Job 10 16

Job 10:16 kjv

For it increaseth. Thou huntest me as a fierce lion: and again thou shewest thyself marvellous upon me.

Job 10:16 nkjv

If my head is exalted, You hunt me like a fierce lion, And again You show Yourself awesome against me.

Job 10:16 niv

If I hold my head high, you stalk me like a lion and again display your awesome power against me.

Job 10:16 esv

And were my head lifted up, you would hunt me like a lion and again work wonders against me.

Job 10:16 nlt

And if I hold my head high, you hunt me like a lion
and display your awesome power against me.

Job 10 verses

Job 10 16 Meaning

Job 10:16 reflects Job's profound despair and his perception of God's relentless pursuit and overwhelming power directed against him. He believes that any attempt to regain a sense of hope or dignity is immediately met with severe divine retribution, as if God is hunting him down like a ferocious predator, consistently displaying awesome, yet terrifying, strength to oppress him.

Job 10 16 Context

Job 10:16 is part of Job's long, impassioned speech responding to his friends' accusations, specifically Zophar's. In this chapter, Job turns his lament directly to God, questioning why he suffers so profoundly despite his righteousness. He recalls how God meticulously formed him in the womb, a marvel of creation, but now perceives God as turning against him, systematically dismantling his life. Verse 16 highlights Job's sense of an unyielding, predatory God. His anguish is deepened by the perceived inversion of God's character: the benevolent Creator is now the fierce Destroyer. This challenges the common wisdom tradition that taught direct correlation between piety and prosperity, pushing against the rigid theological frameworks of his friends. From Job's limited human perspective, God appears to be an arbitrary, terrifying oppressor, relentlessly using His immense power to crush him without apparent cause or explanation.

Job 10 16 Word analysis

• "If I lift up my head" (Hebrew: וְיִגְאֶה, ve'yig'eh, from ga'ah, meaning "to rise up," "be exalted," "to swell with pride or confidence").

  • Word-level: Signifies even a small recovery of spirit, a fleeting moment of renewed hope, dignity, or courage. Job implies that he can't even stand up or assert himself without incurring God's wrath. It contrasts sharply with his posture of prostration and lament.
  • Significance: Reveals the depth of Job's fear; any attempt at positive emotional or physical reassertion is immediately perceived as a trigger for further divine punishment. It underscores his feeling of being trapped.

• "You hunt me" (Hebrew: תְצוּדֵנִי, t'tsudenī, from tsud, meaning "to hunt," "to chase," "to stalk," "to ensnare").

  • Word-level: This strong verb depicts God as an active, relentless pursuer, like a hunter after its prey. It emphasizes the one-sided nature of the interaction, where Job is the helpless hunted.
  • Significance: Job feels pursued and cornered, with no avenue of escape from God's perceived malevolent intention. It's a terrifying reversal of the common biblical imagery of God as a Shepherd who protects.

• "like a fierce lion" (Hebrew: כְּשַׁחַל, k'shachal, from shachal, meaning "lion," often "young lion" or "lion in its prime").

  • Word-level: The lion is a universal symbol of raw power, ferocity, and inevitable destruction in the ancient world.
  • Significance: By likening God to a lion, Job conveys the untamed, irresistible, and devastating power being deployed against him. It's not a mere reprimand but a full-fledged, deadly attack. This imagery subverts the comforting biblical image of the "Lion of Judah" and instead paints God as an untamed predator.

• "Again You display Your awesome power against me" (Hebrew: וְתָשֹׁב תִּתְפַּלָּא בִּי וְכֹחֶךָ, ve'tashov titpala' bī ve'koḥekha - lit. "and You return, You make Yourself wonderful against me with Your power").

  • Words-group:
    • "Again You display": The verb ve'tashov (from shuv, "to return," "repeat") highlights the repetitive nature of God's actions as Job experiences them. It implies not just an initial assault but a persistent, recurring pattern of oppression.
    • "Your awesome power": The verb titpala' (from pala', "to be wonderful," "extraordinary," "awe-inspiring") combined with koḥekha ("Your strength," "Your might"). While pala' often describes God's wondrous acts of salvation or creation (e.g., Ex 34:10; Psa 118:23), here Job uses it with bitter irony.
    • "against me": The preposition bī explicitly states the direction of this terrifying display of power.
  • Significance: Job perceives God's inherent "wonderfulness" (which should be a source of blessing) as being turned "against him" in a devastating way. God's divine power, normally majestic and benevolent, is experienced by Job as solely destructive and terrifying. This paradox deeply perplexes and torments him. It's not a hidden force, but an active, terrifying exhibition of power aimed precisely at Job.

Job 10 16 Bonus section

This verse vividly illustrates Job's radical honesty in his lament. He does not hold back from voicing his raw, unfiltered perception of God's actions, even if those perceptions are blasphemous from his friends' traditional viewpoint. This radical honesty is a key theme of the Book of Job, which encourages open and truthful engagement with God even in moments of profound theological bewilderment and agony. Furthermore, Job's portrayal of God as a "fierce lion" is an inversion of later messianic prophecies where the "Lion of Judah" represents protection and triumph, underscoring the severity of Job's alienation and fear at this point in his journey. The verse sets the stage for God's later, humbling response, where He highlights His creative power and sovereignty (Job 38-41), without directly explaining Job's suffering, thus revealing the ultimate boundary of human comprehension regarding divine ways.

Job 10 16 Commentary

Job 10:16 encapsulates Job's agonizing dilemma: he perceives a God who not only allows suffering but actively inflicts it. This verse is a visceral expression of a suffering individual feeling cornered and destroyed by the very Source of life. Job cannot reconcile God's power as Creator with God's actions as perceived Destroyer. He portrays God as an untamed lion, not as a shepherd, pursuing him relentlessly. The word "again" underscores the continuity of this suffering, emphasizing that even the smallest sign of recovery invites renewed onslaughts. This perception challenges conventional wisdom that God only afflicts the wicked; Job, a righteous man, experiences a relentless display of terrifying divine might against him, not for his benefit or instruction, from his limited vantage point. It reveals the profound intellectual and emotional struggle when faith confronts incomprehensible pain and the apparent arbitrary use of divine omnipotence.