Job 40:2

40:2 “Will the one who contends ¹  with the Almighty correct him? ² 

Let the person who accuses God give him an answer!”

Isaiah 40:13-14

40:13 Who comprehends ³  the mind ⁴  of the Lord,

or gives him instruction as his counselor? ⁵ 

40:14 From whom does he receive directions? ⁶ 

Who ⁷  teaches him the correct way to do things, ⁸ 

or imparts knowledge to him,

or instructs him in skillful design? ⁹ 

Isaiah 45:9

The Lord Gives a Warning

45:9 One who argues with his creator is in grave danger, ¹⁰ 

one who is like a mere ¹¹  shard among the other shards on the ground!

The clay should not say to the potter, ¹² 

“What in the world ¹³  are you doing?

Your work lacks skill!” ¹⁴ 

Romans 11:34

11:34 For who has known the mind of the Lord,

or who has been his counselor? ¹⁵ 

Romans 11:1

Israel’s Rejection not Complete nor Final

11:1 So I ask, God has not rejected his people, has he? Absolutely not! For I too am an Israelite, a descendant of Abraham, from the tribe of Benjamin.

Colossians 2:16

2:16 Therefore do not let anyone judge you with respect to food or drink, or in the matter of a feast, new moon, or Sabbath days –

[40:2]  ¹ tn The form רֹב (rov) is the infinitive absolute from the verb רִיב (riv, “contend”). Dhorme wishes to repoint it to make it the active participle, the “one who argues with the Almighty.”

[40:2]  ² tn The verb יִסּוֹר (yissor) is found only here, but comes from a common root meaning “to correct; to reprove.” Several suggestions have been made to improve on the MT. Dhorme read it יָסוּר (yasur) in the sense of “to turn aside; to yield.” Ehrlich read this emendation as “to come to an end.” But the MT could be read as “to correct; to instruct.”

[40:13]  ³ tn Perhaps the verb is used metonymically here in the sense of “advises” (note the following line).

[40:13]  ⁴ tn In this context רוּחַ (ruakh) likely refers to the Lord’s “mind,” or mental faculties, rather than his personal Spirit (see BDB 925 s.v.).

[40:13]  ⁵ tn Heb “or [as] the man of his counsel causes him to know?”

[40:14]  ⁶ tn Heb “With whom did he consult, so that he gave discernment to him?”

[40:14]  ⁷ tn Heb “and taught him.” The vav (ו) consecutive with prefixed verbal form continues the previous line. The translation employs an interrogative pronoun for stylistic reasons.

[40:14]  ⁸ tn The phrase אֹרַח מִשְׁפָּט (’orakh mishpat) could be translated “path of justice” (so NASB, NRSV), but in this context, where creative ability and skill is in view, the phrase is better understood in the sense of “the way that is proper or fitting” (see BDB 1049 s.v. מִשְׁפָּט 6); cf. NIV, NCV “the right way.”

[40:14]  ⁹ tn Heb “or the way of understanding causes him to know?”

[45:9]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “Woe [to] the one who argues with the one who formed him.”

[45:9]  ¹¹ tn The words “one who is like a mere” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons and clarification.

[45:9]  ¹² tn Heb “Should the clay say to the one who forms it?” The rhetorical question anticipates a reply, “Of course not!”

[45:9]  ¹³ tn The words “in the world” are supplied in the translation to approximate in English idiom the force of the sarcastic question.

[45:9]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “your work, there are no hands for it,” i.e., “your work looks like something made by a person who has no hands.”

[11:34]  ¹⁵ sn A quotation from Isa 40:13.