Job 14:16
Thou indeed hast numbered my steps, but spare my sins.
Open Job 14:16 in the Motif Searcher, word by word across all five texts →Show on the spiral →The verse in its languages
- Vulgate (Clementine)
- Tu quidem gressus meos dinumerasti : sed parce peccatis meis.
- Septuagint (Swete)
- ἠρίθμησας δέ μου τὰ ἐπιτηδεύματα, καὶ οὐ μὴ παρέλθῃ σε οὐδὲν τῶν ἁμαρτιῶν μου·
- Hebrew (WLC)
- כִּֽי עַ֭תָּה צְעָדַ֣י תִּסְפּ֑וֹר לֹֽא תִ֝שְׁמ֗וֹר עַל חַטָּאתִֽי
Haydock's commentary
But. Hebrew, "Mark out, (Calmet) or dost thou not observe my sin?" This fills me with terror, (Haydock) unless thou shew mercy.
From Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary, 1859, in the transcription made by Todd Easton and kept online by John Paul Wohlschied at johnblood.gitlab.io/haydock.
The Fathers on this verse
St Augustine A Treatise on the Merits and Forgiveness of Sins, and on the Baptism of Infants, Job Was Not Without Sin
But let us see what Job has to say of himself, after God’s great testimony of his righteousness. “I know of a truth,” he says, “that it is so: for how shall a mortal man be just before the Lord? For if He should enter into judgment with him, he would not be able to obey Him.” And shortly afterwards he asks: “Who shall resist His judgment? Even if I should seem righteous, my mouth will speak profanely.” And again, further on, he says: “I know He will not leave me unpunished. But since I am ungodly, why have I not died? If I should wash myself with snow, and be purged with clean hands, thou hadst thoroughly stained me with filth.” In another of his discourses he says: “For Thou hast written evil things against me, and hast compassed me with the sins of my youth; and Thou hast placed my foot in the stocks. …
St Augustine A Treatise Concerning Man’s Perfection in Righteousness, When Our Heart May Be Said Not to Reproach Us; When Good is to Be Perfected
Furthermore, concerning these words of Job, “My heart shall not reproach me in all my life,” we remark, that it is in this present life of ours, in which we live by faith, that our heart does not reproach us, if the same faith whereby we believe unto righteousness does not neglect to rebuke our sin. On this principle the apostle says: “The good that I would I do not; but the evil which I would not, that I do.” Now it is a good thing to avoid concupiscence, and this good the just man would, who lives by faith; and still he does what he hates, because he has concupiscence, although “he goes not after his lusts;” if he has done this, he has himself at that time really done it, so as to yield to, and acquiesce in, and obey the desire of sin. His heart then reproaches him, because it reproaches himself, and not his sin which dwelleth in him. …
St Athanasius On the Councils of Ariminum and Seleucia. (De Synodis.), History of the Councils
And in the Holy Ghost, whom the Only-begotten of God Himself, Jesus Christ, had promised to send to the race of men, the Paraclete, as it is written, ‘I go to My Father, and I will ask the Father, and He shall send unto you another Paraclete, even the Spirit of Truth. He shall take of Mine and shall teach and bring to your remembrance all things’ ( Job. xiv. 16, 17, 26; xvi. 14 ).