Job 18 4

Job 18:4 kjv

He teareth himself in his anger: shall the earth be forsaken for thee? and shall the rock be removed out of his place?

Job 18:4 nkjv

You who tear yourself in anger, Shall the earth be forsaken for you? Or shall the rock be removed from its place?

Job 18:4 niv

You who tear yourself to pieces in your anger, is the earth to be abandoned for your sake? Or must the rocks be moved from their place?

Job 18:4 esv

You who tear yourself in your anger, shall the earth be forsaken for you, or the rock be removed out of its place?

Job 18:4 nlt

You may tear out your hair in anger,
but will that destroy the earth?
Will it make the rocks tremble?

Job 18 verses

Job 18 4 Meaning

Bildad the Shuhite, in his second address to Job, sarcastically questions Job’s passionate anguish. He implies that Job’s intense anger and self-torment are so profound and self-important that Job seemingly expects the very foundations of the earth and the unmovable cosmic order to be disturbed or disappear because of his personal suffering. It is a sharp rebuke, accusing Job of blasphemous presumption and of believing his personal plight should overrule the immutable, divinely established laws of creation.

Job 18 4 Context

Job 18:4 comes during the second cycle of speeches between Job and his three friends. It is Bildad the Shuhite's second response to Job's profound and desperate laments, specifically following Job's speech in chapters 16 and 17, where Job expresses his deep anguish, maintains his innocence, and appeals directly to God for justice. Bildad's speech (chapter 18) is particularly harsh and condemnatory. He views Job's protests and self-pity as audacious, disrespectful, and fundamentally out of line with the established divine order. Bildad, rooted in the rigid retribution theology common among wisdom teachers of that era, believes that suffering is always a direct result of sin. Thus, Job’s suffering must imply significant wickedness. For Bildad, Job's complaints and challenging questions represent a rebellious attitude that presumes to defy the very stable, unchanging laws of God’s creation, as symbolized by the earth and a rock. This verse highlights the deep theological and empathetic chasm between Job's genuine anguish and his friends' unyielding, simplistic worldview.

Job 18 4 Word analysis

• You who tear yourself (אֶת־טֹרֵף נַפְשׁוֹ - ʾeṯ-ṭōrēf napshō):
  • Ṭōrēf is the Piel participle of the Hebrew verb ṭāraph (טָרַף), meaning "to tear, rend, pull in pieces, consume as prey." It depicts violent tearing.
  • Napshō (נַפְשׁוֹ) means "his soul," "himself," or "his inner being/life."
  • This phrase suggests Job is engaging in self-destructive behavior, metaphorically tearing or consuming his own soul/spirit with his anguish, rage, or self-pity. Bildad implies Job's suffering is self-inflicted or intensified by his uncontrolled emotions, portraying Job not as a victim but as someone violently turning on himself.
• in your anger (בְּאַפֶּךָ - bəʾappekkā):
  • ʾap (אַף) in Hebrew originally means "nose" or "nostril," and by extension, "anger," often depicted by the flaring of nostrils or heavy breathing during rage.
  • This indicates an intense, perhaps uncontrolled, emotional outburst from Job, which Bildad condemns as a disruptive force.
• shall the earth be abandoned for your sake? (הַבַעֲבוּרְךָ תֵעָזַב אָרֶץ - habaʿabūrkā tēʿāzav ʾāreṣ):
  • Hă is the interrogative prefix, indicating a rhetorical question expecting a negative answer.
  • Baʿabūrkā (בַּעֲבוּרְךָ) means "for your sake," "on your account," or "because of you."
  • Tēʿāzav (תֵעָזַב) is the Niphal imperfect of ʿāzav (עָזַב), meaning "to be abandoned," "to be forsaken," or "to be left empty."
  • ʾAreṣ (אָרֶץ) means "earth" or "land."
  • This phrase highlights Bildad's astonishment that Job would imagine his suffering could be so central or disruptive as to warrant the stable earth being emptied or abandoned from its place or function.
• Or shall a rock be removed from its place? (וְאִם־יֶעְתַּק צוּר מִמְּקֹמוֹ׃ - wəʾim-yeʿṭaq tsūr mimmaqōmō):
  • Wəʾim (וְאִם) means "or if," here serving as an emphatic "or shall."
  • Yeʿṭaq (יֶעְתַּק) is the Hiphil imperfect of ʿātaq (עָתַק), meaning "to remove," "to displace," "to cause to move," or "to transfer."
  • Tsūr (צוּר) means "rock," "boulder," or "cliff," symbolizing immutability and permanence.
  • Mimməqōmō (מִמְּקֹמוֹ) means "from its place."
  • This question serves as an even stronger hyperbole than the previous one, emphasizing the impossibility of altering fixed, natural, and divinely ordained order.

• Words-group Analysis:
  • "You who tear yourself in your anger": This paints a vivid picture of Job's internal state as destructive, consumed by rage, and alienated even from himself, not just God or his friends. Bildad attributes Job's current torment not to external injustice but to his internal, self-inflicted fury.
  • "shall the earth be abandoned for your sake? Or shall a rock be removed from its place?": These two parallel rhetorical questions are powerful expressions of Bildad’s rigid worldview. The "earth" and the "rock" represent the unchangeable cosmic order established by God. Bildad is contrasting the vast, unalterable divine creation with Job’s single, seemingly insignificant, human affliction. He asserts that no amount of human suffering, anger, or protest, no matter how intense, could possibly alter the fundamental, fixed laws of the universe. He implies Job is behaving as if his misery is so supremely important it should cause a universal upheaval, which is an absurd and blasphemous thought from Bildad's perspective.

Commentary

Job 18:4 captures the deep chasm between Job's genuine lament and the friends' rigid, unyielding theological framework. Bildad's accusation here is particularly stinging: he portrays Job as a self-absorbed, even rebellious, figure whose self-pity and anger are so profound that he acts as if the very order of the universe should be overturned to accommodate his distress. Bildad's perspective is deeply entrenched in a mechanistic retribution theology, where God's justice is viewed as a fixed, unbending system, and any deviation from prosperity is a direct indicator of sin. Thus, Job’s suffering, especially accompanied by his fervent questioning, is seen as an attack on this established cosmic order, as unthinkable as the earth being abandoned or an immovable rock shifting. Bildad is utterly devoid of empathy, failing to grasp the nuance of Job’s innocent suffering and mistaking his heartfelt cry for justice as defiant arrogance. He attempts to shame Job by contrasting Job's human fragility and personal anguish with the unchanging, immutable stability of creation, asserting that Job’s complaints are inconsequential to the greater divine design. This verse underscores the central dilemma of the book: the inadequacy of conventional wisdom to explain suffering outside the clear boundaries of sin.For example, one might feel overwhelmed by personal injustice to the point of exclaiming, "The world should stop for what I'm going through!" Bildad is taking this sentiment to a literal extreme, mocking Job for such a perceived mindset.

Bonus section

Polemics against Human Hubris: While aimed at Job, Bildad's statement implicitly argues against any human attempt to challenge the stability and order of God's creation, asserting that divine decree and cosmic law are unchangeable by mortal complaints. The Irony of Disruption: Ironically, Job’s unwavering integrity and the depth of his inexplicable suffering are indeed challenging and disrupting the theological framework of his friends, even if they aren't physically moving mountains. His experience forces them to confront a reality that contradicts their neat doctrines.* Misapplication of Wisdom: This verse serves as a powerful illustration of how biblical wisdom, when applied dogmatically and without compassion, can become cold, accusatory, and utterly unhelpful to those in distress. Bildad quotes established principles but applies them incorrectly and unfeelingly.

Job 18 4 Bonus section

Job 18 4 Commentary