He makes the Bear, Orion, and the Pleiades, and the rooms of the south.
Parallel Translations
-
He makes the Bear, Orion, and the Pleiades, and the rooms of the south.
-
Which maketh Arcturus, Orion, and Pleiades, and the chambers of the south.
-
Who maketh the Bear, Orion, and the Pleiades, and the chambers of the south.
Cross-references (8)
Passages linked to Job 9:9 in the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge, ordered by reader-vote popularity; verse text shown in World English Bible.
- Amos 5:8 seek him who made the Pleiades and Orion, and turns the shadow of death into the morning, and makes the day dark with night; who calls for the waters of the sea, and pours them out on the surface of the earth, Yahweh is his name,
- Genesis 1:16 God made the two great lights: the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night. He also made the stars.
- Job 38:31-41 “Can you bind the cluster of the Pleiades, or loosen the cords of Orion? Can you lead the constellations out in their season? Or can you guide the Bear with her cubs? Do you know the laws of the heavens? Can you establish its dominion over the earth? “Can you lift up your voice to the clouds, That abundance of waters may cover you? Can you send out lightnings, that they may go? Do they report to you, ‘Here we are?’ Who has put wisdom in the inward parts? Or who has given understanding to the mind? Who can count the clouds by wisdom? Or who can pour out the containers of the sky, when the dust runs into a mass, and the clods of earth stick together? “Can you hunt the prey for the lioness, or satisfy the appetite of the young lions, when they crouch in their dens, and lie in wait in the thicket? Who provides for the raven his prey, when his young ones cry to God, and wander for lack of food?
- Psalms 147:4 He counts the number of the stars. He calls them all by their names.
- Psalms 104:13 He waters the mountains from his rooms. The earth is filled with the fruit of your works.
- Acts 28:13 From there we circled around and arrived at Rhegium. After one day, a south wind sprang up, and on the second day we came to Puteoli,
- Job 37:9 Out of its room comes the storm, and cold out of the north.
- Psalms 104:3 He lays the beams of his rooms in the waters. He makes the clouds his chariot. He walks on the wings of the wind.
Cross-references from openbible.info (CC BY 4.0)
Explain this verse (16 sources)
Historical commentary, presented as a primary source — not an endorsement.
Private notes
Saved on this device only — never synced or sent anywhere.
Geneva Bible translators 1599 · Public Domain These are the names of certain stars whereby he…
These are the names of certain stars whereby he meaneth that all stars both known and unknown are at his appointment.
Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain Job 9:9 Which maketh Arcturus, Orion, and Pleiades, and…
Job 9:9 Which maketh Arcturus, Orion, and Pleiades, and the chambers of the south.
Ver. 9. Which maketh Arcturus, Orion, and Pleiades] Those glorious constellations, which do, after a sort, govern the four seasons of the year; but are governed by God, from whose power all their influence and virtue is borrowed, even that which they exercise upon the raging seas. The learned interpreters have not unfitly translated - Has Arcturus, Chesil Orion, Chimah Pleiades, or the seven stars, and the climates of the South, the summer signs; altogether neglecting the toys of the unlearned Rabbis; which stars or signs are answerable to autumn and winter, the spring time and summer. But I had rather (saith Rev. Mr Beza) retain still the Hebrew words than use the other; which have been so much abused with glosure and impure tales and devices of the wicked and profane poets. {See Trapp on "Job 38:31"}
Read full note →
And the chambers of the south] Interiora Austri, the most remote, hidden, and secret parts of the south; so called, because the stars which are under the southern pole are hidden from us, and are enclosed and lodged as in a chamber. Those stars (and so all the rest) God maketh, that is, he maketh them to appear and do their office for the use and good of man. It is he alone that telleth the number of the stars, he calleth them by their names; neither can they do anything but as they receive order and commission from him (Mr Caryl, Psa 147:4). That was an idle brag of Aratus, the astrologer, that he had found out and set down the whole number of the stars (Aug. de Civ. Dei, lib. 16); and that is a strange arrogance of the kings of Mexico, who when they are consecrated, are reported to take this oath, I swear that the sun, during my life, shall hold on his course; and that the clouds shall send down rain, the rivers shall run, and the earth bring forth all manner of fruit, &c. (Lopez de Gomara).
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.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain Maketh; either,
Maketh; either,
1. Created them; or rather,
Read full note →
2. Ordereth and disposeth them, as the word making is sometimes used in Scripture; governeth their rising and setting, and all their influences.
Arcturus, Orion, and Pleiades, and the chambers of the south: these he names as stars or constellations of greatest note and eminency; for so they are both in Scripture and other authors, and such as have, or are thought to have, a special influence in raising storms and tempests; but under them lie seems to comprehend all the stars, which as they were created by God, so are under his government. Arcturus is a northern constellation, near that called the Bear, which riseth to us about the beginning of September, and by its rising produceth (as Pliny affirms) horrible storms and tempests. Orion is a more southerly constellation, that ariseth to us in December, and is noted by astronomers for raising fearful winds and tempests, both by sea and land. The Pleiades is a constellation not far from Orion, and near that called the Bull, which we call the Seven Stars: to us it riseth at the beginning of the spring, and by its rising causeth rains and tempests, and therefore is unwelcome to mariners at sea. By the chambers (or inmost and secret chambers, as the word signifies) of the south, he seems to understand those stars and constellations which are towards the southern pole, which are fitly called inward chambers, because they are for the most part hid and shut up (as chambers commonly are) from these parts of the world, and do not rise or appear to us till the beginning of summer, when they also raise southerly winds and tempests, as astronomers observe.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain Which doth great things past finding out,.... In heaven…
Which doth great things past finding out,.... In heaven and earth; great as to quantity and quality, not to be thoroughly searched out so as to tell their numbers, nor explain and express the nature of them to the full; even what he has done, and does in creation, providence, and grace:
yea, and wonders without number; such as are amazing to men, who cannot account for them, and so many that they cannot number them. The same things are said by Eliphaz; see Gill on Job 5:9; and which Job here repeats, to show that he agreed with him, and was ready to own what was truth, whenever expressed by him or his friends, and especially such as made for the glory of the Divine Being.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Wesley 1765 · Public Domain Ordereth - Disposeth them, governeth their rising and setting,…
Ordereth - Disposeth them, governeth their rising and setting, and all their influences. These he names as constellations of greatest eminency; but under them he seems to comprehend all the stars, which as they were created by God, so are under his government. Arcturus is a northern constellation, near that called the Bear. Orion is a more southerly constellation, that rises to us in December. The Pleiades is a constellation not far from Orion, which we call the seven stars: by the chambers, (or inmost chambers, as the word signifies) of the south, he seems to understand those stars and constellations which are toward the southern pole, which are called inward chambers, because they are for the most part hid and shut up from these parts of the world.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain Verse 9. Which maketh Arcturus, Orion, and Pleiades, and…
Verse 9. Which maketh Arcturus, Orion, and Pleiades, and the chambers of the south.] For this translation the original words are עשה עש כסיל וכימה והדרי תמן oseh ash, kesil, vechimah vehadrey theman, which are thus rendered by the SEPTUAGINT: Ὁ ποιων Πλειαδα, και Ἑσπερον, και Αρκτουρον, και ταμεια νοτου; "Who makes the Pleiades, and Hesperus, and Arcturus, and Orion, and the chambers of the south."
The VULGATE, Qui facit Arcturum, et Oriona, et Hyadas, et interiora Austri; "Who maketh Arcturus, and Orion, and the Hyades, and the innermost chambers of the south."
Read full note →
The TARGUM follows the Hebrew, but paraphrases the latter clause thus: "and the chambers or houses of the planetary domination in the southern hemisphere."
The SYRIAC and ARABIC, "Who maketh the Pleiades, and Arcturus, and the giant, (Orion or Hercules,) and the boundaries of the south."
COVERDALE has, He maketh the waynes of heaven, the Orions, the vii starres and the secrete places of the south. And on the vii starres he has this marginal note: some call these seven starres, the clock henne with hir chickens. See below.
Edmund Becke, in his edition, 1549, follows Coverdale, but puts VAYNES of heaven for waynes, which Carmarden, in his Bible, Rouen, 1566, mistaking, changes into WAVES of heaven.
Barker's Bible, 1615, reads, "He maketh the starres Arcturus, Orion, and Pleiades, and the climates of the south." On which he has this note, "These are the names of certain starres, whereby he meaneth that all starres, both knowen and unknowen, are at His appointment."
Our early translators seem to agree much with the German and Dutch: Er machet, den wagen am himmel, und Orion, und die Gluken, und die Sterne gegen mittag; "He maketh the wagon of heaven, (Charles's wain,) and Orion, and the clucking hen, (the Pleiades,) and the stars of the mid-day region." See above, under Coverdale.
The Dutch version is not much unlike the German, from which it is taken: Die den wagen maecht, den Orion, ende het sevengesternte, end de binnenkameren ban't Zuyden.
The European versions, in general, copy one or other of the above, or make a compound translation from the whole; but all are derived ultimately from the Septuagint and Vulgate.
As to the Hebrew words, they might as well have been applied to any of the other constellations of heaven: indeed, it does not appear that constellations are at all meant. Parkhurst and Bate have given, perhaps, the best interpretation of the words, which is as follows:-
"כימה kimah, from כמה camah, to be hot or warm, denotes genial heat or warmth, as opposed to עש ash, a parching, biting air, on the one side; and כסיל kesil, the rigid, contracting cold, on the other; and the chambers (thick clouds) of the south." See more in Parkhurst, under כמה.
I need scarcely add that these words have been variously translated by critics and commentators. Dr. Hales translates kimah and kesil by Taurus and Scorpio; and, if this translation were indubitably correct, we might follow him to his conclusions, viz., that Job lived 2337 years before Christ! See at the end of this chapter. See Clarke on Job 9:35.
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Joseph Benson 1811 · Public Domain Job 9:9. Which maketh Arcturus, Orion, and Pleiades, &c.…
Job 9:9. Which maketh Arcturus, Orion, and Pleiades, &c. — Who ordereth and disposeth them, as the word making is sometimes used in the Scriptures; governeth their rising and setting, and all their influences. These he names as constellations of greatest eminence; but under them he seems to comprehend all the stars, which, as they were created by God, so are under his government. Arcturus is a northern constellation, near that called the Bear. Orion is a more southerly constellation, that rises to us in December. The Pleiades is a constellation not far from Orion, which we call the Seven Stars. By the chambers (or inmost chambers, as the word signifies) of the south, he seems to understand those stars and constellations which are toward the southern pole, which are called inward chambers, because they are for the most part hid and shut up from these parts of the world.
Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Albert Barnes 1834 · Public Domain Which maketh Arcturus - This verse, with others of…
Which maketh Arcturus - This verse, with others of the same description in the book of Job, is of special importance, as they furnish an illustration of the views which prevailed among the patriarchs on the subject of astronomy. There are frequent references to the sciences in this book (see the Introduction), and there is no source of illustration of the views which prevailed in the earliest times in regard to the state of the sciences, so copious as can be found in this poem. The thoughts of people were early turned to the science of astronomy. Not only were they led to this by the beauty of the heavens, and by the instinctive promptings of the human mind to know something about them, but the attention of the Chaldeans and of the other Oriental nations was early drawn to them by the fact that they were shepherds, and that they passed much of their time in the open air at night, watching their flocks.
Having nothing else to do, and being much awake, they would naturally contrive to relieve the tediousness of the night by watching the movements of the stars; and they early gave employment to their talents, by endeavoring to ascertain the influence which the stars exerted over the fates of people, and to their imagination, by dividing the heavens into portions, having a fancied resemblance to certain animals, and by giving them appropriate names. Hence, arose the arrangement of the stars into constellations, and the names which they still bear. The Hebrew word rendered Arcturus, is עשׁ ‛ayı̂sh. The Septuagint renders it, Πλειάδα Pleiada - the Pleiades. Jerome, Arcturum. The Hebrew word usually means a moth, Job 4:19; Job 13:28; Job 27:18. It also denotes the splendid constellation in the northern hemisphere, which we call Ursa Major, the Great Bear, Arcturus, or the Wain; compare Niebuhr, Des. of Arabia, p. 114.
Read full note →
The word עשׁ ‛ayı̂sh does not literally mean a bear, but is made by aphaeresis from the Arabic nas, by the excision of the initial n - as is common in Arabic; see Bochart, Hieroz. P. II. Lib. I. c. xvi. p. 113, 114. The word in Arabic means a bier, and is the name given to the constellation which we denominate Ursa Major, “because,” says Bochart, “the four stars, which are a square, are regarded as a bier, on which a dead body is borne. The three following (the tail of the bear) are the daughters or sons which attend the funeral as mourners.” This name is often given to this constellation in Arabic. The Arabic name is Elna’sch, the bier. “The expression,” says Ideler, “denotes particularly the bier on which the dead are borne, and taken in this sense, each of the two biers in the Ursa Major and Ursa Minor is accompanied by three mourning-women. The biers and the mourning-women together, are called Benâtna'sch, literally, daughters of the bier; that is, those who pertain to the bier.”
Untersuchungen uber den Ursprung und die Bedeutung der Sternnamen, S. 419; compare Job 38:32 : “Canst thou guide Arcturus with his sons?” Schultens regards the word עשׁ ‛ayı̂sh as synonymous with the Arabic asson, night-vigil, from assa to go about by night, and supposes this constellation to be so called, because it always revolves around the pole, and never sets. The situation and figure of this constellation are well known. It is seen at all times in the northern part of the heavens, perpetually revolving around the North Star, and two of its principal stars point to the North Star always. Its resemblance to a bear, is quite fanciful - as it might be imagined as well to resemble any other object. The design of this fancy was merely to assist the memory. The only thing which seems to have suggested it was its slight resemblance to an animal followed by its young. Thus, the stars, now known as the “tail,” might have been supposed to resemble the cubs of a bear following their dam.
The comparison of the constellation to a bier, and the movement to a funeral procession, with the sons or daughters of the deceased following on in the mourning train, is much more poetical and beautiful. This constellation is so conspicuous, that it has been an object of interest in all ages, and has been one of the groups of stars most attentively observed by navigators, as a guide in sailing. The reason was, probably, that as it constantly revolved around the North Pole, it could always be seen in clear weather, and thus the direction in which they were sailing, could always be told. It has had a great variety of names. The name Ursa Major, or the Great Bear, is that which is commonly given to it. It is a remarkable fact, also, that while this name was given to it in the East a tribe of the American Indians - the Iroquois, also gave the same name of the Great Bear to it. This is remarkable, because, so far as known, they had no communication with each other, and because the name is perfectly arbitrary.
Is this an evidence that the natives of our country, North America, derived their origin from some of the nations of the East? In some parts of England the constellation is called “Charles’ Wain,” or Wagon, from its fancied resemblance to a waggon, drawn by three horses in a line. Others call it the Plow. The whole number of visible stars in this constellation is eighty seven, of which one is of the first, three of the second, seven of the third, and about twice as many of the fourth magnitude. The constellations of Ursa Major and Ursa Minor were represented by the ancients, under the image of a waggon drawn by a team of horses. This is alluded to by the Greek poet, Aratus, in an address to the Athenians:
The one called Helix, soon as day retires.
Observed with ease lights up his radiant fires;
The other smaller and with feebler beams,
In a less circle drives his lazy teams:
But more adapted for the sailor’s guide,
Whene’er by night he tempts the briny tide.
Among the Egyptians these two constellations are represented by the figures of bears, instead of waggons. Whence the Hebrew name is derived is not quite certain; but if it be from the Arabic, it probably means the same - a bier. There seems no reason to doubt, however, that the Ursa Major is intended; and that the idea here is, that the greatness of God is shown by his having made this beautiful constellation.
Orion - The Vulgate renders this Orion, the Septuagint, “Εσπερον Hesperon, Hesperus - that is, the evening star, Venus. The word כסיל kesı̂yl, is from כסל kâsal, to be fat or fleshy; to be strong, lusty, firm; and then to be dull, sluggish, stupid - as fat persons usually are. Hence, the word כסיל kesı̂yl means a fool, Psa 49:11; Pro 1:32; Pro 10:1, It is used here, however, to denote a constellation, and by most interpreters it is supposed to denote the constellation Orion, which the Orientals call a giant. “They appear to have conceived of this constellation under the figure of an impious giant bound upon the sky.” Gesenius. Hence the expression, Job 38:31; “Canst thou loose the bands of Orion?” According to the Eastern tradition, this giant was Nimrod, the founder of Babylon, afterward translated to the skies; see the notes at Isa 13:10, where it is rendered constellation. Virgil speaks of it as the Stormy Orion:
Cam subito aseurgons fluctu nimbosus Orion.
Aeneid i. 535.
And again:
Dum pelago desaevit heims, et aquosus Orion.
Aeneid iv. 52.
In another description of Orion by Virgil, it is represented as armed with gold, or surrounded by a yellow light:
Arcturum, pluviasque Hyadas, geminosque Triones,
Armatumque auro circumspicit Oriona.
Aeneid iii. 516, 517.
According to the fancy of the ancients, Orion was a mighty hunter, the attendant of Diana, who having offered violence to her was stung to death by a scorpion which she had provided for that purpose. After his death he was translated to heaven, and made a constellation. Others say that he was the son of Neptune and Queen Euryale, a famous Amazonian huntress; and possessing the disposition of his mother, he became the greatest hunter in the world, and made a boast that there was no animal on earth that he could not subdue. To punish this vanity, it is said that a scorpion sprang out of the earth, and bit his foot, so that he died, but that at the request of Diana he was placed among the stars, and directly opposite to the scorpion that caused his death. On the names given to this constellation in Arabic, and the origin of the name Orion among the Greeks, see Ideler, Unter. uber den Urs. u. die Bedeut. der Stern. s. 212-227, 331-336. The name El-dscebbâr, the giant, or hero, is that which is commonly given to it in Arabic. The constellation Orion is usually mentioned by the ancients as connected with storms, and hence, is called nimbosus Orion by Virgil, and tristis Orion by Horace. The reason of this was, that its rising usually occurred at those seasons of the year when storms prevailed, and hence, it was supposed to be their cause - as we connect the rising of the dog-star with the idea of intense heat.
The situation of Orion is on the equator, midway between the poles of the heavens. It comes to the meridian about the 23d of January. The whole number of visible stars in it is seventy-eight, of which two are of the first magnitude, four of the second, three of the third, and fifteen of the fourth. It is regarded as the most beautiful of the constellations, and when it is on the meridian there is then above the horizon the most magnificent view of the celestial bodies that the firmament exhibits. On the celestial maps it is represented by the figure of a man in the attitude of assaulting the Bull, with a sword in his belt, a huge club in his right hand, and a lion-skin in the left to serve him for a shield. The principal stars are four, in the form of a long square or parallelogram, intersected by the “Three Stars” in the middle called “The Ell and the Yard.” The two upper ones are represented one on each shoulder, and of the two lower ones one is in the left foot, and the other on the right knee. The position of the constellation may be seen by anyone by remarking that the “Three Stars” in the belt are those which point to the Pleiades or seven stars on the one side, and to the dog star on the other. This constellation is mentioned by Homer, as it is indeed by most of the Classical writers:
Πληΐάδας θ ̓, Ὑάδος τε, τό τε σθένος Ὠρίωνος.
Plēiadas th', Huadas te, to te sthenos Ōriōnos.
- Iliad, σ s.
It may furnish an illustration of the vastness of the starry heavens to remark, that in the sword of the constellation Orion there is a nebula which is almost visible to the naked eye, which is computed to be 2,200, 000,000, 000,000, 000, or two trillion, two hundred thousand billion times larger than the sun! Dr. Dick, Chr. Keepsake for 1840, p. 184. If, then, Job, with his limited views of astronomy, saw in this constellation an impressive proof of the greatness of the Almighty, how much more sublime should be our views of God! We see this constellation not merely as a beautiful object in the sky - a collection of bright and beautiful gems - but we see it as so vast as to surpass our comprehension, and behold in it a single nebula, or speck - not quite visible to the naked eye - that mocks all our powers of conception! It may be added, that by the aid of a telescope about two thousand stars have been seen in this constellation.
And Pleiades - The seven stars. The Hebrew word is כימה kı̂ymâh, a heap or cluster. The name is given to the cluster of stars in the neck of the constellation Taurus, of which seven are the principal. Six or seven may be usually seen if the eye is directed toward it; but if the eye be turned carelessly aside while the attention is fixed on the group, many more may be seen. For, “it is a very remarkable fact,” says Sir John Herschell, “that the center of the visual organ is by far less sensible to feeble impressions of light than the exterior portion of the retina.” Ast. p. 398. Telescopes show fifty or sixty large stars there crowded together into a small space. Rheita affirms that he counted two hundred stars in this small cluster. In regard to the Pleiades, Ideler makes the following remarks. “These stars were by the ancients sometimes denoted by the singular, Πλειὰς Pleias, and sometimes by the plural, Πλειάδες Pleiades (in metrical composition, Πληΐάδες Plēiades), Pleiades. They are mentioned by Homer, Iliad, σ s. 486, Odyssey ε e. 272, and by Hesiod, Ἐργ Erg. 383, 615. Hesiod mentions the cluster as the daughter of Atlas - Ἀτλαγενεῖς Atlageneis. The name Atlantides, which so often occurs among the Romans, signifies the same thing. Their mythological names are Alcyone, Merope, Celaeno, Electra, Sterope or Asterope, Taygete, and Maia. There is some uncertainty among the ancient writers from where the name Pleiades is derived. Among most etymologists, the name has respect to navigation, and the derivation is from ἀπὸ τοῦ πλεῖν apo tou plein - because the time of navigation commenced with the rising of the Pleiades in the first part of May, and ended with their setting in the first part of November. But perhaps the name is derived simply from πλέος pleos, πλεῖος pleios, full, so that it merely denotes a condensed assemblage of stars, which Manilius, iv. 523, expresses by glomerabile sidus. Aratus, v. 257, says that the Pleiades were called ἑπτάποροι heptaporoi - those which walked in seven paths, although but six stars can be seen. In a similar sense Ovid, speaking of the Pleiades, says,
Quae septem dici, sex tamen esse solent.
Fast. iv. 170.
Hipparchus, on the contrary, affirms that in a clear night, when there is no moon, seven stars can be seen. The difference of these views is easily explained. The group consists of one star of the third magnitude, three of the fifth, two of the sixth, and many smaller stars. It requires a very keen vision to be able to distinguish in the group more than six stars. Since therefore, among the ancients, it was commonly believed that there were no more than six, and yet among them. as with us, the name the seven stars was given to them, the opinion arose that one star of the seven had been lost. Some supposed that it had been smitten by lightning, others thai it had united itself to the middle star in the tail of the Ursa Major, and others gave to the belief a mythic signification, as is mentioned by Ovid in the place above referred to. The Romans called the Pleiades Vergiliae, because they arose in the spring. The Arabians called those stars El-thoreja - meaning abundant, copious, and answering to the Greek Πλειὰς Pleias, Pleias. The Asiatic poets Sadi, Hafiz, and others, always mention these stars as a beautiful rosette, with one brilliant. Sadi, in the description of a beautiful garden, says “The ground was strewed with pieces of enamel, and bands of Pleiades appeared to hang on the branches of the trees.” Hafiz says, “The heavens bear up thy poems - the pearly rosette of the Pleiades as the seal of immortality. Beigel, who has translated these poets, adds, “In this genuine Oriental spirit must we understand the words of Job, ‘Canst thou bind the brilliant rosettes of the Pleiades? that is, Who can say that he has placed this collection of brilliants as a rosette in the sky?” Ideler, Untersuchungen u. den Urs. u. die Bedeut. der Sternnamen, s. 143–147.
And the chambers of the south - What is the exact idea to be attached to this expression, it is not easy to say. Probably it means the remote regions of the south, or the part of the heavens which is not visible to the inhabitants of the northern hemisphere. The word rendered chambers means in the Scriptures a private apartment of a dwelling; a part that is separated from the rest by a curtain; a harem, etc. Hence, it may mean the abodes of the stars in the south - comparing the heavens with an immense tent, and regarding it as divided into separate apartments. It may mean here the stars which are hidden, as it were, in the recesses of the southern hemisphere, like the private apartments of a house, which all were not allowed to enter. There are some intimations in the book of Job that the true structure of the earth was not unknown at that remote period of the world (compare the notes at Job 26:7); and if so, then this may refer to the constellations in the south which are invisible to an inhabitant of the northern hemisphere. There is no impropriety, at any rate, in supposing that those who had traveled into the south had brought reports of stars and constellations seen there which are invisible to an inhabitant of northern Arabia.
Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary 1859 · Public Domain Arcturus, &c. These are names of stars or constellations.…
Arcturus, &c. These are names of stars or constellations. In Hebrew, Hash, Cesil, and Cima. (Challoner) --- And chadre theman, (Haydock) the "bottom or seals of the south," which were to him invisible, being the Antarctic constellations. The ancients were acquainted only with these four, (Hover; Virgil, Æneid iii., &c.) which denoted the four quarters and seasons. (Calmet) --- Ash, Arcturus, "the bear’s tail," near the north pole, (Haydock) rules in autumn, when the year begins (Calmet) in Arabia. Cesil, (Haydock) or Orion, on the west, styled by astronomers "the heart of the scorpion," rises about the autumnal equinox, and presides over winter; (Calmet) and Cima, (Haydock) the Hyades, or the seven "rainy" stars, do over spring, the "pleasing" season, as Cima denotes, (chap. xxxviii. 31.) when navigation commences. "The Seals of the south," designate summer. (Calmet) --- We must not, however, imagine that Job countenances poetical fables; (St. Jerome in Amos v. 8.) or that he called the constellations by these names, Arcturus, &c. (Calmet) --- Hebrew, "who makes the fire, the spirit, and the light," Cima, chap. xxxviii. 31. (Haydock) --- The creation of these seems grander than the making of any constellation, and all the stars had been asserted to be the work of God, ver. 7. What connection is there between the names assigned by the Rabbins and the Hebrew terms? R. Abraham observes that the last is "a northern star, causing heat, and producing fruit." (Parkhurst) --- The Arabs were convinced of the influence of the stars; (chap. xxxviii. 31.) and living under a sky generally without clouds, could easily observe them. (Roger. ii. 2., and 15.) --- Sanchez asserts, that the peasants in Spain can point out the stars by name. (Calmet) --- Inner. Protestants, "the chambers." They agree with the Vulgate in the other names. Septuagint, "who makes the Pleiads, and Hesper, and Arcturus, and the store-rooms of the south?["] (Haydock) --- They are styled inner with respect to us, who cannot see them.
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).
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown 1871 · Public Domain maketh--rather, from the Arabic, "covereth up." This accords better…
maketh--rather, from the Arabic, "covereth up." This accords better with the context, which describes His boundless power as controller rather than as creator [UMBREIT].
Arcturus--the great bear, which always revolves about the pole, and never sets. The Chaldeans and Arabs, early named the stars and grouped them in constellations; often travelling and tending flocks by night, they would naturally do so, especially as the rise and setting of some stars mark the distinction of seasons. BRINKLEY, presuming the stars here mentioned to be those of Taurus and Scorpio, and that these were the cardinal constellations of spring and autumn in Job's time, calculates, by the precession of equinoxes, the time of Job to be eight hundred eighteen years after the deluge, and one hundred eighty-four before Abraham.
Read full note →
Orion--Hebrew, "the fool"; in Job 38:31 he appears fettered with "bands." The old legend represented this star as a hero, who presumptuously rebelled against God, and was therefore a fool, and was chained in the sky as a punishment; for its rising is at the stormy period of the year. He is Nimrod (the exceedingly impious rebel) among the Assyrians; Orion among the Greeks. Sabaism (worship of the heavenly hosts) and hero-worship were blended in his person. He first subverted the patriarchal order of society by substituting a chieftainship based on conquest (Gen 10:9-10).
Pleiades--literally, "the heap of stars"; Arabic, "knot of stars." The various names of this constellation in the East express the close union of the stars in it (Amo 5:8).
chambers of the south--the unseen regions of the southern hemisphere, with its own set of stars, as distinguished from those just mentioned of the northern. The true structure of the earth is here implied.
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain 9. Arcturus — עשׁ, ‘hash. Furst derives it from…
9. Arcturus — עשׁ, ‘hash. Furst derives it from ‘housh, to group together. Probably the constellation of the Great Bear, (Ursa Major,) which the Jews of Bagdad and the Arabs of the Persian Gulf still call by the name of Ash. In the days of Homer it was called the wagon, or wain, from its fancied resemblance to a wagon with its three horses in line — a notion still preserved in England in the name it bears of Charles’ wain, (wagon.) The Romans called its seven bright stars the septentriones — the seven ploughing oxen — an idea we still keep in our name, THE PLOUGH. Of these seven stars, constituting the plough, two (α and β) are known as the pointers, from their use in pointing out the pole star.
Orion — כסיל, kesil; the strong one; (Furst;) the foolish, (Gesenius.) This cluster of stars was conceived to be a giant walking along the vault of heaven. The Arabs thus designate it. Other Orientals appear to have regarded the constellation as an impious giant fastened to the sky. According to the Persian mythology, this giant was Nimrod, the founder of Babylon, whose name they gave to this constellation. (See GESENIUS, Thesaurus, 2:701.) Some suppose these traditions look back to the revolt of the angels, and embody the supposed fate of their leader. “Orion stands far aloft, the pre-eminent glory and wonder of the starry universe. Judged by the only criterion applicable, it is perhaps so remote that its light does not reach us in less than fifty or sixty thousand years; and as, at the same time, it occupies so large an apparent portion of the heavens, how stupendous must be the extent of the nebula! It would seem almost that if all other clusters hitherto gaged were collected and compressed into one, they would not surpass this mighty group, in which every wisp, every winkle, is a SAND HEAP of stars.” — NICHOL, Architecture of the Heavens, p. 147. Pleiades — כימה, kimah, a little crowd, or group. (Furst.) The Arabs give this constellation a name signifying knot of stars, because of the number of closely united stars. In like manner the idea of close union appears in the various names this strikingly beautiful constellation bears among all eastern nations. The name ordinarily given to it of “the seven stars,” is recognized by Ovid, who says,
Read full note →
Quae septem dici, sex tamen esse solent.
— Fasti, 4:170.
indicating, though they were called seven, there were but six. The Greek mythology hands us down touching legends over this supposed lost star. According to some, it had been smitten by lightning; according to others, the seventh hid herself from shame that she alone had married a mortal, while her sisters were the wives of different deities. The Persian poets compare the seven stars to a bouquet formed of jewels. Hafiz says, “The heavens bear up thy poems — the pearly rosette of the Pleiades as the seal of immortality.” — Beigel. Dr. Good thus renders a citation from Hafiz: —
Now the bright Pleiades the concave gem,
As lucid pearls the garment’s glittering hem.
See Job_38:31. Chambers of the south — That is, the veiled regions of the southern hemisphere. (Furst.) The constellations mentioned are chiefly to be seen in the northern hemisphere, and, therefore, the poet adds a reference to “stars which never come into our view, but which lie hid, as it were, in chambers and secret recesses.” — Schultens.
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain 9. The Hebrew names are ‘âsh (‘ayish ch. Job_38:32),…
9. The Hebrew names are ‘âsh (‘ayish ch. Job_38:32), keseel, and keemah. These names may possibly denote the Bear, Orion and the Pleiades or seven stars; there is, however, considerable uncertainty. The word keseel means “fool,” which is to be interpreted as the Syr. and Chal. in this place, giant, cf. Gen_6:4, that is, some heaven-daring rebel, who was chained to the sky for his impiety. Such mythological ideas belong to a time anterior to authentic history, though as still lingering in the popular mind they are alluded to in such poems as Job. In Isa_13:10 the word is used in the general sense of constellations. Keemah perhaps means heap, and is a natural name for the Pleiades. Others have interpreted the expressions differently (see Delitzsch Comment. p. 127).
the chambers of the south] are probably the great spaces and deep recesses of the southern hemisphere of the heavens, with the constellations which they contain. These being known to exist, but only suggested to the eye, are alluded to generally.
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.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain (9) Which maketh Arcturus . . .—This shows us…
(9) Which maketh Arcturus . . .—This shows us that in the time of this writer, whoever he was, his fellow-countrymen had attained to such knowledge of astronomy as is here implied in the specific names of definite constellations. The Great Bear is the glory of the northern hemisphere, Orion of the southern sky, and the Pleiades of the east; the chambers of the north are the unknown and unexplored regions, of which the speaker has no personal experience.
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain Which maketh Arcturus, Orion, and Pleiades; literally, which maketh…
Which maketh Arcturus, Orion, and Pleiades; literally, which maketh AshKesiland Kimah. The rendering of the LXX (o poiwn Pleiada kai Esperon kai Arktouron ), supported, as it is, by most of the other ancient versions and by the Targums, has caused the stellar character of these names to be generally recognized; but the exact meaning of each term is, to some extent, still a matter of dispute. On the whole, it seems most probable that Ash"or Aish, (Job_38:32) designates "the Great Bear," called by the Arabs Nahsh"while Kesil is the name of the constellation of Orion, and Kimah of that of the Pleiades. The word Ash means "a litter," and may be compared with the Greek amaxa and our own" Charles"s Wain," both of them names given to the Great Bear, from a fancied resemblance of its form to that of a vehicle. Kesil means "an insolent, rich man" (Lee); and is often translated by "fool" in the Book of Pro_14:16 Pro_15:20 Pro_19:1 Pro_21:20, etc. It seems to have been an epitheton usitatum of Nimrod, who, according to Oriental tradition, made war upon the gods, and was bound in the sky for his impiety the constellation being thenceforth called "the Giant" (Gibbor)" or "the insolent one" (Kesil), and later by the Greeks "Orion". (comp. Amo_5:8; and infra"Job_38:31) Kimah undoubtedly designates "the Pleiades." It occurs again, in connection with Kesil"in Job_38:31, and Amo_5:8 The meaning is probably "a heap," "a cluster" (Lee); which was also the Greek idea: Pleiadev, oti pleiouv omoou kata mian sunagwghn (Eustath., "Comment. in Hom. II," 18:488); and which has been also inimitably expressed by Tennyson in the line, "Like a swarm of dazzling fireflies tangled in a silver braid." And the chambers of the south. The Chaldeans called the zodiacal constellations "mansions of the sun" and "of the moon" ("Ancient Monarchies," vol. it. p. 575); but these do not seem to be here intended. Rather Job has in his mind those immense spaces of the sky which lie behind his southern horizon; how far extending, he knows not. Though the circumnavigation of Africa was not effected until about b. c. 600, yet it is not improbable that he may have derived from travellers or merchants some knowledge of the Southern hemisphere.
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
C. I. Scofield 1917 · Public Domain Heb. Ash, Cesil, and Cimah.
Arcturus
Heb. Ash, Cesil, and Cimah.
The Scofield Reference Bible (1917 edition), notes by C. I. Scofield — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Tyndale Open Study Notes 2022 · CC BY-SA 4.0 9:9 The Bear (also at 38:32) is commonly identified…
9:9 The Bear (also at 38:32) is commonly identified as Arcturus but might also refer to the constellations of Ursa Minor or Leo. • The Pleiades is a group of seven stars (38:31; Amos 5:8).
Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.