And that he would tell you the secrets of wisdom!: verse 6 is complex grammatically and textually. Translators will note that the order of lines in Revised Standard Version and Good News Translation are different. In Hebrew there are three lines. Good News Translation also has three, but the content of lines a and b have been transposed. Revised Standard Version and others take line a as a continuation of Zophar’s wish in verse 5, thus expressing in verse 6a a third wish, tell you the secrets of wisdom. Secrets, which is plural here and in Psalm 44.21, refers to things which are hidden. In 28.11 it is used in the singular (Revised Standard Version “the thing that is hid”). This line becomes line b in Good News Translation, “… things too deep for human knowledge.” Wisdom in Job refers to understanding the hidden principles of order guiding creation and the organization of the universe. Those who possess wisdom have gained understanding and appreciation of the mystery of God’s ways. Good News Translation has rendered this line “There are things too deep for human knowledge.” Translators following Revised Standard Version, in which verse 6a continues Zophar’s wish from verse 5, may render line a, for example, “that he would tell you the mysteries of his ways” or “… the hidden thoughts of his mind.”

For he is manifold in understanding: the Revised Standard Version footnote says “Hebrew obscure.” The Hebrew says literally “it is double for effectual wisdom.” Some take “double” to mean “double what you think it is.” Others make a change in the Hebrew term for “double” to read “wonders” so that the meaning would be “They (the secrets) are like wonders.” Others object that God’s secrets are not “like wonders” but are truly wonders. Another textual change gives “They are wonderful (full of mystery) to the understanding.” Rowley takes the line to mean that the wisdom of God cannot be grasped by the human mind. Good News Translation “There are many sides to wisdom” follows Pope, who says this means that God knows both sides of everything—the hidden as well as the known. Good News Translation gives the translator a base from which to adapt. Following Good News Translation it may be necessary to express “many sides to wisdom” differently, since in many languages wisdom cannot be handled as an object having sides; for example, “there are many ways to look at wisdom,” “wisdom must be considered from many points of view,” or “God’s understanding is not on one path, but on many.”

The third line, Know then that God exacts of you less than your guilt deserves, is considered an addition by some scholars, who therefore drop it. Hebrew Old Testament Text Project rates it “B” and recommends “God forgets for you (part) of your fault.” Good News Translation, however, gives a better model: “God is punishing you less than you deserve.” This may be expressed in some languages, for example, as “You deserve much punishment, but God punishes you a little” or “God makes you suffer a little, but he should make you suffer more.”

Quoted with permission from Reyburn, Wiliam. A Handbook on Job. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 1992. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .