The irony of the passage comes through with this choice of words. The verb שָׁמַר ( shamar ) means “to keep; to guard; to preserve.” The exceptive clause casts Satan in the role of a savior – he cannot destroy this life but must protect it.


The general consensus is that Job was afflicted with a leprosy known as elephantiasis, named because the rough skin and the swollen limbs are animal-like. The Hebrew word שְׁחִין ( shÿkhin , “boil”) can indicate an ulcer as well. Leprosy begins with such, but so do other diseases. Leprosy normally begins in the limbs and spreads, but Job was afflicted everywhere at once. It may be some other disease also characterized by such a malignant ulcer. D. J. A. Clines has a thorough bibliography on all the possible diseases linked to this description ( Job [WBC], 48). See also HALOT 1460 s.v. שְׁחִין .


The disease required constant attention. The infection and pus had to be scraped away with a piece of broken pottery in order to prevent the spread of the infection. The skin was so disfigured that even his friends did not recognize him ( 2:12 ). The book will add that the disease afflicted him inwardly, giving him a foul breath and a loathsome smell ( 19:17, 20 ). The sores bred worms; they opened and ran, and closed and tightened ( 16:8 ). He was tormented with dreams ( 7:14 ). He felt like he was choking ( 7:14 ). His bones were racked with burning pain ( 30:30 ). And he was not able to rise from his place ( 19:18 ). The disease was incurable; but it would last for years, leaving the patient longing for death.


Among the ashes . It is likely that the “ashes” refers to the place outside the city where the rubbish was collected and burnt, i.e., the ash-heap (cf. CEV). This is the understanding of the LXX, which reads “dung-hill outside the city.”


See R. D. Moore, “The Integrity of Job,” CBQ 45 (1983): 17-31. The reference of Job’s wife to his “integrity” could be a precursor of the conclusion reached by Elihu in 32:2 where he charged Job with justifying himself rather than God.


See N. C. Habel, “‘Only the Jackal is My Friend,’ On Friends and Redeemers in Job,” Int 31 (1977): 227-36.


Commentators have tried to analyze the meanings of the names of the friends and their locations. Not only has this proven to be difficult (Teman is the only place that is known), it is not necessary for the study of the book. The names are probably not symbolic of the things they say.


The three friends went into a more severe form of mourning, one that is usually reserved for a death. E. Dhorme says it is a display of grief in its most intense form ( Job, 23); for one of them to speak before the sufferer spoke would have been wrong.


The previous chapters (1-2) were prose narrative, this chapter, however, commences the poetic section of the book (chs. 3-41 ) containing the cycles of speeches.


The detailed introduction to the speech with “he opened his mouth” draws the readers attention to what was going to be said. As the introduction to the poetic speech that follows ( 3:3-26 ), vv. 1-2 continue the prose style of chapters 1-2 . Each of the subsequent speeches is introduced by such a prose heading.


The announcement at birth is to the fact that a male was conceived. The same parallelism between “brought forth/born” and “conceived” may be found in Ps 51:7 HT ( 51:5 ET). The motifs of the night of conception and the day of birth will be developed by Job. For the entire verse, which is more a wish or malediction than a curse, see S. H. Blank, “‘Perish the Day!’ A Misdirected Curse ( Job 3:3 ),” Prophetic Thought , 61-63.


This expression by Job is the negation of the divine decree at creation – “Let there be light,” and that was the first day. Job wishes that his first day be darkness: “As for that day, let there be darkness.” Since only God has this prerogative, Job adds the wish that God on high would not regard that day.


The translation of צַלְמָוֶת ( tsalmavet , “shadow of death”) has been traditionally understood to indicate a dark, death shadow (supported in the LXX), but many scholars think it may not represent the best etymological analysis of the word. The word may be connected to an Arabic word which means “to be dark,” and an Akkadian word meaning “black.” It would then have to be repointed throughout its uses to צַלְמוּת ( tsalmut ) forming an abstract ending. It would then simply mean “darkness” rather than “shadow of death.” Or the word can be understood as an idiomatic expression meaning “gloom” that is deeper than חֹשֶׁךְ ( khoshekh ; see HALOT 1029 s.v. צַלְמָוֶת ). Since “darkness” has already been used in the line, the two together could possibly form a nominal hendiadys: “Let the deepest darkness….” There is a significant amount of literature on this; one may begin with W. L. Michel, “SLMWT, ‘Deep Darkness’ or ‘Shadow of Death’?” BR 29 (1984): 5-20.


The choice of this word for “moons,” יְרָחִים ( yÿrakhim ) instead of חֳדָשִׁים ( khodashim ) is due to the fact that “month” here is not a reference for which an exact calendar date is essential (in which case חֹדֶשׁ [ khodesh ] would have been preferred). See J. Segal, “‘ yrh ’ in the Gezer ‘Calendar,’” JSS 7 (1962): 220, n. 4. Twelve times in the OT יֶרַח ( yerakh ) means “month” ( Exod 2:2 ; Deut 21:13; 33:14 ; 1 Kgs 6:37, 38; 8:2 ; 2 Kgs 15:13 ; Zech 11:8 ; Job 3:6; 7:3; 29:2; 39:2 ).


Job employs here the mythological figure Leviathan, the monster of the deep or chaos. Job wishes that such a creation of chaos could be summoned by the mourners to swallow up that day. See E. Ullendorff, “ Job 3:8 ,” VT 11 (1961): 350-51.


The expression is literally “the eyelids of the morning.” This means the very first rays of dawn (see also Job 41:18 ). There is some debate whether it refers to “eyelids” or “eyelashes” or “eyeballs.” If the latter, it would signify the flashing eyes of a person. See for the Ugaritic background H. L. Ginsberg, The Legend of King Keret (BASORSup), 39; see also J. M. Steadman, “‘Eyelids of Morn’: A Biblical Convention,” HTR 56 (1963): 159-67.


This use of doors for the womb forms an implied comparison; the night should have hindered conception (see Gen 20:18 and 1 Sam 1:5 ).


Job follows his initial cry with a series of rhetorical questions. His argument runs along these lines: since he was born (v. 10 ), the next chance he had of escaping this life of misery would have been to be still born (vv. 11-12, 16 ). In vv. 13-19 Job considers death as falling into a peaceful sleep in a place where there is no trouble. The high frequency of rhetorical questions in series is a characteristic of the Book of Job that sets it off from all other portions of the OT. The effect is primarily dramatic, creating a tension that requires resolution. See W. Watson, Classical Hebrew Poetry , 340-41.


The commentaries mention the parallel construction in the writings of Ashurbanipal: “You were weak, Ashurbanipal, you who sat on the knees of the goddess, queen of Nineveh; of the four teats that were placed near to your mouth, you sucked two and you hid your face in the others” (M. Streck, Assurbanipal [VAB], 348).


The reference seems to be death, or Sheol, the place where the infant who is stillborn is either buried (the grave) or resides (the place of departed spirits) and thus does not see the light of the sun.


The wicked are the ungodly, those who are not members of the covenant (normally) and in this context especially those who oppress and torment other people.


See further J. C. de Moor, “Lexical Remarks Concerning yahad and yahdaw ,” VT 7 (1957): 350-55.


Since he has survived birth, Job wonders why he could not have died a premature death. He wonders why God gives light and life to those who are in misery. His own condition throws gloom over life, and so he poses the question first generally, for many would prefer death to misery (20-22); then he comes to the individual, himself, who would prefer death (23). He closes his initial complaint with some depictions of his suffering that afflicts him and gives him no rest (24-26).


In v. 10 the word was used to describe the labor and sorrow that comes from it; here the one in such misery is called the עָמֵל (’ amel , “laborer, sufferer”).


The expression “when they find a grave” means when they finally die. The verse describes the relief and rest that the sufferer will obtain when the long-awaited death is reached.


After speaking of people in general (in the plural in vv. 21 and 22 ), Job returns to himself specifically (in the singular, using the same word גֶּבֶר [ gever , “a man”] that he employed of himself in v. 3 ). He is the man whose way is hidden. The clear path of his former life has been broken off, or as the next clause says, hedged in so that he is confined to a life of suffering. The statement includes the spiritual perplexities that this involves. It is like saying that God is leading him in darkness and he can no longer see where he is going.


The line means that Job’s sighing, which results from the suffering (metonymy of effect) is his constant, daily food. Parallels like Ps 42:3 which says “my tears have been my bread/food” shows a similar figure.


The speech of Eliphaz can be broken down into three main sections. In 4:1-11 he wonders that Job who had comforted so many people in trouble, and who was so pious, should fall into such despair, forgetting the great truth that the righteous never perish under affliction – calamity only destroys the wicked. Then in 4:12 –5:7 Eliphaz tries to warn Job about complaining against God because only the ungodly resent the dealings of God and by their impatience bring down his wrath upon them. Finally in 5:8-27 Eliphaz appeals to Job to follow a different course, to seek after God, for God only smites to heal or to correct, to draw people to himself and away from evil. See K. Fullerton, “Double Entendre in the First Speech of Eliphaz,” JBL 49 (1930): 320-74; J. C. L. Gibson, “Eliphaz the Temanite: A Portrait of a Hebrew Philosopher,” SJT 28 (1975): 259-72; and J. Lust, “A Stormy Vision: Some Remarks on Job 4:12-16 ,” Bijdr 36 (1975): 308-11.


Eliphaz will put his thesis forward first negatively and then positively (vv. 8 ff). He will argue that the suffering of the righteous is disciplinary and not for their destruction. He next will argue that it is the wicked who deserve judgment.


The figure is an implied metaphor. Plowing suggests the idea of deliberately preparing (or cultivating) life for evil. This describes those who are fundamentally wicked.


The statement is saying that if some die by misfortune it is because divine retribution or anger has come upon them. This is not necessarily the case, as the NT declares (see Luke 13:1-5 ).


Eliphaz takes up a new image here to make the point that the wicked are destroyed – the breaking up and scattering of a den of lions. There are several words for “lion” used in this section. D. J. A. Clines observes that it is probably impossible to distinguish them ( Job [WBC], 109, 110, which records some bibliography of those who have tried to work on the etymologies and meanings). The first is אַרְיֵה (’ aryeh ) the generic term for “lion.” It is followed by שַׁחַל ( shakhal ) which, like כְּפִיר ( kÿfir ), is a “young lion.” Some have thought that the שַׁחַל ( shakhal ) is a lion-like animal, perhaps a panther or leopard. KBL takes it by metathesis from Arabic “young one.” The LXX for this verse has “the strength of the lion, and the voice of the lioness and the exulting cry of serpents are quenched.”


The colon reads “a silence and a voice I hear.” Some have rendered it “there is a silence, and then I hear.” The verb דָּמַם ( damam ) does mean “remain silent” ( Job 29:21; 31:34 ) and then also “cease.” The noun דְּמָמָה ( dÿmamah , “calm”) refers to the calm after the storm in Ps 107:29 . Joined with the true object of the verb, “voice,” it probably means something like stillness or murmuring or whispering here. It is joined to “voice” with a conjunction, indicating that it is a hendiadys, “murmur and a voice” or a “murmuring voice.”


In Job 15:14 and 25:4 the verb יִזְכֶּה ( yizkeh , from זָכָה [ zakhah , “be clean”]) is paralleled with יִצְדַּק ( yitsdaq , from צָדֵק [ tsadeq , “be righteous”).


The servants here must be angels in view of the parallelism. The Targum 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 ).


Those who live in houses of clay are human beings, for the human body was made of clay ( Job 10:9; 33:6 ; and Isa 64:7 ). In 2 Cor 4:7 the body is an “earthen vessel” – a clay pot. The verse continues the analogy: houses have foundations, and the house of clay is founded on dust, and will return to dust ( Gen 3:19 ; Ps 103:14 ). The reasoning is that if God finds defects in angels, he will surely find them in humans who are inferior to the angels because they are but dust. In fact, they are easily crushed like the moth.


The second colon expresses the consequence of this day-long reducing to ashes – they perish forever! (see 20:7 and 14:20 ).


They die. This clear verb interprets all the images in these verses – they die. When the house of clay collapses, or when their excess perishes – their life is over.


The point being made is that the angels do not represent the cries of people to God as if mediating for them. But if Job appealed to any of them to take his case against God, there would be no response whatsoever for that.


The hungry are other people, possibly the hungry poor to whom the wealthy have refused to give bread ( 22:7 ). The sons are so helpless that even the poor take their property.


The previous discussion shows how trouble rises, namely, from the rebelliousness of the fool. Here Eliphaz simply summarizes the points made with this general principle – trouble does not come from outside man, nor does it come as a part of the natural order, but rather it comes from the evil nature of man.


Eliphaz affirms that if he were in Job’s place he would take refuge in God, but Job has to acknowledge that he has offended God and accept this suffering as his chastisement. Job eventually will submit to God in the end, but not in the way that Eliphaz advises here, for Job does not agree that the sufferings are judgments from God.


H. H. Rowley ( Job [NCBC], 54) notes that the verse fits Eliphaz’s approach very well, for he has good understanding of the truth, but has difficulty in making the correct conclusions from it.


This is the only quotation from the Book of Job in the NT (although Rom 11:35 seems to reflect 41:11 , and Phil 1:19 is similar to 13:6 ). Paul cites it in 1 Cor 3:19 .


God so confuses the crafty that they are unable to fulfill their plans – it is as if they encounter darkness in broad daylight. This is like the Syrians in 2 Kgs 6:18-23 .


The verse provides a picture of the frustration and bewilderment in the crafty who cannot accomplish their ends because God thwarts them.


The name Shaddai occurs 31 times in the book. This is its first occurrence. It is often rendered “Almighty” because of the LXX and some of the early fathers. The etymology and meaning of the word otherwise remains uncertain, in spite of attempts to connect it to “mountains” or “breasts.”


Verses 18-23 give the reasons why someone should accept the chastening of God – the hand that wounds is the same hand that heals. But, of course, the lines do not apply to Job because his suffering is not due to divine chastening.


Targum Job here sees an allusion to the famine of Egypt and the war with Amalek.


Verses 19-23 described the immunity from evil and trouble that Job would enjoy – if he were restored to peace with God. Now, v. 24 describes the safety and peace of the homestead and his possessions if he were right with God.


With this the speech by Eliphaz comes to a close. His two mistakes with it are: (1) that the tone was too cold and (2) the argument did not fit Job’s case (see further, A. B. Davidson, Job , 42).


The point of the comparison with the sand of the sea is that the sand is immeasurable. So the grief of Job cannot be measured.


Job uses an implied comparison here to describe his misfortune – it is as if God had shot poisoned arrows into him (see E. Dhorme, Job , 76-77 for a treatment of poisoned arrows in the ancient world).


Job here clearly states that his problems have come from the Almighty, which is what Eliphaz said. But whereas Eliphaz said Job provoked the trouble by his sin, Job is perplexed because he does not think he did.


In this brief section Job indicates that it would be wiser to seek the reason for the crying than to complain of the cry. The wild donkey will bray when it finds no food (see Jer 14:6 ).


The “words” are the divine decrees of God’s providence, the decisions that he makes in his dealings with people. Job cannot conceal these – he knows what they are. What Job seems to mean by this clause in this verse is that there is nothing that would hinder his joy of dying for he has not denied or disobeyed God’s plan.


Now, in vv. 11-13 , Job proceeds to describe his hopeless condition. In so doing, he is continuing his defense of his despair and lament. The section begins with these rhetorical questions in which Job affirms that he does not have the strength to wait for the blessings that Eliphaz is talking about.


The questions imply negative answers. Job is saying that it would take great strength to hold up under these afflictions, but he is only flesh and bone. The sufferings have almost completely overwhelmed him. To endure all of this to the end he would need a strength he does not have.


Here the brothers are all his relatives as well as these intimate friends of Job. In contrast to what a friend should do (show kindness/loyalty), these friends have provided no support whatsoever.


If the term “paths” (referring to the brook) is the subject, then this verb would mean it dies in the desert; if caravaneers are intended, then when they find no water they perish. The point in the argument would be the same in either case. Job is saying that his friends are like this water, and he like the caravaneer was looking for refreshment, but found only that the brook had dried up.


Tema is the area of the oasis SE of the head of the Gulf of Aqaba; Sheba is in South Arabia. In Job 1:15 the Sabeans were raiders; here they are traveling merchants.


For the next two verses Job lashes out in sarcasm against his friends. If he had asked for charity, for their wealth, he might have expected their cold response. But all he wanted was sympathy and understanding (H. H. Rowley, Job [NCBC], 63).


The word for “worms” ( רִמָּה , rimmah , a collective noun), is usually connected with rotten food ( Exod 16:24 ), or the grave ( Isa 14:11 ). Job’s disease is a malignant ulcer of some kind that causes the rotting of the flesh. One may recall that both Antiochus Epiphanes (2 Macc 9:9) and Herod Agrippa ( Acts 12:23 ) were devoured by such worms in their diseases.


The first five verses described the painfulness of his malady, his life; now, in vv. 6-10 he will focus on the brevity of his life, and its extinction with death. He introduces the subject with “my days,” a metonymy for his whole life and everything done on those days. He does not mean individual days – they drag on endlessly.


The shuttle is the part which runs through the meshes of the web. In Judg 16:14 it is a loom (see BDB 71 s.v. אֶרֶג ), but here it must be the shuttle. Hezekiah uses the imagery of the weaver, the loom, and the shuttle for the brevity of life (see Isa 38:12 ). The LXX used, “My life is lighter than a word.”


Job is probably turning here to God, as is clear from v. 11 on. The NIV supplies the word “God” for clarification. It was God who breathed breath into man’s nostrils ( Gen 2:7 ), and so God is called to remember that man is but a breath.


The meaning of the verse is that God will relent, but it will be too late. God now sees him with a hostile eye; when he looks for him, or looks upon him in friendliness, it will be too late.


It is not correct to try to draw theological implications from this statement or the preceding verse (Rashi said Job was denying the resurrection). Job is simply stating that when people die they are gone – they do not return to this present life on earth. Most commentators and theologians believe that theological knowledge was very limited at such an early stage, so they would not think it possible for Job to have bodily resurrection in view. (See notes on ch. 14 and 19:25-27 .)


“Mouth” here is metonymical for what he says – he will not withhold his complaints. Peake notes that in this section Job comes very close to doing what Satan said he would do. If he does not curse God to his face, he certainly does cast off restraints to his lament. But here Job excuses himself in advance of the lament.


Sleep is the recourse of the troubled and unhappy. Here “bed” is metonymical for sleep. Job expects sleep to give him the comfort that his friends have not.


The amazing thing is the regularity of the testing. Job is at first amazed that God would visit him; but even more is he amazed that God is testing him every moment. The employment of a chiasm with the two temporal adverbial phrases as the central elements emphasizes the regularity.


Job is not here saying that he has sinned; rather, he is posing the hypothetical condition – if he had sinned, what would that do to God? In other words, he has not really injured God.


In the Bible God is often described as watching over people to protect them from danger (see Deut 32:10 ; Ps 31:23 ). However, here it is a hostile sense, for God may detect sin and bring it to judgment.


“These things” refers to all of Job’s speech, the general drift of which seems to Bildad to question the justice of God.


Bildad is not calling for Job to trace through the learning of antiquity, but of the most recent former generation. Hebrews were fond of recalling what the “fathers” had taught, for each generation recalled what their fathers had taught.


H. H. Rowley observes the use of the words for plants that grow in Egypt and suspects that Bildad either knew Egypt or knew that much wisdom came from Egypt. The first word refers to papyrus, which grows to a height of six feet (so the verb means “to grow tall; to grow high”). The second word refers to the reed grass that grows on the banks of the river (see Gen 41:2, 18 ).


The idea is that as the plant begins to flower, but before it is to be cut down, there is no sign of withering or decay in it. But if the water is withdrawn, it will wither sooner than any other herb. The point Bildad will make of this is that when people rebel against God and his grace is withheld, they perish more swiftly than the water reed.


The second half of the verse is very clear. What the godless person relies on for security is as fragile as a spider’s web – he may as well have nothing. The people of the Middle East view the spider’s web as the frailest of all “houses.”


The idea is that he grabs hold of the house, not to hold it up, but to hold himself up or support himself. But it cannot support him. This idea applies to both the spider’s web and the false security of the pagan.


As with the tree, so with the godless man – his place will soon be taken by another.


This is the description that the book gave to Job at the outset, a description that he deserved according to God’s revelation. The theme “God will not reject the blameless man” becomes Job’s main point (see 9:20,21; 10:3 ).


The idiom “to grasp the hand” of someone means to support or help the person.


“Laughter” (and likewise “gladness”) will here be metonymies of effect or adjunct, being put in place of the reason for the joy – restoration.


These verses show several points of similarity with the style of the Book of Psalms. “Those who hate you” and the “evil-doers” are fairly common words to describe the ungodly in the Psalms. “Those who hate you” are enemies of the righteous man because of the parallelism in the verse. By this line Bildad is showing Job that he and his friends are not among those who are his enemies, and that Job himself is really among the righteous. It is an appealing way to end the discourse. See further G. W. Anderson, “Enemies and Evil-doers in the Book of Psalms,” BJRL 48 (1965/66): 18-29.


The interrogative is used to express what is an impossibility.


The point of Job’s rhetorical question is that man cannot be justified as against God, because God is too powerful and too clever – he controls the universe. He is discussing now the question that Eliphaz raised in 4:17 . Peake observes that Job is raising the question of whether something is right because God says it is right, or that God declares it right because it is right.


The words אַמִּיץ (’ ammits ) and כֹּחַ ( koakh ) are synonyms, the first meaning “sturdy; mighty; robust,” and the second “strength.” It too can be interpreted as a genitive of specification – God is mighty with respect to his power. But that comes close to expressing a superlative idea (like “song of songs” or “anger of his wrath”).


This line beginning with the relative pronoun can either be read as a parallel description of God, or it can be subordinated by the relative pronoun to the first (“they do not know who overturned them”).


Shakes the earth out of its place probably refers to earthquakes, although some commentators protest against this in view of the idea of the pillars. In the ancient world the poetical view of the earth is that it was a structure on pillars, with water around it and under it. In an earthquake the pillars were shaken, and the earth moved.


The Hebrew has עָשׁ (’ ash ), although in 38:32 it is עַיִשׁ (’ ayish ). This has been suggested to be Aldebaran, a star in the constellation Taurus, but there have been many other suggestions put forward by the commentaries.


There is more certainty for the understanding of this word as Orion , even though there is some overlap of the usage of the words in the Bible. In classical literature we have the same stereotypical reference to these three (see E. Dhorme, Job , 131).


The identification of this as the Pleiades is accepted by most (the Vulgate has “Hyades”). In classical Greek mythology, the seven Pleiades were seven sisters of the Hyades who were pursued by Orion until they were changed into stars by Zeus. The Greek myth is probably derived from an older Semitic myth.


Like the mountains, Job knows that God has passed by and caused him to shake and tremble, but he cannot understand or perceive the reasons.


The meaning of the line is that God’s anger will continue until it has accomplished its purpose ( 23:13-14 ).


“Rahab” is not to be confused with the harlot of the same name from Jericho. “Rahab” is identified with Tiamat of the Babylonian creation epic, or Leviathan of the Canaanite myths. It is also used in parallelism to the sea ( 26:12 ), or the Red Sea ( Ps 74:13 ), and so comes to symbolize Egypt ( Isa 30:7 ). In the Babylonian Creation Epic there is reference to the helpers of Tiamat. In the Bible the reference is only to the raging sea, which the Lord controlled at creation.


In a legal controversy with God it would be essential to choose the correct words very carefully (humanly speaking); but the calmness and presence of mind to do that would be shattered by the overwhelming terror of God’s presence.


The idea of “answer” in this line is that of responding to the summons, i.e., appearing in court. This preterite and the perfect before it have the nuance of hypothetical perfects since they are in conditional clauses (GKC 330 §111. x ). D. J. A. Clines ( Job [WBC], 219) translates literally, “If I should call and he should answer.”


The meaning of the word is “to satiate; to fill,” as in “drink to the full, be satisfied.” Job is satiated – in the negative sense – with bitterness. There is no room for more.


This bold anthropomorphism means that by his treatment of the despair of the innocent, God is in essence mocking them.


Job uses this word to refute Eliphaz; cf. 4:7 .


The details of the verse are not easy to explain, but the meaning of the whole verse seems to be about the miscarriage of justice in the courts and the failure of God to do anything about it.


That these words are strong, if not wild, is undeniable. But Job is only taking the implications of his friends’ speeches to their logical conclusion – if God dispenses justice in the world, and there is no justice, then God is behind it all. The LXX omitted these words, perhaps out of reverence for God.


Job returns to the thought of the brevity of his life ( 7:6 ). But now the figure is the swift runner instead of the weaver’s shuttle.


See Job 7:15 ; see also the translation by G. Perles, “I tremble in every nerve” (“The Fourteenth Edition of Gesenius-Buhl’s Dictionary,” JQR 18 [1905/06]: 383-90).


A. B. Davidson ( Job , 73) appropriately notes that Job’s afflictions were the proof of his guilt in the estimation of God. If God held him innocent, he would remove the afflictions.


The idiom of “lay his hand on the two of us” may come from a custom of a judge putting his hands on the two in order to show that he is taking them both under his jurisdiction. The expression can also be used for protection (see Ps 139:5 ). Job, however, has a problem in that the other party is God, who himself will be arbiter in judgment.


The “rod” is a symbol of the power of God to decree whatever judgments and afflictions fall upon people.


The verb translated “see” could also include the figurative category of perceive as well. The answer to Job’s question is found in 1 Sam 16:7 : “The Lord sees not as a man sees; man looks on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart.”


In this verse Job asks whether or not God is liable to making mistakes or errors of judgment. He wonders if God has no more insight than his friends have. Of course, the questions are rhetorical, for he knows otherwise. But his point is that God seems to be making a big mistake here.


“These things” refers to the affliction that God had brought on Job. They were concealed by God from the beginning.


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.


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.


The verbs “guilty” and “innocent” are actually the verbs “I am wicked,” and “I am righteous.”


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).


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.


This means “If only I had never come into existence.”


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 NIV offered more of an interpretive paraphrase: “before I go to the place of no return.”


Job had expressed his eagerness to challenge God; Zophar here wishes that God would take up that challenge.


This is the posture of prayer (see Isa 1:15 ). The expression means “spread out your palms,” probably meaning that the one praying would fall to his knees, put his forehead to the ground, and spread out his hands in front of him on the ground.


It is interesting to note in the book that the resolution of Job’s trouble did not come in the way that Zophar prescribed it.


The sarcasm of Job admits their claim to wisdom, as if no one has it besides them. But the rest of his speech will show that they do not have a monopoly on it.


The line is perhaps best understood as describing one who thinks he is invested with the power of God.


As J. E. Hartley ( Job [NICOT], 216) observes, in this section Job argues that respected tradition “must not be accepted uncritically.”


The expression “has done this” probably refers to everything that has been discussed, namely, the way that God in his wisdom rules over the world, but specifically it refers to the infliction of suffering in the world.


A. B. Davidson ( Job , 91) says, “These attributes of God’s [ sic ] confound and bring to nought everything bearing the same name among men.”


The verse is focusing on the two extremes of drought and flood. Both are described as being under the power of God.


The judges, like the counselors, are nobles in the cities. God may reverse their lot, either by captivity or by shame, and they cannot resist his power.


The rise and fall of nations, which does not seem to be governed by any moral principle, is for Job another example of God’s arbitrary power.


Chapter records Job’s charges against his friends for the way they used their knowledge (1-5), his warning that God would find out their insincerity (6-12), and his pleading of his cause to God in which he begs for God to remove his hand from him and that he would not terrify him with his majesty and that he would reveal the sins that caused such great suffering (13-28).


Job first will argue with his friends. His cause that he will plead with God begins in v. 13 . The same root יָכַח ( yakhakh , “argue, plead”) is used here as in v. 3 b (see note). Synonymous parallelism between the two halves of this verse supports this translation.


The idiom used here is “Will you lift up his face?” Here Job is being very sarcastic, for this expression usually means that a judge is taking a bribe. Job is accusing them of taking God’s side.


The use of the word “in secret” or “secretly” suggests that what they do is a guilty action ( 31:27 a).


The word translated “his majesty” or “his splendor” ( שְׂאֵתוֹ , sÿ ’ eto ) forms a play on the word “show partiality” ( תִּשָּׂאוּן , tissa ’ un ) in the last verse. They are both from the verb נָשַׂא ( nasa ’, “to lift up”).


Any defense made with clay would crumble on impact.


The fact that Job will dare to come before God and make his case is evidence – to Job at least – that he is innocent.


Job is confident that he will be vindicated. But if someone were to show up and have proof of sin against him, he would be silent and die (literally “keep silent and expire”).


This is a common, but bold, anthropomorphism. The fact that the word used is כַּף ( kaf , properly “palm”) rather than יָד ( yad , “hand,” with the sense of power) may stress Job’s feeling of being trapped or confined (see also Ps 139:5, 7 ).


Job uses three words for sin here: “iniquities,” which means going astray, erring; “sins,” which means missing the mark or the way; and “transgressions,” which are open rebellions. They all emphasize different kinds of sins and different degrees of willfulness. Job is demanding that any sins be brought up. Both Job and his friends agree that great afflictions would have to indicate great offenses – he wants to know what they are.


The anthropomorphism of “hide the face” indicates a withdrawal of favor and an outpouring of wrath (see Ps 30:7 [8]; Isa 54:8 ; Ps 27:9 ). Sometimes God “hides his face” to make himself invisible or aloof (see 34:29 ). In either case, if God covers his face it is because he considers Job an enemy – at least this is what Job thinks.


Job acknowledges sins in his youth, but they are trifling compared to the suffering he now endures. Job thinks it unjust of God to persecute him now for those – if that is what is happening.


The point being made is that the entire human race is contaminated by sin, and therefore cannot produce something pure. In this context, since man is born of woman, it is saying that the woman and the man who is brought forth from her are impure. See Ps 51:5 ; Isa 6:5 ; and Gen 6:5 .


The figure now changes to a tree for the discussion of the finality of death. At least the tree will sprout again when it is cut down. Why, Job wonders, should what has been granted to the tree not also be granted to humans?


Sheol in the Bible refers to the place where the dead go. But it can have different categories of meaning: death in general, the grave, or the realm of the departed spirits [hell]. A. Heidel shows that in the Bible when hell is in view the righteous are not there – it is the realm of the departed spirits of the wicked. When the righteous go to Sheol, the meaning is usually the grave or death. See chapter in A. Heidel, The Gilgamesh Epic and the Old Testament Parallels .


The idea would be that God would sometime in the future call Job into his fellowship again when he longed for the work of his hands (cf. Job 10:3 ).


The hope for life after death is supported now by a description of the severity with which God deals with people in this life.


Compare Ps 130:3-4 , which says, “If you should mark iniquity O Lord , Lord, who could stand? But with you there is forgiveness, in order that you might be feared.”


The meaning for Job is that death shatters all of man’s hopes for the continuation of life.


Death is separation from the living, from the land of the living. And ignorance of what goes on in this life, good or bad, is part of death. See also Eccl 9:5-6 , which makes a similar point.


In this verse Job is expressing the common view of life beyond death, namely, that in Sheol there is no contact with the living, only separation, but in Sheol there is a conscious awareness of the dreary existence.


The word תַּנְחֻמוֹת ( tankhumot ) occurs here and only in Job 21:34 . The words of comfort and consolation that they have been offering to Job are here said to be “of God.” But Job will call them miserable comforters ( 16:2 ).


The question here is whether the reference is to material “heavens” (as in Exod 24:10 and Job 25:5 ), or to heavenly beings. The latter seems preferable in this context.


Man commits evil with the same ease and facility as he drinks in water – freely and in large quantities.


Eliphaz probably thinks that Edom was the proverbial home of wisdom, and so the reference here would be to his own people. If, as many interpret, the biblical writer is using these accounts to put Yahwistic ideas into the discussion, then the reference would be to Canaan at the time of the fathers. At any rate, the tradition of wisdom to Eliphaz has not been polluted by foreigners, but has retained its pure and moral nature from antiquity.


In the context of these arguments, “darkness” probably refers to calamity, and so the wicked can expect a calamity that is final.


The symbol of the outstretched hand is the picture of attempting to strike someone, or shaking a fist at someone; it is a symbol of a challenge or threat (see Isa 5:25; 9:21; 10:4 ).


This verse tells us that he is not in any condition to fight, because he is bloated and fat from luxurious living.


K&D 11:266 rightly explains that these are not cities that he, the wicked, has destroyed, but that were destroyed by a judgment on wickedness. Accordingly, Eliphaz is saying that the wicked man is willing to risk such a curse in his confidence in his prosperity (see further H. H. Rowley, Job [NCBC], 113).


The point is that like the tree the wicked man shows signs of life but produces nothing valuable. The olive tree will have blossoms in the years that it produces no olives, and so eventually drops the blossoms.


This may refer to the fire that struck Job (cf. 1:16 ).


The action is a sign of mockery (see Ps 22:7 [8]; Isa 37:22 ; Matt 27:39 ).


The figure used now is that of a wild beast. God’s affliction of Job is compared to the attack of such an animal. Cf. Amos 1:11 .


Job does not refer here to his friends, but more likely to the wicked men who set about to destroy him and his possessions, or to the rabble in ch. .


The language is hyperbolic; Job is saying that the sackcloth he has put on in his lamentable state is now stuck to his skin as if he had stitched it into the skin. It is now a habitual garment that he never takes off.


A. B. Davidson ( Job , 122) notes that spontaneous and repeated weeping is one of the symptoms of elephantiasis.


See Job 3:5 . Just as joy brings light and life to the eyes, sorrow and suffering bring darkness. The “eyelids” here would be synecdoche, reflecting the whole facial expression as sad and sullen.


Job knows that he will die, and that his death, signified here by blood on the ground, will cry out for vindication.


The witness in heaven must be God, to whom the cries and prayers come. Job’s dilemma is serious, but common to the human experience: the hostility of God toward him is baffling, but he is conscious of his innocence and can call on God to be his witness.


The idiom is “to strike the hand.” Here the wording is a little different, “Who is he that will strike himself into my hand?”


The pronoun their refers to Job’s friends. They have not pledged security for him because God has hidden or sealed off their understanding.


It is natural to assume that this verse continues the interrogative clause of the preceding verse.


Bildad is asking if Job thinks the whole moral order of the world should be interrupted for his sake, that he may escape the punishment for wickedness.


The lamp or the light can have a number of uses in the Bible. Here it is probably an implied metaphor for prosperity and happiness, for the good life itself.


Bildad is referring here to all the things that afflict a person and cause terror. It would then be a metonymy of effect, the cause being the afflictions.


This is a reference to death, the king of all terrors. Other identifications are made in the commentaries: Mot, the Ugaritic god of death; Nergal of the Babylonians; Molech of the Canaanites, the one to whom people sent emissaries.


The number “ten” is a general expression to convey that this has been done often (see Gen 31:7 ; Num 14:22 ).


Job’s friends have been using his shame, his humiliation in all his sufferings, as proof against him in their case.


The images here are fairly common in the Bible. God has stripped away Job’s honorable reputation. The crown is the metaphor for the esteem and dignity he once had. See 29:14 ; Isa 61:3 ; see Ps 8:5 [6].


Now the metaphor changes again. Since God thinks of Job as an enemy, he attacks with his troops, builds the siege ramp, and camps around him to besiege him. All the power and all the forces are at God’s disposal in his attack of Job.


The use of the verb “rise” is probably fairly literal. When Job painfully tries to get up and walk, the little boys make fun of him.


Strahan comments, “The whole tragedy of the book is packed into these extraordinary words.”


The idiom of eating the pieces of someone means “slander” in Aramaic (see Dan 3:8 ), Arabic and Akkadian.


There is some question concerning the use of the lead. It surely cannot be a second description of the tool, for a lead tool would be of no use in chiseling words into a rock. It was Rashi’s idea, followed by Dillmann and Duhm, that lead was run into the cut-out letters. The suggestion that they wrote on lead tablets does not seem to fit the verse (cf. NIV). See further A. Baker, “The Strange Case of Job’s Chisel,” CBQ 31 (1969): 370-79.


This line means that he dies prematurely – at the height of his youthful vigor.


The wicked person holds on to evil as long as he can, savoring the taste or the pleasure of it.


Some commentators suggest that the ancients believed that serpents secreted poison in the gall bladder, or that the poison came from the gall bladder of serpents. In any case, there is poison (from the root “bitter”) in the system of the wicked person; it may simply be saying it is that type of poison.


To take the possessions of another person is hereby compared to sucking poison from a serpent – it will kill eventually.


This word is often translated “curds.” It is curdled milk, possibly a type of butter.


The expression is “according to the wealth of his exchange.” This means he cannot enjoy whatever he gained in his business deals. Some mss have בּ ( bet ) preposition, making the translation easier; but this is evidence of a scribal correction.


The point throughout is that insatiable greed and ruthless plundering to satisfy it will be recompensed with utter and complete loss.


The point seems to be that if his complaint were merely against men he might expect sympathy from other men; but no one dares offer him sympathy when his complaint is against God. So he will give free expression to his spirit (H. H. Rowley, Job [NCBC], 147).


A. B. Davidson ( Job , 154) clarifies that Job’s question is of a universal scope. In the government of God, why do the wicked exist at all? The verb could be translated “continue to live.”


In 9:34 Job was complaining that there was no umpire to remove God’s rod from him, but here he observes no such rod is on the wicked.


Even though their life seems so good in contrast to his own plight, Job cannot and will not embrace their principles – “far be from me their counsel.”


The question implies the answer will be “vanished” or “gone.”


Of course the point is that God does not charge Job because he is righteous; the point is he must be unrighteous.


Eliphaz is giving to Job the thoughts and words of the pagans, for they say, “How does God know, and is there knowledge in the Most High?” (see Ps 73:11; 94:11 ).


The word is “circle; dome”; here it is the dome that covers the earth, beyond which God sits enthroned. A. B. Davidson ( Job , 165) suggests “on the arch of heaven” that covers the earth.


The idea suggested here is that God is not only far off, but he is unconcerned as he strolls around heaven – this is what Eliphaz says Job means.


In Ps 2:4 it was God who mocked the wicked by judging them.


The text has “the left hand,” the Semitic idiom for directions. One faces the rising sun, and so left is north, right is south.


Because of the violence and oppression of the wicked, the poor and needy, the widows and orphans, all are deprived of their rights and forced out of the ways and into hiding just to survive.


The point should not be missed – amidst abundant harvests, carrying sheaves about, they are still going hungry.


The point is that he is like a thief in that he works during the night, just before the daylight, when the advantage is all his and the victim is most vulnerable.


The wicked person is described here as a spray or foam upon the waters, built up in the agitation of the waters but dying away swiftly.


The meaning of the verse is that God may allow the wicked to rest in comfort and security, but all the time he is watching them closely with the idea of bringing judgment on them.


This marks the end of the disputed section, taken here to be a quotation by Job of their sentiments.


The line says that God “makes peace in his heights.” The “heights” are usually interpreted to mean the highest heaven. There may be a reference here to combat in the spiritual world between angels and Satan. The context will show that God has a heavenly host at his disposal, and nothing in heaven or on earth can shatter his peace. “Peace” here could also signify the whole order he establishes.


Bildad here does not come up with new expressions; rather, he simply uses what Eliphaz had said (see Job 4:17-19 and 15:14-16 ).


This is the section, Job 26:5-14 , that many conclude makes better sense coming from the friend. But if it is attributed to Job, then he is showing he can surpass them in his treatise of the greatness of God.


The Hebrew word is צָפוֹן ( tsafon ). Some see here a reference to Mount Zaphon of the Ugaritic texts, the mountain that Baal made his home. The Hebrew writers often equate and contrast Mount Zion with this proud mountain of the north. Of course, the word just means north, and so in addition to any connotations for pagan mythology, it may just represent the northern skies – the stars. Since the parallel line speaks of the earth, that is probably all that was intended in this particular context.


There is an allusion to the creation account, for this word is תֹּהוּ ( tohu ), translated “without form” in Gen 1:2 .


Buttenwieser suggests that Job had outgrown the idea of the earth on pillars, and was beginning to see it was suspended in space. But in v. 11 he will still refer to the pillars.


H. H. Rowley ( Job [NCBC], 173) says these are the great mountains, perceived to hold up the sky.


The idea here is that when the earth quakes, or when there is thunder in the heavens, these all represent God’s rebuke, for they create terror.


Here again there are possible mythological allusions or polemics. The god Yam, “Sea,” was important in Ugaritic as a god of chaos. And Rahab is another name for the monster of the deep (see Job 9:13 ).


Here too is a reference to pagan views indirectly. The fleeing serpent was a designation for Leviathan, whom the book will simply describe as an animal, but the pagans thought to be a monster of the deep. God’s power over nature is associated with defeat of pagan gods (see further W. F. Albright, Yahweh and the Gods of Canaan ; idem, BASOR 53 [1941]: 39).


Of course, he means like his enemy when he is judged, not when he is thriving in prosperity and luxury.


As the book is now arranged, this chapter forms an additional speech by Job, although some argue that it comes from the writer of the book. The mood of the chapter is not despair, but wisdom; it anticipates the divine speeches in the end of the book. This poem, like many psalms in the Bible, has a refrain (vv. 12 and 20 ). These refrains outline the chapter, giving three sections: there is no known road to wisdom (1-11); no price can buy it (12-19); and only God has it, and only by revelation can man posses it (20-28).


The text appears at first to be saying that by opening up a mine shaft, or by taking lights down below, the miner dispels the darkness. But the clause might be more general, meaning that man goes deep into the earth as if it were day.


This is a description of the mining procedures. Dangling suspended from a rope would be a necessary part of the job of going up and down the shafts.


The verse has been properly understood, on the whole, as comparing the earth above and all its produce with the upheaval down below.


H. H. Rowley ( Job [NCBC], 181) suggests that if it is lapis lazuli, then the dust of gold would refer to the particles of iron pyrite found in lapis lazuli which glitter like gold.


The kind of bird mentioned here is debated. The LXX has “vulture,” and so some commentaries follow that. The emphasis on the sight favors the view that it is the falcon.


The תְּהוֹם ( tÿhom ) is the “deep” of Gen 1:2 , the abyss or primordial sea. It was always understood to be a place of darkness and danger. As remote as it is, it asserts that wisdom is not found there (personification). So here we have the abyss and the sea, then death and destruction – but they are not the places that wisdom resides.


Now that the debate with his friends is over, Job concludes with a soliloquy, just as he had begun with one. Here he does not take into account his friends or their arguments. The speech has three main sections: Job’s review of his former circumstances ( 29:1-25 ); Job’s present misery ( 30:1-31 ); and Job’s vindication of his life ( 31:1-40 ).


Lamp and light are symbols of God’s blessings of life and all the prosperous and good things it includes.


In the public square . The area referred to here should not be thought of in terms of modern western dimensions. The wide space, plaza, or public square mentioned here is the open area in the gate complex where legal and business matters were conducted. The area could be as small as a few hundred square feet.


The word “father” does not have a wide range of meanings in the OT. But there are places that it is metaphorical, especially in a legal setting like this where the poor need aid.


The analogy is that they received his words eagerly as the dry ground opens to receive the rains.


Job is mocked by young fellows who come from low extraction. They mocked their elders and their betters. The scorn is strong here – dogs were despised as scavengers.


People throw off all restraint in my presence means that when people saw how God afflicted Job, robbing him of his influence and power, then they turned on him with unrestrained insolence (H. H. Rowley, Job [NCBC], 193).


See Job 19:12 .


The implication from the sentence is that this is a cry to God for help. The sudden change from third person (v. 19 ) to second person (v. 20 ) is indicative of the intense emotion of the sufferer.


The verb is simple, but the interpretation difficult. In this verse it probably means he stands up in prayer ( Jer 15:1 ), but it could mean that he makes his case to God. Others suggest a more figurative sense, like the English expression “stand pat,” meaning “remain silent” (see Job 29:8 ).


Here Job changes the metaphor again, to the driving storm. God has sent his storms, and Job is blown away.


The point of this figure is that Job’s cries of lament are like the howls and screeches of these animals, not that he lives with them. In Job 39:13 the female ostrich is called “the wailer.”


The verbs “walk” and “hasten” (referring in the verse to the foot) are used metaphorically for the manner of life Job lived.


The meaning is “been led by what my eyes see.”


Here is the apodosis, the imprecation Job pronounces on himself if he has done any of these things just listed.


The law required people to help their enemies if they could ( Exod 23:4 ; also Prov 20:22 ). But often in the difficulties that ensued, they did exult over their enemies’ misfortune ( Pss 54:7; 59:10 [11], etc.). But Job lived on a level of purity that few ever reach. Duhm said, “If chapter is the crown of all ethical developments of the O.T., verse 29 is the jewel in that crown.”


The line is difficult to sort out. Job is saying it is sinful “if his men have never said, ‘O that there was one who has not been satisfied from his food.’” If they never said that, it would mean there were people out there who needed to be satisfied with his food.


Some commentators suggest taking the meaning here to be “as Adam,” referring to the Paradise story of the sin and denial.


Many commentators place vv. 38-40 b at the end of v. 34 , so that there is no return to these conditional clauses after his final appeal.


There are now four speeches from another friend of Job, Elihu. But Job does not reply to any of these, nor does the Lord . The speeches show a knowledge of the debate that has gone on, but they take a different approach entirely. Elihu’s approach is that suffering is a discipline from God, to teach his people. In other words, Job was suffering to vindicate God’s confidence in him. His speeches are an interesting part of the book, but they too are irrelevant to Job’s actual case. In the first speech, there is a short introduction ( 32:1-5 ), and then the speech proper with these sections: Elihu will speak because his youth is wiser ( 32:6-14 ), and his friends arguments failed ( 32:15-22 ); he calls for Job’s attention ( 33:1-7 ), claims Job’s case is wrong ( 33:8-13 ), and Job’s argument that God does not answer is false ( 33:14-28 ), and then makes an appeal to Job ( 33:29-33 ). It becomes evident that Elihu correctly identified Job’s determination to maintain his integrity at God’s expense as the primary problem in at least the latter stages of the dialogues ( 32:1-3; 34:37; 35:16 ; cf. 38:2; 40:8; 42:3 ). Elihu was respectful of his elders ( 32:4 ), but remained uninfected by their error ( 32:14 ). He sought to maintain impartiality ( 32:21-22 ) and to offer true wisdom ( 33:33 ), believed like Job that a mediator existed ( 33:23-24 ), and desired Job’s vindication ( 33:32 ). In addition, Elihu focused on vindicating God’s actions ( 34:12; 35:10-11; 36:2-3, 22-26 ) and announced the coming theophany ( 37:1-5, 22 ). It appears that he was not included in the divine condemnation of Job’s friends ( 42:7-9 ) and was excluded from Job’s prayer of intercession ( 42:8-10 ) – both perhaps implying divine approval of his behavior and words.


Elihu now will give another reason why he will speak – the arguments of these friends failed miserably. But before he gets to his argument, he will first qualify his authority.


H. H. Rowley ( Job [NCBC], 210) says, “The self-importance of Elihu is boundless, and he is the master of banality.” He adds that whoever wrote these speeches this way clearly intended to expose the character rather than exalt him.


See Job 9:21; 10:7; 23:7; 27:4 ; ch. .


See Job 10:13 ff.; 19:6 ff.; and 13:24 .


See Job 13:27 .


The verse is describing the way God can preserve someone from dying by sending a messenger (translated here as “angel”), who could be human or angelic. This messenger will interpret/mediate God’s will. By “one … out of a thousand” Elihu could have meant either that one of the thousands of messengers at God’s disposal might be sent or that the messenger would be unique (see Eccl 7:28 ; and cp. Job 9:3 ).


This verse and v. 28 should be compared with Ps 49:7-9, 15 (8-10, 16 HT) where the same basic vocabulary and concepts are employed.


See note on “him” in v. 24 .


Elihu will repeat these instructions for Job to listen, over and over in painful repetition. See note on the heading to 32:1 .


Elihu means “choose after careful examination.”


The point is that if God does not listen to those who do not turn to him, how much less likely is he to turn to one who complains against him.


This very lengthy speech can be broken down into the following sections: the discipline of suffering ( 36:2-25 ), the work and wisdom of God ( 36:26 – 37:24 ).


The phrase “wise of heart” was used in Job 9:4 in a negative sense.


This is the culmination of it all, the revelation of the Lord to Job. Most interpreters see here the style and content of the author of the book, a return to the beginning of the book. Here the Lord speaks to Job and displays his sovereign power and glory. Job has lived through the suffering – without cursing God. He has held to his integrity, and nowhere regretted it. But he was unaware of the real reason for the suffering, and will remain unaware throughout these speeches. God intervenes to resolve the spiritual issues that surfaced. Job was not punished for sin. And Job’s suffering had not cut him off from God. In the end the point is that Job cannot have the knowledge to make the assessments he made. It is wiser to bow in submission and adoration of God than to try to judge him. The first speech of God has these sections: the challenge ( 38:1-3 ), the surpassing mysteries of earth and sky beyond Job’s understanding (4-38), and the mysteries of animal and bird life that surpassed his understanding ( 38:39 – 39:30 ).


This is not the storm described by Elihu – in fact, the Lord ignores Elihu. The storm is a common accompaniment for a theophany (see Ezek 1:4 ; Nah 1:3 ; Zech 9:14 ).


The referent of “counsel” here is not the debate between Job and the friends, but the purposes of God (see Ps 33:10 ; Prov 19:21 ; Isa 19:17 ). Dhorme translates it “Providence.”


The world was conceived of as having bases and pillars, but these poetic descriptions should not be pressed too far (e.g., see Ps 24:2 , which may be worded as much for its polemics against Canaanite mythology as anything).


The expression “morning stars” ( Heb “stars of the morning”) is here placed in parallelism to the angels, “the sons of God.” It may refer to the angels under the imagery of the stars, or, as some prefer, it may poetically include all creation. There is a parallel also with the foundation of the temple which was accompanied by song (see Ezra 3:10,11 ). But then the account of the building of the original tabernacle was designed to mirror creation (see M. Fishbane, Biblical Text and Texture ).


The poetic image is that darkness or night is like a blanket that covers the earth, and at dawn it is taken by the edges and shaken out. Since the wicked function under the cover of night, they are included in the shaking when the dawn comes up.


The verse needs to be understood in the context: as the light shines in the dawn, the features of the earth take on a recognizable shape or form. The language is phenomenological.


What is active at night, the violence symbolized by the raised arm, is broken with the dawn. G. R. Driver thought the whole verse referred to stars, and that the arm is the navigator’s term for the line of stars (“Two astronomical passages in the Old Testament,” JTS 4 [1953]: 208-12).


Snow and ice are thought of as being in store, brought out by God for specific purposes, such as times of battle (see Josh 10:11 ; Exod 9:2 ff.; Isa 28:17 ; Isa 30:30 ; and Ps 18:12 [13]).


The terms translated war and battle are different Hebrew words, but both may be translated “war” or “battle” depending on the context.


See Job 9:9 .


The animal is happier in open countryside than in a busy town, and on its own rather than being driven by a herdsman.


This verb, “to deal harshly; to harden; to treat cruelly,” is used for hardening the heart elsewhere (see Isa 63:17 ).


The same ideas are found in Joel 2:4 . The leaping motion is compared to the galloping of the horse.


The speech can be divided into three parts: the invitation to Job to assume the throne and rule the world ( 40:7-14 ), the description of Behemoth ( 40:15-24 ), and the description of Leviathan ( 41:1-34 ).


The next ten verses are devoted to a portrayal of Behemoth (the name means “beast” in Hebrew). It does not fit any of the present material very well, and so many think the section is a later addition. Its style is more like that of a textbook. Moreover, if the animal is a real animal (the usual suggestion is the hippopotamus), then the location of such an animal is Egypt and not Palestine. Some have identified these creatures Behemoth and Leviathan as mythological creatures (Gunkel, Pope). Others point out that these creatures could have been dinosaurs (P. J. Maarten, NIDOTTE , 2:780; H. M. Morris, The Remarkable Record of Job , 115-22). Most would say they are real animals, but probably mythologized by the pagans. So the pagan reader would receive an additional impact from this point about God’s sovereignty over all nature.


By form the word is the feminine plural of the Hebrew word for “beast.” Here it is an abstract word – a title.


Beginning with 41:1 , the verse numbers through 41:9 in the English Bible differ from the verse numbers in the Hebrew text ( BHS ), with 41:1 ET = 40:25 HT, 41:2 ET = 40:26 HT, etc., through 41:34 ET = 41:26 HT. The Hebrew verse numbers in the remainder of the chapter differ from the verse numbers in the English Bible. Beginning with 42:1 the verse numbers in the ET and HT are again the same.


Job 41:9 in the English Bible is 41:1 in the Hebrew text ( BHS) . From here to the end of the chapter the Hebrew verse numbers differ from those in the English Bible, with 41:10 ET = 41:2 HT, 41:11 ET = 41:3 HT, etc. See also the note on 41:1 .


The description is of the animal, not the hunter (or fisherman). Leviathan is so fierce that no one can take him on alone.


The verse seems an intrusion (and so E. Dhorme, H. H. Rowley, and many others change the pronouns to make it refer to the animal). But what the text is saying is that it is more dangerous to confront God than to confront this animal.


For the animal, the image is that of pent-up breath with water in a hot steam jet coming from its mouth, like a stream of fire in the rays of the sun. The language is hyperbolic, probably to reflect the pagan ideas of the dragon of the deep in a polemical way – they feared it as a fire breathing monster, but in reality it might have been a steamy crocodile.


The idea is either that the sea is stirred up like the foam from beating the ingredients together, or it is the musk-smell that is the point of comparison.


This statement does not imply there was a vision. He is simply saying that this experience of God was real and personal. In the past his knowledge of God was what he had heard – hearsay. This was real.


The difference between what they said and what Job said, therefore, has to do with truth. Job was honest, spoke the truth, poured out his complaints, but never blasphemed God. For his words God said he told the truth. He did so with incomplete understanding, and with all the impatience and frustration one might expect. Now the friends, however, did not tell what was right about God. They were not honest; rather, they were self-righteous and condescending. They were saying what they thought should be said, but it was wrong.


The expression here is interesting: “he returned the captivity of Job,” a clause used elsewhere in the Bible of Israel (see e.g., ). Here it must mean “the fortunes of Job,” i.e., what he had lost. There is a good deal of literature on this; for example, see R. Borger, “Zu sub sb(i)t,” ZAW 25 (1954): 315-16; and E. Baumann, ZAW 6 (1929): 17ff.


This gold ring was worn by women in the nose, or men and women in the ear.


The Hebrew name Jemimah means “dove.”


The Hebrew name Keziah means “cassia.”


The Hebrew name Keren-Happuch means “horn of eye-paint.”


. In this wisdom psalm the author advises his audience to reject the lifestyle of the wicked and to be loyal to God. The psalmist contrasts the destiny of the wicked with that of the righteous, emphasizing that the wicked are eventually destroyed while the godly prosper under the Lord’s protective care.


. In this royal psalm the author asserts the special status of the divinely chosen Davidic king and warns the nations and their rulers to submit to the authority of God and his chosen vice-regent.


The expression kings of the earth refers somewhat hyperbolically to the kings who had been conquered by and were subject to the Davidic king.


And terrifies them in his rage. This line focuses on the effect that God’s angry response (see previous line) has on the rebellious kings.


‘You are my son!’ The Davidic king was viewed as God’s “son” (see 2 Sam 7:14 ; Ps 89:26-27 ). The idiom reflects ancient Near Eastern adoption language associated with covenants of grant, by which a lord would reward a faithful subject by elevating him to special status, referred to as “sonship.” Like a son, the faithful subject received an “inheritance,” viewed as an unconditional, eternal gift. Such gifts usually took the form of land and/or an enduring dynasty. See M. Weinfeld, “The Covenant of Grant in the Old Testament and in the Ancient Near East,” JAOS 90 (1970): 184-203, for general discussion and some striking extra-biblical parallels.


I will give you the nations. The Lord promises the Davidic king universal dominion.


Like a potter ’ s jar . Before the Davidic king’s awesome power, the rebellious nations are like fragile pottery.


The speaker here is either the psalmist or the Davidic king, who now addresses the rebellious kings .


Who take shelter in him . “Taking shelter” in the Lord is an idiom for seeking his protection. Seeking his protection presupposes and even demonstrates the subject’s loyalty to the Lord. In the psalms those who “take shelter” in the Lord are contrasted with the wicked and equated with those who love, fear, and serve the Lord ( Pss 5:11-12; 31:17-20; 34:21-22 ).


. The psalmist acknowledges that he is confronted by many enemies (vv. 1-2 ). But, alluding to a divine oracle he has received (vv. 4-5 ), he affirms his confidence in God’s ability to protect him (vv. 3, 6 ) and requests that God make his promise a reality (vv. 7-8 ).


According to Jewish tradition, David offered this prayer when he was forced to flee from Jerusalem during his son Absalom’s attempted coup (see 2 Sam 15:13-17 ).


The function of the Hebrew term סֶלָה ( selah ), transliterated here “ Selah ,” is uncertain. It may be a musical direction of some kind.


His holy hill . That is, Zion (see Pss 2:6; 48:1-2 ). The psalmist recognizes that the Lord dwells in his sanctuary on Mount Zion.


The expression break the teeth may envision violent hand-to hand combat, though it is possible that the enemies are pictured here as a dangerous animal (see Job 29:17 ).


. The psalmist asks God to hear his prayer, expresses his confidence that the Lord will intervene, and urges his enemies to change their ways and place their trust in God. He concludes with another prayer for divine intervention and again affirms his absolute confidence in God’s protection.


The psalmist warns his enemies that they need to tremble with fear before God and repudiate their sinful ways.


Trust in the Lord . The psalmist urges his enemies to make peace with God and become his followers.


. Appealing to God’s justice and commitment to the godly, the psalmist asks the Lord to intervene and deliver him from evildoers.


In the morning is here viewed as the time of prayer ( Pss 59:16; 88:13 ) and/or of deliverance ( Ps 30:5 ).


You hate . The Lord “hates” the wicked in the sense that he despises their wicked character and deeds and actively opposes and judges them for their wickedness. See Ps 11:5 .


But as for me . By placing the first person pronoun at the beginning of the verse, the psalmist highlights the contrast between the evildoers’ actions and destiny, outlined in the preceding verses, with his own.


I will enter your house . The psalmist is confident that God will accept him into his presence, in contrast to the evildoers (see v. 5 ).


Take shelter . “Taking shelter” in the Lord is an idiom for seeking his protection. Seeking his protection presupposes and even demonstrates the subject’s loyalty to the Lord. In the psalms those who “take shelter” in the Lord are contrasted with the wicked and equated with those who love, fear and serve the Lord ( Pss 5:11-12; 31:17-20; 34:21-22 ).


. The psalmist begs the Lord to withdraw his anger and spare his life. Having received a positive response to his prayer, the psalmist then confronts his enemies and describes how they retreat.


Deliver me because of your faithfulness . Though the psalmist is experiencing divine discipline, he realizes that God has made a commitment to him in the past, so he appeals to God’s faithfulness in his request for help.


In his weakened condition the psalmist is vulnerable to the taunts and threats of his enemies .


The Lord has heard . The psalmist’s mood abruptly changes because the Lord responded positively to the lament and petition of vv. 1-7 and promised him deliverance.


. The psalmist asks the Lord to intervene and deliver him from his enemies. He protests his innocence and declares his confidence in God’s justice.


Apparently this individual named Cush was one of David’s enemies.


The Lord judges the nations . In hyperbolic fashion the psalmist pictures the nations assembled around the divine throne (v. 7 a). He urges God to take his rightful place on the throne (v. 7 b) and then pictures him making judicial decisions that vindicate the innocent (see vv. 8-16 ).


. In this hymn to the sovereign creator, the psalmist praises God’s majesty and marvels that God has given mankind dominion over the created order.


Honor and majesty . These terms allude to mankind’s royal status as God’s vice-regents (cf. v. 6 and Gen 1:26-30 ).


Using the poetic device of inclusio, the psalmist ends the psalm the way he began it. The concluding refrain is identical to v. 1 .


. The psalmist, probably speaking on behalf of Israel or Judah, praises God for delivering him from hostile nations. He celebrates God’s sovereignty and justice, and calls on others to join him in boasting of God’s greatness. Many Hebrew mss and the ancient Greek version (LXX) combine Psalms 9 and 10 into a single psalm.


Daughter Zion is an idiomatic title for Jerusalem. It appears frequently in the prophets, but only here in the psalms.


The hostility of the nations against God’s people is their downfall, for it prompts God to intervene and destroy them. See also Ps 7:15-16 .


Rise up, Lord ! …May the nations be judged . The psalm concludes with a petition that the Lord would continue to exercise his justice as he has done in the recent crisis.


. Many Hebrew mss and the ancient Greek version (LXX) combine Psalms 9 and 10 into a single psalm. Taken in isolation, is a petition for help in which the psalmist urges the Lord to deliver him from his dangerous enemies, whom he describes in vivid and terrifying detail. The psalmist concludes with confidence; he is certain that God’s justice will prevail.


Rise up, O Lord ! The psalmist’s mood changes from lament to petition and confidence.


The arm symbolizes the strength of the wicked, which they use to oppress and exploit the weak.


You have heard . The psalmist is confident that God has responded positively to his earlier petitions for divine intervention. The psalmist apparently prayed the words of vv. 16-18 after the reception of an oracle of deliverance (given in response to the confident petition of vv. 12-15 ) or after the Lord actually delivered him from his enemies.


. The psalmist rejects the advice to flee from his dangerous enemies. Instead he affirms his confidence in God’s just character and calls down judgment on evildoers.


In the darkness . The enemies’ attack, the precise form of which is not indicated, is compared here to a night ambush by archers; the psalmist is defenseless against this deadly attack.


The quotation of the advisers’ words (which begins in 11:1 c) ends at this point. They advise the psalmist to flee because the enemy is poised to launch a deadly attack. In such a lawless and chaotic situation godly people like the psalmist can accomplish nothing, so they might as well retreat to a safe place.


The Lord ’ s throne is in heaven . The psalmist is confident that the Lord reigns as sovereign king, “keeps an eye on” all people, and responds in a just manner to the godly and wicked.


His eyes . The anthropomorphic language draws attention to God’s awareness of and interest in the situation on earth. Though the enemies are hidden by the darkness (v. 2 ), the Lord sees all.


He hates the wicked . The Lord “hates” the wicked in the sense that he despises their wicked character and deeds, and actively opposes and judges them for their wickedness. See Ps 5:5 .


The image of God “raining down” brimstone on the objects of his judgment also appears in Gen 19:24 and Ezek 38:22 .


. The psalmist asks the Lord to intervene, for society is overrun by deceitful, arrogant oppressors and godly individuals are a dying breed. When the Lord announces his intention to defend the oppressed, the psalmist affirms his confidence in the divine promise.


The rhetorical question expresses the arrogant attitude of these people. As far as they are concerned, they are answerable to no one for how they speak.


. The psalmist, who is close to death, desperately pleads for God’s deliverance and affirms his trust in God’s faithfulness.


. The psalmist observes that the human race is morally corrupt. Evildoers oppress God’s people, but the psalmist is confident of God’s protection and anticipates a day when God will vindicate Israel.


“There is no God.” The statement is probably not a philosophical assertion that God does not exist, but rather a confident affirmation that God is unconcerned about how men live morally and ethically (see Ps 10:4, 11 ).


The picture of the Lord looking down from heaven draws attention to his sovereignty over the world.


Anyone who is wise and seeks God refers to the person who seeks to have a relationship with God by obeying and worshiping him.


The deliverance of Israel . This refers metonymically to God, the one who lives in Zion and provides deliverance for Israel.


. This psalm describes the character qualities that one must possess to be allowed access to the divine presence.


Hebrew literature often assumes and reflects the male-oriented perspective of ancient Israelite society. The principle of the psalm is certainly applicable to all people, regardless of their gender or age.


He does not charge interest . Such an individual is truly generous, and not simply concerned with making a profit.


. The psalmist seeks divine protection because he has remained loyal to God. He praises God for his rich blessings, and is confident God will vindicate him and deliver him from death.


In ancient Israelite cosmology Sheol is the realm of the dead, viewed as being under the earth’s surface. See L. I. J. Stadelmann, The Hebrew Conception of the World , 165-76.


. The psalmist asks God to intervene on his behalf because his life is threatened by dangerous enemies. He appeals to divine justice, for he is certain of his own innocence. Because he is innocent, he expects to encounter God and receive an assuring word.


Your wings . The metaphor compares God to a protective mother bird.


. In this long song of thanks, the psalmist (a Davidic king, traditionally understood as David himself) affirms that God is his faithful protector. He recalls in highly poetic fashion how God intervened in awesome power and delivered him from death. The psalmist’s experience demonstrates that God vindicates those who are blameless and remain loyal to him. True to his promises, God gives the king victory on the battlefield and enables him to subdue nations. A parallel version of the psalm appears in 2 Sam 22:1-51 .


My high ridge . This metaphor pictures God as a rocky, relatively inaccessible summit, where one would be able to find protection from enemies. See 1 Sam 23:25, 28 .


My stronghold . David often found safety in such strongholds. See 1 Sam 22:4-5; 24:22 ; 2 Sam 5:9, 17; 23:14 .


Take shelter . “Taking shelter” in the Lord is an idiom for seeking his protection. Seeking his protection presupposes and even demonstrates the subject’s loyalty to the Lord. In the psalms those who “take shelter” in the Lord are contrasted with the wicked and equated with those who love, fear and serve the Lord ( Pss 5:11-12; 31:17-20; 34:21-22 ).


The earth heaved and shook . The imagery pictures an earthquake in which the earth’s surface rises and falls. The earthquake motif is common in OT theophanies of God as warrior and in ancient Near Eastern literary descriptions of warring gods and kings. See R. B. Chisholm, “An Exegetical and Theological Study of /” (Th.D. diss., Dallas Theological Seminary, 1983), 160-62.


The wings of the wind . Verse 10 may depict (1) the Lord riding a cherub, which is in turn propelled by the wind current. Another option (2) is that two different vehicles (a cherub and the wind) are envisioned. Yet another option (3) is that the wind is personified as a cherub. For a discussion of ancient Near Eastern parallels to the imagery in v. 10 , see M. Weinfeld, “‘Rider of the Clouds’ and ‘Gatherer of the Clouds’,” JANESCU 5 (1973): 422-24.


Thunder is a common motif in OT theophanies and in ancient Near Eastern portrayals of the storm god and warring kings. See R. B. Chisholm, “An Exegetical and Theological Study of /” (Th.D. diss., Dallas Theological Seminary, 1983), 179-83.


Lightning is a common motif in in OT theophanies and in ancient Near Eastern portrayals of the storm god and warring kings. See R. B. Chisholm, “An Exegetical and Theological Study of /” (Th.D. diss., Dallas Theological Seminary, 1983), 190-92.


I can jump over a wall. The psalmist uses hyperbole to emphasize his God-given military superiority.


The Lord ’ s promise . In the ancient Near East kings would typically seek and receive oracles from their god(s) prior to battle. For examples, see R. B. Chisholm, “An Exegetical and Theological Study of /” (Th.D. diss., Dallas Theological Seminary, 1983), 241-42.


Take shelter . See the note on the word “shelter” in v. 2 .


He trains my hands . The psalmist attributes his skill with weapons to divine enablement. Egyptian reliefs picture gods teaching the king how to shoot a bow. See O. Keel, The Symbolism of the Biblical World , 265.


They fall at my feet . For ancient Near Eastern parallels, see O. Keel, The Symbolism of the Biblical World , 294-97.


Those who hate me . See v. 17 , where it is the Lord who delivered the psalmist from those who hated him.


I will give you thanks before the nations . This probably alludes to the fact that the psalmist will praise the Lord in the presence of the defeated nations when they, as his subjects, bring their tribute payments. Ideally the Davidic king was to testify to the nations of God’s greatness. See J. H. Eaton, Kingship and the Psalms (SBT), 182-85.


If David is the author of the psalm (see the superscription), then he here anticipates that God will continue to demonstrate loyalty to his descendants who succeed him. If the author is a later Davidic king, then he views the divine favor he has experienced as the outworking of God’s faithful promises to David his ancestor.


. The psalmist praises God for his self-revelation in the heavens and in the Mosaic law. The psalmist concludes with a prayer, asking the Lord to keep him from sinning and to approve of his thoughts and words.


God’s glory refers here to his royal majesty and power.


He has pitched a tent for the sun . The personified sun emerges from this “tent” in order to make its daytime journey across the sky. So the “tent” must refer metaphorically to the place where the sun goes to rest during the night.


Trustworthy and absolutely just . The Lord’s commands accurately reflect God’s moral will for his people and are an expression of his just character.


. The people pray for the king’s success in battle. When the king declares his assurance that the Lord will answer the people’s prayer, they affirm their confidence in God’s enablement.


May the Lord answer you . The people address the king as they pray to the Lord.


May he bring all your plans to pass . This probably refers to the king’s strategy for battle.


Your victory . Here the king is addressed (see v. 1 ).


. The psalmist praises the Lord for the way he protects and blesses the Davidic king.


You bring him rich blessings . The following context indicates that God’s “blessings” include deliverance/protection, vindication, sustained life, and a long, stable reign (see also Pss 3:8; 24:5 ).


See Ps 10:2 .


. The psalmist cries out to the Lord for deliverance from his dangerous enemies, who have surrounded him and threaten his life. Confident that the Lord will intervene, he then vows to thank the Lord publicly for his help and anticipates a time when all people will recognize the Lord’s greatness and worship him.


From the psalmist’s perspective it seems that God has abandoned him, for he fails to answer his cry for help (vv. 1 b-2).


Shake their heads . Apparently this refers to a taunting gesture. See also Job 16:4 ; Ps 109:25 ; Lam 2:15 .


The psalmist figuratively compares his enemies to dangerous bulls .


Bashan , located east of the Jordan River, was well-known for its cattle. See Ezek 39:18 ; Amos 4:1 .


The heart is viewed here as the seat of the psalmist’s strength and courage.


Here the psalmist addresses God and suggests that God is ultimately responsible for what is happening because of his failure to intervene (see vv. 1-2, 11 ).


The imperfect verbal form draws attention to the progressive nature of the action. The psalmist is in the process of dying.


The psalmist again compares his enemies to vicious dogs and ferocious lions (see vv. 13, 16 ).


In this verse the psalmist refers to himself in the third person and characterizes himself as oppressed.


Eat and be filled . In addition to praising the Lord, the psalmist also offers a thank offering to the Lord and invites others to share in a communal meal.


In v. 5 the metaphor switches. (It would be very odd for a sheep to have its head anointed and be served wine.) The background for the imagery is probably the royal banquet. Ancient Near Eastern texts describe such banquets in similar terms to those employed by the psalmist. (See M. L. Barre and J. S. Kselman, “New Exodus, Covenant, and Restoration in ,” The Word of the Lord Shall Go Forth , 97-127.) The reality behind the imagery is the Lord’s favor. Through his blessings and protection he demonstrates to everyone, including dangerous enemies, that the psalmist has a special relationship with him.


He…established it upon the ocean currents . The description reflects ancient Israelite prescientific cosmology, which is based on outward appearances. The language also suggests that God’s creative work involved the subjugation of chaos, symbolized by the sea.


In this context the Lord’s mountain probably refers to Zion/Jerusalem (see Isa 2:2-3 ).


Who is this majestic king? Perhaps the personified gates/doors ask this question, in response to the command given in v. 7 .


. The psalmist asks for divine protection, guidance and forgiveness as he affirms his loyalty to and trust in the Lord. This psalm is an acrostic; every verse begins with a successive letter of the Hebrew alphabet, except for v. 18 , which, like v. 19 , begins with ר ( resh ) instead of the expected ק ( qof ). The final verse, which begins with פ ( pe ), stands outside the acrostic scheme.


Teach me your paths . In this context the Lord ’s “ways” and “paths” refer to the moral principles which the Lord prescribes for his followers. See vv. 8-10 .


The Lord ’s commandments are referred to as truth here because they are a trustworthy and accurate expression of the divine will.


That is, the sins characteristic of youths, who lack moral discretion and wisdom.


Forgive my sin, because it is great . The psalmist readily admits his desperate need for forgiveness.


. The author invites the Lord to test his integrity, asserts his innocence and declares his loyalty to God.


. The author is confident of the Lord’s protection and asks the Lord to vindicate him.


To devour my flesh . The psalmist compares his enemies to dangerous, hungry predators (see 2 Kgs 9:36 ; Ezek 39:17 ).


The Lord ’s house . This probably refers to the tabernacle (if one accepts Davidic authorship) or the temple (see Judg 19:18 ; 1 Sam 1:7, 24 ; 2 Sam 12:20 ; 1 Kgs 7:12, 40, 45, 51 ).


The level path refers to God’s moral principles (see the parallel line), which, if followed, will keep the psalmist blameless before his accusers (see v. 12 ).


. The author looks to the Lord for vindication, asks that the wicked be repaid in full for their evil deeds, and affirms his confidence that the Lord will protect his own.


I lift my hands . Lifting one’s hands toward God was a gesture of prayer.


He has heard my plea for mercy . The psalmist’s mood abruptly changes at this point, because the Lord responded positively to his petition and assured him that he would deliver him.


. In this hymn of praise the psalmist calls upon the heavenly assembly to acknowledge the royal splendor of the Lord. He describes the Lord’s devastating power as revealed in the thunderstorm and affirms that the Lord exerts this awesome might on behalf of his people. In its original context the psalm was a bold polemic against the Canaanite storm god Baal, for it affirms that the Lord is the real king who controls the elements of the storm, contrary to pagan belief. See R. B. Chisholm, Jr., “The Polemic against Baalism in Israel’s Early History and Literature,” BSac 150 (1994): 280-82.


The cedars of the Lebanon forest were well-known in ancient Israel for their immense size. Here they may symbolize the arrogant enemies of God (see Isa 2:12-13 ).


Sirion is another name for Mount Hermon ( Deut 3:9 ).


Lebanon and Sirion are compared to frisky young animals ( a calf…a young ox ) who skip and jump. The thunderous shout of the Lord is so powerful, one can see the very mountains shake on the horizon.


The Lord ’s shout strikes with flaming fire . The short line has invited textual emendation, but its distinct, brief form may highlight the statement, which serves as the axis of a chiastic structure encompassing vv. 5-9 : (A) the Lord’s shout destroys the forest (v. 5 ); (B) the Lord’s shout shakes the terrain (v. 6 ); (C) the Lord’s shout is accompanied by destructive lightning (v. 7 ); (B´) the Lord’s shout shakes the terrain (v. 8 ); (A´) the Lord’s shout destroys the forest (v. 9 ).


Kadesh . The references to Lebanon and Sirion in v. 6 suggest this is a reference to the northern Kadesh, located north of Damascus, not the southern Kadesh mentioned so often in the OT. See M. Dahood, Psalms (AB), 1:178.


Strength . This probably refers to military power; see the use of the noun in 1 Sam 2:10 and Ps 86:16 .


. The author thanks the Lord for delivering him from death and urges others to join him in praise. The psalmist experienced divine discipline for a brief time, but when he cried out for help the Lord intervened and restored his favor.


You healed me . Apparently the psalmist was plagued by a serious illness that threatened his life. See .


In my self-confidence I said… Here the psalmist begins to fill in the background of the crisis referred to in the earlier verses. He had been arrogant and self-confident, so the Lord withdrew his protection and allowed trouble to invade his life (vv. 8-11 ).


The following two verses (vv. 9-10 ) contain the prayer (or an excerpt of the prayer) that the psalmist offered to the Lord during his crisis.


Covered me with joy . “Joy” probably stands metonymically for festive attire here.


. The psalmist confidently asks the Lord to protect him. Enemies threaten him and even his friends have abandoned him, but he looks to the Lord for vindication. In vv. 19-24 , which were apparently written after the Lord answered the prayer of vv. 1-18 , the psalmist thanks the Lord for delivering him.


The metaphor of the high ridge pictures God as a rocky, relatively inaccessible summit, where one would be able to find protection from enemies. See 1 Sam 23:25, 28 .


. The psalmist recalls the agony he experienced prior to confessing his sins and affirms that true happiness comes when one’s sins are forgiven. He then urges others not to be stubborn, but to turn to God while forgiveness is available, for God extends his mercy to the repentant, while the wicked experience nothing but sorrow.


In whose spirit there is no deceit . The point is not that the individual is sinless and pure. In this context, which focuses on confession and forgiveness of sin, the psalmist refers to one who refuses to deny or hide his sin, but instead honestly confesses it to God.


Summer . Perhaps the psalmist suffered during the hot season and perceived the very weather as being an instrument of divine judgment. Another option is that he compares his time of suffering to the uncomfortable and oppressive heat of summer.


The surging water is here a metaphor for trouble that endangers one’s life.


A new song is appropriate because the Lord is constantly intervening in the lives of his people in fresh and exciting ways.


For the Lord ’s decrees are just … After the call to praise (vv. 1-3 ), the psalmist now gives a series of reasons why the Lord is worthy of praise.


. In this song of thanksgiving the psalmist praises God for delivering him from distress. He encourages others to be loyal to the Lord, tells them how to please God, and assures them that the Lord protects his servants. The psalm is an acrostic; vv. 1-21 begin with successive letters of the Hebrew alphabet. (Verse 6 begins with the letter he ( ה ) and v. 7 with the letter zayin ( ז ). The letter vav ( ו ), which comes between ה and ז , seems to be omitted, although it does appear at the beginning of v. 6 b. The final verse of the psalm, which begins with the letter pe ( פ ), is outside the acrostic scheme.


Not one of them is broken . The author of the Gospel of John saw a fulfillment of these words in Jesus’ experience on the cross (see John 19:31-37 ), for the Roman soldiers, when they saw that Jesus was already dead, did not break his legs as was customarily done to speed the death of crucified individuals. John’s use of the psalm seems strange, for the statement in its original context suggests that the Lord protects the godly from physical harm. Jesus’ legs may have remained unbroken, but he was brutally and unjustly executed by his enemies. John seems to give the statement a literal sense that is foreign to its original literary context by applying a promise of divine protection to a man who was seemingly not saved by God. However, John saw in this incident a foreshadowing of Jesus’ ultimate deliverance and vindication. His unbroken bones were a reminder of God’s commitment to the godly and a sign of things to come. Jesus’ death on the cross was not the end of the story; God vindicated him, as John goes on to explain in the following context ( John 19:38-20:18 ).


. The author, who faces ruthless enemies who seek his life for no reason, begs the Lord to fight his battles for him and to vindicate him by annihilating his adversaries.


See the mention of the Lord ’s angel in Ps 34:7 .


Fasting was also a practice of mourners. By refraining from normal activities, such as eating food , the mourner demonstrated the sincerity of his sorrow.


I bowed down . Bowing down was a posture for mourning. See Ps 38:6 .


The great assembly is also mentioned in Ps 22:25 .


Though he is confident that the Lord is aware of his situation (see v. 22 a), the psalmist compares the Lord’s inactivity to sleep and urges him to wake up .


. Though evil men plan to harm others, the psalmist is confident that the Lord is the just ruler of the earth who gives and sustains all life. He prays for divine blessing and protection and anticipates God’s judgment of the wicked.


The Lord’s loyal love/faithfulness is almost limitless. He is loyal and faithful to his creation and blesses mankind and the animal kingdom with physical life and sustenance (vv. 6-9 ).


God’s justice/fairness is firm and reliable like the highest mountains and as abundant as the water in the deepest sea. The psalmist uses a legal metaphor to describe God’s preservation of his creation. Like a just judge who vindicates the innocent, God protects his creation from destructive forces.


. The psalmist urges his audience not to envy the wicked, but to trust in and obey the Lord, for he will destroy sinners and preserve the godly. When the smoke of judgment clears, the wicked will be gone, but the godly will remain and inherit God’s promised blessings. The psalm is an acrostic; every other verse begins with a successive letter of the Hebrew alphabet.


. The author asks the Lord to deliver him from his enemies. He confesses his sin and recognizes that the crisis he faces is the result of divine discipline. Yet he begs the Lord not to reject him.


The reference to wounds may be an extension of the metaphorical language of v. 2 . The psalmist pictures himself as one whose flesh is ripped and torn by arrows.


I am like a deaf man…like a mute . The psalmist is like a deaf mute; he is incapable of defending himself and is vulnerable to his enemies’ deception (see v. 14 ).


. The psalmist laments his frailty and mortality as he begs the Lord to take pity on him and remove his disciplinary hand.


. The psalmist combines a song of thanksgiving for a recent act of divine deliverance (vv. 1-11 ) with a confident petition for renewed divine intervention (vv. 12-17 ).


A new song was appropriate because the Lord had intervened in the psalmist’s experience in a fresh and exciting way.


The great assembly is also mentioned in Pss 22:25 and 35:18 .


See Pss 35:10; 37:14 .


. The psalmist is confident (vv. 11-12 ) that the Lord has heard his request to be healed (vv. 4-10 ), and he anticipates the joy he will experience when the Lord intervenes (vv. 1-3 ). One must assume that the psalmist is responding to a divine oracle of assurance (see P. C. Craigie, Psalms 1-50 [WBC], 319-20). The final verse is a fitting conclusion to this psalm, but it is also serves as a fitting conclusion to the first “book” (or major editorial division) of the Psalter. Similar statements appear at or near the end of each of the second, third, and fourth “books” of the Psalter (see Pss 72:19, 89:52, and 106:48 respectively).


One who treats the poor properly . The psalmist is characterizing himself as such an individual and supplying a reason why God has responded favorably to his prayer. The Lord’s attitude toward the merciful mirrors their treatment of the poor.


In vv. 4-10 the psalmist recites the prayer of petition and lament he offered to the Lord.


By this . Having recalled his former lament and petition, the psalmist returns to the confident mood of vv. 1-3 . The basis for his confidence may be a divine oracle of deliverance, assuring him that God would intervene and vindicate him. The demonstrative pronoun “this” may refer to such an oracle, which is assumed here, though its contents are not included. See P. C. Craigie, Psalms 1-50 (WBC), 319, 321.


Because of my integrity . See Pss 7:8; 25:21; 26:1, 11 .


. The psalmist recalls how he once worshiped in the Lord’s temple, but laments that he is now oppressed by enemies in a foreign land. Some medieval Hebrew mss combine Psalms 42 and 43 into a single psalm.


For poetic effect the psalmist addresses his soul , or inner self.


The psalmist believes that the Lord has not abandoned him, but continues to extend his loyal love . To this point in the psalm, the author has used the name “God,” but now, as he mentions the divine characteristic of loyal love, he switches to the more personal divine name Yahweh (rendered in the translation as “the Lord ”).


Walk around mourning . See Ps 38:6 for a similar idea.


“Where is your God?” The enemies ask this same question in v. 3 .


. Many medieval Hebrew mss combine and into one psalm. is the only psalm in Book 2 of the Psalter ( Psalms 42-72 ) that does not have a heading, suggesting that it was originally the third and concluding section of . Ps 43:5 is identical to the refrain in Ps 42:11 and almost identical to the refrain in Ps 42:5 .


Walk around mourning . See Ps 38:6 for a similar statement.


God’s deliverance is compared here to a light which will lead the psalmist back home to the Lord’s temple. Divine deliverance will in turn demonstrate the Lord’s faithfulness to his people.


In this context the Lord’s holy hill is Zion/Jerusalem. See Isa 66:20 ; Joel 2:1; 3:17 ; Zech 8:3 ; Pss 2:6; 15:1; 48:1; 87:1 ; Dan 9:16 .