Job 27:1-6
Lexham English Bible
Job Continues His Final Speech
27 Then[a] Job again took up his discourse and said,
2 “As God lives,[b] he has removed my justice,
and Shaddai has made my inner self[c] bitter.
3 For as long as[d] my breath is in me,
and the spirit of God is in my nose,
4 my lips surely will not speak falseness,
and my tongue surely will not utter deceit.
5 Far be it from me that I would say that you[e] are right;[f]
until I pass away, I will not put away from me my blamelessness.
6 I hold fast to my righteousness, and I will not let it go;
my heart will not blame any of my days.
Job 27:1-6
New English Translation
A Protest of Innocence
27 And Job took up his discourse again:[a]
2 “As surely as God lives,[b] who has denied me justice,[c]
the Almighty, who has made my life bitter[d]—
3 for while[e] my spirit[f] is still in me,
and the breath from God is in my nostrils,
4 my[g] lips will not speak wickedness,
and my tongue will whisper[h] no deceit.
5 I will never[i] declare that you three[j] are in the right;
until I die, I will not set aside my integrity!
6 I will maintain my righteousness
and never let it go;
my conscience[k] will not reproach me
for as long as I live.[l]
Footnotes
- Job 27:1 tn The Hebrew word מָשָׁל (mashal) is characteristically “proverb; by-word.” It normally refers to a brief saying, but can be used for a discourse (see A. R. Johnson, “Mašal,” VTSup 3 [1955]: 162ff.).
- Job 27:2 tn The expression חַי־אֵל (khay ʾel) is the oath formula: “as God lives.” In other words, the speaker is staking God’s life on the credibility of the words. It is like saying, “As truly as God is alive.”
- Job 27:2 tn “My judgment” would here, as before, be “my right.” God has taken this away by afflicting Job unjustly (A. B. Davidson, Job, 187).
- Job 27:2 tn The verb הֵמַר (hemar) is the Hiphil perfect from מָרַר (marar, “to be bitter”) and hence, “to make bitter.” The object of the verb is “my soul,” which is better translated as “me” or “my life.”
- Job 27:3 tn The adverb עוֹד (ʿod) was originally a noun, and so here it could be rendered “all the existence of my spirit.” The word comes between the noun in construct and its actual genitive (see GKC 415 §128.e).
- Job 27:3 tn The word נְשָׁמָה (neshamah) is the “breath” that was breathed into Adam in Gen 2:7. Its usage includes the animating breath, the spiritual understanding, and the functioning conscience—so the whole spirit of the person. The other word in this verse, רוּחַ (ruakh), may be translated as “wind,” “breath,” or “spirit/Spirit” depending on the context. Here, since it talks about the nostrils, it should be translated “breath.”
- Job 27:4 tn The verse begins with אִם (ʾim), the formula used for the content of the oath (“God lives…if I do/do not…”). Thus, the content of the oath proper is here in v. 4.
- Job 27:4 tn The verb means “to utter; to mumble; to meditate.” The implication is that he will not communicate deceitful things, no matter how quiet or subtle.
- Job 27:5 tn The text uses חָלִילָה לִּי (khalilah li) meaning “far be it from me,” or more strongly, something akin to “sacrilege.”
- Job 27:5 tn In the Hebrew text “you” is plural—a reference to Eliphaz, Zophar, and Bildad. To make this clear, “three” is supplied in the translation.
- Job 27:6 tn Heb “my heart.”
- Job 27:6 tn The prepositional phrase “from my days” probably means “from the days of my birth,” or “all my life.”
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