Ayub 9:19

9:19 If it is a matter of strength, ¹ 

most certainly ²  he is the strong one!

And if it is a matter of justice,

he will say, ‘Who will summon me?’ ³ 

Ayub 9:32

9:32 For he ⁴  is not a human being like I am,

that ⁵  I might answer him,

that we might come ⁶  together in judgment.

Ayub 13:9

13:9 Would it turn out well if he would examine ⁷  you?

Or as one deceives ⁸  a man would you deceive him?

Ayub 15:30

15:30 He will not escape the darkness; ⁹ 

a flame will wither his shoots

and he will depart

by the breath of God’s mouth. ¹⁰ 

Ayub 19:27

19:27 whom I will see for myself, ¹¹ 

and whom my own eyes will behold,

and not another. ¹² 

My heart ¹³  grows faint within me. ¹⁴ 

Ayub 23:8

The Inaccessibility and Power of God

23:8 “If I go to the east, he is not there,

and to the west, yet I do not perceive him.

Ayub 24:1

The Apparent Indifference of God

24:1 “Why are times not appointed by ¹⁵  the Almighty? ¹⁶ 

Why do those who know him not see his days?

Ayub 33:17

33:17 to turn a person from his sin, ¹⁷ 

and to cover a person’s pride. ¹⁸ 

Ayub 36:11

36:11 If they obey and serve him,

they live out their days in prosperity

and their years in pleasantness. ¹⁹ 

Ayub 36:18

36:18 Be careful that ²⁰  no one entices you with riches;

do not let a large bribe ²¹  turn you aside.

Ayub 36:23

36:23 Who has prescribed his ways for him?

Or said to him, ‘You have done what is wicked’?

Ayub 36:26

The Work and Wisdom of God

36:26 “Yes, God is great – beyond our knowledge! ²² 

The number of his years is unsearchable.

[9:19]  ¹ tn The MT has only “if of strength.”

[9:19]  ² tn “Most certainly” translates the particle הִנֵּה (hinneh).

[9:19]  ³ tn The question could be taken as “who will summon me?” (see Jer 49:19 and 50:44). This does not make immediate sense. Some have simply changed the suffix to “who will summon him.” If the MT is retained, then supplying something like “he will say” could make the last clause fit the whole passage. Another option is to take it as “Who will reveal it to me?” – i.e., Job could be questioning his friends’ qualifications for being God’s emissaries to bring God’s charges against him (cf. KJV, NKJV; and see 10:2 where Job uses the same verb in the Hiphil to request that God reveal what his sin has been that has led to his suffering).

[9:19]  sn Job is saying that whether it is a trial of strength or an appeal to justice, he is unable to go against God.

[9:32]  ⁴ tn The personal pronoun that would be expected as the subject of a noun clause is sometimes omitted (see GKC 360 §116.s). Here it has been supplied.

[9:32]  ⁵ tn The consecutive clause is here attached without the use of the ו (vav), but only by simple juxtaposition (see GKC 504-5 §166.a).

[9:32]  ⁶ tn The sense of the verb “come” with “together in judgment” means “to confront one another in court.” See Ps 143:2.

[13:9]  ⁷ tn The verb חָפַר (khafar) means “to search out, investigate, examine.” In the conditional clause the imperfect verb expresses the hypothetical case.

[13:9]  ⁸ tn Both the infinitive and the imperfect of תָּלַל (talal, “deceive, mock”) retain the ה (he) (GKC 148 §53.q). But for the alternate form, see F. C. Fensham, “The Stem HTL in Hebrew,” VT 9 (1959): 310-11. The infinitive is used here in an adverbial sense after the preposition.

[15:30]  ⁹ tn Some editions and commentators delete the first line of this verse, arguing that it is simply a paraphrase of v. 22a, and that it interrupts the comparison with a tree that falls (although that comparison only starts next).

[15:30]  ¹⁰ tn This last line in the verse is the difficult one. The MT has “he shall depart by the breath of his mouth.” If this reading stands, then it must be understood that it is the breath of God’s mouth that is intended. In place of “his mouth” the LXX has “flower” (reading פִּרהוֹ [pirho, properly, “his fruit”] instead of פִּיו piv), and “fall” instead of “depart.” Modern commentators and a number of English versions (e.g., RSV, NRSV, TEV) alter יָסוּר (yasur, “depart”) to something like יְסֹעַר (yÿso’ar, from סָעַר [sa’ar, “to drive away”]), or the like, to get “will be swept away.” The result is a reading: “and his blossom will be swept away by the wind.” The LXX may have read the Hebrew exactly, but harmonized it with v. 33 (see H. Heater, A Septuagint Translation Technique in the Book of Job [CBQMS]: 61-62).

[19:27]  ¹¹ tn The emphasis is on “I” and “for myself.” No other will be seeing this vindication, but Job himself will see it. Of that he is confident. Some take לִי (li, “for myself”) to mean favorable to me, or on my side (see A. B. Davidson, Job, 143). But Job is expecting (not just wishing for) a face-to-face encounter in the vindication.

[19:27]  ¹² tn Hitzig offered another interpretation that is somewhat forced. The “other” (זָר, zar) or “stranger” would refer to Job. He would see God, not as an enemy, but in peace.

[19:27]  ¹³ tn Heb “kidneys,” a poetic expression for the seat of emotions.

[19:27]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “fail/grow faint in my breast.” Job is saying that he has expended all his energy with his longing for vindication.

[24:1]  ¹⁵ tn The preposition מִן (min) is used to express the cause (see GKC 389 §121.f).

[24:1]  ¹⁶ tc The LXX reads “Why are times hidden from the Almighty?” as if to say that God is not interested in the events on the earth. The MT reading is saying that God fails to set the times for judgment and vindication and makes good sense as it stands.

[33:17]  ¹⁷ tc The MT simply has מַעֲשֶׂה (ma’aseh, “deed”). The LXX has “from his iniquity” which would have been מֵעַוְלָה (me’avlah). The two letters may have dropped out by haplography. The MT is workable, but would have to mean “[evil] deeds.”

[33:17]  ¹⁸ tc Here too the sense of the MT is difficult to recover. Some translations took it to mean that God hides pride from man. Many commentators changed יְכַסֶּה (yÿkhasseh, “covers”) to יְכַסֵּחַ (yÿkhasseakh, “he cuts away”), or יְכַלֶּה (yÿkhalleh, “he puts an end to”). The various emendations are not all that convincing.

[36:11]  ¹⁹ tc Some commentators delete this last line for metrical considerations. But there is no textual evidence for the deletion; it is simply the attempt by some to make the meter rigid.

[36:18]  ²⁰ tn The first expression is idiomatic: the text says, “because wrath lest it entice you” – thus, beware.

[36:18]  ²¹ tn The word is כֹּפֶר (kofer), often translated “ransom,” but frequently in the sense of a bribe.

[36:26]  ²² tn The last part has the verbal construction, “and we do not know.” This clause is to be used adverbially: “beyond our understanding.”