Job 38:30
New International Version
when the waters become hard as stone, when the surface of the deep is frozen?

New Living Translation
For the water turns to ice as hard as rock, and the surface of the water freezes.

English Standard Version
The waters become hard like stone, and the face of the deep is frozen.

Berean Standard Bible
when the waters become hard as stone and the surface of the deep is frozen?

King James Bible
The waters are hid as with a stone, and the face of the deep is frozen.

New King James Version
The waters harden like stone, And the surface of the deep is frozen.

New American Standard Bible
“Water becomes hard like stone, And the surface of the deep is imprisoned.

NASB 1995
“Water becomes hard like stone, And the surface of the deep is imprisoned.

NASB 1977
“Water becomes hard like stone, And the surface of the deep is imprisoned.

Legacy Standard Bible
Water becomes hard like stone, And the surface of the deep is interlocked.

Amplified Bible
“Water becomes like stone [and hides itself], And the surface of the deep is frozen and imprisoned.

Christian Standard Bible
when water becomes as hard as stone, and the surface of the watery depths is frozen?

Holman Christian Standard Bible
when water becomes as hard as stone, and the surface of the watery depths is frozen?

American Standard Version
The waters hide themselves and become like stone, And the face of the deep is frozen.

Contemporary English Version
that fall in winter, when streams and lakes freeze solid as a rock?

English Revised Version
The waters are hidden as with stone, and the face of the deep is frozen.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
The water hardens like a stone, and the surface of the ocean freezes over.

Good News Translation
which turn the waters to stone and freeze the face of the sea?

International Standard Version
when water solidifies like stone and the surface of the deepest sea freezes?

Majority Standard Bible
when the waters become hard as stone and the surface of the deep is frozen?

NET Bible
when the waters become hard like stone, when the surface of the deep is frozen solid?

New Heart English Bible
The waters become hard like stone, when the surface of the deep is frozen.

Webster's Bible Translation
The waters are hid as with a stone, and the face of the deep is frozen.

World English Bible
The waters become hard like stone, when the surface of the deep is frozen.
Literal Translations
Literal Standard Version
Waters are hidden as a stone, "" And the face of the deep is captured.

Young's Literal Translation
As a stone waters are hidden, And the face of the deep is captured.

Smith's Literal Translation
The waters shall be hid as a stone, and the face of the depth will be taken.
Catholic Translations
Douay-Rheims Bible
The waters are hardened like a stone, and the surface of the deep is congealed.

Catholic Public Domain Version
The waters are hardened to become like stone, and the surface of the abyss freezes over.

New American Bible
When the waters lie covered as though with stone that holds captive the surface of the deep?

New Revised Standard Version
The waters become hard like stone, and the face of the deep is frozen.
Translations from Aramaic
Lamsa Bible
The waters are hardened like a stone, and the face of the deep is frozen.

Peshitta Holy Bible Translated
The waters are hardened like stone, and the surfaces of the depths are frozen
OT Translations
JPS Tanakh 1917
The waters are congealed like stone, And the face of the deep is frozen.

Brenton Septuagint Translation
which descends like flowing water? who has terrified the face of the ungodly?

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
God Challenges Job
29From whose womb does the ice emerge? Who gives birth to the frost from heaven, 30when the waters become hard as stone and the surface of the deep is frozen? 31Can you bind the chains of the Pleiades or loosen the belt of Orion?…

Cross References
Psalm 147:17-18
He casts forth His hail like pebbles. Who can withstand His icy blast? / He sends forth His word and melts them; He unleashes His winds, and the waters flow.

Psalm 33:7
He piles up the waters of the sea; He puts the depths into storehouses.

Genesis 1:9-10
And God said, “Let the waters under the sky be gathered into one place, so that the dry land may appear.” And it was so. / God called the dry land “earth,” and the gathering of waters He called “seas.” And God saw that it was good.

Proverbs 8:29
when He set a boundary for the sea, so that the waters would not surpass His command, when He marked out the foundations of the earth.

Jeremiah 5:22
Do you not fear Me?” declares the LORD. “Do you not tremble before Me, the One who set the sand as the boundary for the sea, an enduring barrier it cannot cross? The waves surge, but they cannot prevail. They roar but cannot cross it.

Psalm 104:9
You set a boundary they cannot cross, that they may never again cover the earth.

Isaiah 40:12
Who has measured the waters in the hollow of his hand, or marked off the heavens with the span of his hand? Who has held the dust of the earth in a basket, or weighed the mountains on a scale and the hills with a balance?

Psalm 148:8
lightning and hail, snow and clouds, powerful wind fulfilling His word,

Genesis 8:2
The springs of the deep and the floodgates of the heavens were closed, and the rain from the sky was restrained.

Exodus 15:8
At the blast of Your nostrils the waters piled up; like a wall the currents stood firm; the depths congealed in the heart of the sea.

Psalm 78:47-48
He killed their vines with hailstones and their sycamore-figs with sleet. / He abandoned their cattle to the hail and their livestock to bolts of lightning.

Isaiah 55:10
For just as rain and snow fall from heaven and do not return without watering the earth, making it bud and sprout, and providing seed to sow and food to eat,

Psalm 107:25-29
For He spoke and raised a tempest that lifted the waves of the sea. / They mounted up to the heavens, then sunk to the depths; their courage melted in their anguish. / They reeled and staggered like drunkards, and all their skill was useless. ...

Matthew 8:26-27
“You of little faith,” Jesus replied, “why are you so afraid?” Then He got up and rebuked the winds and the sea, and it was perfectly calm. / The men were amazed and asked, “What kind of man is this? Even the winds and the sea obey Him!”

Mark 4:39-41
Then Jesus got up and rebuked the wind and the sea. “Silence!” He commanded. “Be still!” And the wind died down, and it was perfectly calm. / “Why are you so afraid?” He asked. “Do you still have no faith?” / Overwhelmed with fear, they asked one another, “Who is this, that even the wind and the sea obey Him?”


Treasury of Scripture

The waters are hid as with a stone, and the face of the deep is frozen.

the face

Job 37:10
By the breath of God frost is given: and the breadth of the waters is straitened.

frozen.

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Captured Congealed Covered Deep Face Fast Frozen Hard Hid Hidden Hide Holdeth Imprisoned Joined Lie Stone Surface Themselves Together Water Waters
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Captured Congealed Covered Deep Face Fast Frozen Hard Hid Hidden Hide Holdeth Imprisoned Joined Lie Stone Surface Themselves Together Water Waters
Job 38
1. God challenges Job to answer
4. God, by his mighty works, convinces Job of ignorance
31. and weakness














when the waters
The phrase "when the waters" refers to the natural element of water, which is essential for life and often symbolizes chaos and the unknown in biblical literature. In Hebrew, the word for waters is "mayim," which is used throughout the Old Testament to describe both literal and metaphorical waters. This phrase sets the stage for a discussion of God's control over the natural world, emphasizing His sovereignty over creation.

become hard as stone
The transformation of water into a solid state, "hard as stone," is a vivid image of ice formation. In the Hebrew context, this transformation is a demonstration of God's power to change the natural order. The imagery of stone, often associated with strength and permanence, contrasts with the fluidity of water, highlighting the miraculous nature of this transformation. This phrase underscores the idea that God can alter the very elements of creation according to His will.

and the surface of the deep
The "surface of the deep" refers to the face of the vast, mysterious oceans. In Hebrew, "tehom" is the word for "deep," which is often associated with the primordial chaos before creation (Genesis 1:2). This phrase evokes the image of the deep waters that God tamed and ordered during creation, reinforcing His authority over the chaotic forces of nature.

is frozen?
The act of freezing, where the "surface of the deep is frozen," is a phenomenon that would have been both familiar and awe-inspiring to the ancient audience. In the Hebrew context, freezing represents a divine act of control over the natural world. This imagery serves as a reminder of God's omnipotence, as He alone can command the elements to change their state. The freezing of the deep symbolizes God's ability to bring order and stability to the chaos, reflecting His ultimate authority over all creation.

(30) The waters are hid.--Or, The waters hide themselves and become like stone. Water loses its familiar quality, and is turned into stone.

Verse 30. The waters are hid as with a stone; rather, the waters are hardened like unto stone. When the frost comes, the waters are congealed and rendered as hard as stone. (So Dillmann and Canon Cook.) And the face of the deep is frozen. By "the deep" (תּהום) is certainly not meant here either the open ocean, which, in the latitudes known to the dwellers in South Western Asia, never freezes, or the Mediterranean. Some of the lakes which abound in the regions inhabited by Job and his friends are probably meant. These may occasionally have been thinly coated with ice in the times when the Book of Job was written (see the comment on Job 6:16).

Parallel Commentaries ...


Hebrew
when the waters
מַ֣יִם (ma·yim)
Noun - masculine plural
Strong's 4325: Water, juice, urine, semen

become hard
יִתְחַבָּ֑אוּ (yiṯ·ḥab·bā·’ū)
Verb - Hitpael - Imperfect - third person masculine plural
Strong's 2244: To withdraw, hide

as stone,
כָּ֭אֶבֶן (kā·’e·ḇen)
Preposition-k, Article | Noun - feminine singular
Strong's 68: A stone

and the surface
וּפְנֵ֥י (ū·p̄ə·nê)
Conjunctive waw | Noun - common plural construct
Strong's 6440: The face

of the deep
תְ֝ה֗וֹם (ṯə·hō·wm)
Noun - common singular
Strong's 8415: An abyss, the deep

is frozen?
יִתְלַכָּֽדוּ׃ (yiṯ·lak·kā·ḏū)
Verb - Hitpael - Imperfect - third person masculine plural
Strong's 3920: To catch, to capture, occupy, to choose, to cohere


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OT Poetry: Job 38:30 The waters become hard like stone when (Jb)
Job 38:29
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