Job 6:25

6:25 How painful ¹  are honest words!

But ²  what does your reproof ³  prove? ⁴ 

Job 7:17

Insignificance of Humans

7:17 “What is mankind ⁵  that you make so much of them, ⁶ 

and that you pay attention ⁷  to them?

Job 13:13-14

13:13 “Refrain from talking ⁸  with me so that ⁹  I may speak;

then let come to me ¹⁰  what may. ¹¹ 

13:14 Why ¹²  do I put myself in peril, ¹³ 

and take my life in my hands?

Job 15:9

15:9 What do you know that we don’t know?

What do you understand that we don’t understand? ¹⁴ 

Job 15:14

15:14 What is man that he should be pure,

or one born of woman, that he should be righteous?

Job 16:3

16:3 Will ¹⁵  there be an end to your ¹⁶  windy words? ¹⁷ 

Or what provokes ¹⁸  you that you answer? ¹⁹ 

Job 21:21

21:21 For what is his interest ²⁰  in his home

after his death, ²¹ 

when the number of his months

has been broken off? ²² 

Job 22:13

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

Does he judge through such deep darkness? ²³ 

Job 23:5

23:5 I would know with what words ²⁴  he would answer me,

and understand what he would say to me.

Job 26:2-3

26:2 “How you have helped ²⁵  the powerless! ²⁶ 

How you have saved the person who has no strength! ²⁷ 

26:3 How you have advised the one without wisdom,

and abundantly ²⁸  revealed your insight!

Job 34:4

34:4 Let us evaluate ²⁹  for ourselves what is right; ³⁰ 

let us come to know among ourselves what is good.

Job 37:19

37:19 Tell us what we should ³¹  say to him.

We cannot prepare a case ³² 

because of the darkness.

Job 40:4

40:4 “Indeed, I am completely unworthy ³³  – how could I reply to you?

I put ³⁴  my hand over my mouth to silence myself. ³⁵ 

[6:25]  ¹ tn The word נִּמְרְצוּ (nimrÿtsu, “[they] painful are”) may be connected to מָרַץ (marats, “to be ill”). This would give the idea of “how distressing,” or “painful” in this stem. G. R. Driver (JTS 29 [1927/28]: 390-96) connected it to an Akkadian cognate “to be ill” and rendered it “bitter.” It has also been linked with מָרַס (maras), meaning “to be hard, strong,” giving the idea of “how persuasive” (see N. S. Doniach and W. E. Barnes, “Job 4:25: The Root Maras,” JTS [1929/30]: 291-92). There seems more support for the meaning “to be ill” (cf. Mal 2:10). Others follow Targum Job “how pleasant [to my palate are your words]”; E. Dhorme (Job, 92) follows this without changing the text but noting that the word has an interchange of letter with מָלַץ (malats) for מָרַץ (marats).

[6:25]  ² tn The וּ (vav) here introduces the antithesis (GKC 484-85 §154.a).

[6:25]  ³ tn The infinitive הוֹכֵחַ (hokheakh, “reproof,” from יָכַח [yakhakh, “prove”]) becomes the subject of the verb from the same root, יוֹכִיהַ (yokhiakh), and so serves as a noun (see GKC 340 §113.b). This verb means “to dispute, quarrel, argue, contend” (see BDB 406-7 s.v. יָכַח). Job is saying, “What does reproof from you prove?”

[6:25]  ⁴ tn The LXX again paraphrases this line: “But as it seems, the words of a true man are vain, because I do not ask strength of you.” But the rest of the versions are equally divided on the verse.

[7:17]  ⁵ tn The verse is a rhetorical question; it is intended to mean that man is too little for God to be making so much over him in all this.

[7:17]  ⁶ tn The Piel verb is a factitive meaning “to magnify.” The English word “magnify” might not be the best translation here, for God, according to Job, is focusing inordinately on him. It means to magnify in thought, appreciate, think highly of. God, Job argues, is making too much of mankind by devoting so much bad attention on them.

[7:17]  ⁷ tn The expression “set your heart on” means “concentrate your mind on” or “pay attention to.”

[13:13]  ⁹ tn The Hebrew has a pregnant construction: “be silent from me,” meaning “stand away from me in silence,” or “refrain from talking with me.” See GKC 384 §119.ff. The LXX omits “from me,” as do several commentators.

[13:13]  ¹⁰ tn The verb is the Piel cohortative; following the imperative of the first colon this verb would show purpose or result. The inclusion of the independent personal pronoun makes the focus emphatic – “so that I (in my turn) may speak.”

[13:13]  ¹¹ tn The verb עָבַר (’avar, “pass over”) is used with the preposition עַל (’al, “upon”) to express the advent of misfortune, namely, something coming against him.

[13:13]  ¹² tn The interrogative pronoun מָה (mah) is used in indirect questions, here introducing a clause [with the verb understood] as the object – “whatever it be” (see GKC 443-44 §137.c).

[13:14]  ¹³ tc Most editors reject עַל־מָה (’al mah) as dittography from the last verse.

[13:14]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “why do I take my flesh in my teeth?” This expression occurs nowhere else. It seems to be drawn from animal imagery in which the wild beast seizes the prey and carries it off to a place of security. The idea would then be that Job may be destroying himself. An animal that fights with its flesh (prey) in its mouth risks losing it. Other commentators do not think this is satisfactory, but they are unable to suggest anything better.

[15:9]  ¹⁷ tn The last clause simply has “and it is not with us.” It means that one possesses something through knowledge. Note the parallelism of “know” and “with me” in Ps 50:11.

[16:3]  ²¹ tn Disjunctive questions are introduced with the sign of the interrogative; the second part is introduced with אוֹ (’o, see GKC 475 §150.g).

[16:3]  ²² tn In v. 3 the second person singular is employed rather than the plural as in vv. 2 and 4. The singular might be an indication that the words of v. 3 were directed at Eliphaz specifically.

[16:3]  ²³ tn Heb “words of wind.”

[16:3]  ²⁴ tn The Hiphil of מָרַץ (marats) does not occur anywhere else. The word means “to compel; to force” (see 6:25).

[16:3]  ²⁵ tn The LXX seems to have gone a different way: “What, is there any reason in vain words, or what will hinder you from answering?”

[21:21]  ²⁵ tn Heb “his desire.” The meaning is that after he is gone he does not care about what happens to his household (“house” meaning “family” here).

[21:21]  ²⁶ tn Heb “after him,” but clearly the meaning is “after he is gone.”

[21:21]  ²⁷ tc The rare word חֻצָּצוּ (khutsatsu) is probably a cognate of hassa in Arabic, meaning “to cut off.” There is also an Akkadian word “to cut in two” and “to break.” These fit the context here rather well. The other Hebrew words that are connected to the root חָצַצ (khatsats) do not offer any help.

[22:13]  ²⁹ 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).

[23:5]  ³³ tn Heb “the words he would answer me.”

[26:2]  ³⁷ tn The interrogative clause is used here as an exclamation, and sarcastic at that. Job is saying “you have in no way helped the powerless.” The verb uses the singular form, for Job is replying to Bildad.

[26:2]  ³⁸ tn The “powerless” is expressed here by the negative before the word for “strength; power” – “him who has no power” (see GKC 482 §152.u, v).

[26:2]  ³⁹ tn Heb “the arm [with] no strength.” Here too the negative expression is serving as a relative clause to modify “arm,” the symbol of strength and power, which by metonymy stands for the whole person. “Man of arm” denoted the strong in 22:8.

[26:3]  ⁴¹ tc The phrase לָרֹב (larov) means “to abundance” or “in a large quantity.” It is also used ironically like all these expressions. This makes very good sense, but some wish to see a closer parallel and so offer emendations. Reiske and Kissane thought “to the tender” for the word. But the timid are not the same as the ignorant and unwise. So Graetz supplied “to the boorish” by reading לְבָעַר (lÿba’ar). G. R. Driver did the same with less of a change: לַבּוֹר (labbor; HTR 29 [1936]: 172).

[34:4]  ⁴⁵ sn Elihu means “choose after careful examination.”

[34:4]  ⁴⁶ tn The word is מִשְׁפָּט (mishpat) again, with the sense of what is right or just.

[37:19]  ⁴⁹ tn The imperfect verb here carries the obligatory nuance, “what we should say?”

[37:19]  ⁵⁰ tn The verb means “to arrange; to set in order.” From the context the idea of a legal case is included.

[40:4]  ⁵³ tn The word קַלֹּתִי (qalloti) means “to be light; to be of small account; to be unimportant.” From this comes the meaning “contemptible,” which in the causative stem would mean “to treat with contempt; to curse.” Dhorme tries to make the sentence a conditional clause and suggests this meaning: “If I have been thoughtless.” There is really no “if” in Job’s mind.

[40:4]  ⁵⁴ tn The perfect verb here should be classified as an instantaneous perfect; the action is simultaneous with the words.

[40:4]  ⁵⁵ tn The words “to silence myself” are supplied in the translation for clarity.