Ayub 4:5

4:5 But now the same thing ¹  comes to you,

and you are discouraged; ² 

it strikes you,

and you are terrified. ³ 

Ayub 5:19

5:19 He will deliver you ⁴  from six calamities;

yes, in seven ⁵  no evil will touch you.

Ayub 6:17

6:17 When they are scorched, ⁶  they dry up,

when it is hot, they vanish ⁷  from their place.

Ayub 7:10

7:10 He returns no more to his house,

nor does his place of residence ⁸  know him ⁹  any more.

Ayub 8:22

8:22 Those who hate you ¹⁰  will be clothed with shame, ¹¹ 

and the tent of the wicked will be no more.”

Ayub 9:19

9:19 If it is a matter of strength, ¹² 

most certainly ¹³  he is the strong one!

And if it is a matter of justice,

he will say, ‘Who will summon me?’ ¹⁴ 

Ayub 10:11

10:11 You clothed ¹⁵  me with skin and flesh

and knit me together ¹⁶  with bones and sinews.

Ayub 12:5

12:5 For calamity, ¹⁷  there is derision

(according to the ideas of the fortunate ¹⁸ ) –

a fate ¹⁹  for those whose feet slip!

Ayub 12:18

12:18 He loosens ²⁰  the bonds ²¹  of kings

and binds a loincloth ²²  around their waist.

Ayub 13:19

13:19 Who ²³  will contend with me?

If anyone can, I will be silent and die. ²⁴ 

Ayub 13:25

13:25 Do you wish to torment ²⁵  a windblown ²⁶  leaf

and chase after dry chaff? ²⁷ 

Ayub 15:27

15:27 Because he covered his face with fat, ²⁸ 

and made ²⁹  his hips bulge with fat, ³⁰ 

Ayub 16:15

16:15 I have sewed sackcloth on my skin, ³¹ 

and buried ³²  my horn ³³  in the dust;

Ayub 17:10

Anticipation of Death

17:10 “But turn, all of you, ³⁴  and come ³⁵  now! ³⁶ 

I will not find a wise man among you.

Ayub 18:9

18:9 A trap ³⁷  seizes him by the heel;

a snare ³⁸  grips him.

Ayub 18:15

18:15 Fire resides in his tent; ³⁹ 

over his residence burning sulfur is scattered.

Ayub 18:20

18:20 People of the west ⁴⁰  are appalled at his fate; ⁴¹ 

people of the east are seized with horror, ⁴²  saying, ⁴³ 

Ayub 20:6

20:6 Even though his stature ⁴⁴  reaches to the heavens

and his head touches the clouds,

Ayub 20:22

20:22 In the fullness of his sufficiency, ⁴⁵ 

distress ⁴⁶  overtakes him.

the full force of misery will come upon him. ⁴⁷ 

Ayub 20:25

20:25 When he pulls it out ⁴⁸  and it comes out of his back,

the gleaming point ⁴⁹  out of his liver,

terrors come over him.

Ayub 23:2

23:2 “Even today my complaint is still bitter; ⁵⁰ 

his ⁵¹  hand is heavy despite ⁵²  my groaning.

Ayub 23:6

23:6 Would he contend ⁵³  with me with great power?

No, he would only pay attention to me. ⁵⁴ 

Ayub 24:15

24:15 And the eye of the adulterer watches for the twilight,

thinking, ⁵⁵  ‘No eye can see me,’

and covers his face with a mask.

Ayub 24:19

24:19 The drought as well as the heat carry away

the melted snow; ⁵⁶ 

so the grave ⁵⁷  takes away those who have sinned. ⁵⁸ 

Ayub 27:11

27:11 I will teach you ⁵⁹  about the power ⁶⁰  of God;

What is on the Almighty’s mind ⁶¹  I will not conceal.

Ayub 27:17

27:17 what he stores up ⁶²  a righteous man will wear,

and an innocent man will inherit his silver.

Ayub 29:14

29:14 I put on righteousness and it clothed me, ⁶³ 

my just dealing ⁶⁴  was like a robe and a turban;

Ayub 31:9

31:9 If my heart has been enticed by a woman,

and I have lain in wait at my neighbor’s door, ⁶⁵ 

Ayub 31:27

31:27 so that my heart was secretly enticed,

and my hand threw them a kiss from my mouth, ⁶⁶ 

Ayub 31:29

31:29 If ⁶⁷  I have rejoiced over the misfortune of my enemy ⁶⁸ 

or exulted ⁶⁹  because calamity ⁷⁰  found him –

Ayub 31:36

31:36 Surely ⁷¹  I would wear it proudly ⁷²  on my shoulder,

I would bind ⁷³  it on me like a crown;

Ayub 33:11-13

33:11 ⁷⁴ He puts my feet in shackles;

he watches closely all my paths.’

33:12 Now in this, you are not right – I answer you, ⁷⁵ 

for God is greater than a human being. ⁷⁶ 

33:13 Why do you contend against him,

that he does not answer all a person’s ⁷⁷  words?

Ayub 34:6-7

34:6 Concerning my right, should I lie? ⁷⁸ 

My wound ⁷⁹  is incurable,

although I am without transgression.’ ⁸⁰ 

34:7 What man is like Job,

who ⁸¹  drinks derision ⁸²  like water!

Ayub 34:28

34:28 so that they caused ⁸³  the cry of the poor

to come before him,

so that he hears ⁸⁴  the cry of the needy.

Ayub 34:31

Job Is Foolish to Rebel

34:31 “Has anyone said to God,

‘I have endured chastisement, ⁸⁵ 

but I will not act wrongly any more.

Ayub 35:8

35:8 Your wickedness affects only ⁸⁶  a person like yourself,

and your righteousness only other people. ⁸⁷ 

Ayub 36:6

36:6 He does not allow the wicked to live, ⁸⁸ 

but he gives justice to the poor.

Ayub 36:8

36:8 But if they are bound in chains, ⁸⁹ 

and held captive by the cords of affliction,

Ayub 36:15

36:15 He delivers the afflicted by ⁹⁰  their ⁹¹  afflictions,

he reveals himself to them ⁹²  by their suffering.

Ayub 36:19

36:19 Would your wealth ⁹³  sustain you,

so that you would not be in distress, ⁹⁴ 

even all your mighty efforts? ⁹⁵ 

Ayub 36:21

36:21 Take heed, do not turn to evil,

for because of this you have been tested ⁹⁶  by affliction.

Ayub 36:32

36:32 With his hands ⁹⁷  he covers ⁹⁸  the lightning,

and directs it against its target.

Ayub 38:9

38:9 when I made ⁹⁹  the storm clouds its garment,

and thick darkness its swaddling band, ¹⁰⁰ 

Ayub 38:33

38:33 Do you know the laws of the heavens,

or can you set up their rule over the earth?

Ayub 39:10

39:10 Can you bind the wild ox ¹⁰¹  to a furrow with its rope,

will it till the valleys, following after you?

Ayub 39:19

39:19 “Do you give the horse its strength?

Do you clothe its neck with a mane? ¹⁰² 

Ayub 39:23

39:23 On it the quiver rattles;

the lance and javelin ¹⁰³  flash.

Ayub 40:10

40:10 Adorn yourself, then, with majesty and excellency,

and clothe yourself with glory and honor!

Ayub 40:19

40:19 It ranks first among the works of God, ¹⁰⁴ 

the One who made it

has furnished it with a sword. ¹⁰⁵ 

Ayub 41:2

41:2 Can you put a cord through its nose,

or pierce its jaw with a hook?

Ayub 41:11

41:11 (Who has confronted ¹⁰⁶  me that I should repay? ¹⁰⁷ 

Everything under heaven belongs to me!) ¹⁰⁸ 

Ayub 41:26

41:26 Whoever strikes it with a sword ¹⁰⁹ 

will have no effect, ¹¹⁰ 

nor with the spear, arrow, or dart.

Ayub 42:7-8

VII. The Epilogue (42:7-17)

42:7 After the Lord had spoken these things to Job, he ¹¹¹  said to Eliphaz the Temanite, “My anger is stirred up ¹¹²  against you and your two friends, because you have not spoken about me what is right, ¹¹³  as my servant Job has. 42:8 So now take ¹¹⁴  seven bulls and seven rams and go to my servant Job and offer a burnt offering for yourselves. And my servant Job will intercede ¹¹⁵  for you, and I will respect him, ¹¹⁶  so that I do not deal with you ¹¹⁷  according to your folly, ¹¹⁸  because you have not spoken about me what is right, as my servant Job has.” ¹¹⁹ 

[4:5]  ¹ tn The sentence has no subject, but the context demands that the subject be the same kind of trouble that has come upon people that Job has helped.

[4:5]  ² tn This is the same verb used in v. 2, meaning “to be exhausted” or “impatient.” Here with the vav (ו) consecutive the verb describes Job’s state of mind that is a consequence of the trouble coming on him. In this sentence the form is given a present tense translation (see GKC 329 §111.t).

[4:5]  ³ tn This final verb in the verse is vivid; it means “to terrify, dismay” (here the Niphal preterite). Job will go on to speak about all the terrors that come on him.

[5:19]  ⁴ 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]  ⁵ 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).

[6:17]  ⁶ tn The verb יְזֹרְבוּ (yÿzorÿvu, “burnt, scorched”) occurs only here. A good number of interpretations take the root as a by-form of צָרַב (tsarav) which means in the Niphal “to be burnt” (Ezek 21:3). The expression then would mean “in the time they are burnt,” a reference to the scorching heat of the summer (“when the great heat comes”) and the rivers dry up. Qimchi connected it to the Arabic “canal,” and this has led to the suggestion by E. Dhorme (Job, 88) that the root זָרַב (zarav) would mean “to flow.” In the Piel it would be “to cause to flow,” and in the passive “to be made to flow,” or “melt.” This is attractive, but it does require the understanding (or supplying) of “ice/snow” as the subject. G. R. Driver took the same meaning but translated it “when they (the streams) pour down in torrents, they (straightway) die down” (ZAW 65 [1953]: 216-17). Both interpretations capture the sense of the brooks drying up.

[6:17]  ⁷ tn The verb נִדְעֲכוּ (nid’akhu) literally means “they are extinguished” or “they vanish” (cf. 18:5-6; 21:17). The LXX, perhaps confusing the word with the verb יָדַע (yada’, “to know”) has “and it is not known what it was.”

[7:10]  ⁸ tn M. Dahood suggests the meaning is the same as “his abode” (“Hebrew-Ugaritic Lexicography V,” Bib 48 [1967]: 421-38).

[7:10]  ⁹ tn The verb means “to recognize” by seeing. “His place,” the place where he was living, is the subject of the verb. This personification is intended simply to say that the place where he lived will not have him any more. The line is very similar to Ps 103:16b – when the wind blows the flower away, its place knows it no more.

[8:22]  ¹⁰ sn These verses show several points of similarity with the style of the Book of Psalms. “Those who hate you” and the “evil-doers” are fairly common words to describe the ungodly in the Psalms. “Those who hate you” are enemies of the righteous man because of the parallelism in the verse. By this line Bildad is showing Job that he and his friends are not among those who are his enemies, and that Job himself is really among the righteous. It is an appealing way to end the discourse. See further G. W. Anderson, “Enemies and Evil-doers in the Book of Psalms,” BJRL 48 (1965/66): 18-29.

[8:22]  ¹¹ tn “Shame” is compared to a garment that can be worn. The “shame” envisioned here is much more than embarrassment or disgrace – it is utter destruction. For parallels in the Psalms, see Pss 35:26; 132:18; 109:29.

[9:19]  ¹² tn The MT has only “if of strength.”

[9:19]  ¹³ tn “Most certainly” translates the particle הִנֵּה (hinneh).

[9:19]  ¹⁴ tn The question could be taken as “who will summon me?” (see Jer 49:19 and 50:44). This does not make immediate sense. Some have simply changed the suffix to “who will summon him.” If the MT is retained, then supplying something like “he will say” could make the last clause fit the whole passage. Another option is to take it as “Who will reveal it to me?” – i.e., Job could be questioning his friends’ qualifications for being God’s emissaries to bring God’s charges against him (cf. KJV, NKJV; and see 10:2 where Job uses the same verb in the Hiphil to request that God reveal what his sin has been that has led to his suffering).

[9:19]  sn Job is saying that whether it is a trial of strength or an appeal to justice, he is unable to go against God.

[10:11]  ¹⁵ tn The skin and flesh form the exterior of the body and so the image of “clothing” is appropriate. Once again the verb is the prefixed conjugation, expressing what God did.

[10:11]  ¹⁶ tn This verb is found only here (related nouns are common) and in the parallel passage of Ps 139:13. The word סָכַךְ (sakhakh), here a Poel prefixed conjugation (preterite), means “to knit together.” The implied comparison is that the bones and sinews form the tapestry of the person (compare other images of weaving the life).

[12:5]  ¹⁷ tn The first word, לַפִּיד (lapid), could be rendered “a torch of scorn,” but this gives no satisfying meaning. The ל (lamed) is often taken as an otiose letter, and the noun פִּיד (pid) is “misfortune, calamity” (cf. Job 30:24; 31:29).

[12:5]  ¹⁸ tn The noun עַשְׁתּוּת (’ashtut, preferably עַשְׁתּוֹת, ’ashtot) is an abstract noun from עָשַׁת (’ashat, “to think”). The word שַׁאֲנָן (sha’anan) means “easy in mind, carefree,” and “happy.”

[12:5]  ¹⁹ tn The form has traditionally been taken to mean “is ready” from the verb כּוּן (kun, “is fixed, sure”). But many commentators look for a word parallel to “calamity.” So the suggestion has been put forward that נָכוֹן (nakhon) be taken as a noun from נָכָה (nakhah, “strike, smite”): “a blow” (Schultens, Dhorme, Gordis), “thrust” or “kick” (HALOT 698 s.v. I נָכוֹן).

[12:18]  ²⁰ tn The verb may be classified as a gnomic perfect, or possibly a potential perfect – “he can loosen.” The Piel means “to untie; to unbind” (Job 30:11; 38:31; 39:5).

[12:18]  ²¹ tc There is a potential textual difficulty here. The MT has מוּסַר (musar, “discipline”), which might have replaced מוֹסֵר (moser, “bond, chain”) from אָסַר (’asar, “to bind”). Or מוּסַר might be an unusual form of אָסַר (an option noted in HALOT 557 s.v. *מוֹסֵר). The line is saying that if the kings are bound, God can set them free, and in the second half, if they are free, he can bind them. Others take the view that this word “bond” refers to the power kings have over others, meaning that God can reduce kings to slavery.

[12:18]  ²² tn Some commentators want to change אֵזוֹר (’ezor, “girdle”) to אֵסוּר (’esur, “bond”) because binding the loins with a girdle was an expression for strength. But H. H. Rowley notes that binding the king’s loins this way would mean so that he would do servitude, menial tasks. Such a reference would certainly indicate troubled times.

[13:19]  ²³ tn The interrogative is joined with the emphatic pronoun, stressing “who is he [who] will contend,” or more emphatically, “who in the world will contend.” Job is confident that no one can bring charges against him. He is certain of success.

[13:19]  ²⁴ sn Job is confident that he will be vindicated. But if someone were to show up and have proof of sin against him, he would be silent and die (literally “keep silent and expire”).

[13:25]  ²⁵ tn The verb תַּעֲרוֹץ (ta’arots, “you torment”) is from עָרַץ (’arats), which usually means “fear; dread,” but can also mean “to make afraid; to terrify” (Isa 2:19,21). The imperfect is here taken as a desiderative imperfect: “why do you want to”; but it could also be a simple future: “will you torment.”

[13:25]  ²⁶ tn The word נִדָּף (niddaf) is “driven” from the root נָדַף (nadaf, “drive”). The words “by the wind” or the interpretation “windblown” has to be added for the clarification. Job is comparing himself to this leaf (so an implied comparison, called hypocatastasis) – so light and insubstantial that it is amazing that God should come after him. Guillaume suggests that the word is not from this root, but from a second root נָדַף (nadaf), cognate to Arabic nadifa, “to dry up” (A. Guillaume, “A Note on Isaiah 19:7,” JTS 14 [1963]: 382-83). But as D. J. A. Clines notes (Job [WBC], 283), a dried leaf is a driven leaf – a point Guillaume allows as he says there is ambiguity in the term.

[13:25]  ²⁷ tn The word קַשׁ (qash) means “chaff; stubble,” or a wisp of straw. It is found in Job 41:20-21 for that which is so worthless and insignificant that it is hardly worth mentioning. If dried up or withered, it too will be blown away in the wind.

[15:27]  ²⁸ sn This verse tells us that he is not in any condition to fight, because he is bloated and fat from luxurious living.

[15:27]  ²⁹ tn D. W. Thomas defends a meaning “cover” for the verb עָשָׂה (’asah). See “Translating Hebrew `asah,” BT 17 [1966]: 190-93.

[15:27]  ³⁰ tn The term פִּימָה (pimah), a hapax legomenon, is explained by the Arabic fa’ima, “to be fat.” Pope renders this “blubber.” Cf. KJV “and maketh collops of fat on his flanks.”

[16:15]  ³¹ sn The language is hyperbolic; Job is saying that the sackcloth he has put on in his lamentable state is now stuck to his skin as if he had stitched it into the skin. It is now a habitual garment that he never takes off.

[16:15]  ³² tn The Poel עֹלַלְתִּי (’olalti) from עָלַל (’alal, “to enter”) has here the meaning of “to thrust in.” The activity is the opposite of “raising high the horn,” a picture of dignity and victory.

[16:15]  ³³ tn There is no English term that captures exactly what “horn” is meant to do. Drawn from the animal world, the image was meant to convey strength and pride and victory. Some modern commentators have made other proposals for the line. Svi Rin suggested from Ugaritic that the verb be translated “lower” or “dip” (“Ugaritic – Old Testament Affinities,” BZ 7 [1963]: 22-33).

[17:10]  ³⁴ tn The form says “all of them.” Several editors would change it to “all of you,” but the lack of concord is not surprising; the vocative elsewhere uses the third person (see Mic 1:2; see also GKC 441 §135.r).

[17:10]  ³⁵ tn The first verb, the jussive, means “to return”; the second verb, the imperative, means “to come.” The two could be taken as a hendiadys, the first verb becoming adverbial: “to come again.”

[17:10]  ³⁶ tn Instead of the exact correspondence between coordinate verbs, other combinations occur – here we have a jussive and an imperative (see GKC 386 §120.e).

[18:9]  ³⁷ tn This word פָּח (pakh) specifically refers to the snare of the fowler – thus a bird trap. But its plural seems to refer to nets in general (see Job 22:10).

[18:9]  ³⁸ tn This word does not occur elsewhere. But another word from the same root means “plait of hair,” and so this term has something to do with a net like a trellis or lattice.

[18:15]  ³⁹ tn This line is difficult as well. The verb, again a third feminine form, says “it dwells in his tent.” But the next part (מִבְּלִי לוֹ, mibbÿli lo) means something like “things of what are not his.” The best that can be made of the MT is “There shall live in his tent they that are not his” (referring to persons and animals; see J. E. Hartley, Job [NICOT], 279). G. R. Driver and G. B. Gray (Job [ICC], 2:161) refer “that which is naught of his” to weeds and wild animals. M. Dahood suggested a reading מַבֶּל (mabbel) and a connection to Akkadian nablu, “fire” (cf. Ugaritic nbl). The interchange of m and n is not a problem, and the parallelism with the next line makes good sense (“Some Northwest Semitic words in Job,” Bib 38 [1957]: 312ff.). Others suggest an emendation to get “night-hag” or vampire. This suggestion, as well as Driver’s “mixed herbs,” are linked to the idea of exorcism. But if a change is to be made, Dahood’s is the most compelling.

[18:20]  ⁴⁰ tn The word אַחֲרֹנִים (’akharonim) means “those [men] coming after.” And the next word, קַדְמֹנִים (qadmonim), means “those [men] coming before.” Some commentators have tried to see here references to people who lived before and people who lived after, but that does not explain their being appalled at the fate of the wicked. So the normal way this is taken is in connection to the geography, notably the seas – “the hinder sea” refers to the Mediterranean, the West, and “the front sea” refers to the Dead Sea (Zech 14:8), namely, the East. The versions understood this as temporal: “the last groaned for him, and wonder seized the first” (LXX).

[18:20]  ⁴¹ tn Heb “his day.”

[18:20]  ⁴² tn The expression has “they seize horror.” The RSV renders this “horror seizes them.” The same idiom is found in Job 21:6: “laid hold on shuddering.” The idiom would solve the grammatical problem, and not change the meaning greatly; but it would change the parallelism.

[18:20]  ⁴³ tn The word “saying” is supplied in the translation to mark and introduce the following as a quotation of these people who are seized with horror. The alternative is to take v. 21 as Bildad’s own summary statement (cf. G. R. Driver and G. B. Gray, Job [ICC], 2:162; J. E. Hartley, Job [NICOT], 280).

[20:6]  ⁴⁴ tn The word שִׂיא (si’) has been connected with the verb נָשָׂא (nasa’, “to lift up”), and so interpreted here as “pride.” The form is parallel to “head” in the next part, and so here it refers to his stature, the part that rises up and is crowned. But the verse does describe the pride of such a person, with his head in the heavens.

[20:22]  ⁴⁵ tn The word שָׂפַק (safaq) occurs only here; it means “sufficiency; wealth; abundance (see D. W. Thomas, “The Text of Jesaia 2:6 and the Word sapaq,” ZAW 75 [1963]: 88-90).

[20:22]  ⁴⁶ tn Heb “there is straightness for him.” The root צָרַר (tsarar) means “to be narrowed in straits, to be in a bind.” The word here would have the idea of pressure, stress, trouble. One could say he is in a bind.

[20:22]  ⁴⁷ tn Heb “every hand of trouble comes to him.” The pointing of עָמֵל (’amel) indicates it would refer to one who brings trouble; LXX and Latin read an abstract noun עָמָל (’amal, “trouble”) here.

[20:25]  ⁴⁸ tn The MT has “he draws out [or as a passive, “it is drawn out/forth”] and comes [or goes] out of his back.” For the first verb שָׁלַף (shalaf, “pull, draw”), many commentators follow the LXX and use שֶׁלַח (shelakh, “a spear”). It then reads “and a shaft comes out of his back,” a sword flash comes out of his liver.” But the verse could also be a continuation of the preceding.

[20:25]  ⁴⁹ tn Possibly a reference to lightnings.

[23:2]  ⁵⁰ tc The MT reads here מְרִי (mÿri, “rebellious”). The word is related to the verb מָרָה (marah, “to revolt”). Many commentators follow the Vulgate, Targum Job, and the Syriac to read מַר (mar, “bitter”). The LXX offers no help here.

[23:2]  ⁵¹ tc The MT (followed by the Vulgate and Targum) has “my hand is heavy on my groaning.” This would mean “my stroke is heavier than my groaning” (an improbable view from Targum Job). A better suggestion is that the meaning would be that Job tries to suppress his groans but the hand with which he suppresses them is too heavy (H. H. Rowley, Job [NCBC], 159). Budde, E. Dhorme, J. E. Hartley, and F. I. Andersen all maintain the MT as the more difficult reading. F. I. Andersen (Job [TOTC], 208) indicates that the ִי(i) suffix could be an example of an unusual third masculine singular. Both the LXX and the Syriac versions have “his hand,” and many modern commentators follow this, along with the present translation. In this case the referent of “his” would be God, whose hand is heavy upon Job in spite of Job’s groaning.

[23:2]  ⁵² tn The preposition can take this meaning; it could be also translated simply “upon.” R. Gordis (Job, 260) reads the preposition “more than,” saying that Job had been defiant (he takes that view) but God’s hand had been far worse.

[23:6]  ⁵³ tn The verb is now רִיב (riv) and not יָכַח (yakhakh, “contend”); רִיב (riv) means “to quarrel; to dispute; to contend,” often in a legal context. Here it is still part of Job’s questioning about this hypothetical meeting – would God contend with all his power?

[23:6]  ⁵⁴ tn The verbal clause יָשִׂם בִּי (yasim bi) has been translated “he would pay [attention] to me.” Job is saying that God will not need all his power – he will just have pay attention to Job’s complaint. Job does not need the display of power – he just wants a hearing.

[24:15]  ⁵⁵ tn Heb “saying.”

[24:19]  ⁵⁶ tn Heb “the waters of the snow.”

[24:19]  ⁵⁷ tn Or “so Sheol.”

[24:19]  ⁵⁸ tn This is the meaning of the verse, which in Hebrew only has “The grave / they have sinned.”

[27:11]  ⁵⁹ tn The object suffix is in the plural, which gives some support to the idea Job is speaking to them.

[27:11]  ⁶⁰ tn Heb “the hand of.”

[27:11]  ⁶¹ tn Heb “[what is] with Shaddai.”

[27:17]  ⁶² tn The text simply repeats the verb from the last clause. It could be treated as a separate short clause: “He may store it up, but the righteous will wear it. But it also could be understood as the object of the following verb, “[what] he stores up the righteous will wear.” The LXX simply has, “All these things shall the righteous gain.”

[29:14]  ⁶³ tn Both verbs in this first half-verse are from לָבַשׁ (lavash, “to clothe; to put on clothing”). P. Joüon changed the vowels to get a verb “it adorned me” instead of “it clothed me” (Bib 11 [1930]: 324). The figure of clothing is used for the character of the person: to wear righteousness is to be righteous.

[29:14]  ⁶⁴ tn The word מִשְׁפָּטִי (mishpati) is simply “my justice” or “my judgment.” It refers to the decisions he made in settling issues, how he dealt with other people justly.

[31:9]  ⁶⁵ tn Gordis notes that the word פֶּתַח (petakh, “door”) has sexual connotations in rabbinic literature, based on Prov 7:6ff. (see b. Ketubbot 9b). See also the use in Song 4:12 using a synonym.

[31:27]  ⁶⁶ tn Heb “and my hand kissed my mouth.” The idea should be that of “my mouth kissed my hand.” H. H. Rowley suggests that the hand was important in waving or throwing the kisses of homage to the sun and the moon, and so it receives the focus. This is the only place in the OT that refers to such a custom. Outside the Bible it was known, however.

[31:29]  ⁶⁷ tn The problem with taking this as “if,” introducing a conditional clause, is finding the apodosis, if there is one. It may be that the apodosis is understood, or summed up at the end. This is the view taken here. But R. Gordis (Job, 352) wishes to take this word as the indication of the interrogative, forming the rhetorical question to affirm he has never done this. However, in that case the parenthetical verses inserted become redundant.

[31:29]  ⁶⁸ sn The law required people to help their enemies if they could (Exod 23:4; also Prov 20:22). But often in the difficulties that ensued, they did exult over their enemies’ misfortune (Pss 54:7; 59:10 [11], etc.). But Job lived on a level of purity that few ever reach. Duhm said, “If chapter 31 is the crown of all ethical developments of the O.T., verse 29 is the jewel in that crown.”

[31:29]  ⁶⁹ tn The Hitpael of עוּר (’ur) has the idea of “exult.”

[31:29]  ⁷⁰ tn The word is רָע (ra’, “evil”) in the sense of anything that harms, interrupts, or destroys life.

[31:36]  ⁷¹ tn The clause begins with the positive oath formula, אִם־לֹא (’im-lo’).

[31:36]  ⁷² tn The word “proudly” is not in the Hebrew text, but is implied (note the following line).

[31:36]  ⁷³ tn This verb is only found in Prov 6:21. But E. Dhorme (Job, 470) suggests that (with metathesis) we have a derivative מַעֲדַנּוֹת (ma’adannot, “bonds; ties”) in 38:31.

[33:11]  ⁷⁴ sn See Job 13:27.

[33:12]  ⁷⁵ tn The meaning of this verb is “this is my answer to you.”

[33:12]  ⁷⁶ tc The LXX has “he that is above men is eternal.” Elihu is saying that God is far above Job’s petty problems.

[33:13]  ⁷⁷ tc The MT has “all his words.” This must refer to “man” in the previous verse. But many wish to change it to “my words,” since it would be summarizing Job’s complaint to God.

[34:6]  ⁷⁸ tn The verb is the Piel imperfect of כָּזַב (kazav), meaning “to lie.” It could be a question: “Should I lie [against my right?] – when I am innocent. If it is repointed to the Pual, then it can be “I am made to lie,” or “I am deceived.” Taking it as a question makes good sense here, and so emendations are unnecessary.

[34:6]  ⁷⁹ tn The Hebrew text has only “my arrow.” Some commentators emend that word slightly to get “my wound.” But the idea could be derived from “arrows” as well, the wounds caused by the arrows. The arrows are symbolic of God’s affliction.

[34:6]  ⁸⁰ tn Heb “without transgression”; but this is parallel to the first part where the claim is innocence.

[34:7]  ⁸¹ tn Heb “he drinks,” but coming after the question this clause may be subordinated.

[34:7]  ⁸² tn The scorn or derision mentioned here is not against Job, but against God. Job scorns God so much, he must love it. So to reflect this idea, Gordis has translated it “blasphemy” (cf. NAB).

[34:28]  ⁸³ tn The verse begins with the infinitive construct of בּוֹא (bo’, “go”), showing the result of their impious actions.

[34:28]  ⁸⁴ tn The verb here is an imperfect; the clause is circumstantial to the preceding clause, showing either the result, or the concomitant action.

[34:31]  ⁸⁵ tn The Hebrew text has only “I lift up” or “I bear” (= I endure). The reading “I have been led astray” is obtained by changing the vowels to read a passive. If the MT is retained, an object has to be supplied, such as “chastisement” (so RSV, NASB) or “punishment” (NRSV). If not, then a different reading would be followed (e.g., “I was misguided” [NAB]; “I am guilty” [NIV]).

[35:8]  ⁸⁶ tn The phrase “affects only” is supplied in the translation of this nominal sentence.

[35:8]  sn According to Strahan, “Elihu exalts God’s greatness at the cost of His grace, His transcendence at the expense of His immanence. He sets up a material instead of a spiritual stand of profit and loss. He does not realize that God does gain what He desires most by the goodness of men, and loses what He most loves by their evil.”

[35:8]  ⁸⁷ tn Heb “and to [or for] a son of man, your righteousness.”

[36:6]  ⁸⁸ tn Or “he does not keep the wicked alive.”

[36:8]  ⁸⁹ tn Dhorme thinks that the verse is still talking about kings, who may be in captivity. But this diverts attention from Elihu’s emphasis on the righteous.

[36:15]  ⁹⁰ tn The preposition בּ (bet) in these two lines is not location but instrument, not “in” but “by means of.” The affliction and the oppression serve as a warning for sin, and therefore a means of salvation.

[36:15]  ⁹¹ tn Heb “his.”

[36:15]  ⁹² tn Heb “he uncovers their ear.”

[36:19]  ⁹³ tn The form in the MT is “your cry (for help).” See J. E. Hartley (Job [NICOT], 472-73) and E. Dhorme (Job, 547-48) on the difficulties.

[36:19]  ⁹⁴ tn This part has only two words לֹא בְצָר (lo’ bÿtsar, “not in distress”). The negated phrase serves to explain the first colon.

[36:19]  ⁹⁵ tc For the many suggestions and the reasoning here, see the commentaries.

[36:21]  ⁹⁶ tn Normally “tested” would be the translation for the Niphal of בָּחַר (bakhar). Although the Qal is employed here, the context favors “tested” rather than “chose.”

[36:32]  ⁹⁷ tn R. Gordis (Job, 422) prefers to link this word with the later Hebrew word for “arch,” not “hands.”

[36:32]  ⁹⁸ tn Because the image might mean that God grabs the lightning and hurls it like a javelin (cf. NLT), some commentators want to change “covers” to other verbs. Dhorme has “lifts” (נִשָּׂא [nissa’] for כִּסָּה [kissah]). This fit the idea of God directing the lightning bolts.

[38:9]  ⁹⁹ tn The temporal clause here uses the infinitive from שִׂים (sim, “to place; to put; to make”). It underscores the sovereign placing of things.

[38:9]  ¹⁰⁰ tn This noun is found only here. The verb is in Ezek 16:4, and a related noun is in Ezek 30:21.

[39:10]  ¹⁰¹ tn Some commentators think that the addition of the “wild ox” here is a copyist’s error, making the stich too long. They therefore delete it. Also, binding an animal to the furrow with ropes is unusual. So with a slight emendation Kissane came up with “Will you bind him with a halter of cord?” While the MT is unusual, the sense is understandable, and no changes, even slight ones, are absolutely necessary.

[39:19]  ¹⁰² tn The second half of the verse contains this hapax legomenon, which is usually connected with the word רַעְמָה (ra’mah, “thunder”). A. B. Davidson thought it referred to the quivering of the neck rather than the mane. Gray thought the sound and not the movement was the point. But without better evidence, a reading that has “quivering mane” may not be far off the mark. But it may be simplest to translate it “mane” and assume that the idea of “quivering” is part of the meaning.

[39:23]  ¹⁰³ tn This may be the scimitar (see G. Molin, “What is a kidon?” JSS 1 [1956]: 334-37).

[40:19]  ¹⁰⁴ tn Heb “the ways of God.”

[40:19]  sn This may be a reference to Gen 1:24, where the first of the animal creation was the cattle – bÿhemah (בְּהֵמָה).

[40:19]  ¹⁰⁵ tc The literal reading of the MT is “let the one who made him draw near [with] his sword.” The sword is apparently a reference to the teeth or tusks of the animal, which cut vegetation like a sword. But the idea of a weapon is easier to see, and so the people who favor the mythological background see here a reference to God’s slaying the Beast. There are again many suggestions on how to read the line. The RV probably has the safest: “He that made him has furnished him with his sword” (the sword being a reference to the sharp tusks with which he can attack).

[41:11]  ¹⁰⁶ tn The verb קָדַם (qadam) means “to come to meet; to come before; to confront” to the face.

[41:11]  ¹⁰⁷ sn The verse seems an intrusion (and so E. Dhorme, H. H. Rowley, and many others change the pronouns to make it refer to the animal). But what the text is saying is that it is more dangerous to confront God than to confront this animal.

[41:11]  ¹⁰⁸ tn This line also focuses on the sovereign God rather than Leviathan. H. H. Rowley, however, wants to change לִי־חוּא (li-hu’, “it [belongs] to me”) into לֹא הוּא (lo’ hu’, “there is no one”). So it would say that there is no one under the whole heaven who could challenge Leviathan and live, rather than saying it is more dangerous to challenge God to make him repay.

[41:26]  ¹⁰⁹ tn This is the clearest reading, following A. B. Davidson, Job, 285. The versions took different readings of the construction.

[41:26]  ¹¹⁰ tn The verb קוּם (qum, “stand”) with בְּלִי (bÿli, “not”) has the sense of “does not hold firm,” or “gives way.”

[42:7]  ¹¹¹ tn Heb “the Lord.” The title has been replaced by the pronoun (“he”) in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[42:7]  ¹¹² tn Heb “is kindled.”

[42:7]  ¹¹³ tn The form נְכוֹנָה (nÿkhonah) is from כּוּן (kun, “to be firm; to be fixed; to be established”). Here it means “the right thing” or “truth.” The Akkadian word kenu (from כּוּן, kun) connotes justice and truth.

[42:8]  ¹¹⁴ tn The imperatives in this verse are plural, so all three had to do this together.

[42:8]  ¹¹⁵ tn The verb “pray” is the Hitpael from the root פָּלַל (palal). That root has the main idea of arbitration; so in this stem it means “to seek arbitration [for oneself],” or “to pray,” or “to intercede.”

[42:8]  ¹¹⁶ tn Heb “I will lift up his face,” meaning, “I will regard him.”

[42:8]  ¹¹⁷ tn This clause is a result clause, using the negated infinitive construct.

[42:8]  ¹¹⁸ tn The word “folly” can also be taken in the sense of “disgrace.” If the latter is chosen, the word serves as the direct object. If the former, then it is an adverbial accusative.

[42:8]  ¹¹⁹ sn The difference between what they said and what Job said, therefore, has to do with truth. Job was honest, spoke the truth, poured out his complaints, but never blasphemed God. For his words God said he told the truth. He did so with incomplete understanding, and with all the impatience and frustration one might expect. Now the friends, however, did not tell what was right about God. They were not honest; rather, they were self-righteous and condescending. They were saying what they thought should be said, but it was wrong.