Job 15:17

15:17 “I will explain to you;

listen to me,

and what ¹  I have seen, I will declare, ² 

Job 42:4

42:4 You said, ³ 

‘Pay attention, and I will speak;

I will question you, and you will answer me.’

Job 33:1

Elihu Invites Job’s Attention

33:1 “But now, O Job, listen to my words,

and hear ⁴  everything I have to say! ⁵ 

Job 33:31

33:31 Pay attention, Job – listen to me;

be silent, and I will speak.

Job 33:33

33:33 If not, you listen to me;

be silent, and I will teach you wisdom.”

Job 34:34

34:34 Men of understanding say to me –

any wise man listening to me says –

Job 31:35

Job’s Appeal

31:35 “If only I had ⁶  someone to hear me!

Here is my signature – ⁷ 

let the Almighty answer me!

If only I had an indictment ⁸ 

that my accuser had written. ⁹ 

[15:17]  ¹ tn The demonstrative pronoun is used here as a nominative, to introduce an independent relative clause (see GKC 447 §138.h).

[15:17]  ² tn Here the vav (ו) apodosis follows with the cohortative (see GKC 458 §143.d).

[42:4]  ³ tn This phrase, “you said,” is supplied in the translation to introduce the recollection of God’s words.

[33:1]  ⁵ tn Heb “give ear,” the Hiphil denominative verb from “ear.”

[33:1]  ⁶ tn Heb “hear all my words.”

[31:35]  ⁷ tn The optative is again introduced with “who will give to me hearing me? – O that someone would listen to me!”

[31:35]  ⁸ tn Heb “here is my ‘tav’” (הֵן תָּוִי, hen tavi). The letter ת (tav) is the last letter of the alphabet in Hebrew. In paleo-Hebrew the letter was in the form of a cross or an “X,” and so used for one making a mark or a signature. In this case Job has signed his statement and delivered it to the court – but he has yet to be charged. Kissane thought that this being the last letter of the alphabet, Job was saying, “This is my last word.” Others take the word to mean “desire” – “this is my desire, that God would answer me” (see E. F. Sutcliffe, “Notes on Job, textual and exegetical,” Bib 30 [1949]: 71-72; G. R. Driver, AJSL 3 [1935/36]: 166; P. P. Saydon, “Philological and Textual Notes to the Maltese Translation of the Old Testament,” CBQ 23 [1961]: 252). R. Gordis (Job, 355) also argues strongly for this view.

[31:35]  ⁹ tn Heb “a scroll,” in the context referring to a scroll containing the accusations of Job’s legal adversary (see the next line).

[31:35]  ¹⁰ tn 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 see it as a continuation of the optative (RSV).