Job 38:30

Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary - Job 38:25-41

Hitherto God had put such questions to Job as were proper to convince him of his ignorance and short-sightedness. Now he comes, in the same manner, to show his impotency and weakness. As it is but little that he knows, and therefore he ought not to arraign the divine counsels, so it is but little that he can do, and therefore he ought not to oppose the proceedings of Providence. Let him consider what great things God does, and try whether he can do the like, or whether he thinks himself an... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Job 38:30

The waters are hid as with a stone ,.... The surface of the waters by frost become as hard as a stone, and will bear great burdens, and admit of carriages to pass over them F3 "Nunc hospita plaustris", &c.; Virg. Georgic. l. 3. v. 362. where ships went before; so that the waters under them are hid and quite out of sight: an emblem of the hard heart of man, which can only be thawed by the power and grace of God, by the south wind of the Spirit blowing, and the "sun of... read more

Adam Clarke

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - Job 38:30

The waters are hid as with a stone - Here is a reference to freezing in the winter, as we may learn from some of the constellations mentioned below, which arise above our horizon, in the winter months. The word יתחבאו yithchabbau is understood by the versions in general as implying hardening or congelation; and we know in some intense frosts the ice becomes as hard as a stone; and even the face of the deep - the very seas themselves, not only in the polar circles, but even in northern... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Job 38:1-41

The tone of the appeal is sustained at a high pitch, and the entire passage is one of extraordinary force and eloquence. read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Job 38:4-33

Human impotence and ignorance exposed. Job's affliction is a mystery—a mystery that needs to be revealed. Job has not given the explanation of it. He has not known it. His friends have failed. It has been attributed to his sin; but he is confident in his honest integrity, and cannot be persuaded that he is suffering punishment, for he has not a consciousness of guilt. Elihu has indicated the hidden nature of the Divine works, and has not made the mystery clearer. But he has closed the lips... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Job 38:16-30

Jehovah to Job: the first answer-the examination: 4. Concerning the mysteries of creation. I. THE MYSTERIES OF CREATION ARE MANIFOLD IN THEIR VARIETY . Jehovah directs Job's attention to some examples of these hidden things, or secrets, of nature. 1 . The depths of the ocean. The sea, perhaps more than any other object in nature, the universal emblem of the mysterious, in respect of its immensity, inconstancy, potency, harmony, is specially invested with a veil of... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Job 38:30

The waters are hid as with a stone ; rather, the waters are hardened , like unto stone. When the frost comes, the waters are congealed and rendered as hard as stone. (So Dillmann and Canon Cook .) And the face of the deep is frozen . By "the deep" ( תּהוֹם ) is certainly not meant here either the open ocean, which, in the latitudes known to the dwellers in South Western Asia, never freezes, or the Mediterranean. Some of the lakes which abound in the regions inhabited by Job and his... read more

Albert Barnes

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Whole Bible - Job 38:30

The waters are hid as with a stone - The solid ice is laid as a stone upon them, wholly concealing them from view.And the face of the deep is frozen - Margin, “taken.” The idea is, they seem to take hold of one another (יתלכדוּ yitlâkadû); they hold together, or cohere. The formation of ice is thus appealed to as a proof of the wisdom of God, and as a thing which Job could not explain. No man could produce this effect; nor could Job explain how it was done. read more

Joseph Benson

Joseph Benson's Commentary of the Old and New Testaments - Job 38:28-30

Job 38:28-30. Hath the rain a father? Is there any man that can beget or produce rain at his pleasure? No; this is my peculiar work. The hoary frost, who hath gendered it? What man can either produce, or doth fully understand where or how it is generated? The waters are hid as with a stone That is, with ice as hard as a stone. And the face of the deep is frozen Of the great sea, which is often called the deep, and which in some parts is frozen, so that its surface grows solid. The... read more

Donald C. Fleming

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

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