Job, in his last and lengthy response to his companions, recalls his life before disasters struck. He was blessed by God and honored by people. He prides himself on his acts on behalf of others, which in a just world would have brought him good and not suffering. In this extended reverie Job reveals that he had served his community, and wayfarers as well, as a magistrate, a purveyor of justice. Accordingly, by marking Job with a stigma, the deity has not only done Job a terrible injustice, but also prevented him from providing justice to others. In order to draw the deity into a lawsuit, wherein he would explain to Job the reasons for his afflictions, Job makes an oath of innocence (Dick), a genre best known from the Egyptian Book of the Dead, in which he swears he did not perform any of the possible misdeeds that could warrant his severe punishments. If in a lawsuit one litigant swears to innocence, the onus shifts to the other party to establish his rival’s guilt. Job seeks to compel the deity to respond to his lawsuit and reveal the putative charges against him.
Several verses and stanzas, especially in the latter half of this discourse, seem out of sequence. Although some interpreters seek to impose a more logical order, Job’s rhetorical wavering may be meant to reflect his excited state of mind.
[29:1] Job again took up his discourse and he said:
[2–3] If only I could be as in months of yore,
In the days Eloah would watch over me.
When his lamp would shine over my head,
When I could walk by its light in the dark.
[4–6] Just as I’d been in my earlier1 days,
When my tent stood under Eloah’s bond;2
When Shaddai was still with me,
And my servants all around me;
When he would wash my feet in cream,3
When the Rock4 would pour over me streams of oil.
[7–11] When I would go out to the city gate,5
Take my seat in the public square—
Young men would see me and withdraw,6
And the old would rise and stand;
Princes would hold back their words,
Placing a hand over their mouths;7
Leaders would stifle their voices,8
Their tongues clinging to their palates.
When an ear would hear me, it would affirm;
And when an eye would see me, it would attest.
[12–13] When I would rescue the needy crying out,
And the orphan with no one to help him;9
When I’d receive the vagabond’s blessing,
And bring joy to the heart of the widow;
[14–16] I clothed myself in the right, and it clothed me,
Justice (clothed me)10 like a robe and a headdress.
Eyes was I to the blind,
And legs I was to the lame.
I was the patron of the poor;
And pursued the complaint of the stranger.
[17] I would break the fangs of the depraved,
And cast the prey out of his teeth.11
[18–20] So I thought, “I’ll expire with my brood intact,12
And I’ll multiply days like the sand!13
My stock will be flush with water,
And dew will abide on my foliage!14
My property15 will be restored,16
And the bow in my hand replaced!”
[21–23] To me people listened, and they waited,
They kept still, as I offered my counsel.
Once I had spoken, they had nothing to add;
My speech fell on them like the rain.17
They would wait for my rainfall,
Their mouths open wide to catch it.18
[24–25] If I smiled their way, they would not swerve;19
If I lit up my face, they fulfilled (every word).20
I would choose their path and sit at their head;
I’d be poised like the king in an army—
Wherever I’d lead them, they’d camp.21
[30:1] But now they laugh at me—
Young men years younger than I,
Whose fathers I so detested,
I would not place them with my herding dogs!
[2–4] What need have I of their arms’ strength?
Because of them the harvest22 is lost!
Who in times of want and severe famine
Abscond to the desert—
To the dark,23 the bleak, and the barren.
Who pluck the mallow bush flower,24
And the root of the broom-bush for food.25
[5] As they’re driven from town,26
People holler as at thieves.
[6–8] To dwell27 in the clefts of streams,
In the hollows of ground and stones.28
They bray among the shrubs,
They huddle at the thorn-bush.
Sons of fools and nobodies,
They’re estranged29 from the land.
[9–10] But now30 I’m the butt of their jingles,
I’ve become to them a byword.31
They abhor me and distance themselves;
They spare no spit from my face.
[11–14] They loosen my reins32 and my bridle;33
And throw the bit off their mouths;34
They break the lead off their noses;35
They rise up and let loose their legs,36
And mount against me paths of destruction;
They’ve wrecked37 my road, increasing my ruin,
And none can restrain38 them.
They advance like a wide burst of water,39
They overrun the barren tract.
[15] Terror’s been turned against me;
Blowing40 my stature away like the wind;
My prestige41 dissipates like a cloud.
[16–18] And now my spirit is emptied;42
Days of affliction take hold of me;
At night it43 gnaws on my limbs,
It takes all my strength to change clothing;
It constrains like the neck of my tunic.
[19] It’s thrown me down to the clay,
Making me seem like dust and ashes.44
[20–22] I cry out to you, but you do not answer;
I stand, and you just look at me.
You have turned cruel against me;
With your brute power45 you obstruct me.46
You lift me to be carried off by the wind,47
And you sweep me away48 in a tempest.49
[23] I know you’ll return me to Death,50
To the meeting house of all who’ve lived.
Job’s oath of innocence begins here, intermittently.
[24–25] If a poor man51 would extend me his hand,
If in time of disaster he cried out to me,52
I swear that I wept for the wretched,53
My spirit was pained by the needy.
[26–28] For I hoped for good, but there came bad;
I expected light, but there came darkness,
My insides roil and can’t be still;
I’ve been greeted by days of affliction.
I walk in gloom without a sun;
In the assembly I stand and cry out.
[29–31] I’ve been brother to the jackal,
And companion to the ostrich;54
My skin has blackened off me,
And my body is charred from the heat.
My harp’s been replaced by55 wailing,
And my flute—by the voice of keeners.56
[31:1] I made a pact with my eyes,
Never to look at a maiden.
[2–4] For what is the lot from Eloah on high,
And what the portion from Shaddai above?
It’s disaster for the villain,
Misfortune57 for wrongdoers.
He sees the paths (I take),
And counts my every step.
[5] I’ve never accompanied falsity;
My foot’s never rushed toward deceit.
[6] Let him weigh me on scales of justice,
Let Eloah know how whole I am.58
[7–8] If my step has ever strayed from the path;
If my heart has ever followed my eyes;
If any blemish59 has clung to my hands;
Then may I sow (my field) and another man eat (it);
And may my crops60 be uprooted!
[9–10] If my heart has been lured to (a married) woman;
If I’ve ever lain in wait at my neighbor’s door;61
Then may my wife grind62 for another man;
And may other men crouch over her.
[11–12] For that is an unseemly act;63
It is even a criminal offense.
It’s64 a fire that consumes all the way to Abaddon;65
One that would burn66 all my produce.
[13–14] If I’ve ever dismissed my man-servant’s claim,
Or my woman-servant’s, in disputing with me—
What would I do should El rise (to judge)?67
If he’d call me to account—how could I answer him?
[15] Did my maker not make him in the belly like me?
Did he not fashion him the same in the womb?
[16–18] If I’ve ever thwarted a poor man’s desires;
Or the eyes of a widow left pining;68
Or ate my loaf by myself,
So an orphan could not eat of it—
For since I was a boy I have reared him69 like a father;
And her70 I have guided since (I left) my mother’s womb—71
[19–21] If I ever saw a vagabond with nothing to wear;
Or the needy with nothing to cover him;
If his loins did not bless me,
As he warmed in the fleece of my lambs;
If I ever raised my hand to the fatherless,
For I sighted support in the town-gate;72
[22–23] May the shoulder-blade fall from my shoulder,
And my arm break off at the socket!
For disaster from El is dread to me;
I cannot withstand73 his grandeur.
[24–25] If I ever made gold my reliance,
And called pure gold “my security!”74
If I ever rejoiced in the size of my wealth,
That my hand had attained so much;
[26–28] If I ever looked at the light as it shone,75
Or the moon as it moved so nobly;76
If my heart was secretly lured,
So my mouth kissed my hand—77
That too is a criminal offense,
For denying the deity78 above (them).79
[29–30] If I ever rejoiced at my enemy’s ruin,
And exulted when evil befell him;
If I ever allowed my palate to sin,
And invoked a curse on his life;80
[31] If the men of my town81 ever said,
“If we could only get our fill of his flesh!”82
[32] The stranger never spent a night outdoors;
I would open my doors to the wayfarer.83
[33–34] If I ever like Adam84 covered my sins,
Burying my crimes in my bosom—
Intimidated by the town mob,
Frightened by the contempt of the clans,85
Halting, not leaving the house.86
[35–37] If only I had a hearing-judge!87
Here is my mark—let Shaddai respond!
And let my rival write his indictment!
I swear I would carry it on my shoulder;
I would wear it like a crown.
I would declare the number of my steps;88
And like a prince would engage him.89
[38–40] If ever my land has complained of me,
If ever its furrows cried out;
If ever I ate its yield without payment,90
And caused its owner chagrin;91
Let thorns grow instead of wheat,
And stinkweed instead of barley!
Completed are the words of Job.
1. Compare Akkadian harāpu “to be early.”
2. For this usage of sod, see especially Psalm 25:14.
3. Reading ḥem’a “whey, butter” for ḥema “venom, rage”; so several versions; compare for example Deuteronomy 32:13–14, to which Job alludes here.
4. For this epithet of the deity, see for example Deuteronomy 32:4, 18, 31.
5. See the comment at 5:4.
6. Compare the usage “holding back, withdrawn” in 1 Samuel 10:22.
7. Compare 21:5. The gesture indicates keeping silent in order to listen.
8. More literally, “the voices of leaders would be suppressed,” the same verb rendered “withdraw” in verse 8 above.
9. This verse together with 29:16 below allude to Psalm 72:12–14, which describe a righteous king.
10. In the Bible and in Mesopotamian literature one speaks of being clothed by a curse (see Psalm 109:17–19). Here again Job inverts a literary convention.
11. For the figure of the wicked as a predator, see 4:10–11.
12. Literally, “in my nest (of fledglings)”; compare Deuteronomy 32:11; Isaiah 16:2.
13. Compare for example Genesis 32:13; Isaiah 48:19. Rabbinic midrash interprets “like the phoenix.”
14. For the arboreal imagery and some of the language, see 14:7–9 and compare 18:16. Job sees himself as the righteous in Bildad’s scenario (chapter 8).
15. For kabod in this sense, see for example Genesis 31:1; Isaiah 10:3.
16. Literally, “new.”
17. More literally, “my word distilled upon them”; compare Deuteronomy 32:2.
18. More literally, “And their mouths they opened to the later rain.”
19. For this sense, literally “to turn right,” see Isaiah 30:21 and compare Job 39:24.
20. Literally, “they did not cause (the word) to fall down.” For the full biblical expression, see for example 1 Samuel 3:19.
21. Reading ’obilem yaḥanu for the received text’s ’abelim yenaḥem “mourners he comforts,” which is entirely inapt. For a similar use of the verb hobil, see Jeremiah 31:8.
22. See the comment at 5:26.
23. For this usage, see Genesis 31:42.
24. More literally, “Who pluck the mallow on the bush.”
25. These are eaten by Bedouin in desperate times (Bailey, 53–54). The verses Isaiah 47:14 and Psalm 120:4 suggest the root was burned to keep warm, in which case vocalize leḥummam “to warm themselves” instead of laḥmam “their food.”
26. Compare goy in Zephaniah 2:14, synonymous with “land” or “field.” In Phoenician the term indicates a community.
27. Referring back to “they abscond” in verse 3.
28. That is, in caves.
29. Reading nikkeru for nikke’u “they were smitten” or “brought low,” neither of which provides the generally anticipated sense of “expelled.” For nikker “to alienate, transfer, remove,” see 1 Samuel 23:7 and the Akkadian cognate.
30. Referring back to the disrespectful youths above.
31. Compare Job 17:6; Psalm 69:12–13.
32. The rope by which I would restrain them; reading yitri with the tradition. The youths are likened to a once-domesticated animal now turned wild.
33. For the verb “and they abused me” I read “my bridle” in view of Arabic ‘inan with that meaning. Recall that the poet loves synonyms.
34. Reading mi-pihem “from their mouths” for mi-panai “from my face”; compare the Syriac.
35. More literally, “My nose ring is broken off them.” For the very perplexing Hebrew I read (after Ginsberg), redividing but barely changing the letters: ‘aleimo napor ḥaḥi. The Hebrew as it stands means: “On the right a punk arise (plural).”
36. Reading regel yeshalleḥu for “my leg they released.”
37. A pseudo-Aramaic form of Hebrew natats.
38. A pseudo-Aramaic form of Hebrew ‘atsar. The Arabic cognate has the sense of reining in a horse (Kister).
39. For the image, compare 2 Samuel 5:20.
40. Literally, “chasing.”
41. Derived from shoa‘ “noble” (Isaiah 32:5).
42. More literally, “poured out.”
43. The affliction.
44. “Dust and ashes” is a figure for abjection; see Genesis 18:27 and compare Job 42:6.
45. Literally, “the power of your hand.”
46. The verb “obstruct” is related to the name of the Satan (see comment on 1:6).
47. More literally, “you lift me to the wind and mount me upon it”; compare Psalm 18:11.
48. For this usage, compare Nahum 2:7; Psalm 65:11.
49. Reading the received text’s t-sh-w-h as teshu’ah “tumult” as in Job 39:7; compare sho’ “surge” in Psalm 89:10.
50. See at 28:22.
51. Reading ’im ’eilai ‘ani “If to me a poor-man” for ’ak lo’ be‘i “But not in a ruin-mound,” which makes no sense (compare Dhorme and others). “Poor man” puns on “affliction” in verses 16 and 27.
52. Reading … ’eilai shiwa‘ “to me he cried out” for lahen shua‘ “to/for them (feminine) noble,” which makes no sense.
53. Literally, “the hard of day.”
54. Literally, “daughters of the desert.”
55. Literally, “has become.”
56. Recall Job’s having become the “butt of jingles” (30:9 above).
57. Vocalize nokar for neker, as in Obadiah 1:12.
58. More literally, “my wholeness,” my integrity; see on 1:2.
59. Reading with the Eastern Masoretic tradition; and compare Daniel 1:4. A blemish spoils the wholeness of the body, metaphorically the integrity of the person; compare Isaiah 1:6.
60. For the literal use of the term, figuratively “progeny,” see for example Isaiah 34:1; 42:5.
61. In order to fornicate with his wife; compare Proverbs 7:6–22.
62. An apparent sexual innuendo (so the Talmud); see the following line.
63. The term is associated with fornication, for example in Leviticus 18:17; 20:14.
64. The fornication; compare Proverbs 6:27–29.
65. See at 28:23.
66. Reading tisrop for tesharesh “it would uproot” (contaminated by 31:8).
67. Compare 19:25.
68. Job counters the charges Eliphaz imagined in 22:7, 9.
69. Literally, “he (the orphan) has grown up with me as his father.”
70. The widow.
71. Hyperbole.
72. The town gate was the site of official transactions; see above at 5:2. Job never abused the powerless, even though he could get away with it.
73. One should probably read ’akil for ’ukal; compare Jeremiah 10:10. For the sentiment, compare Job 13:11.
74. Job responds to Eliphaz’s accusation in 22:24–25.
75. Apparently the light of the stars; the language alludes to Isaiah 13:10.
76. If I engaged in pagan worship.
77. A gesture of adoration; see 1 Kings 19:18 and probably Genesis 41:40.
78. Literally, “El.”
79. So for example Ibn Ezra.
80. Compare Job in 27:6–7.
81. More literally, “my tent.”
82. See on 19:22. The if-clauses of the oaths are not completed by then-clauses in this section. It is understood that Job invokes a curse upon himself for any transgression he had actually committed.
83. One should probably revocalize ’oreaḥ (see Jeremiah 14:8).
84. So the Aramaic translation; Kahana. Compare Adam’s attempts to suppress his culpability in Genesis 3:9–12.
85. Literally, “The contempt of the clans frightens me.”
86. Literally, “And I halt and do not go out the entrance.”
87. See Judges 11:10.
88. That is, give a complete accounting.
89. “Like a prince” puns on “I would declare.” More literally, “I would approach him” (in litigation). A double entendre: “I would do battle like a commander.” This belligerent tone may be what provokes the belligerent response of the deity in 38:1–3.
90. Literally, “without silver.”
91. See at 11:20.