Job 38:12-22

12 "Have you commanded the morning in your days, And caused the dawn to know its place;

13 That it might take hold of the ends of the eretz, And shake the wicked out of it?

14 It is changed as clay under the seal, And stands forth as a garment.

15 From the wicked, their light is withheld, The high arm is broken.

16 "Have you entered into the springs of the sea? Or have you walked in the recesses of the deep?

17 Have the gates of death been revealed to you? Or have you seen the gates of the shadow of death?

18 Have you comprehended the eretz in its breadth? Declare, if you know it all.

19 "What is the way to the dwelling of light? As for darkness, where is the place of it,

20 That you should take it to the bound of it, That you should discern the paths to the house of it?

21 Surely you know, for you were born then, And the number of your days is great!

22 Have you entered the treasuries of the snow, Or have you seen the treasures of the hail,

Job 38:12-22 Meaning and Commentary

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.