Give me, I pray, the pledge You demand. Who else will be my guarantor?
Parallel translations
- WEB “Now give a pledge, be collateral for me with yourself. Who is there who will strike hands with me?
- KJV Lay down now, put me in a surety with thee; who is he that will strike hands with me?
- NKJV “Now put down a pledge for me with Yourself. Who is he who will shake hands with me?
- NASB ¶“Make a pledge for me with Yourself; Who is there that will be my guarantor?
- NLT “You must defend my innocence, O God, since no one else will stand up for me.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Job asks God himself to put up a pledge for him, since no one else will stand surety. He looks to God to guarantee his cause.
Overview
In a remarkable plea, Job asks God to become his guarantor, for no human will strike hands in pledge on his behalf. Feeling friendless, he appeals to God against God, trusting the Lord to secure his vindication. This cry for a divine surety is met in the gospel, where Christ becomes the surety of a better covenant (Hebrews 7:22) for his people.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 11
- Prov 11:15He who puts up security for a stranger will surely suffer, but the one who hates indebtedness is secure.
- Heb 7:22Because of this oath, Jesus has become the guarantee of a better covenant.
- Isa 38:14I chirp like a swallow or crane; I moan like a dove. My eyes grow weak as I look upward. O Lord, I am oppressed; be my security.”
- Gen 43:9I will guarantee his safety. You may hold me personally responsible. If I do not bring him back and set him before you, then may I bear the guilt before you all my life.
- Ps 119:122Ensure Your servant’s well-being; do not let the arrogant oppress me.
- Gen 44:32Indeed, your servant guaranteed the boy’s safety to my father, saying, ‘If I do not return him to you, I will bear the guilt before you, my father, all my life.’
- Job 9:33Nor is there a mediator between us, to lay his hand upon us both.
- Prov 22:26Do not be one who gives pledges, who puts up security for debts.
- Prov 6:11and poverty will come upon you like a robber, and need like a bandit.
- Prov 17:18A man lacking judgment strikes hands in pledge and puts up security for his neighbor.
- Prov 20:16Take the garment of the one who posts security for a stranger; get collateral if it is for a foreigner.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
Job's cry for a mediator who can lay his hand on both God and man, and his confidence that 'my Redeemer lives' and will stand on the earth, reaches forward to Jesus the living Redeemer.
How Job 17:3 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.