Job 7:18 — Word Study
WLCוַתִּפְקְדֶ֥נּוּ לִבְקָרִ֑ים לִ֝רְגָעִ֗ים תִּבְחָנֶֽנּוּ׃
BSAthat You attend to himpâqad▸ [visit, oversee, or inspect] every morningbôqer [at the break of day] [and] test himbâchan▸ [examine, test, or try] every momentregaʻ [instant, or brief span of time]
| Greek | English | Parsing |
|---|---|---|
| וַתִּפְקְדֶ֥נּוּ | and you have visited him | Verb qal sequential imperfect second person masculine singular, suffix |
| לִבְקָרִ֑ים | to mornings | Preposition, noun common masculine plural absolute |
| לִ֝רְגָעִ֗ים | to moments | Preposition, noun common masculine plural absolute |
| תִּבְחָנֶֽנּוּ׃ | you test him | Verb qal imperfect second person masculine singular, suffix |
Every word in the verse. Click a row to open it in the panel on the left.
| BSB | that You attend to him every morning, and test him every moment? |
| KJV | And that thou shouldest visit him every morning, and try him every moment? |
| ASV | And that thou shouldest visit him every morning, And try him every moment? |
| YLT | And inspectest him in the mornings, In the evenings dost try him? |
| WEB | that you should visit him every morning, and test him every moment? |
| BBE | And that your hand is on him every morning, and that you are testing him every minute? |
The translations agree on the key phrases, reflecting a consistent understanding of Job's lament.
The verse has two main clauses, each with a prepositional phrase indicating timing, emphasizing the frequency of God's actions.
8 commentators on this verse
Gill, Jamieson, Poole, Trapp & more — read them ›
clause
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 7:18
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 Lament on Human Sufferinggenerated
Job 7:18 reflects Job's deep sense of suffering and his questioning of God's attention to humanity. In this verse, Job wonders why God visits him daily and tests him continually, expressing a profound sense of vulnerability and confusion. This passage is part of a larger dialogue where Job grapples with the nature of his suffering and the perceived scrutiny from God, as seen in the surrounding verses, particularly Job 7:17-19.
Cross References
| Reference | Text (BSB) | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Exodus 20:5 | You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on their children to the third and fourth generations of those who hate Me, |
| 2 | Exodus 32:34 | Now go, lead the people to the place I described. Behold, My angel shall go before you. But on the day I settle accounts, I will punish them for their sin.” |
| 3 | Isaiah 26:14 | The dead will not live; the departed spirits will not rise. Therefore You have punished and destroyed them; You have wiped out all memory of them. |
| 4 | Isaiah 38:12–13 | My dwelling has been picked up and removed from me like a shepherd’s tent. I have rolled up my life like a weaver; He cuts me off from the loom; from day until night You make an end of me. |
| 5 | Genesis 22:1 | Some time later God tested Abraham and said to him, “Abraham!” “Here I am,” he answered. |
The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge — 10 references, hung on the phrase they belong to
The Key Word — פָּקַד, va.tif.ke.De.nugenerated
The verb פָּקַד (paqad) is a qal imperfect form meaning 'to visit' or 'to oversee.' It captures a range of actions, from friendly oversight to judgment. In this context, Job is lamenting the constant attention he feels from God, suggesting both care and scrutiny.
This word can imply a divine appointment or a moment of reckoning, indicating that Job feels both watched over and tested. The nuance of the word suggests a relationship where God is actively involved in human affairs, which Job interprets as a source of distress.
How Translations Differ — measured against the Berean Standard Biblegenerated
The verse is rendered in the Berean Standard Bible as 'that You attend to him every morning, and test him every moment?' This wording is consistent across other translations like the KJV, ASV, YLT, WEB, and BBE.
Sentence Structuregenerated
The finite verbs תִּפְקְדֶ֥ and תִּבְחָנֶֽ govern the two main clauses of the verse, with prepositional phrases indicating the timing of these actions: 'every morning' and 'every moment.' This structure emphasizes the frequency and immediacy of God's attention.
The Hebrew word order places the actions of God at the forefront, highlighting Job's perception of divine scrutiny as a central theme in his lament.
Septuagint Backgroundgenerated
The Septuagint translates פָּקַד as ἐπισκοπὴν (episkopēn), which means 'oversight' or 'inspection.' This choice reinforces the idea of God as a watchful overseer, aligning with Job's feelings of being closely observed.
The use of ἐπισκοπὴν suggests a more formal oversight, implying that God's attention is not just casual but carries significant weight in the context of Job's suffering.
In plain words — the whole versegenerated
Job 7:18 shows Job questioning why God pays so much attention to him, visiting and testing him every day and moment. This reflects Job's struggle with his suffering and his feelings of being under constant scrutiny.
Frequently Asked Questionsgenerated
Job is expressing his feeling that God is constantly watching over him, suggesting both care and scrutiny.
Job's suffering leads him to believe that God is examining his heart and faith, testing his endurance.
Morning symbolizes a new beginning, and Job's mention of it highlights the daily nature of his suffering and God's attention.
This verse encapsulates Job's struggle with understanding God's role in his suffering, a central theme throughout the book.
Reflection Questionsgenerated
- How do I perceive God's attention in my own life during difficult times?
- What does it mean to me that God tests our hearts and faith?
- In what ways can I find comfort in the idea of God's oversight?
- How can I respond to challenges in my life like Job did?
The early church on this verse — how the Fathers read it
Gregory the Dialogist comments on this verse, discussing the significance of God's visitation at dawn and the transition from night to light.
And that Thou shouldest visit him in the dawn, and try him suddenly? Which is there of us that does not know that it is called the 'dawn,' when the night season is now changing into the brightness of light? so we too are closed in by the…Early Church Fathers on Job 7 →
Commentators on this verse — 8 expositors, verse by verse
Each of these wrote on Job 7:18 itself, not merely on the chapter around it.
John Gill1697–1771Gill's Exposition of the Entire BibleAnd [that] thou shouldest visit him every morning,.... That is, "daily", continually, as Aben Ezra interprets it; either in a way of love, grace, and mercy; so God has visited men, by raising up and
Read John Gill on Job 7 →Robert Jamieson1802–1880Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown's CommentaryAnd that thou shouldest visit him every morning, and try him every moment?
Read Robert Jamieson on Job 7 →Matthew Poole1624–1679Matthew Poole's Commentary on the Holy BibleVisit him; to wit, punish or chasten him, as the word to visit, or visiting, is oft used, as 32:34 34:7. Every morning, i.e. every day. But he mentions the morning, either because that is the beginning of the day, and so is put synecdochically for the whole day, as the evening, , is put for the whole night; or he speaks of God after the manner of men, who rest and sleep in the night, but in the morning rise and go about their business, and visit or inspect those persons and things which they have a respect for or care of. Try him, i.e. afflict him, which is oft called trying, because it doth indeed try a man’ s faith, and patience, and perseverance. But this and the former verse may…
Read Matthew Poole on Job 7 →John Trapp1601–1669Trapp's Complete Commentary on the Old and New TestamentsJob 7:18 And [that] thou shouldest visit him every morning, [and] try him every moment?Ver. 18. That thou shouldest visit him every morning] Be at so much pains, as it were, with him, as to chasten him; and every morning to do it, that is, certainly and early; God took Job to task as soon as he was awake every morning, and this he thought much of, and would rather have been without; but that was his weakness, since the rod is as necessary as food. And try him every moment] Proving by affliction both what corruption and what grace is in his heart; this David reckoneth upon the score of God’ s favours, and prayeth for, Psalms 139:24. This God promiseth as a special blessing, Jeremiah 9:7, and…
Read John Trapp on Job 7 →Charles John Ellicott1819–1905Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers(17, 18) What is man . . .?—Here is another point of contact with Psalms 8:5; but the spirit of the Psalmist was one of devout adoration, whereas that of Job is one of agony and desperation.
Read Charles John Ellicott on Job 7 →CambridgeThe Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges18. The words of this verse recall Psalms 8:5; Psalms 144:3, the former of which passages at least must have been in the Author’s mind. The admiring gratefulness of the Psalmist that God condescended to visit man and gave him such a place in His estimation is parodied by Job, and the Psalmist’s words are made with bitter irony to express his wonder that God should occupy Himself continually with so slight a thing as man, and make him the object of His unceasing persecution.
Read Cambridge on Job 7 →Albert Barnes1798–1870Barnes' Notes on the BibleAnd that thou shouldest visit him? - That is, for the purpose of inflicting pain.
Read Albert Barnes on Job 7 →Daniel Denison Whedon1808–1885Whedon's Commentary on the Bible18. Visit him — How noble must that being be whom God deigns to visit every morning, and who is worthy of being unremittingly tried and tested.
Read Daniel Denison Whedon on Job 7 →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
that You attend to him every morning, and test him every moment?
that you should visit him every morning, and test him every moment?
that You attend to him every morning, and test him every moment?
And that you visit them every morning, and try them every moment?
Tyndale line
And that thou shouldest visit him every morning, and try him every moment?
And that thou shouldest visit him every morning, And try him every moment?
And that thou shouldest visit him every morning, and try him every moment?
And that thou shouldst visit him every morning, and try him every moment?
And doest visite him euery morning, and tryest him euery moment?
Strictly literal
And that thou visitest him every morning, triest him every moment?
And inspectest him in the mornings, In the evenings dost try him?
And inspect him in the mornings, || [And] in the evenings try him?
And that thou shouldst visit him every morning, probe him every moment?
that you should observe him every morning and test him every moment?
From the Latin
Thou visitest him early in the morning, and thou provest him suddenly.
Simplified
that you inspect them every morning and test them every moment? Won't you ever stop staring at me?
And that your hand is on him every morning, and that you are testing him every minute?
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 reads וַתִּפְקְדֶ֥נּוּ לִבְקָרִ֑ים לִ֝רְגָעִ֗ים תִּבְחָנֶֽנּוּ׃, while the Septuagint matches three of the four words, indicating a strong correspondence between these texts in conveying Job's lament.
וַתִּפְקְדֶ֥נּוּ לִבְקָרִ֑ים לִ֝רְגָעִ֗ים תִּבְחָנֶֽנּוּ׃
3 of the 4 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 7:18
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.
פָּקַד (paqad) is a Hebrew verb that encompasses a range of meanings including to attend to, visit, muster, appoint, and punish. It can imply oversight or care, as well as the act of seeking or lacking something. The word can also be used in various grammatical forms, indicating actions such as being appointed or being visited upon. The plural form פְּקוּדִים refers to musterings or expenses.
פָּקַד 303 vb. attend to, visit, muster, appoint
Qal
pay attention to, observe (with care, practical interest)
attend to, in act, see to
seek (with interest, desire)
seek in vain, need, miss, lack
specif. visit, c. acc., for different purposes
c. עַל pers., visit upon
pass in review, muster (nearly = number), c. acc.
appoint
Niph.
be (sought, i.e. needed) missed, lacking
be visited (graciously)
be visited upon, עַל pers.
be appointed
Pi. (intens.) muster a host
Pu. be passed in review; be caused to miss, deprived
Hithp. be mustered
Hothp. id.
Hiph.
c. acc. pers. set (over), make overseer
c. acc. rei (implic.)
commit, entrust
deposit
Hoph.
be visited in punishment
be deposited
be made overseer
base
[פְּקוּדִים] n.pl.[m.] abstr. musterings, i.e. expenses;—cstr. Ex 38:21
ref
H6485a פָּקַד attend to, visit, muster, appoint .. . . pay attention to, observe (with care, practical interest)
. attend to, in act, see to
. seek (with interest, desire)
. seek in vain, need, miss, lack
. specif. visit, c. acc., for different purposes
. c. עַל pers., visit upon
. pass in review, muster (nearly = number), c. acc.
. appoint
. . be (sought, i.e. needed) missed, lacking
. be visited (graciously)
. be visited upon, עַל pers.
. be appointed
. (intens.) muster a host
. be passed in review; be caused to miss, deprived
. be mustered
. id.
. . c. acc. pers. set (over), make overseer
. c. acc. rei (implic.) . commit, entrust
. deposit
. . be visited in punishment
. be deposited
. be made overseer
H6485b פְּקוּדִים n. pl. [m.] abstr. musterings, i.e. expenses
6485 paqad paw-kad'
a primitive root; to visit (with friendly or hostile intent);
by analogy, to oversee, muster, charge, care for, miss,
deposit, etc.:--appoint, X at all, avenge, bestow, (appoint
to have the, give a) charge, commit, count, deliver to keep,
be empty, enjoin, go see, hurt, do judgment, lack, lay up,
look, make, X by any means, miss, number, officer, (make)
overseer, have (the) oversight, punish, reckon, (call to)
remember(-brance), set (over), sum, X surely, visit, want.
פָּקַד (pa.qad) — to reckon: list.
: list/count
1) to attend to, muster, number, reckon, visit, punish, appoint, look after, care for
1a) (Qal)
1a1) to pay attention to, observe
1a2) to attend to
1a3) to seek, look about for
1a4) to seek in vain, need, miss, lack
1a5) to visit
1a6) to visit upon, punish
1a7) to pass in review, muster, number
1a8) to appoint, assign, lay upon as a charge, deposit
1b) (Niphal)
1b1) to be sought, be needed, be missed, be lacking
1b2) to be visited
1b3) to be visited upon
1b4) to be appointed
1b5) to be watched over
1c) (Piel) to muster, call up
1d) (Pual) to be passed in review, be caused to miss, be called, be called to account
1e) (Hiphil)
1e1) to set over, make overseer, appoint an overseer
1e2) to commit, entrust, commit for care, deposit
1f) (Hophal)
1f1) to be visited
1f2) to be deposited
1f3) to be made overseer, be entrusted
1g) (Hithpael) numbered
Conj | V-Qal-ConsecImperf-2ms | Suff — Verb qal sequential imperfect second person masculine singular · suffixHc/Vqw2ms/Sp3ms
בֹּ֫קֶר (boqer) means 'morning' and is derived from the root word for 'dawn.' It encompasses the time of day when light begins to appear, marking the end of night and the start of a new day. The term can also refer to the next day or morning after a specific point in time. It is associated with brightness and joy following periods of distress.
בֹּ֫קֶר 214 n.m. morning
morning (of point of time, time at which, never during which, Eng. morning = forenoon
morrow, next day
base
H1242 בֹּ֫קֶר morning . morning (of point of time, time at which, never during which, Eng. morning = forenoon
. morrow, next day
1242 boqer bo'-ker
from 1239; properly, dawn (as the break of day); generally,
morning:--(+) day, early, morning, morrow.
see HEBREW for 01239
בֹּ֫קֶר (bo.qer) — morning.
1) morning, break of day
1a) morning
1a1) of end of night
1a2) of coming of daylight
1a3) of coming of sunrise
1a4) of beginning of day
1a5) of bright joy after night of distress (fig.)
1b) morrow, next day, next morning
Prep | N-mp — Preposition · noun common masculine plural absoluteHR/Ncmpa
רֶ֫גַע (rega) refers to a very brief period of time, translated as 'moment' or 'instant.' It can denote a short space of time, such as 'for a moment' or 'in a moment.' The word is derived from a root meaning 'to wink,' emphasizing its fleeting nature.
רֶ֫גַע n.m. a moment
base
H7281 רֶ֫גַע a moment
7281 rega` reh'-gah
from 7280. a wink (of the eyes), i.e. a very short space of
time:--instant, moment, space, suddenly.
see HEBREW for 07280
רֶ֫גַע (re.ga) — moment.
1) a moment
adv
2) for a moment, at one moment...at another moment
with prep
3) in a moment
Prep | N-mp — Preposition · noun common masculine plural absoluteHR/Ncmpa
בָּחַן (bachan) is a Hebrew verb meaning to examine or test. It encompasses a range of actions, including scrutinizing, proving, and trying, particularly in relation to metals, individuals, or the heart. The verb appears in various forms, such as Qal (to examine) and Niphal (to be tried).
[בָּחַן] vb. examine, try
Qal
examine, scrutinize, try
prove, test, try
Niph. to be tried, proved
Pu. the trial has been made
base
H974 [בָּחַן] examine, try
974 bachan baw-khan'
a primitive root; to test (especially metals); generally and
figuratively, to investigate:--examine, prove, tempt, try
(trial).
בָּחַן (ba.chan) — to test.
1) to examine, try, prove
1a) (Qal)
1a1) to examine, scrutinise
1a2) to test, prove, try (of gold, persons, the heart, man of God)
1b) (Niphal) to be tried, proved
1c) (Pual) to make a trial
V-Qal-Imperf-2ms | Suff — Verb qal imperfect second person masculine singular · suffixHVqi2ms/Sp3ms