Job 39

“I had a million questions to ask God; but when I met Him, they all fled my mind; and it didn’t seem to matter.” —C M

The storm that Elihu had been describing finally broke, and God spoke to Job out of the storm. The answer to Job’s problems was not an explanation about God, such as the three friends and Elihu had given, but a revelation of God. The four men had declared and defended the greatness of God but had failed to persuade Job. When God displayed His majesty and greatness, it humbled Job and brought him to the place of silent submission before God. That was the turning point.

Swiss psychologist Dr. Paul Tournier wrote in his book Guilt and Grace (Harper & Row, 86), “For God’s answer is not an idea, a proposition, like the conclusion of a theorem; it is Himself. He revealed Himself to Job; Job found personal contact with God.”

We prefer that God speak to us in the sunshine, but sometimes He must speak out of the storm. This is how He spoke to Israel on Mount Sinai (Ex. 19:16–19; Heb. 12:18) and centuries later to Elijah (1 Kings 19:8–11). Ezekiel saw the glory of God in a storm and heard the voice of God speaking to him (Ezek. 1—2). Experiencing this majestic demonstration of God’s power made Job very susceptible to the message God had for him.

God’s address to Job centered on His works in nature and consisted of seventy-seven questions interspersed with divine commentary relating to the questions. The whole purpose of this interrogation was to make Job realize his own inadequacy and inability to meet God as an equal and defend his cause.

“Then summon me, and I will answer,” Job had challenged God, “or let me speak, and you reply” (Job 13: niv). God had now responded to Job’s challenge.

God’s address can be summarized in three questions:

1. “Can you explain My creation?” (38:1–38)

2. “Can you oversee My creation?” (38:39—39:30) Job’s first response (40:1–5)

3. “Can you subdue My creation?” (40:6—41:34) Job’s second response (42:1–6)

The first question dealt with God’s power and wisdom in bringing the universe into being. The second dealt with His providential care of His creatures, and the third centered on two creatures (probably the hippopotamus and the crocodile) that defy man’s ability to subdue them. When Job repented of his self-righteousness, God restored him (vv. 7–17).

God is now called “the Lord,” that is, Jehovah God, a name that (except for 12:9) has not been used in the book of Job since the first two chapters. In their speeches, the men have called Him “God” and “the Almighty” but not “Jehovah.” This is the name that God revealed to Israel centuries later (Ex. 3:13ff.), the name that speaks of His self-existence (“I AM THAT I AM”) and His personal covenant relationship to His people.

The Lord brought before Job’s imagination a parade of six beasts (lioness, goat, hind [deer], wild donkey, wild ox, and horse) and five birds (raven, ostrich, stork, hawk, and eagle). As he contemplated these creatures, Job had to answer the question, “Do you understand how they live and how to take care of them?” Obviously, Job’s reply had to be no.

The providence of God is certainly remarkable (see Ps. 104). In His wisdom and power, God supervises the whole universe and makes sure that His creatures are cared for. “You open Your hand and satisfy the desire of every living thing” (Ps. 145: nkjv). We humans have a difficult time keeping the machinery of life operating successfully, but God runs the whole universe with such precision that we build our scientific laws on His creation.

Did Job know how to feed the lion cubs or the young ravens (Job 38:39–41)? Would he even know that they were hungry? Where could he find food for them? The ravens would know to find the carcasses left behind by the lions because God taught the birds (even unclean ravens!) how to find food.

God then moved from the topic of death to the subject of birth. Did Job know the gestation periods for the goats and deer and how the young are born (39:1–4)? How do the little ones grow up safely, and how does the mother know when they are ready to leave home? Shepherds and farmers assist their animals during pregnancy and birth, but the wild beasts bring forth their young alone.

The wild donkey (vv. 5–8), also known as the “onager,” roamed the wilderness freely and refused to be domesticated. It survived without human assistance because God taught it how to take care of itself. The wild ox (the “aurochs”) was another “loner” in the animal kingdom (vv. 9–12), refusing to yield to the authority of men. You couldn’t keep him in your barn, harness him to your plow, or force him to do your threshing.

“Now, Job,” asked the Lord, “if you can’t succeed with these animals, how do you expect to succeed when you meet Me in court? How strong do you think you are?”

God then turned to a description of two birds, the stork (“peacock,” kjv) and the ostrich (vv. 13–18). God asked Job no questions in this paragraph; He simply reminded him of the bizarre anatomy and behavior of the ostrich and suggested that perhaps Job could explain it.

The stork has beautiful wings that are very serviceable, but all the ostrich can do with her wings is fan the air! Why did God make a bird that couldn’t fly but that could run faster than a horse? Why did He make a bird that puts her nest in such a vulnerable place where her eggs might be destroyed or eaten by a predator? Unlike most birds, why does she seem to be unmindful of her young?

The horse was next in line (vv. 19–25), an animal that was greatly admired and valued for strength and courage. This is a description of a war horse, not a farm horse; and you can visualize it prancing and pawing and eager to rush into the battle. When he hears the trumpet, he can’t stand still, but runs so fast that he seems to be “eating up the ground.” It was God, not Job, who made the horse with the strength and ability it needed to face danger and serve effectively on the field of battle.

The parade ended with two birds, the hawk and the eagle (vv. 26–30). Who gave the birds the instinct to migrate and the knowledge to build nests? Not Job! Eagles build their nests high on the cliffs; but God gave them keen eyesight so they can see their prey from afar, swoop down, and capture it. Eagles can also find corpses on which to feed themselves and their young because God made them that way.