Job 30:7 — Word Study
WLCבֵּין־ שִׂיחִ֥ים יִנְהָ֑קוּ תַּ֖חַת חָר֣וּל יְסֻפָּֽחוּ׃
BSAThey cried outnâhaq▸ [brayed, made noises like animals] amongbêyn the shrubssîyach [bushes, small plants] and huddledçâphach▸ [gathered together, collected] beneathtachath the nettleschârûwl [thorns, thorny weeds, undergrowth]
| Greek | English | Parsing |
|---|---|---|
| בֵּין־ | between | Prep |
| שִׂיחִ֥ים | bushes | Noun common, masculine plural absolute |
| יִנְהָ֑קוּ | they bray | Verb, Qal, imperfect third person masculine plural |
| תַּ֖חַת | under | Noun common, masculine singular construct |
| חָר֣וּל | nettle[s] | Noun common, masculine singular absolute |
| יְסֻפָּֽחוּ׃ | they are joined together | Verb, Pual, imperfect third person masculine plural |
Every word in the verse. Click a row to open it in the panel on the left.
| BSB | They cried out among the shrubs and huddled beneath the nettles. |
| KJV | Among the bushes they brayed; under the nettles they were gathered together. |
| ASV | Among the bushes they bray; Under the nettles they are gathered together. |
| YLT | Among shrubs they do groan, Under nettles they are gathered together. |
| WEB | They bray among the bushes. They are gathered together under the nettles. |
| BBE | They make noises like asses among the brushwood; they get together under the thorns. |
Where they part company is חָרוּל — see How Translations Differ.
The structure consists of a main action followed by two phrases that specify the location and additional action, creating a vivid scene.
8 commentators on this verse
Gill, Jamieson, Poole, Trapp & more — read them ›
clause
verbנָהַק
The sentence as the grammar sees it Open the tree ›
Every word here is used elsewhere in the Old Testament.
Bars are logarithmic — אֵת, the commonest word in the Hebrew Bible, stands about 11,000 times, so a linear scale would leave everything else invisible. Click a row to open that word.
Deep Study — Job 30:7
Sections marked generated are written from the data on this page rather than by a named author. Everything else — the lexicon entries, the cross references, the manuscript readings, the counts — is quoted from its source unchanged.
Context — Job's Lamentgenerated
Job 30:7 describes a scene of despair where individuals cry out among the shrubs and huddle beneath the nettles, highlighting their suffering and isolation. This verse is part of Job's broader lament about his misfortunes and the scorn he faces from others, as seen in the surrounding verses. Job's vivid imagery serves to illustrate the harsh realities of life for those marginalized and rejected by society.
Cross References
| Reference | Text (BSB) | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Job 6:5 | Does a wild donkey bray over fresh grass, or an ox low over its fodder? |
| 2 | Job 11:12 | But a witless man can no more become wise than the colt of a wild donkey can be born a man! |
| 3 | Genesis 16:12 | He will be a wild donkey of a man, and his hand will be against everyone, and everyone’s hand against him; he will live in hostility toward all his brothers.” |
The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge — 3 references, hung on the phrase they belong to
The Key Word — יִנְהָ֑קוּ, yin.Ha.kugenerated
The verb נָהַק (nahaq) means to bray or cry out, typically associated with the loud cries of animals, particularly donkeys. This word conveys a sense of urgent distress, as it describes the loud, desperate calls of those in need.
In this context, the use of יִנְהָ֑קוּ emphasizes the hopelessness of the individuals crying out. They are not merely making noise; they are expressing their deep need for help and recognition in a harsh environment.
How Translations Differ — measured against the Berean Standard Biblegenerated
This study reads the verse in the Berean Standard Bible, so the BSB is the wording every comparison below is made against.
Sentence Structuregenerated
The verse contains two main verbs: יִנְהָ֑קוּ (they bray) and יְסֻפָּֽחוּ (they are joined together). The structure shows a sequence of actions that illustrate the desperation of the subjects.
The prepositional phrases בֵּין־ שִׂיחִ֥ים (among the shrubs) and תַּ֖חַת חָר֣וּל (beneath the nettles) provide context for where these actions occur, emphasizing the bleak setting.
Septuagint Backgroundgenerated
The Septuagint translates בֵּין־ as μέσον, meaning 'in the midst of,' which retains the sense of being surrounded by the shrubs. This choice reflects a similar spatial relationship.
For חָרוּל, the LXX uses φρύγανα, a term that can refer to prickly plants, aligning closely with the original sense of thorny undergrowth.
In plain words — the whole versegenerated
Job 30:7 tells us that people cried out in desperation among the bushes and gathered beneath the thorny weeds. This imagery paints a picture of their suffering and isolation in a harsh environment.
Frequently Asked Questionsgenerated
Crying out among the shrubs indicates a desperate plea for help in a desolate and harsh environment.
Huddling beneath the nettles suggests seeking shelter or protection from the elements, even in an uncomfortable place.
The imagery emphasizes the suffering and abandonment felt by those in desperate situations, highlighting their need for recognition and aid.
This verse reflects Job's lament about his own suffering and the scorn he faces, illustrating the broader themes of despair and isolation throughout the book.
Reflection Questionsgenerated
- In what ways have I experienced feelings of isolation or desperation in my own life?
- How can I offer help or support to those who may be crying out in need around me?
- What does this verse teach me about the importance of community in times of struggle?
- How can I find hope in difficult circumstances, as Job seeks to express in his lament?
The early church on this verse — how the Fathers read it
The early Church Fathers often referenced Job's suffering. Here, Gregory the Dialogist reflects on the significance of the imagery in this verse.
Who rejoiced in the midst of the like, and reckoned there were delights under brambles. What do we understand by the name of 'brambles,' but those 'piercings' of sins, which we have already described above.Early Church Fathers on Job 30 →
Commentators on this verse — 8 expositors, verse by verse
Each of these wrote on Job 30:7 itself, not merely on the chapter around it.
John Gill1697–1771Gill's Exposition of the Entire BibleAmong the bushes they brayed,.... Like wild asses; so Sephorno, to which wicked men are fitly compared, Job 11:12; or they "cried", or "groaned" (m), and "moaned" among the bushes, where they lay
Read John Gill on Job 30 →Robert Jamieson1802–1880Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown's CommentaryAmong the bushes they brayed; under the nettles they were gathered together. Brayed - like the wild donkey (Job 6:5) for food.
Read Robert Jamieson on Job 30 →Matthew Poole1624–1679Matthew Poole's Commentary on the Holy BibleThey brayed, like the wild asses, , for hunger or thirst. Under the nettles, which seem not proper for that use. This Hebrew word is used but twice in Scripture, and it is acknowledged both by Jewish and Christian writers, that the signification of the Hebrew words which express plants, or beasts, or stones, &c. is very uncertain; and therefore this is by others, and may well be, understood of some kind of thorns; and so this is the same thing with the bushes in the former branch of the verse, under which they hid themselves, that they might not be discovered when they were sought out for justice.
Read Matthew Poole on Job 30 →John Trapp1601–1669Trapp's Complete Commentary on the Old and New TestamentsJob 30:7 Among the bushes they brayed; under the nettles they were gathered together.Ver. 7. Among the bushes they brayed] Through grief and discontent at their low condition and many miseries; which yet they would rather bootlessly bewail than take a right course to remedy. They lust, and have not; they kill (themselves through idleness), and desire to have (if it would come without labour), but cannot obtain, James 4:2. And hence they bray like the wild ass when empty, and roar as the lion when bitten with hunger. Under the nettles they were gathered together] Or they were pricked, whealed, as we call it. Urtica ab urendo, they were nettle stung, while they got under those weeds for…
Read John Trapp on Job 30 →Charles John Ellicott1819–1905Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers(7) Among the bushes they brayed.—Herodotus says their language was like the screeching of bats, others say it was like the whistling of birds. This whole description is of the mockers of Job, and therefore should be in the present tense in Job 30:5; Job 30:7-8, as it may be in the Authorised Version of Job 30:4.
Read Charles John Ellicott on Job 30 →AdamClarkeAdam Clarke's Commentary on the BibleVerse 7. Among the bushes they brayed] They cried out among the bushes, seeking for food, as the wild ass when he is in want of provender. Two MSS. read ינאקו yinaku, they groaned, instead of ינהקו yinhaku, they brayed. Under the nettles] חרול charul, the briers or brambles, under the brushwood in the thickest parts of the underwood; they huddled together like wild beasts.
Read AdamClarke on Job 30 →CambridgeThe Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges7. they brayed] Rather, they bray. were gathered] Better, are gathered, or perhaps rather, stretch themselves, i. e. fling themselves down. Their cries are like those of the wild ass seeking for food (ch. Job 6:5), and they throw themselves down like wild beasts under the bushes in the desert.
Read Cambridge on Job 30 →Albert Barnes1798–1870Barnes' Notes on the BibleAmong the bushes - Coverdale, “Upon the dry heath went they about crying.” The Hebrew word is the same which occurs in Job 30:4, and means bushes in general. They were heard in the shrubbery that grew in the desert.
Read Albert Barnes on Job 30 →The verse in English, compared — 17 translations, and where they part company
Every translation on this page is a decision someone had to make and commit to. Read down a column and you see one translator's judgement; read across a row and you see the range the Greek actually allows. The BSB is the wording the rest of this page is measured against, so it is listed first.
Modern formal
They cried out among the shrubs and huddled beneath the nettles.
They bray among the bushes. They are gathered together under the nettles.
They cried out among the shrubs and huddled beneath the nettles.
They brayed like animals among the bushes and were huddled together under the nettles.
Tyndale line
Among the bushes they brayed; under the nettles they were gathered together.
Among the bushes they bray; Under the nettles they are gathered together.
Among the bushes they bray; under the nettles they are gathered together.
Among the bushes they brayed; under the nettles they were collected.
They roared among the bushes, and vnder the thistles they gathered themselues.
Strictly literal
They bray among the bushes; under the brambles they are gathered together:
Among shrubs they do groan, Under nettles they are gathered together.
They groan among shrubs, || They are gathered together under nettles.
Among the bushes they shriek; under briers they are huddled together,
Among the bushes they brayed like donkeys and they gathered together under the nettles.
From the Latin
They pleased themselves among these kind of things, and counted it delightful to be under the briers.
Simplified
They shout out like animals among the bushes; they huddle together in the weeds for shelter.
They make noises like asses among the brushwood; they get together under the thorns.
Counted from the translations carried on this site, not from a survey of every English Bible. A rendering shared by many versions is usually inherited rather than independently arrived at — the Tyndale line in particular runs through most of them.
The sentence as the grammar sees it — from the MACULA Hebrew treebank
This is not our own analysis: it is the scholarly syntax tree for the verse, showing how the clause actually holds together.
Boxes are the grammarian's groupings — clause, noun phrase, prepositional phrase.
The four witnesses to this verse — Masoretic, Septuagint, Samaritan, Qumran
The Masoretic Text and the Septuagint agree on the wording of Job 30:7, with all six words matched in the Hebrew and Greek versions. The Septuagint follows the Hebrew closely in meaning, though the word order differs.
בֵּין־ שִׂיחִ֥ים יִנְהָ֑קוּ תַּ֖חַת חָר֣וּל יְסֻפָּֽחוּ׃
6 of the 6 words are matched. This is the word-by-word correspondence, not the Septuagint's own sentence — its word order and its articles are its own.
Four traditions, not one. “On the leather” means the letters physically survive on the scroll, as against letters an editor has supplied to fill a hole in it — a restoration is a scholar’s reading, not a reading of the manuscript. Words in [square brackets] are supplied; the notes count them apart from what survives.
The map of this verse — what each word keeps company with
This is a map of two things, both counted rather than judged. Company kept: which words stand within three words of each of these, anywhere in the Hebrew Bible — the thicker the line, the more often the pair meet compared with chance. Built from: the words a word is made out of, taken from its own Strong’s entry. It is not a map of meaning: nothing here claims two words mean the same thing. Click any circle to see the numbers behind it.
Lexicons — every word in Job 30:7
One dossier per word, with every reference work grouped by kind — Hebrew lexicons, morphology, Bible dictionaries, topical chains and the English of the translators themselves. The verse sits at the head of each block with the word under study lit, so you never lose your place. The panel above gives the short answer; this is the long one, and it is the part of the page worth indexing.
Every entry below is the lexicographer's own text. On the Hebrew: Brown-Driver-Briggs entire and its gloss set, Strong's Hebrew Dictionary, and Tyndale House's Translators Brief lexicon. Where a cell says a work has no entry, that work genuinely has none for this word.
בַּ֫יִן (beyn) is a noun meaning 'interval' or 'space between.' It primarily functions as a preposition meaning 'between' or 'among,' and can also indicate distinctions or choices. The dual form בֵּנַ֫יִם refers specifically to the space between two entities, such as armies. The entries do not indicate any significant disagreement.
בַּ֫יִן subst. prop. interval, space between
always (exc. dual) as prep. in the interval of, between
Dual בֵּנַ֫יִם space between two armies
base
H996 בַּ֫יִן subst. prop. interval, space between . always (exc. dual) as prep. in the interval of, between
. Dual בֵּנַ֫יִם space between two armies
996 beyn bane
(sometimes in the plural masculine or feminine); properly,
the constructive form of an otherwise unused noun from 995; a
distinction; but used only as a prep, between (repeated before
each noun, often with other particles); also as a conjunction,
either...or:--among, asunder, at, between (-twixt...and), +
from (the widest), X in, out of, whether (it be...or), within.
see HEBREW for 0995
בַּ֫יִן (ba.yin) — between.
: between
between, among, in the midst of (with other preps), from between
בַּ֫יִן (ba.yin) — between: among.
: among
between, among, in the midst of (with other preps), from between
A sub-meaning of ben (בַּ֫יִן ": between" H0996)
Prep — PrepHAcmsc
שִׂיחַ (siyach) refers to a bush, shrub, or plant. It is derived from a root meaning to put forth or utter, suggesting growth. The term is consistently used across lexicons to denote various types of vegetation.
שִׂיחַ n.[m.] bush, shrub, plant
base
H7880 שִׂיחַ bush, shrub, plant
7880 siyach see'-akh
from 7878; a shoot (as if uttered or put forth), i.e.
(generally) shrubbery:--bush, plant, shrub.
see HEBREW for 07878
שִׂיחַ (si.ach) — bush.
bush, plant, shrub
N-mp — Noun common · masculine plural absoluteHNcmpa
נָהַק (nahaq) is a primitive root meaning to bray or cry out, often associated with the sound made by an ass. The entries consistently emphasize its use in the context of making loud cries, particularly from hunger.
[נָהַק] vb. bray, cry
base
H5101 נָהַק
5101 nahaq naw-hak'
a primitive root; to bray (as an ass), scream (from
hunger:--bray.
נָהַק (na.haq) — to bray.
(Qal) to bray, cry, cry out
V-Qal-Imperf-3mp — Verb · Qal · imperfect third person masculine pluralHVqi3mp
bra (nahaq, "to bray," of the ass; kathash, "to pound in a mortar"): This word occurs with two distinct meanings:
(a) The harsh cry of the ass (Job 6:5). Job argued that as the sounds instinctively uttered by animals denote their wants, even so his Words were but the natural expression of his longing for some adequate explanation of his sufferings, or, failing this, for death itself. Used figuratively of Job's mockers (Job 30:7).
(b) "To beat small in a mortar," "to chastise." Pr 27:22 refers to a more elaborate process than threshing for separating grain (the English Revised Version "corn") from its husk and impurities; used figuratively of a thorough but useless course of discipline; or still more probably with reference to the…
→ To pound Pr 27:22
תַּחַת (tachath) refers to the concept of being underneath or below. It can function as a noun meaning 'the under part,' or as an adverb and preposition indicating position or substitution, such as 'instead of' or 'for the sake of.' The word encompasses various uses, including physical placement and metaphorical meanings related to subjection or exchange.
תַּחַת n.[m.] the under part, hence as adv. accus. and prep. underneath, below, instead of
base
H8478 תַּחַת the under part, hence as adv. accus. and prep. underneath, below, instead of
8478 tachath takh'-ath
from the same as 8430; the bottom (as depressed); only
adverbially, below (often with prepositional prefix
underneath), in lieu of, etc.:--as, beneath, X flat,
in(-stead), (same) place (where...is), room, for...sake, stead
of, under, X unto, X when...was mine, whereas, (where-)fore,
with.
see HEBREW for 08430
תַּחַת (ta.chat) — underneath: under.
: under/below
1) the under part, beneath, instead of, as, for, for the sake of, flat, unto, where, whereas n m
1a) the under part adv accus
1b) beneath prep
1c) under, beneath
1c1) at the foot of (idiom)
1c2) sweetness, subjection, woman, being burdened or oppressed (fig)
1c3) of subjection or conquest
1d) what is under one, the place in which one stands
1d1) in one's place, the place in which one stands (idiom with reflexive pronoun)
1d2) in place of, instead of (in transferred sense)
1d3) in place of, in exchange or return for (of things mutually interchanged)
conj
1e) instead of, instead of that
1f) in return for that, because that in compounds
1g) in, under, into the place of (after verbs of motion)
1h) from under, from beneath, from under the hand of, from his place, under, beneath
תַּחַת (ta.chat) — underneath: instead.
: instead/in_place/exchange
Prep — Noun common · masculine singular constructHNcmsc
חָרוּל, transliterated as charuwl, refers to a type of weed, likely a nettle or possibly chickpea. It is derived from a root that suggests a prickly nature, indicating its thorny characteristics. The term appears in contexts relating to plants and weeds.
חָרוּל n.[m.] a kind of weed, perh. chickpea
base
H2738 חָרוּל, חָרֻל
2738 charuwl khaw-rool'
or (shortened) charul {khaw-rool'}; apparently, a passive
participle of an unused root probably meaning to be prickly;
properly, pointed, i.e. a bramble or other thorny weed:
nettle.
חָרוּל (cha.rul) — nettle.
nettles, weeds, kind of weed (perhaps chickpea)
N-ms — Noun common · masculine singular absoluteHNcmsa
סָפַח (saphach) primarily means to join or attach. It can refer to various forms of joining, such as attaching oneself or being joined together. Additionally, the related verb שִׂפַּח (sipach) means to cause a scab or smite with a scab, as noted in Isaiah 3:17. The lexicons show a clear distinction between these meanings without significant disagreement.
[סָפַח] vb. join, attach to
Qal attach me, pray, to one of the priest’s offices.
Niph. and they shall attach themselves to the house of Jacob
Pi. joining (to it?) thy fury
Pu. are joined together, hold themselves together
Hithp. they have driven me out from joining myself with the inheritance of י׳.
base
שִׂפַּח vb. Pi. denom. cause a scab upon, smite with scab;—Is 3:17
ref
H5596a סָפַח join, attach to H5596b שִׂפַּח vb. Pi. denom. cause a scab upon, smite with scab
5596 caphach saw-fakh'
or saphach (Isaiah 3:17) {saw-fakh'}; a primitive root;
properly, to scrape out, but in certain peculiar senses (of
removal or association):--abiding, gather together, cleave,
smite with the scab.
סָפַח (sa.phach) — to attach.
1) to join, attach to, join together
1a) (Qal) to join, attach to
1b) (Niphal) to attach oneself
1c) (Piel) joining (participle)
1d) (Pual) to be joined together, hold oneself together
1e) (Hithpael) to join oneself
שִׂפַּח (si.pach) — to scar.
(Piel) to cause a scab upon, smite with scab
V-Pual-Imperf-3mp — Verb · Pual · imperfect third person masculine pluralHVPi3mp