Job 3:9

3:9 Let its morning stars ¹  be darkened;

let it wait ²  for daylight but find none, ³ 

nor let it see the first rays ⁴  of dawn,

Job 18:19

18:19 He has neither children nor descendants ⁵  among his people,

no survivor in those places he once stayed. ⁶ 

Job 21:33

21:33 The clods of the torrent valley ⁷  are sweet to him;

behind him everybody follows in procession,

and before him goes a countless throng.

Job 24:24

24:24 They are exalted for a little while,

and then they are gone, ⁸ 

they are brought low ⁹  like all others,

and gathered in, ¹⁰ 

and like a head of grain they are cut off.’ ¹¹ 

Job 28:14

28:14 The deep ¹²  says, ‘It is not with ¹³  me.’

And the sea says, ‘It is not with me.’

Job 32:5

32:5 But when Elihu saw ¹⁴  that the three men had no further reply, ¹⁵  he became very angry.

Job 32:12

32:12 Now I was paying you close attention, ¹⁶ 

yet ¹⁷  there was no one proving Job wrong, ¹⁸ 

not one of you was answering his statements!

Job 35:15

35:15 And further, ¹⁹  when you say

that his anger does not punish, ²⁰ 

and that he does not know transgression! ²¹ 

[3:9]  ¹ tn Heb “the stars of its dawn.” The word נֶשֶׁף (neshef) can mean “twilight” or “dawn.” In this context the morning stars are in mind. Job wishes that the morning stars – that should announce the day – go out.

[3:9]  ² tn The verb “wait, hope” has the idea of eager expectation and preparation. It is used elsewhere of waiting on the Lord with anticipation.

[3:9]  ³ tn The absolute state אַיִן (’ayin, “there is none”) is here used as a verbal predicate (see GKC 480 §152.k). The concise expression literally says “and none.”

[3:9]  ⁴ sn The expression is literally “the eyelids of the morning.” This means the very first rays of dawn (see also Job 41:18). There is some debate whether it refers to “eyelids” or “eyelashes” or “eyeballs.” If the latter, it would signify the flashing eyes of a person. See for the Ugaritic background H. L. Ginsberg, The Legend of King Keret (BASORSup), 39; see also J. M. Steadman, “‘Eyelids of Morn’: A Biblical Convention,” HTR 56 (1963): 159-67.

[18:19]  ⁵ tn The two words נִין (nin, “offspring”) and נֶכֶד (nekhed, “posterity”) are always together and form an alliteration. This is hard to capture in English, but some have tried: Moffatt had “son and scion,” and Tur-Sinai had “breed or brood.” But the words are best simply translated as “lineage and posterity” or as in the NIV “offspring or descendants.”

[18:19]  ⁶ tn Heb “in his sojournings.” The verb גּוּר (gur) means “to reside; to sojourn” temporarily, without land rights. Even this word has been selected to stress the temporary nature of his stay on earth.

[21:33]  ⁹ tn The clods are those that are used to make a mound over the body. And, for a burial in the valley, see Deut 34:6. The verse here sees him as participating in his funeral and enjoying it. Nothing seems to go wrong with the wicked.

[24:24]  ¹³ tn The Hebrew throughout this section (vv. 18-24) interchanges the singular and the plural. Here again we have “they are exalted…but he is not.” The verse is clear nonetheless: the wicked rise high, and then suddenly they are gone.

[24:24]  ¹⁴ tn The verb is the Hophal of the rare verb מָכַךְ (makhakh), which seems to mean “to bend; to collapse.” The text would read “they are made to collapse like all others.” There is no reason here to change “like others” just because the MT is banal. But many do, following the LXX with “like mallows.” The LXX was making a translation according to sense. R. Gordis (Job, 271) prefers “like grass.”

[24:24]  ¹⁵ tn The verb קָפַץ (qafats) actually means “to shut in,” which does not provide exactly the idea of being gathered, not directly at least. But a change to קָטַף (qataf, “pluck”) while attractive, is not necessary.

[24:24]  ¹⁶ sn This marks the end of the disputed section, taken here to be a quotation by Job of their sentiments.

[28:14]  ¹⁷ sn The תְּהוֹם (tÿhom) is the “deep” of Gen 1:2, the abyss or primordial sea. It was always understood to be a place of darkness and danger. As remote as it is, it asserts that wisdom is not found there (personification). So here we have the abyss and the sea, then death and destruction – but they are not the places that wisdom resides.

[28:14]  ¹⁸ tn The בּ (bet) preposition is taken here to mean “with” in the light of the parallel preposition.

[32:5]  ²¹ tn The first clause beginning with a vav (ו) consecutive and the preterite can be subordinated to the next similar verb as a temporal clause.

[32:5]  ²² tn Heb “that there was no reply in the mouth of the three men.”

[32:12]  ²⁵ tn The verb again is from בִּין (bin, “to perceive; to understand”); in this stem it means to “to pay close attention.”

[32:12]  ²⁶ tn The particle הִנֵּה (hinneh, “behold”) has a deictic force here, calling attention to the thought that is now presented.

[32:12]  ²⁷ tn The participle מוֹכִיחַ (mokhiakh) is from the verb יָכַח (yakhakh) that has been used frequently in the book of Job. It means “to argue; to contend; to debate; to prove; to dispute.” The usage of the verb shows that it can focus on the beginning of an argument, the debating itself, or the resolution of the conflict. Here the latter is obviously meant, for they did argue and contend and criticize – but could not prove Job wrong.

[35:15]  ²⁹ tn The expression “and now” introduces a new complaint of Elihu – in addition to the preceding. Here the verb of v. 14, “you say,” is understood after the temporal ki (כִּי).

[35:15]  ³⁰ tn The verb פָקַד (paqad) means “to visit” (also “to appoint; to muster; to number”). When God visits, it means that he intervenes in one’s life for blessing or cursing (punishing, destroying).

[35:15]  ³¹ tn The word פַּשׁ (pash) is a hapax legomenon. K&D 12:275 derived it from an Arabic word meaning “belch,” leading to the idea of “overflow.” BDB 832 s.v. defines it as “folly.” Several define it as “transgression” on the basis of the versions (Theodotion, Symmachus, Vulgate). The RSV took it as “greatly heed,” but that is not exactly “greatly know,” when the text beyond that requires “not know at all.” The NIV has “he does not take the least notice of wickedness.”