This blog concludes the 39th chapter of the Book of Job with God at first speaking more about the ostrich. The bird’s carelessness and even indifference with its young do seem truly unique. The wild ostrich has been known to destroy its nests of eggs that it scatters about in the event that they are discovered by other creatures. He then speaks to her swiftness, which makes us marvel at this flightless bird that, when chased by a horse and rider, can make leaps of nearly 5 meters at a time, reaching speeds of more than 40 miles per hour.

Terracota warriors and horses, Xian, China. These warriors guarded the tomb of Qin Shi Huangdi, a despotic ruler of China about 2,200 years ago. There are 7,000 figures, each originally covered with colorful paint. The ruler forced 70,000 people to work 36 years to build these warriors and the tomb. Archaeological excavations began in 1974 when the site was discovered by a farmer digging a well.

In verses 19-25, God turns to the horse with his fearless nature and awesome power. This marvelous creature was used in war for centuries, fearlessly carrying its warrior to battle straight into the path of the enemy’s weapons. He then turns to the hawk and the eagle. These majestic birds make their homes high upon the rocks of the mountains, spying out their prey, and “where the slain are, there is he.”

These last two chapters show us just a small inkling of His dominion over creation and all living things, each and every one created by God, who is always aware of all that they are and do. The world is a huge, populous, and complicated mechanism filled with individual wonders of all kinds, but none of it is too great for Him too maintain.

Read or listen to audio of ESV version of this selection from this link.

/Bob’s boy

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some images © V. Gilbert & Arlisle F. Beers

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