Job 37:22

Job 37:22, spoken by Elihu, serves as a powerful summary of his discourse on God's overwhelming power and majesty, especially as manifested through natural phenomena. It contrasts the natural clearing of the weather with the profound and awe-inspiring nature of God Himself.

Context

This verse concludes Elihu's lengthy argument in the book of Job, particularly in chapters 36 and 37, where he describes God's control over creation, including storms, lightning, and clouds. Elihu's aim is to humble Job and his friends, emphasizing that God's ways are beyond human comprehension and that His power is absolute. He uses the elements of nature—from the terrifying tempest to the serene clear sky—as evidence of God's unmatched authority. The "fair weather" emerging from the north wind signifies the return of clarity and calm after a storm, a natural process orchestrated by God, leading into the declaration of His "terrible majesty."

Key Themes

• Divine Sovereignty over Nature: The verse highlights God's absolute control over all aspects of creation, including meteorological patterns. Just as He brings forth storms, He also brings clear skies and fair weather. This demonstrates His meticulous and powerful hand in governing the world.
• God's Awe-Inspiring Majesty: The phrase "terrible majesty" is central. It conveys a sense of overwhelming grandeur, power, and holiness that evokes reverence and awe, rather than dread in a negative sense. God's presence and attributes are so magnificent that they are beyond human full grasp, commanding profound respect and wonder.
• Incomprehensibility of God: Elihu consistently points to the limits of human understanding when it comes to God's ways. The unpredictable yet ordered nature of weather, culminating in the serene north wind, serves as a metaphor for God's wisdom, which is both mysterious and perfectly ordered.

Linguistic Insights

The KJV phrase "terrible majesty" translates the Hebrew words yare' (related to "fear" or "awe") and hod ("splendor," "glory," or "majesty"). The word yare' here signifies "awe-inspiring" or "reverential," not "terrible" in the modern sense of dreadful or bad. It speaks to the profound reverence and holy fear that God's overwhelming power and glory should evoke. The "north" (Hebrew: tsaphon) was often associated with clarity and the source of clear, cold winds that would dispel storms in the ancient Near East, thus bringing "fair weather."

Related Scriptures

• For other expressions of God's majestic power in creation, consider Psalms 29:3-9, which describes the Lord's voice over the waters and through nature.
• The theme of God's incomprehensibility is also found in Isaiah 55:8-9, where God declares His thoughts and ways are higher than human thoughts and ways.
• The concept of God's glory filling the earth is echoed in Isaiah 6:3, where the seraphim cry, "Holy, holy, holy, is the LORD of hosts: the whole earth is full of his glory."

Practical Application

Job 37:22 calls us to a posture of humility and reverence before God. In a world that often seeks to explain everything scientifically, this verse reminds us that there is a transcendent power at work, whose majesty is beyond our full grasp. It encourages us to:

• Cultivate Awe: To look at the natural world, from a clear sky to a powerful storm, and see the hand of a magnificent Creator, leading to worship and wonder.
• Trust in His Sovereignty: To find comfort in the knowledge that the same God who controls the weather also controls our lives, bringing both challenges and periods of calm, all according to His perfect wisdom.
• Acknowledge Limits: To embrace the mystery of God and accept that we cannot fully comprehend His ways, fostering a deeper trust rather than a need for complete understanding.