21 Seeing it is hid from the eyes of all living, And kept close from the fowls of the air. 22 Destruction and Death say:

'We have heard a rumour thereof with our ears.'

23 God understandeth the way thereof,

And He knoweth the place thereof. 24 For He looketh to the ends of the earth, And seeth under the whole heaven;

25 When He maketh a weight for the wind, And meteth out the waters by measure. 26 When He made a decree for the rain,

And a way for the storm of thunders; 27 Then did He see it, and declare it;

He established it, yea, and searched it out.

28 And unto man He said:

'Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wis dom;

And to depart from evil is understanding.'

38

Questions Beyond Answer

Then the LORD answered Job out of the whirlwind, and said:

2 Who is this that darkeneth counsel

By words without knowledge?

3 Gird up now thy loins like a man;

For I will demand of thee, and declare thou unto Me.

4 Where wast thou when I laid the foundations of the earth?

Declare, if thou hast the understanding.

5 Who determined the measures thereof, if thou knowest?

Or who stretched the line upon it?

6 Whereupon were the foundations thereof fastened?

Or who laid the corner-stone thereof, 7 When the morning stars sang together, And all the sons of God shouted for joy?

8 Or who shut up the sea with doors,

When it broke forth, and issued out of the womb;

9 When I made the cloud the garment thereof, And thick darkness a swaddling-band for it, 10 And prescribed for it My decree,

And set bars and doors,

11 And said: "Thus far shalt thou come but no further;

And here shall thy proud waves be stayed'? 12 Hast thou commanded the morning since thy days began,

And caused the dayspring to know its place; 13 That it might take hold of the ends of the earth,

And the wicked be shaken out of it?

14 It is changed as clay under the seal;

And they stand as a garment.

15 But from the wicked their light is withholden,

And the high arm is broken.

16 Hast thou entered into the springs of the sea? Or hast thou walked in the recesses of the

deep?

17 Have the gates of death been revealed unto thee?

Or hast thou seen the gates of the shadow of death?

18 Hast thou surveyed unto the breadths of the earth?

Declare, if thou knowest it all.

19 Where is the way to the dwelling of light, And as for darkness, where is the place thereof;

20 That thou shouldest take it to the bound thereof,

And that thou shouldest know the paths to the house thereof?

21 Thou knowest it, for thou wast then born, And the number of thy days is great!

22 Hast thou entered the treasuries of the

snow,

Or hast thou seen the treasuries of the hail, 23 Which I have reserved against the time of trouble,

Against the day of battle and war?

24 By what way is the light parted,

Or the east wind scattered upon the earth? 25 Who hath cleft a channel for the waterflood,

Or a way for the lightning of the thunder; 26 To cause it to rain on a land where no man is,

On the wilderness, wherein there is no man; 27 To satisfy the desolate and waste ground, And to cause the bud of the tender herb to spring forth?

28 Hath the rain a father?

Or who hath begotten the drops of dew? 29 Out of whose womb came the ice?

And the hoar-frost of heaven, who hath gendered it?

30 The waters are congealed like stone, And the face of the deep is frozen.

31 Canst thou bind the chains of the Pleiades, Or loose the bands of Orion?

32 Canst thou lead forth the Mazzaroth in their

season?

Or canst thou guide the Bear with her sons? 33 Knowest thou the ordinances of the heavens? Canst thou establish the dominion thereof in the earth?

34 Canst thou lift up thy voice to the clouds,

That abundance of waters may cover thee? 35 Canst thou send forth lightnings, that they may go,

And say unto thee: 'Here we are"?

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

37 Who can number the clouds by wisdom? Or who can pour out the bottles of heaven, 38 When the dust runneth into a mass,

And the clouds cleave fast together?

39 Wilt thou hunt the prey for the lioness?

Or satisfy the appetite of the young lions,

40 When they couch in their dens,

And abide in the covert to lie in wait?

41 Who provideth for the raven his prey, When his young ones cry unto God, And wander for lack of food?

39 Knowest thou the time when the wild

goats of the rock bring forth?

Or canst thou mark when the hinds do calve?

2 Canst thou number the months that they

fulfil?

Or knowest thou the time when they bring
forth?

3 They bow themselves, they bring forth their!

young,

They cast out their fruit.

4 Their young ones wax strong, they grow up in the open field;

They go forth, and return not again.

5 Who hath sent out the wild ass free?

Or who hath loosed the bands of the wild ass?

6 Whose house I have made the wilderness, And the salt land his dwelling-place.

7 He scorneth the tumult of the city,

Neither heareth he the shoutings of the driver.

8 The range of the mountains is his pasture, And he searcheth after every green thing.

9 Will the wild-ox be willing to serve thee? Or will he abide by thy crib?

10 Canst thou bind the wild-ox with his band in the furrow?

Or will he harrow the valleys after thee? 11 Wilt thou trust him, because his strength is great?

Or wilt thou leave thy labour to him?

12 Wilt thou rely on him, that he will bring home thy seed,

And gather the corn of thy threshing-floor?

13 The wing of the ostrich beateth joyously;