Job 39:6 kjv
Whose house I have made the wilderness, and the barren land his dwellings.
Job 39:6 nkjv
Whose home I have made the wilderness, And the barren land his dwelling?
Job 39:6 niv
I gave it the wasteland as its home, the salt flats as its habitat.
Job 39:6 esv
to whom I have given the arid plain for his home and the salt land for his dwelling place?
Job 39:6 nlt
I have placed it in the wilderness;
its home is the wasteland.
Job 39 6 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Gen 1:1 | In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. | God as the ultimate Creator |
| Ps 24:1 | The earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it. | God's absolute ownership and dominion |
| Ps 104:10-14 | He makes springs pour into the ravines...to water all the beasts of the field. | God provides sustenance for all creation |
| Ps 104:24 | How many are your works, Lord! In wisdom you made them all; the earth is full of your creatures. | God's wisdom in creation's vastness |
| Job 38:25-27 | Who cuts a channel for the torrents of rain, and a path for the thunderstorm, to satisfy a desolate wasteland...? | God's provision of water for wild, empty lands |
| Job 39:5 | Who let the wild donkey go free? Who untied its ropes? | Immediate context: the untamed nature of the wild ass |
| Isa 32:15 | till the Spirit is poured on us from on high, and the desert becomes a fruitful field... | Spiritual transformation of wilderness |
| Isa 41:18 | I will make rivers flow on barren heights, and springs in the midst of the valleys. | God's power to transform arid lands |
| Hos 2:3 | Lest I strip her naked, and make her as in the day she was born, and make her like a wilderness... | Wilderness as a symbol of judgment/desolation |
| Deut 8:15 | He led you through the vast and dreadful wilderness, that thirsty and waterless land... | Wilderness as a place of trial and divine leading |
| Matt 3:1 | In those days John the Baptist came, preaching in the wilderness of Judea. | Wilderness as a setting for divine calling |
| Matt 6:26 | Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. | God's constant provision for His creatures |
| Heb 1:3 | The Son is the radiance of God’s glory...sustaining all things by his powerful word. | Christ's role in upholding creation |
| Col 1:16-17 | For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth...and in him all things hold together. | Christ as creator and sustainer |
| Ps 8:6 | You made them rulers over the works of your hands; you put everything under their feet. | Man's delegated dominion within God's sovereignty |
| Jer 2:6 | Nor did they ask, 'Where is the Lord, who brought us up out of Egypt, who led us through the wilderness...? | Remembrance of God's guidance through the wilderness |
| Jer 17:6 | They will be like a bush in the wastelands; they will not see prosperity when it comes. | Barren land as a metaphor for spiritual dryness/distrust |
| Job 39:7-8 | It scorns the noisy city and pays no attention to a driver's shout. It roams the hills for its pasture. | Description of the wild ass's free, chosen habitat |
| Ps 145:15-16 | The eyes of all look to you, and you give them their food at the proper time. You open your hand and satisfy the desires of every living thing. | God's timely and abundant provision |
| Gen 9:2 | The fear and dread of you will fall on all the beasts of the earth... | Divine establishment of order and hierarchy post-Flood |
| Prov 30:24-28 | Four things on earth are small, yet they are extremely wise: ants are creatures of little strength, yet they store up their food in the summer... | God's wisdom evident in diverse small creatures |
| Neh 9:21 | For forty years you sustained them in the wilderness; they lacked nothing. | God's complete sustenance even in desolation |
| Hab 3:17 | Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines... yet I will rejoice in the Lord. | Faith in God's provision despite barren circumstances |
| Rom 1:20 | For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen... | Creation reveals God's attributes to humanity |
Job 39 verses
Job 39 6 Meaning
Job 39:6 declares that God Himself has designated the expansive wilderness and the infertile, barren lands as the native habitat and permanent dwelling place for the wild donkey. This verse powerfully conveys divine sovereignty over all creation, highlighting God's meticulous wisdom and active involvement in establishing specific environments for His creatures, especially for those that remain untamed by human hands. It emphasizes that even in seemingly desolate or harsh conditions, life thrives under God's purposeful design and sustenance.
Job 39 6 Context
Job 39:6 is a part of God's majestic discourse to Job, found in chapters 38-41, where the Almighty answers Job's questioning from a whirlwind. After Job and his friends have exhausted their human arguments concerning suffering and justice, God steps in to reveal His infinite power, wisdom, and sovereign control over all creation. God’s questions are rhetorical, designed not for Job to answer, but to humble him by highlighting the incomprehensibility of divine works and purposes. Chapter 39 specifically details God's creation and governance of various untamed wild animals—the wild donkey (verses 5-8), the wild ox, the ostrich, the warhorse, the hawk, and the eagle—each exhibiting unique traits beyond human comprehension or control. For the original ancient Near Eastern audience, familiar with the challenges of arid landscapes, the midbar (wilderness) and məlēḥāh (barren, salty land) represented desolate, inhospitable environments. The pere (wild donkey or onager) was a widely recognized symbol of indomitable wildness and independence, notorious for its resistance to domestication. By stating that He "made" these places the wild donkey's "house" and "dwellings," God underscores His intentional design and absolute authority over both the animal's intrinsic nature and its specific habitat. This also serves as a polemic, asserting God’s supreme rule over all natural phenomena, directly challenging any human assumption that chaos or freedom in creation exists outside of His precise, overarching will.
Job 39 6 Word analysis
- Whose house: Refers to the wild donkey (the pere') introduced in the preceding verse. The Hebrew bêṯō (בֵּיתוֹ), from bayit (בַּיִת), means "his house, dwelling place." It signifies a divinely designated and permanent habitat, indicating that God, as Creator, has specific locations appointed for each of His creatures, establishing their inherent belonging.
- I have made: The crucial Hebrew verb here is śaṃtî (שַׂמְתִּי), derived from sîm (שִׂים), meaning "to set, place, put, appoint, make." The "I" unequivocally refers to God, emphasizing His direct, deliberate, and active agency in assigning the wild donkey its dwelling. This highlights divine sovereignty and purposeful action, not mere happenstance.
- the wilderness: (Hebrew: מִדְבָּר, miḏbār). Typically an uncultivated, arid, and often desolate region, distinct from cultivated land or human settlements. In biblical narratives, the midbar often serves as a place of testing, spiritual encounter, or solitude. Here, it denotes the extensive, untamed natural environment that is the wild donkey's domain, untouched by human manipulation.
- and the barren land: (Hebrew: מְלֵחָה, məlēḥâ). From melaḥ (מֶלַח), "salt," indicating a salty, infertile, and unproductive tract of ground. This specifies an extremely harsh and sterile environment, reinforcing the challenging nature of the wild donkey's appointed home. Its inclusion highlights God's power to sustain life even in conditions most adverse to human habitation.
- his dwellings: (Hebrew: מִשְׁכְּנֹתָיו, miškanōṯāw). From mishkan (מִשְׁכָּן), meaning "dwelling place, tabernacle, residence." The plural form intensifies the concept of "house," implying a vast, continuous range or multiple habitations within this harsh region. It reiterates that these desolate lands are the creature's God-given, permanent residence, emphasizing God's detailed allocation.
- "Whose house... his dwellings": This use of synonymous parallelism stresses that the habitat is a fundamental, divinely established aspect of the wild ass’s existence. It conveys the idea of a fixed and secure abode within creation, reinforcing that even wild, seemingly unordered places have specific, God-ordained inhabitants.
- "I have made the wilderness, and the barren land": This phrase underscores God's active, hands-on role in orchestrating diverse ecosystems. It conveys a profound truth that every environmental niche, no matter how harsh, is purposed and precisely designed by the Creator for its specific inhabitants. This negates any idea of chance in creation's design.
Job 39 6 Bonus section
The pere, or wild donkey (onager), held a unique status in the ancient Near East as a symbol of untamable liberty, swiftness, and resilience. Its mention immediately following the query "Who let the wild donkey go free?" (Job 39:5) emphasizes that this creature's famous independence from human subjugation is not anarchic but divinely ordained freedom. God's specific allocation of the wilderness as its dwelling highlights that even perceived "wildness" operates within His meticulously crafted design. This truth beautifully illustrates God's ability to maintain order through diverse forms of freedom and reinforces His overarching dominion, ensuring that no creature, however unruly, or environment, however desolate, functions outside His purposeful control. It challenges the human tendency to categorize things as "controlled" or "uncontrolled" solely from a human perspective, revealing God’s consistent stewardship over every facet of His handiwork.
Job 39 6 Commentary
Job 39:6 serves as a powerful declaration of God's unmatched sovereignty, profound wisdom, and intricate provision within His creation. By taking the seemingly chaotic and wild life of the onager (wild donkey), and specifically its desolate habitat in the wilderness and barren lands, God illustrates that every detail of the natural world, even its most untamable aspects and most unforgiving environments, falls under His precise and intentional design. He not only permits the wild ass to dwell there but actively "makes" or assigns these challenging terrains as its permanent home. This showcases God's incredible power to sustain life and order where human beings struggle, demonstrating His control extends far beyond human grasp or comprehension. The verse profoundly humbles Job, revealing that the Creator's governance is absolute, reaching into every nook of existence, asserting that chaos itself is structured by divine command, and purpose can be found even in the "barren."