Job 22:13-14

22:13 But you have said, ‘What does God know?

Does he judge through such deep darkness? ¹ 

22:14 Thick clouds are a veil for him, so he does not see us, ² 

as he goes back and forth

in the vault ³  of heaven.’ ⁴ 

Psalms 10:11

10:11 He says to himself, ⁵ 

“God overlooks it;

he does not pay attention;

he never notices.” ⁶ 

Psalms 73:11

73:11 They say, “How does God know what we do?

Is the sovereign one aware of what goes on?” ⁷ 

Psalms 94:7

94:7 Then they say, “The Lord does not see this;

the God of Jacob does not take notice of it.” ⁸ 

Ezekiel 8:12

8:12 He said to me, “Do you see, son of man, what the elders of the house of Israel are doing in the dark, each in the chamber of his idolatrous images? ⁹  For they think, ‘The Lord does not see us! The Lord has abandoned the land!’”

Ezekiel 9:9

9:9 He said to me, “The sin of the house of Israel and Judah is extremely great; the land is full of murder, and the city is full of corruption, ¹⁰  for they say, ‘The Lord has abandoned the land, and the Lord does not see!’ ¹¹ 

[22:13]  ¹ sn Eliphaz is giving to Job the thoughts and words of the pagans, for they say, “How does God know, and is there knowledge in the Most High?” (see Ps 73:11; 94:11).

[22:14]  ² tn Heb “and he does not see.” The implied object is “us.”

[22:14]  ³ sn The word is “circle; dome”; here it is the dome that covers the earth, beyond which God sits enthroned. A. B. Davidson (Job, 165) suggests “on the arch of heaven” that covers the earth.

[22:14]  ⁴ sn The idea suggested here is that God is not only far off, but he is unconcerned as he strolls around heaven – this is what Eliphaz says Job means.

[10:11]  ⁵ tn Heb “he says in his heart.” See v. 6.

[10:11]  ⁶ tn Heb “God forgets, he hides his face, he never sees.”

[73:11]  ⁷ tn Heb “How does God know? Is there knowledge with the Most High?” They appear to be practical atheists, who acknowledge God’s existence and sovereignty in theory, but deny his involvement in the world (see Pss 10:4, 11; 14:1).

[94:7]  ⁸ tn Heb “does not understand.”

[8:12]  ⁹ tn Heb “the room of his images.” The adjective “idolatrous” has been supplied in the translation for clarity.

[9:9]  ¹⁰ tn Or “lawlessness” (NAB); “perversity” (NRSV). The Hebrew word occurs only here in the OT, and its meaning is uncertain. The similar phrase in 7:23 has a common word for “violence.”

[9:9]  ¹¹ sn The saying is virtually identical to that of the elders in Ezek 8:12.