Job 17:4
Job 17:4 in Multiple Translations
You have closed their minds to understanding; therefore You will not exalt them.
For thou hast hid their heart from understanding: therefore shalt thou not exalt them.
For thou hast hid their heart from understanding: Therefore shalt thou not exalt them.
You have kept their hearts from wisdom: for this cause you will not give them honour.
You have closed their minds to understanding, so do not let them win!
For thou hast hid their heart from vnderstanding: therefore shalt thou not set them vp on hie.
For their heart Thou hast hidden From understanding, Therefore Thou dost not exalt them.
For you have hidden their heart from understanding, therefore you will not exalt them.
For thou hast hid their heart from understanding: therefore shalt thou not exalt them .
Thou hast set their heart far from understanding, therefore they shall not be exalted.
You have prevented my friends from understanding what is true about me; do not allow them to triumph over me, saying that I have done things that are wrong.
Berean Amplified Bible — Job 17:4
BAB
Word Study
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Job 17:4 Interlinear (Deep Study)
BIB
HEB
כִּֽי
לִ֭בָּ/ם
צָפַ֣נְתָּ
מִּ/שָּׂ֑כֶל
עַל
כֵּ֝֗ן
לֹ֣א
תְרֹמֵֽם
כִּֽי
kîy
H3588
for
Conj
לִ֭בָּ/ם
lêb
H3820
heart
N-ms | Suff
צָפַ֣נְתָּ
tsâphan
H6845
to treasure
V-Qal-Perf-2ms
מִּ/שָּׂ֑כֶל
sekel
H7922
understanding
Prep | N-ms
עַל
ʻal
H5921
upon
Prep
כֵּ֝֗ן
kên
H3651
right
Part
לֹ֣א
lôʼ
H3808
not
Part
תְרֹמֵֽם
rûwm
H7311
to exalt
V-o-Imperf-2ms
Hebrew Word Study
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Hebrew Word Reference — Job 17:4
כִּֽי
kîy
H3588
"for"
Conj
A conjunction used to show cause or connection, as in Genesis 2:23 where Adam says the woman is bone of his bone because she was taken out of him. It is often translated as 'for', 'because', or 'since'.
Definition: 1) that, for, because, when, as though, as, because that, but, then, certainly, except, surely, since 1a) that 1a1) yea, indeed 1b) when (of time) 1b1) when, if, though (with a concessive force) 1c) because, since (causal connection) 1d) but (after negative) 1e) that if, for if, indeed if, for though, but if 1f) but rather, but 1g) except that 1h) only, nevertheless 1i) surely 1j) that is 1k) but if 1l) for though 1m) forasmuch as, for therefore
Usage: Occurs in 3910 OT verses. KJV: and, + (forasmuch, inasmuch, where-) as, assured(-ly), + but, certainly, doubtless, + else, even, + except, for, how, (because, in, so, than) that, + nevertheless, now, rightly, seeing, since, surely, then, therefore, + (al-) though, + till, truly, + until, when, whether, while, whom, yea, yet. See also: Genesis 1:4; Genesis 26:16; Genesis 42:15.
לִ֭בָּ/ם
lêb
H3820
"heart"
N-ms | Suff
Leb refers to the heart, but also represents feelings, will, and intellect in the Bible. It is used figuratively to describe the center of something, and is often translated as heart or mind. Leb is a complex concept that encompasses emotions and thoughts.
Definition: 1) inner man, mind, will, heart, understanding 1a) inner part, midst 1a1) midst (of things) 1a2) heart (of man) 1a3) soul, heart (of man) 1a4) mind, knowledge, thinking, reflection, memory 1a5) inclination, resolution, determination (of will) 1a6) conscience 1a7) heart (of moral character) 1a8) as seat of appetites 1a9) as seat of emotions and passions 1a10) as seat of courage
Usage: Occurs in 552 OT verses. KJV: [phrase] care for, comfortably, consent, [idiom] considered, courag(-eous), friend(-ly), ((broken-), (hard-), (merry-), (stiff-), (stout-), double) heart(-ed), [idiom] heed, [idiom] I, kindly, midst, mind(-ed), [idiom] regard(-ed), [idiom] themselves, [idiom] unawares, understanding, [idiom] well, willingly, wisdom. See also: Genesis 6:5; 2 Samuel 13:33; Psalms 4:8.
צָפַ֣נְתָּ
tsâphan
H6845
"to treasure"
V-Qal-Perf-2ms
To treasure means to hide or store something valuable, like the treasures stored in the temple in 1 Kings.
Definition: 1) to hide, treasure, treasure or store up 1a)(Qal) 1a1) to hide, treasure, treasure up 1a2) to lie hidden, lurk 1b) (Niphal) to be hidden, be stored up 1c) (Hiphil) to hide, hide from discovery
Usage: Occurs in 31 OT verses. KJV: esteem, hide(-den one, self), lay up, lurk (be set) privily, (keep) secret(-ly, place). See also: Exodus 2:2; Psalms 31:21; Psalms 10:8.
מִּ/שָּׂ֑כֶל
sekel
H7922
"understanding"
Prep | N-ms
This Hebrew word means understanding or intelligence, implying success. It involves prudence and insight, as seen in Proverbs. It can also mean cunning or craft.
Definition: 1) prudence, insight, understanding 1a) prudence, good sense 1b) insight, understanding 1c) cunning, craft (bad sense) Aramaic equivalent: sokh.le.ta.nu (שׇׂכְלְתָנוּ "insight" H7924)
Usage: Occurs in 16 OT verses. KJV: discretion, knowledge, policy, prudence, sense, understanding, wisdom, wise. See also: 1 Samuel 25:3; Psalms 111:10; Proverbs 3:4.
עַל
ʻal
H5921
"upon"
Prep
This Hebrew word means on or above something, like a physical object or a situation. It can also imply a sense of responsibility or accountability, as in being on behalf of someone.
Definition: prep 1) upon, on the ground of, according to, on account of, on behalf of, concerning, beside, in addition to, together with, beyond, above, over, by, on to, towards, to, against 1a) upon, on the ground of, on the basis of, on account of, because of, therefore, on behalf of, for the sake of, for, with, in spite of, notwithstanding, concerning, in the matter of, as regards 1b) above, beyond, over (of excess) 1c) above, over (of elevation or pre-eminence) 1d) upon, to, over to, unto, in addition to, together with, with (of addition) 1e) over (of suspension or extension) 1f) by, adjoining, next, at, over, around (of contiguity or proximity) 1g) down upon, upon, on, from, up upon, up to, towards, over towards, to, against (with verbs of motion) 1h) to (as a dative)
Usage: Occurs in 4493 OT verses. KJV: above, according to(-ly), after, (as) against, among, and, [idiom] as, at, because of, beside (the rest of), between, beyond the time, [idiom] both and, by (reason of), [idiom] had the charge of, concerning for, in (that), (forth, out) of, (from) (off), (up-) on, over, than, through(-out), to, touching, [idiom] with. See also: Genesis 1:2; Genesis 24:13; Genesis 41:33.
כֵּ֝֗ן
kên
H3651
"right"
Part
In the Bible, this Hebrew word means 'so' or 'thus', often used to show agreement or confirmation, like in the book of Genesis. It can also mean 'rightly' or 'justly', as in doing something the correct way. It appears in various forms throughout the Old Testament.
Definition: adv adj 1) right, just, honest, true, veritable 1a) right, just, honest 1b) correct 1c) true, veritable
Usage: Occurs in 737 OT verses. KJV: [phrase] after that (this, -ward, -wards), as... as, [phrase] (for-) asmuch as yet, [phrase] be (for which) cause, [phrase] following, howbeit, in (the) like (manner, -wise), [idiom] the more, right, (even) so, state, straightway, such (thing), surely, [phrase] there (where) -fore, this, thus, true, well, [idiom] you. See also: Genesis 1:7; Exodus 37:19; Judges 7:17.
לֹ֣א
lôʼ
H3808
"not"
Part
The Hebrew word for not or no is used to indicate absence or negation, as when God says no to the Israelites' requests, or when they disobey His commands.
Definition: 1) not, no 1a) not (with verb-absolute prohibition) 1b) not (with modifier-negation) 1c) nothing (subst) 1d) without (with particle) 1e) before (of time) Aramaic equivalent: la (לָא "not" H3809)
Usage: Occurs in 3967 OT verses. KJV: [idiom] before, [phrase] or else, ere, [phrase] except, ig(-norant), much, less, nay, neither, never, no((-ne), -r, (-thing)), ([idiom] as though...,(can-), for) not (out of), of nought, otherwise, out of, [phrase] surely, [phrase] as truly as, [phrase] of a truth, [phrase] verily, for want, [phrase] whether, without. See also: Genesis 2:5; Genesis 31:15; Exodus 4:9.
תְרֹמֵֽם
rûwm
H7311
"to exalt"
V-o-Imperf-2ms
This verb can mean to lift something or someone up, like a parent lifting a child, or to exalt oneself in pride. In the Bible, it's used to describe God lifting up the humble and bringing down the proud.
Definition: 1) to rise, rise up, be high, be lofty, be exalted 1a) (Qal) 1a1) to be high, be set on high 1a2) to be raised, be uplifted, be exalted 1a3) to be lifted, rise 1b) (Polel) 1b1) to raise or rear (children), cause to grow up 1b2) to lift up, raise, exalt 1b3) to exalt, extol 1c) (Polal) to be lifted up 1d) (Hiphil) 1d1) to raise, lift, lift up, take up, set up, erect, exalt, set on high 1d2) to lift up (and take away), remove 1d3) to lift off and present, contribute, offer, contribute 1e) (Hophal) to be taken off, be abolished 1f) (Hithpolel) to exalt oneself, magnify oneself Aramaic equivalent: rum (רוּם "to rise" H7313)
Usage: Occurs in 184 OT verses. KJV: bring up, exalt (self), extol, give, go up, haughty, heave (up), (be, lift up on, make on, set up on, too) high(-er, one), hold up, levy, lift(-er) up, (be) lofty, ([idiom] a-) loud, mount up, offer (up), [phrase] presumptuously, (be) promote(-ion), proud, set up, tall(-er), take (away, off, up), breed worms. See also: Genesis 7:17; Psalms 46:11; Psalms 3:4.
Study Notes — Job 17:4
Show Verse Quote Highlights
- Context
- Cross References
- Job 17:4 Summary
- Frequently Asked Questions
- Reflection Questions
- Gill's Exposition on Job 17:4
- Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on Job 17:4
- Matthew Poole's Commentary on Job 17:4
- Trapp's Commentary on Job 17:4
- Ellicott's Commentary on Job 17:4
- Adam Clarke's Commentary on Job 17:4
- Cambridge Bible on Job 17:4
- Barnes' Notes on Job 17:4
- Whedon's Commentary on Job 17:4
- Sermons on Job 17:4
Context — Job Prepares for Death
2Surely mockers surround me, and my eyes must gaze at their rebellion.
3Give me, I pray, the pledge You demand. Who else will be my guarantor?
4You have closed their minds to understanding; therefore You will not exalt them.
5If a man denounces his friends for a price, the eyes of his children will fail. 6He has made me a byword among the people, a man in whose face they spit.Cross References
| Reference | Text (BSB) | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Matthew 11:25 | At that time Jesus declared, “I praise You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because You have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children. |
| 2 | Matthew 13:11 | He replied, “The knowledge of the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven has been given to you, but not to them. |
| 3 | 1 Corinthians 1:20 | Where is the wise man? Where is the scribe? Where is the philosopher of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? |
| 4 | 2 Samuel 17:14 | Then Absalom and all the men of Israel said, “The advice of Hushai the Archite is better than that of Ahithophel.” For the LORD had purposed to thwart the good counsel of Ahithophel in order to bring disaster on Absalom. |
| 5 | Isaiah 19:14 | The LORD has poured into her a spirit of confusion. Egypt has been led astray in all she does, as a drunkard staggers through his own vomit. |
| 6 | Romans 11:8 | as it is written: “God gave them a spirit of stupor, eyes that could not see, and ears that could not hear, to this very day.” |
| 7 | 2 Chronicles 25:16 | While he was still speaking, the king asked, “Have we made you the counselor to the king? Stop! Why be struck down?” So the prophet stopped, but he said, “I know that God has determined to destroy you, because you have done this and have not heeded my advice.” |
| 8 | 2 Samuel 15:31 | Now someone told David: “Ahithophel is among the conspirators with Absalom.” So David pleaded, “O LORD, please turn the counsel of Ahithophel into foolishness!” |
Job 17:4 Summary
[This verse means that God has decided not to help some people understand spiritual things, and as a result, they will not be honored or lifted up by Him. This is similar to what happens when people reject God, as described in Romans 1:28. It's a serious thing to reject God, and it can have serious consequences, like being unable to understand or respond to spiritual truth. We should seek to understand and respond to God's truth, and ask for His help to do so, as seen in Psalm 119:18.]
Frequently Asked Questions
What does it mean that God has closed someone's mind to understanding?
According to Job 17:4, it means that God has withheld spiritual discernment from them, much like what is described in Romans 1:28, where God gives people over to a depraved mind because they have rejected Him.
Is this verse saying that God is responsible for people's lack of faith?
While God is sovereign, the Bible also teaches human responsibility, as seen in Joshua 24:15, where we are called to choose whom we will serve; in this context, Job 17:4 suggests that God's judgment is a response to people's rebellion against Him.
How does this verse relate to the concept of spiritual blindness?
This verse echoes the idea found in 2 Corinthians 4:4, where Satan blinds the minds of unbelievers to the truth of the gospel; similarly, Job 17:4 implies that God's judgment can result in a kind of spiritual blindness, where people are unable to understand or respond to spiritual truth.
What is the relationship between God's sovereignty and human free will in this verse?
This verse highlights the complex interplay between God's sovereignty and human responsibility, as seen in Proverbs 21:1, where the king's heart is in God's hand, yet humans are still called to make choices; in Job 17:4, God's decision to close people's minds to understanding is a sovereign act, yet it is also a response to human rebellion.
Reflection Questions
- What are some ways that I may be rebelling against God, and how can I surrender those areas to Him?
- In what ways have I experienced spiritual blindness or hardness of heart, and how can I seek God's mercy and restoration?
- How can I balance the truth of God's sovereignty with the reality of human responsibility, and what implications does this have for my own life and witness?
- What are some practical ways that I can seek to understand and respond to spiritual truth, and how can I help others to do the same?
Gill's Exposition on Job 17:4
For thou hast hid their heart from understanding,.... That is, the hearts of his friends, and therefore they were unfit to undertake his cause, or be sureties for him, or be judges in it.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on Job 17:4
For thou hast hid their heart from understanding: therefore shalt thou not exalt them. Hid - withheld. Their heart - the intellect of his friends. Shalt ... exalt - rather, imperative, exalt them not.
Matthew Poole's Commentary on Job 17:4
Thou hast blinded the minds of my friends, that they can not see those truths which are most plain and evident to all men of sense and experience; therefore I desire a more wise and able judge. Therefore shalt thou not exalt them, i.e. thou wilt not give them the victory over me in this contest, but wilt give sentence for me, and discharge them, and make them ashamed of their confidence in affirming falsehoods of thee, and punish them severely for their miscarriage. It is a usual figure, whereby much more is understood than is expressed.
Trapp's Commentary on Job 17:4
Job 17:4 For thou hast hid their heart from understanding: therefore shalt thou not exalt [them].Ver. 4. Thou hast hid their heart from understanding] That is, thou hast hidden understanding from their heart, thou hast left them in the dark, destitute of a right judgment, while they condemn me to be a wicked person, because I am grievously afflicted; and thence it is that I do so confidently appeal to thee in Jesus Christ, since my friends are so far mistaken in this controversy. If God give not both light and sight, if he vouchsafe not to irradiate both organ and object, the best will be bemisted. Every good gift and perfect cometh from above, even from the Father of lights, James 1:17. It was he that made Reverend Doctor Sibbs (as one saith of him) spiritually rational and rationally spiritual; one that seemed to see the insides of nature and grace, and the world and heaven, by those perfect anatomies he had made of them all. Therefore shalt thou not exalt them] Therefore thou shalt not give them honour, so Broughton rendereth it. But that is not all. Litotes est, saith Mercer; it is a figure, wherein less is said, and more is meant; thou shalt not only not exalt them, but thou shalt also abase and humble them; this contestation shall be nothing at all to their commendation in the end. It is sound knowledge of the truth according to godliness, that exalteth a man, and makes him to be accounted of; and the contrary. Howbeit many great and good men have been greatly mistaken in very great controversies and transactions, as was Luther, Doctor resolutus, sed non in omnibus illuminatus.
And yet how many learned able men hath his name misled in the point of consubstantiation! Ursin was carried away with it awhile, till he read his arguments, which he found to be little better than an illogical argument. Holy Greenham, when pressed to conformity to the ceremonies, by the bishop of Ely, who urged Luther’ s approbation of them; and are you wiser than Luther? his sober and gracious answer was, I reverence more the revealed will of God in teaching Luther so many necessary things to salvation than I search into his secret will, why he hid his heart from understanding in things less necessary.
Ellicott's Commentary on Job 17:4
(4) Their heart.—i.e., the heart of his friends.
Adam Clarke's Commentary on Job 17:4
Verse 4. For thou hast hid their heart] This address is to God; and here he is represented as doing that which in the course of his providence he only permits to be done. Shalt thou not exalt them.] This was exactly fulfilled: not one of Job's friends was exalted; on the contrary, God condemned the whole; and they were not received into the Divine favour till Job sacrificed, and made intercession for them.
Cambridge Bible on Job 17:4
3–9. New appeal to God that He would undertake for Job or give him a pledge that he would cause his innocence to be acknowledged by God, Job 17:3; with the grounds for this prayer as before, Job 17:4-9.
Barnes' Notes on Job 17:4
For thou hast hid their heart from understanding - That is, the heart of his professed friends.
Whedon's Commentary on Job 17:4
4. For — None but God can “undertake” for him! His purblind friends certainly cannot. Not exalt them — above me. Thou wilt not let them prevail.
Sermons on Job 17:4
| Sermon | Description | |
|---|---|---|
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Be Filled With the Holy Spirit - Part 2 by Jackie Pullinger | In this sermon, the speaker focuses on Acts 1:4-8 and emphasizes the importance of waiting for the gift of the Holy Spirit. He mentions that although some may already feel they hav |
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(John - Part 13): Nicodemus - the Need for Utter Sincerity Before God by A.W. Tozer | In this sermon, the speaker criticizes religious discussion groups, stating that they often engage in superficial conversations without truly connecting with God. He emphasizes the |
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Attributes of God (Series 2): The Omniscience of God by A.W. Tozer | In this sermon, the preacher uses the analogy of a cracked piece of glass being transformed into a beautiful piece of art to illustrate how God can turn our brokenness into somethi |
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(John - Part 32): If Any Man Will Do His Will, He Shall Know by A.W. Tozer | In this sermon, the preacher emphasizes the importance of complete self-renunciation and obedience to God's will in order to truly know and understand the truth. He warns against m |
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His Infinitude - Part 2 by A.W. Tozer | In this sermon, the preacher emphasizes the belief that God created the beautiful wonders of nature, such as sunsets, with joy and intention. The preacher supports this belief by r |
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What to Forget and What to Remember by Zac Poonen | In this sermon, the speaker emphasizes the importance of being born again in order to enter God's kingdom. He shares the story of D.L. Moody, a renowned evangelist, who preached th |
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Physicians of No Value by B.B. Caldwell | In this sermon, the preacher emphasizes the importance of evangelism and spreading the word of God. He criticizes those who have been brainwashed and have become false teachers, le |