Job 38:12-24

38:12 Have you ever in your life ¹  commanded the morning,

or made the dawn know ²  its place,

38:13 that it might seize the corners of the earth, ³ 

and shake the wicked out of it?

38:14 The earth takes shape like clay under a seal; ⁴ 

its features ⁵  are dyed ⁶  like a garment.

38:15 Then from the wicked the light is withheld,

and the arm raised in violence ⁷  is broken. ⁸ 

38:16 Have you gone to the springs that fill the sea, ⁹ 

or walked about in the recesses of the deep?

38:17 Have the gates of death been revealed to you? ¹⁰ 

Have you seen the gates of deepest darkness? ¹¹ 

38:18 Have you considered the vast expanses of the earth?

Tell me, if you know it all!

38:19 “In what direction ¹²  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? ¹³ 

38:21 You know, for you were born before them; ¹⁴ 

and the number of your days is great!

38:22 Have you entered the storehouse ¹⁵  of the snow,

or seen the armory ¹⁶  of the hail,

38:23 which I reserve for the time of trouble,

for the day of war and battle? ¹⁷ 

38:24 In what direction is lightning ¹⁸  dispersed,

or the east winds scattered over the earth?

[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).

[38:12]  ² tn The verb is the Piel of יָדַע (yada’, “to know”) with a double accusative.

[38:13]  ³ 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.

[38:14]  ⁵ 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.

[38:14]  ⁶ tn Heb “they”; the referent (the objects or features on the earth) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[38:14]  ⁷ 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.

[38:15]  ⁷ 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.

[38:15]  ⁸ 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).

[38:16]  ⁹ tn Heb “the springs of the sea.” The words “that fill” are supplied in the translation to clarify the meaning of the phrase.

[38:17]  ¹¹ tn Heb “uncovered to you.”

[38:17]  ¹² 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).

[38:19]  ¹³ tn The interrogative with דֶרֶךְ (derekh) means “in what road” or “in what direction.”

[38:20]  ¹⁵ 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.

[38:21]  ¹⁷ tn The imperfect verb after the adverb אָז (’az, “then”) functions as a preterite: “you were born.” The line is sarcastic.

[38:22]  ¹⁹ 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]).

[38:22]  ²⁰ 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.

[38:23]  ²¹ sn The terms translated war and battle are different Hebrew words, but both may be translated “war” or “battle” depending on the context.

[38:24]  ²³ 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).