Bible Strands
Job 32:21
I will be partial to no one, nor will I flatter any man.
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — Elihu addresses Job and his three friends in Job 32, speaking immediately after declaring his compulsion to vocalize his thoughts in verse 20. He positions his forthcoming speech as a direct response to the earlier arguments.
The words — The phrase אֶשָּׂא פְנֵי ('e.Sa fe.nei) literally means "I lift up the face" and functions as a Hebrew idiom for showing favoritism. Coupled with the emphatic negation לֹא (lo'), it establishes a firm boundary against biased speech.
The thread — This refusal to show partiality parallels the judicial commands in Leviticus 19:15 and Deuteronomy 1:17, which forbid favoritism in legal proceedings. It also aligns with Job’s own question in Job 13:8 about whether one would show God partiality.
Why it lands — The text demands that speech and judgment remain unswayed by social status or personal gain. It grounds this ethical requirement in the speaker’s awareness of divine oversight rather than human approval.
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
Let me not, I pray you, accept any man’s person, neither let me give flattering titles unto man.
Cross-references
- Leviticus 19:15 You must not pervert justice; you must not show partiality to the poor or favoritism to the rich; you are to judge your neighbor fairly.
- Job 13:8 Would you show Him partiality or argue in His defense?
- Deuteronomy 1:17 Show no partiality in judging; hear both small and great alike. Do not be intimidated by anyone, for judgment belongs to God. And bring to me any case too difficult for you, and I will hear it.”
- Deuteronomy 16:19 Do not deny justice or show partiality. Do not accept a bribe, for a bribe blinds the eyes of the wise and twists the words of the righteous.
- 2 Samuel 14:17 And now your servant says, ‘May the word of my lord the king bring me rest, for my lord the king is able to discern good and evil, just like the angel of God. May the LORD your God be with you.’”
- 2 Samuel 14:20 Joab your servant has done this to bring about this change of affairs, but my lord has wisdom like the wisdom of the angel of God, to know everything that happens in the land.”
- Job 13:10 Surely He would rebuke you if you secretly showed partiality.
- Job 34:19 who is not partial to princes and does not favor rich over poor? For they are all the work of His hands.
- Proverbs 24:23 These also are sayings of the wise: To show partiality in judgment is not good.
- Matthew 22:16 They sent their disciples to Him along with the Herodians. “Teacher,” they said, “we know that You are honest and that You teach the way of God in accordance with the truth. You seek favor from no one, because You pay no attention to external appearance.