These 4 statements all express the idea that the beasts, the birds, the earth, and the fish understand God better than Job's friends do. (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-parallelism]] and [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-irony]])
# you
This is plural in verses 7 and 8. (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-you]])
# But now ask the beasts, and they will teach you
The command in the first part of the sentence functions as a hypothetical condition. AT: "But if you were to ask the beasts, they would teach you" (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-imperative]] and [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-hypo]])
# ask the birds of the heavens, and they will tell you
The command in the first sentence expresses the idea of "if." AT: if you were to ask the birds of the heavens, they would tell you" (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-imperative]])
# Or speak to the earth, and it will teach you
The command in the first sentence expresses the idea of "if.". AT: "Or if you were to speak to the earth, it would teach you" (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-imperative]])
The command "Ask the fish of the sea" is understood from the previous sentences. It functions as a hypothetical condition. AT: "and if you were to ask the fish of the sea, they would declare to you" (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-ellipsis]] and [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-imperative]] and [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-hypo]])
See in Reader
