Matthew Henry on Job 9:25–end
Job here grows more and more querulous, and does not conclude this chapter with such reverent expressions of God's wisdom and justice as he began with. Those that indulge a complaining humour know not to what indecencies, nay, to what impieties, it will hurry them. The beginning of that strife with God is as the letting forth of water; therefore leave it off before it be meddled with. When we are in trouble we are allowed to complain to God, as the Psalmist often, but must by no means complain of God, as Job here.
I. His complaint here of the passing away of the days of his prosperity is proper enough (Job 9:25, Job 9:26): "My days (that is, all my good days) are gone, never to return, gone…
Read the whole note in the consoleJamieson-Fausset-Brown on Job 9:30
snow water--thought to be more cleansing than common water, owing to the whiteness of snow (Psa 51:7; Isa 1:18).
never so clean--Better, to answer to the parallelism of the first clause which expresses the cleansing material, "lye:" the Arabs used alkali mixed with oil, as soap (Psa 73:13; Jer 2:22).
John Gill on Job 9:31
Yet shall thou plunge me in the ditch,.... In the filthy ditch of sin, the pit wherein is no water, the horrible pit, the mire and clay, in which all unregenerate men are, and to which hypocrites return, as the swine to its wallowing in the mire; and in which impurity self-righteous persons are, and are sooner or later made to appear, notwithstanding all their outward righteousness, holiness, purity, and perfection they boast of; and though Job was neither of these, not an unregenerate man, nor an hypocrite, nor a self-righteous person; yet he knew that, in comparison of the perfect purity and holiness of God, he should appear exceedingly impure; and that God would treat him as such, and hol…
Read the whole note in the consoleKeil & Delitzsch on Job 9:29-33
29 If I am wicked, why do I exert myself in vain?
30 If I should wash myself with snow water,
And make my hands clean with lye,
31 Then thou wouldst plunge me into the pit,
And my clothes would abhor me.
32 For He is not a man as I, that I should answer Him,
That we should go together to judgment.
33 There is not an arbitrator between us
Who should lay his hand upon us both.
The clause with strongly accented "I" affirms that in relation to God is from the first, and unchangeably, a wicked, i.e., guilty, man (Psa 109:7) (רשׁע, to be a wicked man, means either to act as such Job 10:15, or to appear as such, be accounted as such, as here and Job 10:7; Hiph., Job 9:20, to condemn). Why, therefor…
