Job 1:9 (ASV)

Passage

Then Satan answered Jehovah, and said, Doth Job fear God for nought?

Nearby Context

Job 1:7 And Jehovah said unto Satan, Whence comest thou? Then Satan answered Jehovah, and said, From going to and fro in the earth, and from walking up and down in it.

Job 1:8 And Jehovah said unto Satan, Hast thou considered my servant Job? for there is none like him in the earth, a perfect and an upright man, one that feareth God, and turneth away from evil.

Job 1:9 Then Satan answered Jehovah, and said, Doth Job fear God for nought?

Job 1:10 Hast not thou made a hedge about him, and about his house, and about all that he hath, on every side? thou hast blessed the work of his hands, and his substance is increased in the land.

Job 1:11 But put forth thy hand now, and touch all that he hath, and he will renounce thee to thy face.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "satan", "answered", "jehovah", "said", "doth", "fear", and "nought". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "satan" and "answered", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 8's "And Jehovah said unto Satan Hast thou..." into verse 10's "Hast not thou made a hedge about...", so "satan" and "answered" belong inside that flow. In Job context, the local focus is covenant, worship, and faithfulness.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "satan" and "answered" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.