Job 13 5

Job 13:5 kjv

O that ye would altogether hold your peace! and it should be your wisdom.

Job 13:5 nkjv

Oh, that you would be silent, And it would be your wisdom!

Job 13:5 niv

If only you would be altogether silent! For you, that would be wisdom.

Job 13:5 esv

Oh that you would keep silent, and it would be your wisdom!

Job 13:5 nlt

If only you could be silent!
That's the wisest thing you could do.

Job 13 verses

Job 13 5 Meaning

Job 13:5 is a passionate plea from Job to his three friends, Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar. He wishes they would stop speaking entirely and remain silent. Job suggests that their silence would, in fact, be a profound demonstration of wisdom, implying that their current verbal contributions are foolish, misguided, and unhelpful in his affliction. He equates their cessation of talk with the greatest show of intelligence and prudence they could offer in his distressing circumstances.

Job 13 5 Context

Job 13:5 appears amidst Job's impassioned discourse (chapters 12-14) in response to his friends' accusations. His friends have repeatedly asserted that his immense suffering must be a direct consequence of some hidden sin, adhering strictly to the conventional retribution theology of their time: the righteous prosper, the wicked suffer. Job refutes this simplistic understanding, maintaining his innocence and lamenting their inadequate and judgmental counsel. In chapter 13, Job expresses a desire to directly argue his case before God, rather than continue debate with his friends. The immediate context of verse 5 is Job's scorn for his friends' supposedly wise but ultimately unhelpful and indeed harmful words. He sees their talk as a veneer of conventional piety that fails to grasp the depth of his suffering or the complexities of divine wisdom. His plea for silence is an indictment of their "wisdom" which he views as shallow and offensive.

Job 13 5 Word analysis

• Oh that: Expresses a strong wish or longing. In the Hebrew (לוּא, lu), it conveys a desperate, fervent desire, signaling Job's deep frustration and earnest plea. It implies that Job finds their speaking not merely annoying, but truly detrimental to his spiritual and emotional state.

• ye would altogether: This phrase, particularly "altogether," emphasizes the totality and absolute nature of Job's desire for their silence. The Hebrew construction for "altogether hold your peace" (הַחֲרֵשׁ תַּחֲרִישׁוּן, chă·ḥă·rēš ta·ḥă·rī·shun) uses a infinitive absolute with a finite verb of the same root (root: חָרַשׁ, charash, to be silent/dumb/deaf). This grammatical form strongly intensifies the verb, meaning "keep absolute silence," "be totally silent," or "be completely mute." It's not just a momentary pause, but a complete cessation of their rhetoric.

• hold your peace: From the Hebrew root חָרַשׁ (charash), meaning to be silent, deaf, or dumb. In this context, it is not merely to cease verbalizing but to cease giving advice or opinions that Job deems erroneous and harmful. Job desires a silence of cessation of their condemnatory theology, not just audible silence. This implies their words were creating more noise and confusion in his spirit than offering comfort.

• and it should be: This transitions from the condition (their silence) to the outcome or result (it being their wisdom). It presents silence as a direct and immediate pathway to what Job considers genuine wisdom from them.

• your wisdom: Hebrew ḥāḵmâ (חָכְמָה) typically refers to skill, discernment, prudence, or intelligence, often derived from experience or divine insight. In Job's eyes, their constant pronouncements, rooted in simplistic theological frameworks, reveal a lack of true discernment regarding God's ways or human suffering. True wisdom for them would involve recognizing the limits of their understanding and refraining from presumptuous judgment. This challenges their very identity as counselors or "wise men."

• Words-group analysis:

  • "Oh that ye would altogether hold your peace!": This collective phrase underscores Job's absolute desperation and the degree of exasperation he feels towards his friends. He views their endless, supposedly sagacious speeches as not just futile, but actively contributing to his suffering, making them "miserable comforters" (Job 16:2). The complete silence he craves would be a definitive end to their ill-conceived counsel and condemnation. It is a prayer, a fervent hope that they might suddenly understand the profound foolishness of their words.
  • "and it should be your wisdom.": This directly links silence to true wisdom. Job posits that their current verbosity showcases their foolishness, while the restraint of speech would genuinely signify intellectual and spiritual discernment. This is a profound reversal: traditionally, wisdom was displayed through articulate speech and insightful counsel. Here, Job argues that for his friends, true wisdom would lie in the opposite action—in refraining from speaking words that lack true insight, empathy, or divine understanding. This resonates with ancient Near Eastern and biblical sapiential traditions where knowing when not to speak is a hallmark of wisdom (Prov 17:28).

Job 13 5 Bonus section

The underlying polemic in Job 13:5 is Job's indirect rejection of a superficial application of retribution theology. His friends believed that by speaking, they were defending God's justice and wisdom, even against Job. Yet, Job's call for their silence implicitly asserts that their understanding of God is too limited and their defense of Him is misguided, as it relies on flawed human judgment and assumptions. Their continuous pronouncements demonstrate their inability to grasp divine sovereignty or the mysterious ways God allows suffering outside of a simple sin-consequence framework. This verse anticipates Job's later argument that God is beyond human categories of understanding and that His ways are inscrutable.

Job 13 5 Commentary

Job 13:5 captures Job's profound anguish and frustration with his friends' unhelpful pronouncements. He asserts that their misguided attempts at wisdom and comfort are not only ineffective but exacerbate his suffering. In this plea, Job directly challenges the conventional wisdom of his age that equated speaking much and offering theological explanations with sagacity. Instead, Job argues that in a situation as complex and inexplicable as his own, genuine wisdom would be found in silence—a silence rooted in humility, recognition of the limits of human understanding, and true empathy. Their torrent of words reveals a deficiency of true insight, and the greatest act of wisdom they could perform is to simply stop speaking and admit their lack of comprehension. This reflects a deeper biblical principle where restraint of speech and thoughtful silence often prove to be greater virtues than an abundance of ill-considered words. Silence, in this context, would spare them from further foolish pronouncements and reveal a measure of prudence and respect for Job's overwhelming affliction.