Ayub 9:4

9:4 He is wise in heart ¹  and mighty ²  in strength ³  –

who has resisted ⁴  him and remained safe? ⁵ 

Yesaya 45:24

45:24 they will say about me,

“Yes, the Lord is a powerful deliverer.”’” ⁶ 

All who are angry at him will cower before him. ⁷ 

Efesus 1:19

1:19 and what is the incomparable ⁸  greatness of his power toward ⁹  us who believe, as displayed in ¹⁰  the exercise of his immense strength. ¹¹ 

[9:4]  ¹ tn The genitive phrase translated “in heart” would be a genitive of specification, specifying that the wisdom of God is in his intelligent decisions.

[9:4]  sn The heart is the seat of intelligence and understanding, the faculty of decision making.

[9:4]  ² sn The words אַמִּיץ (’ammits) and כֹּחַ (koakh) are synonyms, the first meaning “sturdy; mighty; robust,” and the second “strength.” It too can be interpreted as a genitive of specification – God is mighty with respect to his power. But that comes close to expressing a superlative idea (like “song of songs” or “anger of his wrath”).

[9:4]  ³ tn The first half of the verse simply has “wise of heart and mighty of strength.” The entire line is a casus pendens that will refer to the suffix on אֵלָיו (’elayv) in the second colon. So the question is “Who has resisted the one who is wise of heart and mighty of strength?” Again, the rhetorical question is affirming that no one has done this.

[9:4]  ⁴ tn The verb is the Hiphil of the verb קָשָׁה (qashah, “to be hard”). It frequently is found with the word for “neck,” describing people as “stiff-necked,” i.e., stubborn, unbending. So the idea of resisting God fits well. The fact that this word occurs in Exodus with the idea of hardening the heart against God may indicate that there is an allusion to Pharaoh here.

[9:4]  ⁵ tn The use of שָׁלֵם (shalem) in the Qal is rare. It has been translated “remain safe” by E. Dhorme, “survived” by the NEB, “remained unscathed” by the NAB and NIV, or “succeeded” by KJV, G. R. Driver.

[45:24]  ⁶ tn Heb “‘Yes, in the Lord,’ one says about me, ‘is deliverance and strength.’”

[45:24]  ⁷ tn Heb “will come to him and be ashamed.”

[1:19]  ⁸ tn Or “immeasurable, surpassing”

[1:19]  ⁹ tn Or “for, to”

[1:19]  ¹⁰ tn Grk “according to.”

[1:19]  ¹¹ tn Grk “according to the exercise of the might of his strength.”

[1:19]  sn What has been translated as exercise is a term used only of supernatural power in the NT, ἐνέργεια (energeia).