Job 15:4
New International Version
But you even undermine piety and hinder devotion to God.

New Living Translation
Have you no fear of God, no reverence for him?

English Standard Version
But you are doing away with the fear of God and hindering meditation before God.

Berean Standard Bible
But you even undermine the fear of God and hinder meditation before Him.

King James Bible
Yea, thou castest off fear, and restrainest prayer before God.

New King James Version
Yes, you cast off fear, And restrain prayer before God.

New American Standard Bible
“Indeed, you do away with reverence, And hinder meditation before God.

NASB 1995
“Indeed, you do away with reverence And hinder meditation before God.

NASB 1977
“Indeed, you do away with reverence, And hinder meditation before God.

Legacy Standard Bible
Indeed, you annul reverent fear And cut off musing before God.

Amplified Bible
“Indeed, you are doing away with fear, And you are diminishing meditation before God.

Christian Standard Bible
But you even undermine the fear of God and hinder meditation before him.

Holman Christian Standard Bible
But you even undermine the fear of God and hinder meditation before Him.

American Standard Version
Yea, thou doest away with fear, And hinderest devotion before God.

Contemporary English Version
Your words are enough to make others turn from God and lead them to doubt.

English Revised Version
Yea, thou doest away with fear, and restrainest devotion before God.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
Yes, you destroy the fear [of God] and diminish devotion to God.

Good News Translation
If you had your way, no one would fear God; no one would pray to him.

International Standard Version
Yet you dispense with fear of God and hinder meditations before God.

Majority Standard Bible
But you even undermine the fear of God and hinder meditation before Him.

NET Bible
But you even break off piety, and hinder meditation before God.

New Heart English Bible
Yes, you do away with fear, and hinder devotion before God.

Webster's Bible Translation
Yes, thou castest off fear, and restrainest prayer before God.

World English Bible
Yes, you do away with fear, and hinder devotion before God.
Literal Translations
Literal Standard Version
Indeed, you make reverence void, and diminish meditation before God.

Young's Literal Translation
Yea, thou dost make reverence void, And dost diminish meditation before God.

Smith's Literal Translation
Also thou wilt bring to nought, fear, and thou wilt withhold meditation before God.
Catholic Translations
Douay-Rheims Bible
As much as is in thee, thou hast made void fear, and hast taken away prayers from before God.

Catholic Public Domain Version
to such an extent that, within yourself, you have expelled reverence and have taken away prayers from the presence of God.

New American Bible
You in fact do away with piety, you lessen devotion toward God,

New Revised Standard Version
But you are doing away with the fear of God, and hindering meditation before God.
Translations from Aramaic
Lamsa Bible
Yea, you also are discarding reverence, and talk too much in the presence of God.

Peshitta Holy Bible Translated
Also you bring reverence to nothing and you multiply speaking before God
OT Translations
JPS Tanakh 1917
Yea, thou doest away with fear, And impairest devotion before God.

Brenton Septuagint Translation
Hast not thou moreover cast off fear, and accomplished such words before the Lord?

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
Eliphaz: Job Does Not Fear God
3Should he argue with useless words or speeches that serve no purpose? 4But you even undermine the fear of God and hinder meditation before Him. 5For your iniquity instructs your mouth, and you choose the language of the crafty.…

Cross References
Proverbs 1:7
The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and discipline.

Psalm 111:10
The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom; all who follow His precepts gain rich understanding. His praise endures forever!

Proverbs 9:10
The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.

Ecclesiastes 12:13
When all has been heard, the conclusion of the matter is this: Fear God and keep His commandments, because this is the whole duty of man.

Psalm 36:1
For the choirmaster. A Psalm of David, the servant of the LORD. An oracle is in my heart regarding the transgression of the wicked man: There is no fear of God before his eyes.

Romans 3:18
“There is no fear of God before their eyes.”

Proverbs 8:13
To fear the LORD is to hate evil; I hate arrogant pride, evil conduct, and perverse speech.

Isaiah 29:13
Therefore the Lord said: “These people draw near to Me with their mouths and honor Me with their lips, but their hearts are far from Me. Their worship of Me is but rules taught by men.

Jeremiah 2:19
Your own evil will discipline you; your own apostasies will reprimand you. Consider and realize how evil and bitter it is for you to forsake the LORD your God and to have no fear of Me,” declares the Lord GOD of Hosts.

Malachi 1:6
“A son honors his father, and a servant his master. But if I am a father, where is My honor? And if I am a master, where is your fear of Me?” says the LORD of Hosts to you priests who despise My name. “But you ask, ‘How have we despised Your name?’

Matthew 15:8-9
‘These people honor Me with their lips, but their hearts are far from Me. / They worship Me in vain; they teach as doctrine the precepts of men.’”

Romans 1:21
For although they knew God, they neither glorified Him as God nor gave thanks to Him, but they became futile in their thinking and darkened in their foolish hearts.

2 Timothy 3:5
having a form of godliness but denying its power. Turn away from such as these!

1 John 2:4
If anyone says, “I know Him,” but does not keep His commandments, he is a liar, and the truth is not in him.

Isaiah 11:2
The Spirit of the LORD will rest on Him—the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and strength, the Spirit of knowledge and fear of the LORD.


Treasury of Scripture

Yes, you cast off fear, and restrain prayer before God.

castest off.

Job 4:5,6
But now it is come upon thee, and thou faintest; it toucheth thee, and thou art troubled…

Job 6:14
To him that is afflicted pity should be shewed from his friend; but he forsaketh the fear of the Almighty.

Psalm 36:1-3
To the chief Musician, A Psalm of David the servant of the LORD. The transgression of the wicked saith within my heart, that there is no fear of God before his eyes…

restrainest

Job 5:8
I would seek unto God, and unto God would I commit my cause:

Job 27:10
Will he delight himself in the Almighty? will he always call upon God?

1 Chronicles 10:13,14
So Saul died for his transgression which he committed against the LORD, even against the word of the LORD, which he kept not, and also for asking counsel of one that had a familiar spirit, to inquire of it; …

prayer.

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Castest Devotion Diminish Effect Fear Hinder Indeed Less Makest Meditation Outcry Piety Prayer Quiet Reverence sh Time Undermine Void Worship
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Castest Devotion Diminish Effect Fear Hinder Indeed Less Makest Meditation Outcry Piety Prayer Quiet Reverence sh Time Undermine Void Worship
Job 15
1. Eliphaz reproves Job for impiety in justifying himself
17. He proves by tradition the restlessness of wicked men














But you even undermine
The Hebrew word for "undermine" here is "parar," which means to break, frustrate, or annul. In the context of Job, Eliphaz accuses Job of breaking down or nullifying the reverence due to God. Historically, this reflects the ancient Near Eastern understanding of maintaining a proper relationship with the divine through fear and reverence. Eliphaz suggests that Job's words and actions are not just personal grievances but are seen as a challenge to the established order of divine respect.

the fear of God
The "fear of God" in Hebrew is "yirat Elohim," a concept deeply rooted in the wisdom literature of the Bible. It signifies a profound respect, awe, and reverence for God, which is foundational to a righteous life. Proverbs 9:10 states, "The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom." In the conservative Christian perspective, this fear is not about terror but about a deep respect and acknowledgment of God's holiness and authority. Eliphaz is accusing Job of eroding this essential aspect of faith.

and hinder meditation
The word "hinder" translates from the Hebrew "gara," meaning to diminish or take away. "Meditation" here is "siach," which refers to contemplation or thoughtful reflection, often in a spiritual or prayerful context. Eliphaz is suggesting that Job's attitude and words are not only undermining fear but also diminishing the practice of meditative reflection before God. This reflects the importance placed on meditation as a means of connecting with God, a practice that is seen as vital for spiritual growth and understanding.

before Him
The phrase "before Him" underscores the presence of God in the life of the believer. In Hebrew, "before" is "paneh," which can mean face or presence. This indicates a direct and personal relationship with God, where one's actions and thoughts are laid bare before the Creator. Eliphaz's accusation implies that Job's behavior is inappropriate in the sight of God, who is always present and aware. In a conservative Christian view, living "before Him" is a call to integrity and authenticity in one's faith journey.

(4) Yea, thou castest off fear.--The tendency also of Job has been to encourage a kind of fatalism (e.g., Job 12:16-25), and therefore to check the offering of prayer to God, besides setting an example which, if followed, as from Job's position it was likely to be, would lead to murmuring and blasphemy.

Verse 4. - Yea, thou castest off fear. To Eliphaz, Job's words - his bold expostulations (Job 13:3, 15, 22, etc.), his declarations that he knows he will be justified (Job 13:8), and that God will be his Salvation (Job 13:16) - seem to imply that he has cast off altogether the fear of God, and is entirely devoid of reverence. Some of his expressions certainly seem over-bold; but, on the other hand, his sense of God's purity, perfectness, and transcendent power is continually manifest, and should have saved him from the rude reproach here launched against him (comp. Job 9:1-13; Job 12:24 25; 13:11, 21, etc.). And restrainest prayer before God; rather, and hinderest devout meditation before God. Eliphaz means that Job expresses himself in a way so cf. fensive to devout souls, that he disturbs their minds and prevents them from indulging in those pious meditations on the Divine goodness which would otherwise occupy them (comp. Psalm 119:97). Thus, according to Eliphaz, Job is not only irreligious himself, but the cause of irreligion in others.

Parallel Commentaries ...


Hebrew
But
אַף־ (’ap̄-)
Conjunction
Strong's 637: Meaning accession, yea, adversatively though

you
אַ֭תָּה (’at·tāh)
Pronoun - second person masculine singular
Strong's 859: Thou and thee, ye and you

even undermine
תָּפֵ֣ר (tā·p̄êr)
Verb - Hifil - Imperfect - second person masculine singular
Strong's 6565: To break up, to violate, frustrate

the fear [of God]
יִרְאָ֑ה (yir·’āh)
Noun - feminine singular
Strong's 3374: Fear, reverence

and hinder
וְתִגְרַ֥ע (wə·ṯiḡ·ra‘)
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Qal - Conjunctive imperfect - second person masculine singular
Strong's 1639: To scrape off, to shave, remove, lessen, withhold

meditation
שִׂ֝יחָ֗ה (·ḥāh)
Noun - feminine singular
Strong's 7881: Reflection, be extension, devotion

before
לִפְנֵי־ (lip̄·nê-)
Preposition-l | Noun - masculine plural construct
Strong's 6440: The face

Him.
אֵֽל׃ (’êl)
Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 410: Strength -- as adjective, mighty, the Almighty


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OT Poetry: Job 15:4 Yes you do away with fear (Jb)
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