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Journey of a Passage

Job 2:9

The speech of Job's wife

In Hebrew, Job's wife speaks one line: "Dost thou still retain thine integrity? curse God, and die." In the Greek tradition she speaks a paragraph about her lost children and her life as a hired servant. The library's Greek (Giguet), Church Slavonic and Sahidic Coptic all carry the longer speech; the Vulgate and KJV follow the Hebrew.

Disputed addition: some witnesses include it, some do not

The family tree

Each row is a language or text tradition. Witnesses in the same row may share ancestry, revise one another, or have an uncertain relationship; the line under each box says which. A solid arrow appears only where direct copying or a documented revised edition is established. Order by date never implies copying. Scroll sideways on a phone.

✓ includes the disputed words · ✕ does not include them · ❝ quotes part of them · ⓘ reports on manuscripts · ▢ pages lost · – no copy survives

  • Same line, through lost copies
  • Translation
Hebrew
  1. Original JobPoem often dated 6th–4th century BC (debated)
  2. Masoretic Text (Leningrad Codex)AD 1008Descends, through lost copies, from Original Job
Aramaic
    Greek and its daughters
    1. Sahidic Coptic JobTranslated c. 3rd–4th century AD from the pre-Origen GreekTranslated from the shorter Old Greek
    2. Church Slavonic (Elizabeth Bible)1751, from GreekTranslated from the Greek text
    3. Greek Job, filled-out text (library: Giguet's French)Printed Septuagint; translated 1872Translated from the Greek text as filled out after Origen
    Latin
    1. Jerome's Vulgatec. AD 390s, from HebrewTranslated from Hebrew texts of Jerome's day
    English
    1. King James Bible1611Translated from printed Masoretic Hebrew

    Every witness, in order

    1. Poem often dated 6th–4th century BC (debated)

      Original Job

      – No copy survives

      No original survives. Small Hebrew fragments of Job are known from Qumran (2Q15, 4Q99–101).

    2. Translated c. 3rd–4th century AD from the pre-Origen Greek

      Sahidic Coptic Job

      ✓ Contains this passage (the disputed words)Translated from the shorter Old Greek

      How the site knows this: Reported in scholarship; not checked by the site.

      ⲛⲧⲉⲣⲉ ⲟⲩⲛⲟϭ ⲛⲟⲩⲟⲉⲓϣ ⲟⲩⲉⲓⲛⲉ ⲡⲉϫⲉ ⲧⲉⲥϩⲓⲙⲉ ⲛⲁϥ ϫⲉ ϣⲁⲧⲛⲁⲩ ⲕⲛⲁϥⲉⲓ ⲉⲕϫⲱ ⲙⲙⲟⲥ ϫⲉ ⲉⲓⲥϩⲏⲏⲧⲉ ϯⲛⲁϭⲱ ⲛⲕⲉⲕⲟⲩⲓ ⲛⲟⲩⲟⲉⲓϣ ⲉⲓϭⲱϣⲧ ⲉⲃⲟⲗϩⲏⲧⲥ ⲛⲑⲉⲗⲡⲓⲥ ⲙⲡⲁⲟⲩϫⲁⲓ ⲉⲓⲥϩⲏⲏⲧⲉ ⲅⲁⲣ ⲁ ⲡⲉⲕⲣⲙⲉⲉⲩⲉ ⲧⲁⲕⲟ ϩⲓϫⲙ ⲡⲕⲁϩ ⲛϣⲏⲣⲉ ⲙⲛ ⲛϣⲉⲉⲣⲉ ⲛⲛⲁⲁⲁⲕⲉ ⲛϩⲏⲧ ⲙⲛ ⲛⲁϩⲓⲥⲉ ⲛⲁⲓ ⲛⲧⲁⲓϣⲡϩⲓⲥⲉ ⲉⲣⲟⲟⲩⲉⲡϫⲓⲛϫⲏ ϩⲛ ϩⲛⲙⲟⲕϩⲥ ⲛⲧⲟⲕ ⲇⲉ ⲉⲕϩⲙⲟⲟⲥ ϩⲛ ϩⲉⲛⲃⲛⲧ ⲉⲩϩⲟⲟⲩ ⲉⲕⲱ ⲛⲟⲩϣⲏⲛⲣⲟⲉⲓⲥ ϩⲛ ⲧⲉⲓⲱⲧⲉ ⲁⲛⲟⲕ ⲇⲉ ⲉⲓⲕⲱⲧⲉ ⲉⲓⲟ ⲛϩⲙϩⲁⲗ ⲉⲓⲛⲏⲩ ⲉⲃⲟⲗϩⲛ ⲟⲩⲙⲁ ⲉⲩⲙⲁ ⲁⲩⲱ ϩⲛ ⲟⲩⲏⲓ ⲉⲟⲩⲏⲓ ⲉⲓϭⲱϣⲧ ⲉⲃⲟⲗϩⲏⲧϥ ⲙⲡⲣⲏ ϫⲉ ⲉϥⲛⲁϩⲱⲧⲡ ⲧⲛⲁⲩ ϫⲉ ⲉⲓⲁⲙⲧⲟⲛ ⲙⲙⲟⲓ ϩⲛ ⲛⲁϩⲓⲥⲉ ⲙⲛ ⲛⲁⲙⲟⲕϩⲥ ⲉⲧϣⲟⲟⲡ ⲙⲙⲟⲓ ⲧⲉⲛⲟⲩ ⲁⲗⲗⲁ ϫⲉ ⲟⲩϣⲁϫⲉ ⲉⲡϫⲟⲉⲓⲥ ⲛⲅⲙⲟⲩ

      Coptic text; it contains the long speech. No English gloss is given here.

    3. c. AD 390s, from Hebrew

      Jerome's Vulgate

      ✓ Contains this passage (the disputed words)Translated from Hebrew texts of Jerome's day

      How the site knows this: Read in the site's library text: Clementine Vulgate (1592 edition).

      Dixit autem illi uxor sua: Adhuc tu permanes in simplicitate tua? Benedic Deo, et morere.

    4. AD 1008

      Masoretic Text (Leningrad Codex)

      ✓ Contains this passage (the disputed words)Descends, through lost copies, from Original Job

      How the site knows this: Read in the site's library text: Westminster Leningrad Codex, a digital transcription of the Leningrad Codex.

      וַתֹּ֤אמֶר לוֹ֙ אִשְׁתּ֔וֹ עֹדְךָ֖ מַחֲזִ֣יק בְּתֻמָּתֶ֑ךָ בָּרֵ֥ךְ אֱלֹהִ֖ים וָמֻֽת׃

    5. 1611

      King James Bible

      ✓ Contains this passage (the disputed words)Translated from printed Masoretic Hebrew

      How the site knows this: Read in the site's library text: King James Version (1769 text).

      Then said his wife unto him, Dost thou still retain thine integrity? curse God, and die.

    6. 1751, from Greek

      Church Slavonic (Elizabeth Bible)

      ✓ Contains this passage (the disputed words)Translated from the Greek text

      How the site knows this: Reported in scholarship; not checked by the site.

      Времени же многу минувшу, рече к нему жена его: доколе терпиши глаголя: се, пожду время еще мало, чая надежди спасения моего? Се бо, потребися от земли память твоя, сынове твои и дщери, моего чрева болезни и труды, имиже вотще трудихся с болезньми: ты же сам в гнои червей седиши, обнощевая вне без покрова, и аз скитающися и служащи, место от места преходящи, и дом от дому, ожидающи солнца, когда зайдет, да почию от трудов моих и от болезней, яже мя ныне обдержат: но рцы глагол некий ко Господу и умри.

      Contains the long speech.

    7. Printed Septuagint; translated 1872

      Greek Job, filled-out text (library: Giguet's French)

      ✓ Contains this passage (the disputed words)Translated from the Greek text as filled out after Origen

      How the site knows this: Known here only through a translation.

      Et, bien des jours s’étant écoulés, sa femme lui dit: Jusques à quand te résigneras-tu, disant: Oui, j’attendrai encore un peu de temps, persévérant dans l’espérance de mon salut? Voilà que sont effacés de la terre les souvenirs de toi, de tes fils et de tes filles, peine et souffrance de mes entrailles, et que j’ai vainement portés dans la douleur. Te voilà seul, assis dans la pourriture des vers, passant la nuit au serein. Et moi, errante et servant à gages, de lieu en lieu, de maison en maison, j’attends le coucher du soleil pour me reposer des labeurs et des maux qui maintenant m’accablent. Mais dis au Seigneur quelques paroles contre Dieu et meurs.

      Greek via Giguet's French (filled-out printed text); not checked against Ziegler's critical edition.

    What changed, and why

    The Greek expansion may be the translator's own or reflect an early Jewish retelling; no Hebrew text with it is known. It is present in the Coptic, which follows the shorter pre-Origen Greek, so it belongs to the Old Greek itself, not to Origen's supplements. The Testament of Job develops her further (named Sitis). The site presents the speech as an ancient interpretation within the Greek tradition.

    What the evidence shows

    • Independently documentedThe Old Greek gives Job's wife a long speech at 2:9.
    • Not independently verifiedA Hebrew original of the longer speech existed.

    Sources

      Related lessons

      • Skin for Skin, and Seven Days of Silence →In a second heavenly scene the LORD says Job still holds his integrity "although thou movedst me against him, to destroy him without cause." The accuser answers "Skin for skin" and is allowed to strike Job's body, sparing his life. Job sits among the ashes scraping his sores with a broken piece of pottery. His wife says, "Dost thou still retain thine integrity? curse God, and die." He refuses. Three friends, Eliphaz, Bildad and Zophar, come to comfort him, weep, and sit with him seven days and nights without a word.
      • Investigation: Why Ancient Jobs Differ →There is no single ancient Job. The Hebrew survives in fragments from Qumran and complete in medieval Masoretic codices. An Aramaic translation (11Q10) from Cave 11 preserves large parts of chapters 17–42. The Old Greek translation was about one-sixth shorter than the Hebrew; in the 3rd century Origen filled the gaps from Theodotion's Greek and marked the additions with asterisks. Later Greek manuscripts and printed Septuagints often keep the filled-out text without the marks. The Sahidic Coptic version preserves the shorter Greek. The library lets you see some of these differences.