Job 23

KJ3 Literal Translation — Chapter 23 of 42

¹ ¶ And Job answered and said:

² Even today my complaint is bitter; my hand is heavy over my groaning.

³ Oh that I knew and I could find Him, I would come into His seat;

⁴ I would set in order my cause before Him, and I would fill my mouth with arguments.

Chapter Summary

1 Job longs to appear before Jehovah, 6 in confidence of His mercy. 8 Jehovah, who is invisible, observes our ways. 11 Job's innocence.

Key Hebrew Words

שִׂיחַ complaint H7879 · TWOT 2255a

בָּחַן try, test H974 · TWOT 230

זָהָב gold H2091 · TWOT 529a

שָׁמַר kept (His way) H8104 · TWOT 2414

מִצְוָה commandment H4687 · TWOT 1887b

פָּחַד dread H6342 · TWOT 1756

People & Context

Job

The sufferer; longs to find God's seat and plead his case, certain he would come forth as gold when tried.

Timeline

Job Longs to Present His Case to God

Job wishes he knew where to find God so he could order his arguments before His seat. He believes an upright man could reason with God and be delivered from his Judge.

Job 23:1-7

Job Cannot Find God but Maintains His Integrity

Job searches forward, backward, left, and right but cannot perceive God. Nevertheless, he maintains that God knows his way, and when tested, he will emerge as pure gold because he kept God's commands.

Job 23:8-12

Job is Terrified by God's Sovereign Will

Realizing that God's mind is unchangeable and He accomplishes whatever His soul desires, Job is filled with dread and his heart is made weak by the presence of the Almighty.

Job 23:13-17

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