Ayub 39:26-30

39:26 “Is it by your understanding that the hawk soars, ¹ 

and spreads its wings toward the south?

39:27 Is it at your command ²  that the eagle soars,

and builds its nest on high?

39:28 It lives on a rock and spends the night there,

on a rocky crag ³  and a fortress. ⁴ 

39:29 From there it spots ⁵  its prey, ⁶ 

its eyes gaze intently from a distance.

39:30 And its young ones devour the blood,

and where the dead carcasses ⁷  are,

there it is.”

[39:26]  ¹ tn This word occurs only here. It is connected to “pinions” in v. 13. Dhorme suggests “clad with feathers,” but the line suggests more the use of the wings.

[39:27]  ² tn Heb “your mouth.”

[39:28]  ³ tn Heb “upon the tooth of a rock.”

[39:28]  ⁴ tn The word could be taken as the predicate, but because of the conjunction it seems to be adding another description of the place of its nest.

[39:29]  ⁵ tn The word means “search,” but can be used for a wide range of matters, including spying.

[39:29]  ⁶ tn Heb “food.”

[39:30]  ⁷ tn The word חֲלָלִים (khalalim) designates someone who is fatally wounded, literally the “pierced one,” meaning anyone or thing that dies a violent death.