Job 38; Job 39; Job 40; Acts 16:1-21 (New Living Translation)

1 Then the LORD answered Job from the whirlwind: 2 "Who is this that questions my wisdom with such ignorant words? 3 Brace yourself, because I have some questions for you, and you must answer them. 4 "Where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth? Tell me, if you know so much. 5 Do you know how its dimensions were determined and who did the surveying? 6 What supports its foundations, and who laid its cornerstone 7 as the morning stars sang together and all the angels shouted for joy? 8 "Who defined the boundaries of the sea as it burst from the womb, 9 and as I clothed it with clouds and thick darkness? 10 For I locked it behind barred gates, limiting its shores. 11 I said, 'Thus far and no farther will you come. Here your proud waves must stop!' 12 "Have you ever commanded the morning to appear and caused the dawn to rise in the east? 13 Have you ever told the daylight to spread to the ends of the earth, to bring an end to the night's wickedness? 14 For the features of the earth take shape as the light approaches, and the dawn is robed in red. 15 The light disturbs the haunts of the wicked, and it stops the arm that is raised in violence. 16 "Have you explored the springs from which the seas come? Have you walked about and explored their depths? 17 Do you know where the gates of death are located? Have you seen the gates of utter gloom? 18 Do you realize the extent of the earth? Tell me about it if you know! 19 "Where does the light come from, and where does the darkness go? 20 Can you take it to its home? Do you know how to get there? 21 But of course you know all this! For you were born before it was all created, and you are so very experienced! 22 "Have you visited the treasuries of the snow? Have you seen where the hail is made and stored? 23 I have reserved it for the time of trouble, for the day of battle and war. 24 Where is the path to the origin of light? Where is the home of the east wind? 25 "Who created a channel for the torrents of rain? Who laid out the path for the lightning? 26 Who makes the rain fall on barren land, in a desert where no one lives? 27 Who sends the rain that satisfies the parched ground and makes the tender grass spring up? 28 "Does the rain have a father? Where does dew come from? 29 Who is the mother of the ice? Who gives birth to the frost from the heavens? 30 For the water turns to ice as hard as rock, and the surface of the water freezes. 31 "Can you hold back the movements of the stars? Are you able to restrain the Pleiades or Orion? 32 Can you ensure the proper sequence of the seasons or guide the constellation of the Bear with her cubs across the heavens? 33 Do you know the laws of the universe and how God rules the earth? 34 "Can you shout to the clouds and make it rain? 35 Can you make lightning appear and cause it to strike as you direct it? 36 Who gives intuition and instinct? 37 Who is wise enough to count all the clouds? Who can tilt the water jars of heaven, 38 turning the dry dust to clumps of mud? 39 "Can you stalk prey for a lioness and satisfy the young lions' appetites 40 as they lie in their dens or crouch in the thicket? 41 Who provides food for the ravens when their young cry out to God as they wander about in hunger? 1 "Do you know when the mountain goats give birth? Have you watched as the wild deer are born? 2 Do you know how many months they carry their young? Are you aware of the time of their delivery? 3 They crouch down to give birth to their young and deliver their offspring. 4 Their young grow up in the open fields, then leave their parents and never return. 5 "Who makes the wild donkey wild? 6 I have placed it in the wilderness; its home is the wasteland. 7 It hates the noise of the city, and it has no driver to shout at it. 8 The mountains are its pastureland, where it searches for every blade of grass. 9 "Will the wild ox consent to being tamed? Will it stay in your stall? 10 Can you hitch a wild ox to a plow? Will it plow a field for you? 11 Since it is so strong, can you trust it? Can you go away and trust the ox to do your work? 12 Can you rely on it to return, bringing your grain to the threshing floor? 13 "The ostrich flaps her wings grandly, but they are no match for the feathers of the stork. 14 She lays her eggs on top of the earth, letting them be warmed in the dust. 15 She doesn't worry that a foot might crush them or that wild animals might destroy them. 16 She is harsh toward her young, as if they were not her own. She is unconcerned though they die, 17 for God has deprived her of wisdom. He has given her no understanding. 18 But whenever she jumps up to run, she passes the swiftest horse with its rider. 19 "Have you given the horse its strength or clothed its neck with a flowing mane? 20 Did you give it the ability to leap forward like a locust? Its majestic snorting is something to hear! 21 It paws the earth and rejoices in its strength. When it charges to war, 22 it is unafraid. It does not run from the sword. 23 The arrows rattle against it, and the spear and javelin flash. 24 Fiercely it paws the ground and rushes forward into battle when the trumpet blows. 25 It snorts at the sound of the bugle. It senses the battle even at a distance. It quivers at the noise of battle and the shout of the captain's commands. 26 "Are you the one who makes the hawk soar and spread its wings to the south? 27 Is it at your command that the eagle rises to the heights to make its nest? 28 It lives on the cliffs, making its home on a distant, rocky crag. 29 From there it hunts its prey, keeping watch with piercing eyes. 30 Its nestlings gulp down blood, for it feeds on the carcass of the slaughtered." 1 Then the LORD said to Job, 2 "Do you still want to argue with the Almighty? You are God's critic, but do you have the answers?" 3 Then Job replied to the LORD, 4 "I am nothing -- how could I ever find the answers? I will put my hand over my mouth in silence. 5 I have said too much already. I have nothing more to say." 6 Then the LORD answered Job from the whirlwind: 7 "Brace yourself, because I have some questions for you, and you must answer them. 8 Are you going to discredit my justice and condemn me so you can say you are right? 9 Are you as strong as God, and can you thunder with a voice like his? 10 All right then, put on your robes of state, your majesty and splendor. 11 Give vent to your anger. Let it overflow against the proud. 12 Humiliate the proud with a glance; walk on the wicked where they stand. 13 Bury them in the dust. Imprison them in the world of the dead. 14 Then even I would praise you, for your own strength would save you. 15 "Take a look at the mighty hippopotamus. I made it, just as I made you. It eats grass like an ox. 16 See its powerful loins and the muscles of its belly. 17 Its tail is as straight as a cedar. The sinews of its thighs are tightly knit together. 18 Its bones are tubes of bronze. Its limbs are bars of iron. 19 It is a prime example of God's amazing handiwork. Only its Creator can threaten it. 20 The mountains offer it their best food, where all the wild animals play. 21 It lies down under the lotus plants, hidden by the reeds. 22 The lotus plants give it shade among the willows beside the stream. 23 It is not disturbed by raging rivers, not even when the swelling Jordan rushes down upon it. 24 No one can catch it off guard or put a ring in its nose and lead it away. 1 Paul and Silas went first to Derbe and then on to Lystra. There they met Timothy, a young disciple whose mother was a Jewish believer, but whose father was a Greek. 2 Timothy was well thought of by the believers in Lystra and Iconium, 3 so Paul wanted him to join them on their journey. In deference to the Jews of the area, he arranged for Timothy to be circumcised before they left, for everyone knew that his father was a Greek. 4 Then they went from town to town, explaining the decision regarding the commandments that were to be obeyed, as decided by the apostles and elders in Jerusalem. 5 So the churches were strengthened in their faith and grew daily in numbers. 6 Next Paul and Silas traveled through the area of Phrygia and Galatia, because the Holy Spirit had told them not to go into the province of Asia at that time. 7 Then coming to the borders of Mysia, they headed for the province of Bithynia, but again the Spirit of Jesus did not let them go. 8 So instead, they went on through Mysia to the city of Troas. 9 That night Paul had a vision. He saw a man from Macedonia in northern Greece, pleading with him, "Come over here and help us." 10 So we decided to leave for Macedonia at once, for we could only conclude that God was calling us to preach the Good News there. 11 We boarded a boat at Troas and sailed straight across to the island of Samothrace, and the next day we landed at Neapolis. 12 From there we reached Philippi, a major city of the district of Macedonia and a Roman colony; we stayed there several days. 13 On the Sabbath we went a little way outside the city to a riverbank, where we supposed that some people met for prayer, and we sat down to speak with some women who had come together. 14 One of them was Lydia from Thyatira, a merchant of expensive purple cloth. She was a worshiper of God. As she listened to us, the Lord opened her heart, and she accepted what Paul was saying. 15 She was baptized along with other members of her household, and she asked us to be her guests. "If you agree that I am faithful to the Lord," she said, "come and stay at my home." And she urged us until we did. 16 One day as we were going down to the place of prayer, we met a demon-possessed slave girl. She was a fortune-teller who earned a lot of money for her masters. 17 She followed along behind us shouting, "These men are servants of the Most High God, and they have come to tell you how to be saved." 18 This went on day after day until Paul got so exasperated that he turned and spoke to the demon within her. "I command you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her," he said. And instantly it left her. 19 Her masters' hopes of wealth were now shattered, so they grabbed Paul and Silas and dragged them before the authorities at the marketplace. 20 "The whole city is in an uproar because of these Jews!" they shouted. 21 "They are teaching the people to do things that are against Roman customs."