Job 4:8

Old Testament Wisdom/Poetry ASV (1901)

What does Job 4:8 say?

The American Standard Version records this verse as: “According as I have seen, they that plow iniquity, And sow trouble, reap the same.” Read the surrounding verses and the named sources below before drawing broader conclusions.

The verse

According as I have seen, they that plow iniquity, And sow trouble, reap the same.
Job 4:8 — American Standard Version

Context — Job 4

American Standard Version (1901) — public domain. Click any verse for its study page.
8According as I have seen, they that plow iniquity, And sow trouble, reap the same.

What do historical commentaries say?

John Gill's Exposition
John Gill (1697–1771) · Exposition of the Old and New Testament · 18th-century historical commentary
“Even as I have seen, etc.] Here he goes about to prove, by his own experience, the destruction of wicked men; and would intimate, that Job was such an one, because of the ruin he was fallen into: they that plow iniquity, and sow wickedness, reap the same; figurative expressions, denoting that such who devise iniquity in their hearts, form and plan schemes of it in their minds, signified by “plowing iniquity”, and who were studious and diligent to put into practice what they devised; who took a great deal of pains to commit sin, and were constant at it, expressed by “sowing wickedness”: these sooner or later eat the fruit of their doings, are punished in proportion to their crimes, even in…”
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Jamieson, Fausset & Brown
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown · Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible · 19th-century historical commentary
“they that plough iniquity . . . reap the same-- (Pro 22:8; Hos 8:7; Hos 10:13; Gal 6:7-8).”
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Barnes' Notes
Albert Barnes (1798–1870) · Notes on the Whole Bible · 19th-century historical commentary
“Even as I have seen - Eliphaz appeals to his own observation, that people who had led wicked lives were suddenly cut off. Instances of this kind he might doubtless have observed - as all may have done. But his inference was too broad when he concluded that all the wicked are punished in this manner. It is true that wicked people are thus cut off and perish; but it is not true that all the wicked are thus punished in this life, nor that any of the righteous are not visited with similar calamities. His reasoning was of a kind that is common in the world - that of drawing universal conclusions from premises that are too narrow to sustain them, or from too few carefully observed facts. They that…”
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Wesley's Explanatory Notes
John Wesley (1703–1791) · Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament and Old Testament notes · 18th-century historical commentary
“Even - As thou hast never seen any example of a righteous man cut off, so I have seen many of wicked men cut off for their wickedness. They - They that designedly work wickedness, first preparing themselves for it, and then continuing to execute it, as husbandmen first plow the ground, and then cast in the feed. Reap - The fruit of their iniquity, the just punishment of it. Job 4:9”
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Tyndale Open Study Notes
Tyndale House Publishers · Tyndale Open Study Notes · Modern study notes
“4:8 The harvest metaphor illustrates the scriptural principle that behavior merits judgment (Prov 22:8; Hos 8:7; Rom 2:9-11; Gal 6:7-8). The New Testament describes the final judgment as a harvest (Matt 13:39). Jesus rejected simplistic attempts to analyze people’s lives by this principle (Luke 13:4; John 9:1-3).”
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Treasury of Scriptural Knowledge
R. A. Torrey and contributors · The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge · Cross-reference reference work
“they that plow: Psa 7:14-16; Pro 22:8; Jer 4:18; Hos 8:7, Hos 10:12, Hos 10:13; Co2 9:6; Gal 6:7, Gal 6:8 Job 4:9”
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Related study paths

Sources and verification