Job 37:7 kjv
He sealeth up the hand of every man; that all men may know his work.
Job 37:7 nkjv
He seals the hand of every man, That all men may know His work.
Job 37:7 niv
So that everyone he has made may know his work, he stops all people from their labor.
Job 37:7 esv
He seals up the hand of every man, that all men whom he made may know it.
Job 37:7 nlt
Then everyone stops working
so they can watch his power.
Job 37 7 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Gen 8:22 | While the earth remains, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night, shall not cease. | God's ordained order of seasons and nature. |
| Deut 29:29 | The secret things belong to the LORD our God, but the things revealed belong to us... to do all the words... | God reveals His works for humans to understand. |
| Job 5:10 | For He gives rain on the earth and sends waters on the fields. | God's control over precipitation. |
| Job 26:14 | Behold, these are but the outskirts of his ways... | Man only grasps a small part of God's work. |
| Job 36:24-26 | "Remember to extol His work, of which men have sung... His works are great... we do not know Him fully." | Calls to acknowledge and understand God's work. |
| Ps 8:3-4 | When I look at your heavens... what is man that you are mindful of him...? | Reflection on human insignificance next to creation. |
| Ps 19:1-4 | The heavens declare the glory of God... Their voice goes out through all the earth. | Creation as a witness to God's attributes. |
| Ps 46:10 | "Be still, and know that I am God..." | A command to cease striving and know God. |
| Ps 65:9-13 | You visit the earth and water it... providing their grain, for so you have provided it. | God's providence in bringing forth bounty from nature. |
| Ps 104:1-35 | Extensive description of God's majesty and wisdom in creation. | God's pervasive activity in the natural world. |
| Ps 107:23-31 | He commanded and raised the stormy wind... He made the storm be still... | God's absolute command over storms and sea. |
| Ps 139:13-16 | For you formed my inward parts... knit me together in my mother's womb. | God's meticulous "work" in creating humans. |
| Ps 147:8 | He covers the heavens with clouds; He prepares rain for the earth... | God provides the essential elements of weather. |
| Prov 9:10 | The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is insight. | Knowing God is foundational for true wisdom. |
| Isa 40:21-22 | Do you not know? Have you not heard?... It is He who sits above the circle of the earth... | God's transcendence and knowledge are unquestionable. |
| Isa 43:10 | "You are my witnesses," declares the LORD, "and my servant whom I have chosen, that you may know and believe me..." | God's desire for His people to know Him. |
| Jer 5:24 | They do not say in their hearts, "Let us fear the LORD our God, who gives the rains... in its season..." | Reproach for not acknowledging God's hand in nature. |
| Amos 4:7-8 | "I withheld the rain from you... yet you did not return to me," declares the LORD. | God uses natural conditions to draw people to Himself. |
| Hab 3:4 | His brightness was like the light; rays flashed from his hand... | Divine power originating from God's "hand." |
| Acts 14:17 | Yet He did not leave Himself without witness, for He gave you rains from heaven and fruitful seasons... | God's self-revelation through His provision in nature. |
| Rom 1:20 | For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived... | God's revelation of Himself through creation, leaving no excuse. |
| John 17:3 | "And this is eternal life, that they know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent." | True knowledge of God as the core of eternal life. |
Job 37 verses
Job 37 7 Meaning
Elihu, speaking in Job 37:7, states that God purposefully stops or restricts human activity, symbolized by "sealing up the hand," often through powerful natural phenomena like severe weather. This divine intervention compels all humanity to pause their endeavors and, by doing so, reflect upon and intimately understand God's awesome, sovereign work in the world. It emphasizes a pedagogical intent behind God's control over nature, aiming for human acknowledgment and experiential knowledge of His power and providence.
Job 37 7 Context
Job 37:7 is part of Elihu's extensive discourse, specifically his concluding speech in Job chapters 36-37. Elihu aims to defend God's righteousness and wisdom against Job's perceived challenge, arguing that God is far beyond human comprehension and that His actions, including suffering or natural phenomena, are always just and purposeful. In this immediate context, Elihu describes the majesty and mystery of God's control over the elements—thunder, lightning, snow, rain, ice (Job 37:1-6). Verse 7 explains God's purpose behind sending such powerful and disruptive weather: to compel humanity to cease its normal activities. This cessation forces men to look beyond their own labors and material concerns, thus shifting their focus to the powerful and awesome "work" of God manifest in nature, prompting them to truly "know" Him.
Job 37 7 Word analysis
- (ul) He seals up: Yaḵṭôm (יַכְתּוֹם). From the Hebrew root ḥātam (חָתַם), meaning "to seal," "to shut up," "to put an end to," or "to complete." This signifies an act of divine authority and finality. It implies God conclusively closes off avenues for human endeavor, putting an imposed halt to their customary activities. This is not mere hindrance but an intentional cessation.
- (ul) the hand: yad (יָד). Symbolically represents human labor, effort, power, skill, and activity. By sealing the hand, God halts productive human work, such as farming, building, or travel, which are crucial for sustenance and daily life in an agrarian society.
- (ul) of every man: kol-ʾādām (כָּל־אָדָם). Emphasizes the universal scope of this divine action, affecting all humanity. No one is exempt from God's authoritative imposition of stillness.
- (ul) that all men: kol-ʾanšê (כָּל־אֲנָשֶׁי). This phrase, similar to "every man," reinforces the broad applicability of the divine purpose. It's a reaffirmation that the intention extends to everyone.
- (ul) may know: lādaʿaṯ (לָדַעַת). From the root yadaʿ (יָדַע), which means to know experientially, intimately, and profoundly, not merely intellectually. It implies gaining understanding, discernment, and recognition through direct encounter and reflection. It suggests a transformation in perception, from being engrossed in their own tasks to discerning God's hand in the world.
- (ul) His work: maʿăśêhū (מַעֲשֵׂהוּ). Refers to God's deeds, accomplishments, and creative activity, especially His powerful control over creation and natural phenomena. It encompasses His wisdom, power, and sovereign control displayed in the visible world.
- (ul) He seals up the hand of every man: This phrase highlights God's absolute sovereignty over human affairs. He dictates times of activity and inactivity, rendering human labor impotent when He chooses. This specific phrase implies the stopping of customary manual work, particularly agricultural tasks during harsh weather conditions. It brings focus away from self-reliance and towards divine control.
- (ul) that all men may know His work: This clause reveals the telos or purpose of God's seemingly disruptive acts. The cessation of human work is not arbitrary; it serves as a divine pedagogy, compelling people to reflect on God's active, powerful presence in creation. This enforced stillness is an opportunity for profound spiritual recognition and understanding of God's greatness, which is continuously displayed but often overlooked in busy daily life.
Job 37 7 Bonus section
The concept of God "sealing up" activities or objects also appears in other biblical contexts, signifying divine authorization, judgment, or closure. Here, it denotes an imposed rest, similar in outcome to the Sabbath principle where rest facilitates reflection on God's work, but distinct in that it is an external force rather than a chosen act. This verse implicitly combats anthropocentric views, asserting God's absolute control over humanity's ability to labor and subsist, thereby forcing an acknowledgment of His sustaining power. Elihu's emphasis is on God's grandeur, which far exceeds human ability to fully comprehend or replicate (Job 36:26). The "work" is not just creation itself, but God's ongoing providential governing of it. Elihu presents these formidable natural displays as not random or punitive, but as intentional manifestations of God's majestic wisdom, designed to cultivate a profound awareness of His identity and omnipotence among all people.
Job 37 7 Commentary
Job 37:7 encapsulates a profound theological truth about God's purposeful control over creation and human experience. Elihu argues that God orchestrates natural events, like winter storms and severe weather that prevent outdoor labor, not out of caprice but with a deliberate, gracious intent. The "sealing up of the hand" is a divinely imposed pause, compelling humanity to detach from their self-sufficient toil and focus on something greater: God's immense power and wisdom demonstrated in the world. This enforced idleness serves as a "divine school," providing the necessary quietude for humanity to observe, ponder, and intimately "know" His works, which otherwise might be taken for granted. It underscores God's sovereignty over both nature and human activity, illustrating that His ultimate aim is for man to gain a deeper, experiential knowledge of Himself, leading to awe, humility, and proper reverence.
- Examples: A farmer forced indoors by blizzards, contemplating the raw power of the storm. A fisherman unable to venture out due to a tempest, reflecting on the sea's unruliness and its Creator. Communities enduring prolonged droughts, learning reliance beyond their own efforts.