Job 7:19

7:19 Will you never ¹  look away from me, ² 

will you not let me alone ³ 

long enough to swallow my spittle?

Psalms 80:5

80:5 You have given them tears as food; ⁴ 

you have made them drink tears by the measure. ⁵ 

Psalms 102:9

102:9 For I eat ashes as if they were bread, ⁶ 

and mix my drink with my tears, ⁷ 

[7:19]  ¹ tn Heb “according to what [= how long] will you not look away from me.”

[7:19]  ² tn The verb שָׁעָה (sha’ah, “to look”) with the preposition מִן (min) means “to look away from; to avert one’s gaze.” Job wonders if God would not look away from him even briefly, for the constant vigilance is killing him.

[7:19]  ³ tn The Hiphil of רָפָה (rafah) means “to leave someone alone.”

[80:5]  ⁴ tn Heb “you have fed them the food of tears.”

[80:5]  ⁵ tn Heb “[by] the third part [of a measure].” The Hebrew term שָׁלִישׁ (shalish, “third part [of a measure]”) occurs only here and in Isa 40:12.

[102:9]  ⁶ sn Mourners would sometimes put ashes on their head or roll in ashes as a sign of mourning (see 2 Sam 13:19; Job 2:8; Isa 58:5).

[102:9]  ⁷ tn Heb “weeping.”