Job 42:1

Old Testament Wisdom/Poetry ASV (1901)

What does Job 42:1 say?

The American Standard Version records this verse as: “Then Job answered Jehovah, and said,” Read the surrounding verses and the named sources below before drawing broader conclusions.

The verse

Then Job answered Jehovah, and said,
Job 42:1 — American Standard Version

Context — Job 42

American Standard Version (1901) — public domain. Click any verse for its study page.
1Then Job answered Jehovah, and said,

What do historical commentaries say?

John Gill's Exposition
John Gill (1697–1771) · Exposition of the Old and New Testament · 18th-century historical commentary
“Then Job answered the Lord, and said.] For though he had said he would answer no more, (<184005>Job 40:5); yet he might mean not in the manner he had, complaining of God and justifying himself; besides he might change his mind without any imputation of falsehood or a lie; (see <242009> Jeremiah 20:9); to which may be added, that he had then said all he had to say, and did not know he should have more: he then confessed as much as he was convinced of, but it was not enough; and now through what the Lord had since said to him he was more convinced of his ignorance, mistakes, and sins, and had such a sight of God and of himself, that he could not forbear speaking; moreover an injunction was…”
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Jamieson, Fausset & Brown
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown · Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible · 19th-century historical commentary
“JOB'S PENITENT REPLY. (Job 42:1-6) In the first clause he owns God to be omnipotent over nature, as contrasted with his own feebleness, which God had proved (Job 40:15; Job 41:34); in the second, that God is supremely just (which, in order to be governor of the world, He must needs be) in all His dealings, as contrasted with his own vileness (Job 42:6), and incompetence to deal with the wicked as a just judge (Job 40:8-14). thought--"purpose," as in Job 17:11; but it is usually applied to evil devices (Job 21:27; Psa 10:2): the ambiguous word is designedly chosen to express that, while to Job's finite view, God's plans seem bad, to the All-wise One they continue unhindered in their…”
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Tyndale Open Study Notes
Tyndale House Publishers · Tyndale Open Study Notes · Modern study notes
“42:1-6 Job understood the message of God’s speeches: I know that you can do anything. Nothing is too hard for God (Gen 18:14; Jer 32:17; Matt 19:26) and nothing can stop his plan (Job 23:13; Isa 14:27; 46:10). Job realized how unlike God he was.”
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Keil & Delitzsch
C. F. Keil & F. Delitzsch · Commentary on the Old Testament · 19th-century historical commentary
“1 Then Job answered Jehovah, and said: 2 Now I know that Thou canst do all things, And no plan is impracticable to Thee. 3 "Who then hideth counsel - Without knowledge?" Thus have I judged without understanding, What was too wonderful for me, without knowing. He indeed knew previously what he acknowledges in Job 42:2, but now this knowledge has risen upon him in a new divinely-worked clearness, such as he has not hitherto experienced. Those strange but wondrous monsters are a proof to him that God is able to put everything into operation, and that the plans according to which He acts are beyond the reach of human comprehension. If even that which is apparently most contradictory, rightly…”
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Related study paths

Sources and verification