Once more Jehovah from that radiant throne
Of clouds thus spake: " O Job, thy arms put on;
If thou hast will or courage left, prepare
T' encounter Me in this gigantic war.
Wilt thou My judgments disannul, defame
My equal rule, to clear thyself of blame?
Is thy weak arm as strong as God's? Canst thou
In thunder speak, the sea with tempests plough?
Come, deck thyself with beauty's excellence;
With majesty, and sun-like rays dispense;
The fury of thy wrath like lightning fling
On bold offenders; pride to ruin bring.
Those with the surfeits of excess destroy,
Who in their uncontrolled vices joy:
Hide them together in the caves of night;
There bind them, never to behold the light:
Then will I say that thou thyself canst save
From wasting age, destruction, and the grave.
With thee, I made the mighty elephant,
Who ox-like feeds on ev'ry herb and plant.
His mighty strength lies in his able loins,
And where the flexure of his navel joins.
His stretch'd-out tail presents a mountain pine;
The sinews of his stones like cords combine;
His bones the hammer'd steel in strength surpass;
His sides are fortifi'd with ribs of brass.
Of God's great works the chief. Lo, He Who made
This knowing beast, hath arm'd him with a blade.
He feeds on lofty hills, nor lives by prey;
About their gentle prince his subjects play.
His limbs he coucheth in the cooler shades;
Oft, when heav'n's burning eye the fields invades,
To marishes resorts, obscur'd with reeds
And hoary willows, which the moisture feeds.
The chiding currents at his entry rise,
Who quiv'ring Jordan swallows with his eyes.
Can the bold hunter take him in a toil,
Or by the trunk produce him as his spoil? "