Job 37:1-13

F. THE CREATOR AND THE CREATION (Job 37:1-24)

1. The marvelous activity of God in nature (Job 37:1-13)

TEXT 37:1-13

37 Yea, at this my heart trembleth,

And is moved oat of its place.

2 Hear, oh, hear the noise of his voice,

And the sound that goeth out of his mouth.

3 He sendeth it forth under the whole heaven,

And his lightning unto the ends of the earth.

4 After it a voice roareth;

He thundereth with the voice of his majesty;
And he restraineth not the lightnings when his voice is heard.

5 God thundereth marvellously with his voice;

Great things doeth he, which we cannot comprehend.

6 For he saith to the snow, Fall thou on the earth;

Likewise to the shower of rain,
And to the showers of his mighty rain.

7 He sealeth up the hand of every man,

That all men whom he hath made may know it.

8 Then the beasts go into coverts,

And remain in their dens.

9 Out of the chamber of the south cometh the storm,

And cold out of the north.

10 By the breath of God ice is given;

And the breadth of the waters is straitened.

11 Yea, he ladeth the thick cloud with moisture;

He spreadeth abroad the cloud of his lightning:

12 And it is turned round about by his guidance,

That they may do whatsoever he commandeth them
Upon the face of the habitable world,

13 Whether it be for correction or for his land,

Or for lovingkindness, that he cause it to come.

COMMENT 37:1-13

Job 37:1In his final speech, Elihu describes his own feelings, and Job is not addressed until Job 37:14. Elihu's heart leaps (see Brown, Driver, and BriggsLeviticus 11:21; Habakkuk 3:6) with terror at God's thunderstormPsalms 18:13; Psalms 77:17-18; Exodus 9:22-35; Exodus 19:16; 1 Samuel 7:10; and Isaiah 30:30.[362] The RSV'S rendering of shook takes the verb as transitive and thus gives insight into the imagery of the second lineA. V. And is moved out of its place.

[362] This imagery has been much discussed since the discovery of the Ugaritic Myth of Baal-Hadad. The similarities apply to Elihu but not to Job; see F. M. Cross, Jr., Bulletin American Society of Oriental Research, 1950, pp. 19-21; and T. H. Gaster, Jewish Quarterly Review, 1946-47, pp. 54-67.

Job 37:2Elihu intones a hymn in praise of God who reveals Himself in the winter rains which bring fertility to the earth, and God's gracious presence to menPsalms 8; Psalms 19:2-7; Psalms 29; Psalms 104; Psalms, 147. God's voice is described as thunder in Job 28:26. The word rendered sound, or rumbling, appears in verb form in Isaiah 31:4 in describing the growling of a lion.

Job 37:3God's sovereignty is expressed in that He sends thunder and lightning throughout the universe. The reference of it is to lightningJob 36:32in the second line, and the verb has a root meaning of loosen, i.e., send in the sense of letting it go to the corners (lit. wings) of the earth.

Job 37:4The antecedent of it is the lightning in Job 37:3. God's voice roarsJudges 14:5; Amos 1:2; Amos 3:4; Amos 3:8; Psalms 104:21; Jeremiah 25:30; and Joel 3:16; but ... He does not restrain the lightning when His voice is heard, R. S. V. The Hebrew word -ye-'aqqebem means restrain them. The verb -aqab means hold by the heel, as in Hosea 12:3, and thus hold back or restrain. Even though God speaks in the thunder and lightning, He does not restrain everything in the universe merely because He speaks. Job needs to learn this fact, according to Elihu.

Job 37:5Elihu's words echo both Job and EliphazJob 5:9; Job 9:10. Elihu makes transition to another dimension of God's wonderful creationsnow and frost. God is presented lord of the winter, as He is the lord of the spring and summer in the previous verses. Dhorme provides insight into the verse without any emendationGod by his voice works (ya-'amol) wonders. This rendering makes excellent transition from the thunderstorm to the winter snows.

Job 37:6The verb -hw-'to beis uniquely used he in the sense of fall. The Hebrew text has repetition of down-out of rain and downpour of rains, perhaps to emphasize the intensity of the rain which would refer to the heavy rain of the Syrian Palestinian winter.

Job 37:7The text says with the hand of every man he sealsJob 9:7; Genesis 7:16. The preposition beyad probably must be understood as with a similar verb as shut or seal. The meaning is that when it rains men must cease from their agricultural labors while the rain and snow prevail.[363]

[363] D. W. Thomas secures the word rest instead of know with minimal emendation; see Journal of Theological Studies, 1954, pp. 56ff. This makes excellent sense in this verse.

Job 37:8The imagery is concerned with the hibernation of animals for the winter. The A. V. renders the noun coverts, which could better be understood as lairs. The verb means to lie in wait. The word translated dens is used of God's dwelling placePsalms 76:2; of man's homeJeremiah 21:13; and of the lairs of wild beastsJob 38:40; Amos 3:4; Nahum 2:12; and Psalms 104:22.

Job 37:9There is also reference to the chambers (Heb. heder) of the south in Job 9:9. But of the south is not in the textJob 38:22 and Psalms 135:7. The unique word -mezarim is rendered by cometh in A. V., but it probably means to scatter or disperse. It might be a term for storehouse, as Pope suggests. This would make perfectly good sense in our present verse. Likewise the North yields its cold.

Job 37:10Elihu employs poetic imagery to express that ice and frost are the results of the cold-blast of God's breath. Straitened of the A. V. is derived from word meaning become a solid mass, i.e., frozen solidIsaiah 40:7.

Job 37:11The clouds are loaded or burdened (A. V. ladeth ._from root meaning burden or weightIsaiah 1:14) with moisture. Instead of lightning as in A. V., this may refer only to light as in Hebrew text, i.e., to the sun, thus deriving the meaning that the sunlight dispels the clouds with their moisture (Heb. beri). However we understand the grammatical possibilities; the emphasis is on the manifestation of God's power and controls of nature.

Job 37:12Elihu here explains that all of nature obeys the will of God and fulfills His purposes. The antecedent of it is the clouds from Job 37:11. The word -mithappek rendered turned around in A. V. appears in Genesis 3:24 where it describes the flaming sword turning round and round. The meaning of the entire verse centers on God's control; though lightning appears to act capriciously, it is carrying out His divine directions.

Job 37:13Elihu asserts in conclusion to this section of his that God's control of nature sometimes results in judgment, sometimes in blessing. Both wrath and mercy result from God's control of nature; the same also applies to history. God's universe is balanced between His correction or discipline and His covenant love (hesed). Dhorme's emendation provides the verb which is lacking in the first part of the verse. Whether it be for punishment that He accomplishes His will, whether it be for mercy that He brings it to pass1 Corinthians 4:21.[364]

[364] For the suggestion that -le-'arsorendered as for his land in A. V.should be translated as grace or favor, see M. Dahood, Psalms, Vol. II, note 3 on Psalms 58:3. This makes perfectly good sense, while land makes little sense in this verse.