Job 39:10

"“Will the wild ox be content to serve you? Or will he stay by your feeding trough?"

Key Reflection

In Job 39:10, these verses challenge the idea that a powerful and independent creature like the wild ox would willingly submit to human service or be easily tamed for labor, symbolizing how even those with great strength and independence must submit to divine authority and purpose. This metaphor underscores the necessity of humility and acceptance of God's will, contrasting the ox’s natural resistance with the requirement for humans to follow God’s guidance.

From the Scholars: Barnes' Notes

Canst thou bind the unicorn with his band in the furrow? -That is, with the common traces or cords which are employed in binding oxen to the plow. Or will he harrow the valleys after thee? -The word “valleys” here is used to denote such ground as was capable of being plowed or harrowed. Hills and mountains could not thus be cultivated, though the spade was in common use in planting the vine there, and even in preparing them for seed,Isaiah 7:25. The phrase “after thee” indicates that the custom of driving cattle in harrowing then was the same as that practiced now with oxen, when the person who employs them goes in advance of them.

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