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VIII. The Lord and Job Meet

Chapter 38

Then the Lord[a] answered Job out of the storm and said:

Who is this who darkens counsel
    with words of ignorance?
Gird up your loins[b] now, like a man;
    I will question you, and you tell me the answers!(A)
Where were you when I founded the earth?
    Tell me, if you have understanding.
Who determined its size? Surely you know?
    Who stretched out the measuring line for it?
Into what were its pedestals sunk,
    and who laid its cornerstone,
While the morning stars sang together
    and all the sons of God[c] shouted for joy?
Who shut within doors the sea,
    when it burst forth from the womb,(B)
When I made the clouds its garment
    and thick darkness its swaddling bands?
10 When I set limits for it
    and fastened the bar of its door,
11 And said: Thus far shall you come but no farther,
    and here shall your proud waves stop?
12 Have you ever in your lifetime commanded the morning
    and shown the dawn its place
13 For taking hold of the ends of the earth,
    till the wicked are shaken from it?
14 The earth is changed as clay by the seal,
    and dyed like a garment;
15 But from the wicked their light is withheld,
    and the arm of pride is shattered.
16 Have you entered into the sources of the sea,
    or walked about on the bottom of the deep?
17 Have the gates of death been shown to you,
    or have you seen the gates of darkness?
18 Have you comprehended the breadth of the earth?
    Tell me, if you know it all.
19 What is the way to the dwelling of light,
    and darkness—where is its place?
20 That you may take it to its territory
    and know the paths to its home?
21 You know, because you were born then,
    and the number of your days is great![d]
22 Have you entered the storehouses of the snow,
    and seen the storehouses of the hail
23 Which I have reserved for times of distress,
    for a day of war and battle?(C)
24 What is the way to the parting of the winds,
    where the east wind spreads over the earth?
25 Who has laid out a channel for the downpour
    and a path for the thunderstorm
26 To bring rain to uninhabited land,
    the unpeopled wilderness;
27 To drench the desolate wasteland
    till the desert blooms with verdure?
28 Has the rain a father?
    Who has begotten the drops of dew?
29 Out of whose womb comes the ice,
    and who gives the hoarfrost its birth in the skies,
30 When the waters lie covered as though with stone
    that holds captive the surface of the deep?
31 Have you tied cords to the Pleiades,[e]
    or loosened the bonds of Orion?
32 Can you bring forth the Mazzaroth in their season,
    or guide the Bear with her children?
33 Do you know the ordinances of the heavens;
    can you put into effect their plan on the earth?
34 Can you raise your voice to the clouds,
    for them to cover you with a deluge of waters?
35 Can you send forth the lightnings on their way,
    so that they say to you, “Here we are”?
36 Who gives wisdom to the ibis,
    and gives the rooster[f] understanding?
37 Who counts the clouds with wisdom?
    Who tilts the water jars of heaven
38 So that the dust of earth is fused into a mass
    and its clods stick together?
39 Do you hunt the prey for the lion
    or appease the hunger of young lions,
40 While they crouch in their dens,
    or lie in ambush in the thicket?
41 Who provides nourishment for the raven
    when its young cry out to God,(D)
    wandering about without food?

Chapter 39

Do you know when mountain goats are born,
    or watch for the birth pangs of deer,
Number the months that they must fulfill,
    or know when they give birth,
When they crouch down and drop their young,
    when they deliver their progeny?
Their offspring thrive and grow in the open,
    they leave and do not return.
Who has given the wild donkey his freedom,
    and who has loosed the wild ass from bonds?
I have made the wilderness his home
    and the salt flats his dwelling.
He scoffs at the uproar of the city,
    hears no shouts of a driver.
He ranges the mountains for pasture,
    and seeks out every patch of green.
Will the wild ox consent to serve you,
    or pass the nights at your manger?
10 Will you bind the wild ox with a rope in the furrow,
    and will he plow the valleys after you?
11 Will you depend on him for his great strength
    and leave to him the fruits of your toil?
12 Can you rely on him to bring in your grain
    and gather in the yield of your threshing floor?
13 The wings of the ostrich[g] flap away;
    her plumage is lacking in feathers.
14 When she abandons her eggs on the ground[h]
    and lets them warm in the sand,
15 She forgets that a foot may crush them,
    that the wild beasts may trample them;
16 She cruelly disowns her young
    and her labor is useless; she has no fear.
17 For God has withheld wisdom from her
    and given her no share in understanding.
18 Yet when she spreads her wings high,
    she laughs at a horse and rider.
19 Do you give the horse his strength,[i]
    and clothe his neck with a mane?
20 Do you make him quiver like a locust,
    while his thunderous snorting spreads terror?
21 He paws the valley, he rejoices in his strength,
    and charges into battle.
22 He laughs at fear and cannot be terrified;
    he does not retreat from the sword.
23 Around him rattles the quiver,
    flashes the spear and the javelin.
24 Frenzied and trembling he devours the ground;
    he does not hold back at the sound of the trumpet;
25     at the trumpet’s call he cries, “Aha!”
Even from afar he scents the battle,
    the roar of the officers and the shouting.
26 Is it by your understanding that the hawk soars,
    that he spreads his wings toward the south?
27 Does the eagle fly up at your command
    to build his nest up high?
28 On a cliff he dwells and spends the night,
    on the spur of cliff or fortress.
29 From there he watches for his food;
    his eyes behold it afar off.
30 His young ones greedily drink blood;
    where the slain are, there is he.(E)

Footnotes

  1. 38:1 Now the Lord enters the debate and addresses two discourses (chaps. 38–39 and 40–41) to Job, speaking of divine wisdom and power. Such things are altogether beyond the capacity of Job. Out of the storm: frequently the background of the appearances of the Lord in the Old Testament; cf. Ps 18; 50; Na 1:3; Hb 3:2–15.
  2. 38:3 Gird up your loins: prepare for combat—figuratively, be ready to defend yourself in debate.
  3. 38:7 Sons of God: see note on 1:6.
  4. 38:21 Ironic, but not a harsh rebuke.
  5. 38:31–32 Pleiades…Orion…Bear: cf. 9:9. Mazzaroth: it is uncertain what astronomical group is meant by this Hebrew word; perhaps a southern constellation.
  6. 38:36 Ibis…rooster: the translation is uncertain.
  7. 39:13 The wings of the ostrich cannot raise her from the ground, but they help her to run swiftly.
  8. 39:14–16 People thought that, because the ostrich laid her eggs on the sand, she was thereby cruelly abandoning them; cf. Lam 4:3.
  9. 39:19–25 A classic description of a war horse.

The Lord Speaks

38 Then the Lord spoke to Job(A) out of the storm.(B) He said:

“Who is this that obscures my plans(C)
    with words without knowledge?(D)
Brace yourself like a man;
    I will question you,
    and you shall answer me.(E)

“Where were you when I laid the earth’s foundation?(F)
    Tell me, if you understand.(G)
Who marked off its dimensions?(H) Surely you know!
    Who stretched a measuring line(I) across it?
On what were its footings set,(J)
    or who laid its cornerstone(K)
while the morning stars(L) sang together(M)
    and all the angels[a](N) shouted for joy?(O)

“Who shut up the sea behind doors(P)
    when it burst forth from the womb,(Q)
when I made the clouds its garment
    and wrapped it in thick darkness,(R)
10 when I fixed limits for it(S)
    and set its doors and bars in place,(T)
11 when I said, ‘This far you may come and no farther;(U)
    here is where your proud waves halt’?(V)

12 “Have you ever given orders to the morning,(W)
    or shown the dawn its place,(X)
13 that it might take the earth by the edges
    and shake the wicked(Y) out of it?(Z)
14 The earth takes shape like clay under a seal;(AA)
    its features stand out like those of a garment.
15 The wicked are denied their light,(AB)
    and their upraised arm is broken.(AC)

16 “Have you journeyed to the springs of the sea
    or walked in the recesses of the deep?(AD)
17 Have the gates of death(AE) been shown to you?
    Have you seen the gates of the deepest darkness?(AF)
18 Have you comprehended the vast expanses of the earth?(AG)
    Tell me, if you know all this.(AH)

19 “What is the way to the abode of light?
    And where does darkness reside?(AI)
20 Can you take them to their places?
    Do you know the paths(AJ) to their dwellings?
21 Surely you know, for you were already born!(AK)
    You have lived so many years!

22 “Have you entered the storehouses of the snow(AL)
    or seen the storehouses(AM) of the hail,(AN)
23 which I reserve for times of trouble,(AO)
    for days of war and battle?(AP)
24 What is the way to the place where the lightning is dispersed,(AQ)
    or the place where the east winds(AR) are scattered over the earth?(AS)
25 Who cuts a channel for the torrents of rain,
    and a path for the thunderstorm,(AT)
26 to water(AU) a land where no one lives,
    an uninhabited desert,(AV)
27 to satisfy a desolate wasteland
    and make it sprout with grass?(AW)
28 Does the rain have a father?(AX)
    Who fathers the drops of dew?
29 From whose womb comes the ice?
    Who gives birth to the frost from the heavens(AY)
30 when the waters become hard as stone,
    when the surface of the deep is frozen?(AZ)

31 “Can you bind the chains[b] of the Pleiades?
    Can you loosen Orion’s belt?(BA)
32 Can you bring forth the constellations(BB) in their seasons[c]
    or lead out the Bear[d] with its cubs?(BC)
33 Do you know the laws(BD) of the heavens?(BE)
    Can you set up God’s[e] dominion over the earth?

34 “Can you raise your voice to the clouds
    and cover yourself with a flood of water?(BF)
35 Do you send the lightning bolts on their way?(BG)
    Do they report to you, ‘Here we are’?
36 Who gives the ibis wisdom[f](BH)
    or gives the rooster understanding?[g](BI)
37 Who has the wisdom to count the clouds?
    Who can tip over the water jars(BJ) of the heavens(BK)
38 when the dust becomes hard(BL)
    and the clods of earth stick together?(BM)

39 “Do you hunt the prey for the lioness
    and satisfy the hunger of the lions(BN)
40 when they crouch in their dens(BO)
    or lie in wait in a thicket?(BP)
41 Who provides food(BQ) for the raven(BR)
    when its young cry out to God
    and wander about for lack of food?(BS)

39 “Do you know when the mountain goats(BT) give birth?
    Do you watch when the doe bears her fawn?(BU)
Do you count the months till they bear?
    Do you know the time they give birth?(BV)
They crouch down and bring forth their young;
    their labor pains are ended.
Their young thrive and grow strong in the wilds;
    they leave and do not return.

“Who let the wild donkey(BW) go free?
    Who untied its ropes?
I gave it the wasteland(BX) as its home,
    the salt flats(BY) as its habitat.(BZ)
It laughs(CA) at the commotion in the town;
    it does not hear a driver’s shout.(CB)
It ranges the hills(CC) for its pasture
    and searches for any green thing.

“Will the wild ox(CD) consent to serve you?(CE)
    Will it stay by your manger(CF) at night?
10 Can you hold it to the furrow with a harness?(CG)
    Will it till the valleys behind you?
11 Will you rely on it for its great strength?(CH)
    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.(CI)
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.(CJ)
16 She treats her young harshly,(CK) 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.(CL)
18 Yet when she spreads her feathers to run,
    she laughs(CM) at horse and rider.

19 “Do you give the horse its strength(CN)
    or clothe its neck with a flowing mane?
20 Do you make it leap like a locust,(CO)
    striking terror(CP) with its proud snorting?(CQ)
21 It paws fiercely, rejoicing in its strength,(CR)
    and charges into the fray.(CS)
22 It laughs(CT) at fear, afraid of nothing;
    it does not shy away from the sword.
23 The quiver(CU) rattles against its side,
    along with the flashing spear(CV) and lance.
24 In frenzied excitement it eats up the ground;
    it cannot stand still when the trumpet sounds.(CW)
25 At the blast of the trumpet(CX) it snorts, ‘Aha!’
    It catches the scent of battle from afar,
    the shout of commanders and the battle cry.(CY)

26 “Does the hawk take flight by your wisdom
    and spread its wings toward the south?(CZ)
27 Does the eagle soar at your command
    and build its nest on high?(DA)
28 It dwells on a cliff and stays there at night;
    a rocky crag(DB) is its stronghold.
29 From there it looks for food;(DC)
    its eyes detect it from afar.
30 Its young ones feast on blood,
    and where the slain are, there it is.”(DD)

Footnotes

  1. Job 38:7 Hebrew the sons of God
  2. Job 38:31 Septuagint; Hebrew beauty
  3. Job 38:32 Or the morning star in its season
  4. Job 38:32 Or out Leo
  5. Job 38:33 Or their
  6. Job 38:36 That is, wisdom about the flooding of the Nile
  7. Job 38:36 That is, understanding of when to crow; the meaning of the Hebrew for this verse is uncertain.

Chapter 12

Therefore you rebuke offenders little by little,
    warn them, and remind them of the sins they are committing,
    that they may abandon their wickedness and believe in you, Lord!

For truly, the ancient inhabitants of your holy land,(A)
    whom you hated for deeds most odious—
    works of sorcery and impious sacrifices;
These merciless murderers of children,
    devourers of human flesh,[a]
    and initiates engaged in a blood ritual,
    and parents who took with their own hands defenseless lives,(B)
You willed to destroy by the hands of our ancestors,
    that the land that is dearest of all to you
    might receive a worthy colony of God’s servants.(C)
But even these you spared, since they were but mortals
    and sent wasps as forerunners of your army
    that they might exterminate them by degrees.(D)

Not that you were without power to have the wicked vanquished in battle by the righteous,
    or wiped out at once by terrible beasts or by one decisive word;(E)
10 But condemning them by degrees, you gave them space for repentance.
You were not unaware that their origins were wicked
    and their malice ingrained,(F)
And that their dispositions would never change;
11     for they were a people accursed from the beginning.
Neither out of fear for anyone
    did you grant release from their sins.(G)

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Footnotes

  1. 12:5 The horrible crimes here attributed to the Canaanites (cf. also 14:23) were not unheard of in the ancient world.
'Wisdom 12:1-11' not found for the version: New International Version.

VIII. The Resurrection Narrative[a]

Chapter 24

The Resurrection of Jesus. (A)But at daybreak on the first day of the week they took the spices they had prepared and went to the tomb. They found the stone rolled away from the tomb; but when they entered, they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus. While they were puzzling over this, behold, two men in dazzling garments appeared to them.(B) They were terrified and bowed their faces to the ground. They said to them, “Why do you seek the living one among the dead?(C) He is not here, but he has been raised.[b] Remember what he said to you while he was still in Galilee, that the Son of Man must be handed over to sinners and be crucified, and rise on the third day.”(D) And they remembered his words.(E) [c](F)Then they returned from the tomb and announced all these things to the eleven and to all the others. 10 The women were Mary Magdalene, Joanna, and Mary the mother of James; the others who accompanied them also told this to the apostles,(G) 11 but their story seemed like nonsense and they did not believe them. 12 [d](H)But Peter got up and ran to the tomb, bent down, and saw the burial cloths alone; then he went home amazed at what had happened.

The Appearance on the Road to Emmaus.[e] 13 Now that very day two of them were going to a village seven miles[f] from Jerusalem called Emmaus,(I) 14 and they were conversing about all the things that had occurred. 15 And it happened that while they were conversing and debating, Jesus himself drew near and walked with them, 16 [g](J)but their eyes were prevented from recognizing him. 17 He asked them, “What are you discussing as you walk along?” They stopped, looking downcast. 18 One of them, named Cleopas, said to him in reply, “Are you the only visitor to Jerusalem who does not know of the things that have taken place there in these days?” 19 And he replied to them, “What sort of things?” They said to him, “The things that happened to Jesus the Nazarene, who was a prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people,(K) 20 how our chief priests and rulers both handed him over to a sentence of death and crucified him. 21 (L)But we were hoping that he would be the one to redeem Israel; and besides all this, it is now the third day since this took place. 22 (M)Some women from our group, however, have astounded us: they were at the tomb early in the morning 23 and did not find his body; they came back and reported that they had indeed seen a vision of angels who announced that he was alive. 24 (N)Then some of those with us went to the tomb and found things just as the women had described, but him they did not see.” 25 (O)And he said to them, “Oh, how foolish you are! How slow of heart to believe all that the prophets spoke! 26 Was it not necessary that the Messiah should suffer[h] these things and enter into his glory?” 27 Then beginning with Moses and all the prophets, he interpreted to them what referred to him in all the scriptures.(P)

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Footnotes

  1. 24:1–53 The resurrection narrative in Luke consists of five sections: (1) the women at the empty tomb (Lk 23:56b–24:12); (2) the appearance to the two disciples on the way to Emmaus (Lk 24:13–35); (3) the appearance to the disciples in Jerusalem (Lk 24:36–43); (4) Jesus’ final instructions (Lk 24:44–49); (5) the ascension (Lk 24:50–53). In Luke, all the resurrection appearances take place in and around Jerusalem; moreover, they are all recounted as having taken place on Easter Sunday. A consistent theme throughout the narrative is that the suffering, death, and resurrection of Jesus were accomplished in fulfillment of Old Testament promises and of Jewish hopes (Lk 24:19a, 21, 26–27, 44, 46). In his second volume, Acts, Luke will argue that Christianity is the fulfillment of the hopes of Pharisaic Judaism and its logical development (see Acts 24:10–21).
  2. 24:6 He is not here, but he has been raised: this part of the verse is omitted in important representatives of the Western text tradition, but its presence in other text types and the slight difference in wording from Mt 28:6 and Mk 16:6 argue for its retention.
  3. 24:9 The women in this gospel do not flee from the tomb and tell no one, as in Mk 16:8 but return and tell the disciples about their experience. The initial reaction to the testimony of the women is disbelief (Lk 24:11).
  4. 24:12 This verse is missing from the Western textual tradition but is found in the best and oldest manuscripts of other text types.
  5. 24:13–35 This episode focuses on the interpretation of scripture by the risen Jesus and the recognition of him in the breaking of the bread. The references to the quotations of scripture and explanation of it (Lk 24:25–27), the kerygmatic proclamation (Lk 24:34), and the liturgical gesture (Lk 24:30) suggest that the episode is primarily catechetical and liturgical rather than apologetic.
  6. 24:13 Seven miles: literally, “sixty stades.” A stade was 607 feet. Some manuscripts read “160 stades” or more than eighteen miles. The exact location of Emmaus is disputed.
  7. 24:16 A consistent feature of the resurrection stories is that the risen Jesus was different and initially unrecognizable (Lk 24:37; Mk 16:12; Jn 20:14; 21:4).
  8. 24:26 That the Messiah should suffer…: Luke is the only New Testament writer to speak explicitly of a suffering Messiah (Lk 24:26, 46; Acts 3:18; 17:3; 26:23). The idea of a suffering Messiah is not found in the Old Testament or in other Jewish literature prior to the New Testament period, although the idea is hinted at in Mk 8:31–33. See notes on Mt 26:63 and 26:67–68.

Jesus Has Risen(A)

24 On the first day of the week, very early in the morning, the women took the spices they had prepared(B) and went to the tomb. They found the stone rolled away from the tomb, but when they entered, they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus.(C) While they were wondering about this, suddenly two men in clothes that gleamed like lightning(D) stood beside them. In their fright the women bowed down with their faces to the ground, but the men said to them, “Why do you look for the living among the dead? He is not here; he has risen! Remember how he told you, while he was still with you in Galilee:(E) ‘The Son of Man(F) must be delivered over to the hands of sinners, be crucified and on the third day be raised again.’(G) Then they remembered his words.(H)

When they came back from the tomb, they told all these things to the Eleven and to all the others. 10 It was Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Mary the mother of James, and the others with them(I) who told this to the apostles.(J) 11 But they did not believe(K) the women, because their words seemed to them like nonsense. 12 Peter, however, got up and ran to the tomb. Bending over, he saw the strips of linen lying by themselves,(L) and he went away,(M) wondering to himself what had happened.

On the Road to Emmaus

13 Now that same day two of them were going to a village called Emmaus, about seven miles[a] from Jerusalem.(N) 14 They were talking with each other about everything that had happened. 15 As they talked and discussed these things with each other, Jesus himself came up and walked along with them;(O) 16 but they were kept from recognizing him.(P)

17 He asked them, “What are you discussing together as you walk along?”

They stood still, their faces downcast. 18 One of them, named Cleopas,(Q) asked him, “Are you the only one visiting Jerusalem who does not know the things that have happened there in these days?”

19 “What things?” he asked.

“About Jesus of Nazareth,”(R) they replied. “He was a prophet,(S) powerful in word and deed before God and all the people. 20 The chief priests and our rulers(T) handed him over to be sentenced to death, and they crucified him; 21 but we had hoped that he was the one who was going to redeem Israel.(U) And what is more, it is the third day(V) since all this took place. 22 In addition, some of our women amazed us.(W) They went to the tomb early this morning 23 but didn’t find his body. They came and told us that they had seen a vision of angels, who said he was alive. 24 Then some of our companions went to the tomb and found it just as the women had said, but they did not see Jesus.”(X)

25 He said to them, “How foolish you are, and how slow to believe all that the prophets have spoken! 26 Did not the Messiah have to suffer these things and then enter his glory?”(Y) 27 And beginning with Moses(Z) and all the Prophets,(AA) he explained to them what was said in all the Scriptures concerning himself.(AB)

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Footnotes

  1. Luke 24:13 Or about 11 kilometers