Job 42:6 (WEB)

Passage

Therefore I abhor myself, and repent in dust and ashes.”

Nearby Context

Job 42:4 You said, ‘Listen, now, and I will speak; I will question you, and you will answer me.’

Job 42:5 I had heard of you by the hearing of the ear, but now my eye sees you.

Job 42:6 Therefore I abhor myself, and repent in dust and ashes.”

Job 42:7 It was so, that after Yahweh had spoken these words to Job, Yahweh said to Eliphaz the Temanite, “My wrath is kindled against you, and against your two friends; for you have not spoken of me the thing that is right, as my servant Job has.

Job 42:8 Now therefore, take to yourselves seven bulls and seven rams, and go to my servant Job, and offer up for yourselves a burnt offering; and my servant Job shall pray for you, for I will accept him, that I not deal with you according to your folly. For you have not spoken of me the thing that is right, as my servant Job has.”

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "therefore", "abhor", "myself", "repent", "dust", and "ashes". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "therefore" and "abhor", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 5's "I had heard of you by the..." into verse 7's "It was so that after Yahweh had...", so "therefore" and "abhor" 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 "therefore" and "abhor" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.