Home Master Index
←Prev   Job 39 as rendered by/in  Next→ 



39:1  “Do you know the time when the wild goats of the rock give birth [to their young]? Do you observe the calving of the deer?
39:2  “Can you count the months that they carry offspring, Or do you know the time when they give birth?
39:3  “They kneel down, they bring forth their young, They cast out their labor pains.
39:4  “Their young ones become strong, they grow up in the open field; They leave and do not return to them.
39:5  “Who sent out the wild donkey free [from dependence on man]? And who has loosed the bonds of the wild donkey [to survive in the wild],
39:6  To whom I gave the wilderness as his home And the salt land as his dwelling place?
39:7  “He scorns the tumult of the city, And does not hear the shouting of the taskmaster.
39:8  “He explores the mountains as his pasture And searches after every green thing.
39:9  “Will the wild ox be willing to serve you, Or remain beside your manger at night?
39:10  “Can you bind the wild ox with a harness [to the plow] in the furrow? Or will he plow the valleys for you?
39:11  “Will you trust him because his strength is great And leave your labor to him?
39:12  “Will you have faith and depend on him to return your grain And gather it from your threshing floor?
39:13  “The [flightless] wings of the ostrich wave joyously; With the pinion (shackles, fetters) and plumage of love,
39:14  For she leaves her eggs on the ground And warms them in the dust,
39:15  Forgetting that a foot may crush them, Or that the wild beast may trample them.
39:16  “She treats her young cruelly, as if they were not hers; Though her labor is in vain because she is unconcerned [for the safety of her brood],
39:17  For God has made her forget wisdom, And has not given her a share of understanding.
39:18  “Yet when she lifts herself on high, [So swift is she that] she laughs at the horse and his rider.
39:19  “Have you given the horse his might? Have you clothed his neck with quivering and a shaking mane?
39:20  “Have you [Job] made him leap like a locust? The majesty of his snorting [nostrils] is terrible.
39:21  “He paws in the valley and rejoices in his strength; He goes out to meet the weapons [of armed men].
39:22  “He laughs at fear and is not dismayed; And [in battle] he does not turn back from the sword.
39:23  “The quiver rattles against him, [As do] the flashing spear and the lance [of his rider].
39:24  “With fierceness and rage he races to devour the ground, And he does not stand still at the sound of the [war] trumpet.
39:25  “As often as the trumpet sounds he says, ‘Aha!’ And he smells the battle from far away, And senses the thunder of the captains and the war cry.
39:26  “Is it by your understanding that the hawk soars, Stretching his wings toward the south [as winter approaches]?
39:27  “Is it at your command that the eagle mounts up And makes his nest on high [in an inaccessible place]?
39:28  “On the cliff he dwells and remains [securely], Upon the point of the rock and the inaccessible stronghold.
39:29  “From there he spies out the prey; His eyes see it from far away.
39:30  “His young ones suck up blood; And where the slain are, there is he.”