4:9 By the breath 1 of God they perish, 2
and by the blast 3 of his anger they are consumed.
8:12 While they are still beginning to flower 4
and not ripe for cutting, 5
they can wither away 6
faster 7 than any grass! 8
12:15 If he holds back the waters, then they dry up; 9
if he releases them, 10 they destroy 11 the land.
16:10 People 12 have opened their mouths against me,
they have struck my cheek in scorn; 13
they unite 14 together against me.
19:12 His troops 15 advance together;
they throw up 16 a siege ramp against me,
and they camp around my tent.
24:3 They drive away the orphan’s donkey;
they take the widow’s ox as a pledge.
29:23 They waited for me as people wait 17 for the rain,
and they opened their mouths 18
as for 19 the spring rains.
32:16 And I have waited. 20 But because they do not speak,
because they stand there and answer no more,
36:9 then he reveals 21 to them what they have done, 22
and their transgressions,
that they were behaving proudly.
36:11 If they obey and serve him,
they live out their days in prosperity
and their years in pleasantness. 23
36:12 But if they refuse to listen,
they pass over the river of death, 24
and expire without knowledge.
38:35 Can you send out lightning bolts, and they go?
Will they say to you, ‘Here we are’?
39:2 Do you count the months they must fulfill,
and do you know the time they give birth? 25
1 tn The LXX in the place of “breath” has “word” or “command,” probably to limit the anthropomorphism. The word is מִנִּשְׁמַת (minnishmat) comprising מִן (min) + נִשְׁמַת (nishmat, the construct of נְשָׁמָה [nÿshamah]): “from/at the breath of.” The “breath of God” occurs frequently in Scripture. In Gen 2:7 it imparts life; but here it destroys it. The figure probably does indicate a divine decree from God (e.g., “depart from me”) – so the LXX may have been simply interpreting.
2 sn 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).
3 tn The word רוּחַ (ruakh) is now parallel to נְשָׁמָה (nÿshamah); both can mean “breath” or “wind.” To avoid using “breath” for both lines, “blast” has been employed here. The word is followed by אַפוֹ (’afo) which could be translated “his anger” or “his nostril.” If “nostril” is retained, then it is a very bold anthropomorphism to indicate the fuming wrath of God. It is close to the picture of the hot wind coming off the desert to scorch the plants (see Hos 13:15).
4 tn The word has been traditionally translated “greenness” (so KJV, ASV), but some modern commentators argue for “in flower.” The word is found only in Song 6:11 (where it may be translated “blossoms”). From the same root is אָבִיב (’aviv, “fresh young ears of barley”). Here the word refers to the plant that is still in its early stages of flowering. It should not be translated to suggest the plant is flowering (cf. NRSV), but translating as if the plant is green (so NASB) is also problematic.
5 sn 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.
6 tn The imperfect verb here is the modal use of potential, “can wither away” if the water is not there.
7 tn Heb “before.”
8 tn The LXX interprets the line: “does not any herb wither before it has received moisture?”
9 tc The LXX has a clarification: “he will dry the earth.”
10 sn The verse is focusing on the two extremes of drought and flood. Both are described as being under the power of God.
11 tn The verb הָפַךְ (hafakh) means “to overthrow; to destroy; to overwhelm.” It was used in Job 9:5 for “overturning” mountains. The word is used in Genesis for the destruction of Sodom.
12 tn “People” is supplied; the Hebrew verb is third plural. The colon reads, “they have opened against me with [the preposition is instrumental] their mouth.” The gestures here follow the animal imagery; they reflect destructive opposition and attack (see Ps 22:13 among others).
13 tn This is an “insult” or a “reproach.”
14 tn The verb יִתְמַלָּאוּן (yitmalla’un) is taken from מָלֵא (male’), “to be full,” and in this stem, “to pile up; to press together.” The term has a military connotation, such as “to mobilize” (see D. W. Thomas, “ml'w in Jeremiah 4:5 : a military term,” JJS 3 [1952]: 47-52). Job sees himself surrounded by enemies who persecute him and mock him.
15 sn 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.
16 tn Heb “they throw up their way against me.” The verb סָלַל (salal) means “to build a siege ramp” or “to throw up a ramp”; here the object is “their way.” The latter could be taken as an adverbial accusative, “as their way.” But as the object it fits just as well. Some delete the middle clause; the LXX has “Together his troops fell upon me, they beset my ways with an ambush.”
17 tn The phrase “people wait for” is not in the Hebrew text, but has been supplied in the translation.
18 sn The analogy is that they received his words eagerly as the dry ground opens to receive the rains.
19 tn The כּ (kaf) preposition is to be supplied by analogy with the preceding phrase. This leaves a double proposition, “as for” (but see Job 29:2).
20 tn Some commentators take this as a question: “And shall [or must] I wait because they do not speak?” (A. B. Davidson, R. Gordis). But this is not convincing because the silence of the friends is the reason for him to speak, not to wait.
21 tn The verb נָגַד (nagad) means “to declare; to tell.” Here it is clear that God is making known the sins that caused the enslavement or captivity, so “reveal” makes a good interpretive translation.
22 tn Heb “their work.”
23 tc Some commentators delete this last line for metrical considerations. But there is no textual evidence for the deletion; it is simply the attempt by some to make the meter rigid.
24 tn This is a similar expression to the one in Job 33:18, where the suggestion was made by many that it means crossing over the canal or river of death. Some retain the earlier interpretation of “perish by the sword” (cf. NIV).
25 tn Here the infinitive is again a substantive: “the time of their giving birth.”