39 God Speaks of Nature and Its Beings
1"Do you know the time the mountain
goats give birth?
Do you observe the calving of the deer?
2 "Can you count the months they fulfill,
Or do you know the time they give birth?
3 "They kneel down, they bring forth their young,
They get rid of their labor pains.
4 "Their offspring become strong, they grow up
in the open field;
They leave and do not return to them.
5 "Who sent out the wild donkey free?
And who loosed the bonds of the swift donkey,
6 To whom I gave the wilderness for a home
And the salt land for his dwelling place?
7 "He scorns the tumult of the city,
The shoutings of the driver he does not hear.
8 "He explores the mountains for his pasture
And searches after every green thing.
9 "Will the wild ox consent to serve you,
Or will he spend the night at your manger?
10 "Can you bind the wild ox in a furrow with
ropes,
Or will he harrow the valleys after you?
11 "Will you trust him because his strength
is great
And leave your labor to him?
12 "Will you have faith in him that he will
return your grain
And gather it from your threshing floor?
13 "The ostriches' wings flap joyously
With the pinion and plumage of love,
14 For she abandons her eggs to the earth
And warms them in the dust,
15 And she forgets that a foot may crush them,
Or that a wild beast may trample them.
16 "She treats her young cruelly, as if they
were not hers;
Though her labor be in vain, she is unconcerned;
17 Because God has made her forget wisdom,
And has not given her a share of understanding.
18 "When she lifts herself on high,
She laughs at the horse and his rider.
19 "Do you give the horse his might?
Do you clothe his neck with a mane?
20 "Do you make him leap like the locust?
His majestic snorting is terrible.
21 "He paws in the valley, and rejoices in
his strength;
He goes out to meet the weapons.
22 "He laughs at fear and is not dismayed;
And he does not turn back from the sword.
23 "The quiver rattles against him,
The flashing spear and javelin.
24 "With shaking and rage he races over
the ground,
And he does not stand still at the voice of
the trumpet.
25 "As often as the trumpet sounds he says,
`Aha!' And he scents the battle from afar,
And the thunder of the captains and the war cry.
26 "Is it by your understanding that the hawk
soars,
Stretching his wings toward the south?
27 "Is it at your command that the eagle
mounts up
And makes his nest on high?
28 "On the cliff he dwells and lodges,
Upon the rocky crag, an inaccessible place.
29 "From there he spies out food;
His eyes see it from afar.
30 "His young ones also suck up blood;
And where the slain are, there is he."
40 Job: What Can I Say?
1 Then the LORD said to Job,
2 "Will the faultfinder contend with the
Almighty?
Let him who reproves God answer it."
3 Then Job answered the LORD and said,
4 "Behold, I am insignificant; what can I
reply to You?
I lay my hand on my mouth.
5 "Once I have spoken, and I will
not answer;
Even twice, and I will add nothing more."
God Questions Job
6 Then the LORD answered Job out of the storm
and said,
7 "Now gird up your loins like a man;
I will ask you, and you instruct Me.
8"Will you really annul My judgment?
Will you condemn Me that you may be
justified?
9 "Or do you have an arm like God,
And can you thunder with a voice like His?
10 "Adorn yourself with eminence and dignity,
And clothe yourself with honor and majesty.
11 "Pour out the overflowings of your anger,
And look on everyone who is proud, and
make him low.
12 "Look on everyone who is proud, and
humble him,
And tread down the wicked where they stand.
13 "Hide them in the dust together;
Bind them in the hidden place.
14 "Then I will also confess to you,
That your own right hand can save you.
God's Power Shown in Creatures
15 "Behold now, Behemoth, which I made
as well as you;
He eats grass like an ox.
16 "Behold now, his strength in his loins
And his power in the muscles of his belly.
17 "He bends his tail like a cedar;
The sinews of his thighs are knit together.
18 "His bones are tubes of bronze;
His limbs are like bars of iron.
19 "He is the first of the ways of God;
Let his maker bring near his sword.
20 "Surely the mountains bring him food,
And all the beasts of the field play there.
21 "Under the lotus plants he lies down,
In the covert of the reeds and the marsh.
22 "The lotus plants cover him with shade;
The willows of the brook surround him.
23 "If a river rages, he is not alarmed;
He is confident, though the Jordan rushes
to his mouth.
24 "Can anyone capture him when he is
on watch,
With barbs can anyone pierce his nose?