14:16 “Surely now you count my steps; 2
then you would not mark 3 my sin. 4
3:6 Acknowledge 5 him in all your ways, 6
and he will make your paths straight. 7
30:21 You 8 will hear a word spoken behind you, saying,
“This is the correct 9 way, walk in it,”
whether you are heading to the right or the left.
1 sn The hope for life after death is supported now by a description of the severity with which God deals with people in this life.
2 tn If v. 16a continues the previous series, the translation here would be “then” (as in RSV). Others take it as a new beginning to express God’s present watch over Job, and interpret the second half of the verse as a question, or emend it to say God does not pass over his sins.
3 sn Compare Ps 130:3-4, which says, “If you should mark iniquity O
4 tn The second colon of the verse can be contrasted with the first, the first being the present reality and the second the hope looked for in the future. This seems to fit the context well without making any changes at all.
5 tn Heb “know him.” The verb יָדַע (yadah, “to know”) includes mental awareness of who God is and the consequential submission to his lordship. To know him is to obey him. The sage is calling for a life of trust and obedience in which the disciple sees the
6 tn The term דֶרֶךְ (derekh, “way”) is figurative (hypocatastasis: implied comparison) referring to a person’s course of life, actions and undertakings (Prov 2:8; 3:6, 23; 11:5; 20:24; 29:27; 31:3; BDB 203 s.v. 5; cf. TEV “in everything you do”; NCV, NLT “in all you do”). This is a call for total commitment in trust for obedience in all things.
7 tn The verb יָשָׁר (yashar) means “to make smooth; to make straight” (BDB 444 s.v.). This phrase means “to make the way free from obstacles,” that is, to make it successful (e.g., Isa 40:3). The straight, even road is the right road; God will make the way smooth for the believer.
8 tn Heb “your ears” (so NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV).
9 tn The word “correct’ is supplied in the translation for clarification.