Yuēbó 38

1 Nàshí , Yēhéhuá cóng xuán fēng zhōng huídá Yuēbó shuō ,

2 Shuí yòng wúzhī de yányǔ , shǐ wǒde zhǐyì àn meì bù míng .

3 Nǐ yào rú yǒng shì shùyào . wǒ wèn nǐ , nǐ kĕyǐ zhǐshì wǒ .

4 Wǒ lì dàdì gēnjī de shíhou , nǐ zaì nàli ne . nǐ ruò yǒu cōngming , zhǐguǎn shuō ba .

5 Nǐ ruò xiǎodé jiù shuō , shì shuí déng dì de chǐ dù . shì shuí bǎ zhún shéng lā zaì qí shang .

6 Dì de gēnjī ānzhì zaì héchu . dì de jiǎo shí shì shuí ānfàng de .

7 Nàshí chénxīng yītóng gē chàng , shén de zhòng zǐ yĕ dōu huānhū .

8 Hǎi shuǐ chōng chū , rú chū tāi bāo , nàshí shuí jiāng tā guānbì ne .

9 Shì wǒ yòng yúncai dāng hǎi de yīfu , yòng yōuàn dāng bāoguǒ tā de bù ,

10 Wèi tā déng jiè xiàn , yòu ān mén hé shuān ,

11 Shuō , nǐ zhǐ kĕ dào zhèlǐ , bùkĕ yuèguò . nǐ kuángào de làng yào dào cǐ zhǐ zhù .

12 Nǐ zì shēng yǐlái , céng méngdéng chén guāng , shǐ qīngchén de rì guāng zhīdào bĕn wèi .

13 Jiào zhè guāng pǔzhào dì de sì jí , jiāng è rén cóng qízhōng qū zhú chūlai ma .

14 Yīn zhè guāng , dì miàn gǎibiàn rú ní shang yìn yìn , wànwù chūxiàn rú yīfu yíyàng .

15 Liàngguāng bù zhào è rén , qiáng héng de bǎngbì yĕ bì zhé duàn .

16 Nǐ céng jìn dào hǎi yuán , huò zaì shēn yuān de yǐn mì chù xíng zǒu ma .

17 Sǐwáng de mén céng xiàng nǐ xiǎnlù ma . sǐ yīn de mén nǐ céng jiàn guō ma .

18 Dì de guǎngdà nǐ néng míng tòu ma . nǐ ruò quán zhīdào , zhǐguǎn shuō ba .

19 Guāngmíng de jū suǒ cóng hé ér zhì . hēiàn de bĕn wèi zaì yú héchu .

20 Nǐ néng daì dào bĕn jìng , néng kàn míng qí shì zhī lù ma .

21 Nǐ zǒng zhīdào , yīnwei nǐ zǎo yǐ shēng zaì shìshang , nǐ rìzi de shùmù yĕ duō .

22 Nǐ céng jìnrù xuĕ kù . huò jiàn guō baó cāng ma .

23 Zhè xuĕ baó nǎi shì wǒ wèi jiàng zāi , bìng dǎzhàng hé zhēng zhàn de rìzi suǒ yùbeì de .

24 Guāng liàng cóng hé lù fēnkāi . dōng fēng cóng hé lù fēnsàn biàn dì .

25 Shuí wèi yǔ shuǐ fēn dào . shuí wèi léi diàn kāi lù .

26 Shǐ yǔ jiàng zaì wú rén zhī dì , wú rén jūzhù de kuàngyĕ .

27 Shǐ huāng feì qī liáng zhī dì déyǐ fēngzú , qīngcǎo déyǐ fāshēng .

28 Yǔ yǒu fù ma . lùshuǐ zhū shì shuí shēng de ne .

29 Bīng chūyú shuí de tāi . tiān shang de shuāng shì shuí shēng de ne .

30 Zhū shuǐ jiānyìng ( huò zuò yǐncáng ) rú shítou , shēn yuān zhī miàn níng jié chéng bīng .

31 Nǐ néng jì zhù mǎo xīng de jié ma . néng jiĕkāi sān xīng de daì ma .

32 Nǐ néng ànshí lǐng chū shí èr gōng ma . néng yǐndǎo bĕi dǒu hé suí tā de zhòng xīng ( xīng yuánwén zuò zǐ ) ma .

33 Nǐ zhīdào tiān de dénglì ma . néng shǐ dì guī zaì tiān de quán xià ma .

34 Nǐ néng xiàng yúncai yáng qǐ shēng lái , shǐ qīng pén de yǔ zhēgaì nǐ ma .

35 Nǐ néng fāchū shǎndiàn , jiào tā xíng qù , shǐ tā duì nǐ shuō , wǒmen zaì zhèlǐ .

36 Shuí jiāng zhìhuì fàng zaì huái zhōng . shuí jiāng cōngming cì yú xīn neì .

37 Shuí néng yòng zhìhuì shǔ suàn yúncai ne . chéntǔ jùjí chéng tuán , tǔ kuaì jǐn jǐn jié lián .

38 Nàshí , shuí néng qīng dǎo tiān shang de píng ne .

39 Mǔ shīzi zaì dòng zhōng dūn fú , shǎo zhuàng shīzi zaì yǐn mì chù máifu .

40 Nǐ néng wèi tāmen zhuā qǔ shíwù , shǐ tāmen bǎozú ma .

41 Wūyē zhī chú yīn wú shíwù fēi lái fēi qù , āigào shén . nàshí , shuí wèi tā yùbeì shíwù ne .

Yuēbó 38 Commentary

Chapter 38

God calls upon Job to answer. (1-3) God questions Job. (4-11) Concerning the light and darkness. (12-24) Concerning other mighty works. (25-41)

Verses 1-3 Job had silenced, but had not convinced his friends. Elihu had silenced Job, but had not brought him to admit his guilt before God. It pleased the Lord to interpose. The Lord, in this discourse, humbles Job, and brings him to repent of his passionate expressions concerning God's providential dealings with him; and this he does, by calling upon Job to compare God's being from everlasting to everlasting, with his own time; God's knowledge of all things, with his own ignorance; and God's almighty power, with his own weakness. Our darkening the counsels of God's wisdom with our folly, is a great provocation to God. Humble faith and sincere obedience see farthest and best into the will of the Lord.

Verses 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.

Verses 12-24 The Lord questions Job, to convince him of his ignorance, and shame him for his folly in prescribing to God. If we thus try ourselves, we shall soon be brought to own that what we know is nothing in comparison with what we know not. By the tender mercy of our God, the Day-spring from on high has visited us, to give light to those that sit in darkness, whose hearts are ( 2 Corinthians. 4:6 ) government of the world is said to be in the sea; this means, that it is hid from us. Let us make sure that the gates of heaven shall be opened to us on the other side of death, and then we need not fear the opening of the gates of death. It is presumptuous for us, who perceive not the breadth of the earth, to dive into the depth of God's counsels. We should neither in the brightest noon count upon perpetual day, nor in the darkest midnight despair of the return of the morning; and this applies to our inward as well as to our outward condition. What folly it is to strive against God! How much is it our interest to seek peace with him, and to keep in his love!

Verses 25-41 Hitherto God had put questions to Job to show him his ignorance; now God shows his weakness. As it is but little that he knows, he ought not to arraign the Divine counsels; it is but little he can do, therefore he ought not to oppose the ways of Providence. See the all-sufficiency of the Divine Providence; it has wherewithal to satisfy the desire of every living thing. And he that takes care of the young ravens, certainly will not be wanting to his people. This being but one instance of the Divine compassion out of many, gives us occasion to think how much good our God does, every day, beyond what we are aware of. Every view we take of his infinite perfections, should remind us of his right to our love, the evil of sinning against him, and our need of his mercy and salvation.

Chapter Summary

INTRODUCTION TO JOB 38

In this chapter the Lord takes up the controversy with Job; calls upon him to prepare to engage with him in it, and demands an answer to posing questions he puts to him, concerning the earth and the fabric of it, Job 38:1-7; concerning the sea, compared to an infant in embryo, at its birth, in its swaddling bands and cradle, Job 38:8-11; concerning the morning light, its spread and influence, Job 38:12-15; concerning the springs of the sea, the dark parts of the earth, the place both of light and darkness, Job 38:16-21; concerning the various meteors, snow, hail, rain, thunder, lightning, and the influences of the stars, Job 38:22-38; and concerning provision for lions and ravens, Job 38:40,41.