Job 15:9
New International Version
What do you know that we do not know? What insights do you have that we do not have?

New Living Translation
What do you know that we don’t? What do you understand that we do not?

English Standard Version
What do you know that we do not know? What do you understand that is not clear to us?

Berean Standard Bible
What do you know that we do not? What do you understand that is not clear to us?

King James Bible
What knowest thou, that we know not? what understandest thou, which is not in us?

New King James Version
What do you know that we do not know? What do you understand that is not in us?

New American Standard Bible
“What do you know that we do not know? What do you understand that we do not?

NASB 1995
“What do you know that we do not know? What do you understand that we do not?

NASB 1977
“What do you know that we do not know? What do you understand that we do not?

Legacy Standard Bible
What do you know that we do not know? What do you understand that is not with us?

Amplified Bible
“What do you know that we do not know? What do you understand that is not equally clear to us?

Christian Standard Bible
What do you know that we don’t? What do you understand that is not clear to us?

Holman Christian Standard Bible
What do you know that we don’t? What do you understand that is not clear to us?

American Standard Version
What knowest thou, that we know not? What understandest thou, which is not in us?

Contemporary English Version
Do you know and understand something we don't?

English Revised Version
What knowest thou, that we know not? what understandest thou, which is not in us?

GOD'S WORD® Translation
What do you know that we don't know? What do you understand that we don't?

Good News Translation
There is nothing you know that we don't know.

International Standard Version
What do you know that we don't know, or that you understand and that isn't clear to us?

Majority Standard Bible
What do you know that we do not? What do you understand that is not clear to us?

NET Bible
What do you know that we don't know? What do you understand that we don't understand?

New Heart English Bible
What do you know, that we do not know? What do you understand, which is not in us?

Webster's Bible Translation
What knowest thou that we know not? what understandest thou, which is not in us?

World English Bible
What do you know that we don’t know? What do you understand which is not in us?
Literal Translations
Literal Standard Version
What have you known, and we do not know? [What] do you understand, and it is not with us?

Young's Literal Translation
What hast thou known, and we know not? Understandest thou -- and it is not with us?

Smith's Literal Translation
What knewest thou and we shall not know? wilt thou understand and it not be with us?
Catholic Translations
Douay-Rheims Bible
What knowest thou that we are ignorant of? what dost thou understand that we know not?

Catholic Public Domain Version
What do you know, about which we are ignorant? What do you understand that we do not know?

New American Bible
What do you know that we do not know, or understand that we do not?

New Revised Standard Version
What do you know that we do not know? What do you understand that is not clear to us?
Translations from Aramaic
Lamsa Bible
Or what do you know that we do not know? Or what do you under, stand that we do not understand?

Peshitta Holy Bible Translated
What do you know that we do not know, or what do you discern that was not with us?
OT Translations
JPS Tanakh 1917
What knowest thou, that we know not? What understandest thou, which is not in us?

Brenton Septuagint Translation
For what knowest thou, that, we know not? or what understandest thou, which we do not also?

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
Eliphaz: Job Does Not Fear God
8Do you listen in on the council of God or limit wisdom to yourself? 9What do you know that we do not? What do you understand that is not clear to us? 10Both the gray-haired and the aged are on our side—men much older than your father.…

Cross References
Job 11:7-8
Can you fathom the deep things of God or discover the limits of the Almighty? / They are higher than the heavens—what can you do? They are deeper than Sheol—what can you know?

Job 38:4-5
Where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth? Tell Me, if you have understanding. / Who fixed its measurements? Surely you know! Or who stretched a measuring line across it?

Isaiah 40:13-14
Who has directed the Spirit of the LORD, or informed Him as His counselor? / Whom did He consult to enlighten Him, and who taught Him the paths of justice? Who imparted knowledge to Him and showed Him the way of understanding?

1 Corinthians 2:11
For who among men knows the thoughts of man except his own spirit within him? So too, no one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God.

Romans 11:33-34
O, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments, and untraceable His ways! / “Who has known the mind of the Lord? Or who has been His counselor?”

Ecclesiastes 7:24
What exists is out of reach and very deep. Who can fathom it?

Psalm 139:6
Such knowledge is too wonderful for me, too lofty for me to attain.

Isaiah 55:8-9
“For My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways My ways,” declares the LORD. / “For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so My ways are higher than your ways and My thoughts than your thoughts.

1 Corinthians 3:19-20
For the wisdom of this world is foolishness in God’s sight. As it is written: “He catches the wise in their craftiness.” / And again, “The Lord knows that the thoughts of the wise are futile.”

Proverbs 30:3-4
I have not learned wisdom, and I have no knowledge of the Holy One. / Who has ascended to heaven and come down? Who has gathered the wind in His hands? Who has bound up the waters in His cloak? Who has established all the ends of the earth? What is His name, and what is the name of His Son—surely you know!

Psalm 92:5
How great are Your works, O LORD, how deep are Your thoughts!

Romans 9:20
But who are you, O man, to talk back to God? Shall what is formed say to Him who formed it, “Why did You make me like this?”

1 Corinthians 8:2
The one who thinks he knows something does not yet know as he ought to know.

Psalm 73:22
I was senseless and ignorant; I was a brute beast before You.

Proverbs 8:4-5
“To you, O men, I call out, and my cry is to the sons of men. / O simple ones, learn to be shrewd; O fools, gain understanding.


Treasury of Scripture

What know you, that we know not? what understand you, which is not in us?

knowest

Job 13:2
What ye know, the same do I know also: I am not inferior unto you.

Job 26:3,4
How hast thou counselled him that hath no wisdom? and how hast thou plentifully declared the thing as it is? …

2 Corinthians 10:7
Do ye look on things after the outward appearance? If any man trust to himself that he is Christ's, let him of himself think this again, that, as he is Christ's, even so are we Christ's.

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Job 15
1. Eliphaz reproves Job for impiety in justifying himself
17. He proves by tradition the restlessness of wicked men














What do you know
The Hebrew word for "know" here is "יָדַע" (yada), which implies an intimate, experiential knowledge rather than mere intellectual understanding. In the context of Job, this question challenges Job's claim to a unique insight or revelation. It reflects the skepticism of Eliphaz, who doubts that Job possesses any special wisdom that his friends lack. This phrase invites us to consider the limits of human understanding and the humility required in acknowledging that our knowledge is finite compared to God's omniscience.

that we do not?
The phrase "that we do not" underscores the collective wisdom of Job's friends, who believe they possess a shared understanding of divine principles. This reflects the cultural and historical context of ancient Near Eastern wisdom traditions, where communal knowledge was highly valued. The rhetorical question implies that Job's friends see themselves as equally, if not more, knowledgeable about God's ways, challenging Job to justify his perceived superiority in understanding.

What do you understand
The Hebrew root for "understand" is "בִּין" (bin), which conveys discernment and insight. This word suggests a deeper level of comprehension, one that goes beyond surface-level knowledge. Eliphaz's question here is probing whether Job has any special discernment that sets him apart. It serves as a reminder of the importance of seeking true understanding, which in a biblical sense, is often linked to a reverent relationship with God.

that is not clear to us?
The phrase "that is not clear to us" implies a challenge to Job's claim of possessing hidden or esoteric knowledge. The word "clear" in Hebrew is "נִסְתָּר" (nistar), meaning hidden or concealed. This reflects the belief that divine wisdom is often mysterious and not easily accessible. Eliphaz's question suggests that if Job's insights are truly from God, they should be evident and understandable to others who are also wise. This challenges us to consider the nature of divine revelation and the communal aspect of interpreting God's will.

Verse 9. - What knowest thou, that we know not? So far as worldly wisdom went, this was probably quite true. Job was not more advanced in knowledge than Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar. But he had a keener spiritual insight. He was wiser in the "wisdom which is from above." Perplexed and confused as were his thoughts concerning the Divine government of the universe, they were nearer the truth, more worthy of the Divine nature, than those of his adversaries. In his reply, without claiming any special wisdom, he pours contempt on their pretensions to spiritual understanding (Job 17:4, 10). What understandest thou, which is not in us? A mere repetition of the first member of the verse in different words.

Parallel Commentaries ...


Hebrew
What
מַה־ (mah-)
Interrogative
Strong's 4100: What?, what!, indefinitely what

do you know
יָּ֭דַעְתָּ (yā·ḏa‘·tā)
Verb - Qal - Perfect - second person masculine singular
Strong's 3045: To know

that we do not?
וְלֹ֣א (wə·lō)
Conjunctive waw | Adverb - Negative particle
Strong's 3808: Not, no

What do you understand
תָּ֝בִ֗ין (tā·ḇîn)
Verb - Qal - Imperfect - second person masculine singular
Strong's 995: To separate mentally, understand

that is not
וְֽלֹא־ (wə·lō-)
Conjunctive waw | Adverb - Negative particle
Strong's 3808: Not, no

clear to us?
עִמָּ֥נוּ (‘im·mā·nū)
Preposition | first person common plural
Strong's 5973: With, equally with


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OT Poetry: Job 15:9 What do you know that we don't (Jb)
Job 15:8
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