Job 38

vayya'an-Adonai et-iyyov (mnhsrh) [min hasse'arah] vayyomar

Then GOD replied to Job out of the tempest and said:

mi zeh makhshikh etsah vemillin beli-da'at

Who is this who darkens counsel, Speaking without knowledge?

ezor-na khegever khalatsekha ve'eshalekha vehodi'eni

Gird your loins like a man; I will ask and you will inform Me.

efoh hayita beyosdi-arets hagged im-yadata vinah

Where were you when I laid the earth’s foundations? Speak if you have understanding.

mi-sam memaddeha ki teda o mi-natah aleha qav

Do you know who fixed its dimensions Or who measured it with a line?

al-mah adaneha hotba'u o mi-yarah even pinnatah

Onto what were its bases sunk? Who set its cornerstone

beron-yakhad kokheve voqer vayyari'u kol-bene elohim

When the morning stars sang together And all the divine beings shouted for joy?

vayyasekh bidlatayim yam begikho merekhem yetse

Who closed the sea behind doors When it gushed forth out of the womb,

besumi anan levusho va'arafel khatullato

When I clothed it in clouds, Swaddled it in dense clouds,

va'eshbor alayw khuqqi va'asim beriakh udelatayim

When I made breakers My limit for it, And set up its bar and doors,

va'omar ad-poh tavo velo tosif ufo-yashit bigon gallekha

And said, “You may come so far and no farther; Here your surging waves will stop”?

hamiyyamekha tsivvita boqer (ydth shkhr) [yiddata hashakhar] meqomo

Have you ever commanded the day to break, Assigned the dawn its place,

le'ekhoz bekhanfot ha'arets veyinna'aru resha'im mimmennah

So that it seizes the corners of the earth And shakes the wicked out of it?

tithappekh kekhomer khotam veyityatsevu kemo levush

It changes like clay under the seal Till [its hues] are fixed like those of a garment.

veyimmana meresha'im oram uzeroa ramah tishaver

Their light is withheld from the wicked, And the upraised arm is broken.

havata ad-nivkhe-yam uvekheqer tehom hithallakheta

Have you penetrated to the sources of the sea, Or walked in the recesses of the deep?

haniglu lekha sha'are-mavet vesha'are tsalmavet tireh

Have the gates of death been disclosed to you? Have you seen the gates of deep darkness?

hitbonanta ad-rakhave-arets hagged im-yadata khullah

Have you surveyed the expanses of the earth? If you know of these—tell Me.

e-zeh hadderekh yishkon-or vekhoshekh e-zeh meqomo

Which path leads to where light dwells, And where is the place of darkness,

ki tiqqakhennu el-gevulo vekhi-tavin netivot beto

That you may take it to its domain And know the way to its home?

yadata ki-az tivvaled umispar yamekha rabbim

Surely you know, for you were born then, And the number of your years is many!

havata el-otserot shaleg ve'otserot barad tireh

Have you penetrated the vaults of snow, Seen the vaults of hail,

asher-khasakhti le'et-tsar leyom qerav umilkhamah

Which I have put aside for a time of adversity, For a day of war and battle?

e-zeh hadderekh yekhaleq or yafets qadim ale-arets

By what path is the west wind dispersed, The east wind scattered over the earth?

mi-fillag lashetef te'alah vederekh lakhaziz qolot

Who cut a channel for the torrents And a path for the thunderstorms,

lehametir al-erets lo-ish midbar lo-adam bo

To rain down on uninhabited land, On the wilderness where no one lives,

lehasbia sho'ah umesho'ah ulehatsmiakh motsa deshe

To saturate the desolate wasteland, And make the crop of grass sprout forth?

hayesh-lammatar av o mi-holid egle-tal

Does the rain have a progenitor? Who begot the dewdrops?

mibbeten mi yatsa haqqarakh ukhefor shamayim mi yelado

From whose belly came forth the ice? Who gave birth to the frost of heaven?

ka'even mayim yitkhabba'u ufene tehom yitlakkadu

Water congeals like stone, And the surface of the deep compacts.

hatqasher ma'adannot kimah o-moshekhot kesil tefatteakh

Can you tie cords to Pleiades Or undo the reins of Orion?

hatotsi mazzarot be'itto ve'ayish al-baneha tankhem

Can you lead out Mazzaroth in its season, Conduct the Bear with her children?

hayadata khuqqot shamayim im-tasim mishtaro va'arets

Do you know the laws of heaven Or impose its authority on earth?

hatarim la'av qolekha veshifat-mayim tekhassekka

Can you send up an order to the clouds For an abundance of water to cover you?

hatshallakh beraqim veyelekhu veyomeru lekha hinnenu

Can you dispatch the lightning on a mission And have it answer you, “I am ready”?

mi-shat battukhot khokhmah o mi-natan lassekhvi vinah

Who put wisdom in the hidden parts? Who gave understanding to the mind?

mi-yesapper shekhaqim bekhokhmah venivle shamayim mi yashkiv

Who is wise enough to give an account of the heavens? Who can tilt the bottles of the sky,

betseqet afar lammutsaq uregavim yedubbaqu

Whereupon the earth melts into a mass, And its clods stick together.

hatatsud lelavi taref vekhayyat kefirim temalle

Can you hunt prey for the lion, And satisfy the appetite of the king of beasts?

ki-yashokhu vamme'onot yeshevu vassukkah lemo-arev

They crouch in their dens, Lie in ambush in their lairs.

mi yakhin la'orev tsedo ki-yeladav el-el yeshavve'u yitu livli-okhel

Who provides food for the raven When its young cry out to God And wander about without food?