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Read the Bible

New American Standard Bible (1995)

Job 37:16

"Do you know about the layers of the thick clouds, The wonders of one perfect in knowledge,

Bible Study Resources

Concordances:

- Nave's Topical Bible - Blessing;   God;   God Continued...;   Ignorance;   Meteorology and Celestial Phenomena;   Religion;   Thompson Chain Reference - Clouds;   Mercy;   Meteorology;   Torrey's Topical Textbook - Clouds;   Wisdom of God, the;  

Dictionaries:

- Baker Evangelical Dictionary of Biblical Theology - Cloud, Cloud of the Lord;   Perfect, Perfection;   Providence of God;   Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible - Cloud;   Perfection;   People's Dictionary of the Bible - Elihu;  

Encyclopedias:

- International Standard Bible Encyclopedia - Balancings;   Cloud;   Job, Book of;  

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
Do you understand how the clouds float,those wonderful works of him who has perfect knowledge?
Hebrew Names Version
Do you know the workings of the clouds, The wondrous works of him who is perfect in knowledge?
King James Version
Dost thou know the balancings of the clouds, the wondrous works of him which is perfect in knowledge?
English Standard Version
Do you know the balancings of the clouds, the wondrous works of him who is perfect in knowledge,
New Century Version
Do you know how the clouds hang in the sky? Do you know the miracles of God, who knows everything?
New English Translation
Do you know about the balancing of the clouds, that wondrous activity of him who is perfect in knowledge?
Amplified Bible
"Do you know about the layers of thick clouds [and how they are balanced and poised in the heavens], The wonderful works of Him who is perfect in knowledge,
New American Standard Bible
"Do you know about the hovering of the clouds, The wonders of One who is perfect in knowledge,
World English Bible
Do you know the workings of the clouds, The wondrous works of him who is perfect in knowledge?
Geneva Bible (1587)
Hast thou knowen the varietie of the cloude, and the wonderous workes of him, that is perfite in knowledge?
Legacy Standard Bible
Do you know about the layers of the thick clouds,The wonders of one perfect in knowledge,
Berean Standard Bible
Do you understand how the clouds float, those wonders of Him who is perfect in knowledge?
Contemporary English Version
of God who knows all things? Or how he hangs the clouds in empty space?
Complete Jewish Bible
Do you know how he balances the clouds? These are marvels of him who knows everything!
Darby Translation
Dost thou know about the balancings of the clouds, the wondrous works of him that is perfect in knowledge?
Easy-to-Read Version
Do you know how the clouds hang in the sky? This is just one of the amazing works of the one who knows everything.
George Lamsa Translation
Do you know the balancing of the clouds, the wondrous works of him who is perfect in knowledge?
Good News Translation
Do you know how clouds float in the sky, the work of God's amazing skill?
Lexham English Bible
Do you know about the hovering of the clouds, the marvelous works of the one with perfect knowledge?
Literal Translation
Do you know the balance of the clouds, the wonderful works of Him who is perfect in knowledge,
Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
Art thou of his coucell, when he spredeth out the cloudes? Hast thou the perfecte knowlege of his wonders?
American Standard Version
Dost thou know the balancings of the clouds, The wondrous works of him who is perfect in knowledge?
Bible in Basic English
Have you knowledge of the balancings of the clouds, the wonders of him who has all wisdom?
JPS Old Testament (1917)
Dost thou know the balancings of the clouds, the wondrous works of Him who is perfect in knowledge?
King James Version (1611)
Doest thou know the ballancings of the clouds, the wondrous workes of him which is perfect in knowledge?
Bishop's Bible (1568)
Hast thou knowen the varietie of the cloudes, and the wonderous workes of him which is perfect in knowledge?
Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
And he knows the divisions of the clouds, and the signal overthrows of the ungodly.
English Revised Version
Dost thou know the balancings of the clouds, the wondrous works of him which is perfect in knowledge?
Wycliffe Bible (1395)
Whether thou knowist the grete weies of cloudis, and perfit kunnyngis?
Update Bible Version
Do you know the balancings of the clouds, The wondrous works of him who is perfect in knowledge?
Webster's Bible Translation
Dost thou know the balancings of the clouds, the wondrous works of him who is perfect in knowledge?
New King James Version
Do you know how the clouds are balanced, Those wondrous works of Him who is perfect in knowledge?
New Living Translation
Do you understand how he moves the clouds with wonderful perfection and skill?
New Life Bible
Do you know how the clouds are set in heaven, the great works of Him Who is perfect in understanding?
New Revised Standard
Do you know the balancings of the clouds, the wondrous works of the one whose knowledge is perfect,
J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
Canst thou get to know concerning the poisings of the thick cloud, the wonders of one who is perfect in knowledge?
Douay-Rheims Bible
Knowest thou the great paths of the clouds, and the perfect knowledges?
Revised Standard Version
Do you know the balancings of the clouds, the wondrous works of him who is perfect in knowledge,
Young's Literal Translation
Dost thou know the balancings of a cloud? The wonders of the Perfect in knowledge?

Contextual Overview

14 "Listen to this, O Job, Stand and consider the wonders of God. 15 "Do you know how God establishes them, And makes the lightning of His cloud to shine? 16 "Do you know about the layers of the thick clouds, The wonders of one perfect in knowledge,17 You whose garments are hot, When the land is still because of the south wind? 18 "Can you, with Him, spread out the skies, Strong as a molten mirror? 19 "Teach us what we shall say to Him; We cannot arrange our case because of darkness. 20 "Shall it be told Him that I would speak? Or should a man say that he would be swallowed up?

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

the balancings: Job 26:8, Job 36:29, Psalms 104:2, Psalms 104:3, Isaiah 40:22, Jeremiah 10:13

perfect: Job 36:4, Psalms 104:24, Psalms 147:5, Proverbs 3:19, Proverbs 3:20, Jeremiah 10:12

Reciprocal: Job 35:5 - the clouds John 3:8 - wind

Cross-References

Song of Solomon 1:7
"Tell me, O you whom my soul loves, Where do you pasture your flock, Where do you make it lie down at noon? For why should I be like one who veils herself Beside the flocks of your companions?"
Luke 19:10
"For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost."

Gill's Notes on the Bible

Dost thou know the balancings of the clouds?.... How those ponderous bodies, as some of them are very weighty, full of water, are poised, and hang in the air, without turning this way or the other, or falling on the earth;

the wondrous works of him which is perfect in knowledge; of God, who is a God of knowledge, of knowledges, 1 Samuel 2:3; who knows himself and all his works, all creatures and things whatever, see Job 36:4; and this is another of his wondrous works, which none but he, whose knowledge is perfect, and is the author and giver of knowledge, can know, even the poising and balancing of the clouds in the air; we see they are balanced, but we know not how it is done.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

Dost thou know the balancings of the clouds? - That is, Dost thou know how the clouds are poised and suspended in the air? The difficulty to be explained was, that the clouds, so full of water, did not fail to the earth, but remained suspended in the atmosphere. They were poised and moved about by some unseen hand. Elihu asks what kept them there; what prevented their falling to the earth; what preserved the equilibrium so that they did not all roll together. The phenomena of the clouds would be among the first that would attract the attention of man, and in the early times of Job it is not to be supposed that the subject could be explained. Elihu assumes that they were held in the sky by the power of God, but what was the nature of his agency, he says, man could not understand, and hence, he infers that God should be regarded with profound veneration. We know more of the facts and laws respecting the clouds than was understood then, but our knowledge in this, as in all other things, is fitted only to exalt our conceptions of the Deity, and to change blind wonder into intelligent adoration.

The causes of the suspension of the clouds are thus stated in the Edinburgh Encyclopedia, Art. Meteorology: “When different portions of the atmosphere are intermixed so as to produce a deposition of moisture;” (compare the notes at Job 38:28), “the consequence will be the formation of a cloud. This cloud, from its increased specific gravity, will have a tendency to sink downward; and were the lower strata of the air of the same temperature with the cloud, and saturated with moisture, it would continue to descend until it reached the surface of the earth - in the form of rain, or what is commonly called mist. In general, however, the cloud in its descent passes through a warmer region, when the condensed moisture again passes into a vapor, and consequently ascends until it reaches a temperature sufficiently low to recondense it, when it will begin again to sink. This oscillation will continue until the cloud settles at the point where the temperature and humidity are such as that the condensed moisture begins to be dissipated, and which is found on an average to be between two and three miles above the surface of the earth.” By such laws the “balancing” of the clouds is secured, and thus is shown the wisdom of Him that is “perfect in knowledge.”

The wondrous works of him that is perfect in knowledge - Particularly in the matter under consideration. He who can command the lightning, and hold the clouds suspended in the air, Elihu infers must be perfect in knowledge. To a Being who can do this, everything must be known. The reasoning of Elihu here is well-founded, and is not less forcible now than it was in the time of Job.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse Job 37:16. Dost thou know the balancings of the clouds — How are the clouds suspended in the atmosphere? Art thou so well acquainted with the nature of evaporation, and the gravity of the air at different heights, to support different weights of aqueous vapour, so as to keep them floating for a certain portion of time, and then let them down to water the earth; dost thou know these things so as to determine the laws by which they are regulated?

Wondrous works of him which is perfect in knowledge — This is a paraphrase. Mr. Good's translation is much better: -

"Wonders, perfections of wisdom!"


 
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