New International Version
Job 38:4
4“Where were you when I laid the earth’s foundation? Tell me, if you understand.
Job 38:4 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)Where wast thou when I laid the foundations of the earth? declare, if thou hast understanding.
- English Standard Version (ESV)"Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth? Tell me, if you have understanding.
- New King James Version (NKJV)“Where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth? Tell Me, if you have understanding.
- New Living Translation (NLT)“Where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth? Tell me, if you know so much.
Context of Job 38:4
2“Who is this that obscures my plans with words without knowledge? 3Brace yourself like a man; I will question you, and you shall answer me. “Where were you when I laid the earth’s foundation? Tell me, if you understand. 5Who marked off its dimensions? Surely you know! Who stretched a measuring line across it? 6On what were its footings set, or who laid its cornerstone—
Read all of Job 38Job 38:4 word by word
אֵיפֹ֣ה הָ֭יִיתָ בְּיָסְדִי־אָ֑רֶץ הַ֝גֵּ֗ד אִם־יָדַ֥עְתָּ בִינָֽה׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
Cross-references for Job 38:4
- Proverbs 8:22“The Lord brought me forth as the first of his works, before his deeds of old;
- Proverbs 30:4Who has gone up to heaven and come down? Whose hands have gathered up the wind? Who has wrapped up the waters in a cloak? Who has established all the ends of the earth? What is his name, and what is the name of his son? Surely you know!
- Genesis 1:1In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.
- Psalms 102:25In the beginning you laid the foundations of the earth, and the heavens are the work of your hands.
- Psalms 104:5He set the earth on its foundations; it can never be moved.
- Hebrews 1:2but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom also he made the universe.
Commentaries on Job 38:4
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 4Where wast thou when I laid the foundations of the earth? - Thou hast a limited and derived being; thou art only of yesterday; what canst thou know? Didst thou see me create the world?Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 4Where wast thou when I laid the foundations of the earth? - The first appeal is to the creation. The question here, “Where wast thou?” implies that Job was not present. He had not then an existence. He could not, therefore, have aided God, or counselled him, or understood what he was doing. How presumptuous, therefore, it was in one so short-lived to sit in judgment on the doings of him who had formed the world! How little could he expect to be able to…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 4-11Verses 4-11 For the humbling of Job, God here shows him his ignorance, even concerning the earth and the sea. As we cannot find fault with God's work, so we need not fear concerning it. The works of his providence, as well as the work of creation, never can be broken; and the work of redemption is no less firm, of which Christ himself is both the Foundation and the Corner-stone. The church stands as firm as the earth.Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 1-41God challenges Job. Job admits he cannot judge the moral world. God shows Job's ignorance of the natural world's elements related to the realm of heaven, weather, animals, and birds (38:4–21; 22–38; 39–39:30).Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 44. To understand the cause of things, man should have been present at their origin. The finite creature cannot fathom the infinite wisdom of the Creator (Job 28:12; 15:7, 8). hast--"knowest." understanding--(Pr 4:1).Read the comment
Topics related to Job 38:4
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
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