36:30 See how he scattered 1 his lightning 2 about him;
he has covered the depths 3 of the sea.
36:31 It is by these that he judges 4 the nations
and supplies food in abundance.
36:32 With his hands 5 he covers 6 the lightning,
and directs it against its target.
1 tn The word actually means “to spread,” but with lightning as the object, “to scatter” appears to fit the context better.
2 tn The word is “light,” but taken to mean “lightning.” Theodotion had “mist” here, and so most commentators follow that because it is more appropriate to the verb and the context.
3 tn Heb “roots.”
4 tn The verb is יָדִין (yadin, “he judges”). Houbigant proposedיָזוּן (yazun, “he nourishes”). This has found wide acceptance among commentators (cf. NAB). G. R. Driver retained the MT but gave a meaning “enriches” to the verb (“Problems in the Hebrew text of Job,” VTSup 3 [1955]: 88ff.).
5 tn R. Gordis (Job, 422) prefers to link this word with the later Hebrew word for “arch,” not “hands.”
6 tn Because the image might mean that God grabs the lightning and hurls it like a javelin (cf. NLT), some commentators want to change “covers” to other verbs. Dhorme has “lifts” (נִשָּׂא [nissa’] for כִּסָּה [kissah]). This fit the idea of God directing the lightning bolts.