Now a thing was secretly brought to me, and mine ear received a little thereof.
Parallel translations
- WEB “Now a thing was secretly brought to me. My ear received a whisper of it.
- BSB Now a word came to me secretly; my ears caught a whisper of it.
- NKJV “Now a word was secretly brought to me, And my ear received a whisper of it.
- NASB ¶“Now a word was brought to me secretly, And my ear received a whisper of it.
- NLT “This truth was given to me in secret, as though whispered in my ear.
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
Eliphaz claims a secret revelation came to him in a whisper, lending his next words an air of divine authority. It matters because he grounds his argument in a mysterious night-vision rather than plain teaching.
Overview
Eliphaz introduces the most dramatic part of his speech: a word that came to him stealthily, almost furtively. By framing it as a hushed, received revelation he seeks to overawe Job. Yet the vagueness and dread surrounding it contrast with the clear, covenantal way God elsewhere speaks; readers are left to weigh whether Eliphaz's eerie experience truly carries God's authority.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 3
- Job 26:14Lo, these are parts of his ways: but how little a portion is heard of him? but the thunder of his power who can understand?
- 1 Cor 13:12For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known.
- Ps 62:11God hath spoken once; twice have I heard this; that power belongeth unto God.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
Resources, by level
Commentaries & study tools
Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.
Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.
Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.
Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.
The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).
Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.
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 4:12 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.