Job 19:28

28 “If you say, ‘How we will hound him, since the root of the trouble lies in him,[a]

Job 19:28 in Other Translations

KJV
28 But ye should say, Why persecute we him, seeing the root of the matter is found in me?
ESV
28 If you say, 'How we will pursue him!' and, 'The root of the matter is found in him,'
NLT
28 “How dare you go on persecuting me, saying, ‘It’s his own fault’?
MSG
28 "If you're thinking, 'How can we get through to him, get him to see that his trouble is all his own fault?'
CSB
28 If you say, "How will we pursue him, since the root of the problem lies with him?"

Job 19:28 Meaning and Commentary

Job 19:28

But ye should say
Here Job directs his friends what use they should make of this confession of his faith; they should upon this say within themselves, and to one another,

why persecute we him, seeing the root of the matter is found in me?
Why should we pursue him with hard words, and load him with censures and reproaches, as if he was an hypocrite, when it appears, by what he says, that he has truth in the inward parts, the true grace of God is in him; that he is rooted in the love of God, and in the person of the Redeemer; that he has the Spirit of God in him, and the divine seed which has taken root in him, and brings forth fruit: or that "the root of the word" F11 is in him; the word of God has a place in him, and is become the ingrafted word; the root doctrines, the principal and fundamental truths of religion, are believed and professed by him, such as respect the incarnation of the Messiah, his resurrection from the dead, and coming to judgment, the resurrection of all the dead in the same body, a future state of happiness, in which saints will enjoy the beatific vision; since these things are firmly believed by him, though he may differ from us in some points about the methods of divine Providence, let us cease from persecuting him any further; see ( Romans 10:8-10 ) .


FOOTNOTES:

F11 (rbd vrv) "radix verbi", Montanus, Mercerus, Schmidt, Michaelis; "radix sermonis", Cocceius; "fundamenta negotii salutis", Tigurine version.

Job 19:28 In-Context

26 And after my skin has been destroyed, yet in my flesh I will see God;
27 I myself will see him with my own eyes—I, and not another. How my heart yearns within me!
28 “If you say, ‘How we will hound him, since the root of the trouble lies in him, ’
29 you should fear the sword yourselves; for wrath will bring punishment by the sword, and then you will know that there is judgment. ”

Cross References 1

Footnotes 1

  • [a]. Many Hebrew manuscripts, Septuagint and Vulgate; most Hebrew manuscripts "me"
Scripture quoted by permission.  Quotations designated (NIV) are from THE HOLY BIBLE: NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®.  NIV®.  Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica.  All rights reserved worldwide.