job 38 and 39

Read Job 38 and 39 at Bible Gateway.

The Hebrew paragraph divisions:

The Hebrew paragraph divisions for each speech are like the divisions in the Psalms that we studied in 2014. There is an understood {s} division at the end of each numbered line, unless marked otherwise, with an {n} division where a new line begins within a numbered line.

Job 38:1-39:17 {s} Division at the end of each numbered line; with these {n} divisions within lines:
Job 38:41a, Who provides food for the raven, {n}

Job 39:18 {p} When she lifts herself on high, She scorns the horse and its rider. {p}

Job 39:19-40:1 {s} Division at the end of each numbered line, with these {n} divisions within a line:
Job 39:25a, At the blast of the trumpet he says, ‘Aha!’ He smells the battle from afar, {n}

Job 40:2 {p} “Shall the one who contends with the Almighty correct Him? He who rebukes God, let him answer it.” {p}

The outline of the Lord’s first speech, Job 38:1-40:2:

Job 38:1-3, Who darkens counsel without knowledge? I will question you, and you shall answer Me;
Job 38:4-38, The glory of God revealed in the creation/ hidden wisdom of the universe;
Job 38:39-39:18 {p} The glory of God revealed in the ways of the wild animals
Job 39:19-25, The glory of God revealed in the strength of the horse
Job 39:26-30, The glory of God revealed in the flight of the birds of prey
Job 40:1-2 {p} He who rebukes God, let him answer it.

Job 38:4-38 chiastic structure: The glory of God revealed in the creation + hidden wisdom of the universe:

1a.1) Job 38:4-7, The glory of God revealed in the foundations of the earth;

4 “Where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth? Tell Me, if you have understanding.
5 Who determined its measurements? Surely you know! Or who stretched the line upon it?
6 To what were its foundations fastened? Or who laid its cornerstone,
7 When the morning stars sang together, And all the sons of God shouted for joy?

1a.2) Job 38:8-11, The glory of God revealed in the ordinances of the sea and clouds;

8 “Or who shut in the sea with doors, When it burst forth and issued from the womb;
9 When I made the clouds its garment, And thick darkness its swaddling band;
10 When I fixed My limit for it, And set bars and doors;
11 When I said, ‘This far you may come, but no farther, And here your proud waves must stop!’

1b) Job 38:12-18a, Have you commanded the morning/ comprehended the depth + breadth of the earth;

12 “Have you commanded the morning since your days began, And caused the dawn to know its place,
13 That it might take hold of the ends of the earth, And the wicked be shaken out of it?
14 It takes on form like clay under a seal, And stands out like a garment.
15 From the wicked their light is withheld, And the upraised arm is broken.
16 “Have you entered the springs of the sea? Or have you walked in search of the depths?
17 Have the gates of death been revealed to you? Or have you seen the doors of the shadow of death?
18a, Have you comprehended the breadth of the earth?

1c) Job 38:18b, Tell Me, if you know all this;

central axis) Job 38:19-20, “Where is the way to the dwelling of light? And darkness, where is its place, that you may take it to its territory, that you may know the paths to its home?;”

2c) Job 38:21, Do you know it, because you were born then, or because the number of your days is great?

2b) Job 38:22-30, Have you entered the treasury of snow + hail/ known the father, mother of rain + ice;

22 “Have you entered the treasury of snow, Or have you seen the treasury of hail,
23 Which I have reserved for the time of trouble, For the day of battle and war?
24 By what way is light diffused, Or the east wind scattered over the earth?
25 “Who has divided a channel for the overflowing water, Or a path for the thunderbolt,
26 To cause it to rain on a land where there is no one, A wilderness in which there is no man;
27 To satisfy the desolate waste, And cause to spring forth the growth of tender grass?
28 Has the rain a father? Or who has begotten the drops of dew?
29 From whose womb comes the ice? And the frost of heaven, who gives it birth?
30 The waters harden like stone, And the surface of the deep is frozen.

2a.1) Job 38:31-33, The glory of God revealed in the foundations of the heavens;

31 “Can you bind the cluster of the Pleiades, Or loose the belt of Orion?
32 Can you bring out Mazzaroth in its season? Or can you guide the Great Bear with its cubs?
33 Do you know the ordinances of the heavens? Can you set their dominion over the earth?

2a.2) Job 38:34-38, The glory of God revealed in the ordinances of the clouds and weather;

34 “Can you lift up your voice to the clouds, That an abundance of water may cover you?
35 Can you send out lightnings, that they may go, And say to you, ‘Here we are!’?
36 Who has put wisdom in the mind? Or who has given understanding to the heart?
37 Who can number the clouds by wisdom? Or who can pour out the bottles of heaven,
38 When the dust hardens in clumps, And the clods cling together?

For further reading:
The Remarkable Record of Job – Dr. Henry M. Morris