Thomas Aquinas Commentary Job 39

In the preceding section, the Lord brought to mind what relates to the cognitive power, speaking of the wisdom of humans and the intelligence of the rooster (Job 38:36). He also mentioned the prey of lions and the food of ravens, which relate to the nutritive power (Job 38:39, 41). Now He calls to mind certain things relating to the generative power, beginning with the birth of goats and deer, in which there is something hidden.

Goats are small-bodied animals that live in rocky places, where they also give birth. Access to such places is difficult for people, and because of this He says, “Do you know the time of the birth of the goats in the rocks?” as if to say: This is unknown to humans because of the harshness of the places where they give birth. Deer, likewise, choose hidden places in which to give birth, where wolves do not usually go. Thus, to show the hidden character of their birthing, He says, “or have you seen the deer giving birth?” He says this to commend divine providence.

When women give birth, they need the assistance of midwives. But for the animals whose birthing is hidden from humans, God providentially aids them with what is necessary. He does this insofar as He gives them a natural aptitude to know what they need to do in such situations. The first of these is to know the length of time in which the fetus is brought to term in the womb. Expressing this, He says, “Have you numbered the months of their conception?”—that is, can you indicate to them when they must prepare themselves for giving birth? So He says, “and did you know the time of their giving birth,” to tell them when they should deliver?

In these matters, women in labor are usually instructed by others. But the animals, which are far from human society, know these things through a natural aptitude implanted in them by God. They prepare themselves at a determined time to give birth in the way they can most easily bring forth their young. And so He says, “They crouch to bring forth their young,” which they deliver, “and give birth,” instructed by nature itself. Still, giving birth is not delightful but painful for them, and so He says, “and they bring it forth roaring,” because of the pain they suffer. Just as the mothers by natural aptitude prepare themselves for birth, so also their young are divinely taught by natural aptitude to find the necessities of life for themselves. Thus, He says, “Their young separate.” This is not the case with a human child, for a newborn baby cannot move to leave its mother, but this happens with these animals. As soon as they are born, they immediately move, and their first motion is to look for something to eat; therefore, He says, “and they go to pasture.”

In the beginning, they still need to be fed by their mother’s milk, so they separate from the mother but still return to her. However, after a little while, when they are stronger, they are completely separated from their mothers. And so He says, “they go forth and do not return to them,” because they no longer need to be nursed by them.

After discussing these things which relate to certain special properties of animals—knowledge, food, and birth—He now treats those things which relate to conserving their lives as a whole. On this subject, the first wonderful thing is that certain animals, when domesticated, cannot sustain themselves without human care. Yet there are some of the same species that are wild and govern themselves without human providence. This is especially remarkable in the donkey, which, when domesticated, seems totally given to human service. But what are called wild donkeys are free from this service, and so He says, “Who has let the wild asses go free” from human service?

When people are accustomed to something, it seems almost natural to them. Because people do not customarily see donkeys except the domesticated kind, they seem to them to be natural servants. So when a person sometimes finds a wild donkey, it seems to have been freed from service. The reality, however, is the opposite, for originally, animals of this sort were not subject to man in the way they are now. Later, they were tamed by human skill and given to the service of man. The mark of the donkeys’ servitude is the chains with which they are bound, such as a bridle or other things of this sort. Regarding this, He says, “and who broke their chains?” For wild donkeys do not have chains of this kind.

Domesticated donkeys also seem to perish if they remain without shelters built by humans, but the wild donkeys have a shelter prepared for them by divine providence. And so He says, “I have given them in uninhabited places,” to which man does not go, “a home”—a cave or cavern—“and tents”—for example, under grass and trees—“in the land of salt waste,” in some land not inhabited because of dryness and the burning sun. Here the dampness is turned, as it were, into the taste of salt. Although a dwelling of this sort seems more neglected and bleak because it is in a wasteland, still the wild donkey prefers it as much as possible to any noble city. And so He says, “He scorns the multitude of the city” in comparison to the dwelling of the desert.

He gives two reasons for this. The first is that laborious work is not required of him there, and so He says, “he hears not the shouts of the driver”—that is, his master demanding that he carry heavy loads or something similar. The other reason is that there he wanders more freely in search of pasture, and so He says, “He ranges the mountains for his pasture,” since free access to different places to find his pasture lies open to him. He receives the pastures themselves at his own pleasure, and so He says, “and he searches eagerly for green grass.” Domestic donkeys are not given the best pasturage but often the worst, because the better pastures are reserved for more noble animals.

Just as the donkey serves man for carrying heavy loads, and the wild donkey finds its habitat in wild places, so also among domesticated animals the ox serves man for plowing because of its strength. It is compared to the rhinoceros, or unicorn, among wild animals—a very strong and fierce four-footed animal with one horn in the middle of its forehead. This animal, because of its ferocity, cannot be as easily domesticated as the ox. And so He says, “Will the rhinoceros be willing to serve you,” so that it willingly obeys you like a domesticated animal? Domesticated animals accept their food freely from humans, and to show the rhinoceros does not, He says, “Will he spend the night in your manger,” prepared to eat what is offered to him by you?

Domesticated oxen are fed so that they may be used in the work of plowing. He shows the rhinoceros is not, saying, “Will you bind the rhinoceros with your strap to plow,” as one plows with oxen? Men use oxen for other work, to drag a rake to smooth plowable land by breaking up the clods of earth. And so He says, “or will he break up the clods of earth of the valleys after you”—which are often more diligently cultivated because of their greater fertility? This means either after you have plowed the land, or it means that with you preceding, he follows, breaking up the clods.

Some strong animals are set free to guard the fields against thieves or animals which can devastate the standing grain, as fields are guarded in this way by ferocious dogs. But this cannot be done with the rhinoceros, because it is not domesticated. And so He says, “Will you put your confidence in his great strength and will you leave your labors to him?”—that is, to guard the fruits of the fields. So you cannot use this very strong animal, either like the ox for plowing or like the dog as a guard. Likewise, you cannot use him like a strong farmhand to reap the fruits of the earth. And so He says, “Will you have faith in him that he will render the seed to you and bring it together on your threshing floor?” This is what a worker does who sows seed taken from his master and gives it back multiplied when he collects the crops on the threshing floor and, after the threshing, brings them to the master’s storehouse.

After He has examined the things that distinguish wild animals from domestic ones, He treats the properties of some animals that seem to differ from others. This is especially true of the ostrich, which is a species of bird very close in kind to land animals. So although she has wings like animals that fly very high, she cannot raise herself up by them to high places. And so He says, “The wing of the ostrich is like the wing of the falcon”—the most noble of the falcons, which is called a peregrine falcon—“and the hawk,” which is a well-known bird; both are good for swift flying.

There is, however, another property of the ostrich that distinguishes it from other birds: she does not hatch her own eggs but digs in the sand, deposits them there, and covers them with sand. And so He says, “she leaves her eggs in the earth.” She has a natural instinct for recognizing hot weather, namely, when the constellation called Virgo begins to appear in the month of July. Then she lays the eggs, and so, thanks to the heat of the season and the place (because she lives only in hot climates), the eggs are hatched and the chicks emerge. So He says, “Will you perhaps heat them in the dust?” He implies the answer is “No.” This happens by divine providence, which even incubates eggs in the sand unharmed.

The ostrich is naturally a forgetful animal and exhibits no care to preserve her eggs. And so He says, “she forgets that a foot” of a person passing that way “may crush them,” or “a beast of the field trample them,” either by chance or in search of food. Just as she does not care to guard her eggs, so she does not care to nourish her young. And so He says, “She deals cruelly with her young as if they are not hers,” because she takes no care for their nutrition. Thus, as far as she is concerned, she loses the fruit of generation, and so He says, “she labored in vain” by conceiving and giving birth, because she does not nourish her young. Sometimes other animals also desert their newborn young from fear, but the ostrich does this “without being compelled by fear.” She does this not because of fear, but because of a defect of the natural instinct that other animals have for this care. And so He says, “For God has deprived her,” the female ostrich, “of wisdom” to nourish and govern her young in an orderly way, “nor did he give her intelligence,” by which she would have care for her young. Wisdom and intelligence here mean natural instinct.

Because He had already said that she has wings like the falcon and the hawk (Job 39:13), He next shows what purpose her wings serve, saying, “When the time comes,” when some necessity of violent movement presents itself, “she lifts her wings up high.” Although her body cannot be raised to fly by her wings, she is helped by her wings to run more swiftly. And so He says, “she laughs at the mounted horse,” because she runs more swiftly than a horse carrying a man, “and his rider,” because she runs more swiftly than a man on foot.

Just as the ostrich has some properties that differ from other animals, and in which it is deficient, so also the horse has some noble properties by which it differs from other animals. First, He notes the strength of the horse when He says, “Will you give the horse his might?”—not only strength of body to carry a heavy load, but also of spirit to run bravely into dangers. He notes still another property of the horse: that it is aroused to lust by its external adornment. For it is said of horses that they are driven to intercourse by the adornment of their manes, and that if you cut the mane, their lust is extinguished. To show this, He says, “Will you clothe his neck with neighing?” For horses usually neigh because of lust, as Jeremiah says, “They became horses loving women and were made messengers, each one neighed for his neighbor’s wife” (Jeremiah 5:8). Thus God surrounds the neck of the horse with neighing when God gives it a mane, from which it is provoked to sexual desire. Another property of a horse is its powerful jump, which is contrary to the behavior of many quadrupeds, and so He says, “Will you make him leap,” raising him up high, “like the locusts,” which move by jumping?

Another property of the horse is its courage in battle, which He describes at greater length because it is noble and wondrous. He first demonstrates its courage when it perceives the scent of war from afar. The text continues, “The glory of his smell is terror”—that is, when the horse’s nostrils smell the battle, what is a terror for others is perceived by him as a glory to show his greatness of spirit. The sign of this appears immediately, which the text describes next: “he paws the ground with his hoof” to prepare himself to fight. He rejoices internally to perceive the coming battle, and so He says, “he exults,” because he senses the opportunity to fight. He shows this exultation by his actions when He says, “he proceeds audaciously to the clash of arms.”

Nor is he cast down with fear in the thick of the battle itself, and so He says, “he scorns fear.” What is more, he is not even put off by the pain of wounds, and so He says, “he does not retreat from the sword.” Loud noise alone is usually enough to terrify most animals, but this does not apply to the horse. And so He says, “Above him the quiver will sound,” that is, full of arrows when it is shaken by the motion of the soldier on the horse. The pike and the shield likewise produce the sound of war, and so He says, “the pike will vibrate,” for a pike makes a noise when it is brandished. A shield also makes a noise when it is moved and struck with arms, and so He says, “and the shield” sounds. But the horse is still not struck with terror by this sound. And so He says, “raging” from inner courage, “and snorting,” that is, neighing. He calls this a roar, which is the sound characteristic of lions (Proverbs 19:12), because of the horse’s courage.

He not only shows his inner passion with his voice but also with an external act, and so He says, “he sucks in the earth”—that is, he seems to suck it in by digging at it with his hooves. Not only does the sound of the quiver, the pike, and the shield not terrify him, but he is also not frightened by the sound of the trumpet, which is a martial instrument. And so He says, “nor does he regard the blast of the trumpet” so as to be terrified by it. Rather, he is said to rejoice at the sound of the military trumpet, and so He says, “When he hears the trumpet, he exclaims: Aha!”—for “Aha!” is an exclamation of exultation. Since all these things mentioned express the courage of the horse, He now adds something about its perceptiveness, saying, “He smells the battle from afar.” That is, while the enemy is still far off, he senses by smell that battle is imminent. He almost seems to sense the preparation for battle, when the generals stir up the troops with their exhortations. Regarding this, He says he perceives “the exhortations of the leaders and the shouting,” the confused uproar, “of the army” preparing itself for battle.

After He has explained about the animals that walk on the earth, He moves on to the animals that fly in the air. First, He remarks on the natural aptitude of the hawk, who in molting season stretches out his wings to the South Wind, which is a hot wind, so that with its pores opened it may shed its old feathers and new ones may take their place. And so He says, “Is it by your wisdom that the hawk grows feathers,” that is, when its feathers are renewed, “and expands his wings toward the South Wind” to molt more easily?

Finally, He speaks about the eagle, “who flies higher than the rest of the birds.” And so He says, “Will the eagle fly high at your command,” as he does at Mine? For the eagle does this by natural instinct. The whole natural course of things is a kind of motion of the creature according to the command of God, as Psalm 148 says, “Fire, hail, snow and mist, stormy winds that obey his word” (Psalms 148:8). Just as the eagle moves high in the sky, so also does he enjoy living in the heights, for this expresses the nobility of his nature. So He says, “and place his nest in places difficult to reach,” so that his young, as soon as they are born, become accustomed to dwelling in high places. So He says, “he dwells in the rocks,” as though enjoying the purity of the air, because in rocky places there is not much evaporation, “and he dwells in steep crags,” those to which access is not open to predators, “and in cliffs which are inaccessible” to man, where his security is provided for.

The eagle has very acute vision, so that he can see necessary food from a long way off. And so He says, “from there,” that is, from the high places, “he spies food,” not only near but also far away. And so He says, “and his eyes behold it far off.” The eagle is as powerful in the hunt as the lion is among quadrupeds. To show this, He says, “His young suck up blood,” that is, of the living animals which the eagle carries back to the nest. The eagle eats not only live animals, like falcons and hawks, but also the carcasses of dead animals. And so He says, “and wherever there is a carcass he immediately goes there.” In this text, He also shows the swiftness of its flight.

All these things have been brought forth to show the greatness of divine wisdom and power, which produces such marvelous effects. We understand that after Job had heard so many wonderful things about the divine works, he was stunned and silent. But the Lord stirs him to consider that man is not fit to dispute with God. And so the text says, “The Lord fastened his eyes,” adding more to these words, “and spoke to Job,” who was silent. “Is he who asserts himself with confidence against God,” who offers to argue with Him, “so easily stopped?”—as if he has been vanquished, like you who are silent? “Certainly he who accuses God,” in disputing with Him about His just judgments, “ought also to answer him.” For it is just that one who provokes another to dispute should also be prepared to answer.

So that Job would not seem obstinate in his opinion even though he was proven wrong, he breaks forth in words of humility. The text continues, “Job answered and said to the Lord: What can I who have spoken thoughtlessly answer?” Consider here that Job, speaking in the presence of God and his own conscience, is not accusing himself of speaking falsely or of a proud intention, for he had spoken from the purity of his soul, but of thoughtlessness in speech. This is because even if he had not spoken from pride of soul, his words still had the appearance of arrogance, and from this his friends took occasion for scandal. For one must not only avoid evil things but also those things which have the outward appearance of evil, as St. Paul says, “Abstain from every appearance of evil” (1 Thessalonians 5:22).

And so he says, “I will place my hand over my mouth,” so that I will not break forth in words like these about other things. I do penance for these things which I have said, and so he says, “I have said one thing, and would that I had not”—namely, when I said that I wanted to dispute with God (Job 13:3)—“and another thing,” that I preferred my own justice when it was a question of divine judgments (Job 6:2). He does not acknowledge the third thing with which Elihu had reproved him: that he said that the judgment of God was unjust (Job 33:10). For this does not pertain to thoughtlessness in speaking but to blasphemy. So he does penance for thoughtlessness in speech because he proposes to correct this defect, and so he says, “to which I will not add anything further,” so that I utter anything else thoughtlessly.

We should consider that if this discourse of the Lord to Job is not spoken in an exterior voice but is by interior inspiration, Job is found to have spoken in three ways in this book. First, he represented the emotional desire of the senses in his first loud complaint, when he says, “Let the day when I was born perish” (Job 3:3). Second, he expressed the deliberation of human reason when he disputed against his friends. Finally, he spoke according to divine inspiration when he introduced words from the person of God. Because human reason must be directed according to divine inspiration, when the Lord has spoken, Job reproves the words which he had said according to human reason.