| King James Bible | Holman Christian Standard Bible |
| 1Then the LORD answered Job out of the whirlwind, and said, | 1Then the LORD answered Job from the whirlwind. He said: |
| 2Who is this that darkeneth counsel by words without knowledge? | 2Who is this who obscures My counsel with ignorant words? |
| 3Gird up now thy loins like a man; for I will demand of thee, and answer thou me. | 3Get ready to answer Me like a man; when I question you, you will inform Me. |
| 4Where wast thou when I laid the foundations of the earth? declare, if thou hast understanding. | 4Where were you when I established the earth? Tell Me, if you have understanding. |
| 5Who hath laid the measures thereof, if thou knowest? or who hath stretched the line upon it? | 5Who fixed its dimensions? Certainly you know! Who stretched a measuring line across it? |
| 6Whereupon are the foundations thereof fastened? or who laid the corner stone thereof; | 6What supports its foundations? Or who laid its cornerstone |
| 7When the morning stars sang together, and all the sons of God shouted for joy? | 7while the morning stars sang together and all the sons of God shouted for joy? |
| 8Or who shut up the sea with doors, when it brake forth, as if it had issued out of the womb? | 8Who enclosed the sea behind doors when it burst from the womb, |
| 9When I made the cloud the garment thereof, and thick darkness a swaddlingband for it, | 9when I made the clouds its garment and thick darkness its blanket, |
| 10And brake up for it my decreed place, and set bars and doors, | 10when I determined its boundaries and put its bars and doors in place, |
| 11And said, Hitherto shalt thou come, but no further: and here shall thy proud waves be stayed? | 11when I declared: "You may come this far, but no farther; your proud waves stop here"? |
| 12Hast thou commanded the morning since thy days; and caused the dayspring to know his place; | 12Have you ever in your life commanded the morning or assigned the dawn its place, |
| 13That it might take hold of the ends of the earth, that the wicked might be shaken out of it? | 13so it may seize the edges of the earth and shake the wicked out of it? |
| 14It is turned as clay to the seal; and they stand as a garment. | 14The earth is changed as clay is by a seal; its hills stand out like the folds of a garment. |
| 15And from the wicked their light is withholden, and the high arm shall be broken. | 15Light is withheld from the wicked, and the arm raised in violence is broken. |
| 16Hast thou entered into the springs of the sea? or hast thou walked in the search of the depth? | 16Have you traveled to the sources of the sea or walked in the depths of the oceans? |
| 17Have the gates of death been opened unto thee? or hast thou seen the doors of the shadow of death? | 17Have the gates of death been revealed to you? Have you seen the gates of deep darkness? |
| 18Hast thou perceived the breadth of the earth? declare if thou knowest it all. | 18Have you comprehended the extent of the earth? Tell Me, if you know all this. |
| 19Where is the way where light dwelleth? and as for darkness, where is the place thereof, | 19Where is the road to the home of light? Do you know where darkness lives, |
| 20That thou shouldest take it to the bound thereof, and that thou shouldest know the paths to the house thereof? | 20so you can lead it back to its border? Are you familiar with the paths to its home? |
| 21Knowest thou it, because thou wast then born? or because the number of thy days is great? | 21Don't you know? You were already born; you have lived so long! |
| 22Hast thou entered into the treasures of the snow? or hast thou seen the treasures of the hail, | 22Have you entered the place where the snow is stored? Or have you seen the storehouses of hail, |
| 23Which I have reserved against the time of trouble, against the day of battle and war? | 23which I hold in reserve for times of trouble, for the day of warfare and battle? |
| 24By what way is the light parted, which scattereth the east wind upon the earth? | 24What road leads to the place where light is dispersed? Where is the source of the east wind that spreads across the earth? |
| 25Who hath divided a watercourse for the overflowing of waters, or a way for the lightning of thunder; | 25Who cuts a channel for the flooding rain or clears the way for lightning, |
| 26To cause it to rain on the earth, where no man is; on the wilderness, wherein there is no man; | 26to bring rain on an uninhabited land, on a desert with no human life, |
| 27To satisfy the desolate and waste ground; and to cause the bud of the tender herb to spring forth? | 27to satisfy the parched wasteland and cause the grass to sprout? |
| 28Hath the rain a father? or who hath begotten the drops of dew? | 28Does the rain have a father? Who fathered the drops of dew? |
| 29Out of whose womb came the ice? and the hoary frost of heaven, who hath gendered it? | 29Whose womb did the ice come from? Who gave birth to the frost of heaven |
| 30The waters are hid as with a stone, and the face of the deep is frozen. | 30when water becomes as hard as stone, and the surface of the watery depths is frozen? |
| 31Canst thou bind the sweet influences of Pleiades, or loose the bands of Orion? | 31Can you fasten the chains of the Pleiades or loosen the belt of Orion? |
| 32Canst thou bring forth Mazzaroth in his season? or canst thou guide Arcturus with his sons? | 32Can you bring out the constellations in their season and lead the Bear and her cubs? |
| 33Knowest thou the ordinances of heaven? canst thou set the dominion thereof in the earth? | 33Do you know the laws of heaven? Can you impose its authority on earth? |
| 34Canst thou lift up thy voice to the clouds, that abundance of waters may cover thee? | 34Can you command the clouds so that a flood of water covers you? |
| 35Canst thou send lightnings, that they may go, and say unto thee, Here we are? | 35Can you send out lightning bolts, and they go? Do they report to you: "Here we are"? |
| 36Who hath put wisdom in the inward parts? or who hath given understanding to the heart? | 36Who put wisdom in the heart or gave the mind understanding? |
| 37Who can number the clouds in wisdom? or who can stay the bottles of heaven, | 37Who has the wisdom to number the clouds? Or who can tilt the water jars of heaven |
| 38When the dust groweth into hardness, and the clods cleave fast together? | 38when the dust hardens like cast metal and the clods of dirt stick together? |
| 39Wilt thou hunt the prey for the lion? or fill the appetite of the young lions, | 39Can you hunt prey for a lioness or satisfy the appetite of young lions |
| 40When they couch in their dens, and abide in the covert to lie in wait? | 40when they crouch in their dens and lie in wait within their lairs? |
| 41Who provideth for the raven his food? when his young ones cry unto God, they wander for lack of meat. | 41Who provides the raven's food when its young cry out to God and wander about for lack of food? |
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