1 “Do you know the time the 39:1Lit goats of the rock mountain goats give birth?Do you keep watch over the calving of the deer?2 “Can you count the months they fulfill,Or do you know the time they give birth?3 “They kneel down; they bring forth their young;They send out their labor pains.4 “Their children become strong; they grow up in the open field;They leave and do not return to them.5 ¶“Who sent out the wild donkey free?And who loosed the bonds of the swift donkey,6 For whom I have set the desert plain as a homeAnd the salt land as his dwelling place?7 “He laughs at the tumult of the city;The shoutings of the driver he does not hear.8 “He explores the mountains for his pastureAnd searches after every green thing.9 “Will the wild ox consent to serve you,Or will he spend the night at your manger?10 “Can you bind the wild ox in a furrow with 39:10Lit his rope ropes,Or will he harrow the valleys after you?11 “Will you trust him because his power is greatAnd leave your labor to him?12 “Will you believe him that he will return your seedof grainAnd gatherit fromyour threshing floor?13 ¶“The ostriches’ wings flap joyouslyButare they the pinion and plumage of a 39:13Or love stork?14 For she leaves her eggs to the earthAnd warms them in the dust,15 And she forgets that a foot may crush 39:15Lit it them,Or that a beast of the field may trample 39:15Lit it them.16 “She treats her children cruelly, as iftheywere not hers;Though her labor be empty,sheis without dread,17 Because God has made her forget wisdom,And has not given her a share of understanding.18 “When she raises herself up high,She laughs at the horse and his rider.19 ¶“Do you give the horsehismight?Do you clothe his neck with a mane?20 “Do you make him leap like the locust?His splendid snorting is terrible.21 “ 39:21Lit They paw He paws in the valley and rejoices inhispower;He goes out to meet the weapons.22 “He laughs at dread and is not dismayed;And he does not turn back from the sword.23 “The quiver rattles against him,The flashing spear and javelin.24 “With shaking and rage he 39:24Or swallows up races over the ground,And he does not 39:24Lit believe stand still at the sound of the trumpet.25 “As often as the trumpetsoundshe says, ‘Aha!’And he scents the battle from afar,And the thunder of the commanders and the shoutof war.26 ¶“Is it by your understanding that the hawk soars,Stretching his wings toward the south?27 “Is it at your 39:27Lit mouth command that the eagle goes on highAnd raises his nest high?28 “On the cliff he dwells and lodges,Upon the rocky crag, a fortress.29 “From there he 39:29Or paws, cf. Job 39:21;lit digs spies out food;His eyes seeitfrom afar.30 “His young ones also suck up blood;And where the slain are, there is he.”