Job 9 21

Job 9:21 kjv

Though I were perfect, yet would I not know my soul: I would despise my life.

Job 9:21 nkjv

"I am blameless, yet I do not know myself; I despise my life.

Job 9:21 niv

"Although I am blameless, I have no concern for myself; I despise my own life.

Job 9:21 esv

I am blameless; I regard not myself; I loathe my life.

Job 9:21 nlt

"I am innocent,
but it makes no difference to me ?
I despise my life.

Job 9 verses

Job 9 21 Meaning

Job 9:21 encapsulates Job's profound despair despite his perceived innocence. He declares himself blameless, yet this integrity brings him no comfort or understanding; he feels disoriented from himself and ultimately despises his own life, overwhelmed by inexplicable suffering and the seemingly arbitrary nature of divine action.

Job 9 21 Context

Job 9:21 is spoken by Job in response to Bildad (Job 8). In this chapter, Job acknowledges God's omnipotent power and absolute sovereignty (vv. 1-13). He understands that no human can genuinely contend with God or assert righteousness before Him (vv. 14-20), as God can perceive fault in even the stars. Despite this theological understanding, Job finds himself in an unbearable paradox.

The broader context of the book of Job questions the prevalent retribution theology of the ancient Near East, which posited a direct and immediate correlation between an individual's righteousness and prosperity, and sin with suffering. Job's immense and undeserved suffering challenges this neat equation. In this verse, Job affirms his own blamelessness in contrast to his severe plight, suggesting that God's ways seem arbitrary and incomprehensible, rendering human integrity meaningless in the face of such overwhelming power. This drives him to a point of ultimate despondency, where life itself loses value.

Job 9 21 Word analysis

• I am blameless (אָכֵן (ʾāḵēn) תָּם־ (tām) אָנֹכִי (ʾānōḵī)):

  • אָכֵן (ʾāḵēn): "Indeed," "truly," "surely." An emphatic adverb, stressing the certainty of his conviction.
  • תָּם (tām): "Blameless," "innocent," "complete," "perfect" (in terms of integrity). This is the very word used by God and the narrator to describe Job's character at the beginning of the book (Job 1:1, 8; 2:3). It signifies his moral uprightness and wholehearted devotion to God, not a claim to absolute sinless perfection, but to not deserving the calamity he suffers.
  • אָנֹכִי (ʾānōḵī): "I." The independent personal pronoun, used here for emphasis, underscoring Job's firm and personal assertion of his integrity.
  • Significance: Job reiterates his core defense. His blamelessness is his firm conviction, which directly conflicts with his suffering. This contrast fuels his spiritual crisis.

• I regard not myself / I would not know my soul (לֹא (lōʾ) אֵדַע (ʾēḏaʿ) נַפְשִׁי (napšī)):

  • לֹא (lōʾ): "Not," "no." A negation.
  • אֵדַע (ʾēḏaʿ): "I would know," "I understand," "I discern." This is from the root yadaʿ, meaning 'to know,' often implying deep, experiential knowledge, or to pay attention/regard. The negative formulation means 'I don't know it' or 'I don't regard it.'
  • נַפְשִׁי (napšī): "My soul," "my life," "myself," "my being." The suffix -ī indicates 'my.' Nepheš refers to the animating principle, the whole person, their essence, and emotions.
  • Interpretation: This phrase captures Job's inner disintegration. "I would not know my soul" suggests a profound disassociation from his own identity and integrity. His righteousness, which should provide a foundation, now feels meaningless or irrelevant to his plight. It’s as if his blamelessness cannot offer him a frame of reference for understanding his existence or himself under such incomprehensible affliction. He no longer recognizes the 'himself' who was righteous in contrast to the one now so profoundly afflicted, or simply cannot value this aspect of himself when it brings no relief.

• I loathe my life / I despise my life (מָאַסְתִּי (māʾastî) חַיָּי (ḥayyāy)):

  • מָאַסְתִּי (māʾastî): "I have loathed," "I despise," "I reject," "I disdain." From the verb maʾas, a strong word indicating deep disgust, abhorrence, or complete rejection. The perfect tense here signifies a settled, existing state.
  • חַיָּי (ḥayyāy): "My life." From ḥayyîm, the plural form used idiomatically for life itself, with the possessive suffix '-ay' meaning 'my.'
  • Significance: This is Job's cry of utter despair, echoed multiple times (e.g., Job 7:16; 10:1). He finds existence itself abhorrent due to the magnitude and inexplicability of his suffering. This goes beyond mere discomfort or unhappiness; it is a fundamental rejection of life as it is, given his circumstances.

Words-group analysis:

• "Though I am blameless, I regard not myself": This is a stark juxtaposition. His affirmed external and internal integrity (blamelessness) yields absolutely no inner recognition or self-worth in the face of his suffering. It underscores the breakdown of the retributive principle from Job's perspective. His virtue, by which he defines himself, proves utterly useless as a comfort or shield, leading to a profound identity crisis.
• "I regard not myself; I loathe my life": This shows a painful progression from psychological detachment to active self-rejection of existence. Because his internal righteousness is disregarded (or made irrelevant by God's actions, as he sees it), his very life loses all value, leading him to despise it. The one thought directly feeds the other, demonstrating the psychological agony caused by divine silence and incomprehensible justice.

Job 9 21 Bonus section

• This verse represents a peak of Job's individual agony, showcasing the psychological and spiritual impact of suffering without apparent cause. It moves beyond just questioning God's actions to a questioning of his own existence's worth.
• The tension articulated here (blamelessness vs. meaninglessness of life) challenges the traditional Israelite wisdom framework and anticipates later biblical reflections on righteous suffering, culminating in the person of Christ and the New Testament's understanding of suffering for righteousness.
• Job's "loathe my life" is a cry of intellectual agony more than just emotional self-pity. He is intellectually trapped, as his fundamental understanding of the world, built on God's just governance, is utterly violated by his own reality.
• This verse contributes to the Bible's rich, nuanced depiction of lament, where righteous individuals are shown wrestling with God's actions and expressing extreme despondency, demonstrating the breadth of permissible expression within faith.

Job 9 21 Commentary

Job 9:21 articulates Job's central existential and spiritual crisis: his personal righteousness is irreconcilable with the severity of his suffering, and this paradox devastates his sense of self and the value of his existence. While he steadfastly maintains his "blamelessness" (tām), he perceives this integrity as futile and inconsequential when facing an overwhelmingly powerful and seemingly arbitrary God. His "not knowing his soul" signifies a complete breakdown of internal equilibrium; his identity as a righteous man offers no comfort or explanation for his cosmic ordeal, rendering him a stranger to himself. This alienation spirals into a profound "loathing of life," a deep-seated rejection of existence itself because it has become utterly devoid of meaning or discernible divine justice for him. The verse underscores the agony of unexplainable suffering, where one's most fundamental understanding of fairness and one's very being is shattered, leading to the ultimate despair of rejecting life itself. It highlights the immense spiritual struggle that arises when the commonly accepted theology fails to account for one's lived experience of inexplicable affliction.