OET interlinear JOB 9:3

uW Translation Notes:

Note 1 topic: writing-pronouns

אִם־יַ֭חְפֹּץ לָ⁠רִ֣יב עִמּ֑⁠וֹ

if wished to,contend with=him/it

In this part of the verse, the pronoun he refers to “a man” and the pronoun him refers to God. It may be helpful to clarify this for your readers. Alternate translation: “If a person desires to contend with God”

Note 2 topic: figures-of-speech / explicit

לָ⁠רִ֣יב עִמּ֑⁠וֹ

to,contend with=him/it

Job assumes that Bildad will understand that he is using the word contend to mean making a formal legal complaint against God. In this culture, people made such complaints to community leaders in public places such as the gate of a town. Each party would question the other in the presence of the leaders, who would then discuss the case and decide how to resolve it. Job is probably describing how he participated as a leader in such cases in 29:21–23. Your language may have an expression for this process that you could use in your translation. Alternate translation: “to take God to court” or “to file charges against God”

Note 3 topic: writing-pronouns

לֹֽא־יַ֝עֲנֶ֗⁠נּוּ

not answer,him

In this part of the verse, (1) the pronoun he could refer to a human being and the pronoun him could refer to God. This seems likely, since after describing God’s knowledge and power, Job asks in 9:14 how he could possibly answer God and in 9:32 he says that God is “not a man, as I am, that I could answer him.” Alternate translation: “a human will not answer God” (2) the pronoun he could refer to God and the pronoun him could refer to a human being. This is also a possibility, since Job protests in 30:20 that God does not answer him. Alternate translation: “God will not answer a human”

Note 4 topic: figures-of-speech / declarative

לֹֽא־יַ֝עֲנֶ֗⁠נּוּ

not answer,him

If Job means that a human will not answer God, then he is using the future tense to describe what a person would be able to do. Your language may have its own way of expressing such a meaning. Alternate translation: “he could not answer him” or “he would not be able to answer him”

Note 5 topic: figures-of-speech / hyperbole

אַחַ֥ת מִנִּי־אָֽלֶף

one(fs) in a_thousand

The expression not … one from a thousand (that is, not one time out of a thousand) is an overstatement for emphasis. It is unlikely that one party in a court case would ask the other party as many as a thousand questions. Job means that a person would not find a single way to answer God satisfactorily no matter how many questions God asked. If it would be clearer in your language, you could state the meaning plainly. Alternate translation: “no matter how many questions he asks”