Ayub 18:7-11

18:7 His vigorous steps ¹  are restricted, ² 

and his own counsel throws him down. ³ 

18:8 For he has been thrown into a net by his feet ⁴ 

and he wanders into a mesh. ⁵ 

18:9 A trap ⁶  seizes him by the heel;

a snare ⁷  grips him.

18:10 A rope is hidden for him ⁸  on the ground

and a trap for him ⁹  lies on the path.

18:11 Terrors ¹⁰  frighten him on all sides

and dog ¹¹  his every step.

[18:7]  ¹ tn Heb “the steps of his vigor,” the genitive being the attribute.

[18:7]  ² tn The verb צָרַר (tsarar) means “to be cramped; to be straitened; to be hemmed in.” The trouble has hemmed him in, so that he cannot walk with the full, vigorous steps he had before. The LXX has “Let the meanest of men spoil his goods.”

[18:7]  ³ tn The LXX has “causes him to stumble,” which many commentators accept; but this involves the transposition of the three letters. The verb is שָׁלַךְ (shalakh, “throw”) not כָּשַׁל (kashal, “stumble”).

[18:8]  ⁴ tn See Ps 25:15.

[18:8]  ⁵ tn The word שְׂבָכָה (sÿvakhah) is used in scripture for the lattice window (2 Kgs 1:2). The Arabic cognate means “to be intertwined.” So the term could describe a net, matting, grating, or lattice. Here it would be the netting stretched over a pit.

[18:9]  ⁶ 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]  ⁷ 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.

[18:10]  ⁸ tn Heb “his rope.” The suffix must be a genitive expressing that the trap was for him, to trap him, and so an objective genitive.

[18:10]  ⁹ tn Heb “his trap.” The pronominal suffix is objective genitive here as well.

[18:11]  ¹⁰ 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]  ¹¹ 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.