Job 38: God Speaks

Then the Lord answered Job out of the whirlwind and said:
2     “Who is this that darkens counsel by words without knowledge?
3     Dress for action like a man;
I will question you, and you make it known to me.
4     “Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth?
Tell me, if you have understanding.
5     Who determined its measurements—surely you know!
Or who stretched the line upon it?
6     On what were its bases sunk,
or who laid its cornerstone,
7     when the morning stars sang together
and all the sons of God shouted for joy?
8     “Or who shut in the sea with doors
when it burst out from the womb,
9     when I made clouds its garment
and thick darkness its swaddling band,
10    and prescribed limits for it
and set bars and doors,
11    and said, ‘Thus far shall you come, and no farther,
and here shall your proud waves be stayed’?
12    “Have you commanded the morning since your days began,
and caused the dawn to know its place,
13    that it might take hold of the skirts of the earth,
and the wicked be shaken out of it?
14    It is changed like clay under the seal,
and its features stand out like a garment.
15    From the wicked their light is withheld,
and their uplifted arm is broken.
16    “Have you entered into the springs of the sea,
or walked in the recesses of the deep?
17    Have the gates of death been revealed to you,
or have you seen the gates of deep darkness?
18    Have you comprehended the expanse of the earth?
Declare, if you know all this.
19    “Where is the way to the dwelling of light,
and where is the place of darkness,
20    that you may take it to its territory
and that you may discern the paths to its home?
21    You know, for you were born then,
and the number of your days 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 trouble,
for the day of battle and war?
24    What is the way to the place where the light is distributed,
or where the east wind is scattered upon the earth?
25    “Who has cleft a channel for the torrents of rain
and a way for the thunderbolt,
26    to bring rain on a land where no man is,
on the desert in which there is no man,
27    to satisfy the waste and desolate land,
and to make the ground sprout with grass?
28    “Has the rain a father,
or who has begotten the drops of dew?
29    From whose womb did the ice come forth,
and who has given birth to the frost of heaven?
30    The waters become hard like stone,
and the face of the deep is frozen.
31    “Can you bind the chains of the Pleiades
or loose the cords of Orion?
32    Can you lead forth the Mazzaroth in their season,
or can you guide the Bear with its children?
33    Do you know the ordinances of the heavens?
Can you establish their rule on the earth?
34    “Can you lift up your voice to the clouds,
that a flood of waters may cover you?
35    Can you send forth lightnings, that they may go
and say to you, ‘Here we are’?
36    Who has put wisdom in the inward parts
or given understanding to the mind?
37    Who can number the clouds by wisdom?
Or who can tilt the waterskins of the heavens,
38    when the dust runs into a mass
and the clods stick fast together?
39    “Can you hunt the prey for the lion,
or satisfy the appetite of the young lions,
40    when they crouch in their dens
or lie in wait in their thicket?
41    Who provides for the raven its prey,
when its young ones cry to God for help,
and wander about for lack of food?
 
Meditation
God is personal, responding to people directly. God is powerful, maintaining the distinction between Creator and creatures. God has a purpose, working good from the enemy’s evil intentions.
 
God speaks to Job directly, as He spoke from Mt. Saini. God speaks personally, using His covenant name, “The Lord.” God speaks powerfully, out of a storm. God responds to Job’s challenges to His governing of the universe and seeming lack of sovereignty by allowing (or even introducing) evil into the world. God responds to the prayers, pleas, and problems of His people.
 
God’s counsel is revealed in His created order (4-38). Woven into the fabric of God’s creation is joy. Evil is an invader, one day to be expelled. God knows the places of the deep, darkness, and the dead- And He controls them all. Creation is God’s great building project and God will extinguish the evil which has entered, remaining faithful to His purposes and plan.
 
Though evil and suffering exists, the Lord commands the morning. The sun will rise and dispel the darkness (12-15). The distinction between Creator God and creature Job is too vast for Job to comprehend this victory. The Creator Himself will come down to enter the places of the deep, darkness, and death to guarantee the victory. Jesus Christ the Son of God rose out of the grave so all can be sure evil will not have a final place in God’s new creation. Jesus is the Lord, the all-powerful Creator who longs for personal relationship.
 
Richly Dwelling
-What stands out to you about God’s response to Job?
 
-How would you feel if God spoke to you this personally and powerfully?
 
-Why is it essential to have Jesus mediate the message, bridging the gap between Creator and creature? How does His work give you confidence to approach the Lord with your prayers, pain, and problems?
 
Key Verse
1 Then the Lord answered Job out of the whirlwind and said….