Job 9:11

9:11 If ¹  he passes by me, I cannot see ²  him, ³ 

if he goes by, I cannot perceive him. ⁴ 

Job 13:13

13:13 “Refrain from talking ⁵  with me so that ⁶  I may speak;

then let come to me ⁷  what may. ⁸ 

Job 22:14

22:14 Thick clouds are a veil for him, so he does not see us, ⁹ 

as he goes back and forth

in the vault ¹⁰  of heaven.’ ¹¹ 

Job 24:23

24:23 God ¹²  may let them rest in a feeling of security, ¹³ 

but he is constantly watching ¹⁴  all their ways. ¹⁵ 

Job 26:7

26:7 He spreads out the northern skies ¹⁶  over empty space; ¹⁷ 

he suspends the earth on nothing. ¹⁸ 

Job 30:12

30:12 On my right the young rabble ¹⁹  rise up;

they drive me from place to place, ²⁰ 

and build up siege ramps ²¹  against me. ²² 

Job 36:7

36:7 He does not take his eyes ²³  off the righteous;

but with kings on the throne

he seats the righteous ²⁴  and exalts them forever. ²⁵ 

[9:11]  ¹ tn The NIV has “when” to form a temporal clause here. For the use of “if,” see GKC 497 §159.w.

[9:11]  ² tn The imperfect verbs in this verse are consistent with the clauses. In the conditional clauses a progressive imperfect is used, but in the following clauses the verbs are potential imperfects.

[9:11]  ³ tn The pronoun “him” is supplied here; it is not in MT, but the Syriac and Vulgate have it (probably for translation purposes as well).

[9:11]  ⁴ sn Like the mountains, Job knows that God has passed by and caused him to shake and tremble, but he cannot understand or perceive the reasons.

[13:13]  ⁵ 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]  ⁶ 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]  ⁷ 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]  ⁸ 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).

[22:14]  ⁹ tn Heb “and he does not see.” The implied object is “us.”

[22:14]  ¹⁰ sn The word is “circle; dome”; here it is the dome that covers the earth, beyond which God sits enthroned. A. B. Davidson (Job, 165) suggests “on the arch of heaven” that covers the earth.

[22:14]  ¹¹ sn The idea suggested here is that God is not only far off, but he is unconcerned as he strolls around heaven – this is what Eliphaz says Job means.

[24:23]  ¹³ tn Heb “he”; the referent (God) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[24:23]  ¹⁴ tn The expression לָבֶטַח (lavetakh, “in security”) precedes the verb that it qualifies – God “allows him to take root in security.” For the meaning of the verb, see Job 8:15.

[24:23]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “his eyes are on.”

[24:23]  ¹⁶ sn The meaning of the verse is that God may allow the wicked to rest in comfort and security, but all the time he is watching them closely with the idea of bringing judgment on them.

[26:7]  ¹⁷ sn The Hebrew word is צָפוֹן (tsafon). Some see here a reference to Mount Zaphon of the Ugaritic texts, the mountain that Baal made his home. The Hebrew writers often equate and contrast Mount Zion with this proud mountain of the north. Of course, the word just means north, and so in addition to any connotations for pagan mythology, it may just represent the northern skies – the stars. Since the parallel line speaks of the earth, that is probably all that was intended in this particular context.

[26:7]  ¹⁸ sn There is an allusion to the creation account, for this word is תֹּהוּ (tohu), translated “without form” in Gen 1:2.

[26:7]  ¹⁹ sn Buttenwieser suggests that Job had outgrown the idea of the earth on pillars, and was beginning to see it was suspended in space. But in v. 11 he will still refer to the pillars.

[30:12]  ²¹ tn This Hebrew word occurs only here. The word פִּרְחַח (pirkhakh, “young rabble”) is a quadriliteral, from פָּרַח (parakh, “to bud”) The derivative אֶפְרֹחַ (’efroakh) in the Bible refers to a young bird. In Arabic farhun means both “young bird” and “base man.” Perhaps “young rabble” is the best meaning here (see R. Gordis, Job, 333).

[30:12]  ²² tn Heb “they cast off my feet” or “they send my feet away.” Many delete the line as troubling and superfluous. E. Dhorme (Job, 438) forces the lines to say “they draw my feet into a net.”

[30:12]  ²³ tn Heb “paths of their destruction” or “their destructive paths.”

[30:12]  ²⁴ sn See Job 19:12.

[36:7]  ²⁵ tc Many commentators accept the change of “his eyes” to “his right” (reading דִּינוֹ [dino] for עֵינָיו [’enayv]). There is no compelling reason for the change; it makes the line commonplace.

[36:7]  ²⁶ tn Heb “them”; the referent (the righteous) has been repeated from the first part of the verse for clarity.

[36:7]  ²⁷ tn Heb “he seats them forever and exalts them.” The last verb can be understood as expressing a logical consequence of the preceding action (cf. GKC 328 §111.l = “he seats them forever so that he exalts them”). Or the two verbs can be taken as an adverbial hendiadys whereby the first modifies the second adverbially: “he exalts them by seating them forever” or “when he seats them forever” (cf. GKC 326 §111.d). Some interpret this verse to say that God seats kings on the throne, making a change in subject in the middle of the verse. But it makes better sense to see the righteous as the subject matter throughout – they are not only protected, but are exalted.