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Job Chapter 19

Old Testament Wisdom/Poetry 29 Verses

What is Job 19 about?

The suffering of a righteous man and the profound questions it raises about God's justice, sovereignty, and human understanding. The complete chapter text below provides the immediate literary context for study.

Text — American Standard Version (1901)

American Standard Version (1901) — public domain. For original Hebrew/Greek interlinear text, open in BibleWord.ai.
1Then Job answered and said,
2How long will ye vex my soul, And break me in pieces with words?
3These ten times have ye reproached me: Ye are not ashamed that ye deal hardly with me.
4And be it indeed that I have erred, Mine error remaineth with myself.
5If indeed ye will magnify yourselves against me, And plead against me my reproach;
6Know now that God hath subverted me [in my cause], And hath compassed me with his net.
7Behold, I cry out of wrong, but I am not heard: I cry for help, but there is no justice.
8He hath walled up my way that I cannot pass, And hath set darkness in my paths.
9He hath stripped me of my glory, And taken the crown from my head.
10He hath broken me down on every side, and I am gone; And my hope hath he plucked up like a tree.
11He hath also kindled his wrath against me, And he counteth me unto him as [one of] his adversaries.
12His troops come on together, And cast up their way against me, And encamp round about my tent.
13He hath put my brethren far from me, And mine acquaintance are wholly estranged from me.
14My kinsfolk have failed, And my familiar friends have forgotten me.
15They that dwell in my house, and my maids, count me for a stranger; I am an alien in their sight.
16I call unto my servant, and he giveth me no answer, [Though] I entreat him with my mouth.
17My breath is strange to my wife, And my supplication to the children of mine own mother.
18Even young children despise me; If I arise, they speak against me.
19All my familiar friends abhor me, And they whom I loved are turned against me.
20My bone cleaveth to my skin and to my flesh, And I am escaped with the skin of my teeth.
21Have pity upon me, have pity upon me, O ye my friends; For the hand of God hath touched me.
22Why do ye persecute me as God, And are not satisfied with my flesh?
23Oh that my words were now written! Oh that they were inscribed in a book!
24That with an iron pen and lead They were graven in the rock for ever!
25But as for me I know that my Redeemer liveth, And at last he will stand up upon the earth:
26And after my skin, [even] this [body], is destroyed, Then without my flesh shall I see God;
27Whom I, even I, shall see, on my side, And mine eyes shall behold, and not as a stranger. My heart is consumed within me.
28If ye say, How we will persecute him! And that the root of the matter is found in me;
29Be ye afraid of the sword: For wrath [bringeth] the punishments of the sword, That ye may know there is a judgment.
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What do historical commentaries say about this chapter?

John Gill's Exposition
John Gill (1697–1771) · Exposition of the Old and New Testament · on verse 1
“Then Job answered and said.] Having heard Bildad out, without giving him any interruption; and when he had finished his oration, he rose up in his own defence, and put in his answer as follows.”
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Jamieson, Fausset & Brown
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown · Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible · on verse 1
“JOB'S REPLY TO BILDAD. (Job 19:1-29) How long, &c.--retorting Bildad's words (Job 18:2). Admitting the punishment to be deserved, is it kind thus ever to be harping on this to the sufferer? And yet even this they have not yet proved.”
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Barnes' Notes
Albert Barnes (1798–1870) · Notes on the Whole Bible · on verse 2
“How long will ye vex my soul? - Perhaps designing to reply to the taunting speech of Bildad; Job 18:2. “He” had asked “how long it would be ere Job would make an end of empty talk?” “Job” asks, in reply, “how long” they would torture and afflict his soul? Or whether there was on hope that this would ever come to an end! And break me in pieces - Crush me, or bruise me - like breaking any thing in a mortar, or breaking rocks by repeated blows of the hammer. “Noyes.” He says they had crushed him, as if by repeated blows. return to 'Top of Page'”
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Wesley's Explanatory Notes
John Wesley (1703–1791) · Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament and Old Testament notes · on verse 3
“Ten - Many times. A certain number for an uncertain. Strange - That you carry yourselves like strangers to me, and condemn me as if you had never known my integrity. Job 19:4”
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Tyndale Open Study Notes
Tyndale House Publishers · Tyndale Open Study Notes · on verse 3
“19:3 The number ten did not represent a specific count but an indefinite large number (e.g., Gen 31:7; Lev 26:26; Num 14:22; Dan 1:20).”
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Treasury of Scriptural Knowledge
R. A. Torrey and contributors · The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge · on verse 2
“How long: Job 8:2, Job 18:2; Psa 13:1; Rev 6:10 vex: Job 27:2; Jdg 16:16; Psa 6:2, Psa 6:3, Psa 42:10; Pe2 2:7, Pe2 2:8 break me: Psa 55:21, Psa 59:7, Psa 64:3; Pro 12:18, Pro 18:21; Jam 3:6-8 Job 19:3”
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Keil & Delitzsch
C. F. Keil & F. Delitzsch · Commentary on the Old Testament · on verse 1
“1 Then began Job, and said: 2 How long will ye vex my soul, And crush me with your words? 3 These ten times have ye reproached me; Without being ashamed ye astound me. 4 And if I have really erred, My error rests with myself. 5 If ye will really magnify yourselves against me, And prove my reproach to me: 6 Know then that Eloah hath wronged me, And hath compassed me with His net. This controversy is torture to Job's spirit; enduring in himself unutterable agony, both bodily and spiritually, and in addition stretched upon the rack by the three friends with their united strength, he begins his answer with a…”
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