Job 42:4

Wycliffe Bible

Here thou, and Y schal speke; Y schal axe thee, and answere thou to me.

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
You said, “Listen now, and I will speak.When I question you, you will inform me.”

Hebrew Names Version
You said, 'Listen, now, and I will speak; I will question you, and you will answer me.'

King James Version
Hear, I beseech thee, and I will speak: I will demand of thee, and declare thou unto me.

English Standard Version
‘Hear, and I will speak; I will question you, and you make it known to me.'

New Century Version
You said, ‘Listen now, and I will speak. I will ask you questions, and you must answer me.'

New English Translation
You said, ‘Pay attention, and I will speak; I will question you, and you will answer me.'

Amplified Bible
'Hear, please, and I will speak; I will ask You, and You instruct [and answer] me.'

New American Standard Bible
'Please listen, and I will speak; I will ask You, and You instruct me.'

World English Bible
You said, 'Listen, now, and I will speak; I will question you, and you will answer me.'

Geneva Bible (1587)
Heare, I beseech thee, and I will speake: I will demaunde of thee, & declare thou vnto me.

Legacy Standard Bible
‘Hear, now, and I will speak;I will ask You, and You make me know.'

Berean Standard Bible
You said, 'Listen now, and I will speak. I will question you, and you shall answer Me.'

Contemporary English Version
You told me to listen and answer your questions.

Complete Jewish Bible
"Please listen, and I will speak. [You said,] ‘I will ask questions; and you, give me answers' —

Darby Translation
Hear, I beseech thee, and I will speak: I will demand of thee, and inform me.

Easy-to-Read Version
"You said to me, ‘Listen, and I will speak. I will ask you questions, and you will answer me.'

George Lamsa Translation
Hear me, I pray thee, and I will speak; I will ask thee, and declare thou to me;

Good News Translation
You told me to listen while you spoke and to try to answer your questions.

Lexham English Bible
‘Hear and I will speak; I will question you, then inform me.'

Literal Translation
I pray, Listen, and I will speak; I will ask You, and You will make me know.

Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
O herken thou vnto me also, and let me speake: answere me vnto the thinge that I will axe the.

American Standard Version
Hear, I beseech thee, and I will speak; I will demand of thee, and declare thou unto me.

Bible in Basic English
Give ear to me, and I will say what is in my mind; I will put questions to you, and you will give me the answers.

JPS Old Testament (1917)
Hear, I beseech Thee, and I will speak; I will demand of Thee, and declare Thou unto me.

King James Version (1611)
Heare, I beseech thee, and I will speake: I will demand of thee, and declare thou vnto me.

Bishop's Bible (1568)
O hearken thou vnto me also, and let me speake: aunswere vnto the thing that I wyll aske thee.

Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
But hear me, O Lord, that I also may speak: and I will ask thee, and do thou teach me.

English Revised Version
Hear, I beseech thee, and I will speak; I will demand of thee, and declare thou unto me.

Update Bible Version
Hear, I urge you, and I will speak; I will demand of you, and declare you to me.

Webster's Bible Translation
Hear, I beseech thee, and I will speak: I will ask of thee, and declare thou to me.

New King James Version
Listen, please, and let me speak; You said, "I will question you, and you shall answer Me.'

New Living Translation
You said, ‘Listen and I will speak! I have some questions for you, and you must answer them.'

New Life Bible
‘Hear now, and I will speak. I will ask you, and you answer Me.'

New Revised Standard
‘Hear, and I will speak; I will question you, and you declare to me.'

J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
Hear thou, I pray thee, and, I, will speak, I will ask thee, and inform thou me.

Douay-Rheims Bible
Hear, and I will speak: I will ask thee, and do thou tell me.

Revised Standard Version
'Hear, and I will speak; I will question you, and you declare to me.'

Young's Literal Translation
`Hear, I pray thee, and I -- I do speak, I ask thee, and cause thou me to know.'

New American Standard Bible (1995)
Praise Him with timbrel and dancing; Praise Him with stringed instruments and pipe.

Contextual Overview

¹ Forsothe Joob answeride to the Lord, and seide, ² Y woot, that thou maist alle thingis, and no thouyt is hid fro thee [Note: Joob wiste wel, that in remembringe his riytfulnesse he suffride sum stiring of veynglorie, which is wont to come liytly in siche thingis, yhe, in men that ben perfit. in preisinge my riytfulnesse. in enqueringe ouer myche the resouns of Goddis domes. ]. ³ Who is this, that helith counsel with out kunnyng? Therfor Y spak vnwiseli, and tho thingis that passiden ouer mesure my kunnyng. ⁴ Here thou, and Y schal speke; Y schal axe thee, and answere thou to me. ⁵ Bi heryng of eere Y herde thee, but now myn iye seeth thee. ⁶ Therfor Y repreue me, and do penaunce in deed sparcle and aische.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

Hear: Genesis 18:27, Genesis 18:30-32

I will: Job 38:3, Job 40:7

Reciprocal: Ezekiel 18:25 - way

Cross-References

Genesis 3:22
Adam is maad as oon of vs, and knowith good and yuel; now therfore se ye, lest perauenture he putte his hond, and take of the tre of lijf, and ete, and lyue with outen ende.

Genesis 11:4
and seiden, Come ye, and make we to vs a citee and tour, whos hiynesse stretche `til to heuene; and make we solempne oure name bifor that we be departid in to alle londis.

Genesis 42:1
Forsothe Jacob herde that foodis weren seeld in Egipt, and he seide to hise sones, Whi ben ye necgligent?

Genesis 42:2
Y herde that wheete is seeld in Egipt, go ye doun, and bie ye necessaries to vs, that we moun lyue, and be not wastid bi nedynesse.

Genesis 42:16
that he brynge hym, forsothe ye schulen be in boondis, til tho thingis that ye seiden ben preued, whether tho ben false ether trewe; ellis, bi the helthe of Farao, ye ben aspieris.

Genesis 42:19
if ye ben pesible, o brother of you be boundun in prisoun; forsothe go ye, and bere wheetis, whiche ye bouyten,

Genesis 42:20
in to youre housis, and brynge ye youre leeste brother to me, that Y may preue youre wordis, and ye die not. Thei diden as he seide,

Genesis 42:22
Of which oon, Ruben, seide, Whether Y seide not to yow, Nyle ye do synne ayens the child, and ye herden not me? lo! his blood is souyt.

Genesis 42:27
and whanne the sak of oon was opened that he schulde yyue meete to the werk beeste in the yn, he bihelde the money in the mouth of the bagge,

Genesis 42:34
that Y wite that ye ben not aspieris, and that ye moun resseyue this brother which is holdun in boondis, and that fro thennus forth ye haue licence to bie what thingis ye wolen.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

Hear, I beseech thee, and I will speak,.... Not in the manner he had before, complaining of God and justifying himself, but in a way of humble entreaty of favours of him, of confession of sin before him, and of acknowledgment of his wisdom, goodness, and justice in all his dealings with him, which before he arraigned;

I will demand of thee; or rather "I will make petition to thee", as Mr. Broughton renders it; humbly ask a favour, and entreat a gracious answer; for to demand is not so agreeable to the frame and temper of soul Job was now in;

and declare thou unto me; or make him know what he knew not; he now in ignorance applies to God, as a God of knowledge, to inform him in things he was in the dark about, and to increase what knowledge he had. He was now willing to take the advice of Elihu, and pursue it,

Job 34:31.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

Hear, I beseech thee, and I will speak - This is the language of humble, docile submission. On former occasions he had spoken confidently and boldly of God; he had called in question the equity of his dealings with him; he had demanded that he might be permitted to carry his cause before him, and argue it there himself; Notes, Job 13:3, and notes Job 13:20-22. Now he is wholly changed. His is the submissive language of a docile child, and he begs to be permitted to sit down before God, and humbly to inquire of him what was truth. “This is true religion.”

I will demand of thee - Or rather, “I will ask of thee.” The word “demand” implies more than there is of necessity in the original word (שׁאל shâ'al). That means simply “to ask,” and it may be done with the deepest humility and desire of instruction. That was now the temper of Job.

And declare thou unto me - Job was not now disposed to debate the matter, or to enter into a controversy with God. He was willing to sit down and receive instruction from God, and earnestly desired that he would “teach” him of his ways. It should be added, that very respectable critics suppose that in this verse Job designs to make confession of the impropriety of his language on former occasions, in the presumptuous and irreverent manner in which he had demanded a trial of argument with God. It would then require to be rendered as a quotation from his own words formerly.

“I have indeed uttered what I understood not,

Things too wonderful for me, which I know not,

(When I said) Hear now, I will speak,

I will demand of thee, and do thou teach me”

This is adopted by Umbreit, and has much in its favor that is plausible; but on the whole the usual interpretation seems to be most simple and proper.