The book opens in the land of Uz with the man the heavens will argue over: 'that man was whole-hearted and upright, and one who feared God, and shunned evil.' In the divine court Satan asks the question the whole book answers — 'Does Job fear God for nought?' — and receives leave to touch all that he has. Messengers arrive in a cascade: oxen, sheep, camels, children. Job rends his mantle and worships: 'Hashem gave, and Hashem has taken away; Blessed be the name of Hashem.'
Tap any Hebrew word to reveal its root, value, and meanings.
There was a man in the land of Uz, whose name was Job; and that man was whole-hearted and upright, and one who feared God, and shunned evil.
verse value 3349
Insights
Verse structure: 14 words, 53 letters. Notable word values: "and·was" (וְהָיָ֣ה) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "whole-hearted" (תָּ֧ם, 2 letters) and the longest is "in·land·of·Uz" (בְאֶֽרֶץ־ע֖וּץ, 7 letters). 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in Job. Unique to this verse in Job (hapax): "in·land·of·Uz" (בְאֶֽרֶץ־ע֖וּץ). The root איש appears 2 times in this verse. 12 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "Job" (root איוב, 56x in Job); "was" (root היה, 50x in Job); "in·land·of·Uz" (root ארץ, 48x in Job). First appearance of the root איש ("man") in Job. First appearance of the root היה ("was") in Job. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'his·name', dividing the verse into phrases of 5 and 9 words. Full calculation: אִ֛ישׁ [man] (311) + הָיָ֥ה [was] (20) + בְאֶֽרֶץ־ע֖וּץ [in·land·of·Uz] (459) + אִיּ֣וֹב [Job] (19) + שְׁמ֑וֹ [his·name] (346) + וְהָיָ֣ה [and·was] (26) + הָאִ֣ישׁ [the·man] (316) + הַה֗וּא [that] (17) + תָּ֧ם [whole-hearted] (440) + וְיָשָׁ֛ר [and·upright] (516) + וִירֵ֥א [and·fearing] (217) + אֱלֹהִ֖ים [God] (86) + וְסָ֥ר [and·turning·aside] (266) + מֵרָֽע [from·evil] (310) = 3349.
Rashi
There was a man in the land of Uz This means in the land of Aram, as it is written (Gen. 22: 21): “Uz, his firstborn,” of the sons of Nahor. and that man was Although that is a future expression, that is the style of the Hebrew language, and the proper expression for it is “Now that man was greater than all the children of the land of the East”; the children of the land of the East, for Aram is in the east of the world, as it is stated (Num. 23:7): “From Aram has Balak, king of Moab, brought me, from the mountains of the East.” Another explanation: Uz is Job. Buz is Elihu the son of Barachel the Buzite. This is what Job said (31:34): “and the most contemptible of families shatters me.” This one (the Buzite) who shatters my words is of my family. This is what people say: “From the very forest, the ax handle is formed.” Another explanation: in the land of Uz In the land whence they take evil counsels against the Holy One, blessed be He. As it is stated (Gen. 10:11): “Out of that land Asshur went forth.” Now what counsel did they take? “He has no right to take the upper worlds and to give us the lower world.” Instead, come to the land of Shinar, where there are many gods, concerning which it is stated: “for it is a land of graven images” (Jer. 50:38): “And let us make a tower whose top shall reach to the heavens, and let us make a name for ourselves” (Gen. 11:4). The word “name” stated here refers only to idolatry, as it is stated (Exod. 23:13): “You shall not make mention of the name of other gods.” What did the Holy One, blessed be He, do? He sat in judgment over them and stood up witnesses against them, as it is stated (Gen. 11:5): “And the Lord came down to see the city and the tower.” Now does the Omnipresent have to come down to see? Is it not written: “The eyes of the Lord are roving to and fro throughout the entire earth”? Rather, it is to teach a ruling to future generations, that judges may not pass judgment except with eyewitnesses, as it is stated (Lev.5:1): “Having seen or known.” was Heb. והיה. According to its simple meaning, it is like ויהי, and its meaning is both past and future. sincere and upright But [I could think] that as regards matters between him and his Maker, he was not righteous. Therefore, it is stated: God- fearing and shunning evil.
Ibn Ezra
'Job' — he was among the descendants of Nahor, Abraham's brother. And it seems more likely to me that he was a descendant of Esau — the matter being proven by [the words] ‘the land of Uz,’ as in: ‘Rejoice and be glad, daughter of Edom, that dwells in the land of Uz’ (Lamentations 4:21). And it cannot be said that he never existed, since Ezekiel said: ‘Noah, Daniel, and Job’ (Ezekiel 14:14). And should one argue: perhaps the prophet meant some other Job? Tell him: then say the same of Daniel and of Noah! Now it is written elsewhere: ‘Though Moses and Samuel stood before Me’ (Jeremiah 15:1) — and indeed we find another Samuel, the son of Ammihud (Numbers 34:20) — yet we find no other Job written of anywhere in the holy books. And whoever says that he was Jobab son of Zerah of Bozrah (Genesis 36:33) — perhaps he saw this in a dream, for he has nothing to rely on, neither the words of the prophets nor what our Sages of blessed memory transmitted. And do not wonder at the word ‘Job’ being his name, for he was not wicked at all — behold, it is written: ‘Hashem is a man of war, Hashem is His name’ (Exodus 15:3); and the opposite is also found: ‘there was a certain man of mount Ephraim, whose name was Micaiah’ (Judges 17:1). Perhaps the master of the derash, following what is generally found [in the tradition], placed Job's homeland near Haran, on the strength of the phrase ‘and went to the land of the children of the east’ (Genesis 29:1).
Ralbag
He explains that there was already a man, whole-hearted and upright, who feared God and shunned evil, and who rose up and prospered greatly in illusory goods — external possessions such as wealth and children. His children conducted themselves in a fully proper manner according to the norms of civic life, in a way that fostered brotherhood and love among them; and for this reason they always ate together, so that the bond of fellowship among them would be all the more firmly established. Now Job, out of his fear of Hashem, would sanctify them from one cycle to the next — that is, every seven days — and would guide them toward what was proper; and afterward he would offer sacrifices on their behalf, fearing lest they had sinned and, in their hearts, scorned Hashem because of the great wealth and peace they enjoyed, for such things are, to some degree, causes of that kind of insolent ingratitude. Now Scripture did not describe him as wise, because of his ignorance regarding the very question for whose sake this book was composed — even though he was already wise in natural matters, as is evident from his own words. After this, Scripture relates, by way of parable, as if Hashem were speaking with the one from whom these illusory evils come — evils whose origin lies outside the person — namely, the Adversary, called ‘Satan,’ by way of allegory. He is called ‘Satan’ because he turns aside from the course that Hashem directs, as was explained earlier. And since this force has no purpose or design of its own, the text says, ‘Satan too came among them,’ as one whose very coming was not of his own intent. It relates that his ‘going to and fro’ and ‘walking up and down’ take place in the earth alone, for it is there that these evils are found, not among the beings of the upper world; whereas the ‘sons of God’ are the powers that govern existence as Hashem’s own agents. It relates, as if Hashem were preventing these evils from reaching Job because he was whole-hearted and upright, and that Satan brought it about that everything Job had was given into his hand, only that he not lay a hand on Job himself. All this is meant to show that Satan does not hold this dominion in full measure: if a person cleaves to Hashem, Satan has no power over him, as will become clear in the course of this book. It relates that Satan harmed him both by way of the harms that come from some people upon others, such as wars, and by way of the changes that occur among the elements, such as outbreaks of fire and wind. He mentions the harm that comes through war first, since it is the more deliberate of the two, its origin being a choice directed toward that end; whereas the evils that occur through changes arising among the elements are attributed to chance and coincidence. After this it relates that Job’s wholeness, uprightness, and fear of Hashem reached such a degree that he did not sin through any of it, but instead praised Hashem, saying, ‘Hashem gave, and Hashem has taken away; blessed be the name of Hashem.’ It then begins to relate the other kind of evil, whose origin lies in the recipient himself — such as faulty counsel and imbalance of temperament — and calls the source of this evil ‘Satan’ as well, since it too turns aside from the proper course. Of this one it says that he ‘presented himself before Hashem,’ which it did not say of the first, because this faculty of the soul, the one responsible for counsel, is by its own nature directed toward serving the human intellect and bringing it to its perfection — as is clear to anyone who studies the book On the Soul and knows for what end each of the soul’s faculties exists in man. Except that it sometimes happens that what this faculty of the soul judges is neither right nor fitting, so that sicknesses and pains then arise from faulty self-management. It relates, by way of parable, that this ‘Satan’ strove by every possible means to harm Job in his body, and that Hashem gave everything into his power except his soul — for it was the soul over which He did not grant Satan dominion; rather, the opposite is true: the soul rules over this faculty and directs it as it wishes. Along with this, it attributes Job’s being handed over to this ‘Satan’ to the fact that he was not perfect in his fear of Hashem, so that he would not stand firm in his faith when tested — which is the sense of the words, ‘But put forth Your hand now, and touch his bone and his flesh; surely he will blaspheme You to Your face.’ And so, in truth, it was: because Job was perplexed and confused about the workings of Divine providence, and his faith in this matter was not complete, these mistaken notions carried him along to conclude flatly that Hashem does not attend to the lower world — that is, to its individuals. Had the truth of this matter been clear to him, he would never have been moved in any way to believe the opposite. The cause of his being perplexed to this degree on this question was his deficiency in theoretical understanding — perfection in which is what safeguards a person from these illusory evils. It further relates that this man’s wholeness and uprightness reached such a point that, although his wife urged him not to maintain his integrity, and he was tested through intense suffering, he did not sin with his lips through any of it — except that our Sages, of blessed memory, already said that in his mind he was perplexed and confused, as is shown at the end of the matter, where our Sages said: ‘It was only with his lips that he did not sin — but in his heart, he sinned.’ It further relates that when Job’s friends heard of his affliction, they came to console and comfort him, and when they saw the depth of his devastation, none of them could bring himself to say a word to him. I think that these friends were sages well known in that era, who had studied theoretical questions together with him, and that among them, on this question of Torah-based inquiry, arose the very dispute that follows the lines its division dictates, as will be explained afterward. And when Job saw that no one spoke a word to him, he opened his mouth and cursed his day — for his view, as will become clear from his own words, was that all the events that happen to a person are fixed and ordered according to the arrangement of the stars at the time of his birth.
Metzudat David
'Uz' — it is possible that this is Aram-naharaim, for Nahor was lord of that land, as it says, 'to Aram-naharaim, to the city of Nahor' (Genesis 24:10); and Uz was Nahor's firstborn, as it says, 'Uz the first-born' (Genesis 22:21). That is why they named the land after his firstborn son, since the right of rulership belonged to him. 'Whole-hearted and upright' — in his dealings with people.
Malbim
'There was a man' — since this precious narrative is the introduction and key to the whole debate recorded in this book, it must of necessity contain the purpose toward which the debate as a whole is directed. For in it Scripture disclosed the root of the matter and the truth about what brought on Job's sufferings and trials — a truth hidden from the eyes of Job and of the friends who argue with him, until Elihu, the last of the disputants, revealed the secret of the matter and answered with words that were correct and true, words already concealed within the account of events at the beginning of the book. And since the pivot and foundation of the debate was Job's suffering, which came upon him unjustly and without any cause that could warrant it — so that he cried out bitterly against providence on high and its ways — Scripture opens the story by first making known the nature and character of the afflicted man, in order to show that none of the usual causes can be found to account for his sufferings, that is, that they did not come about in the ordinary way. For it is conceivable that poverty and suffering come upon a person for one of the following reasons: • A) On account of the nature of his body and his own traits — and this in two aspects. First, in the natural way: if a person is a glutton and a drunkard, he weakens his body and squanders his wealth through his bad character traits. Against this, Scripture states at the outset that he was whole-hearted and upright. 'Upright' includes being straight both in his intellect and in his character traits, as was his nature. Now even an upright person sometimes falters from his uprightness because of external causes — for instance, when he sees that his uprightness will cause him harm or cost him some gain, and the like. But the definition of 'whole-hearted' is one who performs his deeds in wholehearted sincerity, with no regard at all for his own benefit, and who therefore always stands as firm as a rock, never faltering — as I explained when defining these terms in the Book of Proverbs. The second aspect: it is conceivable that poverty and suffering come upon a person through providential punishment even though his nature is whole-hearted and upright, if he is not also God-fearing in keeping His commandments and statutory laws, and does not shun the evil he was warned against by Hashem, even where such things have no basis in the laws of rational and conventional morality. Therefore Scripture states at the outset that he feared God and shunned evil. • B) It is conceivable that a person wastes away in the natural way if he is childless, without sons or household — with no one to help or support him, so that 'strangers swallow him up' (Hosea 8:7) and those who look forward to inheriting from him bring him to ruin. But —
And there were born to him seven sons and three daughters.
verse value 1677
Insights
Verse structure: 6 words, 25 letters. Notable word values: "to·him" (ל֛וֹ) = 36, double chai. Verse gematria: 1677 is divisible by 13, the value of echad ('one') and ahavah ('love'). The shortest word is "to·him" (ל֛וֹ, 2 letters) and the longest is "and·they·were·born" (וַיִּוָּ֥לְדוּ, 6 letters). 2 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Job. Unique to this verse in Job (hapax): "and·they·were·born" (וַיִּוָּ֥לְדוּ), "seven" (שִׁבְעָ֥ה). 6 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "sons" (root בן, 26x in Job). First appearance of the root ילד ("and·they·were·born") in Job. First appearance of the root לו ("to·him") in Job. Full calculation: וַיִּוָּ֥לְדוּ [and·they·were·born] (62) + ל֛וֹ [to·him] (36) + שִׁבְעָ֥ה [seven] (377) + בָנִ֖ים [sons] (102) + וְשָׁל֥וֹשׁ [and·three] (642) + בָּנֽוֹת [daughters] (458) = 1677.
Metzudat David
'Seven sons' — this too counts as a blessing: his male children were more than double his female children.
Malbim
'And there were born to him seven sons' — his children were like 'olive saplings around his table' (Psalms 128:3), surrounding him on every side like a shield and buckler (Jeremiah 46:3; Ezekiel 39:9; Psalms 35:2). • C) It is conceivable that a person crumbles if he is poor in possessions — for 'poverty is the ruin of the poor' (Proverbs 10:15), and 'a poor man's brothers all hate him' (Proverbs 19:7). But —
His possessions also were seven thousand sheep, and three thousand camels, and five hundred yoke of oxen, and five hundred she-asses, and a very great household; so that this man was the greatest of all the children of the east.
verse value 6489
Insights
Verse structure: 21 words, 98 letters. The shortest word is "great" (רַבָּ֣ה, 3 letters) and the longest is "than·all·sons·of·east" (מִכׇּל־בְּנֵי־קֶֽדֶם, 9 letters). Words sharing gematria 447: hundred, hundred. 8 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Job. Unique to this verse in Job (hapax): "his·possessions" (מִ֠קְנֵ֠הוּ), "thousand·of·sheep" (אַלְפֵי־צֹ֜אן), "and·three" (וּשְׁלֹ֧שֶׁת). The root היה appears 2 times in this verse. 17 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·was" (root היה, 50x in Job); "that" (root הוא, 48x in Job); "the·man" (root איש, 39x in Job). First appearance of the root מקנה ("his·possessions") in Job. First appearance of the root אלף ("thousand·of·sheep") in Job. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'very', dividing the verse into phrases of 16 and 5 words.
Rashi
seven thousand sheep He counted the largest number first. greater than all the children of the East Than the generation of the division, as it is written (Gen. 11:2): “And it came to pass as they migrated from the east.” But concerning Abraham, it is not so, for concerning Abraham, it is written הגדול, the greatest, as it is stated (Josh. 14:15): “And the name of Hebron before was Kirjath-Arba; he was the greatest man among the “Anakim.” It should have said אדם גדול, a great man. Why did he write האדם הגדול, the greatest man? By this, Scripture hinted that he was a great man who passed ten tests. Therefore, his title is written with two “heys”, the numerical value of which is ten. Job, however, described by the word גדול, greater, passed only one [test], as it is stated: sincere and upright, etc., that out of that entire generation, he was not apprehended for that iniquity.
Metzudat David
'Yoke of oxen' — Scripture counts the oxen in pairs, because the practice is to plow with oxen, and one cannot plow with fewer than two, so a pair is reckoned as a single unit. But camels and she-asses are meant for riding and for carrying loads, and a single one is fit for that. 'And a very great household' — the produce of the land is called avodah ('labor'), because its growth comes about through labor — the work of plowing and reaping; so too it is said regarding Isaac, 'and a very great household' (Genesis 26:14). 'The greatest' — in wealth and possessions. 'Of all the children of the east' — that is, than all the people of his own land, for Aram lay to the east, as it says, 'Aram from the east' (Isaiah 9:11).
Metzudat Zion
'Yoke' — a pair, as in 'and he took a yoke of oxen' (I Samuel 11:7); [the term is used] because it is their way to walk bound and joined together.
Malbim
'His possessions also were' — for he was abundantly rich, both in livestock — flocks and cattle — and in extensive enterprise: fields, vineyards, and servants and laborers occupied in his work. And 'a rich man's wealth is his stronghold city' (Proverbs 10:15), guarding him from every mishap. • D) It is conceivable that a person breaks down if he is lowly in the eyes of the people, despised and disdained in their sight — for then he is 'crushed in the gate, with none to save' (Job 5:4). Therefore it says that he was 'the greatest of all the children of the east' — that he was a man of great standing in their eyes, highly regarded, and crowned with a good name. (These are the three things that wicked man [Haman] boasted of: the glory of his riches, the multitude of his sons, and how the king had advanced him — Esther 5:11.) • E) It is conceivable that a person is destroyed through his sons and his household, if the brothers hate one another and 'devise evil' (Proverbs 12:20) in his house — as happened to Jacob through the brothers' hatred toward Joseph. In contrast to this, Scripture now tells how the brothers dwelt together in love, for —
And his sons used to go and hold a feast in the house of each one upon his day; and they would send and invite their three sisters to eat and to drink with them.
verse value 5622
Insights
Verse structure: 14 words, 63 letters. The shortest word is "house·of" (בֵּ֖ית, 3 letters) and the longest is "their·sisters" (אַחְיֹתֵיהֶ֔ם, 7 letters). 9 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Job. Unique to this verse in Job (hapax): "and·they·went" (וְהָלְכ֤וּ), "and·they·made" (וְעָשׂ֣וּ), "feast" (מִשְׁתֶּ֔ה). 14 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "his·day" (root יום, 59x in Job); "man" (root איש, 39x in Job); "and·they·made" (root עשה, 36x in Job). First appearance of the root הלך ("and·they·went") in Job. First appearance of the root עשה ("and·they·made") in Job. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'his·day', dividing the verse into phrases of 7 and 7 words. Full calculation: וְהָלְכ֤וּ [and·they·went] (67) + בָנָיו֙ [his·sons] (68) + וְעָשׂ֣וּ [and·they·made] (382) + מִשְׁתֶּ֔ה [feast] (745) + בֵּ֖ית [house·of] (412) + אִ֣ישׁ [man] (311) + יוֹמ֑וֹ [his·day] (62) + וְשָׁלְח֗וּ [and·they·sent] (350) + וְקָֽרְאוּ֙ [and·they·called] (313) + לִשְׁלֹ֣שֶׁת [to·three] (1060) + אַחְיֹתֵיהֶ֔ם [their·sisters] (474) + לֶאֱכֹ֥ל [to·eat] (81) + וְלִשְׁתּ֖וֹת [and·to·drink] (1142) + עִמָּהֶֽם [with·them] (155) = 5622.
Rashi
Now his sons would go and make a feast in each one’s house on his day In the house of each one on his day. and they would send and invite Heb. ושלחו וקראו, like ושולחים וקוראים, that they would do so constantly.
Metzudat David
'And his sons used to go' — since this was a regular, ongoing practice, the past tense is used for it just as the future tense is [used to express habitual action elsewhere]; compare below, 'Thus Job did,' etc. 'In the house of each one' — in the house of each of them, on his own appointed day. 'And they would send' — every day they would send to invite their sisters to the feast.
Malbim
'And his sons used to go and hold a feast' — they were accustomed to hold feasts and eat together; each one had his own day among the seven days of feasting, on which they would all eat at his house — in such a way that there was no envy or hatred among them, nor with their sisters either, for they always invited their three sisters to the feast. • F) Lest it be said that the sufferings came upon him because of the sins of the members of his household, and because he did not protest against them, Scripture now tells how he watched over his household with the utmost vigilance, to sanctify them and purify them from all sin, for —
And it was so, when the days of their feasting had gone about, that Job sent and sanctified them, and rose up early in the morning, and offered burnt-offerings according to the number of them all; for Job said: ‘It may be that my sons have sinned, and blasphemed God in their hearts.’ Thus Job did continually.
verse value 5105
Insights
Verse structure: 27 words, 113 letters. Notable word values: "God" (אֱלֹהִ֖ים) = 86, equal to Elohim. The shortest word is "when" (כִּ֣י, 2 letters) and the longest is "all·the·days" (כׇּל־הַיָּמִֽים, 7 letters). Words sharing gematria 30: when, for. 14 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Job. Unique to this verse in Job (hapax): "went·around" (הִקִּ֩יפוּ֩), "the·feast" (הַמִּשְׁתֶּ֜ה), "and·he·sent" (וַיִּשְׁלַ֧ח). The root איוב appears 3 times in this verse. 22 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "said" (root אמר, 108x in Job); "when" (root כי, 75x in Job); "days·of" (root יום, 59x in Job). First appearance of the root כי ("when") in Job. First appearance of the root נקף ("went·around") in Job. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'in·their·heart', dividing the verse into phrases of 23 and 4 words.
Rashi
Now it would come about when the cycle of the feasting days would be over When the days of the feasting would be over, Job would act in this manner; upon every termination of the seven days on which the days of feasting rotated, he would send and summon them (ויקדשם) ; i.e., he would prepare them and summon them, as in (Num. 11:18). “Prepare yourselves for tommorow.” and offer up... early in the morning The meaning is that he would offer up burnt-offerings early. Therefore, Scripture wrote in the future tense, that he was wont to do so always at the end of every seven days. the number of all of them The sons and the daughters. and blasphemed Heb. וברכו, lit. will do. A euphemism [used in] referring to the Most High. So would Job do Heb. יעשה, lit. will do. He would always do in this manner. When Scripture writes about a constant occurrence, sometimes it writes in the past tense, and sometimes in the future tense.
Ibn Ezra
'had gone about' — its sense: when they had completed the cycle of the days of the week, for he had seven sons. 'It may be' — like ‘lest,’ an expression of apprehension and fear, [meaning] ‘perhaps such-and-such will happen.’ Similarly: ‘perhaps my father will feel me’ (Genesis 27:12); ‘perhaps the woman will not be willing’ (Genesis 24:5). 'blasphemed' — a euphemistic expression, used in the reverse sense, as in: ‘Naboth blasphemed God and the king’ (1 Kings 21:13).
Metzudat David
'When the days of their feasting had gone about' — for they held the days of feasting in a recurring cycle, and this is said of every time the cycle came around; that is, after the feast-day of the last of them, when the first was about to begin the cycle again from the start. 'And sanctified them' — he summoned them to come to him, to set them straight in the ways of Hashem. 'According to the number of them all' — corresponding to the number of his sons and daughters. 'It may be' — perhaps, out of the good cheer that comes from constant feasting, they sinned and blasphemed in their hearts against Heaven; and for that reason he brought burnt-offerings, since a burnt-offering atones for sinful thoughts of the heart. 'Thus' — according to this practice he did all his days.
Metzudat Zion
'Had gone about' — went around, as in 'go about [the city] once' (Joshua 6:11). 'And sanctified them' — an expression of summoning, as in 'sanctify yourselves for tomorrow' (Numbers 11:18). 'Blasphemed' — the Hebrew literally says 'bless'; it is used as a respectful euphemism in place of its opposite, out of deference to the One above.
Malbim
'And it was so, when the days of their feasting had gone about' — at the end of the seven days, before the next seven began, he would sanctify them and summon them for the following day, on which he offered burnt-offerings numbering all of them — for a burnt-offering comes to atone for sinful thoughts of the heart, since Job said: perhaps my sons sinned through their feasting and 'blasphemed God in their hearts,' meaning that some wicked thought against Hashem had arisen in their hearts. And he did not do this on one occasion alone; rather, 'thus Job did continually.' Having completed this introduction — in which every possible ground for attributing Job's sufferings to some cause was removed, showing that there was no such cause here, neither punitive, nor natural, nor a matter of choice — Scripture now goes on to reveal the true reason why those great sufferings came upon him: sufferings that appeared, to the eye, to have come about unjustly.
Now it fell upon a day, that the sons of God came to present themselves before Hashem, and Satan came also among them.
verse value 1833
Insights
Verse structure: 10 words, 50 letters. Verse gematria: 1833 is divisible by 13, the value of echad ('one') and ahavah ('love'). The shortest word is "sons·of" (בְּנֵ֣י, 3 letters) and the longest is "God" (הָאֱלֹהִ֔ים, 6 letters). Words sharing gematria 25: and·they·came, and·he·came. The root בוא appears 2 times in this verse. 9 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "the·day" (root יום, 59x in Job); "and·they·came" (root בוא, 51x in Job); "and·it·came·to·pass" (root היה, 50x in Job). First appearance of the root בוא ("and·they·came") in Job. First appearance of the root יצב ("to·present·themselves") in Job. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'above·Hashem', dividing the verse into phrases of 7 and 3 words. Full calculation: וַיְהִ֣י [and·it·came·to·pass] (31) + הַיּ֔וֹם [the·day] (61) + וַיָּבֹ֙אוּ֙ [and·they·came] (25) + בְּנֵ֣י [sons·of] (62) + הָאֱלֹהִ֔ים [God] (91) + לְהִתְיַצֵּ֖ב [to·present·themselves] (537) + עַל־יְהֹוָ֑ה [above·Hashem] (126) + וַיָּב֥וֹא [and·he·came] (25) + גַֽם־הַשָּׂטָ֖ן [also·the·adversary] (407) + בְּתוֹכָֽם [in·their·midst] (468) = 1833.
Rashi
Now the day came about That day which was Rosh Hashanah, (known as a day of sounding the shofar, and the Holy One, blessed be He, commanded the Adversary to bring the merit and the guilt of all creatures. This is the meaning of “from going to and fro on the earth.”) and the angels of God came to stand beside the Lord to contend with Him, because the expression of standing refers only to judgment, as it is stated (Isa. 3:13): “The Lord stands to plead.” and the Adversary, too, came among them to accuse the people.
Ibn Ezra
'Now it fell upon a day' — Rav Saadia Gaon said that Satan was a human being who was jealous of Job. And he explained ‘in the earth’ as meaning ‘in his own land alone’; and he explained ‘all that he has is in your hand’ as meaning ‘at your disposal,’ similar to ‘is the hand of Joab with you in this?’ (2 Samuel 14:19); and he explained ‘only spare his life’ as ‘guard your own life, that you not seek his life’ — and he said that angels have no jealousy. But he forgot [the verse] ‘and the angel of Hashem stood in the way as an adversary against him’ (Numbers 22:22). And in the book of Daniel it is stated explicitly: ‘and there is none who holds with me against these, except Michael your prince’ (Daniel 10:21); and further: ‘and I, in the first year of Darius the Mede, stood up to confirm and strengthen him’ (Daniel 11:1) — meaning that he strengthened Michael and helped him. To fully explain the secret of these matters, no book could contain it; but one who understands the secret of the arrangement of the heavenly hosts, and how events change according to the change of their motions, will know the essence of Satan, and the principle that he is an angel. And the sense of ‘Now it fell upon a day’ — [perhaps] the day of Rosh Hashanah, when all the people of the world pass before the Divine Presence like sheep of a flock (Mishnah Rosh Hashanah 1:2); or the day of Job's own judgment alone, which I am not able to explain further; or its meaning may simply be, ‘and it happened one day that such-and-such occurred,’ as in: ‘and it fell on a day, that Elisha passed by’ (2 Kings 4:8).
Metzudat David
'Now it fell upon a day' — that is, the day appointed for the angels on high, the advocates for merit and for guilt, to come before Hashem — namely, Rosh Hashanah, the day of judgment. 'The sons of God' — these are the advocates for merit. 'Satan came also' — to argue for guilt and to bring accusation against mankind.
Metzudat Zion
'The sons of God' — these are the angels who are close to the Divine Presence, so close as to be reckoned members of its household; so too, 'and all the sons of God shouted for joy' (Job 38:7). 'Before Hashem' — near Him; so too, 'those camping next to it' (Numbers 2); and Scripture speaks here in the language of men. 'Satan' — an accusing angel.
Malbim
Now it fell upon a day – Maimonides has already explained that all that is bad, whether general or particular, comes only from the side of matter. All physical things that come into being and decay are subject to decay only because of their matter; but as regards their form — the very essence of their form — they are not subject to decay at all, but simply endure. Form is affected by decay only incidentally, that is, because of its being bound to matter; for it is the very nature of matter that it can never escape this association with negation, so that it is forever shedding one form and putting on another. And he explained there (Guide for the Perplexed III:8) that all corruption, destruction, or defect comes from the side of matter. Take man, for example: the unsightliness of his form, the malformation of his limbs, the weakness, failure, or disorder of his functioning — it makes no difference whether all this was present from the very beginning of his creation or arose afterward — none of it stems from anything but his corruptible matter, not from his form. Likewise, every living creature dies and falls ill because of its matter, and all of a person's transgressions and sins follow from his matter, while all his virtues follow from his form. For example, his grasp of his Creator, his forming of every intelligible idea, his mastery over his desires and his anger, his discernment of what he ought to choose and what he ought to shun — all of this follows from his form; but his eating, his drinking, his sexual relations and the bulk of his cravings in these matters, his anger, and whatever bad character traits are found in him, all follow from his matter. On this basis Scripture relates that the 'sons of God' — the forces found throughout all creation, who are His sons and the work of His hands — came to present themselves before Hashem: since it is Hashem who brings all existence into being and calls it forth, the sons of God and all the forces present themselves before Him, for the maintenance of existence is a continuous act of creation. And it relates that the Satan too — who is the power of negation, the source of evil, decay, sin, and all nullification and harm — came among them. The Guide (ibid., III:22) has already explained that Scripture does not say 'and the sons of God and the Satan came to present themselves,' which would have implied that the existence of both was of one order and one standing; rather it says that he came among them — as though he did not come, in his own right and primarily, to present himself before Hashem, since he has no root in existence but only in negation and decay — but he came among them because he is a necessary condition for the lower 'sons of God,' that is, for the forces of matter: for among the possessors of matter, nothing comes into being without a prior negation, a shedding of one form and a putting on of another. Now, we have a tradition that over each of the forces of creation there stands a higher power appointed over it, which is its root; these are the 'sons of God' who came to present themselves before Hashem — angels appointed over all the forces of existence, all of which derive their influence and receive their power from Hashem, as our sages, of blessed memory, said: there is no blade of grass that does not have an angel appointed over it, telling it to grow. And over the power of negation and destruction there is likewise a spiritual power appointed, the accusing Satan, who kills and negates, as our sages, of blessed memory, said: he is the Satan, he is the evil inclination, he is the angel of death — and he is the one who comes to accuse, and to receive the power to negate and destroy.
And Hashem said to Satan: ‘Whence do you come?’ Then Satan answered Hashem, and said: ‘From going to and fro in the earth, and from walking up and down in it.’
verse value 3527
Insights
Verse structure: 13 words, 58 letters. Notable word values: "Hashem" (יְהֹוָ֛ה) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "in·it" (בָּֽהּ, 2 letters) and the longest is "and·from·walking·about" (וּמֵֽהִתְהַלֵּ֖ךְ, 7 letters). Words sharing gematria 257: and·he·said, and·he·said. 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in Job. Unique to this verse in Job (hapax): "from·roving·about" (מִשּׁ֣וּט). The root אמר appears 2 times in this verse. 10 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·he·said" (root אמר, 108x in Job); "and·he·answered" (root ענה, 60x in Job); "you·come" (root בוא, 51x in Job). First appearance of the root אין ("from·where") in Job. First appearance of the root ענה ("and·he·answered") in Job. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'you·come', dividing the verse into phrases of 5 and 8 words. Full calculation: וַיֹּ֧אמֶר [and·he·said] (257) + יְהֹוָ֛ה [Hashem] (26) + אֶל־הַשָּׂטָ֖ן [to·the·adversary] (395) + מֵאַ֣יִן [from·where] (101) + תָּבֹ֑א [you·come] (403) + וַיַּ֨עַן [and·he·answered] (136) + הַשָּׂטָ֤ן [the·adversary] (364) + אֶת־יְהֹוָה֙ [Hashem] (427) + וַיֹּאמַ֔ר [and·he·said] (257) + מִשּׁ֣וּט [from·roving·about] (355) + בָּאָ֔רֶץ [in·the·earth] (293) + וּמֵֽהִתְהַלֵּ֖ךְ [and·from·walking·about] (506) + בָּֽהּ [in·it] (7) = 3527.
Rashi
“Where are you coming from?” Scripture speaks of etiquette, that the greater one speaks first and permits the smaller one to reply. “From going to and fro on the earth” As is explained above, and it is in the homiletic section of the chapter [that begins], “The partners.” “From going to and fro on the earth and from walking in it.” So is my wont to go to and fro, to see the evil ones and the good ones. Now I went to and fro throughout the entire earth and I did not find anyone like Abraham, about whom it is said (Gen. 13:17): “Rise, go to and fro in the land.” The Sages of blessed memory (Baba Bathra 16a) said that the Adversary meant this for the sake of Heaven, in order that Abraham’s merit not be forgotten by our God.
Ibn Ezra
'From going to and fro' — [the word] is like ‘roaming, going about,’ as in ‘roam the streets of Jerusalem’ (Jeremiah 5:1); and the sense of ‘in the earth’ is throughout the whole world, as in ‘we have walked to and fro through the earth’ (Zechariah 1:11).
Ralbag
Explanation of the words of the response. ‘Then Satan answered’ — its sense is like ‘and he called out,’ as in the phrase ‘and you shall call out and say’ (Deuteronomy 26:5), where the meaning is a proclamation, not a reply.
Metzudat David
'Whence do you come' — from what place have you come? And since a lesser one is not permitted to speak until the greater one opens [the exchange] with him, Hashem therefore opened with him and put the question to him. 'From going to and fro' — I come from roaming about the earth and from walking around in it. And the matter is repeated in different words to say: I searched thoroughly to see the deeds of mankind — as if to say, behold, I have found whole bundles of men's transgressions.
Metzudat Zion
'Going to and fro' — an expression of walking here and there, as in 'the people went about and gathered' (Numbers 11:8).
Malbim
And Hashem said to Satan – He explains by way of parable that Hashem asked Satan, 'From where do you come?' For this negation and decay, which is Satan's power, is not attached to the higher beings, but is bound to matter alone. That is why he answered, 'from going to and fro in the earth, and from walking up and down in it.' In this he explains: (1) That negation and decay are found only on earth, not among the higher beings. (2) That what is found on earth — that is, among the possessors of matter — comes in two forms: (a) The general, constant negation bound up with the nature of physical things, whereby every composite thing eventually disintegrates, and every man and every living creature necessarily dies when his time comes. (b) The negation that comes about by chance — as when a person dies or falls ill through excessive indulgence in food and sexual relations beyond what is proper, or through people killing one another, and the like. Of the chance kind he said 'going to and fro in the earth,' and of the constant, ever-present kind he said 'walking up and down in it,' for 'walking' indicates permanence.
And Hashem said to Satan: ‘Have you considered My servant Job, that there is none like him in the earth, a whole-hearted and an upright man, one who fears God, and shuns evil?’
verse value 4275
Insights
Verse structure: 18 words, 68 letters. Notable word values: "Hashem" (יְהֹוָה֙) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "that" (כִּ֣י, 2 letters) and the longest is "to·the·adversary" (אֶל־הַשָּׂטָ֔ן, 6 letters). 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in Job. Unique to this verse in Job (hapax): "concerning·My·servant" (עַל־עַבְדִּ֣י). 18 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·he·said" (root אמר, 108x in Job); "that" (root כי, 75x in Job); "Job" (root איוב, 56x in Job). First appearance of the root שים ("have·you·set") in Job. First appearance of the root לב ("your·heart") in Job. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'Job', dividing the verse into phrases of 7 and 11 words.
Rashi
Have you paid attention to My servant Job that you should desire to denounce him? “Have you paid, etc.” An expression of a wonder. sincere and upright Perfect in his deeds.
Metzudat David
'Have you considered' — have you set your mind on bringing accusation even against Job, who truly has no equal, etc. — as if to say: is it not so that in his conduct I have found nothing evil at all?
Malbim
And Hashem said – He explains by way of parable that since God's wisdom required that the human form — noble in the extreme — be bound up with this dark, dust-laden matter, which exposes it to every kind of defect and decay, He therefore gave the human form power over matter: dominion and rule over it, so that it could subdue matter, restrain its cravings, and bring them back, so far as possible, within the bounds of what is proper and balanced. Because of this, a godly person who puts his matter to death and subdues its cravings, and whose soul rules with overwhelming power over all his faculties, is beyond the reach of the very power of negation that comes from matter. Such a perfect person is guarded by Hashem's providence from every harm and defect that comes on account of matter and its evil. That is why Hashem asked Satan, 'Have you considered My servant Job' — meaning: surely you have no power over him at all, since he is My servant, and there is none like him on earth — that is, he is set apart from the earth and from the concerns of matter entirely, being a whole-hearted and upright man, and so on. All of this stems from the triumph of form over matter, and its dominion over it.
Then Satan answered Hashem, and said: ‘Does Job fear God for nought?
verse value 1603
Insights
Verse structure: 8 words, 35 letters. Notable word values: "God" (אֱלֹהִֽים) = 86, equal to Elohim. The shortest word is "fears" (יָרֵ֥א, 3 letters) and the longest is "Hashem" (אֶת־יְהֹוָ֖ה, 6 letters). 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in Job. Unique to this verse in Job (hapax): "is·it·for·nought" (הַֽחִנָּ֔ם). 8 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·he·said" (root אמר, 108x in Job); "and·he·answered" (root ענה, 60x in Job); "Job" (root איוב, 56x in Job). First appearance of the root חנם ("is·it·for·nought") in Job. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'and·he·said', dividing the verse into phrases of 4 and 4 words. Full calculation: וַיַּ֧עַן [and·he·answered] (136) + הַשָּׂטָ֛ן [the·adversary] (364) + אֶת־יְהֹוָ֖ה [Hashem] (427) + וַיֹּאמַ֑ר [and·he·said] (257) + הַֽחִנָּ֔ם [is·it·for·nought] (103) + יָרֵ֥א [fears] (211) + אִיּ֖וֹב [Job] (19) + אֱלֹהִֽים [God] (86) = 1603.
Rashi
“Does Job fear God for nothing?” This is a question.
Metzudat David
'For nought' — does Job really fear Hashem for nothing, without a promised reward beforehand?
Malbim
Then Satan answered Hashem, and said – He replies that there is a special condition here, one explained in philosophy: that serving Hashem and restraining one's cravings out of hope for reward or fear of harm is not truly a matter of the soul at all, but a material matter. It is like someone who sits fasting for the sake of a reward: he is not fasting because of his form, but because of his love of his own matter — for out of love of his body, and in order to gain money to fill his needs, he afflicts his body for a short time so that he may profit from it afterward. And it would not be right to say that because of this self-affliction he becomes sanctified and set apart from material concerns and cleaves to the higher beings; the opposite is true — he is so sunk in his love of money that he will fast and afflict himself in order to attain it. In the same way he judges the case of Job: that his fear of Hashem and his shunning of evil are not a matter of the soul, since he does not do it out of love of the good because it is good. That would only be so if he had no hope of gaining a reward through it, or of being saved from a harm he fears, and did it for nothing, not for the sake of reward. But does Job fear God for nought?
Have You not made a hedge about him, and about his house, and about all that he has, on every side? You have blessed the work of his hands, and his possessions are increased in the land.
verse value 4865
Insights
Verse structure: 14 words, 64 letters. The shortest word is "You·have·hedged" (שַׂ֣כְתָּ, 3 letters) and the longest is "and·about·his·house" (וּבְעַד־בֵּית֛וֹ, 8 letters). Words sharing gematria 82: about·him, and·about. 5 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Job. Unique to this verse in Job (hapax): "have·not·You" (הֲלֹֽא־אַ֠תָּ֠ה), "You·have·hedged" (שַׂ֣כְתָּ), "and·about·his·house" (וּבְעַד־בֵּית֛וֹ). The root בעד appears 2 times in this verse. 13 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "in·the·land" (root ארץ, 48x in Job); "his·hands" (root יד, 44x in Job); "all·that·to·him" (root כל, 31x in Job). First appearance of the root אתה ("have·not·You") in Job. First appearance of the root בעד ("about·him") in Job. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'from·around', dividing the verse into phrases of 8 and 6 words.
Rashi
Haven’t You made a hedge around him Because he knows that You visit him frequently to perform miracles for him, and he is fruitful and multiplies; therefore he performs all these righteous deeds—but You have not tested him. made a hedge around him You protected him like a wall, as in (Isa. 5:5) “I will remove its hedge (משוכתו),” its wall. Every expression of בעד stated in the Hebrew language is only an expression of “opposite and before him,” as in (Lev.16:6), “and he shall effect atonement for himself (וכפר בעדו),” he shall wipe away the sin from opposite you and before you (sic), so that the atonement shall be a shield about you. Similarly (Ps. 3:4), “[But You,] O Lord, are a shield about me (בעדי) .” spread out in the land Heb. פרץ, gained strength, as in (Exod. 1:12), “So would they gain strength (יפרץ), which the Targum renders: And so would they become strong. This is its simple meaning, but our Sages of blessed memory stated in the Aggadah (Baba Bathra 15b, 16a) that they broke the fence of the world, for the goats would slay the wolves.
Ibn Ezra
'Have You not made a hedge about him' — [the word] is related to ‘thorns in your eyes’ (Numbers 33:55), and to ‘I will take away its hedge, and it shall be for trampling’ (Isaiah 5:5). Its sense: that You have hedged him about, like the hedge of a vineyard, so that no harm can touch it. 'is increased' — [meaning] grew great, as in ‘and you shall spread abroad to the west and to the east’ (Genesis 28:14).
Metzudat David
'Have You not made a hedge about him' — You have protected him, as though You had fenced him and his household round about, so that no harm could come near them. 'His possessions are increased' — because of the abundance of his livestock, it looks as though they had broken through their enclosure — as though no fenced space could contain them, for they filled the whole earth.
Metzudat Zion
'Made a hedge' — an expression of fencing, as in 'take away its hedge' (Isaiah 5:5).
Malbim
Have You not made a hedge about him — that is to say, there are two things bound up in this: • A) Fear of harm — for You shield and protect him, so that no harm reaches him, nor his household, nor anything of his all around; this includes the protection of his body, his children, and his property. And he fears lest this protection be withdrawn from him, especially since he knows that, by the arrangement of the constellations, he would otherwise be exposed to misfortune — as he would later say, 'For the fear I feared has come upon me, and what I dreaded has overtaken me.' • B) There is also hope of reward, for 'You have blessed the work of his hands' — You sent blessing into his trade and his dealings, and 'his possessions are increased in the land' beyond the natural order; this is the reward he receives at once for his fear of Heaven and his righteousness. And reason dictates that his fear and righteousness are not free of the love of reward and the fear of harm — and this you can establish by test and trial.
But put forth Your hand now, and touch all that he has, surely he will blaspheme You to Your face.’
verse value 1758
Insights
Verse structure: 8 words, 39 letters. The shortest word is "Your·hand" (יָֽדְךָ֔, 3 letters) and the longest is "in·all·that·to·him" (בְּכׇל־אֲשֶׁר־ל֑וֹ, 8 letters). 2 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Job. Unique to this verse in Job (hapax): "in·all·that·to·him" (בְּכׇל־אֲשֶׁר־ל֑וֹ), "to·Your·face" (עַל־פָּנֶ֖יךָ). 8 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "to·Your·face" (root פנים, 68x in Job); "Your·hand" (root יד, 44x in Job); "in·all·that·to·him" (root כל, 31x in Job). First appearance of the root אולם ("but") in Job. First appearance of the root נגע ("and·touch") in Job. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'in·all·that·to·him', dividing the verse into phrases of 5 and 3 words. Full calculation: וְאוּלָם֙ [but] (83) + שְֽׁלַֽח־נָ֣א [put·forth·now] (389) + יָֽדְךָ֔ [Your·hand] (34) + וְגַ֖ע [and·touch] (79) + בְּכׇל־אֲשֶׁר־ל֑וֹ [in·all·that·to·him] (589) + אִם־לֹ֥א [surely] (72) + עַל־פָּנֶ֖יךָ [to·Your·face] (260) + יְבָרְכֶֽךָּ [he·will·blaspheme·You] (252) = 1758.
Rashi
But were you to touch all that he has, would he not blaspheme You to Your face immediately? This is a question. And then, the Lord said to the Adversary, “Behold, all that he has is in your hands.”
Metzudat David
'But put forth Your hand now' — but in truth, test him: put forth now the blow of Your hand, and touch the members of his household and his wealth, to destroy them from him. 'Surely' — this is an expression of oath and strong asseveration, in which the consequence is left unstated; it is as though it said, 'if it is not so, may such-and-such befall me' — so too, 'surely I have stilled and quieted [my soul]' (Psalms 131:2). 'To Your face' — out of anger at You over the loss of his household and his wealth, he will blaspheme Heaven.
Metzudat Zion
'And touch' — an expression of touching. 'To Your face' — on account of Your anger; so too, 'I will set My face' (Leviticus 20:3); this is because anger is recognized in the face. 'He will blaspheme You' — the Hebrew literally says 'bless You'; it is used as a respectful euphemism in place of its opposite, out of deference to the One above.
Malbim
But put forth Your hand now — this will be the test: if his righteousness stems from the good itself, and not from any outward motive of reward or punishment, then even if You remove Your protection and blessing from him, he will nonetheless not be shaken from his righteousness. But if his righteousness was due to hope of reward and fear of punishment, then if You put forth Your hand and touch all that he has, so that he no longer has any reason to fear You or to hope for anything from You, then he will blaspheme You to Your face — meaning, not only will he no longer be righteous as he was, now that the reason for which he clung to his righteousness has been removed, but on account of You and Your providence he will blaspheme and revile Your conduct. For having reckoned that by virtue of his righteousness he deserved wealth and possessions, and now seeing that these possessions which were rightfully his have been lost to him, he will blame this on a flaw in Your governance and say that You are not a righteous judge. And this is a clear proof that his service was not out of love; for had it been, he would not complain, and good times and bad would seem the same to him. And Satan is precise in saying that Hashem should touch 'all that he has' — for if anything at all were left to him, the test would not be complete, since he would still be afraid to defy Hashem, lest He take from him the one thing that remained in his hand.
And Hashem said to Satan: ‘Behold, all that he has is in your power; only upon himself put not forth your hand.’ So Satan went forth from the presence of Hashem.
verse value 3298
Insights
Verse structure: 15 words, 62 letters. Notable word values: "Hashem" (יְהֹוָ֜ה) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "only" (רַ֣ק, 2 letters) and the longest is "all·that·to·him" (כׇל־אֲשֶׁר־לוֹ֙, 7 letters). Words sharing gematria 26: Hashem, Hashem. 2 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Job. Unique to this verse in Job (hapax): "do·not·put·forth" (אַל־תִּשְׁלַ֖ח), "from·with" (מֵעִ֖ם). The root יהוה appears 2 times in this verse. 12 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·he·said" (root אמר, 108x in Job); "to·him" (root אל, 86x in Job); "face·of" (root פנים, 68x in Job). First appearance of the root הן ("behold") in Job. First appearance of the root רק ("only") in Job. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'your·hand', dividing the verse into phrases of 10 and 5 words.
Rashi
“Behold, all that he has etc. Another explanation: Now the day came about That day when they recommenced the cycle [and were] to eat at the house of their eldest brother. the angels of God The heavenly hosts, which are near the Divine Presence, to be the members of His household, and were therefore called His children. to stand beside the Lord Heb. Around Him, as (Gen. 45:1) “all who stood around him (עליו).”
Metzudat David
'Behold, all that he has is in your power' — they are handed over into your power to destroy them all, but you shall not put forth your hand against his own body, to strike him as well. 'So Satan went forth' — to destroy the members of his household along with all his wealth.
Malbim
'And Hashem said' — it is clear from the parable that the cause of Job's suffering was a matter of testing: whether his heart was whole with Hashem, and whether he would stand firm in his righteousness even in a time of affliction, so as to determine thereby whether he served Hashem out of love. It was not on account of any past sin, for he was clean of the slightest trace of sin, as Hashem Himself testified of him that he was a sincere and upright man. This fact was hidden from the three companions who argued with him, until Elihu the Buzite, the last to speak in the debate, revealed it at its end. And Scripture relates that at first he was handed over to be tested only in his outward possessions — his property and his children — not in his own body, as it says, 'Behold, all that he has is in your power; only upon himself put not forth your hand.' And these are the words of the Guide for the Perplexed (Part 3, Chapter 22): his trials are related according to the different dispositions of men, for there are men who are not dismayed by the loss of their property, but are shaken by the death of their children and die of worry over it; and there are also men who would not be broken even by the loss of their children, but who cannot bear physical pain, and so on. Therefore Scripture relates that Satan first went out to do what he had been given permission to do — to destroy Job's possessions and children. And it explains that he went forth 'from the presence of Hashem': for loss and negation do not proceed from Hashem insofar as He is the One who brings existents into being, forms, and sustains them, but only insofar as He is not so acting — insofar as Hashem's power withdraws from that place, whereby negation finds room to occur (as explained in the commentary to Isaiah 45, on the verse 'Former of light and Creator of darkness').
And it fell on a day when his sons and his daughters were eating and drinking wine in their eldest brother’s house,
verse value 2278
Insights
Verse structure: 10 words, 46 letters. The shortest word is "wine" (יַ֔יִן, 3 letters) and the longest is "and·his·daughters" (וּבְנֹתָ֤יו, 6 letters). 2 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Job. Unique to this verse in Job (hapax): "and·his·sons" (וּבָנָ֨יו), "and·his·daughters" (וּבְנֹתָ֤יו). 10 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "the·day" (root יום, 59x in Job); "and·it·came·to·pass" (root היה, 50x in Job); "and·his·sons" (root בן, 26x in Job). First appearance of the root יין ("wine") in Job. First appearance of the root אח ("their·brother") in Job. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'the·day', dividing the verse into phrases of 2 and 8 words. Full calculation: וַיְהִ֖י [and·it·came·to·pass] (31) + הַיּ֑וֹם [the·day] (61) + וּבָנָ֨יו [and·his·sons] (74) + וּבְנֹתָ֤יו [and·his·daughters] (474) + אֹֽכְלִים֙ [eating] (101) + וְשֹׁתִ֣ים [and·drinking] (756) + יַ֔יִן [wine] (70) + בְּבֵ֖ית [in·house·of] (414) + אֲחִיהֶ֥ם [their·brother] (64) + הַבְּכֽוֹר [the·firstborn] (233) = 2278.
Metzudat David
'And it fell on a day' — when the day came around again for them to eat at the house of the eldest, then what happened, happened. Satan's intent was to provoke Job all the more, reasoning as follows: did I not, this very morning, offer up burnt-offerings numbering all of them, as stated above, 'And it was so, when the days of their feasting had gone about,' etc.? If so, they are cleansed of sin — why then did they die? — so that on this account he would blaspheme all the more.
Malbim
And it fell on a day — Scripture specifies in detail that this was not on account of any prior sin, nor even on account of any sin of his sons, for it happened on the day when his sons were eating and drinking in the house of their eldest brother — that is, the day on which the cycle of feast-days had come full circle, the day on which Job would offer burnt-offerings and atone for them for all their sins.
that there came a messenger to Job, and said: ‘The oxen were plowing, and the asses feeding beside them;
verse value 3362
Insights
Verse structure: 10 words, 48 letters. The shortest word is "he·came" (בָּ֥א, 2 letters) and the longest is "and·the·asses" (וְהָאֲתֹנ֖וֹת, 7 letters). 6 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Job. Unique to this verse in Job (hapax): "and·a·messenger" (וּמַלְאָ֛ךְ), "the·oxen" (הַבָּקָר֙), "plowing" (חֹֽרְשׁ֔וֹת). 10 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·he·said" (root אמר, 108x in Job); "to·Job" (root איוב, 56x in Job); "he·came" (root בוא, 51x in Job). First appearance of the root מלאך ("and·a·messenger") in Job. First appearance of the root חרש ("plowing") in Job. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'and·he·said', dividing the verse into phrases of 4 and 6 words. Full calculation: וּמַלְאָ֛ךְ [and·a·messenger] (97) + בָּ֥א [he·came] (3) + אֶל־אִיּ֖וֹב [to·Job] (50) + וַיֹּאמַ֑ר [and·he·said] (257) + הַבָּקָר֙ [the·oxen] (307) + הָי֣וּ [were] (21) + חֹֽרְשׁ֔וֹת [plowing] (914) + וְהָאֲתֹנ֖וֹת [and·the·asses] (868) + רֹע֥וֹת [feeding] (676) + עַל־יְדֵיהֶֽם [upon·their·hands] (169) = 3362.
Rashi
beside them Heb. על ידיהם lit. on their hands. This is an expression of a place only because it is prepared and available at his hand. Our Sages of blessed memory said in the Aggadah (Baba Bathra 15b, 16a), that the Holy One, blessed be He, gave them a taste of the world to come; for after the plowing by the she-donkeys, they would sow with the plowing, and the she-donkeys would immediately graze on the young greens from the furrow.
Ibn Ezra
'beside them' [lit. by their hand] — [meaning] their place, as in ‘and you shall have a place’ (Deuteronomy 23:13).
Metzudat David
'That there came a messenger' — one of his own servants came to bring him the evil tidings. 'Beside them' — close by them, next to them.
Metzudat Zion
'A messenger' — an emissary.
Malbim
(14-15) 'And a messenger came' — Maimonides already wrote in the Guide for the Perplexed (Part 3, Chapter 12) that every evil that befalls a person reduces to one of three kinds: • A) Evils that come from the nature of generation and decay [the physical world of coming-to-be and passing away] — such as calamities that occur through the elements, lightning, land subsidence, and the like. • B) Evils that come by way of people, some against others. • C) Evils that befall each person from his own doing — such as illnesses that come from excessive desire in eating, drinking, and intercourse, and from taking these in excessive measure, or from a disorder in their sequence, or from poor quality of the food, and so on. Now Malbim says here that this time Satan brought upon Job the first two kinds of evil: first, 'Sheba fell upon them,' which is an evil caused by people; and afterward, 'a fire of God,' which comes by way of the element of fire. And likewise the pattern is doubled a second time: the fall of the Chaldeans, and the evil of the element of wind. For within each of these two kinds of evil there are two sub-types: evils caused by people come either out of desire for money and gain — and this was the raid of Sheba, who came to seize plunder and take spoil out of love of money — or they come out of love of victory and dominion, on account of which people wage war, nation against nation and kingdom against kingdom in the manner of war — and this was the case of the Chaldeans, who set captains over themselves in the manner of those who array a battle-line. Likewise, evils that come by way of the elements come either through sheer chance, like the falling of a fire of God from heaven, or in the ordinary course of nature, like the wind that came from across the wilderness. And the messenger told him that the raiders did not come at night or in stealth, but at the time when the oxen were plowing and the asses feeding, which is the middle of the day — and one should not say that the young men were not there to stand against them, for they did fight them, and were struck down by the sword.
and the Sabeans made a raid, and took them away; indeed, they have slain the servants with the edge of the sword; and I only have escaped alone to tell you.’
verse value 3116
Insights
Verse structure: 11 words, 52 letters. The shortest word is "to·you" (לָֽךְ, 2 letters) and the longest is "and·the·servants" (וְאֶת־הַנְּעָרִ֖ים, 9 letters). 2 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Job. Unique to this verse in Job (hapax): "and·she·fell" (וַתִּפֹּ֤ל), "and·she·took·them" (וַתִּקָּחֵ֔ם). 11 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "only·I" (root אני, 28x in Job); "to·tell" (root נגד, 20x in Job). First appearance of the root נפל ("and·she·fell") in Job. First appearance of the root לקח ("and·she·took·them") in Job. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'to·the·mouth·of·sword', dividing the verse into phrases of 6 and 5 words. Full calculation: וַתִּפֹּ֤ל [and·she·fell] (516) + שְׁבָא֙ [Sheba] (303) + וַתִּקָּחֵ֔ם [and·she·took·them] (554) + וְאֶת־הַנְּעָרִ֖ים [and·the·servants] (782) + הִכּ֣וּ [they·have·slain] (31) + לְפִי־חָ֑רֶב [to·the·mouth·of·sword] (330) + וָאִמָּ֨לְטָ֧ה [and·I·escaped] (91) + רַק־אֲנִ֛י [only·I] (361) + לְבַדִּ֖י [alone] (46) + לְהַגִּ֥יד [to·tell] (52) + לָֽךְ [to·you] (50) = 3116.
Rashi
And Sheba The kingdom of Sheba fell upon them and encamped beside them, as in (Gen. 25: 18), “before all his brethren he settled.” the youths Your servants who were guarding them. and I... escaped Heb. ואמלטה. The word מליטה is only an expression of withdrawal, that one withdrew from trouble.
Ibn Ezra
'and the Sabeans made a raid' — [meaning] the camp of Sheba.
Metzudat David
'And the Sabeans made a raid' — the people of Sheba encamped against them and took everything for themselves. 'The servants' — those who were plowing with the oxen, and those tending the she-asses. 'To tell you' — for our Sages, of blessed memory, said that as soon as he finished speaking these words he too died; so it is as though he said: behold, I did not escape except to tell you — not to remain alive.
Metzudat Zion
'Made a raid' — an expression of encamping, as in 'lying [encamped] in the valley' (Judges 7:12). 'I have escaped' — an expression of rescue.
While he was yet speaking, there came also another, and said: ‘A fire of God has fallen from heaven, and has burned up the sheep, and the servants, and consumed them; and I only have escaped alone to tell you.’
verse value 3949
Insights
Verse structure: 19 words, 81 letters. Notable word values: "and·this" (וְזֶה֮) = 18, chai, 'life'. The shortest word is "this" (זֶ֣ה, 2 letters) and the longest is "from·the·heaven" (מִן־הַשָּׁמַ֔יִם, 7 letters). 6 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Job. Unique to this verse in Job (hapax): "has·fallen" (נָֽפְלָה֙), "from·the·heaven" (מִן־הַשָּׁמַ֔יִם), "and·she·burned" (וַתִּבְעַ֥ר). The root זה appears 2 times in this verse. 18 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·he·said" (root אמר, 108x in Job); "speaking" (root דבר, 58x in Job); "he·came" (root בוא, 51x in Job). First appearance of the root עוד ("while") in Job. First appearance of the root זה ("this") in Job. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'and·she·consumed·them', dividing the verse into phrases of 14 and 5 words.
Rashi
and the youths Scripture speaks of the guards of the flocks.
Metzudat David
'While he was yet speaking, there came also another' — while the first was still speaking his words, this second one came and said: behold, a great, mighty fire fell from heaven and began to burn among the sheep and the servants guarding the sheep, and it consumed them all.
Metzudat Zion
'A fire of God' — it is Scripture's way, when it wishes to describe something as immense, to attach it to the name of God; so too, 'cedars of God' (Psalms 80:11).
Malbim
(16-17) "While he was yet speaking" — Scripture tells us that the calamities came one after another in rapid succession, as he later says, "I had no ease, and had no quiet, and had no rest, but trouble came." It is as if the messenger who escaped had come only in order to tell him the bad news, and our sages taught that he died immediately after finishing his report. Then the second messenger informed him that a fire of God had fallen and burned among the sheep, and the third messenger informed him that the Chaldeans had raided the camels. Accordingly, the order was: first the oxen and donkeys were lost, then the sheep, then the camels. But at the beginning of the account it lists, "and there were born to him seven sons" and "his possessions were" etc., naming the sons, then the sheep, then the camels, and only afterward the oxen and donkeys — which shows that the more significant is named first. Yet when they were lost, the less significant was lost first, so that the sons were lost last; accordingly, the order of loss should have been: oxen and donkeys, then camels, then sheep, and after that the loss of the sons. Why, then, does it place the sheep before the camels? But I have already explained that the calamities came in an alternating pattern: one by human beings, then one by the elements, then again by human beings, then by the element of wind. Had the loss of the camels by the Chaldeans come before that of the sheep, the two calamities caused by human beings would have followed one right after the other, and likewise the two calamities caused by the elements — and it would not have been so striking a novelty had the Sabeans and the Chaldeans come one right on the heels of the other, and likewise the fire and the storm-wind. It is not so here: for at the time the Sabeans struck, the Chaldeans had not yet come; only after them did the fire come down and consume the sheep, and likewise the wind did not come together with the fire in one stroke. This makes it all the more striking.
While he was yet speaking, there came also another, and said: ‘The Chaldeans set themselves in three bands, and fell upon the camels, and have taken them away, indeed, and slain the servants with the edge of the sword; and I only have escaped alone to tell you.’
verse value 5074
Insights
Verse structure: 21 words, 96 letters. Notable word values: "and·this" (וְזֶה֮) = 18, chai, 'life'. Verse gematria: 5074 is divisible by 86, the value of Elohim. The shortest word is "this" (זֶ֣ה, 2 letters) and the longest is "and·the·servants" (וְאֶת־הַנְּעָרִ֖ים, 9 letters). 6 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Job. Unique to this verse in Job (hapax): "Chaldeans" (כַּשְׂדִּ֞ים), "three" (שְׁלֹשָׁ֣ה), "heads" (רָאשִׁ֗ים). The root זה appears 2 times in this verse. 20 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·he·said" (root אמר, 108x in Job); "speaking" (root דבר, 58x in Job); "he·came" (root בוא, 51x in Job). First appearance of the root ראש ("heads") in Job. First appearance of the root פשט ("and·they·raided") in Job. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'to·the·mouth·of·sword', dividing the verse into phrases of 16 and 5 words.
Rashi
spread out on the camels This is an expression of plundering plunder according to their custom that as long as they are walking, they stick together and walk stealthily lest people recognize them and drive the cattle away. When they reach the place of the cattle, they spread out in the width of the herd, one on each side, in order to gather the cattle. Now these messengers were messengers of the Adversary, and in order to provoke him [Job] and cause him to sin, they first informed him of a small loss and later of a larger one. So is the sequence of all of them.
Ibn Ezra
'and fell upon' [lit. and they made a raid] — like ‘against whom have you made a raid today?’ (1 Samuel 27:10).
Metzudat David
'The Chaldeans' — the Chaldean force divided itself into three bands and spread out in order to seize the camels, in the manner of raiders of livestock, who scatter around so as to gather in the animals. 'The servants' — these are the herdsmen of the camels.
Metzudat Zion
'Bands' — divisions, as in 'and one band comes' (Judges 9:37). 'Fell upon' — an expression of spreading out and extending.
While he was yet speaking, there came also another, and said: ‘Your sons and your daughters were eating and drinking wine in their eldest brother’s house;
verse value 2824
Insights
Verse structure: 14 words, 56 letters. Notable word values: "and·this" (וְזֶ֖ה) = 18, chai, 'life'. The shortest word is "while" (עַ֚ד, 2 letters) and the longest is "and·your·daughters" (וּבְנוֹתֶ֤יךָ, 7 letters). 2 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Job. Unique to this verse in Job (hapax): "your·sons" (בָּנֶ֨יךָ), "and·your·daughters" (וּבְנוֹתֶ֤יךָ). The root זה appears 2 times in this verse. 13 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·he·said" (root אמר, 108x in Job); "speaking" (root דבר, 58x in Job); "he·came" (root בוא, 51x in Job). First appearance of the root עד ("while") in Job. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'and·he·said', dividing the verse into phrases of 6 and 8 words. Full calculation: עַ֚ד [while] (74) + זֶ֣ה [this] (12) + מְדַבֵּ֔ר [speaking] (246) + וְזֶ֖ה [and·this] (18) + בָּ֣א [he·came] (3) + וַיֹּאמַ֑ר [and·he·said] (257) + בָּנֶ֨יךָ [your·sons] (82) + וּבְנוֹתֶ֤יךָ [and·your·daughters] (494) + אֹֽכְלִים֙ [eating] (101) + וְשֹׁתִ֣ים [and·drinking] (756) + יַ֔יִן [wine] (70) + בְּבֵ֖ית [in·house·of] (414) + אֲחִיהֶ֥ם [their·brother] (64) + הַבְּכֽוֹר [the·firstborn] (233) = 2824.
Ibn Ezra
'While he was yet speaking' — [meaning] until this one who was speaking arrived, he being the last of those who came.
Metzudat David
'While he was yet speaking' — [the word here] is equivalent to be'od zeh, 'while this one [was speaking].' 'Were eating' — they were eating, etc.
Malbim
"While he was yet speaking" — The first three messengers all announced the loss of his property, which is really all one matter; therefore each one arrived before the previous speaker had finished his words, and so Scripture writes "od zeh medabber" — "this one was still speaking." But the fourth, who announced the loss of the sons, which is a new trial (as above, verse 12) and a matter of a different kind, therefore came only after the third had finished all his words, and so Scripture writes "ad zeh medabber" — "this one had finished speaking."
And, behold, there came a great wind from across the wilderness, and smote the four corners of the house, and it fell upon the young people, and they are dead; and I only have escaped alone to tell you.’
verse value 3885
Insights
Verse structure: 18 words, 81 letters. The shortest word is "to·you" (לָֽךְ, 2 letters) and the longest is "upon·the·young·people" (עַל־הַנְּעָרִ֖ים, 8 letters). 9 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Job. Unique to this verse in Job (hapax): "great" (גְּדוֹלָ֜ה), "came" (בָּ֣אָה), "the·wilderness" (הַמִּדְבָּ֗ר). 18 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "came" (root בוא, 51x in Job); "wind" (root רוח, 29x in Job); "only·I" (root אני, 28x in Job). First appearance of the root הנה ("and·behold") in Job. First appearance of the root רוח ("wind") in Job. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'and·they·died', dividing the verse into phrases of 13 and 5 words.
Rashi
from the other side of the desert From the other side of the desert, for the house was on this side. This is the meaning of עֵבֶר, as it is found in Scriptures. upon the youths The sons, but it is unnecessary to mention the daughters. (to tell you He was permitted only to tell, and at that moment, he died. Not found in certain editions.)
Metzudat David
'And smote the four corners of the house' — although it came from one direction, it encircled the whole house all around. 'It fell upon the young people' — these are his sons and their servants; and Scripture does not mention the daughters, because it goes without saying — females being all the more feeble in strength.
Metzudat Zion
'From across' — from the direction of. 'Corners' — angles.
Malbim
"And, behold, there came a great wind" — this too was a novelty: that the wind came from a different direction, from across the wilderness, and as our sages said, it was an east wind; and when it reached the house it split into four directions and encircled the house on every side.
Then Job arose, and rent his mantle, and shaved his head, and fell down upon the ground, and worshipped;
verse value 3194
Insights
Verse structure: 9 words, 43 letters. Notable word values: "and·he·shaved" (וַיָּ֖גׇז) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "and·he·arose" (וַיָּ֤קׇם, 4 letters) and the longest is "his·mantle" (אֶת־מְעִל֔וֹ, 6 letters). 5 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Job. Unique to this verse in Job (hapax): "and·he·tore" (וַיִּקְרַ֣ע), "his·mantle" (אֶת־מְעִל֔וֹ), "and·he·shaved" (וַיָּ֖גׇז). 9 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "Job" (root איוב, 56x in Job); "to·the·ground" (root ארץ, 48x in Job); "and·he·arose" (root קום, 22x in Job). First appearance of the root קום ("and·he·arose") in Job. First appearance of the root מעיל ("his·mantle") in Job. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'his·head', dividing the verse into phrases of 6 and 3 words. Full calculation: וַיָּ֤קׇם [and·he·arose] (156) + אִיּוֹב֙ [Job] (19) + וַיִּקְרַ֣ע [and·he·tore] (386) + אֶת־מְעִל֔וֹ [his·mantle] (547) + וַיָּ֖גׇז [and·he·shaved] (26) + אֶת־רֹאשׁ֑וֹ [his·head] (908) + וַיִּפֹּ֥ל [and·he·fell] (126) + אַ֖רְצָה [to·the·ground] (296) + וַיִּשְׁתָּֽחוּ [and·he·worshipped] (730) = 3194.
Rashi
tore Heb. ויגז, tore out, as in (Jer. 7:29), “Tear out (גזי) your hair for your great men,” which Jonathan renders: תלישה tear out, and like (Ps. 71:6) “From my mother’s womb You pull me (גוזי),” pull me.
Ibn Ezra
'and shaved' — its sense: the hair of his head. Similarly: ‘they have brought their heads down to the ground’ (Lamentations 2:10).
Metzudat David
'And rent his mantle' — out of grief and mourning. 'And shaved his head' — he tore out the hair of his head; Scripture speaks tersely of something whose meaning is understood on its own. 'And worshipped' — [prostrated himself] to Hashem, to bless Him over the evil tidings.
Metzudat Zion
'His mantle' — the name of a certain garment. 'Shaved' — plucked out, as in 'make yourself bald, and shear yourself' (Micah 1:16).
Malbim
"Then Job arose" — in order to bless Hashem while standing; and he tore his garment over the loss of his sons, as the law requires, and shaved his head over the loss of his possessions — for it is written, "you shall not make baldness for the dead," but regarding a mere loss of property there is no such prohibition.
And he said; Naked came I out of my mother’s womb, And naked shall I return there; Hashem gave, and Hashem has taken away; Blessed be the name of Hashem.
verse value 3548
Insights
Verse structure: 16 words, 58 letters. Notable word values: "Hashem" (יְהֹוָ֣ה) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "the·name·of" (שֵׁ֥ם, 2 letters) and the longest is "and·he·said" (וַיֹּ֩אמֶר֩, 5 letters). Words sharing gematria 26: Hashem, Hashem. 6 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Job. Unique to this verse in Job (hapax): "naked" (עָרֹ֨ם), "I·came·out" (יָצָ֜תִי), "and·naked" (וְעָרֹם֙). The root יהוה appears 3 times in this verse. 12 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·he·said" (root אמר, 108x in Job); "let·it·be" (root היה, 50x in Job); "I·shall·return" (root שוב, 39x in Job). First appearance of the root ערום ("naked") in Job. First appearance of the root בטן ("from·belly·of") in Job. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'has·taken·away', dividing the verse into phrases of 12 and 4 words.
Rashi
From my mother’s womb the earth, “whence I was taken,” or actually, “my mother.” and I will return there naked He is not referring to the womb. What then is the meaning of “there”? To the place of his return, for which he is destined, and he will not change the law, to return anywhere but to the earth. Therefore, it was not necessary to mention it.
Ibn Ezra
'And naked shall I return there' — an allusion to the known grave. Likewise: ‘for there is a time for every purpose, upon every work, there’ (Ecclesiastes 3:17). And some say that ‘my mother's womb’ is the earth, the reference being to Adam, the first man; or [this is said] because the bones, which are the foundations of the body, are from the earth and correspond to the earth.
Metzudat David
'Naked,' etc. — that is, just as I came out of my mother's womb naked, without wealth, so I shall return to the grave without them; as if to say, why should I complain over the loss of my sons and my wealth? After all, they were not born with me — so I shall return just as I was born. And to explain this further he said: did not Hashem give to me, and has He not taken back what is His? Why then should I complain against Him? 'There' — that is, to the known place appointed for everyone, which did not need to be spelled out, since it is understood on its own; so too, 'and upon all their doings — there' (Ecclesiastes 3:17).
Metzudat Zion
'Came I out' [yatzati] — [spelled here without an aleph, but] equivalent to yatzati spelled with an aleph, [the standard form].
Malbim
"And he said: Naked came I out of my mother's womb" — meaning that he would have had grounds to complain against Hashem in one of two ways: (1) If these possessions that were just lost to him had been bound to him, inseparable from his body like one of his own limbs, then even though Hashem had created them and given them to him, still — since they had been merged with him from the very start of his formation — he would have regarded it as a wrong to have them taken from him unjustly. But these possessions, the wealth and the sons, are external possessions, not merged with a person: not from the standpoint of his beginning, for he was born without these possessions — "naked came I out of my mother's womb" — without them; and not from the standpoint of his end, for "naked shall I return there," to that first mother, the earth, which was the mother of all the living. (2) This is the second point: that even regarding possessions not merged with himself, he would have had grounds to complain had he acquired them by his own strength and the might of his own hand, for then they would be attributed to him as the one who had brought them into being. But since it was Hashem who gave them, and He who took them, there is no room for any grievance at all — therefore, "blessed be the name of Hashem." He also said that just as Hashem gave in the attribute of mercy, so too did He take away, for surely this evil had a good purpose: He took the sons and the possessions in order to atone for him, so that his body would remain alive and healthy. Therefore he blessed over the evil just as one blesses over the good.
For all this Job did not sin, nor ascribe aught unseemly to God.
verse value 1696
Insights
Verse structure: 6 words, 31 letters. The shortest word is "Job" (אִיּ֑וֹב, 4 letters) and the longest is "in·all·this" (בְּכׇל־זֹ֖את, 6 letters). 2 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Job. Unique to this verse in Job (hapax): "and·not·he·gave" (וְלֹא־נָתַ֥ן), "to·God" (לֵאלֹהִֽים). 6 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "Job" (root איוב, 56x in Job); "and·not·he·gave" (root נתן, 33x in Job). First appearance of the root זאת ("in·all·this") in Job. First appearance of the root תפלה ("unseemliness") in Job. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'Job', dividing the verse into phrases of 3 and 3 words. Full calculation: בְּכׇל־זֹ֖את [in·all·this] (460) + לֹא־חָטָ֣א [not·he·sinned] (49) + אִיּ֑וֹב [Job] (19) + וְלֹא־נָתַ֥ן [and·not·he·gave] (537) + תִּפְלָ֖ה [unseemliness] (515) + לֵאלֹהִֽים [to·God] (116) = 1696.
Rashi
unseemliness Heb. תפלה. He did not ascribe any blemish or unseemliness to the Holy One, Blessed be He. Similarly (Jer. 23:13), “And in the prophets of Samaria I saw unseemliness (תפלה).” neither did he ascribe Heb. נתן lit. gave, to ascribe unseemliness and injustice to the Holy One, blessed be He, like (I Sam. 18:8) “They ascribed (נתנו) to David ten thousands, and to me they ascribed (נתנו) the thousands.”
Ibn Ezra
'aught unseemly' — related to ‘tasteless.’ The sense: no word came from his mouth that had no sense to it.
Metzudat David
'For all this' — although misfortunes came upon him one after another, calamity heaped upon calamity, nevertheless he did not sin by complaining against Hashem, nor did he say anything unseemly about Him.
Metzudat Zion
'Nor ascribe' — its meaning is to declare something about a matter, [i.e., to attribute it to someone]; so too, 'they have ascribed to David tens of thousands' (I Samuel 18:8). And it is possible that it belongs to the same usage as 'there let them recount the righteous acts of Hashem' (Judges 5:11). 'Aught unseemly' — an expression for something bad and senseless; so too, 'and in the prophets of Samaria I have seen unseemliness' (Jeremiah 23:13).
Malbim
"For all this" — meaning, had a complaint arisen in his heart, "a root that beareth gall and wormwood," then either: he would have admitted that no wrong comes from Hashem the righteous, but would nevertheless have denied providence, saying that these evils came upon him from nature and the order of the stars, and that Hashem does not oversee the world — in which case the reins would be loosed to sin, since there would be no providence and no reward or punishment; or he would have acknowledged providence, but then would have leveled something unseemly against God, saying that He does not govern with justice, and that His ways are like something tasteless, without salt or savor. But since he did not complain at all, he still believed in providence even then, and did not sin — he simply went on turning away from evil as before — and he did not ascribe anything unseemly to God either, so as to fault His governance, since he had resolved that it is no wrong at all for Him to take back from him possessions not merged with his being, which He had given him as a gift and an act of kindness, and which He took back in His goodness. And the taking itself is not an evil — it is merely the withholding of further bounty.
Rashi
Ibn Ezra
Ralbag
Metzudat David
Malbim