“For it increaseth. Thou huntest me as a fierce lion: and again thou shewest thyself marvellous upon me.”
My Notes
What Does Job 10:16 Mean?
"For it increaseth. Thou huntest me as a fierce lion: and again thou shewest thyself marvellous upon me." Job accuses God of being a PREDATOR: 'You HUNT me like a fierce lion.' The image is terrifying — God as a lion stalking Job as prey. The divine pursuit isn't protective. It's PREDATORY. The God who should be the Shepherd (Psalm 23) is experienced by Job as the HUNTER. The relationship has inverted.
The phrase "thou huntest me as a fierce lion" (kashachal tetzudeni — like a lion you hunt me) uses TZUD — to hunt, to chase, to pursue as prey. God is the HUNTER and Job is the ANIMAL being pursued. The hunting metaphor implies INTENTION — the lion doesn't accidentally find its prey. It STALKS. It tracks. It pursues with purpose. Job feels God's attention as predatory pursuit.
The phrase "thou shewest thyself marvellous upon me" (vetashov titpala bi — you return, you show yourself extraordinary/terrible against me) uses PALA — to be wonderful, to be extraordinary, to be beyond comprehension. The same word used for God's MIRACLES is used here for God's AFFLICTIONS. The marvelous works of God — the wonders, the miracles, the extraordinary acts — are now experienced as extraordinary SUFFERING. The marvel is the pain. The wonder is the wound.
Reflection Questions
- 1.When has God's attention felt more like hunting than shepherding?
- 2.What does the same word (pala/marvellous) being used for miracles AND afflictions teach about how suffering distorts the experience of God?
- 3.How does Job being ALLOWED to call God a predator demonstrate what honest prayer can contain?
- 4.What divine 'wonder' in your life has felt more like a wound than a miracle?
Devotional
God as LION. Job as PREY. The image is deliberately horrifying: the God of Israel — the Shepherd, the Protector, the Refuge — is experienced by Job as a PREDATOR. The divine attention that should comfort is felt as pursuit. The presence that should protect is experienced as hunting. The relationship has INVERTED.
The 'HUNTEST me' is intentional, not accidental: a lion doesn't stumble across its prey. It TRACKS. It stalks. It pursues with skill and patience. Job feels God's attention as deliberate, skilled, patient PURSUIT — not the random wandering of the universe but the focused tracking of a predator toward its target. The suffering isn't careless. It's PRECISE.
The 'MARVELLOUS upon me' is the cruelest twist: the word for God's miracles (pala — wonderful, extraordinary) is used for God's afflictions. The same God whose WONDERS parted the Red Sea now shows Himself 'marvellous' through SUFFERING. The extraordinary divine action that once meant salvation now means destruction. The word hasn't changed. The EXPERIENCE has. The marvel is no longer the rescue. The marvel is the wound.
Job is ALLOWED to say this: the Bible records — without censure — a righteous man calling God a lion-predator and describing divine miracles as divine afflictions. The text doesn't correct Job here. It INCLUDES his perception. The suffering person's distorted experience of God is considered WORTH PRESERVING in the canon. The prayer that feels like blasphemy is given canonical space.
When has God's attention felt less like shepherding and more like hunting — and did you tell Him?
Commentary
Trusted original commentary from respected historical Bible scholars and theologians.
Thou renewest thy witnesses against me,.... Not the devils, as some, nor Job's friends, as others; but rather…
For it increaseth - Our translators understand this as meaning that the calamities of Job, so far from becoming less,…
Here we have,
I. Job's passionate complaints. On this harsh and unpleasant string he harps much, in which, though he…
This verse reads, and if it (i. e. my head) should lift itself up, thou wouldst hunt me as a fierce lion, and again shew…
Cross References
Related passages throughout Scripture