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“Canyou hunt the prey for the lion, Or satisfy the appetite of the young lions,
Job 38:39 · New King James Version
Parallel translations
  • WEB “Can you hunt the prey for the lioness, or satisfy the appetite of the young lions,
  • KJV Wilt thou hunt the prey for the lion? or fill the appetite of the young lions,
  • BSB Can you hunt the prey for a lioness or satisfy the hunger of young lions
  • NASB ¶“Can you hunt the prey for the lioness, Or satisfy the appetite of young lions,
  • NLT “Can you stalk prey for a lioness and satisfy the young lions’ appetites

Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org

Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Quick answer

Can Job hunt prey for the lioness or feed her hungry cubs? God provides for even the fiercest predators.

Overview

The LORD turns from the heavens and weather to the animal world, asking if Job feeds the lions. The mighty hunters themselves depend on God's provision. This begins a section showing that God sustains creatures wholly beyond human management or concern.

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 4

  • Ps 104:21The young lions roar after their prey, and seek their food from God.
  • Job 4:10–11The roaring of the lion, and the voice of the fierce lion, the teeth of the young lions, are broken.
  • Ps 34:10The young lions do lack, and suffer hunger, but those who seek Yahweh shall not lack any good thing.
  • Ps 145:15–16The eyes of all wait for you. You give them their food in due season.

Resources, by level

Commentaries & study tools

  • VideoBibleProject — Job videosBibleProject · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.

  • VideoWatch teaching on Job 38:39YouTube · Lay · Free

    Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.

  • CommentaryEnduring Word — verse-by-verseDavid Guzik · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.

  • CommentaryClassic commentaries for this verseBibleHub (20+ works) · Pastoral · Free

    Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.

  • CommentaryMatthew Henry on JobMatthew Henry · Pastoral · Free · evangelical

    The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).

  • ReferenceInterlinear, lexicon & Strong'sBlue Letter Bible · Seminary · Free

    Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.

Christ at the center

Job's cry for a mediator who can lay his hand on both God and man, and his confidence that 'my Redeemer lives' and will stand on the earth, reaches forward to Jesus the living Redeemer.

How Job 38:39 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.

Original language

Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.