Job 5:8

Blessings for the One Who Seeks God ¹ 

5:8 “But ²  as for me, ³  I would seek ⁴  God, ⁵ 

and to God ⁶  I would set forth my case. ⁷ 

Job 8:5

8:5 But ⁸  if you will look ⁹  to God,

and make your supplication ¹⁰  to the Almighty,

Job 10:2

10:2 I will say to God, ‘Do not condemn ¹¹  me;

tell me ¹²  why you are contending ¹³  with me.’

Job 22:27

22:27 You will pray to him and he will hear you,

and you will fulfill your vows to him. ¹⁴ 

Job 34:31-32

Job Is Foolish to Rebel

34:31 “Has anyone said to God,

‘I have endured chastisement, ¹⁵ 

but I will not act wrongly any more.

34:32 Teach me what I cannot see. ¹⁶ 

If I have done evil, I will do so no more.’

Job 34:1

Elihu’s Second Speech ¹⁷ 

34:1 Elihu answered:

Job 8:1

Bildad’s First Speech to Job ¹⁸ 

8:1 Then Bildad the Shuhite spoke up and said:

Job 8:1-2

Bildad’s First Speech to Job ¹⁹ 

8:1 Then Bildad the Shuhite spoke up and said:

8:2 “How long will you speak these things, ²⁰ 

seeing ²¹  that the words of your mouth

are like a great ²²  wind? ²³ 

Job 33:13

33:13 Why do you contend against him,

that he does not answer all a person’s ²⁴  words?

Jeremiah 31:9

31:9 They will come back shedding tears of contrition.

I will bring them back praying prayers of repentance. ²⁵ 

I will lead them besides streams of water,

along smooth paths where they will never stumble. ²⁶ 

I will do this because I am Israel’s father;

Ephraim ²⁷  is my firstborn son.’”

Daniel 9:3

9:3 So I turned my attention ²⁸  to the Lord God ²⁹  to implore him by prayer and requests, with fasting, sackcloth, and ashes. ³⁰ 

Daniel 9:18

9:18 Listen attentively, ³¹  my God, and hear! Open your eyes and look on our desolated ruins ³²  and the city called by your name. ³³  For it is not because of our own righteous deeds that we are praying to you, ³⁴  but because your compassion is abundant.

[5:8]  ¹ sn Eliphaz affirms that if he were in Job’s place he would take refuge in God, but Job has to acknowledge that he has offended God and accept this suffering as his chastisement. Job eventually will submit to God in the end, but not in the way that Eliphaz advises here, for Job does not agree that the sufferings are judgments from God.

[5:8]  ² tn The word אוּלָם (’ulam) is a strong adversative “but.” This forms the contrast with what has been said previously and so marks a new section.

[5:8]  ³ tn The independent personal pronoun here adds emphasis to the subject of the verb, again strengthening the contrast with what Job is doing (see R. J. Williams, Hebrew Syntax, 22, §106).

[5:8]  ⁴ tn The imperfect verbs in this verse express not so much what Eliphaz does as what he would do if he were in Job’s place (even though in 13:3 we have the affirmation). The use fits the category of the imperfect used in conditional clauses (see GKC 319 §107.x).

[5:8]  ⁵ tn The verb דָּרַשׁ (darash, “to seek”) followed by the preposition אֶל (’el, “towards”) has the meaning of addressing oneself to (God). See 8:19 and 40:10.

[5:8]  ⁶ tn The Hebrew employs אֵל (’el) in the first line and אֱלֹהִים (’elohim) in the second for “God”, but the LXX uses κύριος (kurio", “Lord”) in both places in this verse. However, in the second colon it also has “Lord of all.” This is replaced in the Greek version of Aquila by παντοκράτωρ (pantokratwr, traditionally translated “Almighty”). On the basis of this information, H. M. Orlinsky suggests that the second name for God in the verses should be “Shaddai” (JQR 25 [1934/35]: 271).

[5:8]  ⁷ tn The Hebrew simply has “my word”; but in this expression that uses שִׂים (sim) with the meaning of “lay before” or “expound a cause” in a legal sense, “case” or “cause” would be a better translation.

[8:5]  ⁸ tn “But” is supplied to show the contrast between this verse and the preceding line.

[8:5]  ⁹ tn The verb שִׁחַר (shikhar) means “to seek; to seek earnestly” (see 7:21). With the preposition אֶל (’el) the verb may carry the nuance of “to address; to have recourse to” (see E. Dhorme, Job, 114). The LXX connected it etymologically to “early” and read, “Be early in prayer to the Lord Almighty.”

[8:5]  ¹⁰ tn The verb תִּתְחַנָּן (titkhannan) means “to make supplication; to seek favor; to seek grace” (from חָנַן, khanan). Bildad is saying that there is only one way for Job to escape the same fate as his children – he must implore God’s mercy. Job’s speech had spoken about God’s seeking him and not finding him; but Bildad is speaking of the importance of Job’s seeking God.

[10:2]  ¹¹ tn The negated jussive is the Hiphil jussive of רָשַׁע (rasha’); its meaning then would be literally “do not declare me guilty.” The negated jussive stresses the immediacy of the request.

[10:2]  ¹² tn The Hiphil imperative of יָדַע (yada’) would more literally be “cause me to know.” It is a plea for God to help him understand the afflictions.

[10:2]  ¹³ tn The verb is רִיב (riv), meaning “to dispute; to contend; to strive; to quarrel” – often in the legal sense. The precise words chosen in this verse show that the setting is legal. The imperfect verb here is progressive, expressing what is currently going on.

[22:27]  ¹⁴ tn The words “to him” are not in the Hebrew text, but are implied.

[34:31]  ¹⁵ tn The Hebrew text has only “I lift up” or “I bear” (= I endure). The reading “I have been led astray” is obtained by changing the vowels to read a passive. If the MT is retained, an object has to be supplied, such as “chastisement” (so RSV, NASB) or “punishment” (NRSV). If not, then a different reading would be followed (e.g., “I was misguided” [NAB]; “I am guilty” [NIV]).

[34:32]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “what I do not see,” more specifically, “apart from [that which] I see.”

[34:1]  ¹⁷ sn This speech of Elihu focuses on defending God. It can be divided into these sections: Job is irreligious (2-9), God is just (10-15), God is impartial and omniscient (16-30), Job is foolish to rebel (31-37).

[8:1]  ¹⁸ sn This speech of Bildad ignores Job’s attack on his friends and focuses rather on Job’s comments about God’s justice. Bildad cannot even imagine saying that God is unjust. The only conclusion open to him is that Job’s family brought this on themselves, and so the only recourse is for Job to humble himself and make supplication to God. To make his point, Bildad will appeal to the wisdom of the ancients, for his theology is traditional. The speech has three parts: vv. 2-7 form his affirmation of the justice of God; vv. 8-19 are his appeal to the wisdom of the ancients, and vv. 20-22 are his summation. See N. C. Habel, “Appeal to Ancient Tradition as a Literary Form,” ZAW 88 (1976): 253-72; W. A. Irwin, “The First Speech of Bildad,” ZAW 51 (1953): 205-16.

[8:1]  ¹⁹ sn This speech of Bildad ignores Job’s attack on his friends and focuses rather on Job’s comments about God’s justice. Bildad cannot even imagine saying that God is unjust. The only conclusion open to him is that Job’s family brought this on themselves, and so the only recourse is for Job to humble himself and make supplication to God. To make his point, Bildad will appeal to the wisdom of the ancients, for his theology is traditional. The speech has three parts: vv. 2-7 form his affirmation of the justice of God; vv. 8-19 are his appeal to the wisdom of the ancients, and vv. 20-22 are his summation. See N. C. Habel, “Appeal to Ancient Tradition as a Literary Form,” ZAW 88 (1976): 253-72; W. A. Irwin, “The First Speech of Bildad,” ZAW 51 (1953): 205-16.

[8:2]  ²⁰ sn “These things” refers to all of Job’s speech, the general drift of which seems to Bildad to question the justice of God.

[8:2]  ²¹ tn The second colon of the verse simply says “and a strong wind the words of your mouth.” The simplest way to treat this is to make it an independent nominal sentence: “the words of your mouth are a strong wind.” Some have made it parallel to the first by apposition, understanding “how long” to do double duty. The line beginning with the ו (vav) can also be subordinated as a circumstantial clause, as here.

[8:2]  ²² tn The word כַּבִּיר (kabbir, “great”) implies both abundance and greatness. Here the word modifies “wind”; the point of the analogy is that Job’s words are full of sound but without solid content.

[8:2]  ²³ tn See, however, G. R. Driver’s translation, “the breath of one who is mighty are the words of your mouth” (“Hebrew Studies,” JRAS 1948: 170).

[33:13]  ²⁴ tc The MT has “all his words.” This must refer to “man” in the previous verse. But many wish to change it to “my words,” since it would be summarizing Job’s complaint to God.

[31:9]  ²⁵ tn Heb “They will come with weeping; I will bring them with supplication.” The ideas of contrition and repentance are implicit from the context (cf. vv. 18-19) and are supplied for clarity.

[31:9]  ²⁶ sn Jer 31:8-9 are reminiscent of the “New Exodus” motif of Isa 40-66 which has already been referred to in Jer 16:14-15; 23:7-8. See especially Isa 35:3-10; 40:3-5, 11; 41:17-20; 42:14-17; 43:16-21; 49:9-13. As there, the New Exodus will so outstrip the old that the old will pale in comparison and be almost forgotten (see Jer 23:7-8).

[31:9]  ²⁷ sn Ephraim was the second son of Joseph who was elevated to a place of prominence in the family of Jacob by the patriarch’s special blessing. It was the strongest tribe in northern Israel and Samaria lay in its territory. It is often used as a poetic parallel for Israel as here. The poetry is not speaking of two separate entities here; it is a way of repeating an idea for emphasis. Moreover, there is no intent to show special preference for northern Israel over Judah. All Israel is metaphorically God’s son and the object of his special care and concern (Exod 4:22; Deut 32:6).

[9:3]  ²⁸ tn Heb “face.”

[9:3]  ²⁹ tn The Hebrew phrase translated “Lord God” here is אֲדֹנָי הָאֱלֹהִים (’adonay ha’elohim).

[9:3]  ³⁰ sn When lamenting, ancient Israelites would fast, wear sackcloth, and put ashes on their heads to show their sorrow and contrition.

[9:18]  ³¹ tn Heb “turn your ear.”

[9:18]  ³² tn Heb “desolations.” The term refers here to the ruined condition of Judah’s towns.

[9:18]  ³³ tn Heb “over which your name is called.” Cf. v. 19. This expression implies that God is the owner of his city, Jerusalem. Note the use of the idiom in 2 Sam 12:28; Isa 4:1; Amos 9:12.

[9:18]  ³⁴ tn Heb “praying our supplications before you.”