God’s Word Translation
Job 38:26
26to bring rain on a land where no one lives, on a desert where there are no humans,
Job 38:26 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)To cause it to rain on the earth, where no man is; on the wilderness, wherein there is no man;
- New International Version (NIV)to water a land where no one lives, an uninhabited desert,
- English Standard Version (ESV)to bring rain on a land where no man is, on the desert in which there is no man,
- New King James Version (NKJV)To cause it to rain on a land where there is no one, A wilderness in which there is no man;
Context of Job 38:26
24Which is the way to the place where light is scattered and the east wind is spread across the earth? 25“Who made a channel for the flooding rains and a path for the thunderstorms to bring rain on a land where no one lives, on a desert where there are no humans, 27to saturate the desolate wasteland in order to make it sprout with grass? 28Does the rain have a father? Who gave birth to the dewdrops?
Read all of Job 38Job 38:26 word by word
לְ֭הַמְטִיר עַל־אֶ֣רֶץ לֹא־אִ֑ישׁ מִ֝דְבָּ֗ר לֹא־אָדָ֥ם בּֽוֹ׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
Cross-references for Job 38:26
- Job 38:11when I said, ‘You may come this far but no farther. Here your proud waves will stop’?
- Psalms 104:10You make water gush from springs into valleys. It flows between the mountains.
- Psalms 107:35He changes deserts into lakes and dry ground into springs.
- Psalms 147:8He covers the sky with clouds. He provides rain for the ground. He makes grass grow on the mountains.
- Isaiah 35:1The desert and the dry land will be glad, and the wilderness will rejoice and blossom.
- Isaiah 41:18I will make rivers flow on bare hilltops. I will make springs flow through valleys. I will turn deserts into lakes. I will turn dry land into springs.
- Isaiah 43:19I am going to do something new. It is already happening. Don’t you recognize it? I will clear a way in the desert. I will make rivers on dry land.
- Jeremiah 14:22The worthless gods of the nations can’t make it rain. By themselves, the skies can’t give showers. But you can, O Lord our God. We have hope in you because you do all these things.
- Hebrews 6:7God blesses the earth. So rain often falls on it, and it produces useful crops for farmers.
Commentaries on Job 38:26
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 26To cause it to rain on the earth - It is well known that rain falls copiously in thunder-storms. The flash is first seen, the clap is next heard, and last the rain descends. The lightning travels all lengths in no perceivable succession of time. Sound is propagated at the rate of 1142 feet in a second. Rain travels still more slowly, and will be seen sooner or later according to the weight of the drops, and the distance of the cloud from the place of the…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 26To cause it to rain on the earth, where no man is - This is designed to heighten the conception of the power of God. It could not be pretended that this was done by man, for the rain was caused to fall in the desolate regions where no one dwelt. In the lonely desert, in the wastes remote from the dwellings of people, the rain is sent down, evidently by the providential care of God, and far beyond the reach of the agency of man. There is very great beauty…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 25-41Verses 25-41 Hitherto God had put questions to Job to show him his ignorance; now God shows his weakness. As it is but little that he knows, he ought not to arraign the Divine counsels; it is but little he can do, therefore he ought not to oppose the ways of Providence. See the all-sufficiency of the Divine Providence; it has wherewithal to satisfy the desire of every living thing. And he that takes care of the young ravens, certainly will not be wanting…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 24-27The east wind blows from the desert, drying up crops and seas (Genesis 41:6, 23, 27; Jeremiah 4:11; Jonah 4:8; Exodus 14:21; Isaiah 11:15). It is not like the heavy rain that causes floods. Helpful rain quenches a barren land (Psalms 104:10–11; 107:35; Isaiah 35:7; 58:11). This contrasts with both hot winds and flooding rains (Job 38:24, 25).Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 19-3819-38. The marvels in heaven. "What is the way (to the place wherein) light dwelleth?" The origin of light and darkness. In Ge 1:3-5, 14-18, "light" is created distinct from, and previous to, light-emitting bodies, the luminaries of heaven.Read the comment
Topics related to Job 38:26
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Job 38
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Rashi on Tanakh
- Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
- John Wesley’s Notes
- Darby Translation Notes
- Geneva Bible Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
God’s Word Translation — © 1995 God’s Word to the Nations Bible Society
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