1Und Jehova antwortete Hiob und sprach: 2Will der Tadler rechten mit dem Allmächtigen? Der da Gott zurechtweist, antworte darauf! 3Und Hiob antwortete Jehova und sprach: 4Siehe, zu gering bin ich, was soll ich dir erwidern? Ich lege meine Hand auf meinen Mund. 5Einmal habe ich geredet, und ich will nicht mehr antworten, und zweimal, und ich will es nicht mehr tun. 6Und Jehova antwortete Hiob aus dem Sturme und sprach: 7Gürte doch wie ein Mann deine Lenden; ich will dich fragen, und du belehre mich! 8Willst du gar mein Recht zunichte machen, mich verdammen, damit du gerecht seiest? 9Oder hast du einen Arm wie Gott, und kannst du donnern mit einer Stimme wie er? 10Schmücke dich doch mit Erhabenheit und Hoheit, und kleide dich in Pracht und Majestät! 11Gieße aus die Ausbrüche deines Zornes, und sieh an alles Hoffärtige und erniedrige es! 12Sieh an alles Hoffärtige, beuge es, und reiße nieder die Gesetzlosen auf ihrer Stelle! 13Verbirg sie allesamt in den Staub, schließe ihre Angesichter in Verborgenheit ein! 14Dann werde auch ich dich preisen, daß deine Rechte dir Hülfe schafft. 15Sieh doch den Behemoth, den ich mit dir gemacht habe; er frißt Gras wie das Rind. 16Sieh doch, seine Kraft ist in seinen Lenden, und seine Stärke in den Muskeln seines Bauches. 17Er biegt seinen Schwanz gleich einer Ceder, die Sehnen seiner Schenkel sind verflochten. 18Seine Knochen sind Röhren von Erz, seine Gebeine gleich Barren von Eisen. 19Er ist der Erstling der Wege Gottes; der ihn gemacht, hat ihm sein Schwert beschafft. 20Denn die Berge tragen ihm Futter, und daselbst spielt alles Getier des Feldes. 21Unter Lotosbüschen legt er sich nieder, im Versteck von Rohr und Sumpf; 22Lotosbüsche bedecken ihn mit ihrem Schatten, es umgeben ihn die Weiden des Baches. 23Siehe, der Strom schwillt mächtig an, er flieht nicht ängstlich davon; er bleibt wohlgemut, wenn ein Jordan gegen sein Maul hervorbricht. 24Fängt man ihn wohl vor seinen Augen, durchbohrt man ihm die Nase mit einem Fangseile? 25Ziehst du den Leviathan herbei mit der Angel, und senkst du seine Zunge in die Angelschnur? 26Kannst du einen Binsenstrick durch seine Nase ziehen, und seinen Kinnbacken mit einem Ringe durchbohren? 27Wird er viel Flehens an dich richten, oder dir sanfte Worte geben? 28Wird er einen Bund mit dir machen, daß du ihn zum ewigen Knechte nehmest? 29Wirst du mit ihm spielen wie mit einem Vogel, und ihn anbinden für deine Mädchen? 30Werden die Fischergenossen ihn verhandeln, ihn verteilen unter Kaufleute? 31Kannst du seine Haut mit Spießen füllen, und seinen Kopf mit Fischharpunen? 32Lege deine Hand an ihn, - gedenke des Kampfes, tue es nicht wieder!
Jamieson Fausset Brown Bible Commentary 1 GOD'S SECOND ADDRESS. (Job 40:1-24)
the Lord--Hebrew, "JEHOVAH."
2 he that contendeth--as Job had so often expressed a wish to do. Or, rebuketh. Does Job now still (after seeing and hearing of God's majesty and wisdom) wish to set God right?
answer it--namely, the questions I have asked.
3 Lord--JEHOVAH.
4 I am (too) vile (to reply). It is a very different thing to vindicate ourselves before God, from what it is before men. Job could do the latter, not the former.
lay . . . hand . . . upon . . . mouth--I have no plea to offer (
Job 21:5;
Judg 18:19).
5 Once . . . twice--oftentimes, more than once (
Job 33:14, compare with
Job 33:29;
Ps 62:11):
I have spoken--namely, against God.
not answer--not plead against Thee.
6 the Lord--JEHOVAH.
7 (See on
Job 38:3). Since Job has not only spoken against God, but accused Him of injustice, God challenges him to try, could he govern the world, as God by His power doth, and punish the proud and wicked (
Job 40:7-
Job 40:14).
8 Wilt thou not only contend with, but set aside My judgment or justice in the government of the world?
condemn--declare Me unrighteous, in order that thou mayest be accounted righteous (innocent; undeservingly afflicted).
9 arm--God's omnipotence (
Isa 53:1).
thunder--God's voice (
Job 37:4).
10 See, hast thou power and majesty like God's, to enable thee to judge and govern the world?
11 rage--rather, pour out the redundant floods of, &c.
behold--Try, canst thou, as God, by a mere glance abase the proud (
Isa 2:12, &c.)?
12 proud--high (
Dan 4:37).
in their place--on the spot; suddenly, before they can move from their place. (See on
Job 34:26;
Job 36:20).
13 (
Isa 2:10). Abase and remove them out of the sight of men.
bind . . . faces--that is, shut up their persons [MAURER]. But it refers rather to the custom of binding a cloth over the faces of persons about to be executed (
Job 9:24;
Esth 7:8).
in secret--consign them to darkness.
14 confess--rather, "extol"; "I also," who now censure thee. But since thou canst not do these works, thou must, instead of censuring, extol My government.
thine own . . . hand . . . save-- (
Ps 44:3). So as to eternal salvation by Jesus Christ (
Isa 59:16;
Isa 63:5).
15 God shows that if Job cannot bring under control the lower animals (of which he selects the two most striking, behemoth on land, leviathan in the water), much less is he capable of governing the world.
behemoth--The description in part agrees with the hippopotamus, in part with the elephant, but exactly in all details with neither. It is rather a poetical personification of the great Pachydermata, or Herbivora (so "he eateth grass"), the idea of the hippopotamus being predominant. In
Job 40:17, "the tail like a cedar," hardly applies to the latter (so also
Job 40:20,
Job 40:23, "Jordan," a river which elephants alone could reach, but see on
Job 40:23). On the other hand,
Job 40:21-
Job 40:22 are characteristic of the amphibious river horse. So leviathan (the twisting animal),
Job 41:1, is a generalized term for cetacea, pythons, saurians of the neighboring seas and rivers, including the crocodile, which is the most prominent, and is often associated with the river horse by old writers. "Behemoth" seems to be the Egyptian Pehemout, "water-ox," Hebraized, so-called as being like an ox, whence the Italian bombarino.
with thee--as I made thyself. Yet how great the difference! The manifold wisdom and power of God!
he eateth grass--marvellous in an animal living so much in the water; also strange, that such a monster should not be carnivorous.
16 navel--rather, "muscles" of his belly; the weakest point of the elephant, therefore it is not meant.
17 like a cedar--As the tempest bends the cedar, so it can move its smooth thick tail [UMBREIT]. But the cedar implies straightness and length, such as do not apply to the river horse's short tail, but perhaps to an extinct species of animal (see on
Job 40:15).
stones--rather, "thighs."
wrapped--firmly twisted together, like a thick rope.
18 strong--rather, "tubes" of copper [UMBREIT].
19 Chief of the works of God; so "ways" (
Job 26:14;
Pro 8:22).
can make his sword to approach--rather, "has furnished him with his sword" (harpe), namely, the sickle-like teeth with which he cuts down grain. English Version, however, is literally right.
20 The mountain is not his usual haunt. BOCHART says it is sometimes found there (?).
beasts . . . play--a graphic trait: though armed with such teeth, he lets the beasts play near him unhurt, for his food is grass.
21 lieth--He leads an inactive life.
shady trees--rather, "lotus bushes"; as
Job 40:22 requires.
22 shady trees--Translate: "lotus bushes."
23 Rather, "(Though) a river be violent (overflow), he trembleth not"; (for though living on land, he can live in the water, too); he is secure, though a Jordan swell up to his mouth. "Jordan" is used for any great river (consonant with the "behemoth"), being a poetical generalization (see on
Job 40:15). The author cannot have been a Hebrew as UMBREIT asserts, or he would not adduce the Jordan, where there were no river horses. He alludes to it as a name for any river, but not as one known to him, except by hearsay.
24 Rather, "Will any take him by open force" (literally, "before his eyes"), "or pierce his nose with cords?" No; he can only be taken by guile, and in a pitfall (
Job 41:1-
Job 41:2).