Job 38-39
Job 38
1 Then the LORD spoke to Job out of the storm. He said: 2 “Who is this that obscures my plans with words without knowledge? 3 Brace yourself like a man; I will question you, and you shall answer me.
4 “Where were you when I laid the earth's foundation? Tell me, if you understand. 5 Who marked off its dimensions? Surely you know! Who stretched a measuring line across it? 6 On what were its footings set, or who laid its cornerstone— 7 while the morning stars sang together and all the angels shouted for joy?
8 “Who shut up the sea behind doors when it burst forth from the womb, 9 when I made the clouds its garment and wrapped it in thick darkness, 10 when I fixed limits for it and set its doors and bars in place, 11 when I said, 'This far you may come and no farther; here is where your proud waves halt'?
12 “Have you ever given orders to the morning, or shown the dawn its place, 13 that it might take the earth by the edges and shake the wicked out of it? 14 The earth takes shape like clay under a seal; its features stand out like those of a garment. 15 The wicked are denied their light, and their upraised arm is broken.
16 “Have you journeyed to the springs of the sea or walked in the recesses of the deep? 17 Have the gates of death been shown to you? Have you seen the gates of the deepest darkness? 18 Have you comprehended the vast expanses of the earth? Tell me, if you know all this.
19“What is the way to the abode of light? And where does darkness reside? 20 Can you take them to their places? Do you know the paths to their dwellings? 21 Surely you know, for you were already born! You have lived so many years!
22 “Have you entered the storehouses of the snow or seen the storehouses of the hail, 23 which I reserve for times of trouble, for days of war and battle? 24 What is the way to the place where the lightning is dispersed, or the place where the east winds are scattered over the earth? 25 Who cuts a channel for the torrents of rain, and a path for the thunderstorm, 26 to water a land where no one lives, an uninhabited desert, 27 to satisfy a desolate wasteland and make it sprout with grass? 28 Does the rain have a father? Who fathers the drops of dew? 29 From whose womb comes the ice? Who gives birth to the frost from the heavens 30 when the waters become hard as stone, when the surface of the deep is frozen?
31 “Can you bind the chains of the Pleiades? Can you loosen Orion's belt? 32 Can you bring forth the constellations in their seasons or lead out the Bear with its cubs? 33 Do you know the laws of the heavens? Can you set up God's dominion over the earth? 34 “Can you raise your voice to the clouds and cover yourself with a flood of water? 35 Do you send the lightning bolts on their way? Do they report to you, 'Here we are'? 36 Who gives the ibis wisdom or gives the rooster understanding? 37 Who has the wisdom to count the clouds? Who can tip over the water jars of the heavens 38 when the dust becomes hard and the clods of earth stick together?
39 “Do you hunt the prey for the lioness and satisfy the hunger of the lions 40 when they crouch in their dens or lie in wait in a thicket? 41 Who provides food for the raven when its young cry out to God and wander about for lack of food?
Job 39
1 “Do you know when the mountain goats give birth? Do you watch when the doe bears her fawn? 2 Do you count the months till they bear? Do you know the time they give birth? 3 They crouch down and bring forth their young; their labor pains are ended. 4 Their young thrive and grow strong in the wilds; they leave and do not return.
5 “Who let the wild donkey go free? Who untied its ropes? 6 I gave it the wasteland as its home, the salt flats as its habitat. 7 It laughs at the commotion in the town; it does not hear a driver's shout. 8 It ranges the hills for its pasture and searches for any green thing. 9 “Will the wild ox consent to serve you? Will it stay by your manger at night? 10 Can you hold it to the furrow with a harness? Will it till the valleys behind you? 11 Will you rely on it for its great strength? Will you leave your heavy work to it? 12 Can you trust it to haul in your grain and bring it to your threshing floor?
13 “The wings of the ostrich flap joyfully, though they cannot compare with the wings and feathers of the stork. 14 She lays her eggs on the ground and lets them warm in the sand, 15 unmindful that a foot may crush them, that some wild animal may trample them. 16 She treats her young harshly, as if they were not hers; she cares not that her labor was in vain,17 for God did not endow her with wisdom or give her a share of good sense.18 Yet when she spreads her feathers to run, she laughs at horse and rider.
19“Do you give the horse its strength or clothe its neck with a flowing mane? 20 Do you make it leap like a locust, striking terror with its proud snorting? 21 It paws fiercely, rejoicing in its strength, and charges into the fray. 22 It laughs at fear, afraid of nothing; it does not shy away from the sword. 23 The quiver rattles against its side, along with the flashing spear and lance. 24 In frenzied excitement it eats up the ground; it cannot stand still when the trumpet sounds.25 At the blast of the trumpet it snorts, 'Aha!' It catches the scent of battle from afar, the shout of commanders and the battle cry.
26 “Does the hawk take flight by your wisdom and spread its wings toward the south? 27 Does the eagle soar at your command and build its nest on high? 28 It dwells on a cliff and stays there at night; a rocky crag is its stronghold. 29 From there it looks for food; its eyes detect it from afar. 30 Its young ones feast on blood, and where the slain are, there it is.”
Snapshot 29: You Want The Truth? You Can't Handle The Truth!
Job 38-39
I can just see God making an entrance. Elihu was still pestering Job with questions when the storm rolls in. I imagine the sudden appearance of large rolling black clouds and rumbles like thunder. God did not tell them to listen because they were likely all looking straight up. The storm, of course, could be figurative since Job is going through a storm. But I think God came in meaning business. I also find it humorous that Elihu had been waxing poetic about God being in the storms and then, BOOM, God shows up with thunder. It is one thing to say it, it is another to see it. I bet Elihu wet himself – I would have!
Notice that of all the men standing there, the only person God is focused on is Job. Don't worry, he gets to the others later.
Right out of the gate, He asks who is making a murky mess of the truth. He tells Job to get ready to be questioned. So, Job wanted a trial and now he gets cross-examined by God. Be careful what you ask for…
God does not sit down and answer Job's long list of questions like Job expected. Instead, He does his own series of questions. God's questions center on God's wisdom, God's power, God's care over nature, and God's protection against evil. He points out through these questions that Job understands so little about the world around him, how is he qualified to question the God who made it?
Ok, last chapter I was seeing Frozen in my head. This time I am hearing that Paint with All the Colors of the Wind song. 16-17 Disney paraphrased:
Have you ever seen the springs of the deep blue sea? Or walked in midnight waters of the deep? Have you ever seen the gates of death or darkness creak? 18 Or paint with all the colors of the wind?
Ok, I added that last line. Admit it, now you have Disney bouncing around your head too! FYI – Job predates even the original Mickey. Take that copyright law!
Look at how lovingly God describes His creation. It is beautiful and shows some of God's identity as creator.
God has been silent with Job up to this point. He still does that today– to my ever-lovin frustration. And then when He does speak, He often does not address things we want to be addressed. I have had this happen many times in my life. I am trying to seek God in one area, and God is concerned about something completely different. It is so frustrating for me – and probably to God who likely knows I am asking the wrong questions and could not handle the truth if I heard the answer. God controls the conversation.
Job has spent chapters crying out “why?” Now God is answering with "who." I think we often are asking the wrong questions when we cry out to God. Instead of focusing on the Job's complaints, God is reminding Job of God's identity and nature. So basic. So powerful.
I know that we can now answer some of the scientific questions that God poses to Job. But we still do not understand the world around us. We get rain a lot in Florida. Sometimes it rains in the front yard, but not in the back. The weather channels compete against each other to publish the most detailed images (using cool-sounding tech like Storm-Tracker 9000 or Viper Radar) and try to predict the rain down to the minute. The reports are pretty good, but sometimes it just rains. Sometimes the storms pass without a drop falling. Sometimes the best of man's tech stands helpless against the undisputable storm in their front yard. It always makes me smile.
God knows the storm. God fathers the storm. God answers out of the storm. God is the God of calm waters and the God of the storm. Nothing takes Him by surprise.
TJ: Job is the hardest book for me to study. Part of it is that I honestly had to reevaluate the Who of God. I was boxing Him in to be what I felt comfortable with rather than really seeking God. I wanted the Sunday school song God. God of the storm is a harder God to know. I also KNOW that the God of the storm IS the God who grows us. It is not God who is more willing to teach in hard times, but rather we are more willing to hear. We did not see Job begging God to speak to him when times were good. In the storm, Job cried out. But loving God means expecting the world to not make sense sometimes. Accepting that we don't have to understand the situation. Knowing that things will turn out His way rather than ours and trusting Him anyway. Practically, I think reading the Bible and coming to understand God is both a good place to begin and a lifetime ambition.