1 Then Eliphaz the Temanite answered and said,
2 If we assay to commune with thee, wilt thou be grieved? but who can withhold himself from speaking?
3 Behold, thou hast instructed many, and thou hast strengthened the weak hands.
4 Thy words have upholden him that was falling, and thou hast strengthened the feeble knees.
5 But now it is come upon thee, and thou faintest; it toucheth thee, and thou art troubled.
6 Is not this thy fear, thy confidence, thy hope, and the uprightness of thy ways?
7 Remember, I pray thee, who ever perished, being innocent? or where were the righteous cut off?
8 Even as I have seen, they that plow iniquity, and sow wickedness, reap the same.
9 By the blast of God they perish, and by the breath of his nostrils are they consumed.
10 The roaring of the lion, and the voice of the fierce lion, and the teeth of the young lions, are broken.
11 The old lion perisheth for lack of prey, and the stout lion's whelps are scattered abroad.
12 Now a thing was secretly brought to me, and mine ear received a little thereof.
13 In thoughts from the visions of the night, when deep sleep falleth on men,
14 Fear came upon me, and trembling, which made all my bones to shake.
15 Then a spirit passed before my face; the hair of my flesh stood up:
16 It stood still, but I could not discern the form thereof: an image was before mine eyes, there was silence, and I heard a voice, saying,
17 Shall mortal man be more just than God? shall a man be more pure than his maker?
18 Behold, he put no trust in his servants; and his angels he charged with folly:
19 How much less in them that dwell in houses of clay, whose foundation is in the dust, which are crushed before the moth?
20 They are destroyed from morning to evening: they perish for ever without any regarding it.
21 Doth not their excellency which is in them go away? they die, even without wisdom.
1 Then Eliphaz H464 the Temanite H8489 answered H6030 and said, H559
2 If we assay H5254 to commune H1697 with thee, wilt thou be grieved? H3811 but who can H3201 withhold H6113 himself from speaking? H4405
3 Behold, thou hast instructed H3256 many, H7227 and thou hast strengthened H2388 the weak H7504 hands. H3027
4 Thy words H4405 have upholden H6965 him that was falling, H3782 and thou hast strengthened H553 the feeble H3766 knees. H1290
5 But now it is come H935 upon thee, and thou faintest; H3811 it toucheth H5060 thee, and thou art troubled. H926
6 Is not this thy fear, H3374 thy confidence, H3690 thy hope, H8615 and the uprightness H8537 of thy ways? H1870
7 Remember, H2142 I pray thee, who ever perished, H6 being innocent? H5355 or where H375 were the righteous H3477 cut off? H3582
8 Even as I have seen, H7200 they that plow H2790 iniquity, H205 and sow H2232 wickedness, H5999 reap H7114 the same.
9 By the blast H5397 of God H433 they perish, H6 and by the breath H7307 of his nostrils H639 are they consumed. H3615
10 The roaring H7581 of the lion, H738 and the voice H6963 of the fierce lion, H7826 and the teeth H8127 of the young lions, H3715 are broken. H5421
11 The old lion H3918 perisheth H6 for lack H1097 of prey, H2964 and the stout lion's H3833 whelps H1121 are scattered abroad. H6504
12 Now a thing H1697 was secretly brought H1589 to me, and mine ear H241 received H3947 a little H8102 thereof.
13 In thoughts H5587 from the visions H2384 of the night, H3915 when deep sleep H8639 falleth H5307 on men, H582
14 Fear H6343 came H7122 upon me, and trembling, H7461 which made all H7230 my bones H6106 to shake. H6342
15 Then a spirit H7307 passed H2498 before my face; H6440 the hair H8185 of my flesh H1320 stood up: H5568
16 It stood still, H5975 but I could not discern H5234 the form H4758 thereof: an image H8544 was before mine eyes, H5869 there was silence, H1827 and I heard H8085 a voice, H6963 saying,
17 Shall mortal man H582 be more just H6663 than God? H433 shall a man H1397 be more pure H2891 than his maker? H6213
18 Behold, he put no trust H539 in his servants; H5650 and his angels H4397 he charged H7760 with folly: H8417
19 How much less H637 in them that dwell H7931 in houses H1004 of clay, H2563 whose foundation H3247 is in the dust, H6083 which are crushed H1792 before H6440 the moth? H6211
20 They are destroyed H3807 from morning H1242 to evening: H6153 they perish H6 for ever H5331 without any regarding H7760 it.
21 Doth not their excellency H3499 which is in them go away? H5265 they die, H4191 even without wisdom. H2451
1 Then answered Eliphaz the Temanite, and said,
2 If one assay to commune with thee, wilt thou be grieved? But who can withhold himself from speaking?
3 Behold, thou hast instructed many, And thou hast strengthened the weak hands.
4 Thy words have upholden him that was falling, And thou hast made firm the feeble knees.
5 But now it is come unto thee, and thou faintest; It toucheth thee, and thou art troubled.
6 Is not thy fear `of God' thy confidence, `And' the integrity of thy ways thy hope?
7 Remember, I pray thee, who `ever' perished, being innocent? Or where were the upright cut off?
8 According as I have seen, they that plow iniquity, And sow trouble, reap the same.
9 By the breath of God they perish, And by the blast of his anger are they consumed.
10 The roaring of the lion, and the voice of the fierce lion, And the teeth of the young lions, are broken.
11 The old lion perisheth for lack of prey, And the whelps of the lioness are scattered abroad.
12 Now a thing was secretly brought to me, And mine ear received a whisper thereof.
13 In thoughts from the visions of the night, When deep sleep falleth on men,
14 Fear came upon me, and trembling, Which made all my bones to shake.
15 Then a spirit passed before my face; The hair of my flesh stood up.
16 It stood still, but I could not discern the appearance thereof; A form was before mine eyes: `There was' silence, and I heard a voice, `saying',
17 Shall mortal man be more just than God? Shall a man be more pure than his Maker?
18 Behold, he putteth no trust in his servants; And his angels he chargeth with folly:
19 How much more them that dwell in houses of clay, Whose foundation is in the dust, Who are crushed before the moth!
20 Betwixt morning and evening they are destroyed: They perish for ever without any regarding it.
21 Is not their tent-cord plucked up within them? They die, and that without wisdom.
1 And Eliphaz the Temanite answereth and saith: --
2 Hath one tried a word with thee? -- Thou art weary! And to keep in words who is able?
3 Lo, thou hast instructed many, And feeble hands thou makest strong.
4 The stumbling one do thy words raise up, And bowing knees thou dost strengthen.
5 But now, it cometh in unto thee, And thou art weary; It striketh unto thee, and thou art troubled.
6 Is not thy reverence thy confidence? Thy hope -- the perfection of thy ways?
7 Remember, I pray thee, Who, being innocent, hath perished? And where have the upright been cut off?
8 As I have seen -- ploughers of iniquity, And sowers of misery, reap it!
9 From the breath of God they perish, And from the spirit of His anger consumed.
10 The roaring of a lion, And the voice of a fierce lion, And teeth of young lions have been broken.
11 An old lion is perishing without prey, And the whelps of the lioness do separate.
12 And unto me a thing is secretly brought, And receive doth mine ear a little of it.
13 In thoughts from visions of the night, In the falling of deep sleep on men,
14 Fear hath met me, and trembling, And the multitude of my bones caused to fear.
15 And a spirit before my face doth pass, Stand up doth the hair of my flesh;
16 It standeth, and I discern not its aspect, A similitude `is' over-against mine eyes, Silence! and a voice I hear:
17 `Is mortal man than God more righteous? Than his Maker is a man cleaner?
18 Lo, in His servants He putteth no credence, Nor in His messengers setteth praise.'
19 Also -- the inhabitants of houses of clay, (Whose foundation `is' in the dust, They bruise them before a moth.)
20 From morning to evening are beaten down, Without any regarding, for ever they perish.
21 Hath not their excellency been removed with them? They die, and not in wisdom!
1 And Eliphaz the Temanite answered and said,
2 If a word were essayed to thee, wouldest thou be grieved? But who can refrain from speaking?
3 Behold, thou hast instructed many, and thou hast strengthened the weak hands;
4 Thy words have upholden him that was stumbling, and thou hast braced up the bending knees:
5 But now it is come upon thee, and thou grievest; it toucheth thee, and thou art troubled.
6 Hath not thy piety been thy confidence, and the perfection of thy ways thy hope?
7 Remember, I pray thee, who that was innocent has perished? and where were the upright cut off?
8 Even as I have seen, they that plough iniquity and sow mischief, reap the same.
9 By the breath of +God they perish, and by the blast of his nostrils are they consumed.
10 The roar of the lion, and the voice of the fierce lion, and the teeth of the young lions, are broken;
11 The old lion perisheth for lack of prey, and the whelps of the lioness are scattered.
12 Now to me a word was secretly brought, and mine ear received a whisper thereof.
13 In thoughts from visions of the night, when deep sleep falleth on men: --
14 Fear came on me, and trembling, and made all my bones to shake;
15 And a spirit passed before my face -- the hair of my flesh stood up --
16 It stood still; I could not discern the appearance thereof: a form was before mine eyes; I heard a slight murmur and a voice:
17 Shall [mortal] man be more just than +God? Shall a man be purer than his Maker?
18 Lo, he trusteth not his servants, and his angels he chargeth with folly:
19 How much more them that dwell in houses of clay, whose foundation is in the dust, who are crushed as the moth!
20 From morning to evening are they smitten: without any heeding it, they perish for ever.
21 Is not their tent-cord torn away in them? they die, and without wisdom.
1 Then Eliphaz the Temanite answered,
2 "If someone ventures to talk with you, will you be grieved? But who can withhold himself from speaking?
3 Behold, you have instructed many, You have strengthened the weak hands.
4 Your words have supported him who was falling, You have made firm the feeble knees.
5 But now it is come to you, and you faint; It touches you, and you are troubled.
6 Isn't your piety your confidence, The integrity of your ways your hope?
7 "Remember, now, whoever perished, being innocent? Or where were the upright cut off?
8 According to what I have seen, those who plow iniquity, And sow trouble, Reap the same.
9 By the breath of God they perish, By the blast of his anger are they consumed.
10 The roaring of the lion, and the voice of the fierce lion, The teeth of the young lions, are broken.
11 The old lion perishes for lack of prey, The cubs of the lioness are scattered abroad.
12 "Now a thing was secretly brought to me, My ear received a whisper of it.
13 In thoughts from the visions of the night, When deep sleep falls on men,
14 Fear came on me, and trembling, Which made all my bones shake.
15 Then a spirit passed before my face; The hair of my flesh stood up.
16 It stood still, but I couldn't discern the appearance of it; A form was before my eyes. Silence, then I heard a voice, saying,
17 'Shall mortal man be more just than God? Shall a man be more pure than his Maker?
18 Behold, he puts no trust in his servants. He charges his angels with error.
19 How much more, those who dwell in houses of clay, Whose foundation is in the dust, Who are crushed before the moth!
20 Between morning and evening they are destroyed. They perish forever without any regarding it.
21 Isn't their tent-cord plucked up within them? They die, and that without wisdom.'
1 And Eliphaz the Temanite made answer and said,
2 If one says a word, will it be a weariness to you? but who is able to keep from saying what is in his mind?
3 Truly, you have been a helper to others, and you have made feeble hands strong;
4 He who was near to falling has been lifted up by your words, and you have given strength to bent knees.
5 But now it has come on you and it is a weariness to you; you are touched by it and your mind is troubled.
6 Is not your fear of God your support, and your upright way of life your hope?
7 Have you ever seen destruction come to an upright man? or when were the god-fearing ever cut off?
8 What I have seen is that those by whom trouble has been ploughed, and evil planted, get the same for themselves.
9 By the breath of God destruction takes them, and by the wind of his wrath they are cut off.
10 Though the noise of the lion and the sounding of his voice, may be loud, the teeth of the young lions are broken.
11 The old lion comes to his end for need of food, and the young of the she-lion go wandering in all directions.
12 A word was given to me secretly, and the low sound of it came to my ears.
13 In troubled thoughts from visions of the night, when deep sleep comes on men,
14 Fear came on me and shaking, and my bones were full of trouble;
15 And a breath was moving over my face; the hair of my flesh became stiff:
16 Something was present before me, but I was not able to see it clearly; there was a form before my eyes: a quiet voice came to my ears, saying:
17 May a man be upright before God? or a man be clean before his Maker?
18 Truly, he puts no faith in his servants, and he sees error in his angels;
19 How much more those living in houses of earth, whose bases are in the dust! They are crushed more quickly than an insect;
20 Between morning and evening they are completely broken; they come to an end for ever, and no one takes note.
21 If their tent-cord is pulled up, do they not come to an end, and without wisdom?
Worthy.Bible » Commentaries » Keil & Delitzsch Commentary » Commentary on Job 4
Commentary on Job 4 Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
In reply to Sommer, who in his excellent biblische Abhandlungen , 1846, considers the octastich as the extreme limit of the compass of the strophe, it is sufficient to refer to the Syriac strophe-system. It is, however, certainly an impossibility that, as Ewald ( Jahrb . ix. 37) remarks with reference to the first speech of Jehovah, Job 38-39, the strophes can sometimes extend to a length of 12 lines = Masoretic verses, consequently consist of 24 στίχοι and more. Then Eliphaz the Temanite began, and said:
2 If one attempts a word with thee, will it grieve thee?
And still to restrain himself from words, who is able?
3 Behold, thou hast instructed many,
And the weak hands thou hast strengthened.
4 The stumbling turned to thy words,
And the sinking knees thou hast strengthened.
5 But now it cometh to thee, thou art grieved;
Now it toucheth thee, thou despondest.
The question with which Eliphaz beings, is certainly one of those in which the tone of interrogation falls on the second of the paratactically connected sentences: Wilt thou, if we speak to thee, feel it unbearable? Similar examples are Job 4:21; Numbers 16:22; Jeremiah 8:4; and with interrogative Wherefore? Isaiah 5:4; Isaiah 50:2 : comp. the similar paratactic union of sentences, Job 2:10; Job 3:11 . The question arises here, whether נסּה is an Aramaic form of writing for נשּׂא (as the Masora in distinction from Deuteronomy 4:34 takes it), and also either future, Wilt thou, if we raise, i.e., utter, etc.; or passive, as Ewald formerly,
(Note: In the second edition, comp. Jahrb . ix. 37, he explains it otherwise: “If we attempt a word with thee, will it be grievous to thee quod aegre feras ?” But that, however, must be נסּה ; the form נסּה can only be third pers . Piel: If any one attempts, etc., which, according to Ewald's construction, gives no suitable rendering.)
If a word is raised, i.e., uttered, דּבר נשׂא , like משׁל נשׂא , Job 27:1; or whether it is third pers. Piel, with the signification, attempt, tentare , Ecclesiastes 7:23. The last is to be preferred, because more admissible and also more expressive. נסּה followed by the fut. is a hypothetic praet., Supposing that, etc., wilt thou, etc., as e.g., Job 23:10. מלּין is the Aramaic plur . of מלּה , which is more frequent in the book of Job than the Hebrew plur . מלּים . The futt., Job 4:3., because following the perf., are like imperfects in the western languages: the expression is like Isaiah 35:3. In עתּה כּי , Job 4:5, כּי has a temporal signification, Now when, Ges. §155, 1, e , ( b ).
6 Is not thy piety thy confidence,
Thy Hope? And the uprightness of thy ways?
7 Think now: who ever perished, being innocent?!
And where have the righteous been cut off?!
8 As often as I saw, those who ploughed evil
And sowed sorrow, - they reaped the same.
9 By the breath of Eloah they perished,
By the breath of His anger they vanished away.
10 The roaring of the lion, and the voice of the shachal,
And the teeth of the young lions, are rooted out.
11 The lion wanders about for want of prey,
And the lioness' whelps are scattered.
In Job 4:6 all recent expositors take the last waw as waw apodosis: And thy hope, is not even this the integrity of thy way? According to our punctuation, there is no occasion for supposing such an application of the waw apodosis, which is an error in a clause consisting only of substantives, and is not supported by the examples, Job 15:17; Job 23:12; 2 Samuel 22:41.
(Note: We will not, however, dispute the possibility, for at least in Arabic one can say, zı̂d f - hkı̂m Zeid, he is wise. Grammarians remark that Arab. zı̂d in this instance is like a hypothetical sentence: If any one asks, etc. 2 Samuel 15:34 is similar.)
תקותך is the permutative of the ambiguous כסלתך , which, from כּסל , to be fat, signifies both the awkwardness of stupidity and the boldness of confidence. The addition of הוּא to מי , Job 4:7, like Job 13:19; Job 17:3, makes the question more earnest: quis tandem , like זה מי , quisnam (Ges. §122, 2). In Job 4:8, כּאשׁר is not comparative, but temporal, and yet so that it unites, as usual, what stands in close connection with, and follows directly upon, the preceding: When, so as, as often as I had seen those who planned and worked out evil (comp. Proverbs 22:8), I also saw that they reaped it. That the ungodly, and they alone, perish, is shown in Job 4:10. under the simile of the lions. The Hebrew, like the oriental languages in general, is rich in names for lions; the reason of which is, that the lion-tribe, although now become rarer in Asia, and of which only a solitary one is found here and there in the valley of the Nile, was more numerous in the early times, and spread over a wider area.
(Note: Vid., Schmarda, Geographische Verbreitung der Thiere , i. 210, where, among other things, we read: The lion in Asia is driven back at almost all points, and also in Africa has been greatly diminished; for hundreds of lions and panthers were used in the Roman amphitheatres, whilst at the present time it would be impossible to procure so large a number.)
שׁחל , which the old expositors often understood as the panther, is perhaps the maneless lion, which is still found on the lower Euphrates and Tigris. נתע = נתץ , Psalms 58:7, evellere , elidere , by zeugma, applies to the voice also. All recent expositors translate Job 4:11 init. wrongly: the lion perishes. The participle אבד is a stereotype expression for wandering about viewless and helpless (Deuteronomy 26:5; Isaiah 27:13; Psalms 119:176, and freq.). The part., otherwise remarkable here, has its origin in this usage of the language. The parallelism is like Psalms 92:10.
12 And a word reached me stealthily,
And my ear heard a whisper thereof.
13 In the play of thought, in visions of the night,
When deep sleep falleth on men,
14 Fear came upon me, and trembling;
And it caused the multitude of my bones to quake with fear.
15 And a breathing passed over my face;
16 It stood there, and I discerned not its appearance:
An image was before my eyes;
A gentle murmur, and I heard a voice.
The fut. יגגּב , like Judges 2:1; Psalms 80:9, is ruled by the following fut. consec.: ad me furtim delatum est (not deferebatur ). Eliphaz does not say אלי ויגנּב (although he means a single occurrence), because he desires, with pathos, to put himself prominent. That the word came to him so secretly, and that he heard only as it were a whisper ( שׁמץ , according to Arnheim, in distinction from שׁמע , denotes a faint, indistinct impression on the ear), is designed to show the value of such a solemn communication, and to arouse curiosity. Instead of the prosaic ממּנוּ , we find here the poetic pausal-form מנהוּ expanded from מנּוּ , after the form מנּי , Job 21:16; Psalms 18:23. מן is partitive: I heard only a whisper, murmur; the word was too sacred and holy to come loudly and directly to his ear. It happened, as he lay in the deep sleep of night, in the midst of the confusion of thought resulting from nightly dreams. שׂעפּים (from שׂעיף , branched) are thoughts proceeding like branches from the heart as their root, and intertwining themselves; the מן which follows refers to the cause: there were all manner of dreams which occasioned the thoughts, and to which they referred (comp. Job 33:15); תּרדּמה , in distinction from שׁנה , sleep, and תּנוּמה , slumber, is the deep sleep related to death and ecstasy, in which man sinks back from outward life into the remotest ground of his inner life. In Job 4:14, קראני , from קרא = קרה , to meet (Ges. §75, 22), is equivalent to קרני (not קרני , as Hirz., first edition, wrongly points it; comp. Genesis 44:29). The subject of הפחיד is the undiscerned ghostlike something. Eliphaz was stretched upon his bed when רוּח , a breath of wind, passed ( חלף( dessap , similar to Isaiah 21:1) over his face. The wind is the element by means of which the spirit-existence is made manifest; comp. 1 Kings 19:12, where Jehovah appears in a gentle whispering of the wind, and Acts 2:2, where the descent of the Holy Spirit is made known by a mighty rushing. רוּח , πνεῦμα , Sanscrit âtma , signifies both the immaterial spirit and the air, which is proportionately the most immaterial of material things.
(Note: On wind and spirit, vid., Windischmann, Die Philosophie im Fortgang der Weltgesch . S. 1331ff.)
His hair bristled up, even every hair of his body; סמּר , not causative, but intensive of Kal . יעמד has also the ghostlike appearance as subject. Eliphaz could not discern its outline, only a תמוּנה , imago quaedam (the most ethereal word for form, Numbers 12:8; Psalms 17:15, of μορφή or δόξα of God), was before his eyes, and he heard, as it were proceeding from it, רקל דּממה , i.e., per hendiadyn : a voice, which spoke to him in a gentle, whispering tone, as follows:
17 Is a mortal just before Eloah,
Or a man pure before his Maker?
18 Behold, He trusteth not His servants!
And His angels He chargeth with imperfection.
19 How much more those who dwell in houses of clay,
They are crushed as though they were moths.
20 From morning until evening, - so are they broken in pieces:
Unobserved they perish for ever.
21 Is it not so: the cord of their tent in them is torn away,
So they die, and not in wisdom?
The question arises whether מן is comparative: prae Deo , on which Mercier with penetration remarks: justior sit oportet qui immerito affligitur quam qui immerito affligit ; or causal: a Deo, h.e., ita ut a Deo justificetur . All modern expositors rightly decide on the latter. Hahn justly maintains that עם and בּעיני are found in a similar connection in other places; and Job 32:2 is perhaps not to be explained in any other way, at least that does not restrict the present passage. By the servants of God, none but the angels, mentioned in the following line of the verse, are intended. שׂים with בּ signifies imputare ( 1 Samuel 22:15); in Job 24:12 (comp. Job 1:22) we read תּפלה , absurditatem (which Hupf. wishes to restore even here), joined with the verb in this signification. The form תּהלה is certainly not to be taken as stultitia from the verb הלל ; the half vowel, and still less the absence of the Dagesh , will not allow this. תּרן (Olsh. §213, c ), itself uncertain in its etymology, presents no available analogy. The form points to a Lamedh-He verb, as תּרמה from רמה , so perhaps from הלה , Niph . נהלא , remotus , Micah 4:7 : being distant, being behind the perfect, difference; or even from הלה (Targ. הלא , Pa . הלּי ) = לאה , weakness, want of strength.
(Note: Schnurrer compares the Arabic wahila , which signifies to be relaxed, forgetful, to err, to neglect. Ewald, considering the ת as radical, compares the Arabic dll , to err, and tâl , med . wau , to be dizzy, unconscious; but neither from והל nor from תּהל can the substantival form be sustained.)
Both significations will do, for it is not meant that the good spirits positively sin, as if sin were a natural necessary consequence of their creatureship and finite existence, but that even the holiness of the good spirits is never equal to the absolute holiness of God, and that this deficiency is still greater in spirit-corporeal man, who has earthiness as the basis of his original nature. At the same time, it is presupposed that the distance between God and created earth is disproportionately greater than between God and created spirit, since matter is destined to be exalted to the nature of the spirit, but also brings the spirit into the danger of being degraded to its own level.
Job 4:19
אף signifies, like כּי אף , quanto minus , or quanto magis , according as a negative or positive sentence precedes: since Job 4:18 is positive, we translate it here quanto magis , as 2 Samuel 16:11. Men are called dwellers in clay houses: the house of clay is their φθαρτὸν σῶμα , as being taken de limo terrae (Job 33:6; comp. Wis. 9:15); it is a fragile habitation, formed of inferior materials, and destined to destruction. The explanation which follows - those whose יסוד , i.e., foundation of existence, is in dust - shows still more clearly that the poet has Genesis 2:7; Genesis 3:19, in his mind. It crushes them (subject, everything that operates destructively on the life of man) לפני־עשׁ , i.e., not: sooner than the moth is crushed (Hahn), or more rapidly than a moth destroys (Oehler, Fries), or even appointed to the moth for destruction (Schlottm.); but לפני signifies, as Job 3:24 (cf. 1 Samuel 1:16), ad instar : as easily as a moth is crushed. They last only from morning until evening: they are broken in pieces ( הכּת , from כּתת , for הוּכת ); they are therefore as ephemerae. They perish for ever, without any one taking it to heart ( suppl . על־לב , Isaiah 42:25; Isaiah 57:1), or directing the heart towards it, animum advertit ( suppl . לב , Job 1:8).
In Job 4:21 the soul is compared to the cord of a tent, which stretches out and holds up the body as a tent, like Ecclesiastes 12:6, with a silver cord, which holds the lamp hanging from the covering of the tent. Olshausen is inclined to read יתדם , their tent-pole, instead of יתרם , and at any rate thinks the accompanying בּם superfluous and awkward. But (1) the comparison used here of the soul, and of the life sustained by it, corresponds to its comparison elsewhere with a thread or weft, of which death is the cutting through or loosing (Job 6:9; Job 27:8; Isaiah 38:12); (12) בּם is neither superfluous nor awkward, since it is intended to say, that their duration of life falls in all at once like a tent when that which in them ( בם ) corresponds to the cord of a tent (i.e., the נפשׁ ) is drawn away from it. The relation of the members of the sentence in Job 4:21 is just the same as in Job 4:2 : Will they not die when it is torn away, etc. They then die off in lack of wisdom, i.e., without having acted in accordance with the perishableness of their nature and their distance from God; therefore, rightly considered: unprepared and suddenly, comp. Job 36:12; Proverbs 5:23. Oehler, correctly: without having been made wiser by the afflictions of God. The utterance of the Spirit, the compass of which is unmistakeably manifest by the strophic division, ends here. Eliphaz now, with reference to it, turns to Job.