Job

 2 “Who is this who is obscuring my counsel

And speaking without knowledge?+

 3 Brace yourself, please, like a man;

I will question you, and you inform me.

 5 Who set its measurements, in case you know,

Or who stretched a measuring line across it?

 6 Into what were its pedestals sunk,

Or who laid its cornerstone,+

 7 When the morning stars+ joyfully cried out together,

And all the sons of God*+ began shouting in applause?

 8 And who barricaded the sea behind doors+

When it burst out from the womb,

 9 When I clothed it with clouds

And wrapped* it in thick gloom,

10 When I established my limit for it

And put its bars and doors in place,+

11 And I said, ‘You may come this far, and no farther;

Here is where your proud waves will stop’?+

12 Have you ever* commanded the morning

Or made the dawn know its place,+

13 To take hold of the ends of the earth

And to shake the wicked out of it?+

14 It is transformed like clay under a seal,

And its features stand out like those of a garment.

15 But the light of the wicked is held back from them,

And their uplifted arm is broken.

16 Have you gone down to the sources of the sea

Or explored the deep waters?+

17 Have the gates of death+ been revealed to you,

Or have you seen the gates of deep darkness?*+

And where is the place of darkness,

20 That you should take it to its territory

And understand the paths to its home?

21 Do you know this because you were already born

And the number of your years* is great?

22 Have you entered the storehouses of the snow,+

Or have you seen the storehouses of the hail,+

23 Which I have reserved for the time of distress,

For the day of battle and war?+

24 From what direction is light* dispersed,

And from where does the east wind blow on the earth?+

25 Who has cut a channel for the flood

And made a path for the thunderous storm cloud,+

26 To make it rain where no man lives,

On the wilderness where there are no humans,+

27 To satisfy devastated wastelands

And cause the grass to sprout?+

28 Does the rain have a father,+

Or who fathered the dewdrops?+

29 From whose womb did the ice emerge,

And who gave birth to the frost of heaven+

30 When the waters are covered as if with stone,

And the surface of the deep waters is frozen solid?+

31 Can you tie the ropes of the Kiʹmah constellation*

Or untie the cords of the Keʹsil constellation?*+

32 Can you lead out a constellation* in its season

Or guide the Ash constellation* along with its sons?

33 Do you know the laws governing the heavens,+

Or can you impose their* authority on the earth?

34 Can you raise your voice to the clouds

To cause a flood of water to cover you?+

36 Who put wisdom within the clouds*+

Or gave understanding to the sky phenomenon?*+

37 Who is wise enough to count the clouds,

Or who can tip over the water jars of heaven+

38 When the dust pours into a mass

And the clods of earth stick together?

39 Can you hunt prey for a lion

Or satisfy the appetites of young lions+

40 When they crouch in their lairs

Or lie in ambush in their dens?

41 Who prepares food for the raven+

When its young cry to God for help

And wander about because there is nothing to eat?