33:9 1 ‘I am pure, without transgression;
I am clean 2 and have no iniquity.
34:37 For he adds transgression 3 to his sin;
in our midst he claps his hands, 4
and multiplies his words against God.”
1 sn See Job 9:21; 10:7; 23:7; 27:4; ch. 31.
2 tn The word is a hapax legomenon; hap is from חָפַף (khafaf). It is used in New Hebrew in expressions like “to wash” the head. Cognates in Syriac and Akkadian support the meaning “to wash; to clean.”
3 tn Although frequently translated “rebellion,” the basic meaning of this Hebrew term is “transgression.”
4 tc If this reading stands, it would mean that Job shows contempt, meaning that he mocks them and accuses God. It is a bold touch, but workable. Of the many suggested emendations, Dhorme alters some of the vowels and obtains a reading “and casts doubt among us,” and then takes “transgression” from the first colon for the complement. Some commentators simply delete the line.