New International Version
Job 2:8
8Then Job took a piece of broken pottery and scraped himself with it as he sat among the ashes.
Job 2:8 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)And he took him a potsherd to scrape himself withal; and he sat down among the ashes.
- English Standard Version (ESV)And he took a piece of broken pottery with which to scrape himself while he sat in the ashes.
- New King James Version (NKJV)And he took for himself a potsherd with which to scrape himself while he sat in the midst of the ashes.
- New Living Translation (NLT)Job scraped his skin with a piece of broken pottery as he sat among the ashes.
Context of Job 2:8
6The Lord said to Satan, “Very well, then, he is in your hands; but you must spare his life.” 7So Satan went out from the presence of the Lord and afflicted Job with painful sores from the soles of his feet to the crown of his head. Then Job took a piece of broken pottery and scraped himself with it as he sat among the ashes. 9His wife said to him, “Are you still maintaining your integrity? Curse God and die!” 10He replied, “You are talking like a foolish woman. Shall we accept good from God, and not trouble?” In all this, Job did not sin in what he said.
Read all of Job 2Job 2:8 word by word
וַיִּֽקַּֽח־ל֣וֹ חֶ֔רֶשׂ לְהִתְגָּרֵ֖ד בּ֑וֹ וְה֖וּא יֹשֵׁ֥ב בְּתוֹךְ־הָאֵֽפֶר׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
Cross-references for Job 2:8
- Job 19:14My relatives have gone away; my closest friends have forgotten me.
- Psalms 38:5My wounds fester and are loathsome because of my sinful folly.
- Luke 16:20At his gate was laid a beggar named Lazarus, covered with sores
- Job 42:6Therefore I despise myself and repent in dust and ashes.”
- 2 Samuel 13:19Tamar put ashes on her head and tore the ornate robe she was wearing. She put her hands on her head and went away, weeping aloud as she went.
- Isaiah 61:3and provide for those who grieve in Zion— to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of joy instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair. They will be called oaks of righteousness, a planting of the Lord for the display of his splendor.
- Ezekiel 27:30They will raise their voice and cry bitterly over you; they will sprinkle dust on their heads and roll in ashes.
- Jonah 3:6When Jonah’s warning reached the king of Nineveh, he rose from his throne, took off his royal robes, covered himself with sackcloth and sat down in the dust.
- Matthew 11:21“Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the miracles that were performed in you had been performed in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes.
Commentaries on Job 2:8
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 8And he took him a potsherd - The word used here חרשׁ chârâsh means a fragment of a broken vessel; see the notes at Isaiah 45:9. The Septuagint renders it ̓́ ostrakon - “a shell.” One object of taking this was to remove from his body the filth accumulated by the universal ulcer, compare Job 7:4-5; and another design probably was, to “indicate” the greatness of his calamity and sorrow. The ancients were accustomed to show their grief by significant…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 7-10Verses 7-10 The devil tempts his own children, and draws them to sin, and afterwards torments, when he has brought them to ruin; but this child of God he tormented with affliction, and then tempted to make a bad use of his affliction. He provoked Job to curse God. The disease was very grievous. If at any time we are tried with sore and grievous distempers, let us not think ourselves dealt with otherwise than as God sometimes deals with the best of his…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 8Job might have scraped his skin for relief. The ancient Greek Old Testament (Septuagint) says it was “to scrape away the pus.” The ashes might refer to a place where they placed lepers in isolation. But Job was probably showing his grief and how desperate he was (30:19; Genesis 18:27; 2 Samuel 13:19; Isaiah 58:5; Jonah 3:6).Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 88. a potsherd--not a piece of a broken earthen vessel, but an instrument made for scratching (the root of the Hebrew word is "scratch"); the sore was too disgusting to touch. "To sit in the ashes" marks the deepest mourning (Jon 3:6); also humility, as if the mourner were nothing but dust and ashes; so Abraham (Ge 18:27).Read the comment
Topics related to Job 2:8
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Job 2
- 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
- Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
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