Job 10:3
in Job 10Does it please You to oppress me, to reject the work of Your hands and favor the schemes of the wicked?
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
Is it good unto thee that thou shouldest oppress, That thou shouldest despise the work of thy hands, And shine upon the counsel of the wicked?
KJV
Is it good unto thee that thou shouldest oppress, that thou shouldest despise the work of thine hands, and shine upon the counsel of the wicked?
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This verse in Job 10
Commentary
8 notes on this verseA commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
Is it good unto thee that thou shouldest oppress - The sense of this is, that it could not be with God a matter of personal gratification to inflict pain wantonly. There must be a reason why he did it. This was clear to Job, and he was anxious, therefore, to know the reason why he was treated in this manner. Yet there is evidently here not a little of the spirit of complaining. There is an insinuation that God was afflicting him beyond what he deserved; see Job 10:
This site's exposition
Does it please You to oppress me
on Job 10:3-4
Job asks whether it pleases God "to oppress me, to reject the work of Your hands and favor the schemes of the wicked". "Do You have eyes of flesh" presses the point further, asking whether God's judgment of him is as shortsighted as a human accuser's would be.
The record, by era
The Medieval Church2 voices
Because we come to the knowledge of divine things through human ones, he proposes two ways the innocent are sometimes condemned by human judgment. The first way is because of the malice of the one meting out the punishment. Punishments are inflicted on the innocent …
Is it good unto Thee that Thou shouldest calumniate and oppress the poor, and the work of Thine hands, and help the counsel of the wicked? This same is so said by way of interrogation, that it is denied. As though it were in plain terms; 'Thou That art supremely good, I know dost not hold it good to oppress the poor man by calumny. And therefore I know that that is not unjust that I am suffering, and I am the more grieved, that cannot tell the causes of its justness.'
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
What profit is there in my blood? " Far be it from Job to think that God did him wrong, but he is quite at a loss how to reconcile his providences with his justice, as good men have often been, and must wait until the day shall declare it. Let us therefore now harbour no hard thoughts of God, because we shall then see there was no cause for them.
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — odd-straight-quotes
Is it good unto thee that thou shouldest oppress?.... This God does not approve of in others; he dehorts men from it; he threatens to punish those that do so, and to be a swift witness against them; he promises to arise to the help of the oppressed, and to be a refuge for them, and therefore will never do the same himself; it can never be pleasant to him, nor right and just in his sight, nor is it of any advantage to him.
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
proposed
Job is unwilling to think God can have pleasure in using His power to "oppress" the weak, and to treat man, the work of His own hands, as of no value (Job 10:8;
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — unbalanced-parens
1 more voice on this verse
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
Is it good unto thee - Surely it can be no gratification to thee to distress the children of men, as if thou didst despise the work of thy own hands. And shine upon the counsel - For by my afflictions the harsh judgments of the wicked will appear to be confirmed: viz., that God regards not his most fervent worshippers; and it is no benefit to lead a religious life.
The words behind it
12 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| הֲט֤וֹב | hatov | ¿ [is it] good | H2896 → | 538 times |
| לְךָ֨׀ | lekha | to you | ||
| כִּֽי־ | ki- | that | H3588 → | 4482 times |
| תַעֲשֹׁ֗ק | taashok | you will oppress | H6231 → | |
| כִּֽי־ | ki- | that | H3588 → | 4482 times |
| תִ֭מְאַס | timas | you will reject | H3988 → | 76 times |
| יְגִ֣יעַ | yegia' | [the] product of | H3018 → | 16 times |
| כַּפֶּ֑יךָ | kapeikha | hands your | H3709 → | 192 times |
| וְעַל־ | veal- | and on | H5921 → | 5755 times |
| עֲצַ֖ת | ʾatzat | [the] plan of | H6098 → | 89 times |
| רְשָׁעִ֣ים | reshaim | wicked [people] | H7563 → | 263 times |
| הוֹפָֽעְתָּ׃ | hofaeta | you have shone forth | H3313 → | 8 times |
הֲט֤וֹב¿ [is it] good
hatovH2896 →538 times
לְךָ֨׀to you
lekha
כִּֽי־that
ki-H3588 →4482 times
תַעֲשֹׁ֗קyou will oppress
taashokH6231 →
כִּֽי־that
ki-H3588 →4482 times
תִ֭מְאַסyou will reject
timasH3988 →76 times
יְגִ֣יעַ[the] product of
yegia'H3018 →16 times
כַּפֶּ֑יךָhands your
kapeikhaH3709 →192 times
וְעַל־and on
veal-H5921 →5755 times
עֲצַ֖ת[the] plan of
ʾatzatH6098 →89 times
רְשָׁעִ֣יםwicked [people]
reshaimH7563 →263 times
הוֹפָֽעְתָּ׃you have shone forth
hofaetaH3313 →8 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Psalms 138:8The LORD will fulfill His purpose for me. O LORD, Your loving devotion endures forever— do not abandon the works of Your hands.
it leads to
- Philippians 1:6
being confident of this, that He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.
- Psalms 57:2
I cry out to God Most High, to God who fulfills His purpose for me.
- 1 Thessalonians 5:24
The One who calls you is faithful, and He will do it.
- Isaiah 26:12
O LORD, You will establish peace for us. For all that we have accomplished, You have done for us.
- Psalms 136:1
Give thanks to the LORD, for He is good. His loving devotion endures forever.
- Philippians 1:6
Through
Isaiah 64:8But now, O LORD, You are our Father; we are the clay, and You are the potter; we are all the work of Your hand.
it leads to
- Psalms 138:8
The LORD will fulfill His purpose for me. O LORD, Your loving devotion endures forever— do not abandon the works of Your hands.
Reached by 3 separate paths from here.
- Ephesians 2:10
For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance as our way of life.
- Psalms 138:8
Through
1 Peter 4:19So then, those who suffer according to God’s will should entrust their souls to their faithful Creator and continue to do good.
it leads to
- Psalms 37:5
Commit your way to the LORD; trust in Him, and He will do it.
- Psalms 37:5
About Job
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Gregory the Dialogist, Morals on the Book of Job, Book IX; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible and Thomas Aquinas, Commentary on Job.