The poet brings the chapter to a close with a crescendo of emphasis and a personal revelation of Job’s inner self. No sooner does Job fear some disaster than it happens to him. The emphatic nature of the parallel lines is accomplished by the step-up in the movement of the verb fear in line a followed by dread in line b. In some languages it may not be possible to find two verbs for fear which heighten the intensity. In such cases it is often possible to use only one verb and to reinforce it through an intensive; for example, “The things I fear are the very things that happen to me, and what I really fear most takes place.”

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 .