Finally, God Speaks to Job

In Job 38–42, God finally speaks to Job from a storm asking 77 questions that expose the limits of human understanding. He reveals the Behemoth and Leviathan, rebukes Job’s three friends, and restores everything Job lost by double. Job’s response moves from demanding an audience to silent, stunned repentance.

Previously on Bible Book Club

In our last chapters, Elihu finished his testimony with two final points and a closing argument. He told Job that God is not uncaring. That people cry out in suffering all the time, but most cry for relief from pain, not for God. Elihu told Job that God is powerful. But where Job saw that power as a barrier blocking him from justice, Elihu said no, God’s power is the guarantee of justice. Then, as a storm was brewing, Elihu’s final words prepared Job for what was coming next: God. With that, Elihu was no more. He came out of nowhere and disappeared into it.

Setting the Scene

In this episode, Elihu may have disappeared, but the storm has not. It’s still building, and if you have been with us on this journey from the beginning, you know what’s coming. This will not be the first time God has revealed Himself with a storm. This is how He spoke to the Israelites on Mount Sinai, and to Elijah when He revealed Himself after a storm. And it won’t be the last. So God speaks to Job, but He doesn’t answer even one of Job’s questions.

Scene 1: God Speaks to Job from the Storm

Job 38:1–41, Job 39:1–30

1 Then the Lord spoke to Job out of the storm. He said: 2 “Who is this that obscures my plans with words without knowledge? 3 Brace yourself like a man; I will question you, and you shall answer me.

4 “Where were you when I laid the earth’s foundation? Tell me, if you understand. 5 Who marked off its dimensions? Surely you know! Who stretched a measuring line across it? 6 On what were its footings set, or who laid its cornerstone—7 while the morning stars sang together and all the angels shouted for joy?

8 “Who shut up the sea behind doors when it burst forth from the womb, 9 when I made the clouds its garment and wrapped it in thick darkness, 10 when I fixed limits for it and set its doors and bars in place, 11 when I said, ‘This far you may come and no farther; here is where your proud waves halt’?

12 “Have you ever given orders to the morning, or shown the dawn its place, 13 that it might take the earth by the edges and shake the wicked out of it? 14 The earth takes shape like clay under a seal; its features stand out like those of a garment. 15 The wicked are denied their light, and their upraised arm is broken.

16 “Have you journeyed to the springs of the sea or walked in the recesses of the deep? 17 Have the gates of death been shown to you? Have you seen the gates of the deepest darkness? 18 Have you comprehended the vast expanses of the earth? Tell me, if you know all this.

19 “What is the way to the abode of light? And where does darkness reside? 20 Can you take them to their places? Do you know the paths to their dwellings? 21 Surely you know, for you were already born! You have lived so many years!

22 “Have you entered the storehouses of the snow or seen the storehouses of the hail, 23 which I reserve for times of trouble, for days of war and battle? 24 What is the way to the place where the lightning is dispersed, or the place where the east winds are scattered over the earth? 25 Who cuts a channel for the torrents of rain, and a path for the thunderstorm, 26 to water a land where no one lives, an uninhabited desert, 27 to satisfy a desolate wasteland and make it sprout with grass? 28 Does the rain have a father? Who fathers the drops of dew? 29 From whose womb comes the ice? Who gives birth to the frost from the heavens 30 when the waters become hard as stone, when the surface of the deep is frozen?

31 “Can you bind the chains of the Pleiades? Can you loosen Orion’s belt 32 Can you bring forth the constellations in their seasons or lead out the Bear with its cubs? 33 Do you know the laws of the heavens? Can you set up God’s dominion over the earth?

34 “Can you raise your voice to the clouds and cover yourself with a flood of water? 35 Do you send the lightning bolts on their way? Do they report to you, ‘Here we are’? 36 Who gives the ibis wisdom or gives the rooster understanding? 37 Who has the wisdom to count the clouds? Who can tip over the water jars of the heavens 38 when the dust becomes hard and the clods of earth stick together?

39 “Do you hunt the prey for the lioness and satisfy the hunger of the lions 40 when they crouch in their dens or lie in wait in a thicket? 41 Who provides food for the raven when its young cry out to God and wander about for lack of food?

Chapter 39

1 “Do you know when the mountain goats give birth? Do you watch when the doe bears her fawn? 2 Do you count the months till they bear? Do you know the time they give birth? 3 They crouch down and bring forth their young; their labor pains are ended. 4 Their young thrive and grow strong in the wilds; they leave and do not return.

5 “Who let the wild donkey go free? Who untied its ropes? 6 I gave it the wasteland as its home, the salt flats as its habitat. 7 It laughs at the commotion in the town; it does not hear a driver’s shout. 8 It ranges the hills for its pasture and searches for any green thing.

9 “Will the wild ox consent to serve you? Will it stay by your manger at night? 10 Can you hold it to the furrow with a harness? Will it till the valleys behind you? 11 Will you rely on it for its great strength? Will you leave your heavy work to it? 12 Can you trust it to haul in your grain and bring it to your threshing floor?

13 “The wings of the ostrich flap joyfully, though they cannot compare with the wings and feathers of the stork. 14 She lays her eggs on the ground and lets them warm in the sand, 15 unmindful that a foot may crush them, that some wild animal may trample them. 16 She treats her young harshly, as if they were not hers; she cares not that her labor was in vain, 17 for God did not endow her with wisdom or give her a share of good sense. 18 Yet when she spreads her feathers to run, she laughs at horse and rider.

19 “Do you give the horse its strength or clothe its neck with a flowing mane? 20 Do you make it leap like a locust, striking terror with its proud snorting? 21 It paws fiercely, rejoicing in its strength, and charges into the fray. 22 It laughs at fear, afraid of nothing; it does not shy away from the sword. 23 The quiver rattles against its side, along with the flashing spear and lance. 24 In frenzied excitement it eats up the ground; it cannot stand still when the trumpet sounds. 25 At the blast of the trumpet it snorts, ‘Aha!’ It catches the scent of battle from afar, the shout of commanders and the battle cry.

26 “Does the hawk take flight by your wisdom and spread its wings toward the south? 27 Does the eagle soar at your command and build its nest on high? 28 It dwells on a cliff and stays there at night; a rocky crag is its stronghold. 29 From there it looks for food; its eyes detect it from afar. 30 Its young ones feast on blood, and where the slain are, there it is.”

How many questions does God ask Job during the storm?

God asks Job 77 questions during the storm. He opens with:

2 “Who is this that obscures my plans with words without knowledge?3 Brace yourself like a man; I will question you, and you shall answer me.

It’s like God is saying, “Who are you, Job, to question me? You do not know what you are talking about. You do not know my plans for creation.”

• Where were you when I created the world?
• Were you on the crew that laid the foundations of the earth?
• Did you contain the sea when it was born?
• Have you ever walked the depths to the gates of death?
• Are you able to escort in the light in the morning or darkness at night?
• Do you know where the weather is kept?
• Can you wheel out the constellations each night?
• When did you feed the lion and the raven?
• Do you know how to create goats and deer in the womb?
• Did you set the wild donkey free?
• Do you know how hawks and eagles fly to great heights?

Point Made

The answer to all of God’s questions is no. Job didn’t build the world. He can’t run it, and he can’t begin to comprehend it. God conceived, created, and controls it all, and God is not neglecting any of it. Including Job.

A Truth to Remember.

God does not neglect his creation, and you are a beloved part of His creation. He is in control, and we can trust Him. This is the point for Job and for us. In the midst of our suffering, it is not wrong to question. However, if we only question our earthly situation and do not look up to recall God’s heavenly glory, we will lose our way, lose our hope, and spiral out into despair or bitterness.

We must look up and remember God’s glorious power, cry out to Him in prayer, and immerse ourselves in His word. Then do it over and over and over, and wrestle with it as we have seen Job wrestle until we find peace in God’s presence.

Job has been humbled and redirected. And some may see that as chastisement. But I say what an honor that God cares so much for this tortured man that he makes Himself known to Job, personally.

What happened to Elihu after God begins speaking?

When God begins speaking, Elihu is totally ignored. The friends, we will see, are in trouble. But God gives Job what is needed: a revelation of Himself so that His righteous servant Job can be at peace with his suffering.

Scene 2: Job Acknowledges His Mistake

Job 40:1–5

1 The Lord said to Job: 2 “Will the one who contends with the Almighty correct him? Let him who accuses God answer him!”

3 Then Job answered the Lord: 4 “I am unworthy—how can I reply to you? I put my hand over my mouth. 5 I spoke once, but I have no answer— twice, but I will say no more.”

What does Job do in response to God?

Despite being the greatest man in the east, Job is not prideful. He silences himself. He sees clearly what he didn’t see clearly before: he is not in a position to question God. There is no way he can know what God knows.

And that is what I love about this man. He is not above correction. Here he is almost childlike in awe of the Lord. He covers his mouth with his hand. Just to make sure that he doesn’t say another word. It is a vision for us to emulate. Can we picture ourselves as children before the Almighty, All-Knowing God? It would go a long way in helping us get past us. Set aside all pride and self-knowledge and approach God with a childlike trust.

Scene 3: God Is Not Done. He Wants More.

Job 40:6–24, Job 41:1–34

6 Then the Lord spoke to Job out of the storm: 7 “Brace yourself like a man; I will question you, and you shall answer me.

8 “Would you discredit my justice? Would you condemn me to justify yourself? 9 Do you have an arm like God’s, and can your voice thunder like his? 10 Then adorn yourself with glory and splendor, and clothe yourself in honor and majesty. 11 Unleash the fury of your wrath, look at all who are proud and bring them low, 12 look at all who are proud and humble them, crush the wicked where they stand. 13 Bury them all in the dust together; shroud their faces in the grave. 14 Then I myself will admit to you that your own right hand can save you.

15 “Look at Behemoth, which I made along with you and which feeds on grass like an ox. 16 What strength it has in its loins, what power in the muscles of its belly! 17 Its tail sways like a cedar; the sinews of its thighs are close-knit. 18 Its bones are tubes of bronze, its limbs like rods of iron. 19 It ranks first among the works of God, yet its Maker can approach it with his sword. 20 The hills bring it their produce, and all the wild animals play nearby. 21 Under the lotus plants it lies, hidden among the reeds in the marsh. 22 The lotuses conceal it in their shadow; the poplars by the stream surround it. 23 A raging river does not alarm it; it is secure, though the Jordan should surge against its mouth. 24 Can anyone capture it by the eyes, or trap it and pierce its nose?

Chapter 41

1 “Can you pull in Leviathan with a fishhook or tie down its tongue with a rope? 2 Can you put a cord through its nose or pierce its jaw with a hook?3 Will it keep begging you for mercy? Will it speak to you with gentle words? 4 Will it make an agreement with you for you to take it as your slave for life? 5 Can you make a pet of it like a bird or put it on a leash for the young women in your house? 6 Will traders barter for it? Will they divide it up among the merchants? 7 Can you fill its hide with harpoons or its head with fishing spears? 8 If you lay a hand on it, you will remember the struggle and never do it again! 9 Any hope of subduing it is false; the mere sight of it is overpowering. 10 No one is fierce enough to rouse it. Who then is able to stand against me? 11 Who has a claim against me that I must pay? Everything under heaven belongs to me.

12 “I will not fail to speak of Leviathan’s limbs, its strength and its graceful form. 13 Who can strip off its outer coat? Who can penetrate its double coat of armor? 14 Who dares open the doors of its mouth, ringed about with fearsome teeth? 15 Its back has rows of shields tightly sealed together; 16 each is so close to the next that no air can pass between. 17 They are joined fast to one another; they cling together and cannot be parted. 18 Its snorting throws out flashes of light; its eyes are like the rays of dawn. 19 Flames stream from its mouth; sparks of fire shoot out. 20 Smoke pours from its nostrils as from a boiling pot over burning reeds. 21 Its breath sets coals ablaze, and flames dart from its mouth. 22 Strength resides in its neck; dismay goes before it. 23 The folds of its flesh are tightly joined; they are firm and immovable. 24 Its chest is hard as rock, hard as a lower millstone. 25 When it rises up, the mighty are terrified; they retreat before its thrashing. 26 The sword that reaches it has no effect, nor does the spear or the dart or the javelin. 27 Iron it treats like straw and bronze like rotten wood. 28 Arrows do not make it flee; slingstones are like chaff to it. 29 A club seems to it but a piece of straw; it laughs at the rattling of the lance. 30 Its undersides are jagged potsherds, leaving a trail in the mud like a threshing sledge. 31 It makes the depths churn like a boiling caldron and stirs up the sea like a pot of ointment. 32 It leaves a glistening wake behind it; one would think the deep had white hair. 33 Nothing on earth is its equal— a creature without fear. 34 It looks down on all that are haughty; it is king over all that are proud.”

What did God question Job about?

So far, God has questioned Job for answers on cosmology, astronomy, meteorology, and even zoology. Basically all aspects of his creative genius. Job has not one answer. God continues by challenging Job’s power over creation, or lack thereof. And He asks Job to imagine himself as God. How would Job control the universe? And, specifically, how would Job control two of the beasts God has created: the Behemoth and the Leviathan.

What characteristics describe the Behemoth and Leviathan in Job 40 and 41?

The Behemoth, most likely the hippopotamus based on the description, eats grass and possesses great strength. The Leviathan, which we discussed in Job 1-3, many believe was a crocodile. Others see the Leviathan as a symbol of danger, chaos, and death, all things beyond human control. All things beyond Job’s control.

The point for Job with the Behemoth is that he can’t begin to explain why God would create such a creature, so why would he think he could understand God’s justice? With the Leviathan, God is teaching Job that if he can’t control what God created, he certainly can’t control God. The final message in both examples is that if God can create, care for, and control these massive creatures, then God can do the same for Job.

In other words, God has a reason for creating these beasts, and He has them under His care and control. God has a reason for creating Job. And he has him under his care and control. Job may not understand why he was born, why he prospered, and why he is now suffering. But Job is not in any position to challenge or judge God about it.

Job has spent almost the entire book demanding his day in court with God. He wants to make his case for why he should not be suffering. He wants God to defend Himself and justify the sentence. God finally shows up, but He doesn’t take the stand as a defendant. He takes the bench as the Judge. And instead of answering Job’s case, He opens a new one: ‘Where were you when I laid the earth’s foundation?’ The case Job built is never tried. But the Judge he demanded to see is standing right in front of him. And Job drops the suit.

In the end, Job realizes he has done exactly what his friends did. He misjudged God and accused God of injustice just as Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar misjudged him and accused him of sin he did not commit.

Scene 4: Job Responds to God, I See You

Job 42:1–6

Then Job replied to the Lord: 2 “I know that you can do all things; no purpose of yours can be thwarted. 3 You asked, ‘Who is this that obscures my plans without knowledge?’ Surely I spoke of things I did not understand, things too wonderful for me to know.

4 “You said, ‘Listen now, and I will speak; I will question you, and you shall answer me.’ 5 My ears had heard of you but now my eyes have seen you. 6 Therefore, I despise myself and repent in dust and ashes.”

What was Job’s final response to God’s questioning?

In response to God’s questioning, Job is appropriately stunned into repentance and reoriented to God. He sees his relationship with God in a whole new way, and he is content with not having the answers he wants right now.

In the Eye of the Storm, by Max Lucado, he said:

“God’s questions aren’t intended to teach; they are intended to stun. They aren’t intended to enlighten; they are intended to bend the knee.”

In the book Be Patient, Warren Wiersbe stated:

The answer to Job’s problems was not an explanation about God, such as the three friends and Elihu had given, but a revelation of God. When God displayed His majesty and greatness, it humbled Job and brought him to a place of silent submission before God. That was the turning point.

Questions for Us to Ponder

• Can we be like Job with a right understanding of our position under God to be daily awed by his majesty, humble and in silent submission, with or without suffering?
• Is it impossible to be as enamored with God’s majesty when all is well as it is when we are desperate for relief?
• Does our heart cry for rescue or a Rescuer?
• Do we obey because we want a reward or because we want a relationship?

Job says, “But now my eyes have seen you.” And certainly that was a privilege that few have experienced. Paul addresses the unseen God for us in our struggles:

2 Corinthians 4:16-18 Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. 17 For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. 18 So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.

We must fix our eyes on the unseen, look up, and see the eternal. For our troubles are achieving for us eternal glory.

Scene 5: God Rights the Relationships

Job 42:7–17

7 After the Lord had said these things to Job, he said to Eliphaz the Temanite, “I am angry with you and your two friends, because you have not spoken the truth about me, as my servant Job has. 8 So now take seven bulls and seven rams and go to my servant Job and sacrifice a burnt offering for yourselves. My servant Job will pray for you, and I will accept his prayer and not deal with you according to your folly. You have not spoken the truth about me, as my servant Job has.” 9 So Eliphaz the Temanite, Bildad the Shuhite and Zophar the Naamathite did what the Lord told them; and the Lord accepted Job’s prayer.

10 After Job had prayed for his friends, the Lord restored his fortunes and gave him twice as much as he had before. 11 All his brothers and sisters and everyone who had known him before came and ate with him in his house. They comforted and consoled him over all the trouble the Lord had brought on him, and each one gave him a piece of silver and a gold ring.

12 The Lord blessed the latter part of Job’s life more than the former part. He had fourteen thousand sheep, six thousand camels, a thousand yoke of oxen and a thousand donkeys. 13 And he also had seven sons and three daughters. 14 The first daughter he named Jemimah, the second Keziah and the third Keren-Happuch. 15 Nowhere in all the land were there found women as beautiful as Job’s daughters, and their father granted them an inheritance along with their brothers.

16 After this, Job lived a hundred and forty years; he saw his children and their children to the fourth generation. 17 And so Job died, an old man and full of years.

Why does God rebuke Job’s friends Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar?

God rebukes Job’s friends Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar because they do not speak the truth about God. They are told to sacrifice to God for this sin, and the very man they persecuted, Job, will pray for God to have mercy on them. It is ironic that the friends’ mercy is dependent on the man they tortured.

How does Job’s relationship with his friends change at the end?

In the end, the first restored relationships are the three friends. All is good between God, Eliphaz, Bildad, Zophar, and apparently with Job and his unkind friends. The implication is that Job forgives his friends and prays for them, because Job maligned God, and God forgave him when he repented. The friends have maligned Job, so Job must forgive them.

So all relationships are righted…except Elihu. Who knows what happened to him. I kind of picture him as the type who might run for cover when a storm approaches.

Why don’t some people like that Job has a happy ending?

Some say Job’s happy ending defeats the argument against the Retribution Principle. In other words, Job did the right thing, God won the case against Satan, so God rewarded Job for it. But it was not a reward. It was a generous gift of grace, because Job was wealthy before.

Here it says, The Lord blessed the latter part of Job’s life more than the former part, and I like to think that God has a couple of reasons for this ending.

• To bless Job because it pleases God to do so.
• To entertain the heavenly host by annoying Satan. Because Satan is probably so mad to lose the case. He accused Job of transactional faith. Job passed the test, God vindicated him, and the accuser lost. Then, on top of losing, Satan has to watch God give Job back all he lost and more.
• Maybe God did it for us, to make a point. We shouldn’t be wondering why He did it! Whether it was right or wrong. Whether it added to or detracted from the story. We cannot begin to understand the mystery of God’s ways. He conceives, creates, and He controls.

Our only goal is to trust.

We have to trust that some get more blessings than others, whether they deserve it or not. And some suffer more than others, whether they deserve it or not. Some recover from their trials and some don’t. But all are given the opportunity to fix their eyes on Him, the Eternal, the Glorious.

In the first chapter of Job, I shared that:

The book of Job is the story of a righteous man who loses everything, wrestles with undeserved suffering, and discovers that trusting God is more important than understanding His ways.

I also shared that this book is not my favorite. Suffering is near and painful to me. I don’t like dwelling on Job’s suffering, but I needed this reminder that trusting God is more important than understanding His ways. Hold on to that thought for the future. You may not need it now, but someone you know may. Sit with them, listen to them, and comfort them.

Group Discussion Questions for Job 38–42

• Job covered his mouth with his hand in stunned silence when God revealed Himself. Have you ever experienced a moment where God’s greatness left you in stunned silence?
• God asks Job 77 questions about creation that Job cannot answer. Does knowing how little we know or understand about our life and our world bring you comfort or anxiety? Why do you think that is?
• Job was asked to pray for the very friends who hurt him deeply. Is there someone in your life right now who has wronged you, for whom God might be calling you to pray?