Job 11:15
in Job 11then indeed you will lift up your face without shame; you will stand firm and unafraid.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
Surely then shalt thou lift up thy face without spot; Yea, thou shalt be stedfast, and shalt not fear:
KJV
For then shalt thou lift up thy face without spot; yea, thou shalt be stedfast, and shalt not fear:
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This verse in Job 11
Commentary
10 notes on this verseIf the iniquity which is in thine hand thou put far from thee, and wickedness dwell not in thy tabernacle, then shalt thou lift up thy face without spot, yea thou shalt be stedfast, and shalt not fear. Every sin is either committed in thought alone, or it is done in thought and deed together. Therefore 'iniquity in the hand' is offence in deed; but 'wickedness in the tabernacle,' is iniquity in the heart; for our heart is not unfitly called a tabernacle, wherein we are buried within ourselves, when we do not shew ourselves outwardly in act.
This site's exposition
if you direct your heart
on Job 11:13-15
Zophar's call to repentance, "if you direct your heart and lift up your hands to Him", rests on a charge Job has denied. The clause "if you put away the iniquity in your hand" assumes the guilt the friends have yet to prove.
This site's exposition
lift up your face without shame
At Job 10:15 Job said even righteous he cannot lift his head, and Zophar turns those words around. Jamieson, Fausset and Brown note the echo, and Chrysostom judges Zophar's counsel sound in itself and wrong to charge Job's misery to his sin. Zophar holds that Job would stand firm again.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers1 voice
For Job said, in fact, that a change was impossible: "If I wash myself with snow [that will be of no use], you have deeply plunged me into the mire." That is why Zophar says, "Your face will shine again like pure water." The whole of Zophar's reflections is certainly excellent. The fact, however, that he incessantly repeats that Job's faults have caused his misfortunes is undoubtedly wrong. It is as though Zophar wanted to exhort Job to be converted to virtue, while he was not in sin at all. To say such things demonstrates Zophar's ignorance and the fact that he understood nothing.
The Medieval Church1 voice
"Then you lift up your head," in prayer to God, "free from stain," of fault. In this your condemnation will end, first for the future, and so he says, "and you will be stable," so that you are not shaken by trials later. Also "you …
The Puritans and the Awakening3 voices
If we are looked upon in the face of the anointed, our faces, that were dejected, may be lifted up--that were polluted, being washed with the blood of Christ, may be lifted up without spot. We may draw near in full assurance of faith when we are sprinkled from an evil conscience, Heb. x.
Lift up - Which denotes chearfulness, and holy boldness. Without spot - Having a clear and unspotted conscience. Steadfast - Shall have a strong and comfortable assurance of God's favour.
For then shall thou lift up thy face without spot,.... Either before men, being in all good conscience, walking in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord, blameless, exercising a conscience void of offence towards God and men; and so be able to say as Samuel did, "whose ass have I taken?" &c.
2 more voices on this verse
The Nineteenth Century2 voices
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
For then shalt thou lift up thy face without spot - That is, thy face shall be bright, clear, and cheerful. Thus, we speak of a bright and happy countenance. Zophar undoubtedly designs to show what his appearance would be, contrasted with what it then was. Now his countenance was dejected and sad. It was disfigured by tears, and terror, and long continued anguish. But if he would put away iniquity, and return to God, his face would be cheerful again, and he would be a happy man.
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
Zophar refers to Job's own words (Job 10:15), "yet will I not lift up my head," even though righteous. Zophar declares, if Job will follow his advice, he may "lift up his face." spot-- (De 32:5). steadfast--literally, "run fast together," like metals which become firm and hard by fusion. The sinner on the contrary is wavering.
How the passage was read
What the Jewish commentators add
On the verses either side of this one
Distance iniquity from your hand, and do not allow injustice to dwell in your tents.
This section is reception history: how the passage was read and kept in the Jewish tradition. Where a reading parts from an essential of the Christian faith, the section says so at that point.
Texts and citation data: Sefaria; each excerpt follows its version’s licence. 5 further sources are cited on this chapter that carry no English text this site may quote or only restate the verse.
The words behind it
9 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| כִּי־ | ki- | for | H3588 → | 4482 times |
| אָ֤ז׀ | ʾaz | then | H227 → | 141 times |
| תִּשָּׂ֣א | tisa' | you will lift up | H5375 → | 656 times |
| פָנֶ֣יךָ | faneikha | face your | H6440 → | 2123 times |
| מִמּ֑וּם | mimum | from blemish | H3971 → | |
| וְהָיִ֥יתָ | vehayita | and you will be | H1961 → | 3559 times |
| מֻ֝צָ֗ק | mutzak | firmly established | H3332 → | 50 times |
| וְלֹ֣א | velo' | and not | H3808 → | 5168 times |
| תִירָֽא׃ | tira' | you will fear | H3372 → | 315 times |
כִּי־for
ki-H3588 →4482 times
אָ֤ז׀then
ʾazH227 →141 times
תִּשָּׂ֣אyou will lift up
tisa'H5375 →656 times
פָנֶ֣יךָface your
faneikhaH6440 →2123 times
מִמּ֑וּםfrom blemish
mimumH3971 →
וְהָיִ֥יתָand you will be
vehayitaH1961 →3559 times
מֻ֝צָ֗קfirmly established
mutzakH3332 →50 times
וְלֹ֣אand not
velo'H3808 →5168 times
תִירָֽא׃you will fear
tira'H3372 →315 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
1 John 2:28And now, little children, remain in Christ, so that when He appears, we may be confident and unashamed before Him at His coming.
it leads to
- 1 John 4:17
In this way, love has been perfected among us, so that we may have confidence on the day of judgment; for in this world we are just like Him.
- Mark 8:38
If anyone is ashamed of Me and My words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man will also be ashamed of him when He comes in His Father’s glory with the…
- 1 John 3:2
Beloved, we are now children of God, and what we will be has not yet been revealed. We know that when Christ appears, we will be like Him, for we will see Him as…
- 1 Thessalonians 3:13
so that He may establish your hearts in blamelessness and holiness before our God and Father at the coming of our Lord Jesus with all His saints. Amen.
- 1 John 3:21
Beloved, if our hearts do not condemn us, we have confidence before God,
- 1 John 4:17
Through
1 Timothy 2:8Therefore I want the men everywhere to pray, lifting up holy hands, without anger or dissension.
it leads to
- Psalms 134:2
Lift up your hands to the sanctuary and bless the LORD!
- Psalms 63:4
So I will bless You as long as I live; in Your name I will lift my hands.
- Psalms 134:2
Through
Job 22:26Surely then you will delight in the Almighty and lift up your face to God.
it leads to
- Isaiah 58:14
then you will delight yourself in the LORD, and I will make you ride on the heights of the land and feed you with the heritage of your father Jacob.” For the mouth of…
- Isaiah 58:14
About Job
This page draws on 10 works. Open the list of works
This page draws on Albert Barnes, Notes on the Book of Job; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Gregory the Dialogist, Morals on the Book of Job, Book X; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Chrysostom, Commentary on Job; John Chrysostom, COMMENTARY ON JOB 11:15-16; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament; Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible and Thomas Aquinas, Commentary on Job.