Job 13:17

Listen carefully to my words; let my declaration ring in your ears.

Berean Standard Bible

Study note

Setting — Job addresses his companions during a legal-style confrontation, demanding their full attention before he presents his defense.

The words — שִׁמְעוּ (shim.'U) commands "listen," while מִלָּתִי (mi.la.T/i) specifies "my words," emphasizing the speaker's direct utterance.

The thread — This appeal for attentive hearing recurs in Job 13:6, Job 21:2, and Job 33:1 as a recurring rhetorical device in the dialogues.

Why it lands — The text demands that listeners process the speaker's statement fully before forming a judgment, establishing a baseline for fair discourse.

Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.

The Hebrew words

שִׁמְע֣וּshim.'Ulisten שָׁ֭מוֹעַSha.mo.a'completely [to] <to listen>מִלָּתִ֑יmi.la.T/ispeech/ my וְ֝אַֽחֲוָתִ֗יve./'a.cha.va.T/iand/ declaration/ my בְּאָזְנֵיכֶֽם׃be./'a.ze.nei./Khem[be] in/ ears/ your

King James Version

Hear diligently my speech, and my declaration with your ears.

Cross-references

Job 13:6 Hear now my argument, and listen to the plea of my lips.
Job 21:2 “Listen carefully to my words; let this be your consolation to me.
Job 33:1 “But now, O Job, hear my speech, and listen to all my words.