Ayub 21:3

21:3 Bear with me ¹  and I ²  will speak,

and after I have spoken ³  you may mock. ⁴ 

Ayub 32:10

32:10 Therefore I say, ‘Listen ⁵  to me.

I, even I, will explain what I know.’

Ayub 33:2

33:2 See now, I have opened ⁶  my mouth;

my tongue in my mouth has spoken. ⁷ 

[21:3]  ¹ tn The verb נָשָׂא (nasa’) means “to lift up; to raise up”; but in this context it means “to endure; to tolerate” (see Job 7:21).

[21:3]  ² tn The conjunction and the independent personal pronoun draw emphatic attention to the subject of the verb: “and I on my part will speak.”

[21:3]  ³ tn The adverbial clauses are constructed of the preposition “after” and the Piel infinitive construct with the subjective genitive suffix: “my speaking,” or “I speak.”

[21:3]  ⁴ tn The verb is the imperfect of לָעַג (la’ag). The Hiphil has the same basic sense as the Qal, “to mock; to deride.” The imperfect here would be modal, expressing permission. The verb is in the singular, suggesting that Job is addressing Zophar; however, most of the versions put it into the plural. Note the singular in 16:3 between the plural in 16:1 and 16:4.

[32:10]  ⁵ tc In most Hebrew mss this imperative is singular, and so addressed to Job. But two Hebrew mss and the versions have the plural. Elihu was probably addressing all of them.

[33:2]  ⁶ tn The perfect verbs in this verse should be classified as perfects of resolve: “I have decided to open…speak.”

[33:2]  ⁷ sn H. H. Rowley (Job [NCBC], 210) says, “The self-importance of Elihu is boundless, and he is the master of banality.” He adds that whoever wrote these speeches this way clearly intended to expose the character rather than exalt him.