God is still speaking from the whirlwind, and in Job 39 He takes Job on a tour of the wild world.
One by one, He parades creatures before Job — the mountain goat, the wild donkey, the untamable ox, the strange ostrich, the war horse, the soaring hawk. And every one of them makes the same quiet point: this is a vast, wild, glorious world that does not revolve around you, Job — and I care for all of it.
Who Set the Wild Donkey Free?
Job 39:5
"Who hath sent out the wild ass free? or who hath loosed the bands of the wild ass?"
God points to the wild donkey, roaming the open wilderness, scorning the noise of the city, owned and driven by no one.
"Who hath sent out the wild ass free?" Who gave it that freedom? Not Job. Not any human. God did. There is a whole world of creatures living free, far from human control, that answer only to their Maker.
This begins to loosen something in us. We so easily believe the world should bend to our management, that everything ought to be useful and controllable. But God delights in a wildness that serves no human purpose at all — and the world is bigger and freer than our need to control it.
The Ox That Will Not Serve
Job 39:9
"Will the unicorn be willing to serve thee, or abide by thy crib?"
God points next to the wild ox — immensely strong, utterly untamable. Will it consent to plough your fields? Will it sleep by your manger like a docile farm animal?
Of course not. Its strength is not at Job's command. There are powers in creation that simply will not be harnessed by human hands.
And there is humility in admitting it. So much is beyond our control — wild, strong, unbiddable. We are not the managers of the universe we sometimes imagine ourselves to be. God governs strengths we cannot even approach.
The Horse Clothed with Thunder
Job 39:19
"Hast thou given the horse strength? hast thou clothed his neck with thunder?"
Then comes one of the most thrilling pictures in all of Scripture — the war horse.
"Hast thou clothed his neck with thunder?" God describes the horse pawing the ground, rejoicing in its strength, charging fearlessly into battle, laughing at fear, saying "among the trumpets, Ha, ha." It is a portrait of magnificent, God-given vitality.
And the question is pointed: did you give the horse this? Did you pour that thunder into its neck, that courage into its heart? No. God did. Every glory in the created world is a gift from a Maker whose creativity dwarfs ours.
A Gentle Word for the Reader
Job 39 is strangely freeing. God answers Job's anguish not with a tidy explanation, but with a tour of wild geese and galloping horses and free donkeys — as if to say, look how vast and wild and cared-for My world is. Look how much I tend that has nothing to do with your control.
And the comfort hidden in it is this: if God so freely provides for the wild donkey, clothes the horse with thunder, and feeds the young ravens that cry — creatures that serve no human purpose and offer Him nothing — then how much more does He tend to you, His own child? The God who delights in the untamable wilderness has not overlooked your life.
So loosen your grip. You were never meant to manage the universe. The same God who governs the wild things you cannot control is governing the parts of your life you cannot control either — and He is good. Let the wildness of the world preach to you of a God big enough to trust.
Reflection Questions
- God tends a vast wild world that serves no human purpose. How does that loosen your belief that everything must be useful, controllable, or about you?
- "Will the wild ox serve thee?" Where are you exhausting yourself trying to control what was never yours to control — and what would it mean to release it to God?
- If God so provides for the free creatures of the wild, how much more for you? Where do you need to trust that care today?
Short Prayer
Lord, You set the wild donkey free, You clothe the horse's neck with thunder, You feed the creatures that offer You nothing.
Forgive me for believing the world should bend to my control, that everything must be useful or managed by me.
Loosen my grip. Help me release what was never mine to govern, and trust the God who tends the wild.
If You so care for the free things of the wilderness, how much more for me. I rest in that care today.
Amen.
JMS