[1] 1:5 burnt offering A gift to God. Usually these were animals that were killed and completely burned on the altar.

[2] 1:6 angels Literally, "sons of God."

[3] 1:6 Satan A name for the devil meaning "the enemy," or "the accuser."

[4] 1:11 curse To ask for bad things to happen to a person or thing. As a noun it is a request for or warning about bad things to come.

[5] 1:15 Sabeans A group of people from the Arabian Desert, probably south of Uz.

[6] 1:16 A bolt of lightning Or, "God's fire fell from the sky."

[7] 1:17 Chaldeans A group of people from Aram, north of Uz.

[8] 2:1 angels Literally, "sons of God."

[9] 2:1 Satan A name for the devil meaning "the enemy," or "the accuser."

[10] 2:4 Skin for skin This means a person will do anything he can to avoid pain.

[11] 2:5 curse To ask for bad things to happen to a person or thing. As a noun it is a request for or warning about bad things to come.

[12] 3:1 curse To ask for bad things to happen to a person or thing. As a noun it is a request for or warning about bad things to come.

[13] 3:8 Leviathan Here, this is probably a giant sea monster. Some people thought magicians were able to make it "swallow the sun"; that is, cause an eclipse of the sun.

[14] 4:13 bad dream Or, "vision of the night."

[15] 4:19 houses of clay This means the human body.

[16] 5:3 suddenly he died Or, "suddenly his home was cursed."

[17] 5:19 Literally, "In six troubles, he will rescue you, and in seven, evil will not touch you."

[18] 5:20 famine A time when there is not enough rain for crops to grow, causing people and animals to die without enough food or water.

[19] 6:14 Or, "People who fail to be loyal to their friends have also failed to respect God All-Powerful."

[20] 7:6 weaver's shuttle The tool a person who makes cloth uses to pass the thread between the other threads.

[21] 7:12 Literally, "Am I Yam or Tannin that you should appoint a guard to watch me?" In ancient Canaanite stories, Yam was the god of the sea and Tannin was a sea monster.

[22] 7:14 vision Something like a dream used by God to speak to people.

[23] 8:8 ancestors Literally, "fathers," meaning a person's parents, grandparents, and all the other people that person is descended from. In the New Testament it usually refers to people who lived during Old Testament times.

[24] 8:11 papyrus A reed-like plant used to make a type of paper used for writing. It was also used to make many other things, such as baskets, rope, sandals, roofing material, and even boats.

[25] 9:9 Bear, Orion, and the Pleiades Names of well-known constellations (groups of stars) in the night sky.

[26] 9:9 planets . sky Literally, "Rooms of the South" or "Rooms of Teman." This might be the planets or the twelve constellations of the Zodiac. North of the equator, these seem to move across the southern sky.

[27] 9:13 Rahab A dragon or sea monster that people thought controlled the sea. Rahab is often a symbol for God's enemies or for anything evil.

[28] 9:26 papyrus A reed-like plant used to make a type of paper used for writing. It was also used to make many other things, such as baskets, rope, sandals, roofing material, and even boats.

[29] 9:31 slime pit The grave, a place where bodies rot.

[30] 9:33 someone . sides Literally, "mediator" or "an umpire."

[31] 13:15 I will . kills me Or, "If he decides to kill me, I have no hope."

[32] 14:1 human beings Literally, "born of woman."

[33] 15:14 They Literally, "a man born of woman."

[34] 15:15 angels Literally, "holy ones."

[35] 16:13 archer A person skilled in using a bow to shoot arrows.

[36] 16:13 gall The gall bladder is a pouch on the liver where bile or gall is stored. When the gall bladder is torn open, gall or bile comes out. Here, this means enduring something bitter and painful.

[37] 16:18 Earth . done to me Literally, "Earth, don't cover my blood." See Gen. 4:10-11.

[38] 16:21 someone Literally, "son of man."

[39] 17:5 You know . friends Literally, "He promises a share to his friends and his children's eyes go blind."

[40] 18:13 Death's Firstborn A name for a deadly disease or the worms that eat a dead body.

[41] 18:14 King of Terrors Another name for death.

[42] 19:27 Or, "And in the end, he will stand here on earth and defend me. After I leave my body and my skin has been destroyed, I know I will still see God. I will see God with my own eyes. I myself, not someone else, will see God. And I cannot tell you how excited that makes me feel!"

[43] 20:4-5 Adam was Or, "people were."

[44] 20:8 bad dream Or, "vision of the night."

[45] 20:24 bronze arrow Literally, "bronze bow." Or, "powerful bow," possibly a bow made of sinew, wood and horn.

[46] 21:28 Show me . live Or, "Show me a wicked ruler's house. Show me where evil people live."

[47] 22:6 he paid the loan See Deut. 24:12-13 for the rules about making loans to the poor.

[48] 22:24 best gold Literally, "Ophir."

[49] 24:9 In the Hebrew text this verse follows verse 8.

[50] 24:9 security Anything given to show that a loan will be repaid. If the loan is not paid back, the one who made the loan can keep whatever was given as security.

[51] 24:6 the rich Or, "the wicked."

[52] 24:6 vineyard A garden or farm where grapes are grown.

[53] 24:11 winepress A place dug in rock used to mash grapes and collect the juice for making wine.

[54] 24:15 adultery Breaking a marriage promise by committing sexual sin.

[55] 24:18 curse To ask for bad things to happen to a person or thing. As a noun it is a request for or warning about bad things to come.

[56] 25:3 his stars Or, "his troops." This means God's heavenly army. It could be all the angels or all the stars in the sky.

[57] 25:4 No human being Literally, "No one born from woman."

[58] 26:3 Job does not really mean what he is saying here. Job is being sarcastic-saying these things in a way that shows he does not really mean it.

[59] 26:5 The ghosts . underworld Literally, "The ghosts under the water." This refers to Sheol, the place of death.

[60] 26:6 Death Or, "Abaddon, Destruction." See Rev. 9:11.

[61] 26:12 Rahab A dragon or sea monster that people thought controlled the sea. Rahab is often a symbol for God's enemies or for anything evil.

[62] 26:13 snake . get away Or, "the escaping monster." This might be another name for Rahab. See Isa. 27:1.

[63] 27:4 hypocrite A person with wrong motives who pretends to be good.

[64] 27:13 Though Zophar is not mentioned in the text, many scholars think he answers Job in verses 13-23.

[65] 28:6 sapphire A rare and valuable blue stone.

[66] 28:7 falcon A kind of bird, like a hawk.

[67] 28:16 onyx A precious stone with layers of blue or gray.

[68] 28:18 coral A hard, stone-like substance, usually pink, red, or black, that is formed from the skeletons of tiny sea animals and covers the ocean floor in certain areas.

[69] 28:18 jasper A semiprecious stone that is often dark green.

[70] 28:19 topaz A semiprecious stone that is usually yellow.

[71] 28:22 Death and destruction Literally, "Abaddon." The Hebrew word for "death and destruction," "destroyer," or "place of destruction."

[72] 29:6 I had plenty of the finest oils Literally, "Around the anointed rock near me were streams of oil." This probably means Job had so much olive oil that there were streams of oil running down the altar from the part Job gave as a gift to God.

[73] 29:14 turban A head covering made by wrapping a long piece of cloth around the top part of the head or around a cap worn on the head.

[74] 29:17 Literally, "I shattered the teeth of the crooked and snatched the victims from their teeth."

[75] 29:20 Literally, "My glory is new with me and my bow in my hand renewed." The words "glory" and "bow" might both refer to a rainbow-the promise of good weather after a storm. Or, this might be understood as, "My soul feels new every day, my hand always strong enough to shoot a new bow."

[76] 31:2 Or possibly, "I made an agreement with my eyes not to look with desire at the Virgin or the sacred things that belong to God All-Powerful." Here, "the Virgin" refers to a goddess worshiped by the Canaanites.

[77] 31:6 accurate scales Literally, "scales of righteousness." As a wordplay, this could mean either "accurate scales" or "scales that show a person is good."

[78] 31:21 Or, "I never threatened an orphan, even when I saw that I was supported in court."

[79] 31:23 His majesty . me Or, "I couldn't stand before his majesty."

[80] 31:30 curse To ask for bad things to happen to a person or thing. As a noun it is a request for or warning about bad things to come.

[81] 33:12 God . anyone Or, "God is much greater than anyone."

[82] 33:15-16 vision Something like a dream used by God to speak to people.

[83] 33:18 place of death Literally, "the Pit," the place where people go when they die.

[84] 34:32 Or, "Teach me about the sins I can see."

[85] 36:20 Verses 19-20 This is very hard to understand in Hebrew.

[86] 37:19 We cannot . ignorance Literally, "We cannot arrange [our thoughts] because of the darkness."

[87] 37:22 Holy Mountain Or, "the north" or "Zaphon."

[88] 38:2 Or, "Who is this person darkening advice with ignorant words."

[89] 38:3 brace yourself Literally, "gird yourself like a man." This means "get ready for battle."

[90] 38:7 angels Literally, "sons of God."

[91] 38:21 Verses 19-21 God does not really mean this. This kind of talking is called sarcasm. It is saying something that is not true in a way that everyone knows it is not true.

[92] 38:24 Or, "Where is the place that the fog disperses and the place where the east wind scatters it all over the earth?"

[93] 38:31 Pleiades A famous group of stars. It is often called "The Seven Sisters."

[94] 38:31 Orion A famous group of stars. It looks like a hunter or powerful soldier.

[95] 38:32 constellations Groups of stars in the night sky. Here, this probably means the twelve constellations of the Zodiac. They seem to pass through the sky so that a new constellation is in a certain part of the sky each month.

[96] 38:32 Bear A famous group of stars. It looks like a bear. It is often called, "the Big Dipper." Near it is a smaller constellation that looks like a small bear. It is often called, "the Little Dipper."

[97] 38:33 Can you . earth Or, "Can you put it in charge over the earth?"

[98] 39:12 threshing Putting newly harvested wheat or other grain on a hard floor and walking on it or beating it with special tools to separate the hulls from the grain.

[99] 39:19 mane The hair on a horse's neck.

[100] 39:20 snorts The sound a horse makes from breathing very hard through the nose.

[101] 39:23 quiver A bag or container for carrying arrows.

[102] 39:24 runs fast over the ground Literally, "swallows up the ground."

[103] 39:26 south Or, "to Teman."

[104] 39:27 eagle Or, "vulture."

[105] 39:28 fortress A building or city with tall, strong walls for protection.

[106] 40:7 Brace yourself Literally, "Gird yourself like a man." This means "get ready for battle."

[107] 40:15 behemoth This might be a hippopotamus, a rhinoceros, or possibly an elephant.

[108] 40:21 lotus plants A kind of tree. Its leaves give much shade.

[109] 41:1 Leviathan We are not sure what this animal is. It might be a crocodile or a giant sea monster.

[110] 41:6 merchant A person who earns a living by buying and selling things.

[111] 41:10 Well, no one . either Or, "No one can stand and fight him."

[112] 41:11 Or, "No one has come near to Leviathan and survived-no one under heaven!"

[113] 41:13 His skin is like armor Or, "No one can approach him with a bridle."

[114] 41:24 lower millstone A flat rock for grinding grain. Another stone was put on top of this flat rock. Then the grain was ground into flour between the stones.

[115] 41:25 strong people Or, "gods."

[116] 41:30 threshing Putting newly harvested wheat or other grain on a hard floor and walking on it or beating it with special tools to separate the hulls from the grain.

[117] 42:3 Who . things Or, "Who is this person darkening advice with ignorant words."

[118] 42:6 I am ashamed of myself Or, "I take back what I said."

[119] 42:6 dust and ashes People sat in dust and ashes to show that they were very sad about something.

[120] 42:8 burnt offering A gift to God. Usually these were animals that were killed and completely burned on the altar.

[121] 42:11 piece of silver Literally, "a Keshitah." This was a measure used in the time of the Patriarchs. See Gen. 33:19 and Josh. 24:32.

[122] 42:15 Job . property Usually a person's property was divided only among the sons, but here, even Job's daughters also got part of his property.

© Copyright 2004 World Bible Translation Center.