fear and trembling came over me and made all my bones shudder.
Parallel translations
- WEB fear came on me, and trembling, which made all my bones shake.
- KJV Fear came upon me, and trembling, which made all my bones to shake.
- NKJV Fear came upon me, and trembling, Which made all my bones shake.
- NASB Dread came upon me, and trembling, And made all my bones shake.
- NLT Fear gripped me, and my bones trembled.
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 was seized with fear and trembling that shook all his bones. The physical dread underscores how overwhelming and authoritative he wants the vision to seem.
Overview
He recounts a terror so deep it rattled his frame, heightening the gravity of the words to follow. Such fear can accompany an encounter with the holy, yet dread alone does not validate a message. The book will show that the real fear of the Lord leads to repentance and trust, not merely to shuddering, when Job finally meets God face to face.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 9
- Job 33:19A man is also chastened on his bed with pain and constant distress in his bones,
- Rev 1:17When I saw Him, I fell at His feet like a dead man. But He placed His right hand on me and said, “Do not be afraid. I am the First and the Last,
- Dan 10:11He said to me, “Daniel, you are a man who is highly precious. Consider carefully the words that I am about to say to you. Stand up, for I have now been sent to you.” And when he had said this to me, I stood up trembling.
- Luke 1:29Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be.
- Job 7:14then You frighten me with dreams and terrify me with visions,
- Hab 3:16I heard and trembled within; my lips quivered at the sound. Decay entered my bones; I trembled where I stood. Yet I must wait patiently for the day of distress to come upon the people who invade us.
- Luke 1:12When Zechariah saw him, he was startled and gripped with fear.
- Isa 6:5Then I said: “Woe is me, for I am ruined, because I am a man of unclean lips dwelling among a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the LORD of Hosts.”
- Ps 119:120My flesh trembles in awe of You; I stand in fear of Your judgments.
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 4:14 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.