Job 40:7-14

7 “Get ready for a difficult task
See note on “task” in 38:3.
like a man.
I will question you and you will inform me!
8 Would you indeed annul
The verb פָּרַר (parar) means “to annul; to break; to frustrate.” It was one thing for Job to claim his own integrity, but it was another matter altogether to nullify God’s righteousness in the process.
my justice?
Would you declare me guilty so that you might be right?
9 Do you have an arm as powerful as God’s,
Heb “do you have an arm like God?” The words “as powerful as” have been supplied in the translation to clarify the metaphor.

and can you thunder with a voice like his?
10 Adorn yourself, then, with majesty and excellency,
and clothe yourself with glory and honor!
11 Scatter abroad
The verb was used for scattering lightning (Job 37:11). God is challenging Job to unleash his power and judge wickedness in the world.
the abundance
Heb “the overflowings.”
of your anger.
Look at every proud man
The word was just used in the positive sense of excellence or majesty; now the exalted nature of the person refers to self-exaltation, or pride.
and bring him low;
12 Look at every proud man and abase him;
crush the wicked on the spot!
The expression translated “on the spot” is the prepositional phrase תַּחְתָּם (takhtam, “under them”). “Under them” means in their place. But it can also mean “where someone stands, on the spot” (see Exod 16:29; Jos 6:5; Judg 7:21, etc.).

13 Hide them in the dust
The word “dust” can mean “ground” here, or more likely, “grave.”
together,
imprison
The verb חָבַשׁ (khavash) means “to bind.” In Arabic the word means “to bind” in the sense of “to imprison,” and that fits here.
them
Heb “their faces.”
in the grave.
The word is “secret place,” the place where he is to hide them, i.e., the grave. The text uses the word “secret place” as a metonymy for the grave.

14 Then I myself will acknowledge
The verb is usually translated “praise,” but with the sense of a public declaration or acknowledgment. It is from יָדָה (yadah, in the Hiphil, as here, “give thanks, laud”).
to you
that your own right hand can save you.
The imperfect verb has the nuance of potential imperfect: “can save; is able to save.”

Copyright information for NETfull