Logos Bible Study

Job 4:18

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4:18If59 God60 puts no trust in61 his servants62

and attributes63 folly64 to his angels,

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Footnotes

  1. 59 The particle הֵן (hen) introduces a conditional clause here, although the older translations used “behold.” The clause forms the foundation for the point made in the next verse, an argument by analogy—if this be true, then how much more/less the other.
  2. 60 Heb “he”; the referent (God) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
  3. 61 The verb יַאֲמִין (ya’amin), a Hiphil imperfect from אָמַן (’aman) followed by the preposition בּ (bet), means “trust in.”
  4. 62 The servants here must be angels in view of the parallelism. The to Job interpreted them to be the prophets. In the book we have already read about the “sons of God” who take their stand as servants before the Lord (1:6; 2:1). And Ps 104:4 identifies the angels as servants (using שָׁרַת, sharat).
  5. 63 The verb שִׂים (sim, “set”) with the preposition בּ (bet) has the sense of “impute” or “attribute something to someone.”
  6. 64 The word תָּהֳלָה (toholah) is a , and so has created some confusion in the various translations. It seems to mean “error; folly.” The word is translated “perverseness” in the ; but Symmachus connects it with the word for “madness.” “Some commentators have repointed the word to תְּהִלָּה (téhillah, “praise”) making the line read: “he finds no [cause for] praise in his angels.” Others suggest תִּפְלָה (tiflah, “offensiveness, silliness”) a bigger change; this matches the idiom in Job 24:12. But if the etymology of the word is הָלַל (halal, “to be mad”) then that change is not necessary. The feminine noun “madness” still leaves the meaning of the line a little uncertain: “[if] he does not impute madness to his angels.” The point of the verse is that God finds flaws in his angels and does not put his trust in them.

In other versions

ESVEnglish Standard Version

Even in his servants he puts no trust,

and his angels he charges with error;

NIVNew International Version (2011)

If God places no trust in his servants,

if he charges his angels with error,

CSBChristian Standard Bible

If God puts no trust in his servants

and he charges his angels with foolishness,

NLTNew Living Translation

“If God does not trust his own angels

and has charged his messengers with foolishness,

LEBThe Lexham English Bible

Look, he does not trust in his servants

and he charges his angels with error.

KJV 1900King James Version

Behold, he put no trust in his servants;

And his angels he charged with folly: