Job 42
New American Bible (Revised Edition)
Chapter 42
1 Then Job answered the Lord and said:
2 I know that you can do all things,[a]
and that no purpose of yours can be hindered.
3 “Who is this who obscures counsel with ignorance?”
I have spoken but did not understand;
things too marvelous for me, which I did not know.(A)
4 “Listen, and I will speak;
I will question you, and you tell me the answers.”
5 By hearsay I had heard of you,
but now my eye has seen you.[b]
6 Therefore I disown what I have said,
and repent in dust and ashes.[c]
IX. Epilogue
Job’s Restoration. 7 And after the Lord had spoken these words to Job, the Lord said to Eliphaz the Temanite, “My anger blazes against you and your two friends![d] You have not spoken rightly concerning me, as has my servant Job. 8 So now take seven bulls and seven rams, and go to my servant Job, and sacrifice a burnt offering for yourselves, and let my servant Job pray for you.[e] To him I will show favor, and not punish your folly, for you have not spoken rightly concerning me, as has my servant Job.” 9 Then Eliphaz the Temanite, and Bildad the Shuhite, and Zophar the Naamathite, went and did as the Lord had commanded them. The Lord showed favor to Job.
10 The Lord also restored the prosperity of Job, after he had prayed for his friends; the Lord even gave to Job twice[f] as much as he had before. 11 Then all his brothers and sisters came to him, and all his former acquaintances, and they dined with him in his house. They consoled and comforted him for all the evil the Lord had brought upon him, and each one gave him a piece of money[g] and a gold ring.
12 (B)Thus the Lord blessed the later days of Job more than his earlier ones. Now he had fourteen thousand sheep, six thousand camels, a thousand yoke of oxen, and a thousand she-donkeys. 13 He also had seven sons and three daughters: 14 the first daughter he called Jemimah, the second Keziah, and the third Keren-happuch.[h] 15 In all the land no other women were as beautiful as the daughters of Job; and their father gave them an inheritance[i] among their brothers.
16 After this, Job lived a hundred and forty years; and he saw his children, his grandchildren, and even his great-grandchildren.(C) 17 Then Job died, old and full of years.
Footnotes
- 42:2–4 In his final speech, Job quotes God’s own words (see 38:2–3; 40:7).
- 42:5 In 19:25–27 Job had affirmed a hope to “see” (three times) his vindicator. Now he has seen the Lord about whom he had heard so much.
- 42:6 A difficult verse. Some doubt, in view of God’s commendation in v. 7, that Job does in fact express repentance, and alternative translations are often given. Along with v. 5, it describes a change in Job, which the encounter with the Lord has brought about. Dust and ashes: an ambiguous phrase. It can refer to the human condition (cf. Gn 18:27; Jb 30:19) or to Job’s ash heap (2:8).
- 42:7 The three friends of Job (Elihu is ignored in the epilogue) are criticized by the Lord because they had “not spoken rightly” (vv. 7–8).
- 42:8 An ironic touch: Job becomes the intercessor for his friends.
- 42:10 Twice: this is the fine for damage inflicted upon another; cf. Ex 22:3. The Lord pays up!
- 42:11 A piece of money: lit., qesitah, value unknown; also used in Gn 33:19; Jos 24:32. Gold ring: for the nose or ear.
- 42:14 Job’s daughters had names symbolic of their charms: Jemimah, dove; Keziah, precious perfume (cf. Ps 45:9); Keren-happuch, cosmetic jar—more precisely, a container for a black powder used like modern mascara.
- 42:15 Ordinarily daughters did not inherit property unless there were no sons; cf. Nm 27:1–11.
Hiob 42
Schlachter 1951
Hiobs Demütigung und Reue
42 Da antwortete Hiob dem Herrn und sprach:
2 Ich erkenne, daß du alles kannst
und kein Plan dir unausführbar ist.
3 Wer ist's, der den Ratschluß [Gottes] verdunkelt mit seinem Unverstand?
Fürwahr, ich habe geredet, was ich nicht verstehe,
was mir zu wunderbar ist und ich nicht begreifen kann!
4 „Höre nun, ich will reden;
ich will dich fragen,, lehre mich!“
5 Vom Hörensagen hatte ich von dir gehört,
aber nun sehe ich dich mit meinen Augen;
6 darum widerrufe ich
und will im Staube und in der Asche Buße tun.
Hiob bittet für seine Freunde und kommt zu neuem Wohlstand
7 Als nun der Herr diese Reden an Hiob vollendet hatte, sprach der Herr zu Eliphas, dem Temaniter: Mein Zorn ist entbrannt über dich und deine beiden Freunde, denn ihr habt nicht recht von mir geredet, wie mein Knecht Hiob. 8 So nehmt nun sieben Farren und sieben Widder und geht zu meinem Knecht Hiob und bringt sie als Brandopfer dar für euch selbst; mein Knecht Hiob aber soll für euch bitten; denn nur seine Person will ich ansehen, daß ich gegen euch nicht nach eurer Torheit handle; denn ihr habt nicht recht von mir geredet wie mein Knecht Hiob.
9 Da gingen Eliphas, der Temaniter, und Bildad, der Schuchiter, und Zophar, der Naamatiter, und taten, wie der Herr ihnen befohlen hatte. Und der Herr sah Hiob an.
10 Und der Herr wandte Hiobs Gefangenschaft[a], als er für seine
Freunde bat; und der Herr erstattete Hiob alles doppelt wieder, was er gehabt.
11 Es kamen auch zu Hiob alle seine Brüder und alle seine Schwestern und alle seine frühern Bekannten und aßen mit ihm in seinem Hause und bezeugten ihm Teilnahme und trösteten ihn ob all dem Unglück, das der Herr über ihn gebracht hatte, und schenkten ihm ein jeder eine Münze und einen goldenen Ring.
12 Und der Herr segnete das spätere Leben Hiobs mehr als sein früheres; er bekam 14,000 Schafe, 6000 Kamele, 1000 Joch Rinder und 1000 Eselinnen. 13 Er bekam auch sieben Söhne und drei Töchter. 14 Die erste hieß er Jemima, die zweite Kezia und die dritte Keren-Happuch. 15 Und es wurden im ganzen Lande keine so schönen Weiber gefunden wie Hiobs Töchter; und ihr Vater gab ihnen ein Erbteil unter ihren Brüdern.
16 Hiob aber lebte darnach noch 140 Jahre und sah seine Kinder und Kindeskinder bis in das vierte Geschlecht. 17 Und Hiob starb alt und lebenssatt.
Footnotes
- Hiob 42:10 Gefangenschaft, o. Schicksal; so auch anderswo (FES)
Scripture texts, prefaces, introductions, footnotes and cross references used in this work are taken from the New American Bible, revised edition © 2010, 1991, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Inc., Washington, DC All Rights Reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.
Copyright © 1951 by Geneva Bible Society