Amplified Bible
Job 20:18
18He gives back what he has labored for and attained And cannot swallow it [down to enjoy it]; As to the riches of his labor, He cannot even enjoy them.
Job 20:18 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)That which he laboured for shall he restore, and shall not swallow it down: according to his substance shall the restitution be, and he shall not rejoice therein.
- New International Version (NIV)What he toiled for he must give back uneaten; he will not enjoy the profit from his trading.
- English Standard Version (ESV)He will give back the fruit of his toil and will not swallow it down; from the profit of his trading he will get no enjoyment.
- New King James Version (NKJV)He will restore that for which he labored, And will not swallow it down; From the proceeds of business He will get no enjoyment.
Context of Job 20:18
16He sucks the poison of vipers [which ill-gotten wealth contains]; The viper’s tongue slays him. 17He does not look at the rivers, The flowing streams of honey and butter [to enjoy his wealth]. He gives back what he has labored for and attained And cannot swallow it [down to enjoy it]; As to the riches of his labor, He cannot even enjoy them. 19For he has oppressed and neglected the poor; He has violently taken away houses which he did not build. 20“Because he knew no quietness or calm within him [because of his greed], He does not retain anything he desires.
Read all of Job 20Job 20:18 word by word
מֵשִׁ֣יב יָ֭גָע וְלֹ֣א יִבְלָ֑ע כְּחֵ֥יל תְּ֝מוּרָת֗וֹ וְלֹ֣א יַעֲלֹֽס׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
Cross-references for Job 20:18
- Job 20:10His sons favor the poor [and pay his obligations], And his hands give back his [ill-gotten] wealth.
- Job 20:5That the triumphing of the wicked is short, And the joy of the godless is only for a moment?
- Proverbs 1:12Let us swallow them alive like Sheol (the place of the dead), Even whole, as those who go down to the pit [of death];
- Jeremiah 51:34“Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon has devoured me, he has crushed me, He has set me down like an empty vessel. Like a monster he has swallowed me up, He has filled his belly with my delicacies; He has spit me out and washed me away.
- Lamentations 2:16All your enemies Have opened their mouths wide against you; They [scornfully] hiss and gnash their teeth. They say, “We have swallowed her up! Certainly this is the day for which we waited; We have reached it, we have seen it!”
- Hosea 8:7For they sow the wind [in evil] And they reap the whirlwind [in disaster]. The standing grain has no growth; It yields no grain. If it were to yield, strangers would swallow it up.
- Amos 8:4Hear this, you who trample down the needy, and do away with the poor of the land,
- Matthew 23:14[Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, because you swallow up widows’ houses, and to cover it up you make long prayers; therefore you will receive the greater condemnation.]
- Job 31:25If I gloated and rejoiced because my wealth was great, And because my [powerful] hand [alone] had obtained so much,
- Isaiah 24:7The new wine mourns, The vine decays; All the merry-hearted sigh and groan.
- Jeremiah 11:15What right has My beloved [to be] in My house When she has done many vile things and acted treacherously [over and over again]? Can vows and the meat of your sacrifices remove your wickedness from you and cancel the consequences of your sin, So that you can [escape your judgment and] rejoice?”
- Jeremiah 22:13“Woe (judgment is coming) to him who builds his house by [acts of] unrighteousness And his upper chambers by injustice, Who uses his neighbor’s service without pay And does not give him wages [for his work],
- Ezekiel 7:12The time has come, the day has arrived. Let not the buyer rejoice nor the seller mourn, for wrath is against all their multitude [of people].
- Hosea 9:1Do not rejoice, O Israel, with exultation as do the [pagan] peoples, For you have played the prostitute, turning away from your God. You have loved prostitutes’ earnings on every threshing floor [attributing the harvest to the Baals instead of to God].
- James 4:8Come close to God [with a contrite heart] and He will come close to you. Wash your hands, you sinners; and purify your [unfaithful] hearts, you double-minded [people].
Commentaries on Job 20:18
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 18That which he laboureth for shall he restore - I prefer here the reading of the Arabic, which is also supported by the Syriac, and is much nearer to the Hebrew text than the common version. He shall return to labor, but he shall not eat; he shall toil, and not be permitted to enjoy the fruit of his labor. The whole of this verse Mr. Good thus translates: - "To labor shall he return, but he shall not eat. A dearth his recompense: yea, nothing shall he…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 18That which he laboured for shall he restore - This means that he shall give back the profit of his labor. He shall not be permitted to enjoy it or to consume it. And shall not swallow it down - Shall not enjoy it; shall not eat it. He shall be obliged to give it to others. According to his substance shall the restitution be - literally, according to Gesenius, “As a possession to be restored in which one rejoices not.” The sense is, that all that he has is…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 10-22Verses 10-22 The miserable condition of the wicked man in this world is fully set forth. The lusts of the flesh are here called the sins of his youth. His hiding it and keeping it under his tongue, denotes concealment of his beloved lust, and delight therein. But He who knows what is in the heart, knows what is under the tongue, and will discover it. The love of the world, and of the wealth of it, also is wickedness, and man sets his heart upon these…Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1818. Image from food which is taken away from one before he can swallow it. restitution--(So Pr 6:31). The parallelism favors the English Version rather than the translation of Gesenius, "As a possession to be restored in which he rejoices not." he shall not rejoice--His enjoyment of his ill-gotten gains shall then be at an end (Job 20:5).Read the comment
Topics related to Job 20:18
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Job 20
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Rashi on Tanakh
- Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
- John Wesley’s Notes
- Darby Translation Notes
- Geneva Bible Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
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