Job 38; Job 39; Job 40; Acts 16:1-21

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Job 38

1 Then the LORD answered Job out of the storm.

2 "Who is this that belittles my advice with words that do not show any knowledge [about it]?

3 Brace yourself like a man! I will ask you, and you will teach me.

4 "Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth? Tell me if you have [such] insight.

5 Who determined its dimensions? Certainly, you know! Who stretched a measuring line over it?

6 On what were its footings sunk? Who laid its cornerstone

7 when the morning stars sang together and all the sons of God shouted for joy?

8 "Who shut the sea behind gates when it burst through and came out of the womb,

9 when I clothed it with clouds and wrapped it up in dark clouds,

10 when I set a limit for it and put up bars and gates,

11 when I said, 'You may come this far but no farther. Here your proud waves will stop'?

12 "Have you ever given orders to the morning or assigned a place for the dawn

13 so that it could grab the earth by its edges and shake wicked people out of it?

14 The earth changes like clay stamped by a seal, and [parts of it] stand out like [folds in] clothing.

15 Wicked people are deprived of their light, and an arm raised [in victory] is broken.

16 Have you gone to the springs in the sea or walked through the valleys of the ocean depths?

17 Have the gateways to death been revealed to you, or have you seen the gateways to total darkness?

18 Have you [even] considered how wide the earth is? Tell me, if you know all of this!

19 "What is the way to the place where light lives? Where is the home of darkness

20 so that you may lead it to its territory, so that you may know the path to its home?

21 You must know because you were born then and have lived such a long time!

22 Have you been to the warehouses where snow is stored or seen the warehouses for hail

23 that I have stored up for the time of trouble, for the day of battle and war?

24 Which is the way to the place where light is scattered and the east wind is spread across the earth?

25 "Who made a channel for the flooding rains and a path for the thunderstorms

26 to bring rain on a land where no one lives, on a desert where there are no humans,

27 to saturate the desolate wasteland in order to make it sprout with grass?

28 Does the rain have a father? Who gave birth to the dewdrops?

29 From whose womb came the ice, and who has given birth to the frost in the air?

30 The water hardens like a stone, and the surface of the ocean freezes over.

31 "Can you connect the chains of the [constellation] Pleiades or untie the ropes of Orion?

32 Can you bring out the constellations at the right time or guide Ursa Major with its cubs?

33 Do you know the laws of the sky or make them rule the earth?

34 Can you call to the clouds and have a flood of water cover you?

35 Can you send lightning flashes so that they may go and say to you, 'Here we are'?

36 Who put wisdom in the heart or gave understanding to the mind?

37 Who is wise enough to count the clouds or pour out the water jars of heaven

38 when the dirt hardens into clumps and the soil clings together?

39 "Can you hunt prey for the lioness and satisfy the hunger of her cubs

40 as they crouch in their dens and lie ready to ambush from their lairs?

41 "Who provides food for the crow when its young ones cry to God and wander around in need of food?

Job 39

1 "Do you know the time when the mountain goats give birth? Do you watch the does when they are in labor?

2 Can you count the months they are pregnant or know the time when they'll give birth?

3 They kneel down to give birth and deliver their young. Then the pain of giving birth is over.

4 Their young are healthy and grow up in the wild. They leave and don't come back.

5 "Who lets the wild donkey go free? Who unties the ropes of the wild donkey?

6 I gave it the desert to live in and the salt flats as its dwelling place.

7 It laughs at the noise of the city and doesn't [even] listen to the shouting of its master.

8 It explores the mountains for its pasture and looks for anything green.

9 "Will the wild ox agree to serve you, or will it stay at night beside your feeding trough?

10 Can you guide a wild ox in a furrow, or will it plow the valleys behind you?

11 Can you trust it just because it's so strong or leave your labor to it?

12 Can you rely on it to bring your grain back and take it to your threshing floor?

13 "Does the ostrich flap its wings in joy, or do its wings lack feathers?

14 It lays its eggs on the ground and warms them in the dust.

15 It forgets that a foot may crush them or a wild animal may trample them.

16 It acts harshly toward its young as if they weren't its own. It is not afraid that its work is for nothing

17 because God has deprived it of wisdom and did not give it any understanding.

18 It laughs at the horse and its rider when it gets up to flee.

19 "Can you give strength to a horse or dress its neck with a flowing mane?

20 Can you make it leap like a locust, when its snorting causes terror?

21 It paws in strength and finds joy in its power. It charges into battle.

22 It laughs at fear, is afraid of nothing, and doesn't back away from swords.

23 A quiver of arrows rattles on it along with the flashing spear and javelin.

24 Anxious and excited, the horse eats up the ground and doesn't trust the sound of the ram's horn.

25 As often as the horn sounds, the horse says, 'Aha!' and it smells the battle far away-- the thundering [orders] of the captains and the battle cries.

26 "Does your understanding make a bird of prey fly and spread its wings toward the south?

27 Is it by your order that the eagle flies high and makes its nest on the heights?

28 It perches for the night on a cliff. Its fortress is on a jagged peak.

29 From there it seeks food, and its eyes see it from far away.

30 Its young ones feed on blood. It is found wherever there are dead bodies."

Job 40

1 The LORD responded to Job,

2 "Will the person who finds fault with the Almighty correct him? Will the person who argues with God answer him?"

3 Job answered the LORD,

4 "I'm so insignificant. How can I answer you? I will put my hand over my mouth.

5 I spoke once, but I can't answer-- twice, but not again."

6 Then the LORD responded to Job out of a storm,

7 "Brace yourself like a man! I will ask you, and you will teach me.

8 "Would you undo my justice? Would you condemn me so that you can be righteous?

9 Do you have power like God's? Can you thunder with a voice like his?

10 Then dress yourself in majesty and dignity. Clothe yourself in splendor and glory.

11 Unleash your outbursts of anger. Look at all who are arrogant, and put them down.

12 Look at all who are arrogant, and humble them. Crush wicked people wherever they are.

13 Hide them completely in the dust, and cover their faces in the hidden place.

14 Then even I will praise you because your right hand can save you.

15 "Look at Behemoth, which I made along with you. It eats grass as cattle do.

16 Look at the strength in its back muscles, the power in its stomach muscles.

17 It makes its tail stiff like a cedar. The ligaments of its thighs are intertwined.

18 Its bones are bronze tubes. They are like iron bars.

19 Behemoth is the first of God's conquests. Its maker approaches it with his sword.

20 The hills bring it food, and all the wild animals play there.

21 It lies down under the lotus plants in a hiding place among reeds and swamps.

22 Lotus plants provide it with cover. Poplars by the stream surround it.

23 Though the river flows powerfully against it, it's not alarmed. It's confident [even] when the Jordan rushes against its mouth.

24 Can anyone blind its eyes or pierce its nose with snares?

Acts 16:1-21

1 Paul arrived in the city of Derbe and then went to Lystra, where a disciple named Timothy lived. Timothy's mother was a Jewish believer, but his father was Greek.

2 The believers in Lystra and Iconium spoke well of Timothy.

3 Paul wanted Timothy to go with him. So he circumcised him because of the Jews who lived in those places and because he knew that Timothy's father was Greek.

4 As they went through the cities, they told people about the decisions that the apostles and spiritual leaders in Jerusalem had made for the people.

5 So the churches were strengthened in the faith and grew in numbers every day.

6 Paul and Silas went through the regions of Phrygia and Galatia because the Holy Spirit kept them from speaking the word in the province of Asia.

7 They went to the province of Mysia and tried to enter Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus wouldn't allow this.

8 So they passed by Mysia and went to the city of Troas.

9 During the night Paul had a vision of a man from Macedonia. The man urged Paul, "Come to Macedonia to help us."

10 As soon as Paul had seen the vision, we immediately looked for a way to go to Macedonia. We concluded that God had called us to tell the people of Macedonia about the Good News.

11 So we took a ship from Troas and sailed straight to the island of Samothrace. The next day we sailed to the city of Neapolis,

12 and from there we went to the city of Philippi. Philippi is a leading city in that part of Macedonia, and it is a Roman colony. We were in this city for a number of days.

13 On the day of worship we went out of the city to a place along the river where we thought Jewish people gathered for prayer. We sat down and began talking to the women who had gathered there.

14 A woman named Lydia was present. She was a convert to Judaism from the city of Thyatira and sold purple dye for a living. She was listening because the Lord made her willing to pay attention to what Paul said.

15 When Lydia and her family were baptized, she invited us to stay at her home. She said, "If you're convinced that I believe in the Lord, then stay at my home." She insisted. So we did.

16 One day when we were going to the place of prayer, a female servant met us. She was possessed by an evil spirit that told fortunes. She made a lot of money for her owners by telling fortunes.

17 She used to follow Paul and shout, "These men are servants of the Most High God. They're telling you how you can be saved."

18 She kept doing this for many days. Paul became annoyed, turned to the evil spirit, and said, "I command you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her!" As Paul said this, the evil spirit left her.

19 When her owners realized that their hope of making money was gone, they grabbed Paul and Silas and dragged them to the authorities in the public square.

20 In front of the Roman officials, they said, "These men are stirring up a lot of trouble in our city. They're Jews,

21 and they're advocating customs that we can't accept or practice as Roman citizens."