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Thursday, June 19th, 2025
the Week of Proper 6 / Ordinary 11
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Read the Bible

Bible in Basic English

Job 38:25

By whom has the way been cut for the flowing of the rain, and the flaming of the thunder;

Bible Study Resources

Concordances:

- Nave's Topical Bible - Blessing;   God;   Lightning;   Meteorology and Celestial Phenomena;  

Dictionaries:

- Bridgeway Bible Dictionary - Miracles;   Baker Evangelical Dictionary of Biblical Theology - God;   Mystery;   Easton Bible Dictionary - Conduit;   River;   Holman Bible Dictionary - Conduit;   Job, the Book of;   Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible - Knowledge;   Nature;   River;   Thunder;   World;   People's Dictionary of the Bible - Conduit;  

Encyclopedias:

- International Standard Bible Encyclopedia - Thunder;   Watercourse;  

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
Who cuts a channel for the flooding rainor clears the way for lightning,
Hebrew Names Version
Who has cut a channel for the flood water, Or the path for the thunderstorm;
King James Version
Who hath divided a watercourse for the overflowing of waters, or a way for the lightning of thunder;
English Standard Version
"Who has cleft a channel for the torrents of rain and a way for the thunderbolt,
New Century Version
Who cuts a waterway for the heavy rains and sets a path for the thunderstorm?
New English Translation
Who carves out a channel for the heavy rains, and a path for the rumble of thunder,
Amplified Bible
"Who has prepared a channel for the torrents of rain and for the flood, Or a path for the thunderbolt,
New American Standard Bible
"Who has split open a channel for the flood, And a way for the thunderbolt,
World English Bible
Who has cut a channel for the flood water, Or the path for the thunderstorm;
Geneva Bible (1587)
Who hath deuided the spowtes for the raine? or the way for the lightning of ye thunders,
Legacy Standard Bible
"Who has cleft a conduit for the flood,Or a way for the thunderbolt,
Berean Standard Bible
Who cuts a channel for the flood or clears a path for the thunderbolt,
Contemporary English Version
Who carves out a path for thunderstorms? Who sends torrents of rain
Complete Jewish Bible
Who cut a channel for the downpours, or a way for the lightning and thunder,
Darby Translation
Who hath divided a channel for the rain-flood, and a way for the thunder's flash;
Easy-to-Read Version
Who dug ditches in the sky for the heavy rain? Who made a path for the thunderstorm?
George Lamsa Translation
Who causes a flash of lightning and a clap of thunder?
Good News Translation
Who dug a channel for the pouring rain and cleared the way for the thunderstorm?
Lexham English Bible
"Who has cut open a channel for the torrents and a way for the thunder bolts,
Literal Translation
Who has cut a channel for the flood; or a way for the thunderclaps,
Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
Who deuydeth the abundauce of waters in to ryuers, or who maketh a waye for the stormy wether,
American Standard Version
Who hath cleft a channel for the waterflood, Or the way for the lightning of the thunder;
JPS Old Testament (1917)
Who hath cleft a channel for the waterflood, or a way for the lightning of the thunder;
King James Version (1611)
Who hath diuided a water-course for the ouerflowing of waters? Or a way for the lightning of thunder,
Bishop's Bible (1568)
Who deuideth the waters into diuers chanels? or who maketh a way for the lightening and thunder,
Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
And who prepared a course for the violent rain, and a way for the thunders;
English Revised Version
Who hath cleft a channel for the waterflood, or a way for the lightning of the thunder;
Wycliffe Bible (1395)
Who yaf cours to the strongeste reyn,
Update Bible Version
Who has cleft a channel for the waterflood, Or the way for the lightning of the thunder;
Webster's Bible Translation
Who hath divided a watercourse for the overflowing of waters, or a way for the lightning of thunder;
New King James Version
"Who has divided a channel for the overflowing water, Or a path for the thunderbolt,
New Living Translation
"Who created a channel for the torrents of rain? Who laid out the path for the lightning?
New Life Bible
"Who has cut open a way for the flood, and a path for the thunderstorm?
New Revised Standard
"Who has cut a channel for the torrents of rain, and a way for the thunderbolt,
J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
Who hath cloven - for the torrent - a channel? Or a way for the lightning of thunders;
Douay-Rheims Bible
Who gave a course to violent showers, or a way for noisy thunder:
Revised Standard Version
"Who has cleft a channel for the torrents of rain, and a way for the thunderbolt,
Young's Literal Translation
Who hath divided for the flood a conduit? And a way for the lightning of the voices?
New American Standard Bible (1995)
"Who has cleft a channel for the flood, Or a way for the thunderbolt,

Contextual Overview

25 By whom has the way been cut for the flowing of the rain, and the flaming of the thunder; 26 Causing rain to come on a land where no man is living, on the waste land which has no people; 27 To give water to the land where there is waste and destruction, and to make the dry land green with young grass? 28 Has the rain a father? or who gave birth to the drops of night mist? 29 Out of whose body came the ice? and who gave birth to the cold mist of heaven? 30 The waters are joined together, hard as a stone, and the face of the deep is covered. 31 Are the bands of the Pleiades fixed by you, or are the cords of Orion made loose? 32 Do you make Mazzaroth come out in its right time, or are the Bear and its children guided by you? 33 Have you knowledge of the laws of the heavens? did you give them rule over the earth? 34 Is your voice sent up to the cloud, so that you may be covered by the weight of waters?

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

Job 28:26, Job 36:27, Job 36:28, Job 37:3-6, Psalms 29:3-10

Reciprocal: Exodus 19:16 - thunders Leviticus 26:4 - Then I Job 36:30 - he Job 37:15 - the light Job 37:21 - General Psalms 29:10 - sitteth Psalms 104:13 - watereth Jeremiah 10:13 - maketh

Cross-References

Genesis 37:32
And they took the coat to their father, and said, We came across this; is it your son's coat or not?
Genesis 38:18
And he said, What would you have? And she said, Your ring and its cord and the stick in your hand. So he gave them to her and went in to her, and she became with child by him.
Psalms 50:21
These things have you done, and I said nothing; it seemed to you that I was such a one as yourself; but I will make a protest against you, and put them in order before your eyes.
Jeremiah 2:26
As the thief is shamed when he is taken, so is Israel shamed; they, their kings and their rulers, their priests and their prophets;
Romans 2:16
In the day when God will be a judge of the secrets of men, as it says in the good news of which I am a preacher, through Jesus Christ.
1 Corinthians 4:5
For this reason let there be no judging before the time, till the Lord comes, who will make clear the secret things of the dark, and the designs of the heart; and then will every man have his praise from God.
Revelation 20:12
And I saw the dead, great and small, taking their places before the high seat; and the books were open, and another book was open, which is the book of life; and the dead were judged by the things which were in the books, even by their works.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

Who hath divided a watercourse for the overflowing of waters,.... For a very large shower of rain, as the Vulgate Latin version: for this is not to be understood of an aqueduct, channel, or canal made on earth, either for the draining of waters off of land overflowed thereby, or for the conveyance of it to different parts to overflow it; such as were cut out of the Nile in Egypt, for the overflowing of the land, to make it fruitful; such may be and have been made by men: but of a watercourse in the air or atmosphere, as a canal or channel, for the rain to come down upon the earth; and this is the work of God, and him only, who directs and steers the course of rain, that it falls regularly and gently, not in spouts and floods, but in drops larger or lesser, on what spot of ground, or part of the earth, he pleases: and if what Jarchi says true, that every drop has its course, its canal, through which it passes, it is still more wonderful;

or a way for the lightning of thunder: which generally go together, and are of God. His fire and voice, and for which he makes a way, by which they burst and break forth out of the cloud, and their course is directed by him under the whole heavens; see Job 28:26. So the Gospel, compared to rain and lightning, has its direction and its course steered to what part of the world, he pleases; see Psalms 19:4.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

Who hath divided a water-course for the overflowing of waters - That is, for the waters that flow down from the clouds. The idea seems to be this, that the waters of heaven, instead of pouring down in floods, or all coming down together, seemed to flow in certain canals formed for them; as if they had been cut out through the clouds for that purpose. The causes of rain, the manner in which water was suspended in the clouds, and the reasons why the rain did not come down altogether in floods, early attracted attention, and gave occasion to investigation. The subject is more than once referred to in this book; see the notes at Job 26:8.

Or a way for the lightning of thunder - For the thunder-flash. The idea is this: a path seems to be opened in the dark cloud for the passage of the flash of lightning. How such a path was made, by what agency or by what laws, was the question proposed for inquiry. The lightning seemed at once to burst through the dark cloud where there was no opening and no sign of a path before, and pursue its zig-zag journey as if all obstructions were removed, and it passed over a beaten path. The question is, who could have traced out this path for the thunder-flash to go in? Who could do it but the Almighty? And still, with all the light that science has cast on the subject, we may repeat the question.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse Job 38:25. Divided a water-course — The original תעלה tealah, from עלה alah, to ascend, may signify rather a cloud, or clouds in general, where the waters are stored up. I cannot see how the overflowings or torrents of water can be said to ascend any other way than by evaporation; and it is by this Divine contrivance that the earth is not only irrigated, but even dried; and by this means too much moisture is not permitted to lie upon the ground, which would not only be injurious to vegetation, but even destroy it. But query, may not a waterspout be intended?

A way for the lightning of thunder — "A path for the bolt of thunder." God is represented as directing the course even of the lightning; he launches the bolt, and makes the path in which it is to run. To grasp, manage, and dart the thunderbolt or lightning, was a work which heathenism gave to Jupiter, its supreme god. None of the inferior deities were capable of this. But who can thunder with a voice like the Almighty? He is THE THUNDERER.


 
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