Job 38:22–30

The snow and hail are laid up in storehouses — where? Not in some hidden place, in vast masses. Not just in the invisible vapour that fills the sky, as science would say today. Behind all that, those storehouses of mercy and of judgment are in the hand of God. His word produces them — the snow, to protect the grass in winter, and to cool and refresh in summer; the hail, in striking plagues and sweeping judgments.

What questions these are. They cover every department of what man calls "natural sciences" — geology, meteorology, geography, oceanography, astronomy. Job had not a single answer to these questions, and if he had spoken, his words would have been folly... But what is the Lord's aim in putting these questions? To show that God is greater than man, and to humble man. To bring Job to the true knowledge of himself that he needed, and to free him from the pride of his heart.

Snow provides a cover for the earth in winter to protect the ground from freezing deeply. The snow holds treasures Job knew nothing about, and so does the hail. While the snow may be for protection, the hail is reserved for times of trouble, battle and war. Both snow and hail are frozen water, but how different they are when falling on earth!

And He shows that God has a store that man knows nothing about, and He sets it to work whenever it pleases Him... Look at the case of the Amorites, who, on the way to Beth-horon, fell by the hailstones that God rained on them.

The Lord of creation commands and nature obeys, and the hailstones strike not Israel, but the fleeing enemy. Each stone with its own special message distinguishes between Israelite and Canaanite. The sword of Israel and the great stones of the Lord are both guided by the same mighty and unerring Hand.

So the wrath of God rests upon the world, held back indeed by His patient love, which at the same time has provided a place of refuge. But there are still "the treasures of the hail," which He has "reserved for the time of trouble, for the day of battle and war." He will pour them out yet, while the heavens declare His righteousness in it. This is what makes it so terrible: it is the action of righteousness. Faith looks ahead to this and takes it home now, as something that governs one's thoughts and conduct.

What is the effect, then, on a godly man who really believes in Him and His guidance? What is the effect of knowing our ignorance to be so immense? Reliance upon God. There was the great thing in which Job failed, murmured and found fault. He could not understand it. He might have believed, and he ought to have believed. That is where we fail too. We are just as ready to reason and murmur as Job.

What questions these are. They cover every department of what man calls "natural sciences" — geology, meteorology, geography, oceanography, astronomy. Job had not a single answer to these questions, and if he had spoken his words would have been folly. And we, three thousand years later, with all our boasted progress and our discoveries of the great laws of nature, still cannot answer them in any satisfactory way... But what is the Lord's aim in putting these questions? To show that God is greater than man and to humble man. To bring Job to the true knowledge of himself that he needed, and to set him free from the pride of his heart.

God is here bringing to nothing all the proud talk of Job. But He is not satisfied with showing man's littleness by what is vast. He takes up what we might think of as comparatively small things... It matters little whether we look at the greatest or at the least of the works of God. Everywhere we meet what is entirely beyond the reach of man's mind... Job had even presumed to judge God's moral dealings. But he could not face what God is in the least part of His universe. He had not the slightest adequate idea of it.

How amazing are the "partings" of the light — reaching every part of the earth where its rays fall. How unimaginably swift are "the wings of the morning," flashing from sun to earth in a few moments. How beautiful those "partings" are in the spectrum, where the rainbow paints the whole landscape in living colours. Why and how is one object green, another blue, another red?... Science has much to tell us that might well fill us with wonder and amazement, and with awe and worship — of Whom? The more we know only of His displays, the less we really know of Himself. We know Him only as He makes Himself known in Christ.

Man likes to think he is in control of things. But can he control the snow, the hail, or the wind? Verse 24 inserts the matter of the way in which light is diffused before speaking of the east wind. For Job had to realise that the light of God was at work in all His actions. It was at work just as surely when He sent His east wind of strong adversity. God's ways had really been darkness to Job, so he did not understand the way God was diffusing His light.

From the east, the apparent source of the light, comes also the sweeping east wind, spread over the land in the storm. It is a picture of wrath — the wrath of Him who in the light had spoken so quietly. But even the east wind is held in His fists, controlled by His will.

The east wind was destructive to plants and dangerous to ships at sea. It is a symbol of the withering power of God's judgments.

But storms and storm-clouds are only the prelude to the rain. Here too God is seen, bringing refreshment after the storm. So with Job — his chastening will be followed by the showers. Who knows how to "divide," to distribute, these refreshing showers? Man would distribute them unevenly, or at the wrong time. God knows when and how to send the welcome relief.

And then the rain clouds, the lightnings and their control. What questions these are. They cover every department of what man calls "natural sciences" — geology, meteorology, geography, oceanography, astronomy, and the rest. Job had not a single answer to these questions, and if he had spoken his words would have been folly. And we, more than three thousand years later, are still unable to answer these questions in a satisfactory way. All our boasted progress and our scientific discoveries of the great laws of nature have not changed that. But what is the Lord's aim in putting these questions? To show that God is greater than man and to humble man, to bring Job to the needed true knowledge of himself and to deliver him from the pride of his heart.

But storms and storm-clouds are only the prelude to the rain. Here, too, God is seen, bringing refreshment after the storm. So with Job, his chastening will be followed by the showers. Who knows how to "divide," to distribute, these refreshing showers? Man would distribute them unevenly, or at the wrong time. God knows when and how to send the welcome relief. In fact the lightning and the thunder are only the vehicles on which the showers come, as science now declares.

Though the Bible is the most ancient book in the world, it is the most up-to-date, and cannot be otherwise. Some years ago an officer in the army was lecturing to his fellow officers on electricity. He explained Lord Kelvin's great discovery: rain is always caused by an electrical discharge. That discovery has rightly made Kelvin's name famous. This officer was an earnest Christian man, and he carried a well-worn Bible under his red coat. He said, "Gentlemen, I happen to own a very ancient volume that clearly anticipates Lord Kelvin's discovery."

God does think of animals, He thinks even of the insect; He thinks of where no man is; there He has His thoughts and His plans and His goodness.

But God's work is not confined to the needs of humans, little as we may understand these things. Our purely human thoughts centre on ourselves, and that is nothing but misplaced pride. God's thoughts are infinitely higher than we naturally imagine.

How widely spread this rain is, reaching out beyond the places where people live, to the waste places of the earth. Wherever the tiniest blade of grass grows, there you see the truth that "His tender mercies are over all His works."

The voice that came to Job out of the whirlwind brought him into God's presence. Until now he had been greatly ignorant of His character. He had said many excellent things about God, but he had never before known His actual presence. This, we will find, is the key to the amazing change worked in Job.

God does think of animals. He thinks even of the insect. He thinks of where no man is. There He has His thoughts and His plans and His goodness.

Sometimes the rain causes overflowing floods. Sometimes this happens where nobody lives at all. Sometimes it happens where it badly affects the people living there. But God's work is not confined to the needs of humans, little as we may understand these things. Our merely human thoughts centre around ourselves, which is only unseemly pride. God's thoughts are infinitely higher than we naturally imagine.

But storms and storm-clouds are only the prelude to the rain. Here too we see God bringing refreshing after the storm. So with Job, the showers will follow his chastening. Who knows how to "divide," to distribute, these refreshing showers? Man would distribute them unevenly, or at the wrong time. God knows when and how to send the welcome relief.

This rain is spread so widely. It reaches beyond the places where people live, out to the waste places of the earth. Wherever the tiniest blade of grass grows, there you see the truth that "His mercy is over all that He has made."

Had Job been thinking that God did not consider his welfare? Was there any creature, small or mighty, that Jehovah did not care for — the leviathan of the flood waters, or the sparrow on the housetop? He cared for every creature of His in its need. Would God not care for Job too, the highest creature on earth, who also had a life beyond the grave?

These words are not so much a revelation of truth as a question. They ask Job whether he knows the truths that lie all around him in God's vast creation. It is this which makes these words of Jehovah so wonderful. He does not speak "in a tongue no man can understand." He speaks in the language of nature — about the earth, the sky, the clouds and rain, and animals and birds.

What questions these are. They cover every branch of what people call "natural sciences" — geology, meteorology, geography, oceanography, astronomy, and so on. Job had no answer to a single one of them, and if he had spoken his words would have been foolish. Even now, with all our boasted progress and our scientific discoveries of the great laws of nature, we are still unable to answer these questions in a satisfying way... But what is the aim of the Lord in putting these questions? It is to show that God is greater than man and to humble man. It is to bring Job to the true knowledge of himself that he needs, and to free him from the pride of his heart.

These things are not merely acts; they are, so to speak, the offspring of God's love and care. Rain and dew, ice and frost, are all the children of the great and good God.

Jehovah said to His servant Job, "Has the rain a father?" as if to show that the mighty God fathers even a drop of rain. Millions of tons of water rise from the oceans each day by evaporation. The clouds hold it as vapour until the ruler of nature needs it to water His garden.

Where and when the rain falls may seem to us completely random, but it depends simply on the will of our God and Father, who never makes a mistake.

As air cools it can hold less water. The point where the air can hold no more has a name — the "dew point." When the cooling air reaches the dew point, the extra water vapour in the air condenses and forms dew. Dew will form on anything that is cool enough compared with the air around it... This is a very gentle and delicate process, and is the way God "begets each drop of the dew."

Sometimes the rain causes overflowing floods, sometimes even where no one lives, and sometimes where the people are greatly affected by it. But God's work is not confined to the needs of humans, little as we may understand these things. Our merely human thoughts centre on ourselves, and that is nothing but improper pride. God's thoughts are infinitely higher than anything we imagine on our own (Isa. 55:8-9).

Let science tell us all it can discover about the laws and effects of snow crystals, about the changing temperature of air currents, about electric charges and how they even out. Let us go as deep as we can into these secondary causes. We will find that they are the outer court of His tabernacle, the display of His attributes. They lead us on into the holiest place of all, His revealed Person, as seen in Christ Jesus.

"Has the rain a father? Or who has begotten the drops of dew?" (v.28). Where and when the rain falls may seem to us completely random, but it depends simply on the will of our God and Father, who never makes a mistake. In the same way, frost is always sent by Him in perfect wisdom for every occasion (v.29). How it is possible for water to harden like stone is only explained by God's law in sending the cold (v.30). Who really understands this?

Frozen water or snow. God demanded of Job, "From whose womb did the ice come forth, and who has given birth to the frost of heaven?" It is answered in the Psalms: it is God who "hurls down His crystals of ice like crumbs; who can stand before His cold?" Job 6:16; Job 38:29; Ps. 147:17.

Nor are these things merely acts; they are, so to speak, the offspring of God's love and care. Rain and dew, ice and frost, are all the children of the great and good God. "These are Your works, Parent of all good!"

They cover every department of what man calls "natural sciences." These include geology, meteorology, geography, oceanography, astronomy, and so on. Job had not a single answer to these questions, and if he had spoken his words would have been folly. And we live 3000 years or more later. With all our boasted progress and our scientific discoveries of the great laws of nature, we are still unable to answer these questions in a satisfying way. All the boastings of science about getting at the secrets of creation are nothing but foam. One breath of the Almighty scatters man's speculations to the winds, when they are made apart from Him and His Word. But what is the Lord's aim in putting these questions? To show that God is greater than man and to humble man, to bring Job to the needed true knowledge of himself and to deliver him from the pride of his heart.

Let science tell us all it can discover of the laws and effects of the snow crystals, of the changing temperature of the air currents, of electric charges building up and evening out. Let us go as deeply as we can into these secondary causes. We shall find them to be the outer court of His tabernacle, the display of His attributes. They lead us on into the holiest place, into His revealed Person, as seen in Christ Jesus.

What is the effect, then, on a godly man who really believes in Him and His guidance? What is the effect of knowing our ignorance to be so immense? Reliance upon God. That was the great thing in which Job failed, murmured and found fault. He could not understand it. He might have believed and ought to have believed, and that is where we fail too, for we are quite as ready to reason and murmur as Job.

"Has the rain a father? Or who has begotten the drops of dew?" (v.28). Where and when the rain falls may look completely random to us, but it depends only on the will of our God and Father, who never makes a mistake. In the same way, He always sends frost in perfect wisdom for every occasion (v.29). Only one thing explains how water can harden like stone: God's law in sending the cold (v.30). Who truly understands this?

How can we explain ice coming from a womb? A womb is a warm place. Each of us was formed in one! Can ice come from such a place? And how is ice formed? Ice contains much less energy than liquid water. As energy leaves, things get colder. Water freezes at 0 degrees Celsius (32 degrees Fahrenheit). But we must remember where that energy came from before it could leave. It came from the sun. God sent it to us. He sends it and He prepared the way for it to leave. All is in His control. All is for the display of His love and care for us. The ice has come from His "womb"!

It is sad when we reduce everything to an impersonal nature, as if these things simply had to happen, with no reference to anything in particular. But these verses show that God is at work behind what people call nature, and He works with full intelligence.

The first thing God does is to overwhelm the man who dared to sit in judgment on His moral ways. He makes him feel his complete ignorance and helplessness in the smallest works of divine power, even in creation.

And yet modern science must not claim it can answer where Job could not. Outward knowledge has advanced, and great laws and principles of nature have been discovered. But can the scientist of today give truer and more satisfying answers to these questions of God than Job could long ago? … What is the key to all these questions? It is God, the true knowledge of Himself. Knowing Him, we know the Author and Source of all knowledge. Leave Him out, and all of science is a blank wall, with the truth still hidden beyond it.

These things are not just acts; they are, so to speak, the offspring of God's love and care. Rain and dew, ice and frost are all the children of the great and good God.

Can we doubt Him? Shall we misjudge Him? Our unbelief and discontent testify against us, just as Job's complaints did against him.