Job 1:11 kjv
But put forth thine hand now, and touch all that he hath, and he will curse thee to thy face.
Job 1:11 nkjv
But now, stretch out Your hand and touch all that he has, and he will surely curse You to Your face!"
Job 1:11 niv
But now stretch out your hand and strike everything he has, and he will surely curse you to your face."
Job 1:11 esv
But stretch out your hand and touch all that he has, and he will curse you to your face."
Job 1:11 nlt
But reach out and take away everything he has, and he will surely curse you to your face!"
Job 1 11 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Job 2:5 | "But stretch out your hand and touch his bone and his flesh..." | Satan repeats his challenge, focusing on physical suffering. |
| Job 2:9 | Then his wife said to him, "Do you still hold fast your integrity? Curse God and die." | Echoes the "curse God" temptation from a new source. |
| Job 1:10 | "Have you not put a hedge around him and his house...?" | Refers to the protective barrier God placed around Job. |
| Rev 12:10 | "...for the accuser of our brothers has been thrown down, who accuses them day and night before our God." | Satan's role as accuser of the righteous. |
| Zech 3:1 | Then he showed me Joshua the high priest standing before the angel of the Lord, and Satan standing at his right hand to accuse him. | Satan's role as accuser of God's people. |
| 1 Pet 5:8 | Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion... | The devil's destructive intentions towards believers. |
| Gen 22:1 | After these things God tested Abraham and said to him, "Abraham!" | God tests Abraham's faith; similar to the Job narrative. |
| Deut 8:2 | "And you shall remember the whole way that the Lord your God has led you... that he might humble you, testing you to know what was in your heart..." | God's testing reveals true intentions. |
| Jam 1:2-4 | Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. | Trials produce perseverance and prove faith. |
| 1 Pet 1:6-7 | In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, so that the tested genuineness of your faith... may be found to result in praise and glory and honor... | Trials refine and prove the authenticity of faith. |
| 1 Cor 10:13 | No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability... | God's limitation on trials and provision for endurance. |
| Heb 10:34 | For you had compassion on those in prison, and you joyfully accepted the plundering of your property, since you knew that you yourselves had a better possession... | Believers facing loss for Christ's sake, contrasting Job's response. |
| Matt 6:24 | "No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money." | Warning against mercenary motives in service to God. |
| Phil 3:7-8 | But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ. Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. | Paul's attitude towards material loss for spiritual gain. |
| Isa 45:7 | I form light and create darkness, I make well-being and create calamity, I am the Lord, who does all these things. | God's ultimate sovereignty over good and evil (allowing, not creating evil). |
| Lam 3:37-38 | Who has spoken and it came to pass, unless the Lord has commanded it? Is it not from the mouth of the Most High that good and bad come? | God's ultimate sovereignty and permissive will. |
| Psa 125:2 | As the mountains surround Jerusalem, so the Lord surrounds his people, from this time forth and forevermore. | God's protective presence for His people. |
| Prov 18:10 | The name of the Lord is a strong tower; the righteous run into it and are safe. | God as a refuge and source of security. |
| Psa 66:10 | For you, O God, have tested us; you have tried us as silver is tried. | Affirmation of God's refining through trials. |
| Job 23:10 | But he knows the way that I take; when he has tried me, I shall come out as gold. | Job's confidence in enduring trials and being purified. |
| John 8:44 | You are of your father the devil, and your will is to do your father's desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. | Satan's true nature as a liar and destroyer. |
| 1 Kgs 21:10 | And set two worthless men before him, and let them bring a charge against him, saying, 'You have cursed God and the king.' Then take him out and stone him to death." | "Cursed God" used similarly as a euphemism for blasphemy. |
| 1 Kgs 21:13 | And the worthless men came in and sat before him. And the worthless men brought a charge against Naboth in the presence of the people, saying, "Naboth cursed God and the king." | Further example of the euphemism. |
Job 1 verses
Job 1 11 Meaning
Job 1:11 presents Satan's bold challenge to God regarding Job's faithfulness. The adversary asserts that Job serves God not out of genuine devotion, but purely because God has blessed him materially and protected him from harm. Satan proposes a test: remove God's protective hedge and touch all that Job possesses, confidently predicting that Job will renounce God openly and directly, indicating a mercenary or conditional faith rather than true reverence.
Job 1 11 Context
Job 1:11 takes place in a dramatic heavenly court scene. Prior to this verse, the text establishes Job as an exceptionally righteous man, blameless and upright, who feared God and shunned evil (Job 1:1). His immense prosperity is detailed (Job 1:2-3), and he diligently offers sacrifices for his children to sanctify them (Job 1:4-5). God, in conversation with "the Sons of God" (presumably angelic beings), draws Satan's attention to Job's integrity (Job 1:8). Satan, as the "accuser," counters by attributing Job's righteousness solely to God's lavish blessings and protective "hedge" (Job 1:10). Job 1:11 is Satan's direct dare to God, a proposition to prove his cynical hypothesis that all religious devotion is merely transactional, serving self-interest rather than pure love for God. This verse sets the stage for the profound theological inquiry into the nature of faith, suffering, and divine sovereignty that the entire book of Job explores.
Job 1 11 Word analysis
- But: This adversative conjunction introduces a sharp contrast to God's positive assessment of Job's character. It signals Satan's counter-argument, aiming to undermine God's praise.
- put forth: From the Hebrew verb šālaḥ (שָׁלַח), meaning "to send," "to stretch out," "to reach." Here, it denotes an active, deliberate action, signifying a direct intervention by God.
- your hand: From the Hebrew noun yaḏ (יָד), signifying power, authority, action, or agency. Satan challenges God to directly intervene and use His power to afflict Job. In ancient Near Eastern thought, a king or god's "hand" symbolized their authority and effective action.
- now: From the Hebrew particle na' (נָא), expressing entreaty, urgency, or an immediate request. Satan is impatient and demands an immediate demonstration of his theory.
- and touch: From the Hebrew verb nāgaʿ (נָגַע), meaning "to touch," "to strike," "to smite," or "to harm." This implies direct, harmful affliction, moving beyond the removal of protective blessings to active suffering.
- all that he has: This refers to Job's immense wealth, his vast livestock, his many servants, and implicitly, his family. It represents the comprehensive scope of God's blessings upon Job.
- and he will curse you: The Hebrew word used here is bāraḵ (בָּרַךְ), which commonly means "to bless." However, in this specific context (and Job 2:9, 1 Kgs 21:10, 1 Kgs 21:13), it serves as a euphemism for "to curse," "to renounce," or "to blaspheme God." Satan cleverly uses a respectful term to denote the ultimate disrespect, likely to avoid speaking direct blasphemy himself, or simply indicating a perverse inversion of the concept of blessing. It highlights the deeply ironic and inverted nature of Satan's challenge.
- to your face: From the Hebrew phrase 'al pānāw (עַל־פָּנָיו), literally "upon his face" or "before his face." This signifies open, direct, and unreserved renunciation. It implies Job will not just secretly resent God, but publicly and overtly reject Him, demonstrating a complete breakdown of his proclaimed faith.
Words-Group Analysis:
- "But put forth your hand now and touch": This phrase captures the immediate, direct, and authoritative action Satan dares God to take. It's a provocative challenge for God to abandon His role as protector and become an afflictor.
- "all that he has": This emphasizes the comprehensive nature of the test. Satan believes Job's entire motivation for worship is based on material security and prosperity, and thus stripping him of "all" of it will expose his supposed mercenary faith.
- "he will curse you to your face": This phrase is the core of Satan's accusation. The euphemistic "curse" highlights the audacity of Satan's claim that Job's outward piety masks an opportunistic heart, and the "to your face" underlines the public and unapologetic nature of the predicted renunciation. Satan assumes that suffering will inevitably lead to Job's open apostasy, confirming his belief that human loyalty is solely self-serving.
Job 1 11 Bonus section
The underlying polemic in this verse challenges common ancient Near Eastern beliefs and even aspects of Israelite wisdom (like parts of Deuteronomy or Proverbs) that linked prosperity directly to righteousness and suffering to sin. Satan is, in a twisted way, representing this conditional view, attempting to corner God into demonstrating that even His "best" servant operates on a mercenary principle. God's allowing of the test is His affirmation that true faith can exist irrespective of circumstantial blessings. Job 1:11 not only sets up a test of Job but a deeper theological examination of God's character and the nature of humanity's relationship with Him. The phrase "to your face" also conveys an audacity that indicates Satan's extreme contempt and certainty that his accusation is true, a direct affront to God's perception of His servant.
Job 1 11 Commentary
Job 1:11 encapsulates the foundational premise of Satan's challenge: the nature of true faith. Satan argues that Job's righteousness is a direct result of God's blessings, implying a quid pro quo relationship rather than unconditional devotion. He posits that if the benefits are removed, Job's piety will vanish, manifesting as an open renunciation of God. This challenges the very notion of disinterested worship and love for God Himself, setting up the central conflict of the book of Job: whether faith can endure, and even flourish, purely for God's sake, in the absence of tangible reward and amidst intense suffering. Satan's use of "curse" through the word "bless" reveals his perverse distortion of divine order and his cynical view of human integrity. This verse is pivotal as it outlines the specific test and accusation against Job, which God, in His sovereign wisdom, permits to demonstrate the depth and genuineness of Job's faith.