Job 38:1-41

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• Reading the Text:
  • NRSV (with link to Anglicized NRSV) at Oremus Bible Browser.
  • The Bible Gateway: NIV, NASB, CEV, The Message, KJV, etc.
  • The Blue Letter Bible. KJV, alternate versions, Hebrew text with concordance, commentaries.
  • The World Wide Study Bible includes commentary, exposition and sermons.
• Historical References, Commentary and Comparative Texts:

  • Chapter XX of The First Epistle to the Corinthians, Clement of Rome (ca. 96)

  • Rashi's Commentary, c. 1075. chabad.org.
  • From the Geneva Notes.
    • "Seeing he could not judge those things which were done so long before he was born, he was not able to comprehend all God's works: much less the secret causes of his judgments."
  • From Matthew Henry's Commentary.
    • "As we cannot find fault with God's work, so we need not fear concerning it."
  • From Wesley's Notes.
    • "Counsel - God's counsel. For the great matter of the dispute between Job and his friends, was concerning God's counsel and providence in afflicting Job; which Job had endeavoured to obscure and misrepresent. This first word which God spoke, struck Job to the heart. This he repeats and echoes to, chap.42:3, as the arrow that stuck fast in him."
  • From the Commentary on the Whole Bible (Jamieson, Fausset and Brown, 1871).
    • "Jehovah appears unexpectedly in a whirlwind (already gathering Job 37:1, 2), the symbol of "judgment" (Ps 50:3, 4, &c.), to which Job had challenged Him."
• Contemporary Commentary, Studies, and Exegesis:
  • Commentary, Job 38:1-7 [34-41], Pentecost 20, Karl Jacobson, Preaching This Week, WorkingPreacher.org, 2009.
    • "'Some of God's greatest gifts are unanswered prayers,' drawled Garth Brooks."
  • Comments (commentary) and Clippings (technical notes for in-depth study), Chris Haslam, Anglican Diocese of Montreal.
  • Job 38:1-7, (43-41), Pentecost 20, 2009, The Old Testament Readings: Weekly Comments on the Revised Common Lectionary, Theological Hall of the Uniting Church, Melbourne, Australia.
    • "The God who appears in Job does not hold out the comfort Job had hoped for, preferring instead to expound the majesty and otherness of God."
  • Job 38:1-7(34-41), Pentecost 20, Commentary, Background, Insights from Literary Structure, Theological Message, Ways to Present the Text. Anna Grant-Henderson, Uniting Church in Australia.
  • Job 38:1-11, Studies on Old Testament texts from Series B, Ralph W. Klein, Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago.
  • "Recovering Discarded Images," study guide, Robert B. Kruschwitz, (other resources at) "Women and the Church," Christian Reflection, The Center for Christian Ethics at Baylor University, 2009. Focus article: "Recovering Discarded Images," Kristina Lacelle-Peterson.
  • Commentary, Job 38:1-11, John C. Holbert, Preaching This Week, WorkingPreacher.org, 2009.
    • "Because God is God, and we humans do not determine how God will act, nor are we always the reason for God's actions. In the end, God is holy and other and fleet. The world is God's, not ours."
  • "Strange Faith," Daniel Deffenbaugh, Seeds of Shalom, 2009.
    • "While the people of that alien land put their trust in chariots and horses, many Jews felt compelled by their emerging theology to bank on the absurd. They placed their hope in a Creator who is sometimes encountered only in the incomprehensible, in the whirlwind."
  • "God's Measure of Creation," study guide, Robert B. Kruschwitz, (other resources at) "Moral Landscape of Creation," Christian Reflection, The Center for Christian Ethics at Baylor University, 2001.
  • "The Labyrinth of Life," Margaret B. Hess, The Christian Century, 1997.
    • "Is this word of hope enough for those who suffer--that in the end, wherever the path leads, it is the presence of God that heals our grief? Probably not..."
  • "Voice from the Whirlwind: God Answers Job in a Panoramic Vision," Robert Alter, Jewish Heritage Online Monthly, 2000.
    • "This general turning of Job's first affirmation of death into an affirmation of life is minutely worked out in the language and imagery of the poem that God speaks."
• Articles & Background:
  • "God's Measure of Creation," Norman Wirzba, (other resources at) "Moral Landscape of Creation," Christian Reflection, The Center for Christian Ethics at Baylor University, 2001.
    • "When God speaks to Job out of the whirlwind, he realizes that God delights in a wild creation that exceeds the vision and interest of humans. Understanding our place in the creation requires that we see it in terms of God's intention and scale."
  • "The Cosmic Adventure," John F. Haught. Chapter 10 in The Cosmic Adventure: Science, Religion and the Quest for Purpose. Full text online at Religion Online.
    • "Job tries desperately to squeeze God into the framework of the ethical vision, seeking to measure the Almighty according to the familiar criteria of justice and moral order. But when the vision of a God who surpasses Job’s narrow expectation of justice appears "out of the whirlwind," Job has to press his hands to his lips in a gesture of silence before the incomprehensible."
  • "The Wild Bird Who Heals: Recovering the Spirit in Nature," Mark I. Wallace, Swarthmore College. Theology Today, 1993.
    • "Job is reminded that he is a member of a wider biotic community and that he is not superior to other forms of life; he and his kind are not the measure of all things."
  • "The Bible and Ecological Spirituality," Walter B. Gulick. Theology Today, 1991.
    • “To reflect upon the integrity of the land apart from human use would require an abstract quality of thought not characteristic of the biblical worldview. In sum, nature in the Bible is generally either regarded as a resource, or it fades into the background while, in the foreground, the significant drama of history is played out. In order to explore how the Bible might serve as a normative source for an ecological spirituality, an alternative must be found to focusing directly on how nature is portrayed in biblical passages. A promising direction is to reflect upon some of the qualities of an ecological consciousness or an ecological spirituality and then to see to what extent the Bible supports these qualities.“
  • "The Promise of Technology versus God's Promise in Job," David Strong. Theology Today, 1991.
    • “In our age, nearly everything we confront on a daily basis is either already under control or it is viewed as something to bring under control and to be made use of. In direct opposition to this way of seeing, interpreting, and taking up with things are the creation stories of the Bible and the vision of wild creation in Job. Wild things in these passages do not need to be rearranged, 'developed,' or made use of before they reach the fullness of their being. Wild things in these passages are already as good as they can be, on their own. Recognizing them in their own right, pausing and lingering unselfconsciously before them, makes one receptive to afresh and refreshing vision of our existence."
  • "J.B.: The Artistry of Ambiguity," J.E. Dearlove, The Christian Century, 1976. At Religion Online.
    • "MacLeish’s changes between the manuscript and published form of J. B. move the play from specifics to the universal, from the allegorical to the human, from mediated to unmitigated suffering, from imposed rationalizations to the dramatic action which is left to speak for itself."
• Recommended articles from ATLAS, an online collection of religion and theology journals, are linked below. ATLAS Access options are available for academic institutions, alumni of selected theological schools, and clergy/church offices.
  • Are, Tom, Jr., "Between Text & Sermon, Job 38:1-7," Interpretation, 1999.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials 
  • Copenhaver, Martin B., "Risking a Happy Ending," The Christian Century, 1994.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials 
  • Dearlove, J.E., "'J.B.': The Artistry of Ambiguity," The Christian Century, 1976.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Dick, Michael B., "The Neo-Assyrian Royal Lion Hunt and Yahweh's Answer to Job," Journal of Biblical Literature, 2006.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Fox, Michael V., "Job 38 and God's Rhetoric," Semeia, 1981.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Gammie, John G., "The Angelology and Demonology in the Septuagint of the Book of Job," Hebrew Union College Annual, 1985.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Gulick, Walter B., "The Bible and Ecological Spirituality," Theology Today, 1991.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Hess, Margaret B., "The Labyrinth of Life," The Christian Century, 1997.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Horne, Milton, "From Ethics to Aesthetics: The Animals in Job 38:39-39:30," Review and Expositor, 2005.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Johnston, Scott Black, "'Where Were You When I Laid the Foundation of the Earth?'" Journal for Preachers, 2008. (Sermon)
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Lacocque, André, "The Deconstruction of Job's Fundamentalism," Journal of Biblical Literature, 2007.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Nelson, Susan L., "Facing Evil: Evil's Many Faces," Interpretation, 2003. (See also, "Evil," issue focus, Interpretation, 2003.)
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Newell, B. Lynne, "Job: Repentant or Rebellious," Westminster Theological Journal, 1984.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • O'Brien, J. Randall, "World, Winds, and Whirlwinds: The Voice of God Meets 'the Vice of God,'" Perspectives in Religious Studies, 2003.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Patterson, Richard D., "The Imagery of Clouds in the Scriptures," Bibliotheca Sacra, 2008.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Read, David H.C., "Communicating Joy," The Living Pulpit, 1996. (see Joy issue focus of The Living Pulpit, 5.4, 1996.)
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Rowold, Henry, "Yahweh's Challenge to Rival: The Form and Function of the Yahweh-Speech in Job 38-39," The Catholic Biblical Quarterly, 1985.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Strong, David, "The Promise of Technology Versus God's Promise in Job," Theology Today, 1991.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Taylor, Barbara Brown, "On Not Being God," Review and Expositor, 2002.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Thompson, Kenneth, Jr., "Out of the Whirlwind: The Sense of Alienation in the Book of Job," Interpretation, 1960.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Timmer, Daniel, "God's Speeches, Job's Responses, and the Problem of Coherence in the Book of Job: Sapiential Pedagogy Revisited," Catholic Biblical Quarterly, 2009.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Wallace, Mark I., "The Wild Bird Who Heals: Recovering the Spirit in Nature," Theology Today, 1993.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Wheeler, David, "Job 38:1-40:2 -- Rain on a Land Where No One Lives, Oxen Who Won't Plow Your Field," Review and Expositor, 1999.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Wilcox, Karl G., "'Who Is This...?': A Reading of Job 38.2," Journal for the Study of the Old Testament, 1998.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
    • Bimson, John J., "Who is 'This' in 'Who Is This...?' (Job 38.2)? A Response to Karl G. Wilcox," Journal for the Study of the Old Testament, 2000.
        EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
        EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
• Reviews:
• Sermons:
  • "Hope: The 'Why' and the 'Who' of It," the Rev. Debra Samuelson, 30 Good Minutes, Chicago Sunday Evening Club, 2006.
  • "The Question God Hears Most," Dr. Gerald Mann, 30 Good Minutes, Chicago Sunday Evening Club, 1993.
• With Children:
  • "Job," Illustrating the Story (lessons, children's sermons), coloring pages, activity sheets, crafts, children's songs. MSSS Crafts.
  • "I Know that My Redeemer Lives," Sunday School Lessons: Family Bible Study, art projects, music, stories, etc.
  • "The Lord Speaks," children's study, puzzles, coloring sheet, etc. Higher Praise Christian Center.
• Drama:
• Graphics & Bulletin Materials:
  • Images for this week's readings, Proper 7B, Proper 24B, Pitts Theology Library Digital Image Archive.
• Hymns and Music:
  • Hymns with Scripture Allusions: Job 38:7. The Cyber Hymnal.
  • Hymn Selections, The Lutheran Hymnal, Lutheran Worship.
  • At Digital Hymnal (midi files, guitar chords, karaoke files, projection text):
    • Eternal Father, Strong to Save
• Fine Arts Images Linked at The Text This Week's Art Index:
  • Job
• Movies scenes with the following themes, listed at The Text This Week's Movie Concordance:
  • Judgment
• Study Links and Resources for the Book of Job