Job 38 32

Job 38:32 kjv

Canst thou bring forth Mazzaroth in his season? or canst thou guide Arcturus with his sons?

Job 38:32 nkjv

Can you bring out Mazzaroth in its season? Or can you guide the Great Bear with its cubs?

Job 38:32 niv

Can you bring forth the constellations in their seasons or lead out the Bear with its cubs?

Job 38:32 esv

Can you lead forth the Mazzaroth in their season, or can you guide the Bear with its children?

Job 38:32 nlt

Can you direct the constellations through the seasons
or guide the Bear with her cubs across the heavens?

Job 38 verses

Job 38 32 Meaning

Job 38:32 forms part of God's majestic and challenging discourse to Job, where the Almighty highlights Job's limited understanding and power in contrast to divine omnipotence and wisdom. The verse rhetorically asks Job if he possesses the authority and ability to orchestrate the celestial phenomena—specifically, to bring forth the constellations in their designated seasons or to guide the Great Bear with its accompanying stars. This underscores God's absolute sovereignty over creation, cosmic order, and time, reminding Job of his creaturely limitations and inability to grasp or control the vastness of the universe.

Job 38 32 Context

Job 38 marks the beginning of God's profound address to Job from a whirlwind, a powerful intervention that shifts the dialogue from Job's complaints and the friends' flawed theological arguments to God's own unchallenged authority and wisdom. After chapters of human discourse trying to comprehend the mystery of suffering and divine justice, God reveals Himself not by explaining Job's plight directly, but by asserting His role as the sovereign Creator and Sustainer of the cosmos. This divine interrogation humbles Job by overwhelming him with questions about natural phenomena he cannot control or even fully understand—from the formation of the earth and the sea to the intricacies of weather patterns, light, and darkness.

Within this grand exposition, Job 38:32 specifically grounds the Creator's power in the regularity and predictability of celestial movements. In the ancient Near East, astronomical observation was deeply intertwined with religion, often leading to astral worship or the belief that humans could manipulate or divine fate from the stars. God's question serves as a direct polemic against these prevalent beliefs. It highlights that the fixed "seasons" of the "Mazzaroth" (zodiacal constellations) and the unchanging guidance of "Ayish" (the Great Bear) are not results of arbitrary forces, human magic, or independent deities, but are under the precise and consistent governance of the one true God. This demonstrates His sole prerogative over time, order, and destiny, a truth meant to inspire awe and humility in Job, ultimately preparing him to trust God's wisdom even amidst inexplicable suffering.

Job 38 32 Word analysis

• הֲתֹצִיא (ha-totsi'): "Can you bring forth?" or "Can you lead out?" This is a challenging rhetorical question. The prefix 'ha-' denotes an interrogation, inviting Job to acknowledge his inability. The verb comes from the root יָצָא (yatsa'), meaning "to go out" or "to lead forth." It implies control over origin and direction. God is questioning if Job has the power to initiate and govern such grand celestial processions.
• מַזָּרוֹת (Mazzaroth): Commonly interpreted as the constellations of the zodiac or celestial bodies marking the seasons. While its exact etymology is debated among scholars, it points to the celestial array that determines seasonal cycles. In ancient cultures, the path of the sun through various star groups was crucial for agricultural timing. God's mention underscores His divine ordering of earthly life according to precise cosmic rhythms, directly contrasting pagan beliefs in independent or divinable astral powers. This challenges any notion that human rituals or other deities could influence these ordained movements.
• בְּעִתּוֹ (be'itto): "In its season" or "at its appointed time." This emphasizes precision and regularity. The Hebrew term עֵת (et) refers to a fixed, designated time or season. This highlights God's perfect timing and order, which is inherent in creation, ensuring that the celestial bodies move not haphazardly, but according to a meticulous divine schedule, vital for the changing seasons and the sustenance of life on earth.
• וְעַיִשׁ (ve'Ayish): "Or Ayish" (Great Bear). Generally identified as Ursa Major, also known as the Great Bear or the Big Dipper. It is a prominent constellation in the northern sky, noted for its constant rotation around the celestial pole. God uses a familiar, observable constellation to emphasize His comprehensive power, not just over the zodiac but over all parts of the night sky, regardless of their perceived independence or permanence.
• עַל-בָּנֶיהָ (al-b'aneyha): "With its cubs" or "over its children." Literally "upon/over its sons/children." This poetic phrase likely refers to the stars accompanying the main constellation, possibly Ursa Minor (the Little Dipper) or other stars adjacent to the Great Bear. This imagery adds a tender, familial touch to the description, implying that God not only controls the principal celestial bodies but also attends to every minute detail and relationship within His creation, underscoring the comprehensive nature of His sovereignty.
• תַנְחֵם (tankhem): "Can you guide?" or "Can you lead?" From the root נָחָה (nakha), meaning "to lead" or "to guide." The Hiphil (causative) form denotes active, purposeful direction. God asks Job if he can orchestrate the consistent and directed movement of these star groups. This further illustrates God's precise control and purposeful action in leading and directing the ongoing movements of the vast celestial domain, affirming that cosmic order is a continuous act of divine guidance.

• "Bring forth Mazzaroth in their season": This phrase highlights God's authority over time and order. It is a cosmic timekeeping device established and regulated by divine command. The inability of Job to "bring forth" them demonstrates that even the onset of agricultural seasons, tied to these constellations, is fully in God's hands. This also indirectly refutes reliance on divination or astrology, by affirming God's sole proprietorship of this cosmic schedule.
• "Guide the Great Bear with its cubs": This phrase emphasizes God's minute control over specific, observable star formations. The "guidance" implies an ongoing, precise, and deliberate control over the trajectory and relationships within a specific stellar group. It moves beyond the abstract idea of "seasons" to the intimate, sustained direction of particular heavenly bodies, portraying God's universal governance that extends to every star, however large or small, within the celestial canvas.

Job 38 32 Bonus section

• Cosmic Revelation of Divine Wisdom: The verse, along with others in God's speech, indicates that the intricate and constant movements of celestial bodies are a continuous revelation of divine wisdom. Their predictable nature is a testament to an unchanging, ordering Mind.
• Foundation for Trust: For Job, his inability to control or comprehend these cosmic realities was a stepping stone to trusting God's control over his own life, including his suffering. If God maintains such detailed order in the heavens, He surely has purpose and care for His people.
• Against Chaos and Chance: In a world that often grappled with concepts of chaos or chance as ultimate forces, this verse unequivocally positions God as the Master over all forces, ensuring an ordered cosmos where nothing operates outside His purposeful decree. This contrasts starkly with any philosophical system proposing that the universe's order emerged by accident or is maintained without a guiding intelligence.

Job 38 32 Commentary

Job 38:32 is a profound rhetorical question demonstrating God's unchallenged supremacy over the celestial sphere. By asking if Job can command the "Mazzaroth" (the zodiacal constellations marking seasons) or "guide the Great Bear with its cubs," God exposes Job's limited power and understanding. This highlights divine sovereignty over cosmic order, time, and destiny, emphasizing that the predictable and precise movements of stars and the changing seasons are orchestrated by God alone, not by human will, fate, or lesser deities. It is a powerful lesson in humility, urging Job—and us—to recognize God's unfathomable wisdom and to trust His perfect management of creation, even when His ways seem inscrutable in personal suffering. The very harmony of the universe testifies to an Intelligent Creator who remains sovereign amidst all circumstances.