For [j]what I fear comes upon me, and what I dread [k]encounters me. Job 3:25 NASB What I fear – An unfortunate translation. By rendering this word as “fear,” we miss the point and the connections. Even more, when the translators use “dread” in the subsequent phrase, they mix up the real meanings and miss the oxymoron. …
For my groaning comes at the sight of my food, and my cries pour out like water. Job 3:24 NASB Cries pour out – It’s not whimpering tears. No sir. These Hebrew words say something much more powerful—and distressing. But we’ll need to arrange the syntax according to the Hebrew, not the English. Therefore, we investigate “poured…
For my groaning comes at the sight of my food, and my cries pour out like water. Job 3:24 NASB Groaning – Before we tackle the participle “groaning,” let’s understand the context. The NASB translates the opening of this verse as “at the sight of my food,” but the Hebrew is perhaps more poignant. Literally, it reads…
Why is light given to a man whose way is hidden, and whom God has shut off? Job 3:23 NASB Way is hidden – The verb is sātar. Its uses are important. The root in its basic meaning “hide” is common to West, Southwest, and Southeast Semitic. The subordinate thought of protection involved in the root, which helps…
“Why is light given to one burdened with grief, and life to the bitter of soul, who [i]long for death, but there is none, and dig for it more than for hidden treasures; who are filled with jubilation, and rejoice when they find the grave? Job 3:20-22 NASB Burdened with grief – Job might have more in mind than…
The small and the great are there, and the slave is free from his master. Job 3:19 NASB The small and the great – What is Job’s description of life after death? Well, perhaps we shouldn’t term it “life” after death, but rather ask, “What is it like when you die?” You see, this verse…
There the wicked cease from raging, and there the [h]weary are at rest. The prisoners are at ease together; they do not hear the voice of the taskmaster. Job 3:17-18 NASB Rest – What is the most important thing human beings desire? Prosperity? Health? Long life? A sense of purpose? Fame? Power? Job asks for none of…
“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,…
