The Daily Audio Bible Reading for Wednesday August 31, 2022 (NIV)

Job 37-39

Elihu Proclaims God's Majesty

37 “At this also my heart trembles
and leaps out of its place.
Keep listening to the thunder of his voice
and the rumbling that comes from his mouth.
Under the whole heaven he lets it go,
and his (A)lightning to the (B)corners of the earth.
After it (C)his voice roars;
(D)he thunders with his majestic voice,
and he does not restrain the lightnings[a] when his voice is heard.
God thunders wondrously with his voice;
he does (E)great things that we cannot (F)comprehend.
For to (G)the snow he says, ‘Fall on the earth,’
likewise to the downpour, his mighty downpour.
He (H)seals up the hand of every man,
that all men whom he made may (I)know it.
Then the beasts go into their (J)lairs,
and remain in their (K)dens.
From (L)its chamber (M)comes the whirlwind,
and (N)cold from the scattering winds.
10 By the breath of God (O)ice is given,
and (P)the broad waters are frozen fast.
11 He loads the thick cloud with moisture;
the clouds scatter his lightning.
12 They (Q)turn around and around by his (R)guidance,
(S)to accomplish all that he commands them
on the face of (T)the habitable world.
13 Whether for (U)correction or for his (V)land
or for (W)love, he causes it to happen.

14 “Hear this, O Job;
stop and (X)consider the wondrous works of God.
15 Do you know how God lays his command upon them
and causes the lightning of his cloud to shine?
16 Do you know the balancings[b] of the clouds,
the wondrous works of him who is (Y)perfect in knowledge,
17 you whose garments are hot
when the earth is still because of the south wind?
18 Can you, like him, (Z)spread out the skies,
hard as a cast metal (AA)mirror?
19 Teach us what we shall say to him;
we cannot draw up our case because of (AB)darkness.
20 Shall it be told him that I would speak?
Did a man ever wish that he would be swallowed up?

21 “And now no one looks on the light
when it is bright in the skies,
when the wind has passed and cleared them.
22 Out of the north comes golden splendor;
God is clothed with (AC)awesome majesty.
23 The Almighty—we (AD)cannot find him;
he is (AE)great in power;
(AF)justice and abundant righteousness he will not (AG)violate.
24 Therefore men (AH)fear him;
he does not regard any who are (AI)wise in their own conceit.”[c]

The Lord Answers Job

38 Then the Lord (AJ)answered Job out of the whirlwind and said:

“Who is this that (AK)darkens counsel by words (AL)without knowledge?
(AM)Dress for action[d] like a man;
I will question you, and you make it known to me.

“Where were you when I (AN)laid the foundation of the earth?
Tell me, if you have understanding.
Who determined its measurements—surely you know!
Or who stretched the line upon it?
On what were its bases sunk,
or who laid its cornerstone,
when the morning stars (AO)sang together
and all (AP)the sons of God (AQ)shouted for joy?

“Or who (AR)shut in the sea with doors
when it burst out from the womb,
when I made clouds its garment
and (AS)thick darkness its swaddling band,
10 and prescribed (AT)limits for it
and set bars and doors,
11 and said, ‘Thus far shall you come, and no farther,
and here shall your (AU)proud waves be stayed’?

12 “Have you (AV)commanded the morning since your days began,
and caused the dawn to know its place,
13 that it might take hold of (AW)the skirts of the earth,
and the wicked be (AX)shaken out of it?
14 It is changed like clay under the seal,
and its features stand out like a garment.
15 From the wicked their (AY)light is withheld,
and (AZ)their uplifted arm is broken.

16 “Have you (BA)entered into the springs of the sea,
or walked in the recesses of the deep?
17 Have (BB)the gates of death been revealed to you,
or have you seen the gates of (BC)deep darkness?
18 Have you comprehended the expanse of the earth?
Declare, if you know all this.

19 “Where is the way to the dwelling of light,
and where is the place of darkness,
20 that you may take it to its territory
and that you may discern (BD)the paths to its home?
21 You know, for (BE)you were born then,
and the number of your days is great!

22 “Have you entered (BF)the storehouses of the snow,
or have you seen (BG)the storehouses of the hail,
23 which I have reserved (BH)for the time of trouble,
(BI)for the day of battle and war?
24 What is the way to the place where the light is distributed,
or where the east wind is scattered upon the earth?

25 “Who has cleft a channel for the torrents of rain
and (BJ)a way for the thunderbolt,
26 to bring rain on (BK)a land where no man is,
on (BL)the desert in which there is no man,
27 to satisfy the waste and desolate land,
and to make the ground sprout with (BM)grass?

28 “Has (BN)the rain a father,
or who has begotten the drops of dew?
29 From whose womb did (BO)the ice come forth,
and who has given birth to (BP)the frost of heaven?
30 The waters become hard like stone,
and the face of the deep is (BQ)frozen.

31 “Can you bind the chains of (BR)the Pleiades
or loose the cords of (BS)Orion?
32 Can you lead forth the Mazzaroth[e] in their season,
or can you guide (BT)the Bear with its children?
33 Do you know (BU)the ordinances of the heavens?
Can you establish their rule on the earth?

34 “Can you lift up your voice to the clouds,
that (BV)a flood of waters may cover you?
35 Can you send forth lightnings, that they may go
and say to you, ‘Here we are’?
36 Who has (BW)put wisdom in (BX)the inward parts[f]
or given understanding to the mind?[g]
37 Who can number the clouds by wisdom?
Or who can tilt the waterskins of the heavens,
38 when the dust runs into a mass
and (BY)the clods stick fast together?

39 “Can you hunt the prey for the lion,
or (BZ)satisfy the appetite of the young lions,
40 when they crouch in their (CA)dens
or lie in wait (CB)in their thicket?
41 Who provides for (CC)the raven its prey,
when its young ones cry to God for help,
and wander about for lack of food?

39 “Do you know when (CD)the mountain goats give birth?
Do you observe (CE)the calving of the does?
Can you number the months that they fulfill,
and do you know the time when they give birth,
when they (CF)crouch, bring forth their offspring,
and are delivered of their young?
Their young ones become strong; they grow up in the open;
they go out and (CG)do not return to them.

“Who has let the wild donkey go free?
Who has (CH)loosed the bonds of the swift donkey,
to whom I have given (CI)the arid plain for his home
and (CJ)the salt land for his dwelling place?
He scorns the tumult of the city;
he hears not the shouts of the driver.
He ranges the mountains as his pasture,
and he searches after every green thing.

“Is (CK)the wild ox willing to serve you?
Will he spend the night at your (CL)manger?
10 Can you bind (CM)him in the furrow with ropes,
or will he harrow the valleys after you?
11 Will you depend on him because his strength is great,
and will you leave to him your labor?
12 Do you have faith in him that he will return your grain
and gather it to your threshing floor?

13 “The wings of the ostrich wave proudly,
but are they the pinions and plumage of love?[h]
14 For she leaves her eggs to the earth
and lets them be warmed on the ground,
15 forgetting that a foot may crush them
and that the wild beast may trample them.
16 She (CN)deals cruelly with her young, as if they were not hers;
though her (CO)labor be in vain, yet she has no fear,
17 because God has made her forget wisdom
and (CP)given her no share in understanding.
18 When she rouses herself to flee,[i]
she laughs at the horse and his rider.

19 “Do you give the horse his might?
Do you clothe his neck with a mane?
20 Do you make him leap like the locust?
His majestic (CQ)snorting is terrifying.
21 He paws[j] in the valley and exults in his strength;
he (CR)goes out to meet the weapons.
22 He laughs at fear and is not dismayed;
he does not turn back from the sword.
23 Upon him rattle the quiver,
the flashing spear, and the javelin.
24 With fierceness and rage he swallows the ground;
he cannot stand still at (CS)the sound of the trumpet.
25 When the trumpet sounds, he says ‘Aha!’
He smells the battle from afar,
the thunder of the captains, and the shouting.

26 “Is it by your understanding that the hawk soars
and spreads his wings toward the south?
27 Is it at your command that the eagle mounts up
and makes his (CT)nest on high?
28 On the rock he dwells and makes his home,
on (CU)the rocky crag and stronghold.
29 From there he spies out the prey;
his eyes behold it from far away.
30 His young ones suck up blood,
and (CV)where the slain are, there is he.”

Footnotes:

  1. Job 37:4 Hebrew them
  2. Job 37:16 Or hoverings
  3. Job 37:24 Hebrew in heart
  4. Job 38:3 Hebrew Gird up your loins
  5. Job 38:32 Probably the name of a constellation
  6. Job 38:36 Or in the ibis
  7. Job 38:36 Or rooster
  8. Job 39:13 The meaning of the Hebrew is uncertain
  9. Job 39:18 The meaning of the Hebrew is uncertain
  10. Job 39:21 Hebrew They paw

Cross references:

  1. Job 37:3 : ch. 36:30, 32
  2. Job 37:3 : ch. 38:13; [Isa. 11:12; Ezek. 7:2]
  3. Job 37:4 : ch. 40:9; Ps. 68:33; See Ps. 29:3-9
  4. Job 37:4 : Ps. 18:13
  5. Job 37:5 : See ch. 5:9
  6. Job 37:5 : ch. 36:26
  7. Job 37:6 : Ps. 147:16, 17
  8. Job 37:7 : Dan. 12:9; [ch. 14:17]
  9. Job 37:7 : Ps. 109:27
  10. Job 37:8 : ch. 38:40
  11. Job 37:8 : Ps. 104:22
  12. Job 37:9 : ch. 9:9
  13. Job 37:9 : Isa. 21:1; [ch. 1:19]
  14. Job 37:9 : Ps. 147:17
  15. Job 37:10 : ch. 38:29, 30; Ps. 147:17
  16. Job 37:10 : [ch. 36:16]
  17. Job 37:12 : Gen. 3:24
  18. Job 37:12 : Ps. 148:8
  19. Job 37:12 : Ps. 148:8
  20. Job 37:12 : [Prov. 8:31]
  21. Job 37:13 : Ex. 9:18, 23; 1 Sam. 12:18, 19; Ezra 10:9; [ch. 36:31; 38:22, 23]
  22. Job 37:13 : ch. 38:26, 27
  23. Job 37:13 : 1 Kgs. 18:45
  24. Job 37:14 : [Ps. 111:2]
  25. Job 37:16 : ch. 36:4; [1 Sam. 2:3]
  26. Job 37:18 : Isa. 42:5; 44:24; [Gen. 1:6]
  27. Job 37:18 : [Ex. 38:8]
  28. Job 37:19 : Isa. 60:2; [Eph. 4:18]
  29. Job 37:22 : [Ps. 104:1]
  30. Job 37:23 : 1 Tim. 6:16
  31. Job 37:23 : ch. 36:5
  32. Job 37:23 : Ps. 99:4
  33. Job 37:23 : Lam. 3:33
  34. Job 37:24 : Ps. 130:4; [Matt. 10:28]
  35. Job 37:24 : [Isa. 5:21; Matt. 11:25; 1 Cor. 1:26]
  36. Job 38:1 : ch. 40:6; [ch. 13:22]
  37. Job 38:2 : ch. 42:3
  38. Job 38:2 : See ch. 35:16
  39. Job 38:3 : 1 Kgs. 18:46
  40. Job 38:4 : Ps. 104:5; [Prov. 30:4; Isa. 40:12-14]; See Prov. 8:24-29
  41. Job 38:7 : [Ps. 19:1-4]
  42. Job 38:7 : See ch. 1:6
  43. Job 38:7 : [Luke 2:13, 14]
  44. Job 38:8 : Gen. 1:9; Ps. 33:7; 104:8, 9; Jer. 5:22
  45. Job 38:9 : ch. 22:13
  46. Job 38:10 : [ver. 33 (Heb.)]
  47. Job 38:11 : [Ps. 65:7; 89:9; 93:4]
  48. Job 38:12 : Ps. 65:8; 74:16
  49. Job 38:13 : ch. 37:3
  50. Job 38:13 : [Neh. 5:13]
  51. Job 38:15 : ch. 18:5; [Matt. 6:23]; See ch. 24:13-17
  52. Job 38:15 : Ps. 10:15; 37:17; Ezek. 30:21, 22
  53. Job 38:16 : Ps. 77:19
  54. Job 38:17 : Ps. 9:13; 107:18; [Isa. 38:10; Matt. 16:18]
  55. Job 38:17 : See ch. 3:5
  56. Job 38:20 : ch. 24:13
  57. Job 38:21 : [ch. 15:7]
  58. Job 38:22 : [Ps. 135:7]
  59. Job 38:22 : [Ps. 135:7]
  60. Job 38:23 : Josh. 10:11; Isa. 28:17; 30:30; Ezek. 13:11, 13; 38:22; Rev. 16:21; [ch. 37:13]
  61. Job 38:23 : Josh. 10:11; Isa. 28:17; 30:30; Ezek. 13:11, 13; 38:22; Rev. 16:21; [ch. 37:13]
  62. Job 38:25 : ch. 28:26
  63. Job 38:26 : [ch. 37:13]
  64. Job 38:26 : Ps. 107:35
  65. Job 38:27 : Gen. 1:11; 2 Sam. 23:4
  66. Job 38:28 : Ps. 147:8; Jer. 14:22
  67. Job 38:29 : Ps. 147:16, 17
  68. Job 38:29 : Ps. 147:16, 17
  69. Job 38:30 : [ch. 37:10]
  70. Job 38:31 : ch. 9:9; Amos 5:8
  71. Job 38:31 : ch. 9:9; Amos 5:8
  72. Job 38:32 : [See ver. 31 above]; ch. 9:9; Amos 5:8
  73. Job 38:33 : Jer. 31:35
  74. Job 38:34 : ch. 22:11
  75. Job 38:36 : See ch. 32:8
  76. Job 38:36 : Ps. 51:6
  77. Job 38:38 : ch. 21:33
  78. Job 38:39 : [Ps. 104:21]
  79. Job 38:40 : ch. 37:8
  80. Job 38:40 : Ps. 17:12
  81. Job 38:41 : Ps. 147:9; Luke 12:24; [Matt. 6:26]
  82. Job 39:1 : 1 Sam. 24:2; Ps. 104:18
  83. Job 39:1 : Ps. 29:9
  84. Job 39:3 : 1 Sam. 4:19
  85. Job 39:4 : [Gen. 8:12]
  86. Job 39:5 : [ch. 12:18; Ps. 116:16]
  87. Job 39:6 : ch. 24:5; Jer. 2:24
  88. Job 39:6 : Ps. 107:34; Jer. 17:6; [Deut. 29:23]
  89. Job 39:9 : Num. 23:22
  90. Job 39:9 : Prov. 14:4; Isa. 1:3
  91. Job 39:10 : [See ver. 9 above]; Num. 23:22
  92. Job 39:16 : [Lam. 4:3]
  93. Job 39:16 : Isa. 49:4; 65:23
  94. Job 39:17 : [ch. 35:11]
  95. Job 39:20 : Jer. 8:16
  96. Job 39:21 : [Jer. 8:6]
  97. Job 39:24 : Jer. 4:19; Amos 3:6
  98. Job 39:27 : [Num. 24:21; Jer. 49:16; Obad. 4; Hab. 2:9]
  99. Job 39:28 : 1 Sam. 14:5
  100. Job 39:30 : Matt. 24:28; Luke 17:37
English Standard Version (ESV)

The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright ©2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

2 Corinthians 4:13-5:10

13 Since we have (A)the same spirit of faith according to what has been written, (B)“I believed, and so I spoke,” we also believe, and so we also speak, 14 knowing that (C)he who raised the Lord Jesus (D)will raise us also with Jesus and (E)bring us with you into his presence. 15 For (F)it is all for your sake, so that as (G)grace extends to more and more people it may increase thanksgiving, (H)to the glory of God.

16 So we do not lose heart. (I)Though our outer self[a] is wasting away, (J)our inner self (K)is being renewed day by day. 17 For (L)this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, 18 (M)as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal.

Our Heavenly Dwelling

For we know that if (N)the tent that is (O)our earthly home is destroyed, we have a building from God, (P)a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. For in this tent (Q)we groan, longing to (R)put on our heavenly dwelling, if indeed by putting it on[b] we may not be found naked. For while we are still in this tent, we groan, being burdened—not that we would be unclothed, but that we would be further clothed, so that what is mortal (S)may be swallowed up by life. He who has prepared us for this very thing is God, (T)who has given us the Spirit as a guarantee.

So we are always of good courage. We know that (U)while we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord, for (V)we walk by faith, not (W)by sight. Yes, we are of good courage, and we (X)would rather be away from the body and at home with the Lord. So whether we are at home or away, we make it our aim to (Y)please him. 10 For (Z)we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, (AA)so that each one may receive what is due for what he has done in the body, whether good or evil.

Footnotes:

  1. 2 Corinthians 4:16 Greek man
  2. 2 Corinthians 5:3 Some manuscripts putting it off
English Standard Version (ESV)

The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright ©2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

Psalm 44:9-26

But you have (A)rejected us and disgraced us
and (B)have not gone out with our armies.
10 You have made us (C)turn back from the foe,
and those who hate us have gotten spoil.
11 You have made us like (D)sheep for slaughter
and have (E)scattered us among the nations.
12 (F)You have sold your people for a trifle,
demanding no high price for them.
13 You have made us (G)the taunt of our neighbors,
the derision and (H)scorn of those around us.
14 You have made us (I)a byword among the nations,
(J)a laughingstock[a] among the peoples.
15 All day long my disgrace is before me,
and (K)shame has covered my face
16 at the sound of the taunter and reviler,
at the sight of (L)the enemy and the avenger.

17 (M)All this has come upon us,
though we have not forgotten you,
and we have not been false to your covenant.
18 Our heart has not turned back,
nor have our (N)steps (O)departed from your way;
19 yet you have (P)broken us in the place of (Q)jackals
and covered us with (R)the shadow of death.
20 If we had forgotten the name of our God
or (S)spread out our hands to (T)a foreign god,
21 (U)would not God discover this?
(V)For he knows the secrets of the heart.
22 Yet (W)for your sake we are killed all the day long;
we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered.

23 (X)Awake! Why are you sleeping, O Lord?
Rouse yourself! (Y)Do not reject us forever!
24 Why (Z)do you hide your face?
Why do you forget our affliction and oppression?
25 For our (AA)soul is bowed down to the dust;
our belly clings to the ground.
26 Rise up; (AB)come to our help!
(AC)Redeem us for the sake of your steadfast love!

Footnotes:

  1. Psalm 44:14 Hebrew a shaking of the head
English Standard Version (ESV)

The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright ©2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

Proverbs 22:13

13 (A)The sluggard says, “There is a lion outside!
I shall be killed in the streets!”

Cross references:

  1. Proverbs 22:13 : ch. 26:13
English Standard Version (ESV)

The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright ©2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.