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The Brevity of Life

14 “Man, born of woman,[a]
lives but a few days,[b] and they are full of trouble.[c]
He grows up[d] like a flower and then withers away;[e]
he flees like a shadow, and does not remain.[f]

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Footnotes

  1. Job 14:1 tn The first of the threefold apposition for אָדָם (ʾadam, “man”) is “born of a woman.” The genitive (“woman”) after a passive participle denotes the agent of the action (see GKC 359 §116.l).
  2. Job 14:1 tn The second description is simply “[is] short of days.” The meaning here is that his life is short (“days” being put as the understatement for “years”).
  3. Job 14:1 tn The third expression is “consumed/full/sated—with/of—trouble/restlessness.” The latter word, רֹגֶז (rogez), occurred in Job 3:17; see also the idea in 10:15.
  4. Job 14:2 tn Heb יָצָא (yatsaʾ, “comes forth”). The perfect verb expresses characteristic action and so is translated by the present tense (see GKC 329 §111.s).
  5. Job 14:2 tn The verb וַיִּמָּל (vayyimmal) is from the root מָלַל (malal, “to languish; to wither”) and not from a different root מָלַל (malal, “to cut off”).
  6. Job 14:2 tn The verb is “and he does not stand.” Here the verb means “to stay fixed; to abide.” The shadow does not stay fixed, but continues to advance toward darkness.

14 “Mortals, born of woman,(A)
    are of few days(B) and full of trouble.(C)
They spring up like flowers(D) and wither away;(E)
    like fleeting shadows,(F) they do not endure.(G)

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