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Job 39
GOD’S WORD Translation
Job 39
GOD’S WORD Translation
The Lord Continues: the Mountain Goats
39 “Do you know the time when the mountain goats give birth?
Do you watch the does when they are in labor?
2 Can you count the months they are pregnant
or know the time when they’ll give birth?
3 They kneel down to give birth and deliver their young.
Then the pain of giving birth is over.
4 Their young are healthy and grow up in the wild.
They leave and don’t come back.
The Wild Donkey
5 “Who lets the wild donkey go free?
Who unties the ropes of the wild donkey?
6 I gave it the desert to live in
and the salt flats as its dwelling place.
7 It laughs at the noise of the city
and doesn’t ⌞even⌟ listen to the shouting of its master.
8 It explores the mountains for its pasture
and looks for anything green.
The Wild Ox
9 “Will the wild ox agree to serve you,
or will it stay at night beside your feeding trough?
10 Can you guide a wild ox in a furrow,
or will it plow the valleys behind you?
11 Can you trust it just because it’s so strong
or leave your labor to it?
12 Can you rely on it to bring your grain back
and take it to your threshing floor? [a]
The Ostrich
13 “Does the ostrich flap its wings in joy,
or do its wings lack feathers? [b]
14 It lays its eggs on the ground
and warms them in the dust.
15 It forgets that a foot may crush them
or a wild animal may trample them.
16 It acts harshly toward its young as if they weren’t its own.
It is not afraid that its work is for nothing
17 because God has deprived it of wisdom
and did not give it any understanding.
18 It laughs at the horse and its rider when it gets up to flee.
The Horse
19 “Can you give strength to a horse
or dress its neck with a flowing mane?
20 Can you make it leap like a locust,
when its snorting causes terror?
21 It paws in strength and finds joy in its power.
It charges into battle.
22 It laughs at fear,
is afraid of nothing,
and doesn’t back away from swords.
23 A quiver of arrows rattles on it
along with the flashing spear and javelin.
24 Anxious and excited, the horse eats up the ground
and doesn’t trust the sound of the ram’s horn.
25 As often as the horn sounds, the horse says, ‘Aha!’
and it smells the battle far away—
the thundering ⌞orders⌟ of the captains and the battle cries.
The Birds of Prey
26 “Does your understanding make a bird of prey fly
and spread its wings toward the south?
27 Is it by your order that the eagle flies high
and makes its nest on the heights?
28 It perches for the night on a cliff.
Its fortress is on a jagged peak.
29 From there it seeks food,
and its eyes see it from far away.
30 Its young ones feed on blood. It is found wherever there are dead bodies.”
Job 39
EasyEnglish Bible
Job 39
EasyEnglish Bible
God continues to ask Job questions[a]
39 ‘Job, do you know that time when the goats on the mountains give birth?
Do you watch the wild deer when their babies are born?
2 Can you count the number of months that these animals are pregnant?
How long must they wait until they give birth?
3 They bend down low to the ground.
They give birth to the babies that they have carried inside them.
4 The young animals grow
and they become strong in the fields.
Then they leave their parents
and they do not return to them.
5 Did you send out the wild donkeys
to go wherever they want?
6 No! It was me who gave them the desert as their home.
I let them live in places where the ground has salt.
7 They stay far away from the busy cities.
They do not allow anyone to make them work.
8 Instead, they live on the hills,
where they find fresh plants to eat.
9 Can you tell a wild ox to work for you?
No! At night, it will not stay to feed at your farm.
10 It will not let you tie it to a plough.
It will not agree to prepare your fields in the valleys.
11 A wild ox is very strong.
But you cannot trust it to help you with your difficult work.
12 It will not help you to bring in your harvest of grain.
It will not take the grain to your threshing floor.
13 When an ostrich is happy,
it waves its wings.
But it cannot use its wings to fly,
as a stork can do.
14 A mother ostrich leaves her eggs on the ground.
She lets the sand cause them to be warm.
15 She does not realize that people or wild animals
might break the eggs with their feet.
16 She does not take care of her babies,
as if they did not belong to her.
She does not worry that all her work might be useless.
17 This is because I did not give wisdom to ostriches.
I did not give them minds that understand things.
18 But when an ostrich begins to run,
it can run very fast.
It can run faster than a horse
and someone who rides on it.
19 Did you, Job, give horses their strength?
Did you give them the long hair that they have on their necks?
20 You did not make horses able to jump like locusts.
They frighten people when they blow air out through their noses.
21 They stamp their feet on the ground,
as they prepare to go to a battle.
They are ready to go and attack the enemy.
22 A horse is brave and it is not afraid of anything.
It does not run away from the enemy's weapons.
23 The soldier who is riding it
has his arrows ready at the horse's side.
Swords and spears shine brightly in the sun.
24 The horse shakes with joy
as it runs to the battle.
When the battle trumpet makes its noise,
the horse wants to run even faster![b]
25 When it hears the sound of the trumpet,
it makes a happy noise.
From far away, it recognizes the smell of the battle.
It hears the army officers as they shout their commands.
26 Was it your wisdom, Job, that taught hawks how to fly?
No! You could not teach them to fly towards the south in winter.
27 Do eagles wait for your command
to fly high into the sky?
No! You could not teach them how to build their nests
high up in the mountains.
28 They live among the highest rocks.
That is where they stay at night.
They are safe on the sharp rocks.
29 From the high rocks,
eagles look for their food.
They see small animals far away,
that they can catch and eat.
30 They come together around the bodies of dead animals.
The young eagles drink the blood.’
Footnotes
- 39:1 God continues to ask Job questions. He knows that Job must answer ‘No’ to these questions. Job does not know everything about all the animals that God has made and how they live. God is showing Job that he, God, is the one who knows about all these things. So God knows what is good and right.
- 39:24 A soldier would make a noise with a trumpet when the battle was ready to start. Then all the soldiers would know that it was the time for them to attack their enemy.
Job 39
New International Version
Job 39
New International Version
39 “Do you know when the mountain goats(A) give birth?
Do you watch when the doe bears her fawn?(B)
2 Do you count the months till they bear?
Do you know the time they give birth?(C)
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(D) go free?
Who untied its ropes?
6 I gave it the wasteland(E) as its home,
the salt flats(F) as its habitat.(G)
7 It laughs(H) at the commotion in the town;
it does not hear a driver’s shout.(I)
8 It ranges the hills(J) for its pasture
and searches for any green thing.
9 “Will the wild ox(K) consent to serve you?(L)
Will it stay by your manger(M) at night?
10 Can you hold it to the furrow with a harness?(N)
Will it till the valleys behind you?
11 Will you rely on it for its great strength?(O)
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.(P)
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.(Q)
16 She treats her young harshly,(R) 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.(S)
18 Yet when she spreads her feathers to run,
she laughs(T) at horse and rider.
19 “Do you give the horse its strength(U)
or clothe its neck with a flowing mane?
20 Do you make it leap like a locust,(V)
striking terror(W) with its proud snorting?(X)
21 It paws fiercely, rejoicing in its strength,(Y)
and charges into the fray.(Z)
22 It laughs(AA) at fear, afraid of nothing;
it does not shy away from the sword.
23 The quiver(AB) rattles against its side,
along with the flashing spear(AC) and lance.
24 In frenzied excitement it eats up the ground;
it cannot stand still when the trumpet sounds.(AD)
25 At the blast of the trumpet(AE) it snorts, ‘Aha!’
It catches the scent of battle from afar,
the shout of commanders and the battle cry.(AF)
26 “Does the hawk take flight by your wisdom
and spread its wings toward the south?(AG)
27 Does the eagle soar at your command
and build its nest on high?(AH)
28 It dwells on a cliff and stays there at night;
a rocky crag(AI) is its stronghold.
29 From there it looks for food;(AJ)
its eyes detect it from afar.
30 Its young ones feast on blood,
and where the slain are, there it is.”(AK)
Job 39
New King James Version
Job 39
New King James Version
God Continues to Challenge Job
39 “Do you know the time when the wild (A)mountain goats bear young?
Or can you mark when (B)the deer gives birth?
2 Can you number the months that they fulfill?
Or do you know the time when they bear young?
3 They bow down,
They bring forth their young,
They deliver their [a]offspring.
4 Their young ones are healthy,
They grow strong with grain;
They depart and do not return to them.
5 “Who set the wild donkey free?
Who loosed the bonds of the [b]onager,
6 (C)Whose home I have made the wilderness,
And the [c]barren land his dwelling?
7 He scorns the tumult of the city;
He does not heed the shouts of the driver.
8 The range of the mountains is his pasture,
And he searches after (D)every green thing.
9 “Will the (E)wild ox be willing to serve you?
Will he bed by your manger?
10 Can you bind the wild ox in the furrow with ropes?
Or will he plow the valleys behind you?
11 Will you trust him because his strength is great?
Or will you leave your labor to him?
12 Will you trust him to bring home your [d]grain,
And gather it to your threshing floor?
13 “The wings of the ostrich wave proudly,
But are her wings and pinions like the kindly stork’s?
14 For she leaves her eggs on the ground,
And warms them in the dust;
15 She forgets that a foot may crush them,
Or that a wild beast may break them.
16 She (F)treats her young harshly, as though they were not hers;
Her labor is in vain, without [e]concern,
17 Because God deprived her of wisdom,
And did not (G)endow her with understanding.
18 When she lifts herself on high,
She scorns the horse and its rider.
19 “Have you given the horse strength?
Have you clothed his neck with [f]thunder?
20 Can you [g]frighten him like a locust?
His majestic snorting strikes terror.
21 He paws in the valley, and rejoices in his strength;
(H)He gallops into the clash of arms.
22 He mocks at fear, and is not frightened;
Nor does he turn back from the sword.
23 The quiver rattles against him,
The glittering spear and javelin.
24 He devours the distance with fierceness and rage;
Nor does he come to a halt because the trumpet has sounded.
25 At the blast of the trumpet he says, ‘Aha!’
He smells the battle from afar,
The thunder of captains and shouting.
26 “Does the hawk fly by your wisdom,
And spread its wings toward the south?
27 Does the (I)eagle mount up at your command,
And (J)make its nest on high?
28 On the rock it dwells and resides,
On the crag of the rock and the stronghold.
29 From there it spies out the prey;
Its eyes observe from afar.
30 Its young ones suck up blood;
And (K)where the slain are, there it is.”
GOD’S WORD Translation (GW)
Copyright © 1995, 2003, 2013, 2014, 2019, 2020 by God’s Word to the Nations Mission Society. All rights reserved.
EasyEnglish Bible (EASY)
EasyEnglish Bible Copyright © MissionAssist 2019 - Charitable Incorporated Organisation 1162807. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
New International Version (NIV) 
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.
New King James Version (NKJV) 
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.