“Why did I not die [f]at birth, come out of the womb and pass away? Job 3:11 NASB Pass away – We’ll have to add another verse in order to understand the implications of this one. That other verse is Job 3:13: “For now I would have lain down and been quiet; I would have slept then,…
May the stars of its twilight be darkened; may it wait for light but have none, and may it not see the [e]breaking dawn; because it did not shut the opening of my mother’s womb, or hide trouble from my eyes. Job 3:9-10 NASB Hide trouble – “History is a nightmare.” So said Abraham Heschel, and although we…
May the stars of its twilight be darkened; may it wait for light but have none, and may it not see the [e]breaking dawn; because it did not shut the opening of my mother’s womb, or hide trouble from my eyes. Job 3:9-10 NASB Breaking dawn – What biblical story comes to mind when you read בְּעַפְעַפֵּי־שָֽׁחַר. Oh,…
May those curse it who curse the day, who are [d]prepared to disturb Leviathan. Job 3:8 NASB Leviathan – “ . . . liwyātān appears six times in the ot.”[1] Yahweh overawed Job by confronting him with his invincible creature liwyātān (Job 41 [H 40:25ff.]). Clearly the Nile crocodile, with scaly hide (vv. 7, 15–17 [H 40:31;…
Behold, may that night be barren; may no joyful shout enter it. Job 3:7 NASB Barren – The Hebrew word galmûd is derived from the verb gālam. The verb only occurs in 2 Kings 2:8. “And Elijah took his coat, folded it, and struck the waters, and they were divided here and there, so that the two…
As for that night, may darkness seize it; may it not rejoice among the days of the year; may it not come into the number of the months. Job 3:6 NASB Darkness – Before we continue, we need to note something unusual. Job’s curse over the day of his birth keeps going. Apparently it isn’t enough to…
May darkness and black gloom claim it; may a cloud settle on it; may the blackness of the day terrify it. Job 3:5 NASB Black gloom – ṣalmāwet. An unusual Hebrew word. A terrifying word. Not just deep shadow but rather “the shadow of death.” צַלְמָוֶת (ṣalmāwet). Deep darkness. (ASV prefers “the shadow of death” and…
May that day be darkness; may God above not care for it, nor light shine on it. Job 3:4 NASB Darkness – “Little doubt surrounds the meaning of this denominative verb coming from the noun ḥōšek (darkness). It occurs eighteen times, seventeen times in poetical books. Exodus 10:15 is the only occurrence of ḥāšak in…
And Job said, “May the day on which I was to be born perish, as well as the night which said, ‘A boy is conceived.’” Job 3:2-3 NASB Boy – The Hebraic idea of a person encompasses all of that person’s life. This includes all the relationships, connections, obligations, heritage, and genealogy that make someone who he is. …
“I, wisdom, dwell with prudence, and I find knowledge and discretion. The fear of the Lord is to hate evil; pride, arrogance, the evil way, and the perverted mouth, I hate. Advice is mine and sound wisdom; I am understanding, power is mine. Proverbs 8:12-14 NASB Prudence – Recently the online group investigated these verses in Proverbs. Here is the link to that discussion. You will…
