Job 37:7
He seals up the hand of every man, so that all men may know His work.
BSB
ASV
He sealeth up the hand of every man, That all men whom he hath made may know it.
KJV
He sealeth up the hand of every man; that all men may know his work.
Who sealeth the hand of all men, that every one may know his works. For men scorn to think of the sins they commit. But when they hear the power of heavenly severity, they discern this burden of misdeeds which weighs them down. For being roused by the words of preaching, they keep on the watch, in order to consider to what punishments the merit of their former doings is leading them.
He sealeth up the hand of every man - That is, in the winter, when the snow is on the ground, when the streams are frozen, and when the labors of the husbandman cease. The idea of “sealing up the hand” is derived from the common purpose of a seal, to make fast, to close up, to secure (compare Job 9:7, note; Job 33:16, note), and the sense is, that the hands can no more be used in ordinary toil.
1834–1892
When the Lord seals up a man's hand, he is unable to perform his labor. The Lord has an objective in this, namely, "that all men may know His work." When they cannot do their own work, they are intended to observe the works of God. This is a fact which I fear many of us have never noticed. When the ground is hardened into iron by the frost. When the land lies deep beneath the snow. When the ox rests in the stall and the servants warm their hands at the fire, then the farmer's hand is sealed up.
Rare words are the text's own signal of a deliberate thread: the fewer the occurrences, the more the places it appears belong together.
The walk8
Follow this verse’s cross-references two steps out. Each card is a verse this one points to, and beneath it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several different paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it. Every stop shows its own words, and every stop is a page.
Through
Psalms 111:2Great are the works of the LORD; they are pondered by all who delight in them.
leads to
How many are Your works, O LORD! In wisdom You have made them all; the earth is full of Your creatures.
Know therefore that wisdom is sweet to your soul. If you find it, there is a future for you, and your hope will never be cut off.
Through
Psalms 46:8Come, see the works of the LORD, who brings devastation upon the earth.
leads to
Come and see the works of God; how awesome are His deeds toward mankind.
Through
Psalms 109:27Let them know that this is Your hand, that You, O LORD, have done it.
leads to
At the time of the evening sacrifice, Elijah the prophet approached the altar and said, “O LORD, God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, let it be known this day that You are God in…
“This is the finger of God,” the magicians said to Pharaoh. But Pharaoh’s heart was hardened, and he would not listen to them, just as the LORD had said.
This day the LORD will deliver you into my hand. This day I will strike you down, cut off your head, and give the carcasses of the Philistines to the birds of the air…
Through
Psalms 92:4For You, O LORD, have made me glad by Your deeds; I sing for joy at the works of Your hands.
leads to
But thanks be to God, who always leads us triumphantly as captives in Christ and through us spreads everywhere the fragrance of the knowledge of Him.
You made him ruler of the works of Your hands; You have placed everything under his feet: