Job 8:8-10

8:8 “For inquire now of the former ¹  generation,

and pay attention ²  to the findings ³ 

of their ancestors; ⁴ 

8:9 For we were born yesterday ⁵  and do not have knowledge,

since our days on earth are but a shadow. ⁶ 

8:10 Will they not ⁷  instruct you and ⁸  speak to you,

and bring forth words ⁹ 

from their understanding? ¹⁰ 

Job 12:2

12:2 “Without a doubt you are the people, ¹¹ 

and wisdom will die with you. ¹² 

Job 15:9-10

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

What do you understand that we don’t understand? ¹³ 

15:10 The gray-haired ¹⁴  and the aged are on our side, ¹⁵ 

men far older than your father. ¹⁶ 

Job 15:17

15:17 “I will explain to you;

listen to me,

and what ¹⁷  I have seen, I will declare, ¹⁸ 

Job 32:11-12

32:11 Look, I waited for you to speak; ¹⁹ 

I listened closely to your wise thoughts, ²⁰ while you were searching for words.

32:12 Now I was paying you close attention, ²¹ 

yet ²²  there was no one proving Job wrong, ²³ 

not one of you was answering his statements!

Psalms 111:2

111:2 The Lord’s deeds are great,

eagerly awaited ²⁴  by all who desire them.

Proverbs 2:3-5

2:3 indeed, if ²⁵  you call out for ²⁶  discernment ²⁷  –

raise your voice ²⁸  for understanding –

2:4 if ²⁹  you seek ³⁰  it like silver, ³¹ 

and search for it ³²  like hidden treasure,

2:5 then you will understand ³³  how to fear the Lord, ³⁴ 

and you will discover ³⁵  knowledge ³⁶  about God. ³⁷ 

[8:8]  ¹ sn Bildad is not calling for Job to trace through the learning of antiquity, but of the most recent former generation. Hebrews were fond of recalling what the “fathers” had taught, for each generation recalled what their fathers had taught.

[8:8]  ² tn The verb כוֹנֵן (khonen, from כּוּן, kun) normally would indicate “prepare yourself” or “fix” one’s heart on something, i.e., give attention to it. The verb with the ל (lamed) preposition after it does mean “to think on” or “to meditate” (Isa 51:13). But some commentators wish to change the כּ (kaf) to a בּ (bet) in the verb to get “to consider” (from בִּין, bin). However, M. Dahood shows a connection between כּנן (knn) and שׁאל (sh’l) in Ugaritic (“Hebrew-Ugaritic Lexicography,” Bib 46 [1965]: 329).

[8:8]  ³ tn The Hebrew has “the search of their fathers,” but the word is probably intended to mean what that observation or search yielded (so “search” is a metonymy of cause).

[8:8]  ⁴ tn Heb “fathers.”

[8:9]  ⁵ tn The Hebrew has “we are of yesterday,” the adverb functioning as a predicate. Bildad’s point is that they have not had time to acquire great knowledge because they are recent.

[8:9]  ⁶ tn E. Dhorme (Job, 116) observes that the shadow is the symbol of ephemeral things (14:2; 17:7; Ps 144:4). The shadow passes away quickly (116).

[8:10]  ⁷ tn The sentence begins emphatically: “Is it not they.”

[8:10]  ⁸ 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]  ⁹ tn The noun may have been left indeterminate for the sake of emphasis (GKC 401-2 §125.c), meaning “important words.”

[8:10]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “from their heart.”

[12:2]  ¹¹ tn The expression “you are the people” is a way of saying that the friends hold the popular opinion – they represent it. The line is sarcastic. Commentators do not think the parallelism is served well by this, and so offer changes for “people.” Some have suggested “you are complete” (based on Arabic), “you are the strong one” (based on Ugaritic), etc. J. A. Davies tried to solve the difficulty by making the second clause in the verse a paratactic relative clause: “you are the people with whom wisdom will die” (“Note on Job 12:2,” VT 25 [1975]: 670-71).

[12:2]  ¹² sn The sarcasm of Job admits their claim to wisdom, as if no one has it besides them. But the rest of his speech will show that they do not have a monopoly on it.

[15:9]  ¹³ 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.

[15:10]  ¹⁴ tn The participle שָׂב (sav), from שִׂיב (siv, “to have white hair”; 1 Sam 12:2), only occurs elsewhere in the Bible in the Aramaic sections of Ezra. The word יָשִׁישׁ (yashish, “aged”) occurred in 12:12.

[15:10]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “with us.”

[15:10]  ¹⁶ tn The line reads: “[men] greater than your father [in] days.” The expression “in days” underscores their age – they were older than Job’s father, and therefore wiser.

[15:17]  ¹⁷ tn The demonstrative pronoun is used here as a nominative, to introduce an independent relative clause (see GKC 447 §138.h).

[15:17]  ¹⁸ tn Here the vav (ו) apodosis follows with the cohortative (see GKC 458 §143.d).

[32:11]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “for your words.”

[32:11]  ²⁰ tn The word means “understanding.” It refers to the faculty of perception and comprehension; but it also can refer to what that produces, especially when it is in the plural (see Ps 49:4). See R. Gordis, Job, 368. Others translate it “reasonings,” “arguments,” etc.

[32:12]  ²¹ tn The verb again is from בִּין (bin, “to perceive; to understand”); in this stem it means to “to pay close attention.”

[32:12]  ²² tn The particle הִנֵּה (hinneh, “behold”) has a deictic force here, calling attention to the thought that is now presented.

[32:12]  ²³ tn The participle מוֹכִיחַ (mokhiakh) is from the verb יָכַח (yakhakh) that has been used frequently in the book of Job. It means “to argue; to contend; to debate; to prove; to dispute.” The usage of the verb shows that it can focus on the beginning of an argument, the debating itself, or the resolution of the conflict. Here the latter is obviously meant, for they did argue and contend and criticize – but could not prove Job wrong.

[111:2]  ²⁴ tn Heb “sought out.”

[2:3]  ²⁵ tn Both particles retain their individual meanings, otherwise the verse would begin with a strong adversative and be a contrast to what has been said.

[2:3]  ²⁶ tn Heb “summon.”

[2:3]  ²⁷ sn The noun recalls the second purpose of the book (1:2). It is also cognate to the last word of 2:2, forming a transition. The two objects of the prepositions in this verse are actually personifications, as if they could be summoned.

[2:3]  ²⁸ tn Heb “give your voice”; the expression is idiomatic for raising or lifting the voice to make a sound that carries further (e.g., Jer 2:15). This deliberate expression indicates that something significant is being uttered. J. H. Greenstone says, “If it [understanding] does not come at your first call, raise your voice to a higher pitch, put forth greater efforts” (Proverbs, 17).

[2:4]  ²⁹ tn The conditional particle now reiterates the initial conditional clause of this introductory section (1-4); the apodosis will follow in v. 5.

[2:4]  ³⁰ tn The verb בָּקַשׁ (baqash) means “to search for; to seek; to investigate” (BDB 134 s.v.). This calls for the same diligence one would have in looking for silver.

[2:4]  ³¹ sn The two similes affirm that the value placed on the object will influence the eagerness and diligence in the pursuit and development of wisdom (e.g., Job 28:9-11). The point is not only that the object sought is valuable, but that the effort will be demanding but rewarding.

[2:4]  ³² sn The verb חָפַשׂ (khafas) means “to dig; to search” (BDB 344 s.v.; cf. NCV “hunt for it”). The Arabic cognate means “to dig for water.” It is used literally of Joseph searching his brothers’ sacks (Gen 44:12) and figuratively for searching the soul (Ps 64:7). This is a more emphatic word than the one used in the first colon and again emphasizes that acquiring wisdom will be demanding.

[2:5]  ³³ tn The verb בִּין (bin, “to perceive; to understand; to discern”) refers to ability to grasp, discern or be sensitive to what it means to fear the Lord.

[2:5]  ³⁴ tn Heb “the fear of the Lord.” The noun is an objective genitive; the Lord is to be the object of fear and reverence.

[2:5]  ³⁵ tn Heb “find” (so KJV, NAB, NIV, NRSV).

[2:5]  ³⁶ tn The term דַּעַת (da’at, “knowledge”) goes beyond cognition; it is often used metonymically (cause) for obedience (effect); see, e.g., Prov 3:6, “in all your ways acknowledge him,” and BDB 395 s.v. This means that the disciple will follow God’s moral code; for to know God is to react ethically and spiritually to his will (e.g., J. H. Greenstone, Proverbs, 18).

[2:5]  ³⁷ tn Heb “knowledge of God.” The noun is an objective genitive.