1 Kings 11:12-13

11:12 However, for your father David’s sake I will not do this while you are alive. I will tear it away from your son’s hand instead. 11:13 But I will not tear away the entire kingdom; I will leave ¹  your son one tribe for my servant David’s sake and for the sake of my chosen city Jerusalem.”

1 Kings 11:31

11:31 Then he told Jeroboam, “Take ten pieces, for this is what the Lord God of Israel says: ‘Look, I am about to tear the kingdom from Solomon’s hand and I will give ten tribes to you.

Job 11:6

11:6 and reveal to you the secrets of wisdom –

for true wisdom has two sides ²  –

so that you would know ³ 

that God has forgiven some of your sins. ⁴ 

Psalms 103:10

103:10 He does not deal with us as our sins deserve; ⁵ 

he does not repay us as our misdeeds deserve. ⁶ 

Habakkuk 3:2

3:2 Lord, I have heard the report of what you did; ⁷ 

I am awed, ⁸  Lord, by what you accomplished. ⁹ 

In our time ¹⁰  repeat those deeds; ¹¹ 

in our time reveal them again. ¹² 

But when you cause turmoil, remember to show us mercy! ¹³ 

[11:13]  ¹ tn Heb “give.”

[11:6]  ² tn The text seems to be saying “that it [wisdom] is double in understanding.” The point is that it is different than Job conceived it – it far exceeded all perception. But some commentators have thought this still too difficult, and so have replaced the word כִפְלַיִם (khiflayim, “two sides”) with כִפְלָאִים (khifla’im, “like wonders,” or, more simply, “wonders” without the preposition). But it is still a little strange to talk about God’s wisdom being like wonders. Others have had more radical changes in the text; J. J. Slotki has “for sound wisdom is his. And know that double [punishment] shall God exact of you” (“Job 11:6,” VT 35 [1985]: 229-30).

[11:6]  ³ tn The verb is the imperative with a ו (vav). Following the jussive, this clause would be subordinated to the preceding (see GKC 325 §110.i).

[11:6]  ⁴ tn Heb “God causes to be forgotten for you part of your iniquity.” The meaning is that God was exacting less punishment from Job than Job deserved, for Job could not remember all his sins. This statement is fitting for Zophar, who is the cruelest of Job’s friends (see H. H. Rowley, Job [NCBC], 88). Others in an attempt to improve the text make too many unwarranted changes. Some would read יִשְׁאָלְךָ (yish’alkha, “he asks of you”) instead of יַשֶּׂה לְךָ (yasseh lÿka, “he causes to be forgotten for you”). This would mean that God demands an account of Job’s sin. But, as D. J. A. Clines says, this change is weak and needless (Job [WBC], 254-55).

[103:10]  ⁵ tn Heb “not according to our sins does he do to us.”

[103:10]  ⁶ tn Heb “and not according to our misdeeds does he repay us.”

[3:2]  ⁷ tn Heb “your report,” that is, “the report concerning you.”

[3:2]  ⁸ tn Heb “I fear.” Some prefer to read, “I saw, Lord, what you accomplished” (cf. NEB).

[3:2]  ⁹ tn Heb “your work.”

[3:2]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “in the midst of years.” The meaning of the phrase, which occurs only here in the OT, is uncertain (cf. NIV “in our day”; NEB, NASB “in the midst of the years”).

[3:2]  ¹¹ tn Heb “revive it” (i.e., “your work”).

[3:2]  ¹² tn Heb “make known.” The implied object is “your deeds”; the pronoun “them,” referring to “deeds” in the previous line, was employed in the translation to avoid redundancy. The suffix on the form חַיֵּיהוּ (khayyehu, “revive it”) does double duty in the parallelism.

[3:2]  ¹³ tn Heb “in turmoil remember [to show] compassion.”