Job 39:12 kjv
Wilt thou believe him, that he will bring home thy seed, and gather it into thy barn?
Job 39:12 nkjv
Will you trust him to bring home your grain, And gather it to your threshing floor?
Job 39:12 niv
Can you trust it to haul in your grain and bring it to your threshing floor?
Job 39:12 esv
Do you have faith in him that he will return your grain and gather it to your threshing floor?
Job 39:12 nlt
Can you rely on it to bring home your grain
and deliver it to your threshing floor?
Job 39 12 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Job 40:2 | "Shall a faultfinder contend with the Almighty?" | God's challenge to human wisdom. |
| Ps 147:9 | "He gives to the beast his food, and to the young ravens that cry." | God provides for wild animals, not humans. |
| Matt 6:26 | "Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them." | God’s direct provision without human labor. |
| Lk 12:24 | "Consider the ravens: they neither sow nor reap, they have neither storehouse nor barn, and yet God feeds them." | God sustains without agricultural effort. |
| Prov 28:26 | "Whoever trusts in his own mind is a fool, but he who walks in wisdom will be delivered." | Folly of trusting unreliable sources/self. |
| Jer 17:5 | "Cursed is the man who trusts in man and makes flesh his strength..." | Folly of misplaced trust. |
| Ps 33:10 | "The LORD brings the counsel of the nations to nothing; he frustrates the plans of the peoples." | God’s ultimate control over all plans. |
| Isa 40:23 | "He brings princes to nothing, and makes the rulers of the earth as emptiness." | God’s sovereignty over mighty. |
| Prov 16:9 | "The heart of man plans his way, but the LORD establishes his steps." | God's ultimate direction. |
| Job 12:7-9 | "Ask the beasts... they will teach you... The hand of the LORD has done this." | Creation's testimony to God's power. |
| Ps 50:10-11 | "For every beast of the forest is mine... I know all the birds of the hills..." | God’s ownership and knowledge of all creation. |
| Isa 31:3 | "The Egyptians are men, not God; their horses are flesh, not spirit. When the LORD stretches out his hand, the helper will stumble..." | Futility of human strength without God. |
| Ps 20:7 | "Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the LORD our God." | Right object of trust. |
| Hab 2:13 | "Is it not from the LORD of hosts that peoples toil merely for fire, and nations wear themselves out for nothing?" | Futility of effort apart from God's will. |
| Job 1:21 | "The LORD gave, and the LORD has taken away; blessed be the name of the LORD." | Acknowledgment of God's complete control. |
| Ps 104:27-28 | "These all look to you, to give them their food in due season. When you give it to them, they gather it." | Creation relies on God's provision. |
| Ps 145:15 | "The eyes of all look to you, and you give them their food in due season." | Universal dependence on God for sustenance. |
| Deut 8:17 | "Beware lest you say in your heart, 'My power and the might of my hand have gotten me this wealth.'" | Warning against self-reliance in provision. |
| Hag 1:6 | "You have sown much, and harvested little. You eat, but never have enough." | God can withhold blessing on human labor. |
| Hos 10:13 | "You have ploughed wickedness; you have reaped injustice." | Negative outcome of wrong human effort. |
| Isa 55:10-11 | "For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven... so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth." | God's word (and decree over nature) is effective. |
| Neh 10:37 | "and bring the firstfruits of our grain, our wine, and our oil to the priests at the chambers of the house of our God, and the tithes of our land to the Levites..." | Human responsibility in relation to harvest. |
| Ps 65:9 | "You visit the earth and water it; you greatly enrich it; the river of God is full of water; you provide their grain..." | God as the source of harvest and provision. |
Job 39 verses
Job 39 12 Meaning
Job 39:12 is a rhetorical question posed by God to Job, concerning the wild ox (reem), highlighting its untamable nature and unsuitability for agricultural work. God is emphasizing that Job cannot delegate farming tasks like sowing seeds or gathering harvest into a barn to a wild creature over which he has no control. This illustrates the vast difference between God’s knowledge and power over His creation, and humanity's limited understanding and dominion. It underscores that what God makes wild remains wild, fulfilling His purpose, not human purposes.
Job 39 12 Context
Job 39:12 is part of God's extensive answer to Job, specifically within a larger section (Job 38-41) where God speaks "out of the whirlwind" (Job 38:1). Having challenged Job on his limited understanding of the earth, heavens, and natural phenomena, God shifts to various animals: the lion, raven, mountain goat, wild donkey, wild ox (reem), ostrich, horse, hawk, and eagle. In chapters 39 and 40, God poses rhetorical questions about these creatures' instincts, habits, and untamed nature, emphasizing His sole proprietorship and providential control over them. The immediate context of verse 12 is God's detailed description of the wild ox (Job 39:9-11), highlighting its immense strength (reminiscent of its association with aurochs or similar powerful wild bovine) and indomitable will, rendering it useless for human agricultural labor. This contrasts with the domesticated ox which serves humanity. The verse, therefore, directly challenges Job’s perception of control, highlighting God’s absolute sovereignty even over the wildest parts of creation, which defy human subjugation for human ends. It serves as a reminder that not everything in creation is made for human utility or can be managed by human wisdom or strength.
Job 39 12 Word analysis
- Will you trust (הֶאֱמִין - he'emin): From the root "aman," meaning to confirm, support, be faithful, believe. Here, it is used in an interrogative form, challenging Job on the notion of putting one's confidence or faith in the wild ox. The implication is an emphatic "no." This verb often signifies reliance or dependability. God questions Job’s sanity in such a thought, contrasting with the absolute dependability of God himself.
- him (referring to the wild ox previously mentioned in v.9-11): The antecedent of "him" is the wild ox (reem, רְאֵם), a powerful, untamable creature, possibly the aurochs. The entire passage (Job 39:9-12) paints a picture of its fierce independence, emphasizing that it refuses to serve humans.
- that he will sow (תַזְרִֽיעַ - tazri'a): From the root "zara'," meaning to scatter seed, sow, propagate. This refers to the laborious and meticulous act of planting seeds in prepared soil, a quintessential agricultural task. The rhetorical question underlines the absurdity of a wild animal engaging in such a specific, cooperative, and non-instinctual behavior.
- your seed (זַרְעֶךָ - zar'echa): "Your seed" refers to Job's crops, implying his livelihood and effort. The emphasis on "your" highlights the human desire to enlist even untamed nature for personal benefit, which God shows to be impossible with the wild ox.
- and gather it (וְאָסַףְתּוֹ - ve'asafeto): From the root "asaf," meaning to collect, gather, take in. This refers to the harvesting process, bringing in the produce from the fields, another crucial step in agriculture requiring diligence and an understanding of human purpose.
- into his barn (גָרְנוֹ - gorno): "Barn" (goren, גֹּרֶן) refers to a threshing floor or granary, a place where grain is collected, threshed, and stored after harvest. It symbolizes human foresight, labor, and economic security. The possessive "his" here, when referring to the wild ox, deepens the irony, as a wild animal would have no concept of such a storage place or its human utility.
Words-group by words-group analysis
- "Will you trust him that he will sow your seed": This phrase combines the idea of trust with a specific agricultural act. Trust in the Bible is often placed in God. Here, it's rhetorically asked about a wild animal performing human tasks, implying foolishness and misdirected confidence. It contrasts the inherent reliability God offers with the absolute unreliability of nature for human subjugation outside its divine design.
- "and gather it into his barn?": This continuation deepens the rhetorical question by extending the concept of wild animal service to the final stage of harvest storage. It points out the sheer absurdity of expecting a creature of instinct and wilderness to engage in cooperative labor for human provision and economic gain, especially building and using human infrastructure like a barn. The implication is clear: such a thing is beyond the will and nature of the wild ox, which exists solely by God's design, independent of human efforts to control or benefit from it directly for labor.
Job 39 12 Bonus section
The rhetorical question concerning the reem in Job 39:9-12 also subtly undermines any ancient Near Eastern beliefs that humans could manipulate or gain dominion over such powerful forces of nature through rituals or mere strength. The reem was often a symbol of untamed power and virility, sometimes even associated with deities or kings in various cultures. By focusing on its unsuitability for ordinary human agricultural tasks, God effectively brings this seemingly mystical or untamable creature down to earth, demonstrating that even it functions squarely within His mundane, yet magnificent, created order, beyond Job’s capacity to bend its will. This particular example highlights that not all creatures are designed for domestication or human service; some embody the very wildness and freedom that speak to God's own untamed power and wisdom in creation.
Job 39 12 Commentary
Job 39:12 succinctly articulates a fundamental theological truth: humanity’s dominion over creation is limited and derived, whereas God's sovereignty is absolute and intrinsic. Through the example of the untamable wild ox, God challenges Job’s capacity to control even the mightiest of creatures for personal gain or human purposes. The question isn't whether the ox physically could sow or gather, but whether Job could command it to do so, and whether it would do so reliably and willingly. The answer is a resounding no, because the ox acts according to the will God implanted in it, not according to human designs for its utility. This highlights that nature serves God's purposes first, and humans are ultimately reliant on God's provision and wisdom rather than their own ability to tame or force every part of creation into their service. The verse functions as a powerful rhetorical device emphasizing human limitation, divine majesty, and the inherent wildness of some creatures, set apart by God Himself.
- Examples for practical usage: Imagine trying to make a wild bear guard your house; expecting a lion to herd your sheep; or assuming a flock of wild geese will harvest your grain field. All are equally absurd scenarios, reinforcing that wild nature serves its Creator’s design, not human demands for domestication and labor.