Job 3:5

Job 3:5 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)Let darkness and the shadow of death stain it; let a cloud dwell upon it; let the blackness of the day terrify it.
• English Standard Version (ESV)Let gloom and deep darkness claim it. Let clouds dwell upon it; let the blackness of the day terrify it.
• New King James Version (NKJV)May darkness and the shadow of death claim it; May a cloud settle on it; May the blackness of the day terrify it.
• New Living Translation (NLT)Let the darkness and utter gloom claim that day for its own. Let a black cloud overshadow it, and let the darkness terrify it.

Context of Job 3:5

3“May the day of my birth perish, and the night that said, ‘A boy is conceived!’ 4That day—may it turn to darkness; may God above not care about it; may no light shine on it. May gloom and utter darkness claim it once more; may a cloud settle over it; may blackness overwhelm it. 6That night—may thick darkness seize it; may it not be included among the days of the year nor be entered in any of the months. 7May that night be barren; may no shout of joy be heard in it.

Job 3:5 word by word

יִגְאָלֻ֡הוּ חֹ֣שֶׁךְ וְ֭צַלְמָוֶת תִּשְׁכָּן־עָלָ֣יו עֲנָנָ֑ה יְ֝בַעֲתֻ֗הוּ כִּֽמְרִ֥ירֵי יֽוֹם׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• Let darknessחֹ֫שֶׁךְchôshek · darknessH2822
• and the shadow of deathצַלְמָ֫וֶתtsalmâveth · shadowH6757
• stainגָּאַלgâ'al · to redeem: redeemH1350
• it; let a cloudעֲנָנָה‛ănânâh · cloudH6053
• dwellשָׁכַןshâkan · to dwellH7931
• upon it; let the blacknessכִּמְרִירkimrîyr · darknessH3650
• of the dayיוֹםyôm · dayH3117
• terrifyבָּעַתbâ‛ath · to terrifyH1204

Cross-references for Job 3:5

• Job 10:21before I go to the place of no return, to the land of gloom and utter darkness,
• Job 16:16My face is red with weeping, dark shadows ring my eyes;
• Job 24:17For all of them, midnight is their morning; they make friends with the terrors of darkness.
• Job 28:3Mortals put an end to the darkness; they search out the farthest recesses for ore in the blackest darkness.
• Job 38:17Have the gates of death been shown to you? Have you seen the gates of the deepest darkness?
• Psalms 23:4Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.
• Psalms 44:19But you crushed us and made us a haunt for jackals; you covered us over with deep darkness.
• Psalms 107:10Some sat in darkness, in utter darkness, prisoners suffering in iron chains,
• Isaiah 9:2The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of deep darkness a light has dawned.
• Jeremiah 2:6They did not ask, ‘Where is the Lord, who brought us up out of Egypt and led us through the barren wilderness, through a land of deserts and ravines, a land of drought and utter darkness, a land where no one travels and no one lives?’
• Jeremiah 13:16Give glory to the Lord your God before he brings the darkness, before your feet stumble on the darkening hills. You hope for light, but he will turn it to utter darkness and change it to deep gloom.
• Amos 5:8He who made the Pleiades and Orion, who turns midnight into dawn and darkens day into night, who calls for the waters of the sea and pours them out over the face of the land— the Lord is his name.
• Matthew 4:16the people living in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of the shadow of death a light has dawned.”
• Luke 1:79to shine on those living in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the path of peace.”
• Deuteronomy 4:11You came near and stood at the foot of the mountain while it blazed with fire to the very heavens, with black clouds and deep darkness.
• Ezekiel 30:3For the day is near, the day of the Lord is near— a day of clouds, a time of doom for the nations.

Commentaries on Job 3:5

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 5Let darkness and the shadow of death stain it - יגאלהו yigaluhu, "pollute or avenge it," from גאל gaal, to vindicate, avenge, etc.; hence גאל goel, the nearest of kin, whose right it was to redeem an inheritance, and avenge the death of his relative by slaying the murderer. Let this day be pursued, overtaken, and destroyed. Let natural darkness, the total privation of the solar light, rendered still more intense by death's shadow projected over it, seize…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 5Let darkness and the shadow of death - The Hebrew word צלמות tsalmâveth is exceedingly musical and poetical. It is derived from צל tsêl “a shadow,” and מות mâveth “death;” and is used to denote the deepest darkness; see the notes at Isaiah 9:2. It occurs frequently in the sacred Scriptures; compare Job 10:21-22; Psalm 23:4; Job 12:22; Job 16:16; Job 24:17; Job 34:22; Job 38:17; Amos 5:8; Jeremiah 2:6. It is used to denote the abode of departed spirits…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 5Job wished that the darkness of the place of the dead and the gloom of death had not allowed him to be born (Exodus 10:22; Proverbs 4:19; Joel 2:2; Job 10:21–22; 38:17).Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 55. Let ... the shadow of death--("deepest darkness," Is 9:2). stain it--This is a later sense of the verb [Gesenius]; better the old and more poetic idea, "Let darkness (the ancient night of chaotic gloom) resume its rights over light (Ge 1:2), and claim that day as its own." a cloud--collectively, a gathered mass of dark clouds. the blackness of the day terrify it--literally, "the obscurations"; whatever darkens the day [Gesenius]. The verb in Hebrew…Read the comment

Topics related to Job 3:5

• Afflictions and Adversities
• Colors
• Despondency
• Prayer

In the dictionaries

• Shadow of Death
• Above
• Dig
• Poetry
• Roaring
• Safety
• Solitary
• Blackness
• Color; Colors
• Dark; Darkness

Commentaries on Job 3

• 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