American Standard Version
Job 4:17
17Shall mortal man be more just than God?Shall a man be more pure than his Maker?
Job 4:17 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)Shall mortal man be more just than God? shall a man be more pure than his maker?
- New International Version (NIV)‘Can a mortal be more righteous than God? Can even a strong man be more pure than his Maker?
- English Standard Version (ESV)'Can mortal man be in the right before God? Can a man be pure before his Maker?
- New King James Version (NKJV)‘Can a mortal be more righteous than God? Can a man be more pure than his Maker?
Context of Job 4:17
15Then a spirit passed before my face; The hair of my flesh stood up. 16It stood still, but I could not discern the appearance thereof; A form was before mine eyes: There wassilence, and I heard a voice, saying, Shall mortal man be more just than God? Shall a man be more pure than his Maker? 18Behold, he putteth no trust in his servants; And his angels he chargeth with folly: 19How much more them that dwell in houses of clay, Whose foundation is in the dust, Who are crushed before the moth!
Read all of Job 4Job 4:17 word by word
הַֽ֭אֱנוֹשׁ מֵאֱל֣וֹהַ יִצְדָּ֑ק אִ֥ם מֵ֝עֹשֵׂ֗הוּ יִטְהַר־גָּֽבֶר׃Read the interlinear
Cross-references for Job 4:17
- Job 8:3Doth God pervert justice? Or doth the Almighty pervert righteousness?
- Job 9:2Of a truth I know that it is so: But how can man be just with God?
- Job 35:2Thinkest thou this to be thy right, Or sayest thou, My righteousness is more than God’s,
- Job 40:8Wilt thou even annul my judgment? Wilt thou condemn me, that thou mayest be justified?
- Genesis 18:25That be far from thee to do after this manner, to slay the righteous with the wicked, that so the righteous should be as the wicked; that be far from thee: shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?
- Psalms 143:2And enter not into judgment with thy servant; For in thy sight no man living is righteous.
- Psalms 145:17Jehovah is righteous in all his ways, And gracious in all his works.
- Ecclesiastes 7:20Surely there is not a righteous man upon earth, that doeth good, and sinneth not.
- Jeremiah 12:1Righteous art thou, O Jehovah, when I contend with thee; yet would I reason the cause with thee: wherefore doth the way of the wicked prosper? wherefore are all they at ease that deal very treacherously?
- Romans 2:5but after thy hardness and impenitent heart treasurest up for thyself wrath in the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God;
- Romans 3:4God forbid: yea, let God be found true, but every man a liar; as it is written, That thou mightest be justified in thy words, And mightest prevail when thou comest into judgment.
- Romans 9:20Nay but, O man, who art thou that repliest against God? Shall the thing formed say to him that formed it, Why didst thou make me thus?
- Romans 11:33O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and the knowledge of God! how unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways past tracing out!
- Job 9:30If I wash myself with snow water, And make my hands never so clean;
- Job 14:4Who can bring a clean thing out of an unclean? not one.
- Job 15:14What is man, that he should be clean? And he that is born of a woman, that he should be righteous?
Commentaries on Job 4:17
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 17Shall mortal man - אנוש enosh ; Greek poor, weak, dying man. Be more just than God? - Or, יצדק מאלוה האנוש haenosh meeloah yitsdak ; shall poor, weak, sinful man be justified before God? Shall a man - גבר gaber, shall even the strong and mighty man, be pure before his Maker? Is any man, considered merely in and of himself, either holy in his conduct, or pure in his heart? No. He must be justified by the mercy of God, through an atoning sacrifice; he must…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 17Shall mortal man - Or, shall feeble man. The idea of “mortal” is not necessarily implied in the word used here, אנושׁ 'ĕnôsh It means man; and is usually applied to the lower classes or ranks of people; see the notes at Isaiah 8:1. The common opinion in regard to this word is, that it is derived from אנשׁ 'ânash to be sick, or ill at ease; and then desperate, or incurable - as of a disease or wound; Jeremiah 15:18; Micah 1:9; Job 34:6. Gesenius (Lex)…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 12-21Verses 12-21 Eliphaz relates a vision. When we are communing with our own hearts, and are still, Psa 4:4, then is a time for the Holy Spirit to commune with us. This vision put him into very great fear. Ever since man sinned, it has been terrible to him to receive communications from Heaven, conscious that he can expect no good tidings thence. Sinful man! shall he pretend to be more just, more pure, than God, who being his Maker, is his Lord and Owner?…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 17The characters in the book often say that no one is truly righteous or pure (see 9:2; 15:14; 25:4; 35:7). This is because everyone is flawed (Psalms 14:3; 53:3; Romans 3:10–11). Eliphaz used these terms to say that humans are full of sin and God has no sin. Job and God used them to show that Job had fulfilled his duties to God. Job and Eliphaz never agreed on what these terms meant. Later, God said that Eliphaz had not spoken about him "accurately" (Job…Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1717. mortal man ... a man--Two Hebrew words for "man" are used; the first implying his feebleness; the second his strength. Whether feeble or strong, man is not righteous before God. more just than God ... more pure than his maker--But this would be self-evident without an oracle.Read the comment
Topics related to Job 4:17
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Job 4
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Rashi on Tanakh
- Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
- John Wesley’s Notes
- Darby Translation Notes
- Geneva Bible Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
American Standard Version — 1901 — Public Domain
Commentaries