Job 32:22

For I do not know how to flatter, or my Maker would remove me in an instant.

Berean Standard Bible

Study note

Setting — Elihu addresses Job and his three friends, speaking after a long pause to deliver his response following their failed arguments.

The words — The speaker links יָדַ֣עְתִּי (yaDa'ti, "I know") and אֲכַנֶּ֑ה ('akhanneh, "I will flatter") with the conjunction כִּי (ki, "for"), while כִּ֝מְעַ֗ט (kim'at) literally means "like a little" rather than functioning as a conditional phrase.

The thread — The rejection of deceptive praise runs through Psalms 12:2, Proverbs 29:5, and 1 Thessalonians 2:5.

Why it lands — The text states the speaker refuses flattery because the Creator would swiftly remove him if he used it, demanding a reader to evaluate speech against divine scrutiny 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

כִּ֤יkifor לֹ֣אlo'not יָדַ֣עְתִּיya.Da'.tiI know אֲכַנֶּ֑ה'a.kha.NehI will use flattery כִּ֝מְעַ֗טki/m.'Atlike/ a little יִשָּׂאֵ֥נִיyi.sa.'E./nihe will carry away/ me עֹשֵֽׂנִי׃'o.Se./ni[the one who] made/ me

King James Version

For I know not to give flattering titles; in so doing my maker would soon take me away.

Cross-references

Psalms 12:2 They lie to one another; they speak with flattering lips and a double heart.
Proverbs 29:5 A man who flatters his neighbor spreads a net for his feet.
1 Thessalonians 2:5 As you know, we never used words of flattery or any pretext for greed. God is our witness!
Job 17:5 If a man denounces his friends for a price, the eyes of his children will fail.
Galatians 1:10 Am I now seeking the approval of men, or of God? Or am I striving to please men? If I were still trying to please men, I would not be a servant of Christ.