Bible Strands
Job 31:23
For calamity from God terrifies me, and His splendor I cannot overpower.
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — Job speaks this oath in his final defense, addressing God and his accusers as he lists conditional curses for potential idolatry. He states his fear of divine judgment as the motive for his moral integrity.
The words — פַּחַד (pachad) translates literally as "fear" or "dread," and אֵיד (eid) means "calamity" or "ruin." These terms anchor Job's declaration that he is restrained by the threat of divine punishment.
The thread — The motif of fearing God's majesty appears in Job 13:11, Psalm 119:120, and 2 Corinthians 5:11, where dread of the Lord functions as a motivator for righteous conduct and persuasion.
Why it lands — The verse demands that readers acknowledge their inability to withstand God's splendor and let that reality govern their ethical choices rather than self-deception.
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
King James Version
For destruction from God was a terror to me, and by reason of his highness I could not endure.
Cross-references
- Job 13:11 Would His majesty not terrify you? Would the dread of Him not fall upon you?
- Psalms 119:120 My flesh trembles in awe of You; I stand in fear of Your judgments.
- 2 Corinthians 5:11 Therefore, since we know what it means to fear the Lord, we try to persuade men. What we are is clear to God, and I hope it is clear to your conscience as well.
- Psalms 76:7 You alone are to be feared. When You are angry, who can stand before You?
- Isaiah 13:6 Wail, for the Day of the LORD is near; it will come as destruction from the Almighty.
- Genesis 39:9 No one in this house is greater than I am. He has withheld nothing from me except you, because you are his wife. So how could I do such a great evil and sin against God?”
- Job 20:23 When he has filled his stomach, God will vent His fury upon him, raining it down on him as he eats.
- Job 21:20 Let his eyes see his own destruction; let him drink for himself the wrath of the Almighty.
- Job 40:9 Do you have an arm like God’s? Can you thunder with a voice like His?
- Job 42:5 My ears had heard of You, but now my eyes have seen You.