Job 20:16

Job 20:16 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)He shall suck the poison of asps: the viper’s tongue shall slay him.
• New International Version (NIV)He will suck the poison of serpents; the fangs of an adder will kill him.
• English Standard Version (ESV)He will suck the poison of cobras; the tongue of a viper will kill him.
• New King James Version (NKJV)He will suck the poison of cobras; The viper’s tongue will slay him.

Context of Job 20:16

14yet the food in his stomach turns into cobras’ venom inside him. 15He swallows wealth but must vomit it up; God will force it from his stomach. He will suck the poison of cobras; a viper’s fangs will kill him. 17He will not enjoy the streams, the rivers flowing with honey and curds. 18He must return the fruit of his labor without consuming it; he doesn’t enjoy the profits from his trading.

Job 20:16 word by word

רֹאשׁ־פְּתָנִ֥ים יִינָ֑ק תַּֽ֝הַרְגֵ֗הוּ לְשׁ֣וֹן אֶפְעֶֽה׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• He shall suckיָנַקyânaq · to suckleH3243
• the poisonרֹאשׁrô'sh rôsh · poisonH7219
• of aspsפֶּ֫תֶןpethen · cobraH6620
• the viper’sאֶפְעֶה'eph‛eh · viperH660
• tongueלָשׁוֹןlâshôn lâshôn leshônâh · tongueH3956
• shall slayהָרַגhârag · to killH2026

Cross-references for Job 20:16

• Romans 3:13Their throat is an open grave; they deceive with their tongues. Vipers’ venom is under their lips.
• Isaiah 30:6A pronouncement concerning the animals of the Negev: Through a land of trouble and distress, of lioness and lion, of viper and flying serpent, they carry their wealth on the backs of donkeys and their treasures on the humps of camels, to a people who will not help them.
• Matthew 3:7When he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to his baptism, he said to them, “Brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath?
• Acts 28:3As Paul gathered a bundle of brushwood and put it on the fire, a viper came out because of the heat and fastened itself on his hand.

Commentaries on Job 20:16

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 16He shall suck the poison of asps - That delicious morsel, that secret, easily-besetting sin, so palatable, and so pleasurable, shall act on the life of his soul, as the poison of asps would do on the life of his body. The poison is called the gall of asps, it being anciently supposed that the poison of serpents consists in their gall, which is thought to be copiously exuded when those animals are enraged; as it has been often seen that their bite is not…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 16He shall suck the poison of asps - That which he swallowed as pleasant nutriment, shall become the most deadly poison; or the consequence shall be as if he had sucked the poison of asps. It would seem that the ancients regarded the poison of the serpent as deadly, however, it was taken into the system. They seem not to have been aware that the poison of a wound may be sucked out without injury to him who does it; and that it is necessary that the poison…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
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 14-16venom of cobras … poison of cobras … vipers: In the end, evil people harm only themselves, not others (Matthew 3:7; Romans 3:13; Proverbs 23:29–35).Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1616. shall suck--It shall turn out that he has sucked the poison, &c.Read the comment

Topics related to Job 20:16

• Asp
• Hypocrisy
• Pleasure
• Serpent
• Sin
• Viper
• Wicked (People)
• Worldliness

In the dictionaries

• Asp
• Gall
• Hemlock
• Poison
• Rain
• Short
• Viper
• Zophar

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