Job 38:33

Job 38:33 Knowest thou the ordinances of heaven? canst thou set the dominion thereof in the earth?

Ver. 33. Knowest thou the ordinances of heaven?] Either how to order them, as master over them, or to comprehend what they are certainly and perfectly.

Canst thou set the dominion thereof in the earth?] As well in regard to the motion of the heavens, which varieth the seasons of the year, as of the influences and virtue which cometh from thence. For they who think that the superior bodies have no power at all upon these inferior do go against common sense and experience, yea, this and many other texts of Scriptures; which yet make nothing at all for that judiciary astrology so much cried up in these last and worst days of the world, by some who would have the manners, studies, and events of every man to depend upon the stars, yea, the rise and ruin of kingdoms, arts, religion, &c.

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Canst thou cause the heavenly bodies to have any power over the earthly bodies?

Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain. Text via Bolls.life.

ordinances--which regulate the alternations of seasons, &c. (Gen 8:22).

dominion--controlling influence of the heavenly bodies, the sun, moon, &c., on the earth (on the tides, weather) (Gen 1:16; Psa 136:7-9).

Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Verse 33. Knowest thou the ordinances of heaven?] Art thou a thorough astronomer? Art thou acquainted with all the laws of the planetary system? Canst thou account for the difference of their motions, and the influence by which they are retained and revolve in their orbits? And canst thou tell what influence or dominion they exercise on the earth? Sir Isaac Newton has given us much light on many of these things; but to his system, which is most probably the true one, gravity is essential; and yet what this gravity is he could neither explain nor comprehend; and his followers are not one whit wiser than he. No man has ever yet fully found out the ordinances of heaven, and the dominion thereof on the earth.

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

(33) The ordinances of heaven.—Comp. Job_28:26. That is, the recurring seasons and their power of influencing the earth.

A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

33. canst thou set] Rather, as before, dost thou set? The idea is that the heavens and the stars exercise an influence over the earth and the destinies of man.

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Who hath put wisdom in the inward parts?.... That is, of man, in his heart, as explained in the next clause; such wisdom as to guide the stars, know the ordinances of heaven, set their dominion on earth, manage and direct the clouds and lightning; no such wisdom is put in man:

or who hath, given understanding to the heart? to understand all the above things, and answer to the several questions put in this chapter; though, as these clauses may respect much one and the same thing, they may be understood of wisdom and understanding in man, whether natural or spiritual; and seeing they are found there, the question is, who put them there, or how came they there? who gave them to him? the answer must be, God himself, and no other; man has his rational soul, his intellectual powers, the light of nature and reason in him; all his understanding in arts and sciences, trades and manufactures, is of the Lord, and not of himself or another, see Job 32:8; all spiritual wisdom and understanding which lies in a man's concern for his eternal welfare in the knowledge of himself, and of his state and condition by nature, and of the way of life and salvation by Christ, and of the truths and doctrines of the Gospel, is all of God and Christ, and by the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him; no man, therefore, has any reason to glory in his wisdom and knowledge, of whatsoever kind, as though he had not received it; nor should he dare to arraign the wisdom of God in his providential dealings with men; since he that teaches man knowledge must needs know better than man how to govern the world he has made, and dispose of all things in it. The last clause is in the Vulgate Latin rendered, "who hath given to the cock understanding?" and so the Targums and other Jewish writers (p) interpret it; and they observe (q), that in Arabia a cock is called by the word that is here used; and in their morning prayers, and at hearing a cock crow (r),

"Blessed be the Lord, who giveth to the cock understanding to distinguish between the day and the night:''

but however remarkable the understanding of this creature is, which God has given it, and which is even taken notice of by Heathen writers (s); that it should know the stars, distinguish the hours of the night by crowing, and express its joy at the rising of the sun and moon; yet such a sense of the text seems impertinent, as well as that of the Septuagint version, of giving to women the wisdom and knowledge of weaving and embroidery.

(p) Jarchi, Ramban, Simeon Bar. Tzemach. (q) Vajikra Rabba, s. 25. fol. 166. 1. Vid. T. Roshhashanah, fol. 26. 1. (r) Seder Tephillot. fol. 2. 2. Ed. Basil. & Bab. Beracot, fol. 60. 2. (s) Plin. Nat. Hist. l. 10. c. 21. Aelian. de Animal. l. 4. c. 29.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Knowest thou the ordinances of heaven? - The laws or statutes by which the motions of the heavenly bodies are governed. These were wholly unknown in the time of Job, and the discovery of some of those laws - for only a few of them are yet known - was reserved to be the glory of the modern system of astronomy. The suggestion of the great principles of the system gave immortality to the name Copernicus; and the discovery of those laws in modern times has conferred immortality on the names of Brahe, Kepler, and Newton. The laws which control the heavenly bodies are the most sublime that are known to man, and have done more to impress the human mind with a sense of the majesty of God than any other: discoveries made in the material universe. Of course, all those laws were known to God himself, and he appeals to them in proof of his greatness and majesty. The grand and beautiful movements of the heavenly bodies in the time of Job were fitted to produce admiration; and one of the chief delights of those that dwelt under the splendor of an Oriental sky was to contemplate those movements, and to give names to those moving lights. The discoveries of science have enlarged the conceptions of man in regard to the starry heavens far toward immensity; have shown that these twinkling lights are vast worlds and systems, and at the same time have so disclosed the laws by which they are governed as to promote, where the heart is right, intelligent piety, and elevate the mind to more glorious views of the Creator.

Canst thou set the dominion thereof in the earth? - That is, “dost thou assign the dominion of the heavens over the earth?” The reference is, undoubtedly, to the influence of the heavenly bodies upon sublunary objects. The exact extent of that cannot be supposed to have been known in the days of Job, and it is probable that much more was ascribed to the influence of the stars on human affairs than the truth would justify. Nor is its extent now known. It is known that the moon has an influence over the tides of the ocean; it may be that it has to some extent over the weather; and it is not impossible that the other heavenly bodies may have some effect on the changes observed in the earth which is not understood. Whatever it is, it was and is all known to God, and the idea here is, that it was a proof of his immense superiority over man.

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

Reason. Hebrew, "dominion," (Haydock) or influence upon the earth. Mathematicians thought they had discovered these laws, and the number of the stars; but daily experience evinces their error. (Menochius)

George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).

Knowest thou? either,

1. Simply, and by speculation, dost thou understand them? Or,

2. Practically, or operatively, so as to establish or rule them, as the next clause implies.

The ordinances of heaven; the laws, which are firmly established concerning their order, motion, or rest and their powerful influences upon this lower world. Didst thou give these laws? or dost thou perfectly know them?

Canst thou set the dominion thereof in the earth? canst manage and overrule their influences, that they shall bring such seasons and such weather as thou wouldst have?

Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

33. The ordinances — חקות: meaning here the laws that guide the stars, and control the seasons, etc. The intimate and commanding relationships of the heavenly bodies to our earth are those of a king to his subjects. Hence the immediate reference to “dominion,” — a thought that modern science illustrates and confirms.

Dominion thereof — משׁשׂרו, used only here, is a more significant word than the preceding one, (ordinances;) it is derived from shatar, “to cut into,” “write,” metaphorically administer; the art of writing being used in ancient times almost exclusively for legislative and judicial purposes, (Furst;) in accordance with which the word shoter signifies “an overseer,” “an administrator.” This pregnant question of the Almighty, Delitzsch reads, “Dost thou define its influence on the earth?” Hitzig, “Dost thou determine its relation to the earth?” — a question which will ever task to the utmost the resources of science to answer.

Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Knowest thou the ordinances of heaven? i.e. the physical laws by which the course of nature is governed. (comp. Psa_119:90, 91 148:6) The general prevalence of law in the material world is quite as strongly asserted by the sacred writers as by modern science. The difference is that modern science regards the laws as physical necessities, self-subsisting, while Scripture looks upon them as the ordinances of the Divine will. This latter view involves, of course, the further result that the Divine will can at any time suspend or reverse any of its enactments. Canst thou set the dominion thereof in the earth? If Job does not even know the laws whereby the world is governed, much less can he establish such laws himself, and make them work.

The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Ordinances - The laws which are firmly established concerning their order, motion, or rest, and their powerful influences upon this lower world. Didst thou give these laws? Or dost thou perfectly know them? Canst thou - Manage and over rule their influences.

John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.

his dominion The dominion of the constellations appointed to bring upon the earth cold and heat, summer and winter.

Rashi on the Tanakh — English translations: “The Judaica Press complete Tanach with Rashi, translated by A. J. Rosenberg” (CC BY 4.0); “Pentateuch with Rashi's commentary by M. Rosenbaum and A.M. Silbermann, 1929-1934” (public domain); “The Metsudah Tanach series, Lakewood, N.J” (CC BY 4.0); and “The Book of Joshua, Metsudah Publications, 1997” (CC BY 4.0). Text via Sefaria.