Job’s Second Speech: A Response to Eliphaz

¹  Then¹ Job answered and said,

1. Hebrew “And”

² “If only my vexation could be well weighed, and my calamity could be lifted up together with it in the balances,

³ for then it would be heavier than the sand of the seas; therefore my words have been rash,

⁴ for the arrows of Shaddai are in me; my spirit drinks their poison; the terrors of God are arrayed against me.

⁵ Does the wild ass bray over grass, or the ox bellow over its fodder?

⁶ Can tasteless food be eaten without¹ salt, or is there taste in the white of a marshmallow plant?

1. Hebrew “from without”

⁷ ⌞I refused⌟¹ to touch them; they are like ⌞food that will make me ill⌟.²

1. Literally “My soul/throat refuses”
2. Literally “the illness of my bread/food”

⁸ “⌞O that⌟¹ my request may come, and that God may grant my hope,

1. Literally “Who would give”

⁹ that¹ God would decide that² he would crush me, that he would let loose his hand and ⌞kill me⌟.³

1. Hebrew “and”
2. Hebrew “and”
3. Literally “he would cut me off”

¹⁰ But¹ it will still be my consolation, and I would recoil in ⌞unrelenting⌟² pain, for I have not denied the words of the Holy One.

1. Hebrew “And”
2. Literally “he/it does not have compassion,” or “he/it does not have pity,” or “he/it does not spare”

¹¹ What is my strength, that I should wait? And what is my end, that ⌞I should hold out⌟?¹

1. Literally “I should make my self long,” or “I should lengthen my self”

¹² Or is my strength like the strength of stones? Or is my flesh bronze?

¹³ ⌞Indeed⌟,¹ my help is not in me, and any success is driven from me.

1. An interrogative marker plus “if”

¹⁴ “Loyal love¹ should come for the afflicted from his friend, even if² he forsakes the fear of Shaddai.

1. Or “Kindness”
2. Hebrew “and”

¹⁵ My companions are treacherous like a torrent-bed; like a streambed of wadis¹ they flow away,

1. A seasonal stream that is often dry

¹⁶ which are growing dark because of ice upon them, it will pile up snow.

¹⁷ In time they dry up, they disappear; when it is hot, they vanish from their place.

¹⁸ The paths of their way wind around; they go up into the wasteland, and they perish.

¹⁹ The caravans of Tema looked; the traveling merchants of Sheba hope for them.

²⁰ They are disappointed, because they trusted; they came ⌞here⌟¹ and they are confounded.

1. Literally “up to it”

²¹ “For now you¹ have become ⌞such⌟;² you see terrors, and you fear.

1. Plural throughout the rest of this chapter
2. Literally “to it,” or “for it”

²² Is it because I have said, ‘Give to me,’ or,¹ ‘Offer a bribe for me from your wealth’?

1. Hebrew “and”

²³ or,¹ ‘Save me from the foe’s hand,’ or,² ‘Ransom me from the tyrants’ hand’?

1. Hebrew “and”
2. Hebrew “And”

²⁴ Teach me, and I myself¹ will be silent; and make me understand how I have gone astray.

1. Emphatic personal pronoun

²⁵ How painful are ⌞upright words⌟!¹ But² what does ⌞your reproof⌟³ reprove?

1. Literally “words of uprightness”
2. Hebrew “And”
3. Literally “reproving from you”

²⁶ Do you intend to reprove my words¹ and consider the words of a desperate man as wind?

1. Or “Do you intend to reprove with words”

²⁷ Even over the orphan you would cast the lot, and you would bargain over your friend.

²⁸ “⌞Therefore⌟¹ be prepared, turn to me, and I surely will not lie to your face.²

1. Literally “And now,” or “And so then”
2. Hebrew “faces”

²⁹ Please turn, let no injustice happen; indeed,¹ turn, ⌞my righteousness is still intact⌟.²

1. Hebrew “and”
2. Literally “still my righteousness is in it”

³⁰ Is there injustice on my tongue? Or can my palate not discern calamity?¹

1. Or “calamities”