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Tuesday, June 17th, 2025
the Week of Proper 6 / Ordinary 11
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Read the Bible

Easy-to-Read Version

Job 20:13

He hates to let it go and holds it in his mouth.

Bible Study Resources

Concordances:

- Nave's Topical Bible - Hypocrisy;   Pleasure;   Sin;   Wicked (People);   Worldliness;   The Topic Concordance - Oppression;   Wickedness;   Torrey's Topical Textbook - Afflictions of the Wicked, the;  

Dictionaries:

- Charles Buck Theological Dictionary - Greatness of God;   Hypocrisy;   Holman Bible Dictionary - Job, the Book of;  

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
though he cherishes it and will not let it gobut keeps it in his mouth,
Hebrew Names Version
Though he spare it, and will not let it go, But keep it still within his mouth;
King James Version
Though he spare it, and forsake it not; but keep it still within his mouth:
English Standard Version
though he is loath to let it go and holds it in his mouth,
New Century Version
They cannot stand to let go of it; they keep it in their mouths.
New English Translation
if he retains it for himself and does not let it go, and holds it fast in his mouth,
Amplified Bible
Though he desires it and will not let it go But holds it in his mouth,
New American Standard Bible
Though he desires it and will not let it go, But holds it in his mouth,
World English Bible
Though he spare it, and will not let it go, But keep it still within his mouth;
Geneva Bible (1587)
And fauoured it, and would not forsake it, but kept it close in his mouth,
Legacy Standard Bible
Though he desires it and will not forsake it,And holds it to his palate,
Berean Standard Bible
though he cannot bear to let it go and keeps it in his mouth,
Contemporary English Version
and swallow it slowly.
Complete Jewish Bible
he may linger over it and not let it go but keep it there in his mouth —
Darby Translation
[Though] he spare it, and forsake it not, but keep it within his mouth,
George Lamsa Translation
Though he spare it and forsake it not, but keep it still in his mouth;
Lexham English Bible
though he spares it and does not let it go and holds it back in the midst of his palate,
Literal Translation
he spares it, and he will not leave it; yea, he keeps holding it in his mouth);
Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
That he fauoureth, that wyll he not forsake, but kepeth it close in his throte.
American Standard Version
Though he spare it, and will not let it go, But keep it still within his mouth;
Bible in Basic English
Though he takes care of it, and does not let it go, but keeps it still in his mouth;
JPS Old Testament (1917)
Though he spare it, and will not let it go, but keep it still within his mouth;
King James Version (1611)
Though he spare it, and forsake it not, but keepe it stil within his mouth:
Bishop's Bible (1568)
That he fauoured, that would he not forsake, but kept it close in his throte.
Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
though he will not spare it, and will not leave it, but will keep it in the midst of his throat:
English Revised Version
Though he spare it, and will not let it go, but keep it still within his mouth;
Wycliffe Bible (1395)
He schal spare it, and schal not forsake it; and schal hide in his throte.
Update Bible Version
Though he spares it, and will not let it go, But keeps it still inside his mouth;
Webster's Bible Translation
[Though] he may spare it, and forsake it not; but keep it still within his mouth:
New King James Version
Though he spares it and does not forsake it, But still keeps it in his mouth,
New Living Translation
They savored it, holding it long in their mouths.
New Life Bible
He hates to let it go, and holds it in his mouth.
New Revised Standard
though they are loath to let it go, and hold it in their mouths,
J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
Though he spare it, and will not let it go, but retain it in the midst of his mouth,
Douay-Rheims Bible
He will spare it, and not leave it, and will hide it in his throat.
Revised Standard Version
though he is loath to let it go, and holds it in his mouth,
Young's Literal Translation
Hath pity on it, and doth not forsake it, And keep it back in the midst of his palate,
New American Standard Bible (1995)
Though he desires it and will not let it go, But holds it in his mouth,

Contextual Overview

10 His children will have to give back what he took from the poor. His own hands will give up his wealth. 11 When he was young, his bones were strong, but, like the rest of his body, they will soon lie in the dirt. 12 "Evil tastes sweet in his mouth. He keeps it under his tongue to enjoy it fully. 13 He hates to let it go and holds it in his mouth. 14 But that evil will turn sour in his stomach. It will be like a snake's bitter poison inside him. 15 The evil man will spit out the riches he has swallowed. God will make him vomit them up. 16 What he drank will be like a snake's poison; it will kill him like the bite of a deadly snake. 17 He will never again enjoy so much wealth— rivers flowing with honey and cream. 18 He will be forced to give back his profits. He will not be allowed to enjoy what he worked for, 19 because he hurt the poor and left them with nothing. He took houses he did not build.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

spare it: Matthew 5:29, Matthew 5:30, Mark 9:43-49, Romans 8:13

within his mouth: Heb. in the midst of his palate

Reciprocal: Proverbs 19:28 - the

Cross-References

Genesis 12:1
The Lord said to Abram, "Leave your country and your people. Leave your father's family and go to the country that I will show you.
Genesis 12:9
Then he moved on toward the Negev, stopping for a time at several places on the way.
Genesis 20:3
But one night God spoke to Abimelech in a dream and said, "You will die. The woman you took is married."
Genesis 20:5
Abraham himself told me, ‘This woman is my sister,' and she also said, ‘This man is my brother.' I am innocent. I did not know what I was doing."
Genesis 20:11
Then Abraham said, "I thought no one in this place respected God. I thought someone would kill me to get Sarah.
1 Samuel 23:21
Saul answered, "May the Lord bless you for helping me.
Psalms 64:5
They encourage each other to do wrong. They talk about setting traps and say, "No one will see them here!
Acts 5:9
Peter said to her, "Why did you and your husband agree to test the Spirit of the Lord? Listen! Do you hear those footsteps? The men who buried your husband are at the door. They will carry you out in the same way."
Hebrews 11:8
God called Abraham to travel to another place that he promised to give him. Abraham did not know where that other place was. But he obeyed God and started traveling because he had faith.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

[Though] he spare it,.... Not that he feeds sparingly on it, for he eats of it freely and plentifully, with great eagerness and greediness; it designs the gratefulness of it to him; he does not spit it out as loathsome, having tasted of it, but retains it as sweet and pleasant; he spares it as Saul did Agag, and as a man spares his only son; sin being a child, a brat of a wicked man, and therefore it is dear unto him:

and forsake it not: as he never will, until he is fully convinced of the evil of it, and it becomes exceeding sinful to him, and so loathsome and disagreeable; and he is restrained from it by the grace of God, and enabled by it to desert it, for such an one only finds mercy, Proverbs 28:13;

but keep it still within his mouth; like an epicure, that will not suffer his food quickly to go down his throat into his stomach, that he may have the greater pleasure in tasting, palating, and relishing it; as Philoxenus, who wished his throat as long as a crane's, that he might be the longer in tasting the sweetness of what he ate and drank; so the wicked man keeps sin within his mouth, not by restraining his mouth from speaking evil, rather by a non-confession of it, but chiefly by continuing and persisting in it, that he might have all the pleasure and satisfaction he has promised himself in it.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

Though he spare it - That is, though he retains it long in his mouth, that he may enjoy it the more.

And forsake it not - Retains it as long as he can.

But keep it still within his mouth - Margin, as in Hebrew “in the midst of his palate.” He seeks to enjoy it as long as possible.


 
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