nkjv Job:38-41 SEEK
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Then the LORD answered Job out of the whirlwind ,
and said :
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Who is this who darkens counsel By words without knowledge ?
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Now prepare yourself like a man ;
I will question you ,
and you shall answer Me .
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Where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth ?
Tell Me ,
if you have understanding .
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Who determined its measurements ?
Surely you know !
Or who stretched the line upon it ?
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To what were its foundations fastened ?
Or who laid its cornerstone ,
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When the morning stars sang together ,
And all the sons of God shouted for joy ?
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Or who shut in the sea with doors ,
When it burst forth and issued from the womb ;
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When I made the clouds its garment ,
And thick darkness its swaddling band ;
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When I fixed My limit for it ,
And set bars and doors ;
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When I said , "
This far you may come ,
but no farther ,
And here your proud waves must stop !'
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Have you commanded the morning since your days began ,
And caused the dawn to know its place ,
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That it might take hold of the ends of the earth ,
And the wicked be shaken out of it ?
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It takes on form like clay under a seal ,
And stands out like a garment .
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From the wicked their light is withheld ,
And the upraised arm is broken .
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Have you entered the springs of the sea ?
Or have you walked in search of the depths ?
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Have the gates of death been revealed to you ?
Or have you seen the doors of the shadow of death ?
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Have you comprehended the breadth of the earth ?
Tell Me ,
if you know all this .
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Where is the way to the dwelling of light ?
And darkness ,
where is its place ,
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That you may take it to its territory ,
That you may know the paths to its home ?
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Do you know it ,
because you were born then ,
Or because the number of your days is great ?
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Have you entered the treasury of snow ,
Or have you seen the treasury of hail ,
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Which I have reserved for the time of trouble ,
For the day of battle and war ?
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By what way is light diffused ,
Or the east wind scattered over the earth ?
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Who has divided a channel for the overflowing water ,
Or a path for the thunderbolt ,
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To cause it to rain on a land where there is no one ,
A wilderness in which there is no man ;
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To satisfy the desolate waste ,
And cause to spring forth the growth of tender grass ?
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Has the rain a father ?
Or who has begotten the drops of dew ?
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From whose womb comes the ice ?
And the frost of heaven ,
who gives it birth ?
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The waters harden like stone ,
And the surface of the deep is frozen .
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Can you bind the cluster of the Pleiades ,
Or loose the belt of Orion ?
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Can you bring out Mazzaroth in its season ?
Or can you guide the Great Bear with its cubs ?
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Do you know the ordinances of the heavens ?
Can you set their dominion over the earth ?
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Can you lift up your voice to the clouds ,
That an abundance of water may cover you ?
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Can you send out lightnings ,
that they may go ,
And say to you , "
Here we are !'?
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Who has put wisdom in the mind ?
Or who has given understanding to the heart ?
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Who can number the clouds by wisdom ?
Or who can pour out the bottles of heaven ,
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When the dust hardens in clumps ,
And the clods cling together ?
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Can you hunt the prey for the lion ,
Or satisfy the appetite of the young lions ,
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When they crouch in their dens ,
Or lurk in their lairs to lie in wait ?
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Who provides food for the raven ,
When its young ones cry to God ,
And wander about for lack of food ?
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Do you know the time when the wild mountain goats bear young ?
Or can you mark when the deer gives birth ?
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Can you number the months that they fulfill ?
Or do you know the time when they bear young ?
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They bow down ,
They bring forth their young ,
They deliver their offspring .
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Their young ones are healthy ,
They grow strong with grain ;
They depart and do not return to them .
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Who set the wild donkey free ?
Who loosed the bonds of the onager ,
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Whose home I have made the wilderness ,
And the barren land his dwelling ?
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He scorns the tumult of the city ;
He does not heed the shouts of the driver .
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The range of the mountains is his pasture ,
And he searches after every green thing .
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Will the wild ox be willing to serve you ?
Will he bed by your manger ?
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Can you bind the wild ox in the furrow with ropes ?
Or will he plow the valleys behind you ?
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Will you trust him because his strength is great ?
Or will you leave your labor to him ?
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Will you trust him to bring home your grain ,
And gather it to your threshing floor ?
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The wings of the ostrich wave proudly ,
But are her wings and pinions like the kindly stork '
s ?
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For she leaves her eggs on the ground ,
And warms them in the dust ;
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She forgets that a foot may crush them ,
Or that a wild beast may break them .
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She treats her young harshly ,
as though they were not hers ;
Her labor is in vain ,
without concern ,
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Because God deprived her of wisdom ,
And did not endow her with understanding .
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When she lifts herself on high ,
She scorns the horse and its rider .
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Have you given the horse strength ?
Have you clothed his neck with thunder ?
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Can you frighten him like a locust ?
His majestic snorting strikes terror .
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He paws in the valley ,
and rejoices in his strength ;
He gallops into the clash of arms .
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He mocks at fear ,
and is not frightened ;
Nor does he turn back from the sword .
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The quiver rattles against him ,
The glittering spear and javelin .
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He devours the distance with fierceness and rage ;
Nor does he come to a halt because the trumpet has sounded .
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At the blast of the trumpet he says , "
Aha !'
He smells the battle from afar ,
The thunder of captains and shouting .
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Does the hawk fly by your wisdom ,
And spread its wings toward the south ?
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Does the eagle mount up at your command ,
And make its nest on high ?
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On the rock it dwells and resides ,
On the crag of the rock and the stronghold .
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From there it spies out the prey ;
Its eyes observe from afar .
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Its young ones suck up blood ;
And where the slain are ,
there it is ."
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Moreover the LORD answered Job ,
and said :
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Shall the one who contends with the Almighty correct Him ?
He who rebukes God ,
let him answer it ."
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Then Job answered the LORD and said :
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Behold ,
I am vile ;
What shall I answer You ?
I lay my hand over my mouth .
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Once I have spoken ,
but I will not answer ;
Yes ,
twice ,
but I will proceed no further ."
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Then the LORD answered Job out of the whirlwind ,
and said :
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Now prepare yourself like a man ;
I will question you ,
and you shall answer Me :
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Would you indeed annul My judgment ?
Would you condemn Me that you may be justified ?
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Have you an arm like God ?
Or can you thunder with a voice like His ?
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Then adorn yourself with majesty and splendor ,
And array yourself with glory and beauty .
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Disperse the rage of your wrath ;
Look on everyone who is proud ,
and humble him .
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Look on everyone who is proud ,
and bring him low ;
Tread down the wicked in their place .
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Hide them in the dust together ,
Bind their faces in hidden darkness .
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Then I will also confess to you That your own right hand can save you .
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Look now at the behemoth ,
which I made along with you ;
He eats grass like an ox .
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See now ,
his strength is in his hips ,
And his power is in his stomach muscles .
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He moves his tail like a cedar ;
The sinews of his thighs are tightly knit .
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His bones are like beams of bronze ,
His ribs like bars of iron .
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He is the first of the ways of God ;
Only He who made him can bring near His sword .
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Surely the mountains yield food for him ,
And all the beasts of the field play there .
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He lies under the lotus trees ,
In a covert of reeds and marsh .
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The lotus trees cover him with their shade ;
The willows by the brook surround him .
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Indeed the river may rage ,
Yet he is not disturbed ;
He is confident ,
though the Jordan gushes into his mouth ,
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Though he takes it in his eyes ,
Or one pierces his nose with a snare .
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Can you draw out Leviathan with a hook ,
Or snare his tongue with a line which you lower ?
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Can you put a reed through his nose ,
Or pierce his jaw with a hook ?
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Will he make many supplications to you ?
Will he speak softly to you ?
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Will he make a covenant with you ?
Will you take him as a servant forever ?
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Will you play with him as with a bird ,
Or will you leash him for your maidens ?
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Will your companions make a banquet of him ?
Will they apportion him among the merchants ?
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Can you fill his skin with harpoons ,
Or his head with fishing spears ?
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Lay your hand on him ;
Remember the battle --
Never do it again !
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Indeed ,
any hope of overcoming him is false ;
Shall one not be overwhelmed at the sight of him ?
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No one is so fierce that he would dare stir him up .
Who then is able to stand against Me ?
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Who has preceded Me ,
that I should pay him ?
Everything under heaven is Mine .
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I will not conceal his limbs ,
His mighty power ,
or his graceful proportions .
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Who can remove his outer coat ?
Who can approach him with a double bridle ?
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Who can open the doors of his face ,
With his terrible teeth all around ?
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His rows of scales are his pride ,
Shut up tightly as with a seal ;
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One is so near another That no air can come between them ;
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They are joined one to another ,
They stick together and cannot be parted .
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His sneezings flash forth light ,
And his eyes are like the eyelids of the morning .
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Out of his mouth go burning lights ;
Sparks of fire shoot out .
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Smoke goes out of his nostrils ,
As from a boiling pot and burning rushes .
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His breath kindles coals ,
And a flame goes out of his mouth .
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Strength dwells in his neck ,
And sorrow dances before him .
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The folds of his flesh are joined together ;
They are firm on him and cannot be moved .
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His heart is as hard as stone ,
Even as hard as the lower millstone .
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When he raises himself up ,
the mighty are afraid ;
Because of his crashings they are beside themselves .
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Though the sword reaches him ,
it cannot avail ;
Nor does spear ,
dart ,
or javelin .
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He regards iron as straw ,
And bronze as rotten wood .
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The arrow cannot make him flee ;
Slingstones become like stubble to him .
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Darts are regarded as straw ;
He laughs at the threat of javelins .
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His undersides are like sharp potsherds ;
He spreads pointed marks in the mire .
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He makes the deep boil like a pot ;
He makes the sea like a pot of ointment .
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He leaves a shining wake behind him ;
One would think the deep had white hair .
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On earth there is nothing like him ,
Which is made without fear .
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He beholds every high thing ;
He is king over all the children of pride ."
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Then Job answered the LORD and said :