Job 38:23 kjv
Which I have reserved against the time of trouble, against the day of battle and war?
Job 38:23 nkjv
Which I have reserved for the time of trouble, For the day of battle and war?
Job 38:23 niv
which I reserve for times of trouble, for days of war and battle?
Job 38:23 esv
which I have reserved for the time of trouble, for the day of battle and war?
Job 38:23 nlt
(I have reserved them as weapons for the time of trouble,
for the day of battle and war.)
Job 38 23 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Ex 9:22-26 | "Stretch out your hand toward heaven, so that there may be hail... | God sends severe hail on Egypt as judgment. |
| Josh 10:11 | "As they fled before Israel... the Lord threw down large hailstones... | God fights for Israel using hailstones. |
| Judg 5:20-21 | "From heaven the stars fought, from their courses they fought against Sisera. The torrent Kishon swept them away..." | Creation aids God's people in battle. |
| 1 Sam 7:10 | "As Samuel was offering up the burnt offering, the Philistines drew near... but the Lord thundered with a mighty sound..." | Divine intervention with sound against enemies. |
| Psa 18:13-14 | "The Lord also thundered in the heavens... He sent out His arrows and scattered them..." | God's voice and judgment manifested as storm. |
| Psa 29:3-9 | "The voice of the Lord is over the waters... shatters the cedars... | God's powerful voice controls nature. |
| Psa 33:7 | "He gathers the waters... He lays up the deeps in storehouses." | God's control over creation's "storehouses". |
| Psa 76:7 | "You, You alone, are to be feared. Who can stand before You when once You are angry?" | God's fearful power in judgment. |
| Psa 77:17-18 | "The clouds poured out water; the skies gave forth thunder; Your arrows flashed about... Your thunder was in the whirlwind..." | God's majestic display of power in a storm. |
| Psa 83:13-15 | "Make them like whirling dust... So pursue them with Your tempest and terrify them with Your hurricane." | Nature as a tool for God's judgment on enemies. |
| Psa 135:7 | "He brings the clouds from the ends of the earth... He brings forth the wind from His storehouses." | God controls wind from "storehouses". |
| Isa 28:17 | "And hail shall sweep away the refuge of lies, and waters shall overflow the hiding place." | Hail as an instrument of divine judgment. |
| Isa 30:30 | "And the Lord will cause His majestic voice to be heard... with the blast of hailstones and burning fire and a flood." | God uses nature for destructive judgment. |
| Isa 40:12-14 | "Who has measured the waters in the hollow of His hand...? | God's immeasurable wisdom and power in creation. |
| Isa 45:7 | "I form light and create darkness, I make well-being and create calamity..." | God's sovereignty over peace and trouble. |
| Jer 23:19-20 | "Behold, the storm of the Lord! Wrath has gone forth... It will burst upon the head of the wicked." | God's wrath manifest as a storm. |
| Joel 2:1-11 | "Blow a trumpet... for the day of the Lord is coming... It is a day of darkness..." | Day of the Lord, God's forces, natural elements. |
| Nahum 1:3-6 | "The Lord has His way in the whirlwind and in the storm... He lays waste His foes." | God's power manifest in storm against His adversaries. |
| Matt 24:21-22 | "For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been from the beginning of the world until now..." | "Time of trouble" can be of unparalleled severity. |
| Rom 11:33-36 | "Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments..." | God's unsearchable ways and sovereignty. |
| Rev 8:7 | "And hail and fire mixed with blood were thrown upon the earth..." | Hail as an apocalyptic judgment. |
| Rev 11:19 | "Then came flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder, an earthquake, and heavy hail." | Elements signifying God's wrath in Revelation. |
| Rev 16:21 | "And great hailstones, about one hundred pounds each, fell from heaven on people..." | Extremely destructive hail as final judgment. |
Job 38 verses
Job 38 23 Meaning
This verse is part of God's powerful interrogation of Job from the whirlwind, highlighting His absolute sovereignty and control over all creation. It reveals that specific natural phenomena, implicitly snow and hail mentioned in the preceding verse, are not random occurrences but are meticulously "reserved" by God. Their purpose is precise: to be deployed as instruments of divine judgment and warfare during specific times of crisis and conflict, demonstrating God's formidable power and strategic intentionality in orchestrating events.
Job 38 23 Context
Job 38:23 is uttered by God Himself in His first direct address to Job from the whirlwind, spanning Job chapters 38 and 39. This follows Job's complaints and longing for a confrontation with God, in which Job had challenged divine justice amidst his inexplicable suffering. God's response is not a direct answer to Job's accusations of injustice but an overwhelming display of His incomparable power, wisdom, and sovereign control over all creation. In verse 22, God asks Job if he has entered the "storehouses" of snow and hail. Verse 23 continues this rhetorical question, implying that only God possesses such "storehouses" and has the foresight and power to hold these elements back, "reserving" them for specific, critical moments—namely, "the time of trouble" and "the day of battle and war." Historically and culturally, in the Ancient Near East, natural phenomena like storms, hail, and strong winds were often attributed to various local deities or seen as random and capricious. However, Yahweh's statements in Job 38 serve as a profound polemic against such polytheistic or naturalistic views. God asserts His sole and deliberate command over weather, explicitly demonstrating His superior power over any supposed storm gods (like Baal) and revealing that even destructive forces of nature are part of His divine arsenal, used purposefully to effect judgment or aid in conflict. This establishes Yahweh as the ultimate arbiter of all circumstances, including the darkest ones.
Job 38 23 Word analysis
- which: The pronoun refers back to "snow" and "hail" mentioned in Job 38:22. This establishes the subject of God's control.
- I have reserved (חָשַׂכְתִּי, ḥasakhti): Derived from the Hebrew root חָשַׂךְ (chasak), meaning "to withhold," "to keep back," "to save up," or "to store." This word conveys intentionality, deliberate planning, and sovereign control. It implies that God doesn't merely react to events but has pre-ordained and prepared these natural instruments for their specific purposes. This challenges any notion of random occurrence or the influence of lesser powers.
- for the time of trouble (לְעֵת צָרָה, le'et tsarah):
- for the time (לְעֵת, le'et): From עֵת (et), denoting a specific "appointed time" or "season." It suggests a precise, pre-determined moment for divine action, not an arbitrary one.
- of trouble (צָרָה, tsarah): Means "distress," "calamity," "tribulation," or "anguish." This denotes a period of severe difficulty, often implying a divine visitation or judgment upon a nation or individual.
- for the day of battle and war (לְיוֹם קְרָב וּמִלְחָמָה, leyom qrav u'milchamah):
- for the day (לְיוֹם, leyom): Often signifies a decisive, significant period, similar to the "Day of the Lord" motif in other prophetic literature, where God intervenes powerfully in human affairs.
- of battle (קְרָב, qerav): Refers to a close-quarter "engagement" or "fight."
- and war (וּמִלְחָמָה, u'milchamah): A broader term for "conflict" or "warfare."
- "which I have reserved for the time of trouble, for the day of battle and war": This phrase underscores God's absolute sovereignty and omniscience. It is not merely that He can use these forces, but that He has prepared them, holds them in readiness, and deploys them strategically for specific purposes. This removes any perception of chaos or accident in the natural world or in human suffering; everything is under His control, operating according to His divine will and timing, serving His greater redemptive and judicial purposes. It signifies God as the supreme Commander of both natural forces and human history.
Job 38 23 Bonus section
The "reserving" implies a strategic withholding of power until the divinely appointed moment. This mirrors other biblical concepts where God patiently holds back His full wrath (Lam 3:22), or conversely, prepares good for those who fear Him (Psa 31:19). This divine characteristic of restraint combined with ultimate power is a profound theological point. The explicit mention of "battle and war" ties natural disasters directly to warfare in a way that goes beyond mere metaphor, reflecting actual instances in biblical history where elements aided Israel's military victories (e.g., hailstones in Joshua 10, weather phenomena in Judges 5). The understanding that even seemingly chaotic events are divinely "reserved" should inspire awe and a re-evaluation of human limitations in understanding divine justice or purposes for suffering. This perspective can bring comfort in knowing that trials, like those of Job, are never arbitrary but exist within the framework of God's purposeful and sovereign plan.
Job 38 23 Commentary
Job 38:23 serves as a profound declaration of God's unparalleled sovereignty over creation and history. It's a key component of God's response to Job, dismantling human assumptions about justice and control. The verse reveals that even the most formidable natural elements like hail, far from being random or controlled by lesser deities, are specifically held in "reserve" by the Almighty. This demonstrates forethought and intention; God pre-plans and deploys these forces as strategic instruments. Their designated purpose is not merely destructive but redemptive-judicial: to be unleashed at a "time of trouble" or a "day of battle and war." This signifies God's direct involvement in human affairs, asserting that He dictates the outcome of conflicts and the onset of calamities, often using nature itself as a weapon to execute judgment, protect His people, or bring about His ultimate will. The verse ultimately impresses upon Job (and us) God's incomprehensible power and wisdom, far exceeding human understanding or judgment, suggesting that suffering and adversity are never outside of God's purposeful plan.