Job 34:5-9
World English Bible
5 For Job has said, ‘I am righteous,
God has taken away my right:
6 Notwithstanding my right I am considered a liar.
My wound is incurable, though I am without disobedience.’
7 What man is like Job,
who drinks scorn like water,
8 Who goes in company with the workers of iniquity,
and walks with wicked men?
9 For he has said, ‘It profits a man nothing
that he should delight himself with God.’
Job 34:5-9
New English Translation
5 For Job says, ‘I am innocent,[a]
but God turns away my right.
6 Concerning my right, should I lie?[b]
My wound[c] is incurable,
although I am without transgression.’[d]
7 Who is there like Job,
who[e] drinks derision[f] like water?
8 He goes about[g] in company[h] with evildoers,
he goes along[i] with wicked men.[j]
9 For he says, ‘It does not profit a man
when he makes his delight with God.’[k]
Footnotes
- Job 34:5 tn Heb “righteous,” but in this context it means to be innocent or in the right.
- Job 34:6 tn The verb is the Piel imperfect of כָּזַב (kazav), meaning “to lie.” It could be a question: “Should I lie [against my right?]—when I am innocent.” If it is repointed to the Pual, then it can be “I am made to lie,” or “I am deceived.” Taking it as a question makes good sense here, and so emendations are unnecessary.
- Job 34:6 tn The Hebrew text has only “my arrow.” Some commentators emend that word slightly to get “my wound.” But the idea could be derived from “arrows” as well, the wounds caused by the arrows. The arrows are symbolic of God’s affliction.
- Job 34:6 tn Heb “without transgression,” but this is parallel to the first part where the claim is innocence.
- Job 34:7 tn Heb “he drinks,” but coming after the question this clause may be subordinated.
- Job 34:7 tn The scorn or derision mentioned here is not against Job, but against God. Job scorns God so much, he must love it. So to reflect this idea, Gordis has translated it “blasphemy” (cf. NAB).
- Job 34:8 tn The perfect verb with the vav (ו) consecutive carries the sequence forward from the last description.
- Job 34:8 tn The word חֶבְרַה (khevrah, “company”) is a hapax legomenon. But its meaning is clear enough from the connections to related words and this context as well.
- Job 34:8 tn The infinitive construct with the ל (lamed) preposition may continue the clause with the finite verb (see GKC 351 §114.p).
- Job 34:8 tn Heb “men of wickedness”; the genitive is attributive (= “wicked men”).
- Job 34:9 tn Gordis, however, takes this expression in the sense of “being in favor with God.”
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