Job 36:32

Job 36:32 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)With clouds he covereth the light; and commandeth it not to shine by the cloud that cometh betwixt.
• New International Version (NIV)He fills his hands with lightning and commands it to strike its mark.
• English Standard Version (ESV)He covers his hands with the lightning and commands it to strike the mark.
• New King James Version (NKJV)He covers His hands with lightning, And commands it to strike.

Context of Job 36:32

30See how he spreads the lightning around him and how it lights up the depths of the sea. 31By these mighty acts he nourishes the people, giving them food in abundance. He fills his hands with lightning bolts and hurls each at its target. 33The thunder announces his presence; the storm announces his indignant anger.

Job 36:32 word by word

עַל־כַּפַּ֥יִם כִּסָּה־א֑וֹר וַיְצַ֖ו עָלֶ֣יהָ בְמַפְגִּֽיעַ׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• With cloudsכַּףkaph · palmH3709
• he coverethכָּסָהkâsâh · to coverH3680
• the lightאוֹר'ôr · lightH216
• and commandethצָוָהtsâvâh · to commandH6680
• that cometh betwixtפָּגַעpâga‛ · to fall onH6293

Cross-references for Job 36:32

• Job 26:9He covers the face of the moon, shrouding it with his clouds.
• Exodus 10:21Then the Lord said to Moses, “Lift your hand toward heaven, and the land of Egypt will be covered with a darkness so thick you can feel it.”
• Psalms 18:11He shrouded himself in darkness, veiling his approach with dark rain clouds.
• Psalms 135:7He causes the clouds to rise over the whole earth. He sends the lightning with the rain and releases the wind from his storehouses.
• Psalms 147:8He covers the heavens with clouds, provides rain for the earth, and makes the grass grow in mountain pastures.
• Psalms 148:8fire and hail, snow and clouds, wind and weather that obey him,
• Acts 27:20The terrible storm raged for many days, blotting out the sun and the stars, until at last all hope was gone.

Commentaries on Job 36:32

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 32With clouds he covereth the light - This is all extraordinary saying, אור כמה כפים על al cappayim kissah or, which Mr. Good translates, "He brandisheth the blaze athwart the concave." The Vulgate, with which all the other versions less or more agree, has, In manibus abscondit lucem, "In his hands he hideth the light;" or, more literally, "By the hollow of his hands (כפים cappayim ) he concealeth the light, (אור or,") the fountain of light, i.e., the Sun…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 32With clouds he covereth the light - The Hebrew here is, על־כפים ‛al -kaphiym - “upon his hands.” Jerome, “In manibus abscondit lucem,” “he hideth the light in his hands.” Septuagint, ̓̀ ͂ ̓́ ͂ Epi cheirōn ekalupse fōs - “he covereth the light in his hands.” The allusion is, undoubtedly, to the lightning, and the image is, that God takes the lightning in his hands, and directs it as he pleases. There has been great variety however, in the exposition of…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 24-33Verses 24-33 Elihu endeavours to fill Job with high thought of God, and so to persuade him into cheerful submission to his providence. Man may see God's works, and is capable of discerning his hand in them, which the beasts are not, therefore they ought to give him the glory. But while the worker of iniquity ought to tremble, the true believer should rejoice. Children should hear with pleasure their Father's voice, even when he speaks in terror to his…Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 3232. Rather, "He covereth (both) His hands with light (lightning, Job 37:3, Margin), and giveth it a command against his adversary" (literally, the one "assailing" Him, Psa 8:2; 139:20; Job 21:19). Thus, as in Job 36:31, the twofold effects of His waters are set forth, so here, of His light; in the one hand, destructive lightning against the wicked; in the other, the genial light for good to His friends, &c. (Job 36:33) [Umbreit].Read the comment

Topics related to Job 36:32

• Meteorology and Celestial Phenomena

In the dictionaries

• Ascribe
• Elihu
• Esteem
• Hang
• God
• Lightning

Commentaries on Job 36

• 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
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings