All men have looked on it. Man sees it afar off.
Parallel translations
- KJV Every man may see it; man may behold it afar off.
- BSB All mankind has seen it; men behold it from afar.
- NKJV Everyone has seen it; Man looks on it from afar.
- NASB “All people have seen it; Mankind looks at it from afar.
- NLT Everyone has seen these things, though only from a distance.
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
All people have looked on God's works, though they behold them from afar. His handiwork is visible to all yet not fully grasped.
Overview
Elihu notes that everyone can see God's works, yet humanity perceives them only from a distance, unable to comprehend them fully. This reflects the truth that creation universally testifies to God (Ps. 19:1-4; Rom. 1:20), even while His greatness exceeds our understanding. It invites humble wonder and prepares the heart to receive the fuller revelation of God in His Son.
Cross-references & the web
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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 36:25 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
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