Job Chapter 34 verse 14 Holy Bible
If he set his heart upon himself, `If' he gather unto himself his spirit and his breath;
read chapter 34 in ASV
If he made his spirit come back to him, taking his breath into himself again,
read chapter 34 in BBE
If he only thought of himself, [and] gathered unto him his spirit and his breath,
read chapter 34 in DARBY
If he set his heart upon man, if he gather unto himself his spirit and his breath;
read chapter 34 in KJV
If he should set his heart upon man, if he should gather to himself his spirit and his breath;
read chapter 34 in WBT
If he set his heart on himself, If he gathered to himself his spirit and his breath;
read chapter 34 in WEB
If He doth set on him His heart, His spirit and his breath unto Him He gathereth.
read chapter 34 in YLT
Pulpit Commentary
Pulpit CommentaryVerse 14. - If he set his heart upon man, if he gather unto himself his spirit and his breath. Two renderings are proposed, both supported By about equal authority: (1) "If he (i.e. God) set his heart upon himself, if he should gather to himself his own spirit, and breath," then all flesh would perish, etc. (2) "If he [i.e. God] set his heart upon [or, 'against'] man, if he were to gather to himself man's spirit and man's breath," then, etc. The difference is not great. God could, either by withdrawing from man the breath and spirit which he has given him, or simply by withholding from man the quickening and sustaining influences which he is perpetually putting forth, reduce all humankind to nothingness. Being so completely master of man, he would surely not condescend to treat him with injustice. Injustice implies something of opposition, struggle, rivalry.
Ellicott's Commentary
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers(14) If he set his heart upon man.--Or, upon himself. It is ambiguous: and so, likewise, the next clause is. We must either regard it as the consequence of the former one--"If He set His heart upon Himself, had regard to His own interest, then He would gather unto Himself His own spirit and His own breath"--or we must do as some do: supply the "if" at the beginning of it, and read it as in the Authorised Version. In this sense, the setting His heart upon man would mean in a bad sense--to do him injury. In doing him injury He would, in fact, injure His own. The effect of His setting His heart on man would be that all flesh would perish together, and man would turn again to his dust; but then God would have injured His own, and not another's, in so doing. It is hardly possible that the writer of this last clause should have been ignorant of Genesis 3:19. The speech of Elihu is marked with entire self-confidence.
