38:36 Who has put wisdom in the heart, 1
or has imparted understanding to the mind?
38:37 Who by wisdom can count the clouds,
and who can tip over 2 the water jars of heaven,
38:38 when the dust hardens 3 into a mass,
and the clumps of earth stick together?
38:39 “Do you hunt prey for the lioness,
and satisfy the appetite 4 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 5 for lack of food?
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.
2 tn The word actually means “to cause to lie down.”
3 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.
4 tn Heb “fill up the life of.”
5 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.”