Job 37:1-17
Job 37:1-18 The Message (MSG)
“Whenever this happens, my heart stops— I’m stunned, I can’t catch my breath. Listen to it! Listen to his thunder, the rolling, rumbling thunder of his voice. He lets loose his lightnings from horizon to horizon, lighting up the earth from pole to pole. In their wake, the thunder echoes his voice, powerful and majestic. He lets out all the stops, he holds nothing back. No one can mistake that voice— His word thundering so wondrously, his mighty acts staggering our understanding. He orders the snow, ‘Blanket the earth!’ and the rain, ‘Soak the whole countryside!’ No one can escape the weather—it’s there. And no one can escape from God. Wild animals take shelter, crawling into their dens, When blizzards roar out of the north and freezing rain crusts the land. It’s God’s breath that forms the ice, it’s God’s breath that turns lakes and rivers solid. And yes, it’s God who fills clouds with rainwater and hurls lightning from them every which way. He puts them through their paces—first this way, then that— commands them to do what he says all over the world. Whether for discipline or grace or extravagant love, he makes sure they make their mark. “Job, are you listening? Have you noticed all this? Stop in your tracks! Take in God’s miracle-wonders! Do you have any idea how God does it all, how he makes bright lightning from dark storms, How he piles up the cumulus clouds— all these miracle-wonders of a perfect Mind? Why, you don’t even know how to keep cool on a sweltering hot day, So how could you even dream of making a dent in that hot-tin-roof sky?
Job 37:1-17 King James Version (KJV)
At this also my heart trembleth, And is moved out of his place. Hear attentively the noise of his voice, And the sound that goeth out of his mouth. He directeth it under the whole heaven, And his lightning unto the ends of the earth. After it a voice roareth: He thundereth with the voice of his excellency; And he will not stay them when his voice is heard. God thundereth marvellously with his voice; Great things doeth he, which we cannot comprehend. For he saith to the snow, Be thou on the earth; Likewise to the small rain, And to the great rain of his strength. He sealeth up the hand of every man; That all men may know his work. Then the beasts go into dens, And remain in their places. Out of the south cometh the whirlwind: And cold out of the north. By the breath of God frost is given: And the breadth of the waters is straitened. Also by watering he wearieth the thick cloud: He scattereth his bright cloud: And it is turned round about by his counsels: That they may do whatsoever he commandeth them Upon the face of the world in the earth. He causeth it to come, whether for correction, or for his land, or for mercy. Hearken unto this, O Job: Stand still, and consider the wondrous works of God. Dost thou know when God disposed them, And caused the light of his cloud to shine? Dost thou know the balancings of the clouds, The wondrous works of him which is perfect in knowledge? How thy garments are warm, When he quieteth the earth by the south wind?
Job 37:1-17 New American Standard Bible - NASB 1995 (NASB1995)
“At this also my heart trembles, And leaps from its place. Listen closely to the thunder of His voice, And the rumbling that goes out from His mouth. Under the whole heaven He lets it loose, And His lightning to the ends of the earth. After it, a voice roars; He thunders with His majestic voice, And He does not restrain the lightnings when His voice is heard. God thunders with His voice wondrously, Doing great things which we cannot comprehend. For to the snow He says, ‘Fall on the earth,’ And to the downpour and the rain, ‘Be strong.’ He seals the hand of every man, That all men may know His work. Then the beast goes into its lair And remains in its den. Out of the south comes the storm, And out of the north the cold. From the breath of God ice is made, And the expanse of the waters is frozen. Also with moisture He loads the thick cloud; He disperses the cloud of His lightning. It changes direction, turning around by His guidance, That it may do whatever He commands it On the face of the inhabited earth. Whether for correction, or for His world, Or for lovingkindness, He causes it to happen. “Listen to this, O Job, Stand and consider the wonders of God. Do you know how God establishes them, And makes the lightning of His cloud to shine? Do you know about the layers of the thick clouds, The wonders of one perfect in knowledge, You whose garments are hot, When the land is still because of the south wind?
Job 37:1-17 New Century Version (NCV)
“At the sound of his thunder, my heart pounds as if it will jump out of my chest. Listen! Listen to the thunder of God’s voice and to the rumbling that comes from his mouth. He turns his lightning loose under the whole sky and sends it to the farthest parts of the earth. After that you can hear the roar when he thunders with a great sound. He does not hold back the flashing when his voice is heard. God’s voice thunders in wonderful ways; he does great things we cannot understand. He says to the snow, ‘Fall on the earth,’ and to the shower, ‘Be a heavy rain.’ With it, he stops everyone from working so everyone knows it is the work of God. The animals take cover from the rain and stay in their dens. The storm comes from where it was stored; the cold comes with the strong winds. The breath of God makes ice, and the wide waters become frozen. He fills the clouds with water and scatters his lightning through them. At his command they swirl around over the whole earth, doing whatever he commands. He uses the clouds to punish people or to water his earth and show his love. “Job, listen to this: Stop and notice God’s miracles. Do you know how God controls the clouds and makes his lightning flash? Do you know how the clouds hang in the sky? Do you know the miracles of God, who knows everything? You suffer in your clothes when the land is silenced by the hot, south wind.
Job 37:1-17 American Standard Version (ASV)
Yea, at this my heart trembleth, And is moved out of its place. Hear, oh, hear the noise of his voice, And the sound that goeth out of his mouth. He sendeth it forth under the whole heaven, And his lightning unto the ends of the earth. After it a voice roareth; He thundereth with the voice of his majesty; And he restraineth not the lightnings when his voice is heard. God thundereth marvellously with his voice; Great things doeth he, which we cannot comprehend. For he saith to the snow, Fall thou on the earth; Likewise to the shower of rain, And to the showers of his mighty rain. He sealeth up the hand of every man, That all men whom he hath made may know it. Then the beasts go into coverts, And remain in their dens. Out of the chamber of the south cometh the storm, And cold out of the north. By the breath of God ice is given; And the breadth of the waters is straitened. Yea, he ladeth the thick cloud with moisture; He spreadeth abroad the cloud of his lightning: And it is turned round about by his guidance, That they may do whatsoever he commandeth them Upon the face of the habitable world, Whether it be for correction, or for his land, Or for lovingkindness, that he cause it to come. Hearken unto this, O Job: Stand still, and consider the wondrous works of God. Dost thou know how God layeth his charge upon them, And causeth the lightning of his cloud to shine? Dost thou know the balancings of the clouds, The wondrous works of him who is perfect in knowledge? How thy garments are warm, When the earth is still by reason of the south wind?
Job 37:1-17 New International Version (NIV)
“At this my heart pounds and leaps from its place. Listen! Listen to the roar of his voice, to the rumbling that comes from his mouth. He unleashes his lightning beneath the whole heaven and sends it to the ends of the earth. After that comes the sound of his roar; he thunders with his majestic voice. When his voice resounds, he holds nothing back. God’s voice thunders in marvelous ways; he does great things beyond our understanding. He says to the snow, ‘Fall on the earth,’ and to the rain shower, ‘Be a mighty downpour.’ So that everyone he has made may know his work, he stops all people from their labor. The animals take cover; they remain in their dens. The tempest comes out from its chamber, the cold from the driving winds. The breath of God produces ice, and the broad waters become frozen. He loads the clouds with moisture; he scatters his lightning through them. At his direction they swirl around over the face of the whole earth to do whatever he commands them. He brings the clouds to punish people, or to water his earth and show his love. “Listen to this, Job; stop and consider God’s wonders. Do you know how God controls the clouds and makes his lightning flash? Do you know how the clouds hang poised, those wonders of him who has perfect knowledge? You who swelter in your clothes when the land lies hushed under the south wind
Job 37:1-17 New King James Version (NKJV)
“At this also my heart trembles, And leaps from its place. Hear attentively the thunder of His voice, And the rumbling that comes from His mouth. He sends it forth under the whole heaven, His lightning to the ends of the earth. After it a voice roars; He thunders with His majestic voice, And He does not restrain them when His voice is heard. God thunders marvelously with His voice; He does great things which we cannot comprehend. For He says to the snow, ‘Fall on the earth’; Likewise to the gentle rain and the heavy rain of His strength. He seals the hand of every man, That all men may know His work. The beasts go into dens, And remain in their lairs. From the chamber of the south comes the whirlwind, And cold from the scattering winds of the north. By the breath of God ice is given, And the broad waters are frozen. Also with moisture He saturates the thick clouds; He scatters His bright clouds. And they swirl about, being turned by His guidance, That they may do whatever He commands them On the face of the whole earth. He causes it to come, Whether for correction, Or for His land, Or for mercy. “Listen to this, O Job; Stand still and consider the wondrous works of God. Do you know when God dispatches them, And causes the light of His cloud to shine? Do you know how the clouds are balanced, Those wondrous works of Him who is perfect in knowledge? Why are your garments hot, When He quiets the earth by the south wind?
Job 37:1-17 Amplified Bible (AMP)
“Indeed, at His thundering my heart trembles And leaps out of its place. “Listen carefully to the thunder of His voice, And the rumbling that goes out of His mouth! “He lets it loose under the whole heaven, And His lightning to the ends of the earth. “After it, His voice roars; He thunders with the voice of His majesty, And He does not restrain His lightning [against His adversaries] when His voice is heard. “God thunders marvelously with His voice; He does great things which we cannot comprehend. “For He says to the snow, ‘Fall on the earth’; And [He speaks] to the showers and to the downpour [of His mighty rains], ‘Be strong.’ “God seals (brings to a standstill, stops) [by severe weather] the hand of every man, That all men [whom He has made] may know His work [that is, His sovereign power and their subjection to it]. “Then the beast goes into its lair And remains in its hiding place. “Out of its chamber comes the storm, And cold from the north wind. “Ice is made by the breath of God, And the expanse of the waters is frozen. [Ps 147:17, 18] “He loads the thick cloud with moisture; He disperses the cloud of His lightning. “Its direction is turned around by His guidance, That it may do whatever He commands it On the face of the inhabited earth. “Whether [it be] for correction, or for His earth [generally] Or for [His] mercy and lovingkindness, He causes it to happen. [Ex 9:18, 23; 1 Sam 12:18, 19] ¶“Listen to this, Job; Stand still and consider the wonders of God. “Do you know how God establishes and commands them, And makes the lightning of His [storm] cloud shine? “Do you know about the layers of thick clouds [and how they are balanced and poised in the heavens], The wonderful works of Him who is perfect in knowledge, You whose garments are hot, When He quiets the earth [in sultry summer] with the [oppressive] south wind?
Job 37:1-17 New Living Translation (NLT)
“My heart pounds as I think of this. It trembles within me. Listen carefully to the thunder of God’s voice as it rolls from his mouth. It rolls across the heavens, and his lightning flashes in every direction. Then comes the roaring of the thunder— the tremendous voice of his majesty. He does not restrain it when he speaks. God’s voice is glorious in the thunder. We can’t even imagine the greatness of his power. “He directs the snow to fall on the earth and tells the rain to pour down. Then everyone stops working so they can watch his power. The wild animals take cover and stay inside their dens. The stormy wind comes from its chamber, and the driving winds bring the cold. God’s breath sends the ice, freezing wide expanses of water. He loads the clouds with moisture, and they flash with his lightning. The clouds churn about at his direction. They do whatever he commands throughout the earth. He makes these things happen either to punish people or to show his unfailing love. “Pay attention to this, Job. Stop and consider the wonderful miracles of God! Do you know how God controls the storm and causes the lightning to flash from his clouds? Do you understand how he moves the clouds with wonderful perfection and skill? When you are sweltering in your clothes and the south wind dies down and everything is still
Job 37:1-17 English Standard Version 2016 (ESV)
“At this also my heart trembles and leaps out of its place. Keep listening to the thunder of his voice and the rumbling that comes from his mouth. Under the whole heaven he lets it go, and his lightning to the corners of the earth. After it his voice roars; he thunders with his majestic voice, and he does not restrain the lightnings when his voice is heard. God thunders wondrously with his voice; he does great things that we cannot comprehend. For to the snow he says, ‘Fall on the earth,’ likewise to the downpour, his mighty downpour. He seals up the hand of every man, that all men whom he made may know it. Then the beasts go into their lairs, and remain in their dens. From its chamber comes the whirlwind, and cold from the scattering winds. By the breath of God ice is given, and the broad waters are frozen fast. He loads the thick cloud with moisture; the clouds scatter his lightning. They turn around and around by his guidance, to accomplish all that he commands them on the face of the habitable world. Whether for correction or for his land or for love, he causes it to happen. “Hear this, O Job; stop and consider the wondrous works of God. Do you know how God lays his command upon them and causes the lightning of his cloud to shine? Do you know the balancings of the clouds, the wondrous works of him who is perfect in knowledge, you whose garments are hot when the earth is still because of the south wind?