Job 14
Amplified Bible
Job Speaks of the Finality of Death
14 “Man, who is born of a woman,
Is short-lived and full of turmoil.
2
“Like a flower he comes forth and withers;
He also flees like a shadow and does not remain.
3
“You also open Your eyes upon him
And bring him into judgment with Yourself.
4
“Who can make a clean thing out of the unclean?
No one!(A)
5
“Since his days are determined,
The number of his months is with You [in Your control],
And You have made his limits so he cannot pass [his allotted time].
6
“[O God] turn your gaze from him so that he may rest,
Until he fulfills his day [on earth] like a hired man.
7
“For there is hope for a tree,
If it is cut down, that it will sprout again,
And that the shoots of it will not cease nor fail, [but there is no such hope for man].
8
“Though its roots grow old in the earth
And its stump dies in the dry soil,
9
Yet at the scent of water [the stump of the tree] will flourish
And bring forth sprigs and shoots like a seedling.
10
“But [the brave, strong] man must die and lie face down;
Man breathes his last, and where is he?
11
“As water evaporates from the sea,
And a river drains and dries up,
12
So man lies down and does not rise [again].
Until the heavens are no longer,
The dead will not awake nor be raised from their sleep.
13
“Oh, that You would hide me in Sheol (the nether world, the place of the dead),
That You would conceal me until Your wrath is past,
That You would set a definite time and then remember me [and in Your lovingkindness imprint me on your heart]!
14
“If a man dies, will he live again?
I will wait all the days of my struggle
Until my change and release will come.(B)
15
“[Then] You will call, and I will answer You;
You will long for [me] the work of Your hands.
16
“But now You number [each of] my steps;
You do not observe nor take note of my sin.
17
“My transgression is sealed up in a bag,
And You cover my wickedness [from Your view].
18
“But as a mountain, if it falls, crumbles into nothing,
And as the rock is moved from its place,
19
Water wears away the stones,
Its floods and torrents wash away the soil of the earth,
So You [O Lord] destroy the hope of man.
20
“You prevail forever against him and overpower him, and he passes on;
You change his appearance and send him away [from the presence of the living].
21
“His sons achieve honor, and he does not know it;
They become insignificant, and he is not aware of it.
22
“But his body [lamenting its decay] grieves in pain over it,
And his soul mourns over [the loss of] himself.”
Job 14
The Message
If We Die, Will We Live Again?
14 1-17 “We’re all adrift in the same boat:
too few days, too many troubles.
We spring up like wildflowers in the desert and then wilt,
transient as the shadow of a cloud.
Do you occupy your time with such fragile wisps?
Why even bother hauling me into court?
There’s nothing much to us to start with;
how do you expect us to amount to anything?
Mortals have a limited life span.
You’ve already decided how long we’ll live—
you set the boundary and no one can cross it.
So why not give us a break? Ease up!
Even ditchdiggers get occasional days off.
For a tree there is always hope.
Chop it down and it still has a chance—
its roots can put out fresh sprouts.
Even if its roots are old and gnarled,
its stump long dormant,
At the first whiff of water it comes to life,
buds and grows like a sapling.
But men and women? They die and stay dead.
They breathe their last, and that’s it.
Like lakes and rivers that have dried up,
parched reminders of what once was,
So mortals lie down and never get up,
never wake up again—never.
Why don’t you just bury me alive,
get me out of the way until your anger cools?
But don’t leave me there!
Set a date when you’ll see me again.
If we humans die, will we live again? That’s my question.
All through these difficult days I keep hoping,
waiting for the final change—for resurrection!
Homesick with longing for the creature you made,
you’ll call—and I’ll answer!
You’ll watch over every step I take,
but you won’t keep track of my missteps.
My sins will be stuffed in a sack
and thrown into the sea—sunk in deep ocean.
18-22 “Meanwhile, mountains wear down
and boulders break up,
Stones wear smooth
and soil erodes,
as you relentlessly grind down our hope.
You’re too much for us.
As always, you get the last word.
We don’t like it and our faces show it,
but you send us off anyway.
If our children do well for themselves, we never know it;
if they do badly, we’re spared the hurt.
Body and soul, that’s it for us—
a lifetime of pain, a lifetime of sorrow.”
Job 14
New American Standard Bible
Job Speaks of the Finality of Death
14 “(A)Man, who is born of woman,
Is [a]short-lived and (B)full of turmoil.
2 (C)Like a flower he comes out and withers.
He also flees like (D)a shadow and does not remain.
3 You also (E)open Your eyes on him
And (F)bring [b]him into judgment with Yourself.
4 (G)Who can make the clean out of the unclean?
No one!
5 Since his days are determined,
The (H)number of his months is with You;
And You have [c]set his limits so that he cannot pass.
6 (I)Look away from him so that he may [d]rest,
Until he [e]fulfills his day like a hired worker.
7 “For there is hope for a tree,
When it is cut down, that it will sprout again,
And its shoots will not [f]fail.
8 Though its roots grow old in the ground,
And its stump dies in the dry soil,
9 At the scent of water it will flourish
And produce sprigs like a plant.
10 But (J)a man dies and lies prostrate.
A person (K)passes away, and where is he?
11 As (L)water [g]evaporates from the sea,
And a river becomes parched and dried up,
12 So (M)a man lies down and does not rise.
Until the heavens no longer exist,
[h]He will not awake nor be woken from [i]his sleep.
13 “Oh that You would hide me in [j]Sheol,
That You would conceal me (N)until Your wrath returns to You,
That You would set a limit for me and remember me!
14 If a man dies, will he live again?
All the days of my struggle I will wait
Until my relief comes.
15 You will call, and I will answer You;
You will long for (O)the work of Your hands.
16 For now You (P)number my steps,
You do not (Q)observe my sin.
17 My wrongdoing is (R)sealed up in a bag,
And You cover over my [k]guilt.
18 “But the falling mountain [l]crumbles away,
And the rock moves from its place;
19 Water wears away stones,
Its torrents wash away the dust of the earth;
So You (S)destroy a man’s hope.
20 You forever overpower him and he (T)departs;
You change his appearance and send him away.
21 His sons achieve honor, but (U)he does not know it;
Or they become insignificant, and he does not perceive it.
22 However, his [m]body pains him,
And his soul mourns for himself.”
Footnotes
- Job 14:1 Lit short of days
- Job 14:3 As in some ancient versions; MT me
- Job 14:5 Lit made
- Job 14:6 Lit cease
- Job 14:6 Lit makes acceptable
- Job 14:7 Or cease
- Job 14:11 Lit disappears
- Job 14:12 Lit They
- Job 14:12 Lit their
- Job 14:13 I.e., the netherworld
- Job 14:17 Or unjust deed
- Job 14:18 Lit withers
- Job 14:22 Lit flesh
Copyright © 2015 by The Lockman Foundation, La Habra, CA 90631. All rights reserved.
Copyright © 1993, 2002, 2018 by Eugene H. Peterson
New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved.