Ayub 3:13

3:13 For now ¹  I would be lying down

and ²  would be quiet, ³ 

I would be asleep and then at peace ⁴ 

Ayub 5:9

5:9 He does ⁵  great and unsearchable ⁶  things,

marvelous things without ⁷  number; ⁸ 

Ayub 5:19

5:19 He will deliver you ⁹  from six calamities;

yes, in seven ¹⁰  no evil will touch you.

Ayub 5:21

5:21 You will be protected ¹¹  from malicious gossip, ¹² 

and will not be afraid of the destruction ¹³  when it comes.

Ayub 7:7

7:7 Remember ¹⁴  that my life is but a breath,

that ¹⁵  my eyes will never again ¹⁶  see happiness.

Ayub 9:22

Accusation of God’s Justice

9:22 “It is all one! ¹⁷  That is why I say, ¹⁸ 

‘He destroys the blameless and the guilty.’

Ayub 11:12

11:12 But an empty man will become wise,

when a wild donkey’s colt is born a human being. ¹⁹ 

Ayub 11:19

11:19 You will lie down with ²⁰  no one to make you afraid,

and many will seek your favor. ²¹ 

Ayub 15:31

15:31 Let him not trust in what is worthless, ²² 

deceiving himself;

for worthlessness will be his reward. ²³ 

Ayub 16:5

16:5 But ²⁴  I would strengthen ²⁵  you with my words; ²⁶ 

comfort from my lips would bring ²⁷  you relief.

Ayub 17:16

17:16 Will ²⁸  it ²⁹  go down to the barred gates ³⁰  of death?

Will ³¹  we descend ³²  together into the dust?”

Ayub 18:17

18:17 His memory perishes from the earth,

he has no name in the land. ³³ 

Ayub 19:3

19:3 These ten times ³⁴  you have been reproaching me; ³⁵ 

you are not ashamed to attack me! ³⁶ 

Ayub 22:2

22:2 “Is it to God that a strong man is of benefit?

Is it to him that even a wise man is profitable? ³⁷ 

Ayub 22:9

22:9 you sent widows away empty-handed,

and the arms ³⁸  of the orphans you crushed. ³⁹ 

Ayub 22:24

22:24 and throw ⁴⁰  your gold ⁴¹  in the dust –

your gold ⁴²  of Ophir

among the rocks in the ravines –

Ayub 23:11

23:11 My feet ⁴³  have followed ⁴⁴  his steps closely;

I have kept to his way and have not turned aside. ⁴⁵ 

Ayub 24:8

24:8 They are soaked by mountain rains

and huddle ⁴⁶  in the rocks because they lack shelter.

Ayub 26:5

A Better Description of God’s Greatness ⁴⁷ 

26:5 “The dead ⁴⁸  tremble ⁴⁹  –

those beneath the waters

and all that live in them. ⁵⁰ 

Ayub 27:10

27:10 Will he find delight ⁵¹  in the Almighty?

Will he call out to God at all times?

Ayub 27:12

27:12 If you yourselves have all seen this,

Why in the world ⁵²  do you continue this meaningless talk? ⁵³ 

Ayub 29:16

29:16 I was a father ⁵⁴  to the needy,

and I investigated the case of the person I did not know;

Ayub 30:11

30:11 Because God has untied ⁵⁵  my tent cord and afflicted me,

people throw off all restraint in my presence. ⁵⁶ 

Ayub 32:1

V. The Speeches of Elihu (32:1-37:24)

Elihu’s First Speech ⁵⁷ 

32:1 So these three men refused to answer ⁵⁸  Job further, because he was righteous in his ⁵⁹  own eyes.

Ayub 34:22

34:22 There is no darkness, and no deep darkness,

where evildoers can hide themselves. ⁶⁰ 

Ayub 34:24

34:24 He shatters the great without inquiry, ⁶¹ 

and sets up others in their place.

Ayub 35:2

35:2 “Do you think this to be ⁶²  just:

when ⁶³  you say, ‘My right before God.’ ⁶⁴ 

Ayub 42:2

42:2 “I know that you can do all things;

no purpose of yours can be thwarted;

[3:13]  ¹ tn The word עַתָּה (’attah, “now”) may have a logical nuance here, almost with the idea of “if that had been the case…” (IBHS 667-68 §39.3.4f). However, the temporal “now” is retained in translation since the imperfect verb following two perfects “suggests what Job’s present state would be if he had had the quiet of a still birth” (J. E. Hartley, Job [NICOT], 95, n. 23). Cf. GKC 313 §106.p.

[3:13]  ² tn The copula on the verb indicates a sequence for the imperfect: “and then I would….” In the second half of the verse it is paralleled by “then.”

[3:13]  ³ tn The text uses a combination of the perfect (lie down/sleep) and imperfect (quiet/rest). The particle עַתָּה (’attah, “now”) gives to the perfect verb its conditional nuance. It presents actions in the past that are not actually accomplished but seen as possible (GKC 313 §106.p).

[3:13]  ⁴ tn The last part uses the impersonal verb “it would be at rest for me.”

[5:9]  ⁵ tn Heb “who does.” It is common for such doxologies to begin with participles; they follow the pattern of the psalms in this style. Because of the length of the sentence in Hebrew and the conventions of English style, a new sentence was started here in the translation.

[5:9]  ⁶ tn The Hebrew has וְאֵין חֵקֶר (vÿ’en kheqer), literally, “and no investigation.” The use of the conjunction on the expression follows a form of the circumstantial clause construction, and so the entire expression describes the great works as “unsearchable.”

[5:9]  ⁷ tn The preposition in עַד־אֵין (’ad ’en, “until there was no”) is stereotypical; it conveys the sense of having no number (see Job 9:10; Ps 40:13).

[5:9]  ⁸ sn H. H. Rowley (Job [NCBC], 54) notes that the verse fits Eliphaz’s approach very well, for he has good understanding of the truth, but has difficulty in making the correct conclusions from it.

[5:19]  ⁹ tn The verb is the Hiphil imperfect of נָצַל (natsal, “deliver”). These verbs might have been treated as habitual imperfects if it were not for the use of the numerical images – “six calamities…in seven.” So the nuance is specific future instead.

[5:19]  ¹⁰ tn The use of a numerical ladder as we have here – “six // seven” is frequent in wisdom literature to show completeness. See Prov 6:16; Amos 1:3, Mic 5:5. A number that seems to be sufficient for the point is increased by one, as if to say there is always one more. By using this Eliphaz simply means “in all troubles” (see H. H. Rowley, Job [NCBC], 56).

[5:21]  ¹¹ tn The Hebrew verb essentially means “you will be hidden.” In the Niphal the verb means “to be hidden, to be in a hiding place,” and protected (Ps 31:20).

[5:21]  ¹² tn Heb “from the lash [i.e., whip] of the tongue.” Sir 26:9 and 51:2 show usages of these kinds of expressions: “the lash of the tongue” or “the blow of the tongue.” The expression indicates that a malicious gossip is more painful than a blow.

[5:21]  sn The Targum saw here a reference to Balaam and the devastation brought on by the Midianites.

[5:21]  ¹³ tn The word here is שׁוֹד (shod); it means “destruction,” but some commentators conjecture alternate readings: שׁוֹאָה (sho’ah, “desolation”); or שֵׁד (shed, “demon”). One argument for maintaining שׁוֹד (shod) is that it fits the assonance within the verse שׁוֹד…לָשׁוֹן…שׁוֹט (shot…lashon…shod).

[7:7]  ¹⁴ sn Job is probably turning here to God, as is clear from v. 11 on. The NIV supplies the word “God” for clarification. It was God who breathed breath into man’s nostrils (Gen 2:7), and so God is called to remember that man is but a breath.

[7:7]  ¹⁵ tn The word “that” is supplied in the translation.

[7:7]  ¹⁶ tn The verb with the infinitive serves as a verbal hendiadys: “return to see” means “see again.”

[9:22]  ¹⁷ tc The LXX omits the phrase “It is all one.” Modern scholars either omit it or transpose it for clarity.

[9:22]  sn The expression “it is one” means that God’s dealings with people is undiscriminating. The number “one” could also be taken to mean “the same” – “it is all the same.” The implication is that it does not matter if Job is good or evil, if he lives or dies. This is the conclusion of the preceding section.

[9:22]  ¹⁸ tn The relationships of these clauses is in some question. Some think that the poet has inverted the first two, and so they should read, “That is why I have said: ‘It is all one.’” Others would take the third clause to be what was said.

[11:12]  ¹⁹ tn As A. B. Davidson (Job, 84) says, the one thing will happen when the other happens – which is never. The word “empty” נָבוּב (navuv) means “hollow; witless,” and “become wise” (יִלָּבֵב, yillavev) is “will get heart” (not to “lack heart” as Driver suggested”). Many commentators do not like the last line of the verse, and so offer even more emendations. E. F. Sutcliffe wanted to change פֶּרֶא (pere’, “donkey”) to פֶּרֶד (pered, “stallion”), rendering “a witless wight may get wit when a mule is born a stallion” (“Notes on Job, textual and exegetical,” Bib 30 [1949]: 70-71); and others approached the verse by changing the verb from יִוָּלֵד (yivvaled, “is born”) to יִלָּמֵד (yillamed, “is taught”), resulting in “a hollow man may get understanding, and a wild donkey’s colt may be taught [= tamed]” (cf. NAB).

[11:19]  ²⁰ tn The clause that reads “and there is no one making you afraid,” is functioning circumstantially here (see 5:4; 10:7).

[11:19]  ²¹ tn Heb “they will stroke your face,” a picture drawn from the domestic scene of a child stroking the face of the parent. The verb is a Piel, meaning “stroke, make soft.” It is used in the Bible of seeking favor from God (supplication); but it may on the human level also mean seeking to sway people by flattery. See further D. R. Ap-Thomas, “Notes on Some Terms Relating to Prayer,” VT 6 (1956): 225-41.

[15:31]  ²² tn The word, although difficult in its form, is “vanity,” i.e., that which is worthless. E. Dhorme (Job, 224) thinks that the form שָׁוְא (shav’) conceals the word שִׁיאוֹ (shi’o, “his stature”). But Dhorme reworks most of the verse. He changes נִתְעָה (nit’ah, “deceived”) to נֵדַע (neda’, “we know”) to arrive at “we know that it is vanity.” The last two words of the verse are then moved to the next. The LXX has “let him not think that he shall endure, for his end shall be vanity.”

[15:31]  ²³ tn This word is found in Job 20:18 with the sense of “trading.” It can mean the exchange of goods or the profit from them. Some commentators change תְמוּרָתוֹ (tÿmurato, “his reward”) because they wish to put it with the next verse as the LXX seems to have done (although the LXX does not represent this). Suggestions include תִּמֹרָתוֹ (timorato, “his palm tree”) and זְמֹרָתוֹ (zÿmorato, “his vine shoot”). A number of writers simply delete all of v. 31. H. H. Rowley (Job [NCBC], 115) suggests the best reading (assuming one were going to make changes) would be, “Let him not trust in his stature, deceiving himself, for it is vanity.” And then put “his palm tree” with the next verse, he thinks that achieves the proper balance.

[16:5]  ²⁴ tn “But” has been added in the translation to strengthen the contrast.

[16:5]  ²⁵ tn The Piel of אָמַץ (’amats) means “to strengthen, fortify.”

[16:5]  ²⁶ tn Heb “my mouth.”

[16:5]  ²⁷ tn The verb יַחְשֹׂךְ (yakhsokh) means “to restrain; to withhold.” There is no object, so many make it first person subject, “I will not restrain.” The LXX and the Syriac have a different person – “I would not restrain.” G. R. Driver, arguing that the verb is intransitive here, made it “the solace of my lips would not [added] be withheld” (see JTS 34 [1933]: 380). D. J. A. Clines says that what is definitive is the use of the verb in the next line, where it clearly means “soothed, assuaged.”

[17:16]  ²⁸ sn It is natural to assume that this verse continues the interrogative clause of the preceding verse.

[17:16]  ²⁹ tn The plural form of the verb probably refers to the two words, or the two senses of the word in the preceding verse. Hope and what it produces will perish with Job.

[17:16]  ³⁰ tn The Hebrew word בַּדִּים (baddim) describes the “bars” or “bolts” of Sheol, referring (by synecdoche) to the “gates of Sheol.” The LXX has “with me to Sheol,” and many adopt that as “by my side.”

[17:16]  ³¹ tn The conjunction אִם (’im) confirms the interrogative interpretation.

[17:16]  ³² tn The translation follows the LXX and the Syriac versions with the change of vocalization in the MT. The MT has the noun “rest,” yielding, “will our rest be together in the dust?” The verb נָחַת (nakhat) in Aramaic means “to go down; to descend.” If that is the preferred reading – and it almost is universally accepted here – then it would be spelled נֵחַת (nekhat). In either case the point of the verse is clearly describing death and going to the grave.

[18:17]  ³³ tn Heb “outside.” Cf. ESV, “in the street,” referring to absence from his community’s memory.

[19:3]  ³⁴ sn The number “ten” is a general expression to convey that this has been done often (see Gen 31:7; Num 14:22).

[19:3]  ³⁵ tn The Hiphil of the verb כָּלַם (kalam) means “outrage; insult; shame.” The verbs in this verse are prefixed conjugations, and may be interpreted as preterites if the reference is to the past time. But since the action is still going on, progressive imperfects work well.

[19:3]  ³⁶ tn The second half of the verse uses two verbs, the one dependent on the other. It could be translated “you are not ashamed to attack me” (see GKC 385-86 §120.c), or “you attack me shamelessly.” The verb חָכַר (hakhar) poses some difficulties for both the ancient versions and the modern commentators. The verb seems to be cognate to Arabic hakara, “to oppress; to ill-treat.” This would mean that there has been a transformation of ח (khet) to ה (he). Three Hebrew mss actually have the ח (khet). This has been widely accepted; other suggestions are irrelevant.

[22:2]  ³⁷ tn Some do not take this to be parallel to the first colon, taking this line as a statement, but the parallel expressions here suggest the question is repeated.

[22:9]  ³⁸ tn The “arms of the orphans” are their helps or rights on which they depended for support.

[22:9]  ³⁹ tn The verb in the text is Pual: יְדֻכָּא (yÿdukka’, “was [were] crushed”). GKC 388 §121.b would explain “arms” as the complement of a passive imperfect. But if that is too difficult, then a change to Piel imperfect, second person, will solve the difficulty. In its favor is the parallelism, the use of the second person all throughout the section, and the reading in all the versions. The versions may have simply assumed the easier reading, however.

[22:24]  ⁴⁰ tc The form is the imperative. Eliphaz is telling Job to get rid of his gold as evidence of his repentance. Many commentators think that this is too improbable for Eliphaz to have said, and that Job has lost everything anyway, and so they make proposals for the text. Most would follow Theodotion and the Syriac to read וְשָׁתָּ (vÿshatta, “and you will esteem….”). This would mean that he is promising Job restoration of his wealth.

[22:24]  tn Heb “place.”

[22:24]  ⁴¹ tn The word for “gold” is the rare בֶּצֶר (betser), which may be derived from a cognate of Arabic basara, “to see; to examine.” If this is the case, the word here would refer to refined gold. The word also forms a fine wordplay with בְצוּר (bÿtsur, “in the rock”).

[22:24]  ⁴² tn The Hebrew text simply has “Ophir,” a metonymy for the gold that comes from there.

[23:11]  ⁴³ tn Heb “my foot.”

[23:11]  ⁴⁴ tn Heb “held fast.”

[23:11]  ⁴⁵ tn The last clause, “and I have not turned aside,” functions adverbially in the sentence. The form אָט (’at) is a pausal form of אַתֶּה (’atteh), the Hiphil of נָטָה (natah, “stretch out”).

[24:8]  ⁴⁶ tn Heb “embrace” or “hug.”

[26:5]  ⁴⁷ sn This is the section, Job 26:5-14, that many conclude makes better sense coming from the friend. But if it is attributed to Job, then he is showing he can surpass them in his treatise of the greatness of God.

[26:5]  ⁴⁸ tn The text has הָרְפָאִים (harÿfa’im, “the shades”), referring to the “dead,” or the elite among the dead (see Isa 14:9; 26:14; Ps 88:10 [11]). For further discussion, start with A. R. Johnson, The Vitality of the Individual, 88ff.

[26:5]  ⁴⁹ tn The verb is a Polal from חִיל (khil) which means “to tremble.” It shows that even these spirits cannot escape the terror.

[26:5]  ⁵⁰ tc Most commentators wish to lengthen the verse and make it more parallel, but nothing is gained by doing this.

[27:10]  ⁵¹ tn See the note on 22:26 where the same verb is employed.

[27:12]  ⁵² tn The interrogative uses the demonstrative pronoun in its emphatic position: “Why in the world…?” (IBHS 312-13 §17.4.3c).

[27:12]  ⁵³ tn The text has the noun “vain thing; breath; vapor,” and then a denominative verb from the same root: “to become vain with a vain thing,” or “to do in vain a vain thing.” This is an example of the internal object, or a cognate accusative (see GKC 367 §117.q). The LXX has “you all know that you are adding vanity to vanity.”

[29:16]  ⁵⁴ sn The word “father” does not have a wide range of meanings in the OT. But there are places that it is metaphorical, especially in a legal setting like this where the poor need aid.

[30:11]  ⁵⁵ tn The verb פָּתַח (patakh) means “to untie [or undo]” a rope or bonds. In this verse יִתְרוֹ (yitro, the Kethib, LXX, and Vulgate) would mean “his rope” (see יֶתֶר [yeter] in Judg 16:7-9). The Qere would be יִתְרִי (yitri, “my rope [or cord]”), meaning “me.” The word could mean “rope,” “cord,” or “bowstring.” If the reading “my cord” is accepted, the cord would be something like “my tent cord” (as in Job 29:20), more than K&D 12:147 “cord of life.” This has been followed in the present translation. If it were “my bowstring,” it would give the sense of disablement. If “his cord” is taken, it would signify that the restraint that God had in afflicting Job was loosened – nothing was held back.

[30:11]  ⁵⁶ sn People throw off all restraint in my presence means that when people saw how God afflicted Job, robbing him of his influence and power, then they turned on him with unrestrained insolence (H. H. Rowley, Job [NCBC], 193).

[32:1]  ⁵⁷ sn There are now four speeches from another friend of Job, Elihu. But Job does not reply to any of these, nor does the Lord. The speeches show a knowledge of the debate that has gone on, but they take a different approach entirely. Elihu’s approach is that suffering is a discipline from God, to teach his people. In other words, Job was suffering to vindicate God’s confidence in him. His speeches are an interesting part of the book, but they too are irrelevant to Job’s actual case. In the first speech, there is a short introduction (32:1-5), and then the speech proper with these sections: Elihu will speak because his youth is wiser (32:6-14), and his friends arguments failed (32:15-22); he calls for Job’s attention (33:1-7), claims Job’s case is wrong (33:8-13), and Job’s argument that God does not answer is false (33:14-28), and then makes an appeal to Job (33:29-33). It becomes evident that Elihu correctly identified Job’s determination to maintain his integrity at God’s expense as the primary problem in at least the latter stages of the dialogues (32:1-3; 34:37; 35:16; cf. 38:2; 40:8; 42:3). Elihu was respectful of his elders (32:4), but remained uninfected by their error (32:14). He sought to maintain impartiality (32:21-22) and to offer true wisdom (33:33), believed like Job that a mediator existed (33:23-24), and desired Job’s vindication (33:32). In addition, Elihu focused on vindicating God’s actions (34:12; 35:10-11; 36:2-3, 22-26) and announced the coming theophany (37:1-5, 22). It appears that he was not included in the divine condemnation of Job’s friends (42:7-9) and was excluded from Job’s prayer of intercession (42:8-10) – both perhaps implying divine approval of his behavior and words.

[32:1]  ⁵⁸ tn The form is the infinitive construct (“answer”) functioning as the object of the preposition; the phrase forms the complement of the verb “they ceased to answer” (= “they refused to answer further”).

[32:1]  ⁵⁹ tc The LXX, Syriac, and Symmachus have “in their eyes.” This is adopted by some commentators, but it does not fit the argument.

[34:22]  ⁶⁰ tn The construction of this colon uses the Niphal infinitive construct from סָתַר (satar, “to be hidden; to hide”). The resumptive adverb makes this a relative clause in its usage: “where the evildoers can hide themselves.”

[34:24]  ⁶¹ tn Heb “[with] no investigation.”

[35:2]  ⁶² tn The line could be read as “do you reckon this for justice? Here “to be” is understood.

[35:2]  ⁶³ tn The word “when” is not in the Hebrew text, but is implied.

[35:2]  ⁶⁴ tn The brief line could be interpreted in a number of ways. The MT simply has “my right from God.” It could be “I am right before God,” “I am more just/right than God” (identifying the preposition as a comparative min (מִן); cf. J. E. Hartley, Job [NICOT], 463), “I will be right before God,” or “My just cause against God.”