Job 14
OGCTODAY’S ENGLISH VERSION
1 All men lead the same short, troubled life. 2 They grow and wither as quickly as flowers;
they disappear like shadows.
3 Will you even look at me, God,
or bring me before you to be judged?
4 Nothing clean can ever come
from anything as unclean as man.
5 The length of his life is decided beforehand
the number of months he will live.
You have settled it, and it can-’t be changed. 6 Look away from him and leave him alone;
let him enjoy his life of hard work.
7 There is hope for a tree that has been cut down;
it can come back to life and sprout.
8 Even though its roots grow old,
and its stump dies in the ground,
9 with water it will sprout like a young plant. 10 But a man dies, and that is the end of him;
he dies, and where is he then?
11 A time will come when rivers stop running,
and even the seas go dry.
12 But dead men will never rise;
they will never wake up while the skies last; they will never stir out of their sleep.
13 I wish you would hide me alive in the land of of the dead;
let me be hidden until your anger is over, and then set a time to remember me.
14 If a man dies, can he come back to life?
But I will wait for better times,
wait till this time of trouble is over.
15 Then you will call and I will answer,
and you will be pleased with me, your creature.
16 Then you will watch every step I take,
but you will not keep track of my sins.
17 You will forgive my sins and put them away;
you will wipe out all the wrongs I have done.
18 A time will come when mountains fall,
and even rock cliffs are moved away.
19 Water will wear down rocks,
and hard rain wash away the soil; so you destroy man’s hope for life.
20 You overpower a man and send him away forever;
his face is twisted in death.
21 His sons win honor, but he never knows it,
nor is he told when they are disgraced.
22 He feels only the pain of his own body
and the grief of his own mind.
QUESTIONS FOR DISCUSSION 14:1-22
The mixture of pity and contempt arouse the contrary feelings of_____ and Why? Is this right?
Is this a proof-text for original sin? Discuss.
What is meant by saying, Nothing is more ephemeral than a flower?
Give three figures of speech which describe the briefness of life.
Give in your own words the meaning of verse three.
Verse four seems out of place in the context. Explain.
There is a fatalistic note in verse five, the thought of which is often repeated today. What is it? Discuss.
The omnipresence of God is a real hindrance to man, i.e., according to Job. Why? Cf. Job 14:6.
Man has less hope than a tree. How so? Why does Job say this?
A Near Eastern custom is revealed in verse seven. What is it?
What type or condition of a tree is described in verses eight and nine?
There are two kinds of man in verse ten. What is the reason for using two Hebrew words?
How is man like the water of a sea, lake or river?
Job surely has a limited view of man and life, but he had more reason than many who share the same view today. Discuss.
Explain in what sense Job wants to be hid in Sheol. Does Job believe in an afterlife after all? Discuss.
Life after death is couched in an image of a military figure of soldiers. How so?
Two views of God are struggling within Job’s heart. What are they? Discuss.
Why does God watch or mark our every step? Job has conflicting answers to this question. What are they? What is your answer?
Give in your own words the meaning of Job 14:17. (This is a very important verse. Think well about it.)
Job 14:1-6
- So brief is man’s allotted time he should be left to enjoy it. (Job 14:1-6)
TEXT 14:1-6
14 **Man, that is born of a woman,
Is of few days, and full of trouble.
2 He cometh forth like a flower, and is cut down:**
He fleeth also as a **shadow, and **continueth **not.
3 And dost thou open thine eyes upon **such **a one,
And bringest me **into judgment **with thee?
4 Who can bring a clean **thing **oat of an unclean? not one.
5 **Seeing **his days are determined,
The number of his months is with thee, And thou hast **appointed **his bounds that he cannot pass;
6 Look away from him, that he may rest,
Till he shall accomplish, as a hireling, his day.**
COMMENT 14:1-6
**Job 14:1**Job continues to generalize his agonizing cry, returning to the theme expressed in Job 7:17. Man’S[160] frail origin betrays him to the suffering in an amoral universe. Life is so short (Job 7:6 ff; Job 9:25 f; Genesis 47:9). Here both pity and contempt are mixed as oil and water. His condition arouses the contrary feelings of wonder[161] and despair. The Hebrew text will not sustain the assumption of some of the Church Fathers that this verse sets forth the doctrine of original sin. Job 14:7-12 are parallel strophes which sharply contrast man’s limitations, not just Job’S. Here we encounter another paradox; if Job is describing the condition of humanity, why is he preoccupied with his own plight?
[160] For analysis of the Hebrew word -adham see Maass, adham, in TWOT, ed. Botterweck and Ringgren, Vol. I, E.T., 1974, Eerdmans, pp. 75-87; A. Gelin, L-‘homme selon la Bible (Paris, 1962); E. Lussier, Adam in Genesis 1:11, Genesis 4:24, CBQ 18, 1956, pp. 137-39; and Hans W. Wolff, Anthropology of the O.T.. E.T., 1973, Fortress Press.
[161] Wonder is a powerful human response to reality. Plato correctly claims that all series thinking (Philosophy) begins with wonder. Again in the decade of the -60’S wonder appeared in the Dionysian spirit re-dividius. Sam Keen’s Apology for Wonder can be celebrated only because of God’s Wonder, Christ (Isaiah 9:1 ff) and His name dull be called wonder. The Hebrew word is a noun-wonder, not an adjective, which is translated by wonderful.
**Job 14:2**In Job’s powerful description he uses a verb comes forth which is often applied to plantsIsa 11:1; Isaiah 40:6 f; Psalms 90:6; Psalms 103:15 f; Job 8:9; James 1:10 f. Nothing is more ephemeral than a flower. Life’s but a walking shadow (Macbeth) Even the longest life is but a brief flickering candlePsa 90:9-10 and filled with strife (rogezalso Job 3:17; Job 3:26).
**Job 14:3**Why should God scrutinize one so ephemeral as man? To open your eyes means to focus attention on or to pay attention to. Me is in the emphatic position which focuses attention on Job.
**Job 14:4**Pope, et al. suggest that this verse be deleted because the context speaks of the shortness of life and not his wickedness. Job is concerned with his sin and guilt in Job 14:16-17. Who will give (Hebrew mi yitten) cleanness to the unclean? The text says not one, but ultimately only God.
**Job 14:5**Since man’s life is so short, why doesn-’t God just leave him alone? The verse contains a rather fatalistic note. If God has determined (literally cut, perhaps engrave a statute on stone) everything and it is thus under his control, let these conditions suffice Him.
**Job 14:6**God, stop your cruel surveillance of man. Let him alonePs. 39:14. Let him enjoy each day like a laborer who receives his reward each evening at the close of the work day (Job 7:1). Job’s attitude was completely at variance with that of Milton who ever lived under the Great Taskmaster’s eye.
Job 14:7-12
- When man goes to his death, he does not return. (Job 14:7-12)
TEXT 14:7-12
7 **For there is hope of a tree,
If it be cut down, that it will sprout again, And that the tender branch thereof will not cease.
8 Though the root thereof wax old in the earth,
And the stock thereof die in the ground;
9 Yet through the scent of water it will bud,
And put forth boughs like a plant.
10 But man dieth, and is laid low:
Yea, man giveth up the ghost, and where is he?
11 As the waters fail from the sea,
And the river wasteth and drieth up;
12 So man lieth down and riseth not:
Till the heavens be no more, they shall not awake, Nor be roused out of their sleep.**
COMMENT 14:7-12
**Job 14:7**The figures now change to a tree. Trees can be cut down, but some species will sprout again.[162] Even trees have more hope than men (Job 14:7-9 reveal Near Eastern custom of cutting trees off in order to produce new life.)
[162] For this image see F. Delitzsch, Job, Vol. I, E.T., Eerdmans, p. 227.
**Job 14:8**A tree may not be completely dead, but drought retards its growth. The roots are withering in the ground.
**Job 14:9**But the scent of water will bring new hope for life (Psalms 92:12 f; and Proverbs 14:11).
**Job 14:10**There are two Hebrew roots for man in this verse, one to be strong and to be weak. (The word translated laid low in A. V. is h-l-sweakening, defeating, or helpless; the gibbor is a strong person, translated in A. V. as giveth up the ghost.) Even a strong man dies and is no more (Joe 3:10). Job here reflects a very limited view of life after death.
**Job 14:11**Though the contexts are different, the second line of this verse is identical with Isaiah 19:5 b. Dhorme’s point is well taken regarding the word rendered sea. The Hebrew term is used in a wider sense than the sea; it can mean a lake (Isaiah 19:5). The sea could not dry up; if it did it would not make any difference to the dead.[163]
[163] Dhorme, Job, p. 199.
**Job 14:12**When man lies down to pleasant dreams, they shall not wake,[164] as long as the heavens do not burst.
[164] G. R. Driver, Vetus Testamentum, Supplement, III, 1960, p. 77.
Job 14:13-17
- Job longs for an afterlife. (Job 14:13-17)
TEXT 14:13-17
**13 Oh that thou wouldest hide me in Sheol,
That thou wouldest keep me secret, until thy wrath be past,
That thou wouldest appoint me a set time, and remember me!
14 If a man die, shall he live **again?
**All the days of my warfare would I wait,
Till my release should come.
15 Thou wouldest call, and I would answer thee:
Thou wouldest have a desire to the work of thy hands.
16 But now thou numberest my steps:
Dost thou not watch over my sin?
17 My transgression is sealed up in a bag,
And thou fastenest up mine iniquity.**
COMMENT 14:13-17
**Job 14:13**Job passionately longs for life. If there is a positive possibility of life after death, then Job could endure the present affliction. The abode of the dead (Sheol) could be Job’s hiding place. (Read Isaiah 26:20 and Amos 9:2.) Perhaps he is acknowledging a belief in life after death, or a strong desire that there might be one.
**Job 14:14**The LXX omits the interrogative, and makes Job deliver a positive claimhe shall live again.- The image is derived from a military figure of soldiers being relieved after strenuous serviceJob 7:1.
**Job 14:15**Again two views of God are struggling within Job’s heart. He longs for the former days of fellowship with God, from which his present agony has cut him off. Job so deeply longs for this relationship with God (Hebrew, care, be pale, color of silver) (Genesis 31:30; Psalms 84:3; and Isaiah 29:22) that he is sick with care.
**Job 14:16**This verse probably continues Job 14:15, so R. S. V., but not A. V. God is graciously watching over Job’s every step; then, all of a sudden, God is jealously observing every detail in his life. Job’s hope is in the future; perhaps God will change His attitude toward him. The negative particle not in Job 14:16 is inserted in order to smooth out the poetic parallelism. Job has vehemently complainedJob 7:12; Job 7:19, of God’s tyrannical observation, as a cosmic moral efficiency expert; now he hopes for grace rather than surveillance.[165]
[165] See D. H. Gard, J.B.L., LXXIII, 1954, pp. 137ff.
**Job 14:17**The imagery reflects that of accounting or recording of Job’s sins.[166] He seeks to be acknowledged as righteousness. Righteousness is always a correlate of right relations in our daily experiences. Job has come as a Titan hoping to meet God as an equal. There has been no room for grace in the relationship. Job desires to meet God face to face but neither to change nor falter, nor repent.[167] Job has sought justification by seeking righteousness. Rather than seek help he would prefer to be himself with all the tortures of hell, if so it must be. Job has come before God with a radical over-self estimate of himself; and therein is his sickness unto death.-’[168]
[166] A. L. Oppenheim, Journal Near Eastern Studies, XVIII, 1959, pp. 121ff.
[167] Shelly, Prometheus Unbound, Act IV.
[168] Soren Kierkegaard, Fear and Trembling and The Sickness Unto Death (Double-day, Anchor pb., ed. 1954; also Princeton University Press, 1951, p. 114.) On the vital problem of the distance between God and man in Biblical data, neo-orthodoxy, egs. Barth-Brunner controversy, and Post-Vatican II Catholicism; but especially since the 19th century paradigm of evolution - Kant, Hegel, Marx, Freud, Kierkegaard, Nietzsche, et. al., see R. Kroner, Kierkegaard or Hegel? Revue Internationale de Philosophic, 19, 1952, pp. 7-8.
Job 14:18-22
- But hope is destroyed in Sheol. (Job 14:18-22)
TEXT 14:18-22
**18 Bat the mountain falling cometh to nought;
And the rock is removed out of its place;
19 The waters wear the stones;
The overflowings thereof wash away the dust of the earth: So thou destroyeth the hope of man.
20 Thou prevailest for ever against him, and he passeth;
Thou changest his countenance, and sendest him away.
21 His sons come to honor, and he knoweth it not;
And they are brought low, but he perceiveth it not of them.
22 But his flesh upon him hath pain,
And his soul within him mourneth.**
COMMENT 14:18-22
**Job 14:18**How can man hope to escape destruction, since the greatest mountains can be leveled, and the deepest valleys covered over. Impermanence is the central theme.
**Job 14:19**As water erodes the stones, so God is destroying (eroding) man’s hope. Job here dismisses the very possibility of life after death. We can hopeuntil that ultimate levelerdeath smashes our last moment of life.
**Job 14:20**In man’s last moment of struggle against death, he is defeated by the despair of finality.[169] Death is extreme and permanent in its conflict with human hope. The phrase sends them away is a verb used euphemistically of dyingThe land from whose borne no traveler has returnedJob 10:21; 2 Samuel 12:23; Ecclesiastes 1:4; Ecclesiastes 3:20; and Psalms 39:13.
[169] D. W. Thomas, Journal of Semitic Studies, 1, 1956, p. 107 - for translation of superlative of nesah - Thou prevailest utterly against him.
**Job 14:21**The dead have no knowledgeEcc 9:5. This is the fate of all mankind. Even children, who think only of life, also share in this fateJob 1:9. Consciousness in death is limited only to the dead individual, so claims Job. Those who come to honor are also brought low. The sense of R. S. V. is more in line with the text than that of the A. V.
**Job 14:22**Job now abandons the traditional resolution of man’s troubles, that of leaving a prosperous family behind. But Job has no family. Whether the source be Job or classical naturalistic liberals, it is not very exciting to hope only in the survival of humanityJob 18:13 and Isaiah 66:24.
The first series of speeches is ended. Job is enslaved more deeply in despair than in the initial lament. The slough of despond is deeper than his pain. There he was -half in love with easeful death-‘here he stands alone before the grisly terror (Job, Interpreters Bible, Vol. III, p. 1015). But Death Be Not Proud for The Shattering of Silence is yet to come.