Job 29:3

American Standard Version with Strong's Numbers

When his lamp shined upon my head, And by his light I walked through darkness;

Grammatical Analysis

Original Text

בְּהִלּ֣וֹ נֵ֭רוֹ עֲלֵ֣י רֹאשִׁ֑י לְ֝אוֹרוֹ אֵ֣לֶךְ חֹֽשֶׁךְ

Transliteration

bə-hillô nērô ʿălê rōʾšî lə-ʾôrô ʾēlek ḥōšek

Grammar Details

*bə-hillô*: preposition + Hiphil infinitive construct + 3rd masc singular suffix - when he caused to shine
*nērô*: noun, masculine singular + 3rd masc singular suffix - his lamp
*ʿălê*: preposition + - upon/over
*rōʾšî*: noun, masculine singular + 1st person singular suffix - my head
*lə-ʾôrô*: preposition + noun, masculine singular + 3rd masc singular suffix - by his light
*ʾēlek*: Qal imperfect, 1st person singular - I walked
*ḥōšek*: noun, masculine singular - darkness

Word Meanings

*bə-hillô*: when his lamp shone/when he made his lamp shine
*nēr*: lamp/light
*ʾēlek*: I walked/went/proceeded
*ḥōšek*: darkness/obscurity

ℹ️

About this Translation

American Standard Version with Strong's Numbers

Formal EquivalenceSource: American Standard VersionBest for: Word studies and original-language research

🎯 Translation Approach

A highly literal, word-for-word translation (ASV, 1901) augmented with Strong's numbering to connect English words to underlying Hebrew and Greek terms for study.

Word-for-word

5/5

Readability

2/5

💎 Distinctive Features

Integrated Strong's numbering: Links English terms to underlying Hebrew and Greek words for deeper lexical study.
Formal equivalence: Prioritizes close alignment with source-language forms and structures.
Divine name rendering: Frequently renders the Tetragrammaton as Jehovah in the Old Testament, following ASV tradition.
Study-focused formatting: Optimized for reference and research rather than casual reading.

✅ Strengths

High fidelity to original languages
Includes Strong's numbers for precise word study
Consistent lexical choices aid exegesis
Stable, longstanding scholarly text

⚠️ Considerations

Archaic language reduces readability
Older textual basis compared to some modern translations
Strong's numbers are a concordance index, not full lexical definitions

👥 Who is this for?

Ideal for

Pastors and teachers
Seminary students
Serious Bible students
Readers conducting word studies
Those referencing Hebrew/Greek tools

Consider alternatives for

Casual readers
Children and early teens
ESL learners seeking simple English
Readers preferring contemporary language

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Additional Resources

Referenced Verses

Ps 18:28 : 28 For thou wilt light my lamp: Jehovah my God will lighten my darkness.
Job 18:6 : 6 The light shall be dark in his tent, And his lamp above him shall be put out.
John 8:12 : 12 Again therefore Jesus spake unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not {G3361} walk in the darkness, but shall have the light of life.
John 12:46 : 46 I am come a light into the world, that whosoever believeth on me may not abide in the darkness.
Eph 5:8 : 8 For ye were once darkness, but are now light in the Lord: walk as children of light
Eph 5:14 : 14 Wherefore [he] saith, Awake, thou that sleepest, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall shine upon thee.
Job 11:17 : 17 And [thy] life shall be clearer than the noonday; Though there be darkness, it shall be as the morning.
Isa 2:4 : 4 And he will judge between the nations, and will decide concerning many peoples; and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning-hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more.
Job 22:28 : 28 Thou shalt also decree a thing, and it shall be established unto thee; And light shall shine upon thy ways.
Ps 84:11 : 11 For Jehovah God is a sun and a shield: Jehovah will give grace and glory; No good thing will he withhold from them that walk uprightly.
Prov 13:9 : 9 The light of the righteous rejoiceth; But the lamp of the wicked shall be put out.
Prov 20:20 : 20 Whoso curseth his father or his mother, His lamp shall be put out in blackness of darkness.
Prov 24:20 : 20 For there shall be no reward to the evil man; The lamp of the wicked shall be put out.
Ps 4:6 : 6 Many there are that say, Who will show us [any] good? Jehovah, lift thou up the light of thy countenance upon us.
Job 21:17 : 17 How oft is it that the lamp of the wicked is put out? That their calamity cometh upon them? That [God] distributeth sorrows in his anger?
Ps 23:4 : 4 Yea, thou I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; for thou art with me; Thy rod and thy staff, they comfort me.
Ps 27:1 : 1 [ A Psalm of David.] Jehovah is my light and my salvation; Whom shall I fear? Jehovah is the strength of my life; Of whom shall I be afraid?

Similar Verses (AI)

These verses are found using AI-powered semantic similarity based on meaning and context. Results may occasionally include unexpected connections.

Job 29:4-7
4 verses
83%
4As I was in the ripeness of my days, When the friendship of God was upon my tent;
5When the Almighty was yet with me, And my children were about me;
6When my steps were washed with butter, And the rock poured me out streams of oil!
7When I went forth to the gate unto the city, When I prepared my seat in the street,
Ps 18:28
80%
28For thou wilt light my lamp: Jehovah my God will lighten my darkness.
Lam 3:1-2
2 verses
80%
1I am the man that hath seen affliction by the rod of his wrath.
2He hath led me and caused me to walk in darkness, and not in light.
2 Sam 22:29
79%
29For thou art my lamp, O Jehovah; And Jehovah will lighten my darkness.
Job 31:26
79%
26If I have beheld the sun when it shined, Or the moon walking in brightness,
Job 29:2
79%
2Oh that I were as in the months of old, As in the days when God watched over me;
Ps 139:11-12
2 verses
79%
11If I say, Surely the darkness shall overwhelm me, And the light about me shall be night;
12Even the darkness hideth not from thee, But the night shineth as the day: The darkness and the light are both alike [to thee].
Job 23:17
78%
17Because I was not cut off before the darkness, Neither did he cover the thick darkness from my face.
Job 18:5-6
2 verses
78%
5Yea, the light of the wicked shall be put out, And the spark of his fire shall not shine.
6The light shall be dark in his tent, And his lamp above him shall be put out.
Job 19:8-9
2 verses
76%
8He hath walled up my way that I cannot pass, And hath set darkness in my paths.
9He hath stripped me of my glory, And taken the crown from my head.
Job 30:26
75%
26When I looked for good, then evil came; And when I waited for light, there came darkness.
Job 38:19
75%
19Where is the way to the dwelling of light? And as for darkness, where is the place thereof,
Lam 3:6-7
2 verses
74%
6He hath made me to dwell in dark places, as those that have been long dead.
7He hath walled me about, that I cannot go forth; he hath made my chain heavy.
Job 3:23
74%
23[ Why is light given] to a man whose way is hid, And whom God hath hedged in?
Mic 7:8
72%
8Rejoice not against me, O mine enemy: when I fall, I shall arise; when I sit in darkness, Jehovah will be a light unto me.
Job 10:21-22
2 verses
72%
21Before I go whence I shall not return, [Even] to the land of darkness and of the shadow of death;
22The land dark as midnight, [The land] of the shadow of death, without any order, And where the light is as midnight.
Job 17:12-13
2 verses
72%
12They change the night into day: The light, [say they], is near unto the darkness.
13If I look for Sheol as my house; If I have spread my couch in the darkness;
Ps 142:3
72%
3When my spirit was overwhelmed within me, Thou knewest my path. In the way wherein I walk Have they hidden a snare for me.
Job 3:4-5
2 verses
72%
4Let that day be darkness; Let not God from above seek for it, Neither let the light shine upon it.
5Let darkness and the shadow of death claim it for their own; Let a cloud dwell upon it; Let all that maketh black the day terrify it.
Job 28:3
72%
3[ Man] setteth an end to darkness, And searcheth out, to the furthest bound, The stones of obscurity and of thick darkness.
Job 3:9
72%
9Let the stars of the twilight thereof be dark: Let it look for light, but have none; Neither let it behold the eyelids of the morning:
Job 3:16
72%
16Or as a hidden untimely birth I had not been, As infants that never saw light.
Lam 3:9
72%
9He hath walled up my ways with hewn stone; he hath made my paths crooked.
Job 17:7
72%
7Mine eye also is dim by reason of sorrow, And all my members are as a shadow.
Job 11:17
72%
17And [thy] life shall be clearer than the noonday; Though there be darkness, it shall be as the morning.
Ps 143:3
71%
3For the enemy hath persecuted my soul; He hath smitten my life down to the ground: He hath made me to dwell in dark places, as those that have been long dead.
Job 25:3
71%
3Is there any number of his armies? And upon whom doth not his light arise?
2 Sam 22:13
71%
13At the brightness before him Coals of fire were kindled.
Eccl 12:2
71%
2before the sun, and the light, and the moon, and the stars, are darkened, and the clouds return after the rain;
Jer 13:16
71%
16Give glory to Jehovah your God, before he cause darkness, and before your feet stumble upon the dark mountains, and, while ye look for light, he turn it into the shadow of death, and make it gross darkness.
Dan 2:22
71%
22he revealeth the deep and secret things; he knoweth what is in the darkness, and the light dwelleth with him.
Prov 13:9
71%
9The light of the righteous rejoiceth; But the lamp of the wicked shall be put out.
Job 29:11
71%
11For when the ear heard [me], then it blessed me; And when the eye saw [me], it gave witness unto me:
Job 7:3
71%
3So am I made to possess months of misery, And wearisome nights are appointed to me.
Job 37:19
71%
19Teach us what we shall say unto him; [For] we cannot set [our speech] in order by reason of darkness.
Job 12:22
71%
22He uncovereth deep things out of darkness, And bringeth out to light the shadow of death.
Ps 43:3
71%
3Oh send out thy light and thy truth; Let them lead me: Let them bring me unto thy holy hill, And to thy tabernacles.
Eccl 2:13
71%
13Then I saw that wisdom excelleth folly, as far as light excelleth darkness.
Job 41:32
71%
32He maketh a path to shine after him; One would think the deep to be hoary.