37 “At this my heart pounds(A)
    and leaps from its place.
Listen!(B) Listen to the roar of his voice,(C)
    to the rumbling that comes from his mouth.(D)
He unleashes his lightning(E) beneath the whole heaven
    and sends it to the ends of the earth.(F)
After that comes the sound of his roar;
    he thunders(G) with his majestic voice.(H)
When his voice resounds,
    he holds nothing back.
God’s voice thunders(I) in marvelous ways;(J)
    he does great things beyond our understanding.(K)
He says to the snow,(L) ‘Fall on the earth,’
    and to the rain shower, ‘Be a mighty downpour.’(M)
So that everyone he has made may know his work,(N)
    he stops all people from their labor.[a](O)
The animals take cover;(P)
    they remain in their dens.(Q)
The tempest comes out from its chamber,(R)
    the cold from the driving winds.(S)
10 The breath of God produces ice,
    and the broad waters become frozen.(T)
11 He loads the clouds with moisture;(U)
    he scatters his lightning(V) through them.(W)
12 At his direction they swirl around
    over the face of the whole earth
    to do whatever he commands them.(X)
13 He brings the clouds to punish people,(Y)
    or to water his earth and show his love.(Z)

14 “Listen(AA) to this, Job;
    stop and consider God’s wonders.(AB)
15 Do you know how God controls the clouds
    and makes his lightning(AC) flash?(AD)
16 Do you know how the clouds hang poised,(AE)
    those wonders of him who has perfect knowledge?(AF)
17 You who swelter in your clothes
    when the land lies hushed under the south wind,(AG)
18 can you join him in spreading out the skies,(AH)
    hard as a mirror of cast bronze?(AI)

19 “Tell us what we should say to him;(AJ)
    we cannot draw up our case(AK) because of our darkness.(AL)
20 Should he be told that I want to speak?
    Would anyone ask to be swallowed up?
21 Now no one can look at the sun,(AM)
    bright as it is in the skies
    after the wind has swept them clean.
22 Out of the north he comes in golden splendor;(AN)
    God comes in awesome majesty.(AO)
23 The Almighty is beyond our reach and exalted in power;(AP)
    in his justice(AQ) and great righteousness, he does not oppress.(AR)
24 Therefore, people revere him,(AS)
    for does he not have regard for all the wise(AT) in heart?[b]

The Lord Speaks

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

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

“Where were you when I laid the earth’s foundation?(AZ)
    Tell me, if you understand.(BA)
Who marked off its dimensions?(BB) Surely you know!
    Who stretched a measuring line(BC) across it?
On what were its footings set,(BD)
    or who laid its cornerstone(BE)
while the morning stars(BF) sang together(BG)
    and all the angels[c](BH) shouted for joy?(BI)

“Who shut up the sea behind doors(BJ)
    when it burst forth from the womb,(BK)
when I made the clouds its garment
    and wrapped it in thick darkness,(BL)
10 when I fixed limits for it(BM)
    and set its doors and bars in place,(BN)
11 when I said, ‘This far you may come and no farther;(BO)
    here is where your proud waves halt’?(BP)

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

16 “Have you journeyed to the springs of the sea
    or walked in the recesses of the deep?(BX)
17 Have the gates of death(BY) been shown to you?
    Have you seen the gates of the deepest darkness?(BZ)
18 Have you comprehended the vast expanses of the earth?(CA)
    Tell me, if you know all this.(CB)

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

22 “Have you entered the storehouses of the snow(CF)
    or seen the storehouses(CG) of the hail,(CH)
23 which I reserve for times of trouble,(CI)
    for days of war and battle?(CJ)
24 What is the way to the place where the lightning is dispersed,(CK)
    or the place where the east winds(CL) are scattered over the earth?(CM)
25 Who cuts a channel for the torrents of rain,
    and a path for the thunderstorm,(CN)
26 to water(CO) a land where no one lives,
    an uninhabited desert,(CP)
27 to satisfy a desolate wasteland
    and make it sprout with grass?(CQ)
28 Does the rain have a father?(CR)
    Who fathers the drops of dew?
29 From whose womb comes the ice?
    Who gives birth to the frost from the heavens(CS)
30 when the waters become hard as stone,
    when the surface of the deep is frozen?(CT)

31 “Can you bind the chains[d] of the Pleiades?
    Can you loosen Orion’s belt?(CU)
32 Can you bring forth the constellations(CV) in their seasons[e]
    or lead out the Bear[f] with its cubs?(CW)
33 Do you know the laws(CX) of the heavens?(CY)
    Can you set up God’s[g] dominion over the earth?

34 “Can you raise your voice to the clouds
    and cover yourself with a flood of water?(CZ)
35 Do you send the lightning bolts on their way?(DA)
    Do they report to you, ‘Here we are’?
36 Who gives the ibis wisdom[h](DB)
    or gives the rooster understanding?[i](DC)
37 Who has the wisdom to count the clouds?
    Who can tip over the water jars(DD) of the heavens(DE)
38 when the dust becomes hard(DF)
    and the clods of earth stick together?(DG)

39 “Do you hunt the prey for the lioness
    and satisfy the hunger of the lions(DH)
40 when they crouch in their dens(DI)
    or lie in wait in a thicket?(DJ)
41 Who provides food(DK) for the raven(DL)
    when its young cry out to God
    and wander about for lack of food?(DM)

39 “Do you know when the mountain goats(DN) give birth?
    Do you watch when the doe bears her fawn?(DO)
Do you count the months till they bear?
    Do you know the time they give birth?(DP)
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(DQ) go free?
    Who untied its ropes?
I gave it the wasteland(DR) as its home,
    the salt flats(DS) as its habitat.(DT)
It laughs(DU) at the commotion in the town;
    it does not hear a driver’s shout.(DV)
It ranges the hills(DW) for its pasture
    and searches for any green thing.

“Will the wild ox(DX) consent to serve you?(DY)
    Will it stay by your manger(DZ) at night?
10 Can you hold it to the furrow with a harness?(EA)
    Will it till the valleys behind you?
11 Will you rely on it for its great strength?(EB)
    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.(EC)
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.(ED)
16 She treats her young harshly,(EE) 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.(EF)
18 Yet when she spreads her feathers to run,
    she laughs(EG) at horse and rider.

19 “Do you give the horse its strength(EH)
    or clothe its neck with a flowing mane?
20 Do you make it leap like a locust,(EI)
    striking terror(EJ) with its proud snorting?(EK)
21 It paws fiercely, rejoicing in its strength,(EL)
    and charges into the fray.(EM)
22 It laughs(EN) at fear, afraid of nothing;
    it does not shy away from the sword.
23 The quiver(EO) rattles against its side,
    along with the flashing spear(EP) and lance.
24 In frenzied excitement it eats up the ground;
    it cannot stand still when the trumpet sounds.(EQ)
25 At the blast of the trumpet(ER) it snorts, ‘Aha!’
    It catches the scent of battle from afar,
    the shout of commanders and the battle cry.(ES)

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

Footnotes

  1. Job 37:7 Or work, / he fills all people with fear by his power
  2. Job 37:24 Or for he does not have regard for any who think they are wise.
  3. Job 38:7 Hebrew the sons of God
  4. Job 38:31 Septuagint; Hebrew beauty
  5. Job 38:32 Or the morning star in its season
  6. Job 38:32 Or out Leo
  7. Job 38:33 Or their
  8. Job 38:36 That is, wisdom about the flooding of the Nile
  9. Job 38:36 That is, understanding of when to crow; the meaning of the Hebrew for this verse is uncertain.

A New Heaven and a New Earth

21 Then I saw “a new heaven and a new earth,”[a](A) for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away,(B) and there was no longer any sea. I saw the Holy City,(C) the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God,(D) prepared as a bride(E) beautifully dressed for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Look! God’s dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them.(F) They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God.(G) ‘He will wipe every tear from their eyes.(H) There will be no more death’[b](I) or mourning or crying or pain,(J) for the old order of things has passed away.”(K)

He who was seated on the throne(L) said, “I am making everything new!”(M) Then he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.”(N)

He said to me: “It is done.(O) I am the Alpha and the Omega,(P) the Beginning and the End. To the thirsty I will give water without cost(Q) from the spring of the water of life.(R) Those who are victorious(S) will inherit all this, and I will be their God and they will be my children.(T) But the cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars(U)—they will be consigned to the fiery lake of burning sulfur.(V) This is the second death.”(W)

The New Jerusalem, the Bride of the Lamb

One of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues(X) came and said to me, “Come, I will show you the bride,(Y) the wife of the Lamb.” 10 And he carried me away(Z) in the Spirit(AA) to a mountain great and high, and showed me the Holy City, Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God.(AB) 11 It shone with the glory of God,(AC) and its brilliance was like that of a very precious jewel, like a jasper,(AD) clear as crystal.(AE) 12 It had a great, high wall with twelve gates,(AF) and with twelve angels at the gates. On the gates were written the names of the twelve tribes of Israel.(AG) 13 There were three gates on the east, three on the north, three on the south and three on the west. 14 The wall of the city had twelve foundations,(AH) and on them were the names of the twelve apostles(AI) of the Lamb.

15 The angel who talked with me had a measuring rod(AJ) of gold to measure the city, its gates(AK) and its walls. 16 The city was laid out like a square, as long as it was wide. He measured the city with the rod and found it to be 12,000 stadia[c] in length, and as wide and high as it is long. 17 The angel measured the wall using human(AL) measurement, and it was 144 cubits[d] thick.[e] 18 The wall was made of jasper,(AM) and the city of pure gold, as pure as glass.(AN) 19 The foundations of the city walls were decorated with every kind of precious stone.(AO) The first foundation was jasper,(AP) the second sapphire, the third agate, the fourth emerald, 20 the fifth onyx, the sixth ruby,(AQ) the seventh chrysolite, the eighth beryl, the ninth topaz, the tenth turquoise, the eleventh jacinth, and the twelfth amethyst.[f] 21 The twelve gates(AR) were twelve pearls,(AS) each gate made of a single pearl. The great street of the city was of gold, as pure as transparent glass.(AT)

22 I did not see a temple(AU) in the city, because the Lord God Almighty(AV) and the Lamb(AW) are its temple. 23 The city does not need the sun or the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God(AX) gives it light,(AY) and the Lamb(AZ) is its lamp. 24 The nations will walk by its light, and the kings of the earth will bring their splendor into it.(BA) 25 On no day will its gates(BB) ever be shut,(BC) for there will be no night there.(BD) 26 The glory and honor of the nations will be brought into it.(BE) 27 Nothing impure will ever enter it, nor will anyone who does what is shameful or deceitful,(BF) but only those whose names are written in the Lamb’s book of life.(BG)

Footnotes

  1. Revelation 21:1 Isaiah 65:17
  2. Revelation 21:4 Isaiah 25:8
  3. Revelation 21:16 That is, about 1,400 miles or about 2,200 kilometers
  4. Revelation 21:17 That is, about 200 feet or about 65 meters
  5. Revelation 21:17 Or high
  6. Revelation 21:20 The precise identification of some of these precious stones is uncertain.

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