Job 23:2 kjv
Even to day is my complaint bitter: my stroke is heavier than my groaning.
Job 23:2 nkjv
"Even today my complaint is bitter; My hand is listless because of my groaning.
Job 23:2 niv
"Even today my complaint is bitter; his hand is heavy in spite of my groaning.
Job 23:2 esv
"Today also my complaint is bitter; my hand is heavy on account of my groaning.
Job 23:2 nlt
"My complaint today is still a bitter one,
and I try hard not to groan aloud.
Job 23 2 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Job 6:2 | "Oh that my vexation were weighed..." | Job wishes for his intense suffering to be fully recognized. |
| Job 7:11 | "I will speak in the anguish of my spirit; I will complain in the bitterness of my soul." | Direct parallel to Job's bitter and ongoing lament. |
| Job 10:1 | "My soul loathes my life; I will give free course to my complaint; I will speak in the bitterness of my soul." | Job's determination to voice his bitter suffering. |
| Ps 6:6 | "I am weary with my groaning..." | Expresses physical exhaustion from constant lament. |
| Ps 32:3-4 | "For when I kept silent, my bones wasted away through my groaning all day long... Your hand was heavy upon me." | Relates inner groaning to a physically heavy burden from God. |
| Ps 38:8 | "I am feeble and sorely broken; I groan because of the commotion of my heart." | Describes physical and emotional brokenness causing groaning. |
| Ps 69:3 | "I am weary with my crying; my throat is parched." | Shared experience of weariness from persistent crying and complaint. |
| Ps 73:13-14 | "All in vain have I kept my heart clean... For all the day long I have been stricken..." | Feeling of unmerited suffering despite perceived innocence. |
| Prov 18:14 | "A man's spirit will endure sickness, but a crushed spirit who can bear?" | A crushed or bitter spirit is an unbearable internal affliction. |
| Lam 1:22 | "Let all their evil be before you, and deal with them as you have dealt with me for all my transgressions; for my groans are many, and my heart is faint." | Jeremiah's lamentation echoes Job's extensive groaning. |
| Lam 3:19-20 | "Remember my affliction and my bitterness, the wormwood and the gall!" | A vivid description of deep and persistent personal bitterness. |
| Rom 8:22-23 | "For we know that the whole creation has been groaning together... And not only the creation, but we ourselves... groan inwardly." | Highlights the universal and redemptive nature of groaning. |
| 2 Cor 1:8 | "For we were so utterly burdened beyond our strength that we despaired of life itself." | An experience of an overwhelming, soul-crushing burden. |
| Heb 4:15 | "For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses..." | Christ's empathy for human suffering and inability to cope. |
| Isa 53:3 | "He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief..." | Jesus' personal experience of deep sorrow and grief. |
| Isa 38:14 | "Like a swallow or a crane I chirp; I moan like a dove. My eyes are weary with looking upward. O Lord, I am oppressed..." | Hezekiah's individual lament in distress. |
| Jn 11:33, 35 | "When Jesus saw her weeping... he was deeply moved in his spirit and greatly troubled... Jesus wept." | Jesus' emotional response of profound sorrow to suffering and death. |
| Ex 2:23-24 | "the people of Israel groaned because of their slavery... And God heard their groaning, and God remembered his covenant." | Illustrates that divine hearing of groaning can precede intervention. |
| Ps 102:5 | "My bones cling to my flesh because of my groaning." | Physical wasting away due to deep sorrow and groaning. |
| 1 Sam 1:15-16 | Hannah: "I am a woman oppressed in spirit... I have poured out my soul before the LORD." | Pouring out a deep complaint to the Lord due to great anguish. |
| Ps 55:2 | "I am restless in my complaint and make a noise." | Complaint as an active expression of inner restlessness. |
| Job 27:2 | "As God lives, who has taken away my right, and the Almighty, who has embittered my soul..." | Job directly attributes his bitterness of soul to God's action. |
Job 23 verses
Job 23 2 Meaning
Job, enduring relentless suffering and the condemnation of his friends, declares that even after prolonged debate, his complaint remains profound and unyielding. His lamentation is not merely a transient feeling but an internal bitterness and struggle that is both intensely felt and consistently voiced. The overwhelming weight of his affliction—symbolized by his "heavy hand"—is a direct and pervasive consequence of his ceaseless groaning and internal anguish, highlighting the severe burden he continues to bear without relief.
Job 23 2 Context
Job chapter 23 immediately follows Eliphaz’s final and harsh accusations, wherein he effectively condemned Job as wicked and called for his confession (Job 22). Job's response begins with this verse, reiterating his deep and unabated suffering. It sets the tone for Job's enduring plea to meet God face-to-face, as he believes only a direct encounter with the Almighty can bring justice and vindication. His complaint, far from diminishing, remains profoundly painful and pressing, demanding attention and understanding. Historically and culturally, Job’s suffering challenges the prevailing "retribution theology" common among his friends and likely society at large, which held that significant suffering was a direct consequence of sin.
Job 23 2 Word analysis
- Even today (הַיּוֹם גַּם - hayyom gam): Signifies the ongoing and relentless nature of his suffering and complaint. It emphasizes that despite time passing and conversations occurring, his anguish persists unabated. "Even" underscores the persistence against all expectations for relief.
- my complaint (שִׂיחִי - sîḥî): Refers to his speech, lament, meditation, or inner outpouring of thought and feeling. It is not a trivial grumble but a deep, often formal, expression of distress and reasoned protest.
- is bitter (מְרִי - merî): From the root marah (מָרָה), meaning to be bitter, rebellious, or stubborn. In Job's case, it refers to the intense emotional pain and sorrow he experiences, which to his friends might appear as stubborn defiance against divine justice. It reflects his soul's profound distress.
- my hand (יָדִי - yādî): Literally "my hand," which can metaphorically represent one's power, capacity, condition, or even one's affliction. It is not "my stroke" or a blow from God. Here, it likely refers to the overall state of his personal suffering, his ability to act or cope, or the burden that is weighing him down. It symbolizes his personal experience of severe affliction.
- is heavy (כָּבְדָה - kāḇəḏāh): From kāḇēd (כָּבֵד), meaning weighty, burdensome, difficult, severe. It signifies the immense and overwhelming nature of his personal condition and affliction. The weight implies immense difficulty and oppression.
- because of / upon my groaning (עַל־אַנְחָתִי - ʿal-ʾanḥāṯî): The preposition ʿal can mean "upon," "over," "because of," or "in addition to." This phrase indicates that his heavy burden is either a direct result of, or greatly intensified by, his incessant groaning and lamentation. His vocal expressions of sorrow become another layer of his oppression, or his physical state is a direct consequence of his spiritual anguish.
- "Even today my complaint is bitter": This phrase captures Job's unyielding position amidst his friends' accusations. His deep distress is unalleviated and colors every word. His internal anguish persists regardless of external circumstances or arguments.
- "my hand is heavy because of my groaning": This paints a vivid picture of the personal and physical toll of his suffering. It underscores that the weight of his personal affliction is either a consequence of his continuous and audible sorrow or an added burden that accompanies it, illustrating the crushing weight of his prolonged anguish. This connection signifies a self-reinforcing cycle of pain and lament.
Job 23 2 Bonus section
This verse subtly introduces the core paradox of Job's struggle: Is his deep, bitter complaint an act of faithful lament seeking understanding, or is it interpreted as rebellion against God's sovereignty? The ambiguity of meri ('bitter' or 'rebellious') reflects the profound tension Job experiences. He feels righteous in his grievance, but his friends perceive it as defiance. This ongoing internal and external conflict defines his persistent call for a direct audience with God, a central theme of Job's discourse in chapter 23. His unwavering demand for justice in the face of inscrutable suffering establishes him as a unique figure in the Old Testament, paving the way for a deeper understanding of human anguish and divine purposes.
Job 23 2 Commentary
Job 23:2 articulates Job’s resolute posture in the face of persistent suffering and spiritual confusion. His complaint is labeled as "bitter" or even "rebellious" (meri), not from an objective divine assessment but from the perspective of his own excruciating pain and his friends' accusatory judgment. He expresses that his inner state is so severely burdened (yad kawbedah – "my hand is heavy") that it is intimately connected to, or even a direct result of, his continuous groaning (anḥati). This verse reveals Job’s utter despondency; his physical and mental faculties are weighed down, an affliction deepened by his unending sorrow. He stands in deep personal agony, wrestling with what he perceives as a divine injustice while firmly maintaining his integrity against his friends’ simplistic retribution theology. It’s a raw, honest outcry of a man at the end of his emotional tether, yet still refusing to compromise his integrity or to confess sins he has not committed.