Then I would speak and not fear Him, But it is not so with me.
Parallel translations
- WEB then I would speak, and not fear him, for I am not so in myself.
- KJV Then would I speak, and not fear him; but it is not so with me.
- BSB Then I would speak without fear of Him. But as it is, I am on my own.
- NASB “Then I would speak and not fear Him; But I am not like that in myself.
- NLT Then I could speak to him without fear, but I cannot do that in my own strength.
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
If freed from fear, Job believes he could speak honestly, for he is not as guilty within as his suffering suggests. It reflects his troubled conscience that still maintains integrity.
Overview
Job says that without God's terror he would speak openly, conscious that he is not the great sinner his calamities imply. He is not claiming sinlessness but denying the secret wickedness his friends assume. His struggle highlights the need for a clear conscience before God, which the gospel grants through Christ's blood (Hebrews 9:14; 10:22).
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 9:35 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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