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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 up the sea with doors, when it broke forth from the womb,

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when I made clouds its garment, and wrapped it in thick darkness,

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marked out for it my bound, set bars and doors,

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and said, ‘Here you may come, but no further. Here your proud waves shall be stayed?’

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“Have you commanded the morning in your days, and caused the dawn to know its place;

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that it might take hold of the ends of the earth, and shake the wicked out of it?

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

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

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

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

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

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“What is the way to the dwelling of light? As for darkness, where is its place,

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that you should take it to its bound, that you should discern the paths to its house?

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

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

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which I have reserved against the time of trouble, against the day of battle and war?

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By what way is the lightning distributed, or the east wind scattered on the earth?

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Who has cut a channel for the flood water, or the path for the thunderstorm;

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To cause it to rain on a land where no man is; on the wilderness, in which there is no man;

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to satisfy the waste and desolate ground, to cause the tender grass to spring forth?

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Does the rain have a father? Or who fathers the drops of dew?

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Out of whose womb came the ice? The gray frost of the sky, who has given birth to it?

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The waters become hard like stone, when the surface of the deep is frozen.

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“Can you bind the cluster of the Pleiades, or loosen the cords of Orion?

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Can you lead forth the constellations in their season? Or can you guide the Bear with her cubs?

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Do you know the laws of the heavens? Can you establish its dominion over the earth?

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“Can you lift up your voice to the clouds, That abundance of waters may cover you?

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Can you send forth lightnings, that they may go? Do they report to you, ‘Here we are?’

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Who has put wisdom in the inward parts? Or who has given understanding to the mind?

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Who can number the clouds by wisdom? Or who can pour out the bottles of the sky,

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when the dust runs into a mass, and the clods of earth stick together?

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“Can you hunt the prey for the lioness, or satisfy the appetite of the young lions,

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when they crouch in their dens, and lie in wait in the thicket?

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Who provides for the raven his prey, when his young ones cry to God, and wander for lack of food?

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“Do you know the time when the mountain goats give birth? Do you watch when the doe bears fawns?

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Can you number the months that they fulfill? Or do you know the time when they give birth?

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They bow themselves, they bring forth their young, they end their labor pains.

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Their young ones become strong. They grow up in the open field. They go forth, and don’t return again.

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“Who has set the wild donkey free? Or who has loosened the bonds of the swift donkey,

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Whose home I have made the wilderness, and the salt land his dwelling place?

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He scorns the tumult of the city, neither does he hear the shouting of the driver.

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The range of the mountains is his pasture, He searches after every green thing.

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“Will the wild ox be content to serve you? Or will he stay by your feeding trough?

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Can you hold the wild ox in the furrow with his harness? Or will he till the valleys after you?

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Will you trust him, because his strength is great? Or will you leave to him your labor?

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Will you confide in him, that he will bring home your seed, and gather the grain of your threshing floor?

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“The wings of the ostrich wave proudly; but are they the feathers and plumage of love?

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For she leaves her eggs on the earth, warms them in the dust,

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and forgets that the foot may crush them, or that the wild animal may trample them.

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She deals harshly with her young ones, as if they were not hers. Though her labor is in vain, she is without fear,

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because God has deprived her of wisdom, neither has he imparted to her understanding.

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When she lifts up herself on high, she scorns the horse and his rider.

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“Have you given the horse might? Have you clothed his neck with a quivering mane?

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Have you made him to leap as a locust? The glory of his snorting is awesome.

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He paws in the valley, and rejoices in his strength. He goes out to meet the armed men.

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He mocks at fear, and is not dismayed, neither does he turn back from the sword.

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The quiver rattles against him, the flashing spear and the javelin.

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He eats up the ground with fierceness and rage, neither does he stand still at the sound of the trumpet.

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As often as the trumpet sounds he snorts, ‘Aha!’ He smells the battle afar off, the thunder of the captains, and the shouting.

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“Is it by your wisdom that the hawk soars, and stretches her wings toward the south?

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Is it at your command that the eagle mounts up, and makes his nest on high?

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On the cliff he dwells, and makes his home, on the point of the cliff, and the stronghold.

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From there he spies out the prey. His eyes see it afar off.

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His young ones also suck up blood. Where the slain are, there he is.”

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Moreover Yahweh answered Job,

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“Shall he who argues contend with the Almighty? He who argues with God, let him answer it.”

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Then Job answered Yahweh,

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“Behold, I am of small account. What shall I answer you? I lay my hand on my mouth.

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I have spoken once, and I will not answer; Yes, twice, but I will proceed no further.”

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Then Yahweh answered Job out of the whirlwind,

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“Now brace yourself like a man. I will question you, and you will answer me.

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Will you even annul my judgment? Will you condemn me, that you may be justified?

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Or do you have an arm like God? Can you thunder with a voice like him?

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“Now deck yourself with excellency and dignity. Array yourself with honor and majesty.

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Pour out the fury of your anger. Look at everyone who is proud, and bring him low.

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Look at everyone who is proud, and humble him. Crush the wicked in their place.

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Hide them in the dust together. Bind their faces in the hidden place.

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Then I will also admit to you that your own right hand can save you.

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“See now, behemoth, which I made as well as you. He eats grass as an ox.

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Look now, his strength is in his thighs. His force is in the muscles of his belly.

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He moves his tail like a cedar. The sinews of his thighs are knit together.

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His bones are like tubes of brass. His limbs are like bars of iron.

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He is the chief of the ways of God. He who made him gives him his sword.

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Surely the mountains produce food for him, where all the animals of the field play.

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He lies under the lotus trees, in the covert of the reed, and the marsh.

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The lotuses cover him with their shade. The willows of the brook surround him.

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Behold, if a river overflows, he doesn’t tremble. He is confident, though the Jordan swells even to his mouth.

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Shall any take him when he is on the watch, or pierce through his nose with a snare?

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“Can you draw out Leviathan with a fishhook, or press down his tongue with a cord?

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Can you put a rope into his nose, or pierce his jaw through with a hook?

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Will he make many petitions to you, or will he speak soft words to you?

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Will he make a covenant with you, that you should take him for a servant forever?

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Will you play with him as with a bird? Or will you bind him for your girls?

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Will traders barter for him? Will they part him among the merchants?

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Can you fill his skin with barbed irons, or his head with fish spears?

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Lay your hand on him. Remember the battle, and do so no more.

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Behold, the hope of him is in vain. Won’t one be cast down even at the sight of him?

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None is so fierce that he dare stir him up. Who then is he who can stand before me?

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Who has first given to me, that I should repay him? Everything under the heavens is mine.