Will you depend on him because his strength is great, and will you leave to him your labor?
English Standard Version (ESV)
The verse challenges you to consider why we rely on domesticated animals for labor – it's not just their strength, but their willingness and manageability. God highlights that even creatures with immense power, like the wild ox, cannot be depended upon for our purposes because they lack this crucial element of being brought under our control.
Will you depend on him because his strength is great, and will you leave to him your labor?
English Standard Version (ESV)
God is challenging Job's ability to control and utilize wild animals, contrasting their untamed strength with domesticated creatures that man relies on for labor. This part of the discourse focuses on the wild ox (or unicorn, depending on the translation), highlighting its immense power and its utter unwillingness to be harnessed for human work. The implication is that if Job cannot even manage such a creature, he is ill-equipped to question God's overarching governance of the world.
God challenges Job with a creature of immense power, asking if we could ever rely on such might. What does this tell us about true strength?
In Job 39, God parades a series of powerful, untamable animals to humble Job. This verse zeroes in on a creature of great strength – likely the wild ox or rhinoceros. God asks Job if he could 'trust' this creature. Why? Because its strength is immense, but it's uncontrolled.
The Illusion of Dependability
We often admire strength. We might think, 'If only I had more power, more resources, more ability, then everything would be fine!' But this verse points out that raw strength isn't enough. The wild creature's strength is precisely why it can't be trusted for human labor. It's unmanageable, unpredictable, and ultimately useless for our purposes, despite its might.
This is God's point: His own strength is not just vast, it's perfectly controlled, wise, and directed. We can depend on His strength because it's coupled with perfect knowledge and loving purpose, not wild, dangerous power.
God pushes Job further: could you even assign your own work to this powerful beast? What does this reveal about our attempts to manage God's world?
The second part of the question is, 'Will you leave to him your labor?' This refers to the actual work of farming – plowing, harrowing, or bringing in the harvest. We rely on trained, domesticated animals like oxen for this. They are strong enough, but crucially, they are . They submit to our direction.
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The Limits of Human Control
The untamed creature, for all its power, is completely unfit for this. It would likely destroy the fields or simply refuse to cooperate. God is showing Job that he, as a human, cannot simply assign tasks to creatures based on their power alone. We can't 'manage' the wild forces of creation like this.
This extends to our relationship with God's creation and even His divine plan. We cannot simply 'assign' our spiritual labor or divine tasks to forces we don't understand or control. God alone orchestrates His purposes. Our role is obedience and trust, not management.
Understand the original words
aman · Hebrew Verb
A state of reliance, trust, or confidence in someone or something else for support, sustenance, or security. Biblically, it often contrasts placing one's trust in human or animal strength versus reliance on God.
yagia · Hebrew Noun
Refers to the physical, mental, or emotional exertion expended in toil, work, or the consequences/fruit of one's efforts. It implies the struggle for productivity and the hope for a return on one's labor.
Jesus echoes God's challenge in Job by pointing out that even the birds of the air, which are not owned or controlled by humans, are cared for by God, implying we shouldn't worry about our own provision.
Psalm 32:9This verse speaks to the danger of being like a horse or mule that lacks understanding, needing to be controlled by bit and bridle, which parallels Job's theme of untamable creatures and our own potential stubbornness against God's will.
Proverbs 26:3The imagery of a whip for a horse, a bridle for a donkey, and a rod for a fool highlights how certain beings require external control because they lack inner willingness or understanding, much like the untamable creatures in Job.
Jeremiah 8:6This passage describes a people who are unwilling to turn from their ways and lack understanding, comparing their spiritual state to the unmanageable nature of creatures God uses in Job to illustrate His sovereign power.
jfbJob 39:11: "Wilt thou trust him, because his strength is great? or wilt thou leave thy labour to him?"
- thy labour—rustic work.
gillJob 39:11: "Wilt thou trust him, because his strength is great? or wilt thou leave thy labour to him?"
Wilt thou trust him, because his strength is great?.... No; tame oxen are employed because they are strong to labour, Psalm 144:14 ; and they are to be trusted, in ploughing or treading out the corn, under direction, because they are manageable, and will attend to business with constancy; but the wild ox, though stronger, and so fitter for labour, is yet not to be trusted, because unruly and u…
The verse challenges you to consider why we rely on domesticated animals for labor – it's not just their strength, but their willingness and manageability. God highlights that even creatures with immense power, like the wild ox, cannot be depended upon for our purposes because they lack this crucial element of being brought under our control.
God is challenging Job's ability to control and utilize wild animals, contrasting their untamed strength with domesticated creatures that man relies on for labor. This part of the discourse focuses on the wild ox (or unicorn, depending on the translation), highlighting its immense power and its utter unwillingness to be harnessed for human work. The implication is that if Job cannot even manage such a creature, he is ill-equipped to question God's overarching governance of the world.
God is challenging Job's ability to control and utilize wild animals, contrasting their untamed strength with domesticated creatures that man relies on for labor. This part of the discourse focuses on the wild ox (or unicorn, depending on the translation), highlighting its immense power and its utter unwillingness to be harnessed for human work. The implication is that if Job cannot even manage such a creature, he is ill-equipped to question God's overarching governance of the world.
"Will you depend on him because his strength is great, and will you leave to him your labor?" — The verse challenges you to consider why we rely on domesticated animals for labor – it's not just their strength, but their willingness and manageability. God highlights that even creatures with i…
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Last reviewed October 2026