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Text -- Job 31:21-40 (NET)
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Strongs On/Off
Context
31:21 if I have raised my hand to vote against the orphan , when I saw my support in the court ,
31:22 then let my arm fall from the shoulder , let my arm be broken off at the socket .
31:23 For the calamity from God was a terror to me, and by reason of his majesty I was powerless .
31:24 “If I have put my confidence in gold or said to pure gold , ‘You are my security !’
31:25 if I have rejoiced because of the extent of my wealth, or because of the great wealth my hand had gained ,
31:26 if I looked at the sun when it was shining , and the moon advancing as a precious thing,
31:27 so that my heart was secretly enticed , and my hand threw them a kiss from my mouth ,
31:28 then this also would be iniquity to be judged , for I would have been false to God above .
31:29 If I have rejoiced over the misfortune of my enemy or exulted because calamity found him–
31:30 I have not even permitted my mouth to sin by asking for his life through a curse –
31:31 if the members of my household have never said , ‘If only there were someone who has not been satisfied from Job’s meat !’–
31:32 But no stranger had to spend the night outside , for I opened my doors to the traveler –
31:33 if I have covered my transgressions as men do, by hiding iniquity in my heart ,
31:34 because I was terrified of the great multitude , and the contempt of families terrified me, so that I remained silent and would not go outdoors –
Job’s Appeal
31:35 “If only I had someone to hear me! Here is my signature – let the Almighty answer me! If only I had an indictment that my accuser had written .
31:36 Surely I would wear it proudly on my shoulder , I would bind it on me like a crown ;
31:37 I would give him an accounting of my steps ; like a prince I would approach him.
Job’s Final Solemn Oath
31:38 “If my land cried out against me and all its furrows wept together ,
31:39 if I have eaten its produce without paying , or caused the death of its owners ,
31:40 then let thorns sprout up in place of wheat , and in place of barley , weeds !” The words of Job are ended .
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Names, People and Places, Dictionary Themes and Topics
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Names, People and Places:
Dictionary Themes and Topics:
Integrity |
JOB, BOOK OF |
CHARM |
Job |
Temptation |
Idolatry |
Moon |
Sun |
Poor |
ADORATION |
Cockle |
Beneficence |
ASTRONOMY, II |
Greed |
Rich, The |
QUEEN OF HEAVEN |
Gold |
SUN-WORSHIP |
Afflictions and Adversities |
Enemy |
more
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expand allCommentary -- Verse Notes / Footnotes
NET Notes -> Job 31:21; Job 31:21; Job 31:22; Job 31:22; Job 31:22; Job 31:23; Job 31:23; Job 31:26; Job 31:27; Job 31:28; Job 31:28; Job 31:28; Job 31:29; Job 31:29; Job 31:29; Job 31:29; Job 31:30; Job 31:30; Job 31:30; Job 31:31; Job 31:31; Job 31:31; Job 31:31; Job 31:31; Job 31:32; Job 31:32; Job 31:33; Job 31:33; Job 31:33; Job 31:33; Job 31:34; Job 31:34; Job 31:34; Job 31:35; Job 31:35; Job 31:35; Job 31:35; Job 31:36; Job 31:36; Job 31:36; Job 31:38; Job 31:38; Job 31:39; Job 31:39; Job 31:39; Job 31:40
NET Notes: Job 31:21 Heb “gate,” referring to the city gate where judicial decisions were rendered in the culture of the time. The translation uses the word ...
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NET Notes: Job 31:22 The word קָנֶה (qaneh) is “reed; shaft; beam,” and here “shoulder joint.” All the commentaries t...
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NET Notes: Job 31:26 Heb “light”; but parallel to the moon it is the sun. This section speaks of false worship of the sun and the moon.
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NET Notes: Job 31:27 Heb “and my hand kissed my mouth.” The idea should be that of “my mouth kissed my hand.” H. H. Rowley suggests that the hand w...
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NET Notes: Job 31:28 The verb כָּחַשׁ (kakhash) in the Piel means “to deny.” The root meaning is “to deceive; t...
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NET Notes: Job 31:29 The word is רָע (ra’, “evil”) in the sense of anything that harms, interrupts, or destroys life.
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NET Notes: Job 31:30 The infinitive construct with the ל (lamed) preposition (“by asking”) serves in an epexegetical capacity here, explaining the verb o...
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NET Notes: Job 31:31 Heb “his”; the referent (Job) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
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NET Notes: Job 31:33 The MT has “in my bosom.” This is the only place in the OT where this word is found. But its meaning is well attested from Aramaic.
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NET Notes: Job 31:34 There is no clear apodosis for all these clauses. Some commentators transfer the verses around to make them fit the constructions. But the better view...
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NET Notes: Job 31:35 The last line is very difficult; it simply says, “a scroll [that] my [legal] adversary had written.” The simplest way to handle this is to...
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NET Notes: Job 31:36 This verb is only found in Prov 6:21. But E. Dhorme (Job, 470) suggests that (with metathesis) we have a derivative מַעֲד...
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NET Notes: Job 31:38 Some commentators have suggested that the meaning behind this is that Job might not have kept the year of release (Deut 15:1), and the law against mix...
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NET Notes: Job 31:39 There is some debate over the meaning of בְּעָלֶיהָ (bÿ’aleyha), usually transl...
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