Job highlights the sheer impossibility of a fair trial because God isn't on his level. The verse subtly points out that Job can't even imagine debating or pleading his case on equal footing with the Almighty, revealing his deep sense of God's infinite superiority and his own helplessness.
For he is not a man, as I am, that I might answer him, that we should come to trial together. There is no arbiter between us, who might lay his hand on us both. Let him take his rod away from me, and let not dread of him terrify me.
English Standard Version (ESV)
Job is wrestling with the immense power and unknowable ways of God, feeling like a tiny, flawed human facing an infinitely superior being. He wishes he could debate his case, but God isn't like him, and there's no earthly court or mediator to bring them together on equal footing for a fair trial.
Job feels utterly outmatched. He's facing the Almighty, and the sheer difference in their nature makes a fair 'trial' impossible. What does this vast gap truly mean?
A Cosmic Disparity
Job hits on a profound truth here: God isn't just a bigger, stronger version of us. He is fundamentally different. He's infinite, eternal, and holy, while we are finite, fragile, and flawed.
Why the Difference Matters
This isn't just about God being powerful; it's about an unbridgeable gulf in being. It means we can't approach Him on our own terms, expecting to debate or argue as equals. The sheer disparity makes it impossible.
Job longs for someone to stand between him and God, an umpire to settle the dispute. This isn't just a legal plea; it's a deep spiritual yearning.
The Need for a 'Daysman'
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Job uses the word 'daysman,' which means an umpire or mediator. He recognizes that he cannot face God directly in judgment. He needs someone to stand between them.
Why a Mediator is Essential
While Job didn't fully understand it, his desperate plea points towards a profound truth: humanity's inability to reconcile itself with a holy God on its own.
Job's desperate cry for a mediator finds its ultimate fulfillment in Jesus Christ. How does the Gospel directly address Job's deepest anxieties?
The Divine Solution
Job's longing for a 'daysman' isn't just a historical curiosity; it's a prophecy pointing directly to Jesus. The New Testament presents Jesus as the perfect mediator Job envisioned.
How Jesus Fulfills the Need:
Job wrestled with the impossibility of facing a holy God. We can rejoice because Jesus has already paved the way, allowing us to approach God with confidence through Him.
Understand the original words
ish · Hebrew Noun
A human being, distinguished here from God by mortality, frailty, and limitations; the term highlights the ontological chasm between the Creator and the creature.
mishpat · Hebrew Noun
A formal legal process or judgment; often refers to a litigation or contention where parties seek to resolve a dispute or establish truth before a judge.
mokiyach · Hebrew Noun
One who settles a dispute or reconciles parties; an intermediary or umpire who stands between two sides to bring about an equitable resolution.
shebet · Hebrew Noun
A symbol of discipline, authority, power, or punishment used by God to correct His people or assert His sovereign control over creation.
eymah · Hebrew Noun
A profound, overwhelming sense of awe or terror often associated with the presence of God or the manifestation of His holiness, power, and judgment.
ba'ath · Hebrew Verb
The response of overwhelming fear or alarm, often paralyzing the individual, especially when confronting the divine or the unknown.
Job's lament reflects the deep yearning for a mediator, a 'daysman,' that became clearer with the New Testament, but was a profound, though perhaps not fully understood, cry even in the ancient, post-exilic community seeking God's justice.
c. 2000-1600 BC
Age of the Patriarchs
The period of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, where foundational promises were made to Israel, though their nationhood had not yet fully formed.
c. 1500-1200 BC
Exodus and Wilderness Wandering
The liberation of Israel from Egyptian slavery and their subsequent forty years in the desert, establishing them as a distinct people under God's law.
c. 1000 BC
United Monarchy under David
The establishment of a unified kingdom with Jerusalem as its capital, a time of relative peace and national strength.
c. 900-700 BC
Division of the Kingdom and Prophetic Ministry
The northern kingdom of Israel and the southern kingdom of Judah split, facing internal strife and external threats, with prophets calling them to repentance.
c. 722 BC
Fall of Samaria and Northern Kingdom
The Assyrian Empire conquers the northern kingdom of Israel, scattering its people and serving as a stark warning to Judah.
c. 586 BC
Fall of Jerusalem and Babylonian Exile
The Babylonian Empire destroys Jerusalem and its Temple, exiling much of the population, a devastating blow to national and religious life.
c. 5th-4th century BC— this verse
Post-Exilic Period and Rebuilding
The return of some exiles to Judah, the rebuilding of the Temple, and the re-establishment of Jewish life under Persian rule, grappling with their identity and relationship with God.
This passage echoes Job's longing for a mediator by highlighting Christ as God's provision of wisdom, righteousness, sanctification, and redemption for us, effectively answering Job's desperate need for someone to stand between him and God.
1 Timothy 2:5Job's realization that God is not like him and that a trial between them is impossible points to the essential truth that there is 'one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus,' who bridges the infinite gap.
Isaiah 42:1-4This prophecy describes a servant who will not 'cry out or lift up his voice, nor cause his voice to be heard in the street' and will 'bring forth justice to the nations,' mirroring Job's desire for a gentle, just mediator who can settle the case without further conflict.
Hebrews 4:15Job's lament that he cannot answer God or meet with Him in judgment is directly addressed by this verse, which assures us that we have a High Priest who can sympathize with our weaknesses and intercede for us.
ellicottJob 9:32: "For he is not a man, as I am, that I should answer him, and we should come together in judgment."
(32, 33) For he is not a man, as I am . . . —Is not that confession, if we believe that such a daysman as Job longed for has been given, itself a witness that it came from God, and was given by God? The light that has shined upon us was shining then in the heart of Job, and shines for ever in the pages of his book. Job felt, as he had been taught to feel, that in himself there not only w…
pooleJob 9:32: "For he is not a man, as I am, that I should answer him, and we should come together in judgment."
He is not a man, as I am; but one infinitely superior to me in majesty, and power, and wisdom, and justice. That I should answer him; that I should presume to debate my cause with him, or answer his allegations against me. That we should come together, face to face, to plead upon equal terms before a superior and indifferent judge.
Job highlights the sheer impossibility of a fair trial because God isn't on his level. The verse subtly points out that Job can't even imagine debating or pleading his case on equal footing with the Almighty, revealing his deep sense of God's infinite superiority and his own helplessness.
Job is wrestling with the immense power and unknowable ways of God, feeling like a tiny, flawed human facing an infinitely superior being. He wishes he could debate his case, but God isn't like him, and there's no earthly court or mediator to bring them together on equal footing for a fair trial.
Job is wrestling with the immense power and unknowable ways of God, feeling like a tiny, flawed human facing an infinitely superior being. He wishes he could debate his case, but God isn't like him, and there's no earthly court or mediator to bring them together on equal footing for a fair trial.
"For he is not a man, as I am, that I might answer him, that we should come to trial together. There is no arbiter between us, who might lay his hand on us both. Let him take his rod away from me, and let not dread o…" — Job highlights the sheer impossibility of a fair trial because God isn't on his level. The verse subtly points out that Job can't even imagine debating or pleading his case on equal footing with th…
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Last reviewed October 2026
