Job 27:6

6. The second clause of Job_27:6 reads,

My heart reproacheth not one of my days,

or, my heart reproaches (me) not since I was alive, i. e. during all my life. Of course the words have reference to the kind of charges laid against Job by his friends (e.g. ch. Job_22:6-9), and not to the sinfulness of nature common to all men, ch. Job_14:2. The “heart” in Heb. is the conscience or consciousness. Luther expresses the meaning vigorously when he translates: “My conscience bites me not in respect of my whole life.” Comp. the whole of ch. 31, which is but an expansion of these words.

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Job 27:6 My righteousness I hold fast, and will not let it go: my heart shall not reproach [me] so long as I live.

Ver. 6. My righteousness I hold fast] As with tooth and nail, yea, though it be to the loss of my teeth, Mordicus tenebo, as it befell that valiant Sir Thomas Challoner, who served, when he was young, under Charles V, in the expedition of Algiers, where, being shipwrecked, after be had swam till his strength and his arms failed him, at the length, catching hold of a cable with his teeth, he escaped, not without the loss of some of his teeth.

And will not let it go] sc. Upon your persuasions or suspicions, so long as the bird in my bosom continueth singing.

My heart shall not reproach me so long as I live] His heart must needs reproach him who habitually doth evil, what good show soever he doth make before men; and though he hide his wickedness with no less subtle sleights than once Rachel did the idols, Rahab the spies. Conscience is God’s spy, and man’s overseer. It is Index, Iudex, Vindex: neither is a body so torn with stripes as a mind with remembrance of evil actions. This Job knew, and would therefore keep his conscience clear. This was also St Paul’s greatest, both care, Act 24:16, and comfort, 2Co 1:12.

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Of my life past.

Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain. Text via Bolls.life.

Rather, my "heart" (conscience) reproaches "not one of my days," that is, I do not repent of any of my days since I came into existence [MAURER].

Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Verse 6. My righteousness I hold fast] I stand firmly on this ground; I have endeavoured to live an upright life, and my afflictions are not the consequence of my sins.

My heart shall not reproach me] I shall take care so to live that I shall have a conscience void of offense before God and man. "Beloved, if our heart condemn us not, then have we confidence toward God;" 1Jo 3:21. This seems to be Job's meaning.

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

(6) My heart shall not reproach me.—Or, doth not reproach me for any of my days.

A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

My righteousness I hold fast, and will not let it go,.... Meaning not his personal righteousness, or the righteousness of his works, as his justifying righteousness before God, and for acceptance with him; which no man that is convinced of the insufficiency of, as Job was, will hold fast, but renounce, and desire, with the Apostle Paul, not to be found in it, Phi 3:9. Indeed the righteousness of his living Redeemer, which was his, and he might call so, this he knew, and knew he should be justified by it, and which he laid hold upon by faith in the strong exercise of it, and would not drop it, or become remiss in it, but retain it, and constantly make mention of it, and plead it as his justifying righteousness with God; but here he intends the righteousness of his cause, which he always maintained strongly, and was determined he ever would, and never give way, or let it drop, but continue to affirm, that he was a righteous man, and that it was not for any unrighteousness he had done to any man that God dealt thus with him; he had wronged no man, he had done justice to all men, as well as he was not devoid of the fear of God, and piety towards him; and this character of himself he would never give up, but defend to the uttermost:

my heart shall not reproach me so long as I live; not that he imagined he should or could live without sin, so that his conscience could never charge, accuse, or upbraid him with it; for there is no man, let him live a life ever so harmless and inoffensive to God and man, but his heart will smite him, and condemn him for his sins committed in thought, word, and deed: but Job's sense is, that he would never deny his integrity, or renounce the righteousness of his cause, and own himself to be an insincere and unrighteous man; should he do this, he should speak contrary to his own conscience, which would accuse and reproach him for so saying, and therefore he was determined it never should; for, as long as he lived, he neither could nor would say any such thing. Some render the last phrase, "for my days" (c), or "concerning" them; for my course of life, all my days, so Jarchi; for that my heart shall not reproach me, as being conscious to himself he had lived in all good conscience to that day, and trusted he ever should; but the sense before given is best.

(c) "propter dies meos", Munster; "vel propter dies vitae meae", Michaelis; "de diebus meis", Schultens.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

My righteousness I hold fast - I hold on to the consciousness of integrity and uprightness. I cannot, will not, part with that. Job had lost his property, his health, and his domestic comforts, but he had in all this one consolation - he felt that he was sincere. He had been subjected to calamity by God as if he were a wicked man, but still he was resolved to adhere to the consciousness of his uprightness. Property may leave a man; friends may forsake him; children may die; disease may attack him; slander may assail him; and death may approach him; but still he may have in his bosom one unfailing source of consolation; he may have the consciousness that his aim has been right and pure. That nothing can shake; of that, no storms or tempests, no malignant foe, no losses or disappointment, no ridicule or calumny, can deprive him.

My heart shall not reproach me - That is, as being insincere, false, hollow.

So long as I live - Margin, “from my days.” So the Hebrew - מימי mı̂yāmāy. Vulgate in omni vita mea. Septuagint, “I am not conscious to myself of having done anything amiss” - ἄτοπα τράξας atopa pracas; compare the notes at 1Co 4:4. The idea is, that he had a consciousness of integrity, and that he meant to maintain it as long as he lived.

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

I hold fast, Heb. I have held fast, i.e., I have not only begun well, but continued in well-doing; which is a plain evidence that I am no hypocrite. Or, the past tense is put for the future, as is usual, I will hold fast, declaratively, as before, I will maintain it, that howsoever you calumniate me, I am a righteous person.

My heart, i.e. my conscience, as the heart is oft used, as 1Sa 24:5; 25:31; Eze 14:5; 1Jo 3:20,21.

Shall not reproach me; either,

1. With betraying my own cause and innocency, and speaking what I know to be false, to wit, that I am a hypocrite. Or,

2. For my former impiety or hypocrisy, wherewith you charge me.

So long as I live, Heb. from, or for, or concerning my days, i.e. the time of my life, whether past or to come. Or the course of my life; days or times being put here, as it is elsewhere, for actions done in them by a metonymy.

Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

6. My heart shall not reproach — My heart reproaches not one of my days. (Hitzig.) Job’s heart, rendered by Luther “conscience,” was, like the apostle’s, “void of offence.” “Friends” had charged him with secret sins as the source of his woes. He assures them, in the language of the Septuagint, “I am not conscious of having done wrong, ατοπα.” See sermon of Sydney Smith in loc., on “The Reproaches of the Heart.”

b. As an incidental confirmation of his righteousness, Job adduces his triumphant religious experience, and reasons that he who possesses such, cannot be as the wicked, Job_27:7-10.

Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

My righteousness I held fast, and will not let it go. Not only will Job never cease to maintain his integrity in the past, but he will hold fast to the same course of blameless life in the future. He will not "curse God, and die." Resolutely he will maintain his faith in God, and his dependence on him. "Though he slay me, yet will I trust in him." My heart shall not reproach me so long as I live. This is probably the true meaning, though some suggest "My heart doth not reproach me for any of my days" Job determines to "have always a conscience void of offence, both toward God and toward man". (Act_24:16; comp. Act_23:1 1Co_4:4 2Ti_1:3 1Jn_3:21)

The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Reproach - With betraying my own cause and innocency.

John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.

I hold fast to my righteousness

Here "hold fast" is a metaphor that represents being determined to continue to say something. The abstract noun "righteousness" can be expressed with "righteous." AT: "I am determined to continue saying that I am righteous" (See: Metaphor and Abstract Nouns)

will not let it go

Here "will not let it go" is a metaphor that represents not stopping saying something. AT: "will not stop saying that I am righteous" or "will not stop saying so" (See: Metaphor)

my thoughts will not reproach me

Here the phrase "my thoughts" represents Job. AT: "even in my thoughts, I will not reproach myself" (See: Metonymy)

Let my enemy be ... let him who rises up against me be

The two clauses that start with these words share the same meaning. They are used together to emphasize Job's strong desire that this should happen. (See: Parallelism)

Let my enemy be like a wicked man

How he wants his enemy to be like a wicked person can be stated clearly. AT: "Let my enemy be punished like a wicked man" or "Let God punish my enemy as he punishes wicked people" (See: Assumed Knowledge and Implicit Information)

let him who rises up against me be like an unrighteous man

How he wants this person to be like an unrighteous man can be stated clearly. AT: "let him who rises up against me be punished like an unrighteous man" (See: Assumed Knowledge and Implicit Information)

him who rises up against me

Here "rises up against me" is a metaphor meaning "opposes me." The whole phrase refers to Job's adversary. AT: "him who opposes me" or "my adversary" (See: Metaphor)

translationWords

righteous

reproach

life

adversary

evil

raise

righteous

unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.

I have maintained my righteousness To say that I am righteous.

my heart will not reproach me because of my days, i.e., because of any manner or trait with which I deported myself in my days. Therefore, perforce, my enemy shall be like a wicked man.

Rashi on the Tanakh — English translations: “The Judaica Press complete Tanach with Rashi, translated by A. J. Rosenberg” (CC BY 4.0); “Pentateuch with Rashi's commentary by M. Rosenbaum and A.M. Silbermann, 1929-1934” (public domain); “The Metsudah Tanach series, Lakewood, N.J” (CC BY 4.0); and “The Book of Joshua, Metsudah Publications, 1997” (CC BY 4.0). Text via Sefaria.