Job 9 27

Job 9:27 kjv

If I say, I will forget my complaint, I will leave off my heaviness, and comfort myself:

Job 9:27 nkjv

If I say, 'I will forget my complaint, I will put off my sad face and wear a smile,'

Job 9:27 niv

If I say, 'I will forget my complaint, I will change my expression, and smile,'

Job 9:27 esv

If I say, 'I will forget my complaint, I will put off my sad face, and be of good cheer,'

Job 9:27 nlt

If I decided to forget my complaints,
to put away my sad face and be cheerful,

Job 9 verses

Job 9 27 Meaning

Job 9:27 conveys Job’s despair and the futility of his human attempts to escape overwhelming suffering. He contemplates the idea of suppressing his intense grief, forcing a change in his outward demeanor, and adopting a cheerful expression. However, this contemplation is immediately negated by his deeper understanding that his true internal state of anguish, brought about by God's apparent distant and arbitrary dealings, will render any such effort superficial and ultimately impossible to maintain. It highlights the profound chasm between Job’s outward performance and his inward reality.

Job 9 27 Context

Job 9:27 is part of Job’s response to Bildad (Job 8). Throughout chapter 9, Job acknowledges God’s incomparable power, wisdom, and sovereignty. However, he also asserts the utter impossibility for a human to contend with or even understand God’s actions, particularly when God seems to act arbitrarily. Job’s point is that a mere mortal cannot be declared righteous before a God who can "do great things beyond search, and wonders without number" (Job 9:10) and whose path is hidden (Job 9:11). In this chapter, Job articulates his deep conviction that God is just but beyond human comprehension and control, leading him to feel hopeless in his suffering. Verse 27 vividly portrays Job’s internal struggle: a desperate desire to alleviate his pain versus the crushing reality that such a façade is futile when his affliction is so profound and God seems so distant and unresponsive. The historical/cultural context involves the prevailing retribution theology that taught suffering was a direct consequence of sin, a belief Job constantly challenged with his blamelessness and inexplicable suffering. Job's words here indirectly polemicize against any simplistic view that one can simply "cheer up" and solve a divinely orchestrated or permitted problem.

Job 9 27 Word analysis

• If I say (Hebrew: אִם אָמַרְתִּי - ’im ’āmartî): Introduces a conditional statement, a hypothetical scenario. Job is entertaining an idea, exploring a potential course of action, not necessarily affirming it. This phrase signifies an internal thought process or a proposition being considered and immediately rebutted in the following verses (Job 9:28-31).
• I will forget (אֶשְׁכָּחָה - ’eškāḥāh): From the root šākaḥ, meaning to forget, cease to remember, disregard. It implies a conscious, deliberate effort to suppress or dismiss something from the mind, rather than an accidental forgetfulness. Job seeks to impose forgetfulness upon himself.
• my complaint (שִׂיחִי - śîḥî): From siaḥ, referring to reflection, meditation, complaint, murmur, or groan. This is Job’s expression of his deep distress, lament, or bitter musings about his plight and God's actions. It signifies not just a passing grievance but a pervasive state of profound internal anguish that consumes his thoughts.
• I will change (אַחֲלִיפָה - ’aḥălîfāh): From ḥālap, meaning to pass through, change, transform, sprout afresh, or replace. It implies a complete alteration, a transformation of his condition or appearance. More than a simple alteration, it suggests a profound reversal, a turning point.
• my expression (פָּנַי - pānay): Literally "my face" or "my presence." In Hebrew thought, the face often represents one’s mood, character, and overall disposition. To change one’s face implies a complete shift in outward appearance, demeanor, and potentially, inner disposition.
• and smile (וְאַבְלִיגָה - wə’ablîgāh): From bālag, which means to brighten, cheer up, gain strength, or recover vigor. It suggests not just a simple smile, but a determined effort to brace oneself, to lighten one’s burden, to force a sense of peace or inner strength. This term goes deeper than just a physical smile; it’s an attempt to rally inner composure and suppress sorrow. The form used here implies an intensive effort, a desperate attempt to find relief from overwhelming grief.

Words-group analysis:

• "If I say, 'I will forget my complaint'": This phrase highlights Job’s deep-seated emotional pain as his central issue. It is a pain so profound that he dreams of a willful act of oblivion. His "complaint" (or "lament") is not just a passing annoyance but a dominant state of being. The use of "forget" underscores the intensity and pervasiveness of his suffering; it's something he cannot naturally escape.
• "I will change my expression and smile": This indicates Job's aspiration for an external change, a facade of normalcy or happiness. The "expression" relates to the outward presentation, the "face" which communicates mood. The addition of "and smile" (or "and brighten") shows the ultimate desired outcome of this forced alteration – an appearance of peace and overcoming sorrow. However, the subsequent verses quickly reveal this to be a delusive hope. This juxtaposition emphasizes the deep chasm between appearance and reality, an external display contrasting with internal torment. It showcases Job’s deep struggle for genuine solace.

Job 9 27 Bonus section

The rhetorical nature of Job’s thought in this verse is crucial. He does not genuinely believe he can accomplish what he describes. Instead, it serves to set up his immediate rebuttal in the following verses (Job 9:28-31), where he declares that despite his hypothetical efforts to suppress his misery, he knows that God will still perceive him as guilty and intensify his affliction. This is not Job seeking solace, but rather expressing the hopeless situation he feels caught in. He knows that his distress comes from a source (God's hand) that cannot be placated by human pretense or by "positive thinking." His sorrow is too profound, his feeling of injustice too acute.

Job 9 27 Commentary

Job 9:27 succinctly captures Job’s internal struggle between a natural human desire for relief from suffering and the stark reality that such relief is unattainable through superficial means. He considers the possibility of a conscious choice to overcome his profound anguish by adopting a cheerful facade. Yet, Job's honesty does not allow him to remain in this fantasy; he understands the futility of such an act given the depth of his suffering and his perception of God's inscrutability. The verse underscores that Job's agony is not merely external but internal and consuming, making any mere "smiling through it" impossible. His complaint is his true state, his "face" reflects his genuine sorrow, and no self-willed act can truly change the profound effect of his trials. This illustrates a universal human experience of profound grief where external pretense fails to alleviate deep, spiritual pain, especially when feeling estranged from God's favor or understanding.