Job 38:4-41

4Where were you 1when I laid the foundation of the earth? Tell Me, if you 2have understanding,5Who set its 3measurements? Since you know. Or who stretched the measuring line over it?6On what 4were its bases sunk? Or who laid its cornerstone,7When the morning stars sang together And all the 5sons of God shouted for joy?

8“Or who 6enclosed the sea with doors When it went out from the womb, bursting forth;9When I made a cloud its garment, And thick darkness its swaddling bands,10And I 78placed boundaries on it And set a bolt and doors,11And I said, ‘As far as this point you shall come, but no farther; And here your proud waves shall stop’?

12“Have you 9ever in your life commanded the morning, And made the dawn know its place,13So that it would take hold of 10the ends of the earth, And 11the wicked would be shaken off from it?14It is changed like clay under the seal; And they stand out like a garment.1512Their light is withheld from the wicked, And the 13uplifted arm is broken.

16“Have you entered 14the springs of the sea, And walked 15in the depth of the ocean?17Have the gates of death been revealed to you, And have you seen the gates of 16deep darkness?18Have you understood the 17expanse of 18the earth? Tell Me, if you know all this.

19“Where is the way to the dwelling of light? And darkness, where is its place,20That you would take it to 19its territory, And discern the paths to its 20home?21You know, for 21you were born then, And the number of your days is great!22Have you entered the storehouses 22of the snow, And have you seen the storehouses of the 23hail,23Which I have reserved for a time of distress, For a day of war and battle?24Where is the way that 24the light is divided, And the east wind scattered on the earth?

25“Who has split open a channel for the flood, And a way for the thunderbolt,26To bring 25rain on a land without 26people, On a desert without a person in it,27To 27satisfy the waste and desolate land, And to make the 28seeds of grass to sprout?28Does 29the rain have a father? Or who has fathered the drops of dew?29From whose womb has come the 30ice? And the frost of heaven, who has given it birth?30Water 31becomes hard like stone, And the surface of the deep is imprisoned.

31“Can you tie up the chains of the 32Pleiades, Or untie the cords of Orion?32Can you bring out a 33constellation in its season, And guide the Bear with her 34satellites?33Do you know the 35ordinances of the heavens, Or do you establish their rule over the earth?

34“Can you raise your voice to the clouds, So that an 36abundance of water will cover you?35Can you 37send flashes of lightning, so that they may go And say to you, ‘Here we are’?36Who has 38put wisdom in the innermost being, Or given 39understanding to the 40mind?37Who can count the clouds by wisdom, And 41pour out the water jars of the heavens,38When the dust hardens into a mass And the clods stick together?

39“Can you hunt the 42prey for the lioness, Or satisfy the appetite of young lions,40When they 43crouch in their hiding places, And lie in wait in their lair?41Who prepares 44feed for 45the raven When its young cry to God, And wander about without food?