Lectionary Calendar
Wednesday, July 30th, 2025
the Week of Proper 12 / Ordinary 17
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Read the Bible

THE MESSAGE

Job 30:21

This verse is not available in the MSG!

Bible Study Resources

Concordances:

- Nave's Topical Bible - Blasphemy;   Doubting;  

Encyclopedias:

- International Standard Bible Encyclopedia - Cruel;   The Jewish Encyclopedia - Cruelty;  

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
You have turned against me with cruelty;you harass me with your strong hand.
Hebrew Names Version
You have turned to be cruel to me. With the might of your hand you persecute me.
King James Version
Thou art become cruel to me: with thy strong hand thou opposest thyself against me.
English Standard Version
You have turned cruel to me; with the might of your hand you persecute me.
New Century Version
You have turned on me without mercy; with your powerful hand you attacked me.
New English Translation
You have become cruel to me; with the strength of your hand you attack me.
Amplified Bible
"You have become harsh and cruel to me; With the might of Your hand You [keep me alive only to] persecute me.
New American Standard Bible
"You have become cruel to me; With the strength of Your hand You persecute me.
World English Bible
You have turned to be cruel to me. With the might of your hand you persecute me.
Geneva Bible (1587)
Thou turnest thy selfe cruelly against me, and art enemie vnto mee with the strength of thine hand.
Legacy Standard Bible
You have become cruel to me;With the might of Your hand You hunted me down.
Berean Standard Bible
You have ruthlessly turned on me; You oppose me with Your strong hand.
Contemporary English Version
God has turned brutal,
Complete Jewish Bible
You have turned cruelly against me; with your powerful hand you keep persecuting me.
Darby Translation
Thou art changed to a cruel one to me; with the strength of thy hand thou pursuest me.
Easy-to-Read Version
You have become cruel to me; you use your power to hurt me.
George Lamsa Translation
Thou hast treated me as an enemy to thee; with thy strong hand thou hast restrained me.
Good News Translation
You are treating me cruelly; you persecute me with all your power.
Lexham English Bible
You have turned cruel to me; you persecute me with your hand's might.
Literal Translation
You changed to be cruel to me; You assault me with the might of Your hand;
Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
Thou art become myne enemye, & wt yi violet hade thou takest parte agaynst me.
American Standard Version
Thou art turned to be cruel to me; With the might of thy hand thou persecutest me.
Bible in Basic English
You have become cruel to me; the strength of your hand is hard on me.
JPS Old Testament (1917)
Thou art turned to be cruel to me; with the might of Thy hand Thou hatest me.
King James Version (1611)
Thou art become cruell to me: with thy strong hand thou opposest thy selfe against me.
Bishop's Bible (1568)
Thou art become myne enemie, and with thy violent hande thou takest part against me.
Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
They attacked me also without mercy: thou hast scourged me with a strong hand.
English Revised Version
Thou art turned to be cruel to me: with the might of thy hand thou persecutest me.
Wycliffe Bible (1395)
Thou art chaungid in to cruel to me, and in the hardnesse of thin hond thou art aduersarie to me.
Update Bible Version
You have turned to be cruel to me; With the might of your hand you persecute me.
Webster's Bible Translation
Thou hast become cruel to me: with thy strong hand thou opposest thyself against me.
New King James Version
But You have become cruel to me; With the strength of Your hand You oppose me.
New Living Translation
You have become cruel toward me. You use your power to persecute me.
New Life Bible
You work against me. With the power of Your hand you make it hard for me.
New Revised Standard
You have turned cruel to me; with the might of your hand you persecute me.
J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
Thou art turned to become a cruel one unto me, With the might of thy hand, thou assailest me;
Douay-Rheims Bible
Thou art changed to be cruel toward me, and in the hardness of thy hand thou art against me.
Revised Standard Version
Thou hast turned cruel to me; with the might of thy hand thou dost persecute me.
Young's Literal Translation
Thou art turned to be fierce to me, With the strength of Thy hand, Thou oppresest me.
New American Standard Bible (1995)
"You have become cruel to me; With the might of Your hand You persecute me.

Contextual Overview

16"And now my life drains out, as suffering seizes and grips me hard. Night gnaws at my bones; the pain never lets up. I am tied hand and foot, my neck in a noose. I twist and turn. Thrown facedown in the muck, I'm a muddy mess, inside and out. 20"I shout for help, God, and get nothing, no answer! I stand to face you in protest, and you give me a blank stare! You've turned into my tormenter— you slap me around, knock me about. You raised me up so I was riding high and then dropped me, and I crashed. I know you're determined to kill me, to put me six feet under. 24"What did I do to deserve this? Did I ever hit anyone who was calling for help? Haven't I wept for those who live a hard life, been heartsick over the lot of the poor? But where did it get me? I expected good but evil showed up. I looked for light but darkness fell. My stomach's in a constant churning, never settles down. Each day confronts me with more suffering. I walk under a black cloud. The sun is gone. I stand in the congregation and protest. I howl with the jackals, I hoot with the owls. I'm black-and-blue all over, burning up with fever. My fiddle plays nothing but the blues; my mouth harp wails laments."

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

become cruel: Heb. turned to be cruel, Job 7:20, Job 7:21, Job 10:14-17, Job 13:25-28, Job 16:9-14, Job 19:6-9, Psalms 77:7-9, Jeremiah 30:14

thy strong hand: Heb. the strength of thy hand, Job 6:9, Job 23:6, Psalms 89:13, 1 Peter 5:6

Reciprocal: Job 13:24 - holdest me Job 33:10 - he counteth Job 40:2 - he that reproveth

Cross-References

Genesis 30:1
When Rachel realized that she wasn't having any children for Jacob, she became jealous of her sister. She told Jacob, "Give me sons or I'll die!"
Genesis 30:3
Rachel said, "Here's my maid Bilhah. Sleep with her. Let her substitute for me so I can have a child through her and build a family." So she gave him her maid Bilhah for a wife and Jacob slept with her. Bilhah became pregnant and gave Jacob a son.
Genesis 46:15
These are the sons that Leah bore to Jacob in Paddan Aram. There was also his daughter Dinah. Altogether, sons and daughters, they numbered thirty-three.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

Thou art become cruel to me,.... Or "turned", or "changed" g, to be cruel to me. Job suggests that God had been kind and gracious to him, both in a way of providence, and in showing special love and favour to him, in a very distinguishing manner; but now he intimates his affections were changed and altered, and these were alienated from him, and his love was turned into an hatred of him; this is one of the unbecoming expressions which dropped from his lips concerning God; for the love of God to his people is never changed; it remains invariable and unalterable, in all dispensations, in every state and condition into which they come; there may be some of God's dispensations towards them, which may have the appearance of severity in them; and he may make use of instruments to chastise them, which may use them cruelly; but even then his heart yearns towards them, and, being full of compassion, delivers out of their hands, and saves them,

Jeremiah 30:14;

with thy strong hand thou opposest thyself against me; God has a strong hand and arm, and none like him, and sometimes he puts forth the strength of it, and exerts his mighty power in afflicting his people, and his hand presses them sore, and they can scarcely stand up under it; and then it becomes them to humble themselves under the mighty hand of God, and patiently bear it; and sometimes they take him to be their adversary, an enemy unto them, and filled with hatred of them, indignation against them, setting himself with all his might and main to ruin and destroy them; and this is a sad case indeed, to have such apprehensions of God, though unjust ones; for, as if God be for us, who shall be against us? so if he be against us, it signifies little who is for us; for there is no contending with him, Job 9:3.

g תהפך "mutatus es", V. L. Tigurine version; "versus es", Beza, Piscator; so Drusius, Cocceius, Vatablus, Michaelis, Mercerus, Schultens.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

Thou art become cruel to me - Margin, turned to be. This language, applied to God, seems to be harsh and irreverent, and it may well be inquired whether the word cruel does not express an idea which Job did not intend. The Hebrew word אכזר 'akzâr, is from an obsolete root כזר - not found in Hebrew. The Arabic root, nearly the same as this, means to break with violence; to rout as an enemy; then to be enraged. In the Syriac, the primary idea is, that of a soldier, and thence it may refer to such acts of violence as a soldier commonly commits. The word occurs in Hebrew in the following places, and is translated in the following manner. It is rendered “cruel” in Deuteronomy 32:33; Job 30:21; Proverbs 5:9; Proverbs 11:17; Proverbs 12:10; Proverbs 17:11; Proverbs 27:4; Isaiah 13:9; Jeremiah 6:23; Jeremiah 50:42; Jeremiah 30:14; and fierce in Job 41:10. Jerome renders it, mutatus mihi in crudelem - “thou art changed so as to become cruel to me;” the Septuagint renders it, ἀνελεημόως aneleēmonōs - unmerciful; Luther, Du bist mir verwandelt in einem Grausamen - “thou art changed to me into a cruel one;” and so Umbreit, Noyes, and translators generally. Perhaps the word fierce, severe or harsh, would express the idea; still it must be admitted that Job, in the severity of his sufferings, is often betrayed into language which cannot be a model for us, and which we cannot vindicate.

With thy strong hand - Margin, the strength. So the Hebrew. The hand is the instrument by which we accomplish anything; and hence, anything which God does is traced to his hand.

Thou opposest thyselph against me - - תשׂטמני tiśâṭamēniy. The word שׂטם śâṭam, means to lie in wait for anyone; to lay snares; to set a trap; see Job 16:9, where the same word occurs, and where it is rendered “who hateth me,” but where it would be better rendered he pursues, or persecutes me. The meaning is, that God had become his adversary, or had set himself against him. There was a severity in his dealings with him as if he had become a foe.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse Job 30:21. Thou art become cruel to me — Thou appearest to treat me with cruelty. I cry for mercy, trust in thy goodness, and am still permitted to remain under my afflictions.

Thou opposest thyself — Instead of helping, thou opposest me; thou appearest as my enemy.


 
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