Job 24 24

Job 24:24 kjv

They are exalted for a little while, but are gone and brought low; they are taken out of the way as all other, and cut off as the tops of the ears of corn.

Job 24:24 nkjv

They are exalted for a little while, Then they are gone. They are brought low; They are taken out of the way like all others; They dry out like the heads of grain.

Job 24:24 niv

For a little while they are exalted, and then they are gone; they are brought low and gathered up like all others; they are cut off like heads of grain.

Job 24:24 esv

They are exalted a little while, and then are gone; they are brought low and gathered up like all others; they are cut off like the heads of grain.

Job 24:24 nlt

And though they are great now,
in a moment they will be gone like all others,
cut off like heads of grain.

Job 24 verses

Job 24 24 Meaning

Job 24:24 describes the inevitable end of those who temporarily rise to power or prosperity without regard for righteousness. Despite their fleeting exaltation, they swiftly vanish, are humbled, and are universally gathered to their end. Like mature grain ready for harvest, they are cut off, emphasizing the finality and appointed nature of their demise, which often comes suddenly when they seem most secure.

Job 24 24 Context

Job 24 presents a somber complaint from Job concerning the apparent lack of immediate divine justice in the world. He describes in detail how wicked individuals—robbers, oppressors, and immoral persons—often act with impunity, causing great suffering to the poor and vulnerable, seemingly escaping any consequence from God. This challenges the traditional wisdom upheld by Job's friends, which insists that righteousness always leads to prosperity and wickedness to swift punishment.

However, Job 24:24, and the following verse, marks a subtle but crucial shift. While the previous verses highlighted the delay or absence of immediate judgment for the wicked, this verse articulates their ultimate and inevitable downfall. Job seems to concede, or perhaps assert from his own observation, that while God may allow them temporary exaltation and security (as hinted in v. 23), their end is certain, swift, and universal. This aligns, in principle, with the friends' general theological assertion about the fate of the wicked, yet Job's preceding frustration underscores the "for a little while" aspect and the unseen, quiet manner of their demise compared to the manifest suffering of the innocent. It serves as Job's conclusive retort to his friends: "Even if you grant their temporary prosperity, their end is decreed and universal, proving that not all suffering is due to individual sin."

Job 24 24 Word analysis

• "They are exalted" (יָרֻמוּ, yārumū): Derived from the root רוּם (rum), meaning "to be high, lifted up, exalted." This word speaks to their perceived success, power, or status in society. It denotes a visible rise, a position of prominence.
• "for a little while" (מְעַט, mᵉʿaṭ): This adverb emphasizes the brief duration and temporary nature of their exalted state. It undermines any notion of lasting security or sustained power, highlighting its transience.
• "and then they are gone" (וְאֵינֶנּוּ, wᵉ'ênennū): This powerful phrase signifies utter disappearance and non-existence. It indicates a swift, decisive removal from the scene, leaving no trace of their former presence or influence. It conveys finality, often implying death or total collapse.
• "they are brought low" (וְיִמַּךְ, wᵉyimmaḵ): From the root מָכַךְ (makak), meaning "to be low, humble, sink down, decay, languish." This stands in stark contrast to "exalted," portraying a reversal of fortune, a descent from their high position, leading to decay, collapse, or death.
• "and gathered like all others" (כַּכֹּל וְנִגְזָר, ka-kkōl wᵉnigzār):
  • "like all others" (כַּכֹּל, ka-kkōl): Means "as everything" or "like everyone." This phrase stresses the universality of their end. Despite their special temporary status, they share the same ultimate fate of mortality as all humanity, both righteous and wicked. There is no escape from this common appointment.
  • "and gathered" / "and cut off" (וְנִגְזָר, wᵉnigzār): From the root גָּזַר (gazar), "to cut off, decide, separate." This indicates a definitive severance or termination. It can refer to being cut off from life, society, or future generations, often implying a divine decree or the natural course leading to death. The idea of "gathered" here connects to being brought into the common lot of humanity in death.
• "they are cut off like heads of grain" (וּכְרֹאשׁ שִׁבֹּלֶת יִקָּטֵף, ū·ḵᵉrōʾš šibbōleṯ yiqqaṭêp̄): This is a vivid agricultural metaphor.
  • "like heads of grain" (כְּרֹאשׁ שִׁבֹּלֶת, ḵᵉrōʾš šibbōleṯ): Refers to the ripe ears of grain, the mature part ready for harvest. This implies that their "ripeness" (whether in prosperity or iniquity) signifies readiness for an end.
  • "they are cut off" / "is plucked off" (יִקָּטֵף, yiqqaṭêp̄): From the root קָטַף (qataf), meaning "to pluck, nip off, cut off." This describes the action of harvesting grain. The metaphor signifies a swift, decisive, and natural removal or termination, often unnoticed by human eyes outside of the divine "harvester." It implies that their end is timely, destined, and complete.

Words-group by words-group analysis:

• "They are exalted for a little while, and then they are gone": This highlights the rapid and dramatic reversal of fortune. Worldly power and apparent security are fleeting; their departure is sudden and leaves no lasting impact or existence.
• "they are brought low and gathered like all others": This emphasizes both their humiliation and the commonality of death. Their former high position dissolves into a universal state of being brought down, illustrating that no amount of worldly power or wealth exempts them from humanity's universal fate.
• "they are cut off like heads of grain": This strong simile provides a visual and cultural context. Just as ripened grain is ready and plucked off swiftly and decisively in the harvest, so too are the wicked brought to an abrupt and final end when their appointed time comes, symbolizing completeness and irreversibility.

Job 24 24 Bonus section

The metaphor of being "cut off like heads of grain" is highly significant within the biblical worldview, tying into themes of divine harvest and judgment. It contrasts with "cutting off" in terms of covenant punishment for the righteous (e.g., Exod 30:33, for defiling holy things) and instead focuses on a universal and definitive end applied to those "ripe" for such a removal. The grain metaphor also carries a sense of readiness, as if the wicked, by their actions and maturity in evil, have brought themselves to the point of being "harvested." This imagery suggests that the end is not always a violent or dramatic public spectacle but can be as quiet and absolute as grain being plucked, implying God's unseen, sovereign hand at work in the quiet course of human life and death.

Job 24 24 Commentary

Job 24:24 functions as Job's nuanced yet assertive statement about the ultimate justice administered by God, even when it appears delayed or unseen by man. While Job laments the prevailing impunity of the wicked, here he affirms their unavoidable and inglorious end. The verse contrasts the briefness of the wicked's worldly success with the certainty and swiftness of their demise. Their exaltation is but for a "little while" (מְעַט, mᵉʿaṭ), indicating its fleeting and unsubstantial nature. This temporary status quickly gives way to vanishing (וְאֵינֶנּוּ, wᵉ'ênennū) and being brought low (וְיִמַּךְ, wᵉyimmaḵ), symbolizing a profound fall from their seemingly lofty position.

The double imagery of being "gathered like all others" (כַּכֹּל וְנִגְזָר, ka-kkōl wᵉnigzār) and "cut off like heads of grain" (וּכְרֹאשׁ שִׁבֹּלֶת יִקָּטֵף, ū·ḵᵉrōʾš šibbōleṯ yiqqaṭêp̄) reinforces the point. The first highlights the universal equalizer of death; no one, regardless of power or wickedness, escapes this common human destiny. The second, the agricultural metaphor, beautifully conveys the sudden, decisive, and complete nature of their end. Just as grain, once ripe, is plucked without resistance by the harvester, so too are the wicked cut down, often at the height of their prosperity or presumed security. This is not a messy, drawn-out demise but an efficient, final act, a divine harvest of life.

Theologically, this verse acknowledges God's ultimate sovereignty and judgment, even when its timing seems mysterious to human observers. It offers a subtle reassurance that despite the appearances of injustice in the present, divine order will prevail. It does not entirely resolve Job's initial frustration regarding when justice is meted out, but it firmly establishes that it will be, a truth rooted in the divine appointment of human mortality.

Examples:

• A tyrant who built an empire through oppression and cruelty seems invincible but is suddenly overthrown and dies without an heir, his legacy dissolving.
• A powerful, corrupt businessperson seems to evade all legal consequences, yet one day disappears from public life due to a quiet, unannounced downfall or severe illness.
• Someone who thrives by exploiting others, appears wealthy and secure, only for their empire to collapse overnight, leaving them penniless and forgotten, echoing the transience of their unjust gains.