New Living Translation
Job 3:20
20“Oh, why give light to those in misery, and life to those who are bitter?
Job 3:20 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)Wherefore is light given to him that is in misery, and life unto the bitter in soul;
- New International Version (NIV)“Why is light given to those in misery, and life to the bitter of soul,
- English Standard Version (ESV)"Why is light given to him who is in misery, and life to the bitter in soul,
- New King James Version (NKJV)“Why is light given to him who is in misery, And life to the bitter of soul,
Context of Job 3:20
18Even captives are at ease in death, with no guards to curse them. 19Rich and poor are both there, and the slave is free from his master. “Oh, why give light to those in misery, and life to those who are bitter? 21They long for death, and it won’t come. They search for death more eagerly than for hidden treasure. 22They’re filled with joy when they finally die, and rejoice when they find the grave.
Read all of Job 3Job 3:20 word by word
לָ֤מָּה יִתֵּ֣ן לְעָמֵ֣ל א֑וֹר וְ֝חַיִּ֗ים לְמָ֣רֵי נָֽפֶשׁ׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
Cross-references for Job 3:20
- Job 6:9I wish he would crush me. I wish he would reach out his hand and kill me.
- Job 7:15I would rather be strangled— rather die than suffer like this.
- Jeremiah 20:18Why was I ever born? My entire life has been filled with trouble, sorrow, and shame.
- Job 3:16Why wasn’t I buried like a stillborn child, like a baby who never lives to see the light?
- Job 33:28God rescued me from the grave, and now my life is filled with light.’
- 1 Samuel 1:10Hannah was in deep anguish, crying bitterly as she prayed to the Lord.
- 2 Kings 4:27But when she came to the man of God at the mountain, she fell to the ground before him and caught hold of his feet. Gehazi began to push her away, but the man of God said, “Leave her alone. She is deeply troubled, but the Lord has not told me what it is.”
- Proverbs 31:6Alcohol is for the dying, and wine for those in bitter distress.
Commentaries on Job 3:20
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 20Wherefore is light given - Why is life granted to him who is incapable of enjoying it, or of performing its functions?Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 20Wherefore is light given to him that is in misery? - The word “light” here is used undoubtedly to denote “life.” This verse commences a new part of Job‘s complaint. It is that God keeps people alive who would prefer to die; that he furnishes them with the means of sustaining existence, and actually preserves them, when they would consider it an inestimable blessing to expire. Schultens remarks, on this part of the chapter, that the tone of Job‘s complaint…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 20-26Verses 20-26 Job was like a man who had lost his way, and had no prospect of escape, or hope of better times. But surely he was in an ill frame for death when so unwilling to live. Let it be our constant care to get ready for another world, and then leave it to God to order our removal thither as he thinks fit. Grace teaches us in the midst of life's greatest comforts, to be willing to die, and in the midst of its greatest crosses, to be willing to live…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 20Job compared light to life (33:30; see John 1:4; 8:12). Bitter might mean: “Angry” (Judges 18:25). “Fierce” (2 Samuel 17:8). “Anguish” (Job 7:11). Desperate (Proverbs 31:6). “Distress” (1 Samuel 1:10; 22:2).Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 20-2620. Wherefore giveth he light--namely, God; often omitted reverentially (Job 24:23; Ec 9:9). Light, that is, life. The joyful light ill suits the mourners. The grave is most in unison with their feelings.Read the comment
Topics related to Job 3:20
In the dictionaries
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
New Living Translation — © 1996, 2004, 2015 Tyndale House Foundation
Commentaries