The Meaning of Job 42:5 Explained

Job 42:5

KJV: I have heard of thee by the hearing of the ear: but now mine eye seeth thee.

YLT: By the hearing of the ear I heard Thee, And now mine eye hath seen Thee.

Darby: I had heard of thee by the hearing of the ear, but now mine eye seeth thee:

ASV: I had heard of thee by the hearing of the ear; But now mine eye seeth thee:

KJV Reverse Interlinear

I have heard  of thee by the hearing  of the ear:  but now mine eye  seeth  thee. 

What does Job 42:5 Mean?

Context Summary

Job 42:1-17 - Restored To Right Relations With God
In complete surrender Job bowed before God, confessing his ignorance and owning that he had spoken glibly of things which he understood not. He had retorted to his friends that he was as good as they, but now he confessed, as did the Apostle after him, that he was of sinners the chief. It is one thing to hear of God, another to see and know Him close at hand. Well may we loathe our proud words and repent in dust and ashes, Job 42:6, r.v., margin.
When Job was right with God, the Almighty took his side against his accusers and silenced them. It was through Job's intercessions that they were forgiven. He himself was not fully forgiven till he could pray for them with loving forgiveness. But immediately he had done so God turned "the shadow of death into the morning" and gave him the double portion of the first-born. Thus men, when forgiven and restored, are heirs of riches greater than they had forfeited. [source]

Chapter Summary: Job 42

1  Job submits himself unto God
7  God, preferring Job's cause, makes his friends submit themselves, and accepts him
10  He magnifies and blesses Job
16  Job's age and death

What do the individual words in Job 42:5 mean?

By the hearing of the ear I have heard of You but now my eye sees You
לְשֵֽׁמַע־ אֹ֥זֶן שְׁמַעְתִּ֑יךָ וְ֝עַתָּ֗ה עֵינִ֥י רָאָֽתְךָ

לְשֵֽׁמַע־  By  the  hearing 
Parse: Preposition-l, Noun, masculine singular construct
Root: שָׁמַע 
Sense: to hear, listen to, obey.
אֹ֥זֶן  of  the  ear 
Parse: Noun, feminine singular
Root: אֹזֶן  
Sense: ear, as part of the body.
שְׁמַעְתִּ֑יךָ  I  have  heard  of  You 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Perfect, first person common singular, second person masculine singular
Root: שֵׁמַע  
Sense: report, a hearing.
וְ֝עַתָּ֗ה  but  now 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Adverb
Root: עַתָּה  
Sense: now.
עֵינִ֥י  my  eye 
Parse: Noun, common singular construct, first person common singular
Root: עֹונָה 
Sense: eye.
רָאָֽתְךָ  sees  You 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Perfect, third person feminine singular, second person masculine singular
Root: רָאָה 
Sense: to see, look at, inspect, perceive, consider.