Job 10:3-5 New English Translation
3 Is it good for you[a] to oppress,[b]
to[c] despise the work of your hands,
while[d] you smile[e]
on the schemes of the wicked?
Motivations of God
4 “Do you have eyes of flesh,[f]
or do you see[g] as a human being sees?[h]
5 Are your days like the days of a mortal,
or your years like the years[i] of a mortal,
Footnotes
- Job 10:3 tn Or “Does it give you pleasure?” The expression could also mean, “Is it profitable for you?” or “Is it fitting for you?”
- Job 10:3 tn The construction uses כִּי (ki) with the imperfect verb—“that you oppress.” Technically, this clause serves as the subject, and “good” is the predicate adjective. In such cases one often uses an English infinitive to capture the point: “Is it good for you to oppress?” The LXX changes the meaning considerably: “Is it good for you if I am unrighteous, for you have disowned the work of your hands.”
- Job 10:3 tn Heb “that you despise.”
- Job 10:3 tn Now, in the second half of the verse, there is a change in the structure. The conjunction on the preposition followed by the perfect verb represents a circumstantial clause.
- Job 10:3 tn The Hiphil of the verb יָפַע (yafaʿ) means “shine.” In this context the expression “you shine upon” would mean “have a glowing expression,” be radiant, or smile.
- Job 10:4 tn Here “flesh” is the sign of humanity. The expression “eyes of flesh” means essentially “human eyes,” i.e., the outlook and vision of humans.
- Job 10:4 sn The verb translated “see” could also include the figurative category of perceive as well. The answer to Job’s question is found in 1 Sam 16:7: “The Lord sees not as a man sees; man looks on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart.”
- Job 10:4 sn In this verse Job asks whether or not God is liable to making mistakes or errors of judgment. He wonders if God has no more insight than his friends have. Of course, the questions are rhetorical, for he knows otherwise. But his point is that God seems to be making a big mistake here.
- Job 10:5 tn The Hebrew has repeated here “like the days of,” but some scholars think that this was an accidental replacement of what should be here, namely, “like the years of.” D. J. A. Clines notes that such repetition is not uncommon in Job, but suggests that the change should be made for English style even if the text is not emended (Job [WBC], 221). This has been followed in the present translation.sn The question Job asks concerns the mode of life and not just the length of it (see Job 7:1). Humans spend their days and years watching each other and defending themselves. But there is also the implication that if God is so limited like humans he may not uncover Job’s sins before he dies.
New English Translation (NET)
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