Job 38:1-40:2 NIV

Bridgeway Bible Commentary - Job 38:1-38

38:1-42:17GOD’S ANSWERControl of the natural world (38:1-38)Possibly an approaching storm was what prompted Elihu’s poetic praise of the God of nature (see 36:27-37:5). If so, that storm now broke, and through it the voice of God spoke to Job. Job had repeatedly challenged God to a contest. God now accepts (38:1-3).In his reply, God asks Job questions that he cannot answer, in order to show him how little he knows of the mind and activity of the Almighty. God begins his ironical questioning of... read more

E.W. Bullinger

E.W. Bullinger's Companion Bible Notes - Job 38:1

the LORD. Hebrew. Jehovah. App-4 . answered. See note on Job 4:1 . We now have Jehovah ' s own ministry, and the theme is Himself. Elihu ' s ministry furnishes the text: "God is greater than man "(Job 33:12 ). This leads up to "the end of the Lord" (James 5:11 ). "How should mortal man be just with God? "See Job 4:17 ; Job 9:2 ; Job 15:14 ; Job 33:9 ; Job 34:5 . How different from the ministry of the three friends, which, like most ministries of to-day, consists in the effort to make men... read more

James Burton Coffman

Coffman Commentaries on the Bible - Job 38:1

JOB 38GOD ANSWERS JOB FROM THE WHIRLWIND (JOB 38-41)THE FIRST PORTION OF GOD'S RESPONSE: THE PROBLEMJob 38:1-7GOD ANSWERS JOB"Then Jehovah answered Job out ofthe whirlwind, and said,Who is this that darkeneth counselBy words without knowledge?Gird up now thy loins like a man;And I will demand of thee, and declare thou unto me.Where wast thou when I laid the foundations of the earth?Declare if thou hast understanding.Who determined the measurements thereof, if thou knowest?Or who stretched the... read more

Thomas Coke

Thomas Coke Commentary on the Holy Bible - Job 38:1

CHAP. XXXVIII. The Lord speaks to Job out of a whirlwind, and challenges him to answer. He convinces him of ignorance and weakness, by an enumeration of some of his mighty works. Before Christ 1645. Job 38:1. Then the Lord answered Job, &c.— The Chaldee paraphrast, by the addition of a word, has given a very bold exposition of this text thus, Then the Lord answered Job out of the whirlwind of grief; taking the word סערה seaarah rendered whirlwind, not in a literal, but a metaphorical sense.... read more

Robert Jamieson; A. R. Fausset; David Brown

Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible - Job 38:1

1. Jehovah appears unexpectedly in a whirlwind (already gathering Job 37:1; Job 37:2), the symbol of "judgment" (Psalms 50:3; Psalms 50:4, c.), to which Job had challenged Him. He asks him now to get himself ready for the contest. Can he explain the phenomena of God's natural government? How can he, then, hope to understand the principles of His moral government? God thus confirms Elihu's sentiment, that submission to, not reasonings on, God's ways is man's part. This and the disciplinary... read more

Thomas Constable

Expository Notes of Dr. Thomas Constable - Job 38:1-2

1. God’s first speech 38:1-40:2God’s first speech "transcends all other descriptions of the wonders of creation or the greatness of the Creator, which are to be found either in the Bible or elsewhere." [Note: Samuel R. Driver, Introduction to the Literature of the Old Testament, p. 427.] read more

Thomas Constable

Expository Notes of Dr. Thomas Constable - Job 38:1-3

God’s introductory challenge to Job 38:1-3God sometimes made His self-revelations to people in a storm, symbolic of the disturbing effects His awesome presence produced (cf. Exodus 19:16-17; 1 Kings 19:11-13; 2 Kings 2:1; 2 Kings 2:11; Isaiah 6:4; Ezekiel 1:4; Zechariah 9:14). One wonders if Job’s friends thought God was about to strike Job dead with a bolt of lightning."Job’s troubles began when a great wind killed his children (Job 1:19). The Lord was in that storm, and now He speaks from the... read more

Thomas Constable

Expository Notes of Dr. Thomas Constable - Job 38:1-6

G. The Cycle of Speeches between Job and God 38:1-42:6Finally, God spoke to Job and gave revelation that Job had been demanding for so long (cf. Job 13:22; Job 31:35). There was now no need for the middleman that Job had requested who could mediate between them (cf. Job 9:33; Job 16:19). Yahweh spoke directly to Job, and Job had the opportunity to respond directly to God."God challenged both Satan and Job by confronting them with his wondrous works. And since Job himself is the divine work by... read more

John Dummelow

John Dummelow's Commentary on the Bible - Job 38:1-34

The Speeches of the AlmightyWhen the human debate was over, and Job had proudly asserted his readiness to confront God, conscious of his innocence (Job 31:35-37), there was nothing left, if the contest was to be decided, except a direct intervention of God. This Job had himself again and again demanded. He had challenged God to meet him and justify the treatment He accorded to him. He complains bitterly that God evades him, and lets him suffer, though He knows that he is innocent. Now at last... read more

John Dummelow

John Dummelow's Commentary on the Bible - Job 38:1-41

The First Speech of the Almighty (Job 38, 39)The marvels of creation, which witness to the infinite wisdom, power, and watchful care of the Creator, are presented to Job in such a way as to force from him a confession of ignorance and weakness, and of presumption in venturing to contend with God.1-38. The wonders of earth and heaven. What does Job know of their nature and origin and ordering?1. Whirlwind] rather, ’storm.’ Theophanies, or manifestations of God to man, are usually represented in... read more

Bridgeway Bible Commentary - Job 38:1-38

E.W. Bullinger's Companion Bible Notes - Job 38:1

Coffman Commentaries on the Bible - Job 38:1

Thomas Coke Commentary on the Holy Bible - Job 38:1

Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible - Job 38:1

Expository Notes of Dr. Thomas Constable - Job 38:1-2

Expository Notes of Dr. Thomas Constable - Job 38:1-3

Expository Notes of Dr. Thomas Constable - Job 38:1-6

John Dummelow's Commentary on the Bible - Job 38:1-34

John Dummelow's Commentary on the Bible - Job 38:1-41

Group of Brands