Job 8:10

8:10 Will they not ¹  instruct you and ²  speak to you,

and bring forth words ³ 

from their understanding? ⁴ 

Job 9:14

The Impossibility of Facing God in Court

9:14 “How much less, ⁵  then, can I answer him ⁶ 

and choose my words ⁷  to argue ⁸  with ⁹  him! ¹⁰ 

Job 15:13

15:13 when you turn your rage ¹¹  against God

and allow such words to escape ¹²  from your mouth?

Job 23:12

23:12 I have not departed from the commands of his lips;

I have treasured the words of his mouth more than my allotted portion. ¹³ 

Job 31:40

31:40 then let thorns sprout up in place of wheat,

and in place of barley, weeds!” ¹⁴ 

The words of Job are ended.

Job 34:37

34:37 For he adds transgression ¹⁵  to his sin;

in our midst he claps his hands, ¹⁶ 

and multiplies his words against God.”

Job 36:4

36:4 For in truth, my words are not false;

it is one complete ¹⁷  in knowledge

who is with you.

[8:10]  ¹ tn The sentence begins emphatically: “Is it not they.”

[8:10]  ² tn The “and” is not present in the line. The second clause seems to be in apposition to the first, explaining it more thoroughly: “Is it not they [who] will instruct you, [who] will speak to you.”

[8:10]  ³ tn The noun may have been left indeterminate for the sake of emphasis (GKC 401-2 §125.c), meaning “important words.”

[8:10]  ⁴ tn Heb “from their heart.”

[9:14]  ⁵ tn The construction אַף כִּי־אָנֹכִי (’af ki ’anokhi) is an expression that means either “how much more” or “how much less.” Here it has to mean “how much less,” for if powerful forces like Rahab are crushed beneath God’s feet, how could Job contend with him?

[9:14]  ⁶ tn The imperfect verb here is to be taken with the nuance of a potential imperfect. The idea of “answer him” has a legal context, i.e., answering God in a court of law. If God is relentless in his anger toward greater powers, then Job realizes it is futile for him.

[9:14]  ⁷ sn In a legal controversy with God it would be essential to choose the correct words very carefully (humanly speaking); but the calmness and presence of mind to do that would be shattered by the overwhelming terror of God’s presence.

[9:14]  ⁸ tn The verb is supplied in this line.

[9:14]  ⁹ tn The preposition אִם (’im, “with”) carries the idea of “in contest with” in a number of passages (compare vv. 2, 3; 16:21).

[9:14]  ¹⁰ tn The LXX goes a different way after changing the first person to the third: “Oh then that he would hearken to me, or judge my cause.”

[15:13]  ⁹ tn The Hebrew is רוּחֶךָ (rukhekha, “your spirit” or “your breath”). But the fact that this is turned “against God,” means that it must be given a derived meaning, or a meaning that is metonymical. It is used in the Bible in the sense of anger – what the spirit vents (see Judg 8:3; Prov 16:32; and Job 4:9 with “blast”).

[15:13]  ¹⁰ tn The verb is a Hiphil perfect of yasa’, “to go out, proceed, issue forth.”

[23:12]  ¹³ tc The form in the MT (מֵחֻקִּי, mekhuqqi) means “more than my portion” or “more than my law.” An expanded meaning results in “more than my necessary food” (see Ps 119:11; cf. KJV, NASB, ESV). HALOT 346 s.v. חֹק 1 indicates that חֹק (khoq) has the meaning of “portion” and is here a reference to “what is appointed for me.” The LXX and the Latin versions, along with many commentators, have בְּחֵקִי (bÿkheqi, “in my bosom”).

[31:40]  ¹⁷ tn The word בָּאְשָׁה (bo’shah, from בָּאַשׁ [ba’as, “to have a foul smell”]) must refer to foul smelling weeds.

[34:37]  ²¹ tn Although frequently translated “rebellion,” the basic meaning of this Hebrew term is “transgression.”

[34:37]  ²² tc If this reading stands, it would mean that Job shows contempt, meaning that he mocks them and accuses God. It is a bold touch, but workable. Of the many suggested emendations, Dhorme alters some of the vowels and obtains a reading “and casts doubt among us,” and then takes “transgression” from the first colon for the complement. Some commentators simply delete the line.

[36:4]  ²⁵ tn The word is תְּמִים (tÿmim), often translated “perfect.” It is the same word used of Job in 2:3. Elihu is either a complete stranger to modesty or is confident regarding the knowledge that he believes God has revealed to him for this situation. See the note on the heading before 32:1.