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 4:13

4:13 In the troubling thoughts ⁴  of the dreams ⁵  in the night

when a deep sleep ⁶  falls on men,

Ayub 4:17

4:17 “Is ⁷  a mortal man ⁸  righteous ⁹  before ¹⁰  God?

Or a man pure ¹¹  before his Creator? ¹² 

Ayub 4:20

4:20 They are destroyed ¹³  between morning and evening; ¹⁴ 

they perish forever ¹⁵  without anyone regarding it. ¹⁶ 

Ayub 8:16

8:16 He is a well-watered plant ¹⁷  in ¹⁸  the sun,

its shoots spread ¹⁹  over its garden. ²⁰ 

Ayub 9:3-5

9:3 If someone wishes ²¹  to contend ²²  with him,

he cannot answer ²³  him one time in a thousand.

9:4 He is wise in heart ²⁴  and mighty ²⁵  in strength ²⁶  –

who has resisted ²⁷  him and remained safe? ²⁸ 

9:5 He who removes mountains suddenly, ²⁹ 

who overturns them in his anger; ³⁰ 

Ayub 9:9

9:9 he makes the Bear, ³¹  Orion, ³²  and the Pleiades, ³³ 

and the constellations of the southern sky; ³⁴ 

Ayub 9:21

9:21 I am blameless. ³⁵  I do not know myself. ³⁶ 

I despise my life.

Ayub 9:30

9:30 If I wash myself with snow water, ³⁷ 

and make my hands clean with lye, ³⁸ 

Ayub 11:12

11:12 But an empty man will become wise,

when a wild donkey’s colt is born a human being. ³⁹ 

Ayub 12:21

12:21 He pours contempt on noblemen

and disarms ⁴⁰  the powerful. ⁴¹ 

Ayub 13:12

13:12 Your maxims ⁴²  are proverbs of ashes; ⁴³ 

your defenses ⁴⁴  are defenses of clay. ⁴⁵ 

Ayub 14:19

14:19 as water wears away stones,

and torrents ⁴⁶  wash away the soil, ⁴⁷ 

so you destroy man’s hope. ⁴⁸ 

Ayub 18:15

18:15 Fire resides in his tent; ⁴⁹ 

over his residence burning sulfur is scattered.

Ayub 20:11

20:11 His bones ⁵⁰  were full of his youthful vigor, ⁵¹ 

but that vigor will lie down with him in the dust.

Ayub 20:19

20:19 For he has oppressed the poor and abandoned them; ⁵² 

he has seized a house which he did not build. ⁵³ 

Ayub 20:22

20:22 In the fullness of his sufficiency, ⁵⁴ 

distress ⁵⁵  overtakes him.

the full force of misery will come upon him. ⁵⁶ 

Ayub 21:21

21:21 For what is his interest ⁵⁷  in his home

after his death, ⁵⁸ 

when the number of his months

has been broken off? ⁵⁹ 

Ayub 22:13

22:13 But you have said, ‘What does God know?

Does he judge through such deep darkness? ⁶⁰ 

Ayub 22:20

22:20 ‘Surely our enemies ⁶¹  are destroyed,

and fire consumes their wealth.’

Ayub 22:22

22:22 Accept instruction ⁶²  from his mouth

and store up his words ⁶³  in your heart.

Ayub 26:5

A Better Description of God’s Greatness ⁶⁴ 

26:5 “The dead ⁶⁵  tremble ⁶⁶  –

those beneath the waters

and all that live in them. ⁶⁷ 

Ayub 26:7

26:7 He spreads out the northern skies ⁶⁸  over empty space; ⁶⁹ 

he suspends the earth on nothing. ⁷⁰ 

Ayub 28:16

28:16 It cannot be measured out for purchase ⁷¹  with the gold of Ophir,

with precious onyx ⁷²  or sapphires.

Ayub 29:8

29:8 the young men would see me and step aside, ⁷³ 

and the old men would get up and remain standing;

Ayub 30:15

30:15 Terrors are turned loose ⁷⁴  on me;

they drive away ⁷⁵  my honor like the wind,

and like a cloud my deliverance has passed away.

Ayub 33:32

33:32 If you have any words, ⁷⁶  reply to me;

speak, for I want to justify you. ⁷⁷ 

Ayub 34:13

34:13 Who entrusted ⁷⁸  to him the earth?

And who put him over ⁷⁹  the whole world?

Ayub 34:24

34:24 He shatters the great without inquiry, ⁸⁰ 

and sets up others in their place.

Ayub 35:2

35:2 “Do you think this to be ⁸¹  just:

when ⁸²  you say, ‘My right before God.’ ⁸³ 

Ayub 36:21

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

for because of this you have been tested ⁸⁴  by affliction.

Ayub 36:31

36:31 It is by these that he judges ⁸⁵  the nations

and supplies food in abundance.

Ayub 37:11

37:11 He loads the clouds with moisture; ⁸⁶ 

he scatters his lightning through the clouds.

Ayub 37:14

37:14 “Pay attention to this, Job!

Stand still and consider the wonders God works.

Ayub 38:16

38:16 Have you gone to the springs that fill the sea, ⁸⁷ 

or walked about in the recesses of the deep?

Ayub 38:36

38:36 Who has put wisdom in the heart, ⁸⁸ 

or has imparted understanding to the mind?

Ayub 40:13

40:13 Hide them in the dust ⁸⁹  together,

imprison ⁹⁰  them ⁹¹  in the grave. ⁹² 

Ayub 41:28

41:28 Arrows ⁹³  do not make it flee;

slingstones become like chaff to it.

[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.

[4:13]  ⁴ tn Here too the word is rare. The form שְׂעִפִּים (sÿ’ippim, “disquietings”) occurs only here and in 20:2. The form שַׂרְעַפִּים (sar’appim, “disquieting thoughts”), possibly related by dissimilation, occurs in Pss 94:19 and 139:23. There seems to be a connection with סְעִפִּים (sÿ’ippim) in 1 Kgs 18:21 with the meaning “divided opinion”; this is related to the idea of סְעִפָּה (sÿ’ippah, “bough”). H. H. Rowley (Job [NCBC], 47) concludes that the point is that like branches the thoughts lead off into different and bewildering places. E. Dhorme (Job, 50) links the word to an Arabic root (“to be passionately smitten”) for the idea of “intimate thoughts.” The idea here and in Ps 139 has more to do with anxious, troubling, disquieting thoughts, as in a nightmare.

[4:13]  ⁵ tn Heb “visions” of the night.

[4:13]  ⁶ tn The word תַּרְדֵּמָה (tardemah) is a “deep sleep.” It is used in the creation account when the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall on Adam; and it is used in the story of Jonah when the prophet was asleep during the storm. The LXX interprets it to mean “fear,” rendering the whole verse “but terror falls upon men with dread and a sound in the night.”

[4:17]  ⁷ tn The imperfect verbs in this verse express obvious truths known at all times (GKC 315 §107.f).

[4:17]  ⁸ tn The word for man here is first אֱנוֹשׁ (’enosh), stressing man in all his frailty, his mortality. This is paralleled with גֶּבֶר (gever), a word that would stress more of the strength or might of man. The verse is not making a great contrast between the two, but it is rhetorical question merely stating that no human being of any kind is righteous or pure before God the Creator. See H. Kosmala, “The Term geber in the OT and in the Scrolls,” VTSup 17 (1969): 159-69; and E. Jacob, Theology of the Old Testament, 156-57.

[4:17]  ⁹ tn The imperfect verb in this interrogative sentence could also be interpreted with a potential nuance: “Can a man be righteous?”

[4:17]  ¹⁰ tn The classification of מִן (min) as a comparative in this verse (NIV, “more righteous than God”; cf. also KJV, ASV, NCV) does not seem the most probable. The idea of someone being more righteous than God is too strong to be reasonable. Job will not do that – but he will imply that God is unjust. In addition, Eliphaz had this vision before hearing of Job’s trouble and so is not addressing the idea that Job is making himself more righteous than God. He is stating that no man is righteous before God. Verses 18-21 will show that no one can claim righteousness before God. In 9:2 and 25:4 the preposition “with” is used. See also Jer 51:5 where the preposition should be rendered “before” [the Holy One].

[4:17]  ¹¹ sn In Job 15:14 and 25:4 the verb יִזְכֶּה (yizkeh, from זָכָה [zakhah, “be clean”]) is paralleled with יִצְדַּק (yitsdaq, from צָדֵק [tsadeq, “be righteous”).

[4:17]  ¹² tn The double question here merely repeats the same question with different words (see GKC 475 §150.h). The second member could just as well have been connected with ו (vav).

[4:20]  ¹³ tn The form יֻכַּתּוּ (yukkatu) is the Hophal imperfect of the root כָּתַת (katat, “to be pounded, pulverized, reduced to ashes” [Jer 46:5; Mic 1:7]). It follows the Aramaic formation (see GKC 182 §67.y). This line appears to form a parallelism with “they are crushed like a moth,” the third unit of the last verse; but it has its own parallel idea in this verse. See D. J. A. Clines, “Verb Modality and the Interpretation of Job 4:20, 21,” VT 30 (1980): 354-57.

[4:20]  ¹⁴ tn Or “from morning to evening.” The expression “from morning to evening” is probably not a merism, but rather describes the time between the morning and the evening, as in Isa 38:12: “from day to night you make an end of me.”

[4:20]  ¹⁵ sn The second colon expresses the consequence of this day-long reducing to ashes – they perish forever! (see 20:7 and 14:20).

[4:20]  ¹⁶ tn This rendering is based on the interpretation that מִבְּלִי מֵשִׂים (mibbÿli mesim) uses the Hiphil participle of שִׂים (sim, “set”) with an understood object “heart” to gain the idiom of “taking to heart, considering, regarding it” – hence, “without anyone regarding it.” Some commentators have attempted to resolve the difficulty by emending the text, a procedure that has no more support than positing the ellipses. One suggested emendation does have the LXX in its favor, namely, a reading of מֹשִׁיעַ (moshia’, “one who saves”) in place of מֵשִׂים (mesim, “one who sets”). This would lead to “without one who saves they perish forever” (E. Dhorme, Job, 55).

[8:16]  ¹⁷ tn The figure now changes to a plant that is flourishing and spreading and then suddenly cut off. The word רָטַב (ratav) means “to be moist; to be watered.” The word occurs in Arabic, Aramaic, and Akkadian, but only twice in the Bible: here as the adjective and in 24:8 as the verb.

[8:16]  ¹⁸ tn The Hebrew is לִפְנֵי (lifne, “before”). Does this mean “in the presence of the sun,” i.e., under a sweltering sun, or “before” the sun rises? It seems more natural to take לִפְנֵי (lifne) as “in the presence of” or “under.”

[8:16]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “its shoot goes out.”

[8:16]  ²⁰ tc Some have emended this phrase to obtain “over the roofs.” The LXX has “out of his corruption.” H. M. Orlinsky has shown that this reading arose from an internal LXX change, saprias having replaced prasias, “garden” (JQR 26 [1935/36]: 134-35).

[9:3]  ²¹ tn Some commentators take God to be the subject of this verb, but it is more likely that it refers to the mortal who tries to challenge God in a controversy. The verb is used of Job in 13:3.

[9:3]  ²² tn The verb רִיב (riv) is a common one; it has the idea of “contention; dispute; legal dispute or controversy; go to law.” With the preposition אִם (’im) the idea must be “to contend with” or “to dispute with.” The preposition reflects the prepositional phrase “with God” in v. 2, supporting the view that man is the subject.

[9:3]  ²³ tn This use of the imperfect as potential imperfect assumes that the human is the subject, that in a dispute with God he could not answer one of God’s questions (for which see the conclusion of the book when God questions Job). On the other hand, if the interpretation were that God does not answer the demands of mortals, then a simple progressive imperfect would be required. In support of this is the frustration of Job that God does not answer him.

[9:4]  ²⁴ 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]  ²⁵ 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]  ²⁶ 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]  ²⁷ 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]  ²⁸ 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.

[9:5]  ²⁹ tn The verb is plural: “they do not know it.” This suggests that the mountains would not know it. Some follow the Syriac with a singular verb, i.e., God does not know it, meaning, it is so trifling to God that he can do it without thinking. But the better interpretation may be “suddenly.” This would be interpreted from the MT as it stands; it would imply “before they know anything,” thus “suddenly” (Gray, Dhorme, Buttenwieser, et. al.). D. W. Thomas connects the meaning to another verb based on Arabic and translates it, “ so that they are no longer still” (“Additional Notes on the Root yada` in Hebrew,” JTS 15 [1964]: 54-57). J. A. Emerton works with a possible root יָדַע (yada’) meaning “be still” (“A Consideration of Some Alleged Meanings of yada` in Hebrew,” JSS 15 [1970]: 145-80).

[9:5]  ³⁰ sn This line beginning with the relative pronoun can either be read as a parallel description of God, or it can be subordinated by the relative pronoun to the first (“they do not know who overturned them”).

[9:9]  ³¹ sn The Hebrew has עָשׁ (’ash), although in 38:32 it is עַיִשׁ (’ayish). This has been suggested to be Aldebaran, a star in the constellation Taurus, but there have been many other suggestions put forward by the commentaries.

[9:9]  ³² sn There is more certainty for the understanding of this word as Orion, even though there is some overlap of the usage of the words in the Bible. In classical literature we have the same stereotypical reference to these three (see E. Dhorme, Job, 131).

[9:9]  ³³ sn The identification of this as the Pleiades is accepted by most (the Vulgate has “Hyades”). In classical Greek mythology, the seven Pleiades were seven sisters of the Hyades who were pursued by Orion until they were changed into stars by Zeus. The Greek myth is probably derived from an older Semitic myth.

[9:9]  ³⁴ tn Heb “and the chambers of the south.”

[9:21]  ³⁵ tn Dhorme, in an effort to avoid tautology, makes this a question: “Am I blameless?” The next clause then has Job answering that he does not know. But through the last section Job has been proclaiming his innocence. The other way of interpreting these verses is to follow NIV and make all of them hypothetical (“If I were blameless, he would pronounce me guilty”) and then come to this verse with Job saying, “I am blameless.” The second clause of this verse does not fit either view very well. In vv. 20, 21, and 22 Job employs the same term for “blameless” (תָּם, tam) as in the prologue (1:1). God used it to describe Job in 1:8 and 2:3. Bildad used it in 8:20. These are the final occurrences in the book.

[9:21]  ³⁶ tn The meaning of the expression “I do not know myself” seems to be, “I do not care.” NIV translates it, “I have no concern for my life.”

[9:21]  sn Job believes he is blameless and not deserving of all this suffering; he will hold fast to that claim, even if the future is uncertain, especially if that future involved a confrontation with God.

[9:30]  ³⁷ tn The Syriac and Targum Job read with the Qere “with water of [בְמֵי, bÿme] snow.” The Kethib simply has “in [בְמוֹ, bÿmo] snow.” In Ps 51:9 and Isa 1:18 snow forms a simile for purification. Some protest that snow water is not necessarily clean; but if fresh melting snow is meant, then the runoff would be very clear. The image would work well here. Nevertheless, others have followed the later Hebrew meaning for שֶׁלֶג (sheleg) – “soap” (so NIV, NRSV, NLT). Even though that makes a nice parallelism, it is uncertain whether that meaning was in use at the time this text was written.

[9:30]  ³⁸ tn The word בֹּר (bor, “lye, potash”) does not refer to purity (Syriac, KJV, ASV), but refers to the ingredient used to make the hands pure or clean. It has the same meaning as בֹּרִית (borit), the alkali or soda made from the ashes of certain plants.

[11:12]  ³⁹ tn As A. B. Davidson (Job, 84) says, the one thing will happen when the other happens – which is never. The word “empty” נָבוּב (navuv) means “hollow; witless,” and “become wise” (יִלָּבֵב, yillavev) is “will get heart” (not to “lack heart” as Driver suggested”). Many commentators do not like the last line of the verse, and so offer even more emendations. E. F. Sutcliffe wanted to change פֶּרֶא (pere’, “donkey”) to פֶּרֶד (pered, “stallion”), rendering “a witless wight may get wit when a mule is born a stallion” (“Notes on Job, textual and exegetical,” Bib 30 [1949]: 70-71); and others approached the verse by changing the verb from יִוָּלֵד (yivvaled, “is born”) to יִלָּמֵד (yillamed, “is taught”), resulting in “a hollow man may get understanding, and a wild donkey’s colt may be taught [= tamed]” (cf. NAB).

[12:21]  ⁴⁰ tn The expression in Hebrew uses מְזִיחַ (mÿziakh, “belt”) and the Piel verb רִפָּה (rippah, “to loosen”) so that “to loosen the belt of the mighty” would indicate “to disarm/incapacitate the mighty.” Others have opted to change the text: P. Joüon emends to read “forehead” – “he humbles the brow of the mighty.”

[12:21]  ⁴¹ tn The word אָפַק (’afaq, “to be strong”) is well-attested, and the form אָפִיק (’afiq) is a normal adjective formation. So a translation like “mighty” (KJV, NIV) or “powerful” is acceptable, and further emendations are unnecessary.

[13:12]  ⁴² tn The word is זִכְרֹנֵיכֶם (zikhronekhem, “your remembrances”). The word זִכָּרֹן (zikkaron) not only can mean the act of remembering, but also what is remembered – what provokes memory or is worth being remembered. In the plural it can mean all the memorabilia, and in this verse all the sayings and teachings. H. H. Rowley (Job [NCBC], 99) suggests that in Job’s speech it could mean “all your memorized sayings.”

[13:12]  ⁴³ tn The parallelism of “dust” and “ashes” is fairly frequent in scripture. But “proverbs of ashes” is difficult. The genitive is certainly describing the proverbs; it could be classified as a genitive of apposition, proverbs that are/have become ashes. Ashes represent something that at one time may have been useful, but now has been reduced to what is worthless.

[13:12]  ⁴⁴ tn There is a division of opinion on the source of this word. Some take it from “answer”, related to Arabic, Aramaic, and Syriac words for “answer,” and so translate it “responses” (JB). Others take it from a word for “back,” with a derived meaning of the “boss” of the shield, and translate it bulwark or “defenses” (NEB, RSV, NIV). The idea of “answers” may fit the parallelism better, but “defenses” can be taken figuratively to refer to verbal defenses.

[13:12]  ⁴⁵ sn Any defense made with clay would crumble on impact.

[14:19]  ⁴⁶ tn Heb “the overflowings of it”; the word סְפִיחֶיהָ (sÿfikheyha) in the text is changed by just about everyone. The idea of “its overflowings” or more properly “its aftergrowths” (Lev 25:5; 2 Kgs 19:29; etc.) does not fit here at all. Budde suggested reading סְחִפָה (sÿkhifah), which is cognate to Arabic sahifeh, “torrential rain, rainstorm” – that which sweeps away” the soil. The word סָחַף (sakhaf) in Hebrew might have a wider usage than the effects of rain.

[14:19]  ⁴⁷ tn Heb “[the] dust of [the] earth.”

[14:19]  ⁴⁸ sn The meaning for Job is that death shatters all of man’s hopes for the continuation of life.

[18:15]  ⁴⁹ 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.

[20:11]  ⁵⁰ tn “Bones” is often used metonymically for the whole person, the bones being the framework, meaning everything inside, as well as the body itself.

[20:11]  ⁵¹ sn This line means that he dies prematurely – at the height of his youthful vigor.

[20:19]  ⁵² tc The verb indicates that after he oppressed the poor he abandoned them to their fate. But there have been several attempts to improve on the text. Several have repointed the text to get a word parallel to “house.” Ehrlich came up with עֹזֵב (’ozev, “mud hut”), Kissane had “hovel” (similar to Neh 3:8). M. Dahood did the same (“The Root ’zb II in Job,” JBL 78 [1959]: 306-7). J. Reider came up with עֶזֶב (’ezev, the “leavings”), what the rich were to leave for the poor (“Contributions to the Scriptural text,” HUCA 24 [1952/53]: 103-6). But an additional root עָזַב (’azav) is questionable. And while the text as it stands is general and not very striking, there is absolutely nothing wrong with it. Dhorme reverses the letters to gain בְּעֹז (bÿ’oz, “with force [or violence]”).

[20:19]  ⁵³ tn The last clause says, “and he did not build it.” This can be understood in an adverbial sense, supplying the relative pronoun to the translation.

[20:22]  ⁵⁴ 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]  ⁵⁵ 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]  ⁵⁶ 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.

[21:21]  ⁵⁷ tn Heb “his desire.” The meaning is that after he is gone he does not care about what happens to his household (“house” meaning “family” here).

[21:21]  ⁵⁸ tn Heb “after him,” but clearly the meaning is “after he is gone.”

[21:21]  ⁵⁹ tc The rare word חֻצָּצוּ (khutsatsu) is probably a cognate of hassa in Arabic, meaning “to cut off.” There is also an Akkadian word “to cut in two” and “to break.” These fit the context here rather well. The other Hebrew words that are connected to the root חָצַצ (khatsats) do not offer any help.

[22:13]  ⁶⁰ sn Eliphaz is giving to Job the thoughts and words of the pagans, for they say, “How does God know, and is there knowledge in the Most High?” (see Ps 73:11; 94:11).

[22:20]  ⁶¹ tc The word translated “our enemies” is found only here. The word means “hostility,” but used here as a collective for those who are hostile – “enemies.” Some commentators follow the LXX and read “possessions,” explaining its meaning and derivation in different ways. Gordis simply takes the word in the text and affirms that this is the meaning. On the other hand, to get this, E. Dhorme (Job, 336) repoints קִימָנוּ (qimanu) of the MT to יְקוּמַם (yÿqumam), arguing that יְקוּם (yÿqum) means “what exists [or has substance]” (although that is used of animals). He translates: “have not their possessions been destroyed.”

[22:22]  ⁶² tn The Hebrew word here is תּוֹרָה (torah), its only occurrence in the book of Job.

[22:22]  ⁶³ tc M. Dahood has “write his words” (“Metaphor in Job 22:22,” Bib 47 [1966]: 108-9).

[26:5]  ⁶⁴ sn This is the section, Job 26:5-14, that many conclude makes better sense coming from the friend. But if it is attributed to Job, then he is showing he can surpass them in his treatise of the greatness of God.

[26:5]  ⁶⁵ tn The text has הָרְפָאִים (harÿfa’im, “the shades”), referring to the “dead,” or the elite among the dead (see Isa 14:9; 26:14; Ps 88:10 [11]). For further discussion, start with A. R. Johnson, The Vitality of the Individual, 88ff.

[26:5]  ⁶⁶ tn The verb is a Polal from חִיל (khil) which means “to tremble.” It shows that even these spirits cannot escape the terror.

[26:5]  ⁶⁷ tc Most commentators wish to lengthen the verse and make it more parallel, but nothing is gained by doing this.

[26:7]  ⁶⁸ sn The Hebrew word is צָפוֹן (tsafon). Some see here a reference to Mount Zaphon of the Ugaritic texts, the mountain that Baal made his home. The Hebrew writers often equate and contrast Mount Zion with this proud mountain of the north. Of course, the word just means north, and so in addition to any connotations for pagan mythology, it may just represent the northern skies – the stars. Since the parallel line speaks of the earth, that is probably all that was intended in this particular context.

[26:7]  ⁶⁹ sn There is an allusion to the creation account, for this word is תֹּהוּ (tohu), translated “without form” in Gen 1:2.

[26:7]  ⁷⁰ sn Buttenwieser suggests that Job had outgrown the idea of the earth on pillars, and was beginning to see it was suspended in space. But in v. 11 he will still refer to the pillars.

[28:16]  ⁷¹ tn The word actually means “weighed,” that is, lifted up on the scale and weighed, in order to purchase.

[28:16]  ⁷² tn The exact identification of these stones is uncertain. Many recent English translations, however, have “onyx” and “sapphires.”

[29:8]  ⁷³ tn The verb means “to hide; to withdraw.” The young men out of respect would withdraw or yield the place of leadership to Job (thus the translation “step aside”). The old men would rise and remain standing until Job took his seat – a sign of respect.

[30:15]  ⁷⁴ tn The passive singular verb (Hophal) is used with a plural subject (see GKC 388 §121.b).

[30:15]  ⁷⁵ tc This translation assumes that “terrors” (in the plural) is the subject. Others emend the text in accordance with the LXX, which has, “my hope is gone like the wind.”

[33:32]  ⁷⁶ tn Heb “if there are words.”

[33:32]  ⁷⁷ tn The infinitive construct serves as the complement or object of “I desire.” It could be rendered “to justify you” or “your justification, “namely, “that you be justified.”

[34:13]  ⁷⁸ tn The verb פָּקַד (paqad) means “to visit; to appoint; to number.” Here it means “to entrust” for care and governing. The implication would be that there would be someone higher than God – which is what Elihu is repudiating by the rhetorical question. No one entrusted God with this.

[34:13]  ⁷⁹ tn The preposition is implied from the first half of the verse.

[34:24]  ⁸⁰ tn Heb “[with] no investigation.”

[35:2]  ⁸¹ tn The line could be read as “do you reckon this for justice? Here “to be” is understood.

[35:2]  ⁸² tn The word “when” is not in the Hebrew text, but is implied.

[35:2]  ⁸³ tn The brief line could be interpreted in a number of ways. The MT simply has “my right from God.” It could be “I am right before God,” “I am more just/right than God” (identifying the preposition as a comparative min (מִן); cf. J. E. Hartley, Job [NICOT], 463), “I will be right before God,” or “My just cause against God.”

[36:21]  ⁸⁴ 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.”

[36:31]  ⁸⁵ tn The verb is יָדִין (yadin, “he judges”). Houbigant proposedיָזוּן (yazun, “he nourishes”). This has found wide acceptance among commentators (cf. NAB). G. R. Driver retained the MT but gave a meaning “enriches” to the verb (“Problems in the Hebrew text of Job,” VTSup 3 [1955]: 88ff.).

[37:11]  ⁸⁶ tn The word “moisture” is drawn from רִי (ri) as a contraction for רְוִי (rÿvi). Others emended the text to get “hail” (NAB) or “lightning,” or even “the Creator.” For these, see the various commentaries. There is no reason to change the reading of the MT when it makes perfectly good sense.

[38:16]  ⁸⁷ tn Heb “the springs of the sea.” The words “that fill” are supplied in the translation to clarify the meaning of the phrase.

[38:36]  ⁸⁸ tn This verse is difficult because of the two words, טֻחוֹת (tukhot, rendered here “heart”) and שֶׂכְוִי (sekhvi, here “mind”). They have been translated a number of ways: “meteor” and “celestial appearance”; the stars “Procyon” and “Sirius”; “inward part” and “mind”; even as birds, “ibis” and “cock.” One expects them to have something to do with nature – clouds and the like. The RSV accordingly took them to mean “meteor” (from a verb “to wander”) and “a celestial appearance.” But these meanings are not well-attested.

[40:13]  ⁸⁹ tn The word “dust” can mean “ground” here, or more likely, “grave.”

[40:13]  ⁹⁰ tn The verb חָבַשׁ (khavash) means “to bind.” In Arabic the word means “to bind” in the sense of “to imprison,” and that fits here.

[40:13]  ⁹¹ tn Heb “their faces.”

[40:13]  ⁹² tn The word is “secret place,” the place where he is to hide them, i.e., the grave. The text uses the word “secret place” as a metonymy for the grave.

[41:28]  ⁹³ tn Heb “the son of the bow.”