Ayub 11:18

11:18 And you will be secure, because there is hope;

you will be protected ¹ 

and will take your rest in safety.

Ayub 17:13

17:13 If ²  I hope for the grave to be my home,

if I spread out my bed in darkness,

Ayub 18:11

18:11 Terrors ³  frighten him on all sides

and dog ⁴  his every step.

Ayub 27:20

27:20 Terrors overwhelm him like a flood; ⁵ 

at night a whirlwind carries him off.

Ayub 29:7

29:7 When I went out to the city gate

and secured my seat in the public square, ⁶ 

Ayub 33:28

33:28 He redeemed my life ⁷ 

from going down to the place of corruption,

and my life sees the light!’

Ayub 40:24

40:24 Can anyone catch it by its eyes, ⁸ 

or pierce its nose with a snare? ⁹ 

[11:18]  ¹ tn The Hebrew verb means “to dig”; but this does not provide a good meaning for the verse. A. B. Davidson offers an interpretation of “search,” suggesting that before retiring at night Job would search and find everything in order. Some offer a better solution, namely, redefining the word on the basis of Arabic hafara, “to protect” and repointing it to וְחֻפַרְתָּ (vÿkhufarta, “you will be protected”). Other attempts to make sense of the line have involved the same process, but they are less convincing (for some of the more plausible proposals, see D. J. A. Clines, Job [WBC], 257).

[17:13]  ² tn The clause begins with אִם (’im) which here has more of the sense of “since.” E. Dhorme (Job, 253) takes a rather rare use of the word to get “Can I hope again” (see also GKC 475 §150.f for the caveat).

[18:11]  ³ sn Bildad is referring here to all the things that afflict a person and cause terror. It would then be a metonymy of effect, the cause being the afflictions.

[18:11]  ⁴ tn The verb פּוּץ (puts) in the Hiphil has the meaning “to pursue” and “to scatter.” It is followed by the expression “at his feet.” So the idea is easily derived: they chase him at his feet. But some commentators have other proposals. The most far-fetched is that of Ehrlich and Driver (ZAW 24 [1953]: 259-60) which has “and compel him to urinate on his feet,” one of many similar readings the NEB accepted from Driver.

[27:20]  ⁵ tn Many commentators want a word parallel to “in the night.” And so we are offered בַּיּוֹם (bayyom, “in the day”) for כַמַּיִם (khammayim, “like waters”) as well as a number of others. But “waters” sometimes stand for major calamities, and so may be retained here. Besides, not all parallel structures are synonymous.

[29:7]  ⁶ sn In the public square. The area referred to here should not be thought of in terms of modern western dimensions. The wide space, plaza, or public square mentioned here is the open area in the gate complex where legal and business matters were conducted. The area could be as small as a few hundred square feet.

[33:28]  ⁷ sn See note on “him” in v. 24.

[40:24]  ⁸ tn The idea would be either (1) catch it while it is watching, or (2) in some way disabling its eyes before the attack. But others change the reading; Ball suggested “with hooks” and this has been adopted by some modern English versions (e.g., NRSV).

[40:24]  ⁹ tn Ehrlich altered the MT slightly to get “with thorns,” a view accepted by Driver, Dhorme and Pope.