9:8 he alone spreads out the heavens,
and treads 1 on the waves of the sea; 2
11:9 Its measure is longer than the earth,
and broader than the sea.
14:11 As 3 water disappears from the sea, 4
or a river drains away and dries up,
36:30 See how he scattered 5 his lightning 6 about him;
he has covered the depths 7 of the sea.
38:8 “Who shut up 8 the sea with doors
when it burst forth, 9 coming out of the womb,
1 tn Or “marches forth.”
2 tn The reference is probably to the waves of the sea. This is the reading preserved in NIV and NAB, as well as by J. Crenshaw, “Wÿdorek `al-bamote ‘ares,” CBQ 34 (1972): 39-53. But many see here a reference to Canaanite mythology. The marginal note in the RSV has “the back of the sea dragon.” The view would also see in “sea” the Ugaritic god Yammu.
3 tn The comparative clause may be signaled simply by the context, especially when facts of a moral nature are compared with the physical world (see GKC 499 §161.a).
4 tn The Hebrew word יָם (yam) can mean “sea” or “lake.”
5 tn The word actually means “to spread,” but with lightning as the object, “to scatter” appears to fit the context better.
6 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.
7 tn Heb “roots.”
8 tn The MT has “and he shut up.” The Vulgate has “Who?” and so many commentaries and editions adopt this reading, if not from the Vulgate, then from the sense of the sequence in the text itself.
9 tn The line uses two expressions, first the temporal clause with גִּיחַ (giakh, “when it burst forth”) and then the finite verb יֵצֵא (yetse’, “go out”) to mark the concomitance of the two actions.