New American Standard Bible 1995

Job 29

Job’s Past Was Glorious

1And Job again took up his 1discourse and said,2“Oh that I were as in months gone by, As in the days when God 2watched over me;3When 3His lamp shone over my head, And 4by His light I walked through darkness;4As I was in 5the prime of my days, When the 6 7friendship of God was over my tent;5When 8the Almighty was yet with me, And my children were around me;6When my steps were bathed in 9butter, And the 10rock poured out for me streams of oil!7When I went out to 11the gate of the city, When I 12took my seat in the square,8The young men saw me and hid themselves, And the old men arose and stood.9The princes 13stopped talking And 14put their hands on their mouths;10The voice of the nobles was 15 16hushed, And their 17tongue stuck to their palate.11For when 18the ear heard, it called me blessed, And when the eye saw, it gave witness of me,12Because I delivered 19the poor who cried for help, And the 20orphan who had no helper.13The blessing of the one 21ready to perish came upon me, And I made the 22widow’s heart sing for joy.14I 23put on righteousness, and it clothed me; My justice was like a robe and a turban.15I was 24eyes to the blind And feet to the lame.16I was a father to 25the needy, And I investigated the case which I did not know.17I 26broke the jaws of the wicked And snatched the prey from his teeth.18Then I 27thought, ‘I shall die 28in my nest, And I shall multiply my days as the sand.19My 29root is spread out to the waters, And 30dew lies all night on my branch.20My glory is ever new with me, And my 31bow is renewed in my hand.’

21“To me 32they listened and waited, And kept silent for my counsel.22After my words they did not 33speak again, And 34my speech dropped on them.23They waited for me as for the rain, And opened their mouth as for the spring rain.24I smiled on them when they did not believe, And the light of my face they did not cast down.25I chose a way for them and sat as 35chief, And dwelt as a king among the troops, As one who 36comforted the mourners.

Notes

1. Job 29:1 Num 23:7; 24:3; Job 13:12; 27:1 ↩
2. Job 29:2 Jer 31:28 ↩
3. Job 29:3 Job 18:6 ↩
4. Job 29:3 Job 11:17 ↩
5. Job 29:4 Lit the days of my autumn ↩
6. Job 29:4 Lit counsel ↩
7. Job 29:4 Job 15:8; Ps 25:14; Prov 3:32 ↩
8. Job 29:5 Heb Shaddai ↩
9. Job 29:6 Deut 32:14; Job 20:17 ↩
10. Job 29:6 Deut 32:13; Ps 81:16 ↩
11. Job 29:7 Job 31:21 ↩
12. Job 29:7 Lit set up ↩
13. Job 29:9 Job 29:21 ↩
14. Job 29:9 Job 21:5 ↩
15. Job 29:10 Lit hidden ↩
16. Job 29:10 Job 29:22 ↩
17. Job 29:10 Ps 137:6 ↩
18. Job 29:11 Job 4:3, 4 ↩
19. Job 29:12 Job 24:4, 9; 34:28; Ps 72:12; Prov 21:13 ↩
20. Job 29:12 Job 31:17, 21 ↩
21. Job 29:13 Job 31:19 ↩
22. Job 29:13 Job 22:9 ↩
23. Job 29:14 Job 27:5, 6; Ps 132:9; Is 59:17; 61:10; Eph 6:14 ↩
24. Job 29:15 Num 10:31 ↩
25. Job 29:16 Job 24:4; Prov 29:7 ↩
26. Job 29:17 Ps 3:7 ↩
27. Job 29:18 Lit said ↩
28. Job 29:18 Lit with ↩
29. Job 29:19 Jer 17:8 ↩
30. Job 29:19 Hos 14:5 ↩
31. Job 29:20 Gen 49:24; Ps 18:34 ↩
32. Job 29:21 Job 4:3; 29:9 ↩
33. Job 29:22 Job 29:10 ↩
34. Job 29:22 Deut 32:2 ↩
35. Job 29:25 Job 1:3; 31:37 ↩
36. Job 29:25 Job 4:4; 16:5 ↩

Job’s Past Was Glorious

Notes

Commentaries on Job 29