In Genesis 2:19 we are told that the Lord brought all the animals he created before Adam, and Adam named them all (Genesis 2:20). This, of course, was to fix the fact in Adam’s mind that he lacked and needed a mate, but I believe we miss something alluded to in the text, if all we do is read the creation account with that in mind. The Bible shows us that names have meaning, and whenever someone names anyone or anything in the Bible, it is to express a certain idea. For example, Jacob named a place, Bethel (house of God), in order to express his deep feelings over the dream he had there (Genesis 28:16-19). He also renamed his twelfth son, Benjamin (son of my right hand), because Rachal named him Benoni (son of my sorrow), because she believed Joseph, her firstborn was dead, and instead of her newborn adding to her treasures, he only reminded her of her loss (Genesis 35:18). With these things in mind, when Adam named the animals, the text is alluding to the fact that he studied their behavior first, and named them accordingly. The text is telling us that Adam knew the beasts, what they did and the dangers involved in their environment!
Chapter 39 of the Book of Job begins with the Lord calling Job’s attention to certain animals, eight to be exact, and ten, if one wished to include the lion and the raven from the end of chapter 38, where some believe chapter 39 should begin. Most of the animals are unclean, according to the Law of Moses (not in effect in Job’s day). Only three of the animals named were clean, the wild goat (probably ibex), the hind (deer) and the unicorn (wild ox). This may allude to the fact that the Lord cares just as much for the unclean (wicked) as he does for the clean (righteous). Thus, if this is logical and true, correcting our behavior is not necessarily God’s point, when he disciplines us.
As we begin chapter 39 in our study, we need to understand that the context of the Lord’s question implies Job wasn’t a scientist. He didn’t follow the wild goats or the doe into the mountains in order to study their behavior. Therefore, God was asking questions Job couldn’t answer, not simply because mankind couldn’t offer a good reply, if he wished to know, but because Job was ignorant of the answers. Nevertheless, God knew. The Lord knew the gestation periods of goats and deer, which included the very moment their pregnancies began and the moment the birth of each of their young would take place (Job 39:1-2). God knew, because he not only created these beasts as they were, but he programmed their behavioral patterns and watched over them.
Shepherds watch over their domesticated flocks, but who cares for and protects the wild animals? God was not only responsible for the existence of these creatures, but he was also responsible for how and where they lived. However, why would the Lord program a creature to live in the high, rocky, mountains, where food is so scares? Yet, this is what they do. Moreover, although they don’t seem to fear their dangerous environment, these creatures live in constant fear of both man and carnivorous beasts around them. If we include the natural dangers of their environment in our analysis of these creatures, it is a wonder that they have survived as a species. This is especially a consideration for the kids who continue with their parents for only about eight months. They may live to be 35-40 years, but they leave their parents when they are still quite inexperienced. So, who cares for them? They haven’t a shepherd who cares for and protects them. They are the prey of both man and beast, and they live in a very dangerous location. There is only God; he cares for and protects them.
What’s the Lord’s point? Wasn’t Job a prey for his enemies? Wasn’t he suffering and in pain? Was God unaware of Job’s terrible plight (Job 23:3-9)? According to God’s words to Job (Job 39:3-4), the Lord is always aware of our fears and difficulties. The fact is, part of the reason for those conditions was God plan from the beginning. He knows, but his knowing is so much greater than our understanding (cp. Job 38:4-6). We need to keep this in mind when our present and our future seems so bleak and unfathomable. Life may be difficult, even seemingly unbearable, but we can draw comfort from the fact that we are not alone. God knows, and he’ll bring us through it all, if we let him.
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