Discovery BoxJob 36:5-14
Context36:5 Indeed, God is mighty; and he does not despise people, 1
he 2 is mighty, and firm 3 in his intent. 4
36:6 He does not allow the wicked to live, 5
but he gives justice to the poor.
36:7 He does not take his eyes 6 off the righteous;
but with kings on the throne
he seats the righteous 7 and exalts them forever. 8
36:8 But if they are bound in chains, 9
and held captive by the cords of affliction,
36:9 then he reveals 10 to them what they have done, 11
and their transgressions,
that they were behaving proudly.
36:10 And he reveals 12 this 13 for correction,
and says that they must turn 14 from evil.
36:11 If they obey and serve him,
they live out their days in prosperity
and their years in pleasantness. 15
36:12 But if they refuse to listen,
they pass over the river of death, 16
and expire without knowledge.
36:13 The godless at heart 17 nourish anger, 18
they do not cry out even when he binds them.
36:14 They die 19 in their youth,
and their life ends among the male cultic prostitutes. 20
[36:5] 1 tn The object “people” is not in the Hebrew text but is implied.
[36:5] 2 tn The text simply repeats “mighty.”
[36:5] 3 tn The last two words are simply כֹּחַ לֵב (koakh lev, “strong in heart”), meaning something like “strong; firm in his decisions.”
[36:5] 4 tc There are several problems in this verse: the repetition of “mighty,” the lack of an object for “despise,” and the meaning of “strength of heart.” Many commentators reduce the verse to a single line, reading something like “Lo, God does not reject the pure in heart” (Kissane). Dhorme and Pope follow Nichols with: “Lo, God is mighty in strength, and rejects not the pure in heart.” This reading moved “mighty” to the first line and took the second to be בַּר (bar, “pure”).
[36:6] 5 tn Or “he does not keep the wicked alive.”
[36:7] 9 tc Many commentators accept the change of “his eyes” to “his right” (reading דִּינוֹ [dino] for עֵינָיו [’enayv]). There is no compelling reason for the change; it makes the line commonplace.
[36:7] 10 tn Heb “them”; the referent (the righteous) has been repeated from the first part of the verse for clarity.
[36:7] 11 tn Heb “he seats them forever and exalts them.” The last verb can be understood as expressing a logical consequence of the preceding action (cf. GKC 328 §111.l = “he seats them forever so that he exalts them”). Or the two verbs can be taken as an adverbial hendiadys whereby the first modifies the second adverbially: “he exalts them by seating them forever” or “when he seats them forever” (cf. GKC 326 §111.d). Some interpret this verse to say that God seats kings on the throne, making a change in subject in the middle of the verse. But it makes better sense to see the righteous as the subject matter throughout – they are not only protected, but are exalted.
[36:8] 13 tn Dhorme thinks that the verse is still talking about kings, who may be in captivity. But this diverts attention from Elihu’s emphasis on the righteous.
[36:9] 17 tn The verb נָגַד (nagad) means “to declare; to tell.” Here it is clear that God is making known the sins that caused the enslavement or captivity, so “reveal” makes a good interpretive translation.
[36:9] 18 tn Heb “their work.”
[36:10] 21 tn The idiom once again is “he uncovers their ear.”
[36:10] 22 tn The revelation is in the preceding verse, and so a pronoun must be added to make the reference clear.
[36:10] 23 tn The verb שׁוּב (shuv, “to turn; to return”) is one of the two major words in the OT for “repent” – to return from evil. Here the imperfect should be obligatory – they must do it.
[36:11] 25 tc Some commentators delete this last line for metrical considerations. But there is no textual evidence for the deletion; it is simply the attempt by some to make the meter rigid.
[36:12] 29 tn This is a similar expression to the one in Job 33:18, where the suggestion was made by many that it means crossing over the canal or river of death. Some retain the earlier interpretation of “perish by the sword” (cf. NIV).
[36:13] 33 tn The expression “godless [or hypocrite] in heart” is an intensification of the description. It conveys that they are intentionally godless. See Matt 23:28.
[36:13] 34 tn Heb “they put anger.” This is usually interpreted to mean they lay up anger, or put anger in their hearts.
[36:14] 37 tn The text expresses this with “their soul dies.”
[36:14] 38 tn Heb “among the male prostitutes” who were at the temple – the “holy ones,” with “holy” being used in that sense of “separated to that form of temple service.” So uncleanness and shame are some of the connotations of the reference. Some modern translations give the general sense only: “their life ends in shame” (NRSV); “and perish among the reprobate” (NAB); “die…after wasting their lives in immoral living” (NLT).
