Job 3:11

Why did I not die in the womb?

Or perish as I came forth from it?

This was from September 13, so it has had some soak time. For one of the rare times, I used a source exactly for my choice of words. I never really expect that, but sometimes I do. Even this morning when I read the last version, I was sure it was spot on. However, I did make significantly different word choices in the end.

My last source of each day is the Gordis translation. His book is by far the most detailed and his depth of study for each verse is most likely unsurpassed in written English. He was a Jewish Rabbi that focused on language and Old Testament studies. He knows his stuff. Whenever the others leave holes in my understanding, I always expect him to come through. It is probably just as rare that he does not as I actually use his stuff exactly.

My favorite version is Scheindlin who like Gordis named his book “The Book of Job”. Scheidlin is a professor of Hebrew literature at the Jewish Theological Seminary of America. Gordis was also a professor there too. Those are some pretty big bona fids. And interestingly enough, I like his translation so much because it is so often so far out there. I rarely use anything he provides, but it always pushes the boundaries of my understanding of the words and concepts. Funny how that works.

The other personal translation I use is by Alter who actually proofread the version by Sheindlin. Alter is a professor of Hebrew and comparative literature at UC Berkley. Again a outstanding resume. Alter is a good middle of the road between Gordis and Scheindlin and often helps me balance big differences.

Of course, I use other “Christian” versions that help me, but most often they help me remember what I thought I knew and set the stage for the real learning. The bible from the Jewish Publishing Society is the base bible in English that Gordis used for his work. I did not know that until today.

What about Job 3:11? It follows from verse 10 and continues the theme of if I had to be conceived and born, why did I have to live? Interesting phrases include “give up the ghost”, “out of the belly”, and “breath my last”. It is very interesting to see the multitude of options about when and how to die.

“Give up the ghost” comes from the New International Version and counters the “perish” that I chose. Others had “die”, “expire”, and “give up breath”. I am not sure a baby can decide to not breath, but maybe the whole section is rhetorical in nature. Die is too clinical and expire is like running out of time. I have no idea how they pulled out “give up the ghost” unless someone just slipped it in. It is such an odd phrase that seems out of place.

“Out of the belly” gives me images of Jonah and the whale. (I can never spell Jonah correctly and it is a book of the Bible.) The only other option besides “it” was “from the womb”. Since womb needed to be in the first verse and belly was a non-conforming image, I went with “it”.

Note that I did not mention “breath my last” as an option to “perish” because I felt it was to similar to “give up breath”, but it carries a unique sense of dying that I associate with old age or doing so after a satisfying run here on earth and did not want to taint it with moans from Job.

The option I chose has dying before birth and dying during birth. Other options included only at birth or after birth. I am pretty happy with the timing of before being intended, but I am not sure the differentiation of during or after makes any real difference in the poetry. Something for me to think about as I push on in the study.

I am sure there is more to this verse, but for now its on to what is next.