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Job 21:11-13
New English Translation
Job 21:11-13
New English Translation
11 They allow their children to run[a] like a flock;
their little ones dance about.
12 They sing[b] to the accompaniment of tambourine and harp,
and make merry to the sound of the flute.
13 They live out[c] their years in prosperity
and go down[d] to the grave[e] in peace.
Footnotes
- Job 21:11 tn The verb שָׁלַח (shalakh) means “to send forth,” but in the Piel “to release; to allow to run free.” The picture of children frolicking in the fields and singing and dancing is symbolic of peaceful, prosperous times.
- Job 21:12 tn The verb is simply “they take up [or lift up],” but the understood object is “their voices,” and so it means “they sing.”
- Job 21:13 tc The Kethib has “they wear out” but the Qere and the versions have יְכַלּוּ (yekhallu, “bring to an end”). The verb כָּלָה (kalah) means “to finish; to complete,” and here with the object “their days,” it means that they bring their life to a (successful) conclusion. Both readings are acceptable in the context, with very little difference in the overall meaning (which according to Gordis is proof the Qere does not always correct the Kethib).
- Job 21:13 tc The MT has יֵחָתּוּ (yekhattu, “they are frightened [or broken]”), taking the verb from חָתַת (khatat, “be terrified”). But most would slightly repoint it to יֵחָתוּ (yekhatu), an Aramaism, “they go down,” from נָחַת (nakhat, “go down”). See Job 17:16.
- Job 21:13 tn The word רֶגַע (regaʿ) has been interpreted as “in a moment” or “in peace” (on the basis of Arabic rajaʿa, “return to rest”). Gordis thinks this is a case of talhin— both meanings present in the mind of the writer.
New English Translation (NET)
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