Ayub 2:5

2:5 But extend your hand and strike his bone and his flesh, ¹  and he will no doubt ²  curse you to your face!”

Ayub 3:13

3:13 For now ³  I would be lying down

and ⁴  would be quiet, ⁵ 

I would be asleep and then at peace ⁶ 

Ayub 3:16

3:16 Or why ⁷  was ⁸  I not buried ⁹ 

like a stillborn infant, ¹⁰ 

like infants ¹¹  who have never seen the light? ¹² 

Ayub 5:8

Blessings for the One Who Seeks God ¹³ 

5:8 “But ¹⁴  as for me, ¹⁵  I would seek ¹⁶  God, ¹⁷ 

and to God ¹⁸  I would set forth my case. ¹⁹ 

Ayub 17:10

Anticipation of Death

17:10 “But turn, all of you, ²⁰  and come ²¹  now! ²² 

I will not find a wise man among you.

Ayub 31:13-14

31:13 “If I have disregarded the right of my male servants

or my female servants

when they disputed ²³  with me,

31:14 then what will I do when God confronts me in judgment; ²⁴ 

when he intervenes, ²⁵ 

how will I respond to him?

Ayub 31:16

31:16 If I have refused to give the poor what they desired, ²⁶ 

or caused the eyes of the widow to fail,

Ayub 31:19

31:19 If I have seen anyone about to perish for lack of clothing,

or a poor man without a coat,

Ayub 31:21

31:21 if I have raised my hand ²⁷  to vote against the orphan,

when I saw my support in the court, ²⁸ 

Ayub 31:26

31:26 if I looked at the sun ²⁹  when it was shining,

and the moon advancing as a precious thing,

Ayub 31:29

31:29 If ³⁰  I have rejoiced over the misfortune of my enemy ³¹ 

or exulted ³²  because calamity ³³  found him –

Ayub 32:22

32:22 for I do not know how to give honorary titles, ³⁴ 

if I did, ³⁵  my Creator would quickly do away with me. ³⁶ 

[2:5]  ¹ sn The “bones and flesh” are idiomatic for the whole person, his physical and his psychical/spiritual being (see further H. W. Wolff, Anthropology of the Old Testament, 26-28).

[2:5]  ² sn This is the same oath formula found in 1:11; see the note there.

[3:13]  ³ tn The word עַתָּה (’attah, “now”) may have a logical nuance here, almost with the idea of “if that had been the case…” (IBHS 667-68 §39.3.4f). However, the temporal “now” is retained in translation since the imperfect verb following two perfects “suggests what Job’s present state would be if he had had the quiet of a still birth” (J. E. Hartley, Job [NICOT], 95, n. 23). Cf. GKC 313 §106.p.

[3:13]  ⁴ tn The copula on the verb indicates a sequence for the imperfect: “and then I would….” In the second half of the verse it is paralleled by “then.”

[3:13]  ⁵ tn The text uses a combination of the perfect (lie down/sleep) and imperfect (quiet/rest). The particle עַתָּה (’attah, “now”) gives to the perfect verb its conditional nuance. It presents actions in the past that are not actually accomplished but seen as possible (GKC 313 §106.p).

[3:13]  ⁶ tn The last part uses the impersonal verb “it would be at rest for me.”

[3:16]  ⁷ tn The verb is governed by the interrogative of v. 12 that introduces this series of rhetorical questions.

[3:16]  ⁸ tn The verb is again the prefix conjugation, but the narrative requires a past tense, or preterite.

[3:16]  ⁹ tn Heb “hidden.” The LXX paraphrases: “an untimely birth, proceeding from his mother’s womb.”

[3:16]  ¹⁰ tn The noun נֵפֶל (nefel, “miscarriage”) is the abortive thing that falls (hence the verb) from the womb before the time is ripe (Ps 58:9). The idiom using the verb “to fall” from the womb means to come into the world (Isa 26:18). The epithet טָמוּן (tamun, “hidden”) is appropriate to the verse. The child comes in vain, and disappears into the darkness – it is hidden forever.

[3:16]  ¹¹ tn The word עֹלְלִים (’olÿlim) normally refers to “nurslings.” Here it must refer to infants in general since it refers to a stillborn child.

[3:16]  ¹² tn The relative clause does not have the relative pronoun; the simple juxtaposition of words indicates that it is modifying the infants.

[5:8]  ¹³ sn Eliphaz affirms that if he were in Job’s place he would take refuge in God, but Job has to acknowledge that he has offended God and accept this suffering as his chastisement. Job eventually will submit to God in the end, but not in the way that Eliphaz advises here, for Job does not agree that the sufferings are judgments from God.

[5:8]  ¹⁴ tn The word אוּלָם (’ulam) is a strong adversative “but.” This forms the contrast with what has been said previously and so marks a new section.

[5:8]  ¹⁵ tn The independent personal pronoun here adds emphasis to the subject of the verb, again strengthening the contrast with what Job is doing (see R. J. Williams, Hebrew Syntax, 22, §106).

[5:8]  ¹⁶ tn The imperfect verbs in this verse express not so much what Eliphaz does as what he would do if he were in Job’s place (even though in 13:3 we have the affirmation). The use fits the category of the imperfect used in conditional clauses (see GKC 319 §107.x).

[5:8]  ¹⁷ tn The verb דָּרַשׁ (darash, “to seek”) followed by the preposition אֶל (’el, “towards”) has the meaning of addressing oneself to (God). See 8:19 and 40:10.

[5:8]  ¹⁸ tn The Hebrew employs אֵל (’el) in the first line and אֱלֹהִים (’elohim) in the second for “God”, but the LXX uses κύριος (kurio", “Lord”) in both places in this verse. However, in the second colon it also has “Lord of all.” This is replaced in the Greek version of Aquila by παντοκράτωρ (pantokratwr, traditionally translated “Almighty”). On the basis of this information, H. M. Orlinsky suggests that the second name for God in the verses should be “Shaddai” (JQR 25 [1934/35]: 271).

[5:8]  ¹⁹ tn The Hebrew simply has “my word”; but in this expression that uses שִׂים (sim) with the meaning of “lay before” or “expound a cause” in a legal sense, “case” or “cause” would be a better translation.

[17:10]  ²⁰ 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]  ²¹ 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]  ²² 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).

[31:13]  ²³ tn This construction is an adverbial clause using the temporal preposition, the infinitive from רִיב (riv, “contend”), and the suffix which is the subjective genitive.

[31:14]  ²⁴ tn Heb “arises.” The LXX reads “takes vengeance,” an interpretation that is somewhat correct but unnecessary. The verb “to rise” would mean “to confront in judgment.”

[31:14]  ²⁵ tn The verb פָקַד (paqad) means “to visit,” but with God as the subject it means any divine intervention for blessing or cursing, anything God does that changes a person’s life. Here it is “visit to judge.”

[31:16]  ²⁶ tn Heb “kept the poor from [their] desire.”

[31:21]  ²⁷ tn The expression “raised my hand” refers to a threatening manner or gesture in the court rather than a threat of physical violence in the street. Thus the words “to vote” are supplied in the translation to indicate the setting.

[31:21]  ²⁸ tn Heb “gate,” referring to the city gate where judicial decisions were rendered in the culture of the time. The translation uses the word “court” to indicate this to the modern reader, who might not associate a city gate complex with judicial functions.

[31:26]  ²⁹ tn Heb “light”; but parallel to the moon it is the sun. This section speaks of false worship of the sun and the moon.

[31:29]  ³⁰ 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]  ³¹ 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]  ³² tn The Hitpael of עוּר (’ur) has the idea of “exult.”

[31:29]  ³³ tn The word is רָע (ra’, “evil”) in the sense of anything that harms, interrupts, or destroys life.

[32:22]  ³⁴ tn The construction uses a perfect verb followed by the imperfect. This is a form of subordination equivalent to a complementary infinitive (see GKC 385-86 §120.c).

[32:22]  ³⁵ tn The words “if I did” are supplied in the translation to make sense out of the two clauses.

[32:22]  ³⁶ tn Heb “quickly carry me away.”