Therefore I will not restrain my mouth; I will speak in the anguish of my spirit; I will complain in the bitterness of my soul.
Parallel translations
- WEB “Therefore I will not keep silent. I will speak in the anguish of my spirit. I will complain in the bitterness of my soul.
- KJV Therefore I will not refrain my mouth; I will speak in the anguish of my spirit; I will complain in the bitterness of my soul.
- NKJV “Therefore I will not restrain my mouth; I will speak in the anguish of my spirit; I will complain in the bitterness of my soul.
- NASB ¶“Therefore I will not restrain my mouth; I will speak in the anguish of my spirit, I will complain in the bitterness of my soul.
- NLT “I cannot keep from speaking. I must express my anguish. My bitter soul must complain.
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 resolves to speak openly rather than suppress his anguish, pouring out the bitterness of his soul. He chooses honest lament before God.
Overview
Job refuses to stay silent, determining to voice his complaint. This is not faithless rebellion but raw, honest prayer in the tradition of biblical lament. Scripture validates bringing real grief and even protest to God, who is big enough to receive it, as the Psalms and Christ's own cry from the cross show.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 17
- Ps 40:9I proclaim righteousness in the great assembly; behold, I do not seal my lips, as You, O LORD, do know.
- 1 Sam 1:10In her bitter distress, Hannah prayed to the LORD and wept with many tears.
- Job 10:1“I loathe my own life; I will express my complaint and speak in the bitterness of my soul.
- Job 6:26Do you intend to correct my words, and treat as wind my cry of despair?
- Job 21:25Yet another man dies in the bitterness of his soul, having never tasted prosperity.
- Isa 38:17Surely for my own welfare I had such great anguish; but Your love has delivered me from the pit of oblivion, for You have cast all my sins behind Your back.
- Isa 38:15What can I say? He has spoken to me, and He Himself has done this. I will walk slowly all my years because of the anguish of my soul.
- 2 Cor 2:4For through many tears I wrote you out of great distress and anguish of heart, not to grieve you but to let you know how much I love you.
- Job 16:6Even if I speak, my pain is not relieved, and if I hold back, how will it go away?
- 2 Kgs 4:27–28When she reached the man of God at the mountain, she clung to his feet. Gehazi came over to push her away, but the man of God said, “Leave her alone, for her soul is in deep distress, and the LORD has hidden it from me and has not told me.”
- Job 13:13Be silent, and I will speak. Then let come to me what may.
- Luke 22:44And in His anguish, He prayed more earnestly, and His sweat became like drops of blood falling to the ground.
- Gen 42:21Then they said to one another, “Surely we are being punished because of our brother. We saw his anguish when he pleaded with us, but we would not listen. That is why this distress has come upon us.”
- Job 21:3–4Bear with me while I speak; then, after I have spoken, you may go on mocking.
- Matt 26:37–38He took with Him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee and began to be sorrowful and deeply distressed.
- Job 10:15If I am guilty, woe to me! And even if I am righteous, I cannot lift my head. I am full of shame and aware of my affliction.
- Ps 39:3My heart grew hot within me; as I mused, the fire burned. Then I spoke with my tongue:
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Commentaries & study tools
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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 7:11 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.