Translation commentary on Job 13:8

Will you show partiality toward him: show partiality toward him translates “lift up his face.” This is an idiom referring to the act of a superior to an inferior that allows the inferior person to face the superior after having been granted a special favor. In other words Job is asking if his friends will do God a special favor that will allow God to look up at them. The tone is very sarcastic. In some languages the first clause may be expressed figuratively; for example, “Will you hold out your right hand to God?” “Will you put your right hand on God’s head?” or “Will you make God’s face shine?”

Will you plead the case for God: in this line Job shifts his thought only slightly but maintains his sarcasm. Plead the case is used in Judges 6.31, where it is rendered “defending” by Good News Translation and “defend his cause” by Revised Standard Version. In other words Job is asking his friends if God has hired them to be his defense lawyer in court. In legal terms verse 8 can be rendered “Will you show favors to God, and will you defend him in court?” or alternatively, “Will you show God a special favor by being his lawyer?”

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 .

Translation commentary on Job 14:12

So man lies down and rises not again: so translates the common Hebrew connective waw, literally “and,” used here to mark a conclusion. Man translates still another term different from the two in verse 10. There is, however, no attempt in line a to give a further nuance of meaning through the use of this different term. Lies down sounds as if the dead man reclined himself into a lying position. However, the verb suggests lying in bed or in a tomb as a state and not a process. Rises not again serves to emphasize the timelessness of death or lying down in death. Good News Translation “They will never wake up” puts the emphasis on the permanence of death and omits lies down as redundant. The line may also be rendered, for example, “in the same way a human being dies and does not come back to life,” or “so also a person who dies is laid down and does not stand up again.”

Till the heavens are no more he will not awake: the Hebrew construction of this line is unusual and has led to varying interpretations. Some omit one consonant and get “till the heavens wear out,” which is similar to Psalm 102.26, where the heavens “will all wear out like a garment.” Others understand the text to mean “so long as the heavens are not torn apart,” and delete line c as a copyist’s mistaken explanation of the verb after the meaning of the verb had become lost. Hebrew Old Testament Text Project gives the expression only a “C” rating and translates it as in Revised Standard Version. Good News Translation “while the sky endures” is a positive form of Revised Standard Version. The expression is used to refer to the endless state of death. It does not mean to suggest that, when the sky finally disappears, then the dead will rise. This expression may also be rendered, for example, “as long as the sky is above, he will never come back to life” or “the dead person will remain dead as long as the heavens exist.”

Or be roused out of his sleep: this line is parallel with will not awake in the previous line. It is not suggested that God is the one who would rouse them from sleep. In languages which do not use a passive voice in this construction, it may be necessary to say, for example, “or wake up from his sleep.”

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 .

Translation commentary on Job 15:26 - 15:27

Verse 26 continues the description of the wicked person’s foolish defiance of God. It is his trust in his own strength that is described.

Running stubbornly against him translates the Hebrew “runs against him with neck.” Numerous suggestions have been made by scholars to explain “with neck,” which is rendered stubbornly by Revised Standard Version. Tur-Sinai interprets the expression to refer to a piece of neck armor worn in battle. Some understand it to mean “with a stiff neck,” and so “insolently, stubbornly.” Others translate “headlong,” meaning to charge straight ahead with the head lowered. While all these meanings are possible, the context seems to require something like Revised Standard Version. Good News Translation has transposed verses 26 and 27 so that verse 27 is the first line. Good News Translation‘s second line is Revised Standard Version verse 26a.

With a thick-bossed shield: see 13.12 for a discussion of this decorative part of the shield. Verse 26 may be rendered, for example, “The wicked person stubbornly attacks God, rushing at him with his shield in hand” or “Holding his shield up the evil person lowers his head and attacks God.” In languages in which there is no word for shield, it may be possible to say, for example, “The wicked man tries to protect himself as he runs to attack God.”

Because he has covered his face with his fat: here is another reason for the foolishness of the wicked person’s attack on God. This may refer to the fat person who has lived luxuriously and is too excessively fat to attack anyone physically. Such a description of living in luxury and self-indulgence is found in Psalm 73.7, “Their eyes swell out with fatness.” See also Jeremiah 5.28 and Deuteronomy 32.15. Most modern versions translate verse 27 as a nonmetaphor. A few, however, including Good News Translation, take fat as a metaphor meaning “rebellion, pride, prosperity, power.” Either is possible in translation. Some translators may find it convenient to follow the way in which Good News Translation has condensed the two lines of verse 27 and placed them before verse 26. As a nonmetaphor we may sometimes say, for example, “He does this even though he is weighted down with fat” or “… even though he is swollen with fat.” If fat is to be taken as a figure of speech, the translator may follow Good News Translation or something similar to Moffatt, “so swollen in prosperity.” Another model can be “He has become motionless from living like the rich” or “He has eaten so well he is useless.”

And gathered fat upon his loins: if fat is taken literally in the first line, it should continue the same in this line. The word for fat in line b is found only here in the Old Testament but is cognate with an Arabic verb “to be fat.” Loins here refers to the lower part of the back, but can be translated “waist, hips, middle.” Moffatt translates the line “so bloated in his wealth.” New English Bible avoids the figurative meaning, “and though his sides bulge with fat.” This line may also be rendered, for example, “and his belly is enormously fat.”

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 .

Translation commentary on Job 17:5

In verse 4 Job said that God would not allow his friends to triumph over him, and here he asserts that their betrayal of him will have its effect on their offspring. Good News Translation has introduced verse 5 with “In the old proverb,” which gives verse 5 a more logical connection with the previous verse. Bible en français courant and Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch also refer to a proverb.

He who informs against his friends to get a share of their property is in the form and style of a proverb, which is Good News Translation‘s reason for introducing the verse with “In the old proverb.” Interpreters have found this verse confusing and open to many variations of meaning. The first part is literally “for a share he tells his friends,” and the remainder says “and the eyes of his children fail.” Jewish commentators understood the phrase translated share of their property (a single word in Hebrew) to mean “flattery,” and so King James Version has “He that speaketh flattery to his friends.” Informs translates a word that usually means “tell,” but here it is best taken as in Revised Standard Version or as “denounce, betray.” Good News Translation has “betrays his friends for money,” which is equivalent to Revised Standard Version.

The eyes of his children will fail: the thought in this line is that the children of the traitor in the previous line will suffer for the evil act of their parent. The wording here is similar to 11.20: “But the eyes of the wicked will fail.” Revised Standard Version, which rearranged the Hebrew form of line a to obtain a good rendering, reverts to a literal translation here in line b. Good News Translation “and his children suffer for it” is a suitable translation model.

The Good News Translation footnote offers another rendering of verse 5. Bible en français courant follows this interpretation: “They are like the man of whom the proverb speaks: inviting his friends to share his bread, he leaves his children to wait in vain for their part.” Moffatt is similar: “Like one who bids friends to a feast, and lets his children starve.” We may also translate, for example, “As the saying goes, share your food with your friends and let your children starve.” However, translators will do well to follow Revised Standard Version or Good News Translation in line a, and Good News Translation in line b.

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 .

Translation commentary on Job 19:4

And even if it be true that I have erred: this line appears clear enough by itself, but it cannot be considered without regard to the second line, where scholars differ greatly in their interpretations. In this first line Job is not likely to be admitting that he has sinned, because elsewhere he has repeatedly defended his innocence (9.21; 10.7; 16.17). Some scholars understand that Job is using sarcasm and attacking his friends. If he had erred it was between him and God, not a matter for their eyes. His argument is with God. Dhorme and others also take the view that any error Job may have committed is strictly his own business. Rowley, on the other hand, thinks that Job is striking back at the friends, not because they pry into his affairs, but because of their hostility toward him.

My error remains with myself: in this line Job is saying “I have not injured you,” or as Good News Translation translates, “How does that hurt you?” Pope takes the view that if Job sinned, the fault lies with God. It is not possible to exclude these varying interpretations; however, all the modern translations consulted take the view of Dhorme that Job’s error, if he ever had such, is his own business and does not concern the friends. Verse 4 may be rendered, for example, “Even if I sinned, that has nothing to do with you,” “If it is true that I have done wrong, how does that affect you?” or “If I have sinned, that would hurt me, not you.”

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 .

Translation commentary on Job 20:12 - 20:14

Verse 12 begins Zophar’s portrayal of the ways in which the wicked is paid back for his sins. Verses 12 and 13 describe a condition whose consequences are seen in verse 14. These three verses form one long sentence in Hebrew.

Though wickedness is sweet in his mouth: here the poet depicts the wicked man making the enjoyment of sin last as long as possible and getting out of it everything he can. The imagery is that of a sweet taste in the mouth. In languages in which an abstract quality like wickedness cannot be said to be sweet, it will often be necessary to express the thought in the form of a simile; for example, “Although doing evil things may be like sugar in a person’s mouth…” or “Even though doing evil is like having sugar in his mouth.” In some languages it will not be advisable to have a string of concessive clauses as in verses 12 and 13. These may be expressed as statements.

Though he hides it under his tongue: the purpose of putting the sweet object under the tongue is to make it last and so keep the taste of sweetness lingering in the mouth. This line may be rendered, for example, “even if he keeps the sweetness hidden under his tongue” or “even if he prolongs the sweetness by putting it under his tongue.”

Though he is loath to let it go: verse 13 expresses the purpose of verse 12b, and Good News Translation accordingly reduces these two lines to one, “that he keeps … flavor,” and joins verse 13 with verse 12.

And holds it in his mouth: Bible en français courant has not condensed these lines like Good News Translation, and for translators who are able to preserve them meaningfully, this translation offers a good model:
12 In his mouth evil is sweet like candy,
and he slips it beneath his tongue.
13 He holds it there for a long time, he does not let it go,
prolonging the pleasure of its flavor.

Yet his food is turned in his stomach: the conclusion of this pleasurable savoring of sweetness is that it turns bitter and even poisonous. Turned was used in 19.19, where it referred to “turning against Job.” Here it is used of food that goes bad, becomes sour and indigestible, or, as Good News Translation, “But in his stomach the food turns bitter.” It may be necessary to adjust verse 14a to show how it is linked with verses 12 and 13; for example, “Yet when the sweetness reaches his stomach” or “However, when he swallows the sweetness.”

It is the gall of asps within him: the ancient view was that the gall bladder of snakes secreted poison, and consequently gall of asps means “snake poison.” The word translated asps refers to a poisonous snake, but not exclusively to the asp. Within him is literally “in his intestines.” Good News Translation “as bitter as any poison could be” is somewhat misleading. This line is an excellent example of raising poetic intensity of a general word in line a through the use of a more specific term in line b. In this way his food in line a is bitter in his stomach, but in line b it is more than bitter; it is poison in him. The conclusion of verse 14 may be expressed, for example, “it becomes like snake poison inside him” or “it is as deadly as snake venom in his intestines.”

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 .

Translation commentary on Job 21:21

For what do they care for their houses after them…?: here Job is asking “What interest, concern, does a dead man take in the affairs of his family?” Whether his children are happy or punished makes little difference because his life is over. In 14.21 Job said “His sons come to honor and he does not know it,” because he is dead. Houses is singular in Hebrew, “his house,” but stands for “his family,” or more specifically, “his children.” After them means “after they (the wicked) have died.” Good News Translation transposes lines a and b in order to give a more natural English style. This line may also be expressed, for example, “After they die can they care what happens to their children? Certainly not!” “Can a dead man think about the well-being of his family? Not at all!” or, as a statement, “A dead man does not think about what happens to his family.”

When the number of their months is cut off: their months is literally “his months.” The same expression is found in 14.5. Elsewhere “the number of his days” is the equivalent, both terms meaning “his life span, the length of his life.” The sense is not of the wicked man’s time to live being fixed in advance, but rather “when his life is over” (Good News Translation). Translators may need to transpose the two lines, as in Good News Translation. This line may be rendered “once he is dead,” “when his life is finished,” or “after he has died.”

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 .

Translation commentary on Job 22:27 - 22:28

These two verses add two more consequences which Eliphaz holds out to Job if he will repent and return to God.

You will make your prayer to him: Job has complained bitterly that God does not hear him. In 8.5-7 Bildad said that if Job was pure and upright he could pray to Almighty God, and that God would rouse himself for Job. Now Eliphaz has set new conditions that will enable God to hear Job and answer him.

And you will pay your vows: prayer may be accompanied by a vow, which is a promise to do something in payment to God for answering a request. See Psalm 22.25; 61.5, 8; 65.1. Here Eliphaz assumes Job’s prayer request will be granted, and that Job will back up his prayer with a vow to do something for God. Verse 27 may also be rendered, for example, “You will also pray to God, and you will keep the promises you make to him” or “God will hear your prayers, and you will do what you promised God you would do.”

You will decide on a matter, and it will be established for you: “Anything you decide to do will be successful.” This translates what is literally “And cut a word it stands for you,” where “cut a word” means “decide something.” Established translates a verb form meaning “arise, stand”; that which is “stood up, raised” is accomplished and so it succeeds. Some interpreters take the literal expression “cut a word” to mean “make a decree,” so King James Version “Thou shalt also decree a thing.” The recommended sense is as in New Jerusalem Bible: “Whatever you undertake will go well.” This line may also be expressed “Whatever you decide to do will turn out well,” “The things you want to do you will do them successfully,” or “You will have success in everything you undertake.”

And light will shine on your ways: instead of the darkness in which Job walks (19.8; 22.11), there will be light shining on his paths. This line may also be rendered “and your path will be lighted,” “wherever you go you will walk in the light,” or “the path you walk on will not be in darkness.”

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 .