 ; the place of light and darkness; the treasures of snow and hail for battle, Job 38:19-23 ; the east wind, springs, and rain for the earth, Job 38:24-30 ; the planets, ordinances of heaven, and their dominion on the earth; clouds and lightning, Job 38:31-35 . Wisdom and understanding in the heart of man, and in his works more than we can understand: he feedeth the lion and the raven, Job 38:36-41 .

Poole: Job 39 (Chapter Introduction)

CHAPTER 39

Of the wild goats and hinds, Job 39:1-4 ; the wild ass, Job 39:5-8 ; the unicorn, Job 39:9-12 ; the peacock, stork, and ostrich, Job 39:13-18 ; the horse, Job 39:19-25 ; the hawk; the eagle, Job 39:26-30 . These creatures, not fully known to Job, or governed by him, are sufficient to convince him that he is no fit judge of the counsels of God.

MHCC: Job (Book Introduction)

This book is so called from Job, whose prosperity, afflictions, and restoration, are here recorded. He lived soon after Abraham, or perhaps before that patriarch. Most likely it was written by Job himself, and it is the most ancient book in existence. The instructions to be learned from the patience of Job, and from his trials, are as useful now, and as much needed as ever. We live under the same Providence, we have the same chastening Father, and there is the same need for correction unto righteousness. The fortitude and patience of Job, though not small, gave way in his severe troubles; but his faith was fixed upon the coming of his Redeemer, and this gave him stedfastness and constancy, though every other dependence, particularly the pride and boast of a self-righteous spirit, was tried and consumed. Another great doctrine of the faith, particularly set forth in the book of Job, is that of Providence. It is plain, from this history, that the Lord watched over his servant Job with the affection of a wise and loving father.

MHCC: Job 38 (Chapter Introduction)

(Job 38:1-3) God calls upon Job to answer.

(Job 38:4-11) God questions Job.

(Job 38:12-24) Concerning the light and darkness.

(v. 25-41) Concerning other mighty works.

MHCC: Job 39 (Chapter Introduction)

God inquires of Job concerning several animals.

Matthew Henry: Job (Book Introduction)

An Exposition, with Practical Observations, of The Book of Job

This book of Job stands by itself, is not connected with any other, and is therefore to be considered alone. Many copies of the Hebrew Bible place it after the book of Psalms, and some after the Proverbs, which perhaps has given occasion to some learned men to imagine it to have been written by Isaiah or some of the later prophets. But, as the subject appears to have been much more ancient, so we have no reason to think but that the composition of the book was, and that therefore it is most fitly placed first in this collection of divine morals: also, being doctrinal, it is proper to precede and introduce the book of Psalms, which is devotional, and the book of Proverbs, which is practical; for how shall we worship or obey a God whom we know not? As to this book,

I. We are sure that it is given by inspiration of God, though we are not certain who was the penman of it. The Jews, though no friends to Job, because he was a stranger to the commonwealth of Israel, yet, as faithful conservators of the oracles of God committed to them, always retained this book in their sacred canon. The history is referred to by one apostle (Jam 5:11) and one passage (Job 5:13) is quoted by another apostle, with the usual form of quoting scripture, It is written, 1Co 3:19. It is the opinion of many of the ancients that this history was written by Moses himself in Midian, and delivered to his suffering brethren in Egypt, for their support and comfort under their burdens, and the encouragement of their hope that God would in due time deliver and enrich them, as he did this patient sufferer. Some conjecture that it was written originally in Arabic, and afterwards translated into Hebrew, for the use of the Jewish church, by Solomon (so Monsieur Jurieu) or some other inspired writer. It seems most probable to me that Elihu was the penman of it, at least of the discourses, because (Job 32:15, Job 32:16) he mingles the words of a historian with those of a disputant: but Moses perhaps wrote the first two chapters and the last, to give light to the discourses; for in them God is frequently called Jehovah, but not once in all the discourses, except Job 12:9. That name was but little known to the patriarchs before Moses, Exo 6:3. If Job wrote it himself, some of the Jewish writers themselves own him a prophet among the Gentiles; if Elihu, we find he had a spirit of prophecy which filled him with matter and constrained him, Job 32:18.

II. We are sure that it is, for the substance of it, a true history, and not a romance, though the dialogues are poetical. No doubt there was such a man as Job; the prophet Ezekiel names him with Noah and Daniel, Eze 14:14. The narrative we have here of his prosperity and piety, his strange afflictions and exemplary patience, the substance of his conferences with his friends, and God's discourse with him out of the whirlwind, with his return at length to a very prosperous condition, no doubt is exactly true, though the inspired penman is allowed the usual liberty of putting the matter of which Job and his friends discoursed into his own words.

III. We are sure that it is very ancient, though we cannot fix the precise time either when Job lived or when the book was written. So many, so evident, are its hoary hairs, the marks of its antiquity, that we have reason to think it of equal date with the book of Genesis itself, and that holy Job was contemporary with Isaac and Jacob; though not coheir with them of the promise of the earthly Canaan, yet a joint-expectant with them of the better country, that is, the heavenly. Probably he was of the posterity of Nahor, Abraham's brother, whose first-born was Uz (Gen 22:21), and in whose family religion was for some ages kept up, as appears, Gen 31:53, where God is called, not only the God of Abraham, but the God of Nahor. He lived before the age of man was shortened to seventy or eighty, as it was in Moses's time, before sacrifices were confined to one altar, before the general apostasy of the nations from the knowledge and worship of the true God, and while yet there was no other idolatry known than the worship of the sun and moon, and that punished by the Judges, Job 31:26-28. He lived while God was known by the name of God Almighty more than by the name of Jehovah; for he is called Shaddai - the Almighty, above thirty times in this book. He lived while divine knowledge was conveyed, not by writing, but by tradition; for to that appeals are here made, Job 8:8; Job 21:29; Job 15:18; Job 5:1. And we have therefore reason to think that he lived before Moses, because here is no mention at all of the deliverance of Israel out of Egypt, or the giving of the law. There is indeed one passage which might be made to allude to the drowning of Pharaoh (Job 26:12): He divideth the sea with his power, and by his understanding he smiteth through Rahab, which name Egypt is frequently called by in scripture, as Psa 87:4; Psa 89:10; Isa 51:9. But that may as well refer to the proud waves of the sea. We conclude therefore that we are here got back to the patriarchal age, and, besides its authority, we receive this book with veneration for its antiquity.

IV. We are sure that it is of great use to the church, and to every good Christian, though there are many passages in it dark and hard to be understood. We cannot perhaps be confident of the true meaning of every Arabic word and phrase we meet with in it. It is a book that finds a great deal of work for the critics; but enough is plain to make the whole profitable, and it was all written for our learning.

1. This noble poem presents to us, in very clear and lively characters, these five things among others: - (1.) A monument of primitive theology. The first and great principles of the light of nature, on which natural religion is founded, are here, in a warm, and long, and learned dispute, not only taken for granted on all sides and not the least doubt made of them, but by common consent plainly laid down as eternal truths, illustrated and urged as affecting commanding truths. Were ever the being of God, his glorious attributes and perfections, his unsearchable wisdom, his irresistible power, his inconceivable glory, his inflexible justice, and his incontestable sovereignty, discoursed of with more clearness, fulness, reverence, and divine eloquence, than in this book? The creation of the world, and the government of it, are here admirably described, not as matters of nice speculation, but as laying most powerful obligations upon us to fear and serve, to submit to and trust in, our Creator, owner, Lord, and ruler. Moral good and evil, virtue and vice, were never drawn more to the life (the beauty of the one and the deformity of the other) than in this book; nor the inviolable rule of God's judgment more plainly laid down, That happy are the righteous, it shall be well with them; and Woe to the wicked, it shall be ill with them. These are not questions of the schools to keep the learned world in action, nor engines of state to keep the unlearned world in awe; no, it appears by this book that they are sacred truths of undoubted certainty, and which all the wise and sober part of mankind have in every age subscribed and submitted to. (2.) It presents us with a specimen of Gentile piety. This great saint descended probably not from Abraham, but Nahor; or, if from Abraham, not from Isaac, but from one of the sons of the concubines that were sent into the east-country (Gen 25:6); or, if from Isaac, yet not from Jacob, but Esau; so that he was out of the pale of the covenant of peculiarity, no Israelite, no proselyte, and yet none like him for religion, nor such a favourite of heaven upon this earth. It was a truth therefore, before St. Peter perceived it, that in every nation he that fears God and works righteousness is accepted of him, Act 10:35. There were children of God scattered abroad (Joh 11:52) besides the incorporated children of the kingdom, Mat 8:11, Mat 8:12. (3.) It presents us with an exposition of the book of Providence, and a clear and satisfactory solution of many of the difficult and obscure passages of it. The prosperity of the wicked and the afflictions of the righteous have always been reckoned two as hard chapters as any in that book; but they are here expounded, and reconciled with the divine wisdom, purity, and goodness, by the end of these things. (4.) It presents us with a great example of patience and close adherence to God in the midst of the sorest calamities. Sir Richard Blackmore's most ingenious pen, in his excellent preface to his paraphrase on this book, makes Job a hero proper for an epic poem; for, says he, " He appears brave in distress and valiant in affliction, maintains his virtue, and with that his character, under the most exasperating provocations that the malice of hell could invent, and thereby gives a most noble example of passive fortitude, a character no way inferior to that of the active hero," etc. (5.) It presents us with an illustrious type of Christ, the particulars of which we shall endeavour to take notice of as we go along. In general, Job was a great sufferer, was emptied and humbled, but in order to his greater glory. So Christ abased himself, that we might be exalted. The learned bishop Patrick quotes St. Jerome ore than once speaking of Job as a type of Christ, who for the job that was set before him endured the cross, who was persecuted, for a time, by men and devils, and seemed forsaken of God too, but was raised to be an intercessor even for his friends and had added affliction to his misery. When the apostle speaks of the patience of Job he immediately takes notice of the end of the Lord, that is, of the Lord Jesus (as some understand it), typified by Job, Jam 5:11.

2. In this book we have, (1.) The history of Job's sufferings, and his patience under them (ch. 1, Job 2:1-13, not without a mixture of human frailty, ch. 3. (2.) A dispute between him and his friends upon them, in which, [1.] The opponents were Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar. [2.] The respondent was Job. [3.] The moderators were, First, Elihu, ch. 32-37. Secondly, God himself, ch. 38-41. (3.) The issue of all in Job's honour and prosperity, ch. 42. Upon the whole, we learn that many are the afflictions of the righteous, but that when the Lord delivers them out of them all the trial of their faith will be found to praise, and honour, and glory.

Matthew Henry: Job 38 (Chapter Introduction)

In most disputes the strife is who shall have the last word. Job's friends had, in this controversy, tamely yielded it to Job, and then he to Elihu. But, after all the wranglings of the counsel at bar, the judge upon the bench must have the last word; so God had here, and so he will have in every controversy, for every man's judgment proceeds from him and by his definitive sentence every man must stand or fall and every cause be won or lost. Job had often appealed to God, and had talked boldly how he would order his cause before him, and as a prince would he go near unto him; but, when God took the throne, Job had nothing to say in his own defence, but was silent before him. It is not so easy a matter as some think it to contest with the Almighty. Job's friends had sometimes appealed to God too: " O that God would speak!" Job 11:7. And now, at length, God does speak, when Job, by Elihu's clear and close arguings was mollified a little, and mortified, and so prepared to hear what God had to say. It is the office of ministers to prepare the way of the Lord. That which the great God designs in this discourse is to humble Job, and bring him to repent of, and to recant, his passionate indecent expressions concerning God's providential dealings with him; and this he does by calling upon Job to compare God's eternity with his own time, God's omniscience with his own ignorance, and God's omnipotence with his own impotency. I. He begins with an awakening challenge and demand in general (Job 38:2, Job 38:3). II. He proceeds in divers particular instances and proofs of Job's utter inability to contend with God, because of his ignorance and weakness: for, 1. He knew nothing of the founding of the earth (Job 38:4-7). 2. Nothing of the limiting of the sea (Job 38:8-11). 3. Nothing of the morning light (Job 38:12-15). 4. Nothing of the dark recesses of the sea and earth (Job 38:16-21). 5. Nothing of the springs in the clouds (Job 38:22-27), nor the secret counsels by which they are directed. 6. He could do nothing towards the production of the rain, or frost, or lightning (Job 38:28-30, Job 38:34, Job 38:35, Job 38:37, Job 38:38), nothing towards the directing of the stars and their influences (Job 38:31-33), nothing towards the making of his own soul (Job 38:36). And lastly, he could not provide for the lions and the ravens (Job 38:39-41). If, in these ordinary works of nature, Job was puzzled, how durst he pretend to dive into the counsels of God's government and to judge of them? In this (as bishop Patrick observes) God takes up the argument begun by Elihu (who came nearest to the truth) and prosecutes it in inimitable words, excelling his, and all other men's, in the loftiness of the style, as much as thunder does a whisper.

Matthew Henry: Job 39 (Chapter Introduction)

God proceeds here to show Job what little reason he had to charge him with unkindness who was so compassionate to the inferior creatures and took such a tender care of them, or to boast of himself, and his own good deeds before God, which were nothing to the divine mercies. He shows him also what great reason he had to be humble who knew so little of the nature of the creatures about him and had so little influence upon them, and to submit to that God on whom they all depend. He discourses particularly, I. Concerning the wild goats and hinds (Job 39:1-4). II. Concerning the wild ass (Job 39:5-8). III. Concerning the unicorn (Job 39:9-12). IV. Concerning the horse (Job 39:19-25). VII. Concerning the hawk and the eagle (Job 39:26-30).

Constable: Job (Book Introduction)

Introduction

Title

This book, like many others in the Old Testament, got its name from the central character in it rather than from its writer. While it is possible that Job may have written it, there is no concrete evidence that he did.

"Job" means "hated" or "the much persecuted." Perhaps "Job" was a nickname his friends gave him during his suffering. Job is the title of the book in the Hebrew, Greek (Septuagint), Latin (Vulgate), and English Bibles.

Date

Concerning the time the events recorded took place there have been many views ranging from the patriarchal age of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob (beginning about 2100 B.C.) to the sixth century B.C.

Internal evidence suggests that Job lived in the patriarchal period. The length of his life (either 140 or about 210 years; 42:16) is similar to that of Terah (205 years), Abraham (175 years), Isaac (180 years), and Jacob (147 years). The writer measured Job's wealth in terms of his livestock. This is how Moses evaluated the wealth of Abraham and Jacob (1:3; 42:12; cf. Gen. 12:16; 13:2; 30:43; 32:5). The Sabeans and Chaldeans (1:15, 17) were nomads during the patriarchal period but not later. Job was the priest of his family (1:5) a condition that became less common when nations in the Near East developed more organization. Names of people and places in the book were also common in the patriarchal age (e.g., Sheba, Tima, Eliphaz, Uz, Job). Genesis, the Mari documents, and the Egyptian Execration texts, all of which refer to life in the Near East at this time, also refer to these names.

"The idea that Job has an Edomite background is as old as the LXX, which equates Job with Jobab, king of Edom (Gn. 36:33)."¹

"Most recent [liberal] writers are agreed that in its original form the book was of post-exilic origin, and the secondary parts of later composition."²

Internal evidence, however, has led many careful students of the book to conclude that it was the work of one person. Perhaps someone else added a few minor touches later under divine inspiration (e.g., 42:16-17). If Job lived in the patriarchal period, as the evidence seems to suggest, what clues are there that someone did not write it then or very soon afterwards? The detailed recounting of the conversations that took place certainly suggests a composition date fairly close to that of the actual events. That has been the position of Jewish and Christian scholars until destructive criticism became popular in the last few centuries. Critics point to the fact that oral tradition was very exact in the ancient world and that people could have transmitted Job's story by mouth for generations and retained its purity. With the Holy Spirit's superintending work it could have been, but there is no evidence that this is what happened. Literacy was widespread in the ancient world at this time.³ Critics further point out that in the process of social evolution composition of a work such as this book was more typical at a date much later than the patriarchal period. Yet again there is no evidence that someone wrote it later. The simpler explanation is that someone wrote it early. Since there is no proof that someone wrote it later, most conservative scholars have continued to prefer the traditional early date of composition theory.

Writer

The book does not identify its writer. Furthermore the ancient Hebrews could not agree on who wrote it. Consequently many different scholars have made guesses as to who the writer was.

From the patriarchal period Job himself is the favored candidate, though some scholars have nominated Elihu. These men seem to be the most likely of the chief characters to have preserved the record of Job's trials. There are many examples of ancient extra-biblical writings in which the author spoke of himself in the third person, so we need not eliminate Job on that ground. The book reads as though an eyewitness of the events recorded wrote it.

Jewish tradition favored Moses as the writer. Moses recorded other events during the patriarchal period in Genesis, he was familiar with desert life, and he had enough ability to write such a book as this one.

Solomon has supporters mainly because he composed other poetic biblical literature (Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Song of Solomon). Moreover there are some similarities between Job and Proverbs such as the relationship between fearing God and being wise.

Other scholars have suggested later writers including Hezekiah, Isaiah, and Ezra.

Of course, the writer may have been none of these individuals. No one knows for sure who wrote Job. I tend to prefer a contemporary of Job or Job himself because of the antiquity of this view and the fact that no one has proved it unsatisfactory.

Scope

It is also difficult to determine how much time the events narrated in the book cover.

The first chapter tells about Job's life before his trial, and the last chapter reveals what happened after it until Job's death. The chapters in between deal with a relatively short period in Job's long life. How long was this period?

We have a few clues. Job referred to months when he spoke of his sufferings (7:3; 29:2). In view of Job's physical symptoms his ailments seem to have bothered him for several months at least. He may have suffered for years. However, Job said the same people who had respected him previously had come to reject and avoid him. He implied that his rejection was fairly recent.

The main part of the book contains dialogue that took place between a few individuals. There is no indication in the text that extended periods of time interrupted Job's sojourn at the city dump. It seems to have continued for a few days at the most, though the conversations may have stopped and then restarted. The writer may have telescoped the events to keep the narrative flowing smoothly. It appears that the scope of the main action at the city dump lasted no longer than a few days or possibly weeks.

Genre

Job is primarily a combination of at least three literary types: lawsuit,⁴ lament,⁵ and controversy dialogue.⁶ The larger category is wisdom literature. However there are so many different types of literature in this book that many writers despair of assigning one type as the dominant one.

"The book of Job defies all efforts to establish its literary genre. While it has been viewed as an epic,⁷ a tragedy,⁸ and a parable,⁹ upon close analysis it is none of these even though it exhibits properties belonging to each of them. As Robert Gordis observes, the author of Job has created his own literary genre.¹⁰ The book is didactic in the sense that the author seeks to teach religious truth, a task which he executes primarily by means of lyrical poetry expressive of deep emotions."¹¹

"The book of Job is an astonishing mixture of almost every kind of literature to be found in the Old Testament. Many individual pieces can be isolated and identified as proverbs, riddles, hymns, laments, curses, lyrical nature poems."¹²

"One should think of this aspect of interpretation [i.e., genre] as being like the Olympics, a grand occasion made up of a variety of sports. Though it is all sport, each game is played by its own rules and has its own expectations about how to play the game. The variety of literature is the same way. It all has a message, but it conveys that message in a variety of ways and with a variety of expectations. To try to play basketball with soccer's rules will never work, though both use a ball and require foot speed. Or think of musical instruments, they all make music, but in different ways with different sounds. One cannot play the violin like a piano or drums; nor should one expect a violin to sound like either a piano or the kettledrum! In the same way, to read the poetry of the Psalms like a historical book is to miss the emotional and pictorial impact of the message, though both genres convey reality about people's experience with God."¹³

Message

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 understand why good people suffer. This is undoubtedly one of the purposes of the book and one that I want to develop at some length. However, I think another purpose is more foundational than this one.

Other people have focused on the great questions Job voiced in the book. During his suffering, when God allowed Satan to knock all the props that support human earthly existence out from under him, Job got down to the most basic needs that people face. He made many profound observations about life. He articulated the most fundamental needs that human beings have. He voiced the greatest philosophical questions about life. These questions are an extremely important contribution of the book and one that I plan to give some attention. Nevertheless I think God has inspired and preserved the message of the Book of Job primarily for another reason.

I believe He did so because this book proves that the basic relationship that God has established with people does not rest on retribution but on grace. This is the message statement. Let me explain it.

In our study of the Old Testament historical books I have pointed out that God blesses people for two reasons. These are His sovereign choice to bless and people's response of trust and obedience to Him.

Because we cannot control God's sovereign choice to bless some people more than others we tend to forget that. We tend to focus on what we can control to some extent, namely our securing His blessing by trusting and obeying Him. This is understandable and legitimate, but it leads to a potential problem. The problem is that we may conclude that we can control God. Since God blesses those who trust and obey Him and He curses those who do not, we may conclude that if we trust and obey God, He owes us blessing.

This conclusion assumes that the basis of God's relationship with people is retribution. If I am good, God will reward me with blessing in some form, but if I am bad, He will punish me somehow. While this is normally the way God deals with human beings it is not always His method. Consequently there must be a more fundamental principle that governs God's dealings with people. On what basis does God consistently deal with us?

Throughout the Book of Job this is the major question that God is answering. Every major character in the book--Job, Eliphaz, Bildad, Zopher, and Elihu--assumed that God governed humankind on the basis of retribution. They believed there were no exceptions to the rule that God blesses good people and punishes bad people.

Job concluded that God was unjust since he had been good but God was allowing him to suffer. Job's wife agreed with him. Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zopher believed that Job must be a bad man instead of a good man since he was suffering. Elihu felt the solution to this apparent exception to the rule was not God's injustice but Job's ignorance rather than his sin. Elihu took a more agnostic approach to the solution of Job's problem. He suspected Job was a bad man, but he wasn't as sure about that as Job's other three friends were.

The Book of Job reveals that while God usually blesses the godly and punishes the ungodly, He does not always do so. There is a more fundamental basis from which God operates. That basis is His own free choice to bless or not bless whom He will.

We might conclude then that the basis of God's dealings with mankind is His sovereignty. However, that answer goes too far back. God's sovereignty really has nothing to do with how He rules. The attribute of sovereignty only sets forth God's position as supreme ruler. How does God rule sovereignly? If it is not on the basis of retribution, on what basis is it?

Evidence in the Book of Job points to God's grace as the basis of His dealings with people. Instead of always dealing with us in retribution, God always deals with us in grace. What does this mean?

This means that instead of responding to our good actions with blessing or our bad actions with cursing God initiates favor toward us without our deserving it.

What is the evidence in the Book of Job that God always deals with people on this basis?

This comes through in God's responses to Job (chs. 38-41). In replying to Job, God essentially reminded him of how good He had been to Job. He pointed out how much wiser and stronger He was than Job. In all of this, God wanted to impress Job with His favor toward the patriarch. That Job got the point is clear from the fact that when God finished speaking Job simply rested in God (42:6). He returned to his joy in being the recipient of God's unmerited favor even though God had not answered his questions.

How does the conflict in heaven that we learn about in chapters 1 and 2 fit into this view? Satan too believed that retribution was the basis on which God deals with people (1:9-11). God proceeded to show him that he was wrong. God allowed calamities to overtake a good man. Then when Job's trouble was all over, God blessed him even though he did not trust and obey God as he should have during his trials (42:12-17).

Satan has consistently failed to appreciate God's grace. Instead of being grateful for his own blessings, he has been in rebellion to obtain more than God gave him. Moreover he has led people to do the same things (cf. Gen. 3; Matt. 4).

I would also like to comment on a fourth possible message of the book that some have suggested. Some students of Job have said that the whole purpose of the book is to show God's superiority over Satan. Not many people hold this view, but it has appealed to some. The main problem with this interpretation, from my viewpoint, is that the dialogues and monologues that constitute the bulk of the book (in chapters 3-41) contribute nothing to this theme. While they do contain references to God's greatness, they do not deal with the issue of God's superiority over Satan.

Finally let me make some observations about the great revelation of this book, namely that the basis for God's dealings with man is His grace rather than His retribution.

First, the Book of Job appears to have been one of the first books of the Bible that God gave as special revelation if not the first. If it was one of the first, its subject would have been one of the most foundational for human beings to understand as history unfolded. What more basic revelation could God have given than the message of this book? The knowledge that God initiates favor toward His creatures without their earning or deserving it is at the heart of God's plan of salvation and the doctrine of God. When you think of Job, think of grace (cf. Ps. 103:10).

Second, like Satan, we tend to disbelieve that God wants the best for us, and we doubt that He will give it to us. Consequently we try to secure what we want for ourselves. We also become ungrateful for God's grace. Ingratitude is at the root of much sin as well as much unhappiness in life. Rejoice in God's grace. Cultivate a spirit of thankfulness (1 Thess. 5:18).

Third, we tend to elevate a secondary principle of God's dealings with people (retribution) into the primary position because it enables us to feel we have some control over God. In this way we can get God to serve us rather than serving God. If I can obligate God to bless me by being good, then God owes me something. Many people, of course, believe God owes them salvation because they are good people. However, we cannot dictate to God how He should bless us. We can count on His promises to bless in certain ways when we relate to Him in certain ways. Yet if God does not bless us as we wish He would, when we do not have His promise, we can still count on the fact that He will bless us ultimately. He will do so because it is His will and He has promised to bless the righteous. His basis of dealing with us is grace.

What about the unsaved? If God wants to bless everyone, why does He send some to eternal torment? The fact that some people choose not to accept God's grace does not mean He does not reach out to them with grace. The whole Bible is a testimony to the fact that God always has and always will reach out to humankind offering unmerited favor. The basis of God's dealings with humankind is grace. His common grace extends to all (Rom. 1; Eph. 1). God does not give us what we deserve. He gives us much better than we deserve.

Constable: Job (Outline)

Outline

I. Prologue chs. 1-2

A. Job's character 1:1-5

B. Job's calamities 1:6-2:10

1. The first test 1:6-22

2. The second test 2:1-10

C. Job's comforters 2:11-13

II. The dialogue concerning the basis of the divine-human relationship 3:1-42:6

A. Job's personal lament ch. 3

1. The wish that he had not been born 3:1-10

2. The wish that he had died at birth 3:11-19

3. The wish that he could die then 3:20-26

B. The first cycle of speeches between Job and his three friends chs. 4-14

1. Eliphaz's first speech chs. 4-5

2. Job's first reply to Eliphaz chs. 6-7

3. Bildad's first speech ch. 8

4. Job's first reply to Bildad chs. 9-10

5. Zophar's first speech ch. 11

6. Job's first reply to Zophar chs. 12-14

C. The second cycle of speeches between Job and his three friends chs. 15-21

1. Eliphaz's second speech ch. 15

2. Job's second reply to Eliphaz chs. 16-17

3. Bildad's second speech ch. 18

4. Job's second reply to Bildad ch. 19

5. Zophar's second speech ch. 20

6. Job's second reply to Zophar ch. 21

D. The third cycle of speeches between Job and his three friends chs. 22-27

1. Eliphaz's third speech ch. 22

2. Job's third reply to Eliphaz chs. 23-24

3. Bildad's third speech ch. 25

4. Job's third reply to Bildad chs. 26-27

E. Job's concluding soliloquies chs. 28-31

1. Job's discourse on God's wisdom ch. 28

2. Job's defense of his innocence chs. 29-31

F. Elihu's speeches chs. 32-37

1. The introduction of Elihu 32:1-5

2. Elihu's first speech 32:6-33:33

3. Elihu's second speech ch. 34

4. Elihu's third speech ch. 35

5. Elihu's fourth speech chs. 36-37

G. The cycle of speeches between Job and God 38:1-42:6

1. God's first speech 38:1-40:2

2. Job's first reply to God 40:3-5

3. God's second speech 40:6-41:34

4. Job's second reply to God 42:1-6

III. Epilogue 42:7-17

A. Job's friends 42:7-9

B. Job's fortune 42:10-17

A structural outline of Job14
Prologue	Job's opening lament	Dialogue-dispute(3 cycles)	Interlude on Wisdom	Monologues (3 cycles)	Job's closing contribution	Epilogue
Chs. 1-2	Ch. 3	Chs. 4-14 Chs. 15-- 21 Chs. 22-- 27	Ch. 28	Chs. 29-- 31 (Job) Chs. 32-- 37 (Elihu) Chs. 38-- 41 (God)	Chs. 40:3-5; 42:1-6	Ch. 42:7-17

Constable: Job

Job

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Driver, Samuel R., and George B. Gray. A Critical and Exegetical Commentary on the Book of Job. International Critical Commentary series. Edinburgh: T. & T. Clark, 1921.

Ellison, H. L. A Study of Job. Paternoster Press, 1958; reprint ed., Grand Rapids: Zondervan Publishing House, 1973.

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Estes, Daniel J. "The Hermeneutics of Biblical Lyric Poetry." Bibliotheca Sacra 152:608 (October-December 1995):413-30.

Forrest, Robert W. E. "The Creation Motif in the Book of Job." Ph.D. dissertation, McMaster University, 1975.

Freedman, David Noel. "The Elihu Speeches in the Book of Job." Harvard Theological Review 61:1 (January 1968):51-59.

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Gammie, John G. "Behemoth and Leviathan: On the Didactic and Theological Significance of Job 40:15-41:26." In Israelite Wisdom: Theological and Literary Essays in Honor of Samuel Terrien, pp. 217-31. Edited by John G. Gammie, Walter A. Brueggmann, W. Lee Humphreys, and James M. Ward. New York: Union Theological Seminary, 1978.

Gibson, Edgar C. S. The Book of Job. 1919; reprint ed. Minneapolis: Klock & Klock Christian Publishing Co., 1978.

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Copyright 2003 by Thomas L. Constable

Haydock: Job (Book Introduction)

THE BOOK OF JOB.

INTRODUCTION.

This Book takes its name from the holy man, of whom it treats; who, according to the more probable opinion, was of the race of Esau, and the same as Jobab, king of Edom, mentioned [in] Genesis xxxvi. 33. It is uncertain who was the writer of it. Some attribute it to Job himself; others to Moses, or some one of the prophets. In the Hebrew it is written in verse, from the beginning of the third chapter to the forty-second chapter. (Challoner) --- The beginning and conclusion are historical, and in prose. Some have divided this work into a kind of tragedy, the first act extending to chap. xv., the second to chap. xxii., the third to chap. xxxviii., where God appears, and the plot is unfolded. They suppose that the sentiments of the speakers are expressed, though not their own words. This may be very probable: but the opinion of those who look upon the work as a mere allegory, must be rejected with horror. The sacred writers speak of Job as of a personage who had really existed, (Calmet) and set the most noble pattern of virtue, and particularly of patience, Tobias ii. 12., Ezechiel xiv. 14., and James v. 11. Philo and Josephus pass over this history, as they do those of Tobias, Judith, &c. (Haydock) --- The time when Job lived is not clearly ascertained. Some have supposed (Calmet) that he was a contemporary with Esther; (Du Hamel; Thalmud) on which supposition, the work is here placed in its chronological order. But Job more probably live during the period when the Hebrews groaned under the Egyptian bondage, (Haydock) or sojourned in the wilderness, Numbers xiv. 9. The Syrians place the book at the head of the Scriptures. (Calmet) --- Its situation has often varied, and is of no great importance. The subject which is here treated, is of far more; as it is intended to shew that the wicked sometimes prosper, while the good are afflicted. (Haydock) --- This had seldom been witnessed before the days of Abraham: but as God had now selected his family to be witnesses and guardians of religion, a new order of things was beginning to appear. This greatly perplexed Job himself; who, therefore, confesses that he had not sufficiently understood the ways of God, till he had deigned to explain them in the parable of the two great beasts, chap. xlii. 3. We cannot condemn the sentiments expressed by Job, since God has declared that they were right, chap. xlii. 8) and reprimands Elihu, (chap. xxxviii. 2.) and the other three friends of Job, for maintaining a false opinion, though, from the history of past times, they had judge it to be true. This remark may excupate them from the stain of wilful lying, and vain declamation. (Houbigant) --- However, as they assert what was false, their words of themselves are of no authority; and they are even considered as the forerunners of heretics. (St. Gregory; St. Augustine, &c.) (Tirinus) --- Job refutes them by sound logic. (St. Jerome) --- We may discover in this book the sum of Christian morality, (Worthington) for which purpose it has been chiefly explained by St. Gregory. The style is very poetical, (Haydock) though at the same time simple, like that of Moses. (Du Hamel) --- It is interspersed with many Arabic and Chaldaic idioms; (St. Jerome) whence some have concluded, that it was written originally by Job and his friends (Haydock) in Arabic, and translated into Hebrew by Moses, for the consolation of his brethren. (Worthington) --- The Hebrew text is in many places incorrect; (Houbigant) and the Septuagint seem to have omitted several verses. (Origen) --- St. Jerome says almost eight hundred, (Calmet) each consisting of about six words. (Haydock) --- Shultens, in 1747, expressed his dissatisfaction with the labours of all preceding commentators. To explain this book may not therefore be an easy task: but we must be as short as possible. (Haydock) --- Those who desire farther information, may consult Pineda, (Worthington) whose voluminous work, in two folios, will nearly (Haydock) give all necessary information. (Calmet)

Gill: Job (Book Introduction)

INTRODUCTION TO JOB

This book, in the Hebrew copies, generally goes by this name, from Job, who is however the subject, if not the writer of it. In the Vulgate Latin version it is called "the Book of Job"; in the Syriac version, the Writing of Job; and in the Arabic, the Writing or Book of Job the Just. In some Hebrew Bibles it stands between the Book of Proverbs and the Song of Solomon; but, according to the Talmudists ^a, it should stand between the Psalms of David and the Proverbs of Solomon. Some have made a question of it, whether there ever was such a man as Job, and suppose this book not to be a real history, or to contain matters of fact, but to be written under fictitious names, and to be parabolical, and that it is designed to set forth an example of patience in suffering affliction; and some of the Jewish writers ^b affirm, that Job never was in being, and that this book is a parable, apologue, or fable; and to this Maimonides ^c himself inclines; but this opinion is justly rejected by Aben Ezra, Peritsol, and others; for that there was such a man is as certain as that there were such men as Noah and Daniel, with whom he is mentioned by the Prophet Ezekiel, Eze 14:14 and the testimony of the Apostle James is full to this purpose, who speaks of him as a person well known, and not to be doubted of; of whom, and of whose patience, the Jews he writes to had heard much, Jam 5:11 besides, the names of the countries where he and his friends lived, the account given of his family, and of his substance, both before and after his afflictions, show it to be a real history. Learned men are not agreed about the signification of his name; according to Jerom ^d, it signifies a magician, taking it to be the same with אוב, "ob": and some Jewish writers ^e place him with Balaam and Jethro, as the counsellors of Pharaoh against the Israelites, for which he was afflicted: the same ancient fathers render the word grieving and howling; others, as Spanheim ^f, derive it from יאב, to "love" or "desire", and so it signifies desire or delight, and is the same with Desiderius or Erasmus; hence Job is called by Suidas ^g τριποθητος, exceeding desirable; but Hillerus ^h, deriving it from the same root, makes it to signify just the reverse, "without desire"; or not desirable; and supposes it to be a compound of יאוב, "desire", and איב, "not"; but the generality of writers derive it from איב, "to be at enmity", and so it signifies one that is exposed to the hatred and enmity of men, or one that is a hater and enemy of wicked men; or, as Schmidtt ⁱ interprets it, a man zealous for God, and showing hatred to wickedness and wicked men on his account. Who Job was, it is not easy to say; not the same with Jobab, of the race of Esau, as some, Gen 36:33. Aristeas ^k says he was a son of Esau himself, by his wife Bessare, and was first called Jobam; nor the same with Job a son of Issachar, Gen 46:13, nor was he a descendant of Abraham by Keturah; but rather sprung from Uz, the firstborn of Nahor, brother of Abraham, Gen 22:21, who gave name to the country where Job lived, as Buz his brother did to that of which Elihu was, and as Chesed, another brother of Uz, did to the Chasdim or Chaldeans, who were both near to Job. It is also not agreed in what time Job lived; Maimonides ^l says, of their writers some place him in the times of the patriarchs, some in the times of Moses, others in the times of David, and others say that he was of the wise men of Babylon; and some add, that he was of them that came out of the captivity there, and had a school at Tiberias, as say the Talmudists ^m who give very different accounts of him: some say he was in the times of the judges; others in the times of the queen of Sheba; and others in the times of Ahasuerus; but the more general opinion is, and indeed the more probable, that he was born when the Israelites went down into Egypt, and that he was dead when they came from thence ⁿ: in short, they place him almost in all the ages from Abraham to the Babylonish captivity, and after it; and even Luther ^o was of opinion that he lived in the times of Solomon, for which there is no more reason than for the rest: it seems most probable that he lived before Moses ^p, at least before the giving of the law to him, since no mention is made of it in this book, nor any reference to it; whereas there is to things more ancient, as the general deluge, the burning of Sodom, &c. the law concerning sacrifices only to be offered by priests was not as yet given; for Job offered sacrifices as being the head of his family, and so did his three friends, Job 1:5. The length of his life best agrees with the times before Moses, for in his time the age of man was reduced to seventy years; whereas Job must live two hundred years or more, since he lived one hundred and forty after his restoration: add to this, that this book seems to have been written before any idolatry was in the world but the worship of the sun and moon, Job 31:25 and before there were any writings divinely inspired, since there is no appeal to any in the whole controversy between Job and his friends; but the appeal is made to men of years and wisdom, and to traditions of former times, Job 5:1. According to Dr. Owen ^q Job lived three hundred and fifty years after the dispersion at Babel, about A. M. 2100. It is also greatly controverted who was the writer of this book; some ascribe the writing of it to Isaiah the prophet; others to Solomon, as Luther ^r; others to one of the prophets who was an Idumaean; but most to Moses, so the Jews ^s say, that he wrote his own book, the section of Balaam, and Job. Some think that he wrote it when in Midian, for the comfort and encouragement of the Hebrews afflicted in Egypt at that time, and who might hope to be delivered out of their afflictions, as this good man was delivered out of his; and this, it is supposed, accounts for the use of many Arabic words in it; Midian being in Arabia, where Moses, having lived some years, had mixed their language with his own. Some are of opinion that he met with this book when in those parts, which he found either in the Arabic or Syriac language, and translated it into Hebrew ^t for the use of the Israelites; and others think it was written by Job's friends, and particularly by Elihu, which is concluded from Job 32:15, but it is most probable that it was written by Job himself, or at least compiled from his diary or "adversaria" kept by him, or from those of his friends, or from both, and that it was written in the language it is now in: but be it written by whom it may, there is no doubt to be made of the divine authority of it; as appears from the sublimity of the style, the subject matter of it, its agreement with other parts of the sacred writings, and particularly from a quotation of a passage out of Job 5:13 by the Apostle Paul, 1Co 3:19 see also Job 5:17, compared with Heb 12:5. The design of it is not only in general to assert and explain the doctrine of Providence, as Maimonides observes; but in particular to show, that, though good men are afflicted, yet sooner or later they are delivered out of their afflictions; and that it becomes them to bear them patiently, and not murmur at them; nor complain of God on account of them, whose ways and works are unsearchable, and who gives no account of his matters to men, but is sovereign, wise, and just, in all he does; and whatsoever is done by him issues in the good of his people, as well as in his own glory, as the event shows. This book may be considered either as an history of the life of Job, in which an account is given of him in his prosperity; of his afflictions, and how they came upon him; of a visit paid him by his friends, and of the discourses that pass between him and them, and of his restoration to greater affluence than he enjoyed before: or as a drama or dialogue consisting of divers parts, and in which various speakers are introduced, as God, Satan, Job, his wife, and friends; or as a dispute, in which Job's three friends are the opponents, himself the respondent, Elihu the moderator, and God the umpire, who settled and determined the point in question. It contains many useful things in it concerning the Divine Being, and the perfections of his nature, his wisdom, power, justice, goodness, and sovereignty; concerning the works of creation and providence; concerning original sin, and the corruption of mankind; concerning redemption by Christ, and good works to be done by men; and concerning the resurrection of the dead, and eternal life. Some think Job was a type of Christ in his afflictions and sufferings; in his patience under them, and deliverance out of them; in his exaltation to an high pitch of happiness and prosperity; and in his intercession for his friends. He is in many things worthy of imitation, though in others to be blamed, and not followed; and, on the whole, this book of his may be read with great pleasure and profit.

Gill: Job 38 (Chapter Introduction)

INTRODUCTION TO JOB 38

In this chapter the Lord takes up the controversy with Job; calls upon him to prepare to engage with him in it, and demands an answer to posing questions he puts to him, concerning the earth and the fabric of it, Job 38:1; concerning the sea, compared to an infant in embryo, at its birth, in its swaddling bands and cradle, Job 38:8; concerning the morning light, its spread and influence, Job 38:12; concerning the springs of the sea, the dark parts of the earth, the place both of light and darkness, Job 38:16; concerning the various meteors, snow, hail, rain, thunder, lightning, and the influences of the stars, Job 38:22; and concerning provision for lions and ravens, Job 38:40.

Gill: Job 39 (Chapter Introduction)

INTRODUCTION TO JOB 39

This chapter treats of various creatures, beasts and birds, which Job had little knowledge of, had no concern in the making of them, and scarcely any power over them; as of the goats and hinds, Job 39:1; of the wild ass, Job 39:5; of the unicorn, Job 39:9; of the peacock and ostrich, Job 39:13; of the horse, Job 39:19; and of the hawk and eagle, Job 39:26.