Job 10:13–22

The NET BibleOther versions

English

Arabic

Arabic Bible (Smith & Van Dyke)

Czech

Podle Puvodního Vydání Kralického

French

German

Hebrew

LHB Lexham Hebrew Bible

Hungarian

KAR Szent Biblia

Italian

Giovanni Diodati Bibbia

Korean

KRV 성경전서 개역한글판

Latin

VGCLEM Clementine Vulgate

Portuguese

Russian

RST Русский Синодальный Перевод (1876/1956)

Simplified Chinese

中文圣经和合本－神版 (简体)

Spanish

Traditional Chinese

中文聖經和合本（神版．繁體）

^10:13“But these things³³ you have concealed in your heart;

I know that this³⁴ is with you:³⁵

^10:14If I sinned, then you would watch me

and you would not acquit me of my iniquity.

^10:15If I am guilty,³⁶ woe³⁷ to me,

and if I am innocent, I cannot lift my head;³⁸

I am full of shame,³⁹

and satiated with my affliction.⁴⁰

^10:16If I lift myself up,⁴¹

you hunt me as a fierce lion,⁴²

and again⁴³ you display your power⁴⁴ against me.

^10:17You bring new witnesses⁴⁵ against me,

and increase your anger against me;

relief troops⁴⁶ come against me.

An Appeal for Relief

^10:18“Why then did you bring me out from the womb?

I should have died⁴⁷

and no eye would have seen me!

^10:19I should have been as though I had never existed;⁴⁸

I should have been carried

right from the womb to the grave!

^10:20Are not my days few?⁴⁹

Cease,⁵⁰ then, and leave⁵¹ me alone,⁵²

that I may find a little comfort,⁵³

^10:21before I depart, never to return,⁵⁴

to the land of darkness

and the deepest shadow,⁵⁵

^10:22to the land of utter darkness,

like the deepest darkness,

and the deepest shadow and disorder,⁵⁶

where even the light⁵⁷ is like darkness.”⁵⁸

Read in Logos

Footnotes

33 “These things” refers to the affliction that God had brought on Job. They were concealed by God from the beginning.
34 The meaning of the line is that this was God’s purpose all along. “These things” and “this” refer to the details that will now be given in the next few verses.
35 The contradiction between how God had provided for and cared for Job’s life and how he was now dealing with him could only be resolved by Job with the supposition that God had planned this severe treatment from the first as part of his plan.
36 The verbs “guilty” and “innocent” are actually the verbs “I am wicked,” and “I am righteous.”
37 The exclamation occurs only here and in Mic 7:1.
38 The action of lifting up the head is a symbol of pride and honor and self-respect (Judg 8:28)—like “hold your head high.” In 11:15 the one who is at peace with God lifts his head (face).
39 The expression שְׂבַע קָלוֹן (séva’ qalon) may be translated “full of shame.” The expression literally means “sated of ignominy” (or contempt [קַלַל, qalal]).
40 The last clause is difficult to fit into the verse. It translates easily enough: “and see my affliction.” Many commentators follow the suggestion of Geiger to read רְוֶה (réveh, “watered with”) instead of רְאֵה (ré’eh, “see”). This could then be interpreted adjectivally and parallel to the preceding line: “steeped/saturated with affliction.” This would also delete the final yod as dittography (E. Dhorme, Job, 152). But D. J. A. Clines notes more recent interpretations that suggest the form in the text is an orthographic variant of raweh meaning “satiated.” This makes any emendation unnecessary (and in fact that idea of “steeped” was not helpful any way because it indicated imbibing rather than soaking). The renders it “and drowned in my affliction” although footnoting the other possibility from the , “aware of my affliction” (assuming the form could be adjectival). The omits the last line.
41 The has the 3rd person of the verb, “and he lifts himself up.” One might assume that the subject is “my head”—but that is rather far removed from the verb. It appears that Job is talking about himself in some way. Some commentators simply emend the text to make it first person. This has the support of Job, which would be expected since it would be interpreting the passage in its context (see D. M. Stec, “The Rendering of WYG’H in Job X 16,” 34 [1984]: 367–8). Pope and Gordis make the word adjectival, modifying the subject: “proudly you hunt me,” but support is lacking. E. Dhorme thinks the line should be parallel to the two preceding it, and so suggests יָגֵּעַ (yagea’, “exhausted”) for יִגְאֶה (yig’eh, “lift up”). The contextual argument is that Job has said that he cannot raise his head, but if he were to do so, God would hunt him down. God could be taken as the subject of the verb if the text is using enallage (shifting of grammatical persons within a discourse) for dramatic effect. Perhaps the initial 3rd person was intended with respect within a legal context of witnesses and a complaint, but was switched to 2nd person for direct accusation.
42 There is some ambiguity here: Job could be the lion being hunted by God, or God could be hunting Job like a lion hunts its prey. The point of the line is clear in either case.
43 The text uses two verbs without a coordinating conjunction: “then you return, you display your power.” This should be explained as a verbal hendiadys, the first verb serving adverbially in the clause (see further §120.g).
44 The form is the Hitpael of פָּלָא (pala’, “to be wonderful; to be surpassing; to be extraordinary”). Here in this stem it has the sense of “make oneself admirable, surpassing” or “render oneself powerful, glorious.” The text is ironic; the word that described God’s marvelous creation of Job is here used to describe God’s awesome destruction of Job.
45 The text has “you renew/increase your witnesses.” This would probably mean Job’s sufferings, which were witness to his sins. But some suggested a different word here, one that is cognate to Arabic ’adiya, “to be an enemy; to be hostile”: thus “you renew your hostility against me.” Less convincing are suggestions that the word is cognate to Ugaritic “troops” (see W. G. E. Watson, “The Metaphor in Job 10, 17,” 63 [1982]: 255–57).
46 The Hebrew simply says “changes and a host are with me.” The “changes and a host” is taken as a hendiadys, meaning relieving troops (relief troops of the army). The two words appear together again in 14:14, showing that emendation is to be avoided. The imagery depicts blow after blow from God—always fresh attacks.
47 The two imperfect verbs in this section are used to stress regrets for something which did not happen (see §107.n).
48 This means “If only I had never come into existence.”
49 Heb “are not my days few; cease/let it cease.…” The versions have “the days of my life” (reading יְמֵי חֶלְדִי [yéme kheldi] instead of יָמַי וַחֲדָל [yamay vakhadal]). Many commentators and the , , and accept this reading. The Kethib is an imperfect or jussive, “let it cease/ it will cease.” The Qere is more intelligible for some interpreters—“cease” (as in 7:16). For a discussion of the readings, see D. W. Thomas, “Some Observations on the Hebrew Root hadal,” 4 [1057]: 14). But the text is not impossible as it stands.
50 Taking the form as the imperative with the ו (vav), the sentence follows the direct address to God (as in v. 18 as well as 7:16). This requires less changes. See the preceding note regarding the plausibility of the jussive. The point of the verse is clear in either reading—his life is short, and he wants the suffering to stop.
51 In the different suggestions for the line, the י (yod) of this word is believed to belong to the preceding word making “my life.” That would here leave an imperative rather than an imperfect. But if the Qere is read, then it would be an imperative anyway, and there would be no reason for the change.
52 Heb “put from me,” an expression found nowhere else. The Qere has a ו (vav) and not a י (yod), forming an imperative rather than an imperfect. H. H. Rowley suggests that there is an ellipsis here, “hand” needing to be supplied. Job wanted God to take his hand away from him. That is plausible, but difficult.
53 The verb בָּלַג (balag) in the Hiphil means “to have cheer [or joy]” (see 9:27; Ps 39:14). The cohortative following the imperatives shows the purpose or result—“in order that.”
54 The verbs are simple, “I go” and “I return”; but Job clearly means before he dies. A translation of “depart” comes closer to communicating this. The second verb may be given a potential imperfect translation to capture the point. The offered more of an interpretive paraphrase: “before I go to the place of no return.”
56 The word סֵדֶר (seder, “order”) occurs only here in the Bible. G. R. Driver found a new meaning in Arabic sadira, “dazzled by the glare” (“Problems in the Hebrew text of Job,” 3 [1955]: 76–77); this would mean “without a ray of light.” This is accepted by those who see chaos out of place in this line. But the word “order” is well-attested in later Hebrew (see J. Carmignac, “Précisions aportées au vocabulaire d’hébreu biblique par La guerre des fils de lumière contre les fils de ténèbres,” 5 [1955]: 345–65).
57 The Hebrew word literally means “it shines”; the feminine verb implies a subject like “the light” (but see §144.c).
58 The verse multiplies images for the darkness in death. Several commentators omit “as darkness, deep darkness” (כְּמוֹ אֹפֶל צַלְמָוֶת, kémo ’ofel tsalmavet) as glosses on the rare word עֵיפָתָה (’efatah, “darkness”) drawn from v. 21 (see also ). The verse literally reads: “[to the] land of darkness, like the deep darkness of the shadow of death, without any order, and the light is like the darkness.”

Cross references

55 See Job 3:5.

In other versions

ESVEnglish Standard Version

Yet these things you hid in your heart;

I know that this was your purpose.

If I sin, you watch me

and do not acquit me of my iniquity.

If I am guilty, woe to me!

If I am in the right, I cannot lift up my head,

for I am filled with disgrace

and look on my affliction.

And were my head lifted up, you would hunt me like a lion

and again work wonders against me.

You renew your witnesses against me

and increase your vexation toward me;

you bring fresh troops against me.

“Why did you bring me out from the womb?

Would that I had died before any eye had seen me

and were as though I had not been,

carried from the womb to the grave.

Are not my days few?

Then cease, and leave me alone, that I may find a little cheer

before I go—and I shall not return—

to the land of darkness and deep shadow,

the land of gloom like thick darkness,

like deep shadow without any order,

where light is as thick darkness.”

NIVNew International Version (2011)

“But this is what you concealed in your heart,

and I know that this was in your mind:

If I sinned, you would be watching me

and would not let my offense go unpunished.

If I am guilty—woe to me!

Even if I am innocent, I cannot lift my head,

for I am full of shame

and drowned in my affliction.

If I hold my head high, you stalk me like a lion

and again display your awesome power against me.

You bring new witnesses against me

and increase your anger toward me;

your forces come against me wave upon wave.

“Why then did you bring me out of the womb?

I wish I had died before any eye saw me.

If only I had never come into being,

or had been carried straight from the womb to the grave!

Are not my few days almost over?

Turn away from me so I can have a moment’s joy

before I go to the place of no return,

to the land of gloom and utter darkness,

to the land of deepest night,

of utter darkness and disorder,

where even the light is like darkness.”

CSBChristian Standard Bible

“Yet you concealed these thoughts in your heart;

I know that this was your hidden plan:

if I sin, you would notice,

and would not acquit me of my iniquity.

If I am wicked, woe to me!

And even if I am righteous, I cannot lift up my head.

I am filled with shame

and have drunk deeply of my affliction.

If I am proud, you hunt me like a lion

and again display your miraculous power against me.

You produce new witnesses against me

and multiply your anger toward me.

Hardships assault me, wave after wave.

“Why did you bring me out of the womb?

I should have died and never been seen.

I wish I had never existed

but had been carried from the womb to the grave.

Are my days not few? Stop it!

Leave me alone, so that I can smile a little

before I go to a land of darkness and gloom,

never to return.

It is a land of blackness like the deepest darkness,

gloomy and chaotic,

where even the light is like the darkness.”

NLTNew Living Translation

“ ‘Yet your real motive—

your true intent—

was to watch me, and if I sinned,

you would not forgive my guilt.

If I am guilty, too bad for me;

and even if I’m innocent, I can’t hold my head high,

because I am filled with shame and misery.

And if I hold my head high, you hunt me like a lion

and display your awesome power against me.

Again and again you witness against me.

You pour out your growing anger on me

and bring fresh armies against me.

“ ‘Why, then, did you deliver me from my mother’s womb?

Why didn’t you let me die at birth?

It would be as though I had never existed,

going directly from the womb to the grave.

I have only a few days left, so leave me alone,

that I may have a moment of comfort

before I leave—never to return—

for the land of darkness and utter gloom.

It is a land as dark as midnight,

a land of gloom and confusion,

where even the light is dark as midnight.’ ”

LEBThe Lexham English Bible

“ ‘Yet you hid these things in your heart;

I know that this was your purpose.

If I had sinned, then you would be watching me,

and you would not acquit me of my guilt.

If I am guilty, woe to me!

But if I am righteous, I dare not lift my head;

I am filled with shame, and just look at my misery!

And if my head grows bold, you would hunt me as the lion in its prime;

and you repeat your exploits against me.

You renew your witnesses against me,

and you increase your vexation against me;

relief forces are against me.

So why did you bring me forth from the womb?

I should have passed away, and no eye should have seen me.

I should have been as though I had not been;

I should have been brought from the womb to the grave.

Are not my days few? Let him leave me alone;

let him turn from me, and let me rejoice a little.

Before I go—and I will not return—

to the land of darkness and deep shadow,

to the land of darkness,

like the darkness of a deep shadow and chaos,

so that it shines forth like darkness.’ ”

KJV 1900King James Version

And these things hast thou hid in thine heart:

I know that this is with thee.

If I sin, then thou markest me,

And thou wilt not acquit me from mine iniquity.

If I be wicked, woe unto me;

And if I be righteous, yet will I not lift up my head.

I am full of confusion; therefore see thou mine affliction;

For it increaseth. Thou huntest me as a fierce lion:

And again thou shewest thyself marvellous upon me.

Thou renewest thy witnesses against me,

And increasest thine indignation upon me;

Changes and war are against me.

Wherefore then hast thou brought me forth out of the womb?

Oh that I had given up the ghost, and no eye had seen me!

I should have been as though I had not been;

I should have been carried from the womb to the grave.

Are not my days few? cease then,

And let me alone, that I may take comfort a little,

Before I go whence I shall not return,

Even to the land of darkness and the shadow of death;

A land of darkness, as darkness itself;

And of the shadow of death, without any order,

And where the light is as darkness.

Public Domain