Ayub 7:17
Konteks7:17 “What is mankind 1 that you make so much of them, 2
and that you pay attention 3 to them?
Ayub 10:4-5
Konteks10:4 “Do you have eyes of flesh, 4
or do you see 5 as a human being sees? 6
10:5 Are your days like the days of a mortal,
or your years like the years 7 of a mortal,
Ayub 15:14
Konteks15:14 What is man that he should be pure,
or one born of woman, that he should be righteous?
Ayub 25:6
Konteks25:6 how much less a mortal man, who is but a maggot 8 –
a son of man, who is only a worm!”
Ayub 28:13
Konteks28:13 Mankind does not know its place; 9
it cannot be found in the land of the living.
Ayub 34:6
Konteks34:6 Concerning my right, should I lie? 10
My wound 11 is incurable,
although I am without transgression.’ 12
Ayub 36:25
Konteks36:25 All humanity has seen it;
people gaze on it from afar.
[7:17] 1 tn The verse is a rhetorical question; it is intended to mean that man is too little for God to be making so much over him in all this.
[7:17] 2 tn The Piel verb is a factitive meaning “to magnify.” The English word “magnify” might not be the best translation here, for God, according to Job, is focusing inordinately on him. It means to magnify in thought, appreciate, think highly of. God, Job argues, is making too much of mankind by devoting so much bad attention on them.
[7:17] 3 tn The expression “set your heart on” means “concentrate your mind on” or “pay attention to.”
[10:4] 4 tn Here “flesh” is the sign of humanity. The expression “eyes of flesh” means essentially “human eyes,” i.e., the outlook and vision of humans.
[10:4] 5 sn The verb translated “see” could also include the figurative category of perceive as well. The answer to Job’s question is found in 1 Sam 16:7: “The
[10:4] 6 sn In this verse Job asks whether or not God is liable to making mistakes or errors of judgment. He wonders if God has no more insight than his friends have. Of course, the questions are rhetorical, for he knows otherwise. But his point is that God seems to be making a big mistake here.
[10:5] 7 tn The Hebrew has repeated here “like the days of,” but some scholars think that this was an accidental replacement of what should be here, namely, “like the years of.” D. J. A. Clines notes that such repetition is not uncommon in Job, but suggests that the change should be made for English style even if the text is not emended (Job [WBC], 221). This has been followed in the present translation.
[10:5] sn The question Job asks concerns the mode of life and not just the length of it (see Job 7:1). Humans spend their days and years watching each other and defending themselves. But there is also the implication that if God is so limited like humans he may not uncover Job’s sins before he dies.
[25:6] 8 tn The text just has “maggot” and in the second half “worm.” Something has to be added to make it a bit clearer. The terms “maggot” and “worm” describe man in his lowest and most ignominious shape.
[28:13] 9 tc The LXX has “its way, apparently reading דַּרְכָה (darkhah) in place of עֶרְכָּהּ (’erkah, “place”). This is adopted by most modern commentators. But R. Gordis (Job, 308) shows that this change is not necessary, for עֶרֶךְ (’erekh) in the Bible means “order; row; disposition,” and here “place.” An alternate meaning would be “worth” (NIV, ESV).
[34:6] 10 tn The verb is the Piel imperfect of כָּזַב (kazav), meaning “to lie.” It could be a question: “Should I lie [against my right?] – when I am innocent. If it is repointed to the Pual, then it can be “I am made to lie,” or “I am deceived.” Taking it as a question makes good sense here, and so emendations are unnecessary.
[34:6] 11 tn The Hebrew text has only “my arrow.” Some commentators emend that word slightly to get “my wound.” But the idea could be derived from “arrows” as well, the wounds caused by the arrows. The arrows are symbolic of God’s affliction.
[34:6] 12 tn Heb “without transgression”; but this is parallel to the first part where the claim is innocence.
