Job 38:1-41 NCV

[1] Then the LORD answered Job from the storm. He said: [2] "Who is this that makes my purpose unclear by saying things that are not true? [3] Be strong like a man! I will ask you questions, and you must answer me. [4] Where were you when I made the earth's foundation? Tell me, if you understand. [5] Who marked off how big it should be? Surely you know! Who stretched a ruler across it? [6] What were the earth's foundations set on, or who put its cornerstone in place [7] while the morning stars sang together and all the angels shouted with joy? [8] "Who shut the doors to keep the sea in when it broke through and was born, [9] when I made the clouds like a coat for the sea and wrapped it in dark clouds, [10] when I put limits on the sea and put its doors and bars in place, [11] when I said to the sea, 'You may come this far, but no farther; this is where your proud waves must stop'? [12] "Have you ever ordered the morning to begin, or shown the dawn where its place was [13] in order to take hold of the earth by its edges and shake evil people out of it? [14] At dawn the earth changes like clay being pressed by a seal; the hills and valleys stand out like folds in a coat. [15] Light is not given to evil people; their arm is raised to do harm, but it is broken. [16] "Have you ever gone to where the sea begins or walked in the valleys under the sea? [17] Have the gates of death been opened to you? Have you seen the gates of the deep darkness? [18] Do you understand how wide the earth is? Tell me, if you know all these things. [19] "What is the path to light's home, and where does darkness live? [20] Can you take them to their places? Do you know the way to their homes? [21] Surely you know, if you were already born when all this happened! Have you lived that many years? [22] "Have you ever gone into the storehouse of the snow or seen the storehouses for hail, [23] which I save for times of trouble, for days of war and battle? [24] Where is the place from which light comes? Where is the place from which the east winds blow over the earth? [25] Who cuts a waterway for the heavy rains and sets a path for the thunderstorm? [26] Who waters the land where no one lives, the desert that has no one in it? [27] Who sends rain to satisfy the empty land so the grass begins to grow? [28] Does the rain have a father? Who is father to the drops of dew? [29] Who is the mother of the ice? Who gives birth to the frost from the sky [30] when the water becomes hard as stone, and even the surface of the ocean is frozen? [31] "Can you tie up the stars of the Pleiades or loosen the ropes of the stars in Orion? [32] Can you bring out the stars on time or lead out the stars of the Bear with its cubs? [33] Do you know the laws of the sky and understand their rule over the earth? [34] "Can you shout an order to the clouds and cover yourself with a flood of water? [35] Can you send lightning bolts on their way? Do they come to you and say, 'Here we are'? [36] Who put wisdom inside the mind or understanding in the heart? [37] Who has the wisdom to count the clouds? Who can pour water from the jars of the sky [38] when the dust becomes hard and the clumps of dirt stick together? [39] "Do you hunt food for the female lion to satisfy the hunger of the young lions [40] while they lie in their dens or hide in the bushes waiting to attack? [41] Who gives food to the birds when their young cry out to God and wander about without food?