Job 10:17

You bring new witnesses ¹  against me, and increase your anger against me; relief troops ²  come against me.

You bring new witnesses against me and increase your anger towards me; your forces come against me wave upon wave.

‘You renew Your witnesses against me And increase Your anger toward me; Hardship after hardship is with me.

Again and again you witness against me. You pour out an ever–increasing volume of anger upon me and bring fresh armies against me.

You line up fresh witnesses against me. You compound your anger and pile on the grief and pain!

That you would send new witnesses against me, increasing your wrath against me, and letting loose new armies on me.

You renew your witnesses against me, and increase your vexation toward me; you bring fresh troops against me.

You renew Your witnesses against me, And increase Your indignation toward me; Changes and war are ever with me.

You bring new witnesses ¹  against me, and increase your anger against me; relief troops ²  come against me.

¹ tn The text has “you renew/increase your witnesses.” This would probably mean Job’s sufferings, which were witness to his sins. But some suggested a different word here, one that is cognate to Arabic ’adiya, “to be an enemy; to be hostile”: thus “you renew your hostility against me.” Less convincing are suggestions that the word is cognate to Ugaritic “troops” (see W. G. E. Watson, “The Metaphor in Job 10,17,” Bib 63 [1982]: 255-57).

² tn The Hebrew simply says “changes and a host are with me.” The “changes and a host” is taken as a hendiadys, meaning relieving troops (relief troops of the army). The two words appear together again in 14:14, showing that emendation is to be avoided. The imagery depicts blow after blow from God – always fresh attacks.