Amplified Bible
Job 7:17
17What is man that You [should] magnify him [and think him important]? And that You are concerned about him?
Job 7:17 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)What is man, that thou shouldest magnify him? and that thou shouldest set thine heart upon him?
- New International Version (NIV)“What is mankind that you make so much of them, that you give them so much attention,
- English Standard Version (ESV)What is man, that you make so much of him, and that you set your heart on him,
- New King James Version (NKJV)“What is man, that You should exalt him, That You should set Your heart on him,
Context of Job 7:17
15So that I would choose suffocation, Death rather than my pain. 16I waste away and loathe my life; I will not live forever. Let me alone, for my days are but a breath [futile and without substance]. What is man that You [should] magnify him [and think him important]? And that You are concerned about him? 18And that You examine him every morning And try and test him every moment? 19Will You never turn Your gaze away from me [it plagues me], Nor let me alone until I swallow my spittle?
Read all of Job 7Job 7:17 word by word
מָֽה־אֱ֭נוֹשׁ כִּ֣י תְגַדְּלֶ֑נּוּ וְכִי־תָשִׁ֖ית אֵלָ֣יו לִבֶּֽךָ׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
Cross-references for Job 7:17
- Psalms 8:4What is man that You are mindful of him, And the son of [earthborn] man that You care for him?
- Psalms 144:3Lord, what is man that You take notice of him? Or the son of man that You think of him?
- Hebrews 2:6But one has [solemnly] testified somewhere [in Scripture], saying, “What is man, that You are mindful of him, Or the son of man, that You graciously care for him?
- Job 7:12Am I the sea, or the sea monster, That You set a guard over me?
- 1 Samuel 24:14After whom has the king of Israel come out? Whom do you pursue [with three thousand men]? A dead dog, a single flea?
- Job 34:14If God should determine to do so, If He should gather to Himself [that is, withdraw from man] His [life-giving] spirit and His breath,
Commentaries on Job 7:17
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 17What is man that thou shouldest magnify him? and that thou shouldest set thine heart upon him? - Two different ideas have been drawn from these words: - Man is not worth thy notice; why therefore dost thou contend with him? How astonishing is thy kindness that thou shouldest fix thy heart - thy strongest affections, on such a poor, base, vile, impotent creature as man, (אנוש enosh ), that thou shouldest so highly exalt him beyond all other creatures, and…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 17What is man, that thou shouldest magnify him? - That thou shouldst make him great, or that thou shouldst regard him as of so great importance as to fix thine eye attentively upon him. The idea here is, that it was unworthy the character of so great a being as God to bestow so much time and attention on a creature so insignificant as man; and especially that man could not be of so much importance that it was necessary for God to watch all his defects with…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 17-21Verses 17-21 Job reasons with God concerning his dealings with man. But in the midst of this discourse, Job seems to have lifted up his thoughts to God with some faith and hope. Observe the concern he is in about his sins. The best men have to complain of sin; and the better they are, the more they will complain of it. God is the Preserver of our lives, and the Saviour of the souls of all that believe; but probably Job meant the Observer of men, whose…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 17-18that You should exalt him: Compare with Psalm 8:4–5, which expresses similar thoughts in a positive way. attend (Hebrew paqad): In Psalm 8:4, this term means "to honor or care for." Job used it ironically to mean "You bother yourself" (compare with "punished," Isaiah 26:14).Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1717. (Psa 8:4; 144:3). Job means, "What is man that thou shouldst make him [of so much importance], and that thou shouldst expend such attention [or, heart-thought] upon him" as to make him the subject of so severe trials? Job ought rather to have reasoned from God's condescending so far to notice man as to try him, that there must be a wise and loving purpose in trial. David uses the same words, in their right application, to express wonder that God…Read the comment
Topics related to Job 7:17
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Job 7
- 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
- Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
Amplified Bible — © 2015 by The Lockman Foundation, La Habra, CA 90631
Commentaries