Job 30:13 kjv
They mar my path, they set forward my calamity, they have no helper.
Job 30:13 nkjv
They break up my path, They promote my calamity; They have no helper.
Job 30:13 niv
They break up my road; they succeed in destroying me. 'No one can help him,' they say.
Job 30:13 esv
They break up my path; they promote my calamity; they need no one to help them.
Job 30:13 nlt
They block my road
and do everything they can to destroy me.
They know I have no one to help me.
Job 30 13 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Job 19:13 | "He has removed my brothers far from me, and my acquaintances are completely estranged..." | Friends/acquaintances turned away. |
| Job 19:19 | "All my intimate friends detest me; those I love have turned against me." | Betrayal and abandonment by close ones. |
| Ps 35:15-16 | "But at my stumbling they rejoiced and gathered themselves together..." | Enemies gloating over misfortune. |
| Ps 41:7-9 | "All who hate me whisper together against me; they plot my harm, saying, 'A wicked..." | Plotting harm, even by trusted companions. |
| Ps 55:12-14 | "For it is not an enemy who taunts me... But it is you, a man my equal..." | Betrayal by a trusted friend. |
| Ps 69:26 | "For they persecute him whom You have struck, and they tell of the grief of those You have wounded." | Persecuting one already afflicted by God. |
| Ps 109:2 | "For they have opened the wicked and deceitful mouth against me; they have spoken against me with a lying tongue." | Malicious speech and actions. |
| Lam 1:12 | "Is it nothing to you, all you who pass by? Look and see if there is any pain like my pain..." | Profound and unrivaled suffering. |
| Jer 30:14 | "All your lovers have forgotten you; they do not seek you... For I have wounded you with the wound of an enemy..." | Abandonment by those who once loved. |
| Ps 22:6 | "But I am a worm and not a man, scorned by mankind and despised by the people." | Social humiliation and scorn. |
| Ps 31:11 | "Because of all my adversaries, I have become a disgrace to my neighbors..." | Becoming a reproach due to suffering. |
| Ps 38:11 | "My loved ones and my companions stand aloof from my plague, and my kinsmen stand far off." | Solitude in suffering. |
| Prov 4:18-19 | "But the path of the righteous is like the light of dawn... The way of the wicked is like deep darkness..." | Contrasting paths of righteous and wicked. |
| Isa 26:7 | "The path of the righteous is level; You make the way of the righteous straight." | God's protection of the righteous' path. |
| Isa 53:3 | "He was despised and forsaken of men, a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief..." | Jesus' experience of being despised and forsaken. |
| John 15:18-19 | "If the world hates you, know that it has hated Me before it hated you." | Christ's followers face world's hatred. |
| 2 Tim 3:12 | "Indeed, all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will be persecuted." | Persecution is expected for believers. |
| Rom 8:35 | "Who will separate us from the love of Christ? Will tribulation, or distress, or persecution..." | Assurance in Christ's love despite adversity. |
| Heb 12:3 | "For consider Him who has endured such hostility by sinners against Himself..." | Christ's endurance of hostility. |
| Matt 5:10-12 | "Blessed are those who have been persecuted for the sake of righteousness..." | Blessedness in suffering for righteousness. |
| 1 Pet 4:16 | "But if anyone suffers as a Christian, he is not to be ashamed, but is to glorify God in that name." | Suffering as a Christian. |
Job 30 verses
Job 30 13 Meaning
Job 30:13 expresses Job's profound and pervasive suffering, detailing how contemptible individuals actively intensify his misfortune. It describes his tormentors as ruthlessly obstructing his path, ensuring his continuous downfall, and remarkably, that even these debased individuals themselves lack any support or moral standing. This highlights the depths of Job's physical, social, and emotional desolation, where even the outcasts of society now victimize him, further isolating and crushing his spirit.
Job 30 13 Context
Job chapter 30 marks a dramatic shift in Job’s discourse, intensifying his lament. He moves from defending his innocence and challenging God's actions (earlier chapters) to describing the profound humiliation and suffering inflicted upon him by society, even by those beneath his former stature. Verses 1-12 graphically portray his tormentors as the lowest of society—vagrants, outcasts, and people without social standing, whom Job himself would not have associated with in his prosperous days. These are people despised even by their communities, dwelling in caves and ruins, resorting to wild vegetation for sustenance. Job 30:13 follows directly from this description, illustrating the actions of these base individuals: they exploit Job’s fallen status, actively contributing to his torment and blocking any hope of recovery or escape. This social context of being persecuted by the vilest members of society underscores the depth of Job’s despair and sense of injustice, far beyond mere physical ailments.
Job 30 13 Word analysis
- They (הֵמָּה - hemmāh): Refers to the despicable individuals, societal outcasts and vagabonds described in Job 30:1-12, emphasizing their collective action against Job, not his friends.
- break up (הָרְסוּ - hāresū from הָרַס haras): This verb means "to pull down," "to demolish," "to ruin," "to tear down." It implies violent, destructive action. Here, it is metaphorical, signifying the destruction of Job's way or prospects.
- my path (נְתִיבָתִי - nəṯîḇāṯî from נְתִיבָה nəthiybah): A "path" or "road," often a high, clear, beaten way. Metaphorically, it refers to Job's course of life, his well-being, his hope, his moral conduct, or his ability to find a way out of his suffering. It's about disrupting his direction in life.
- They further (יֹעִילוּ - yōʿilū from יָעַל ya'al): This verb typically means "to profit," "to gain," "to avail," "to benefit." Here, it's used ironically or in a perverse sense, meaning they "promote" or "advance" something negative – his downfall. They make his suffering "benefit" them or grow.
- my calamity (לְמַפָּלָתִי - ləmappālāṯî from מַפָּלָה mappalah): Refers to a "fall," "ruin," or "overthrow." It encapsulates Job's total misfortune, suffering, and destruction. They are accelerating his utter downfall.
- They have no helper (אֵין עֹזֵר לָהֶם - ’êyn ‘ōzēr lâhem): This phrase has debated interpretations but most commonly means "there is no helper for them" or "those who have no helper."
- Most probable: It describes the persecutors themselves. These wicked individuals are so depraved that they lack any support or moral standing within society; they are isolated even in their villainy. Yet, despite their own abandonment, they inflict cruelty upon Job.
- Alternative: It could underscore that Job himself has no one to help him against these merciless tormentors, magnifying his utter helplessness. However, the Hebrew syntax points strongly to the former interpretation.
- "They break up my path": This phrase highlights the active and malicious obstruction of Job's life, implying a deliberate effort to ruin his prospects, hope, and any chance of recovery. It is a metaphor for total ruination, removing any stability or clear direction.
- "They further my calamity": This signifies that Job's tormentors are not merely indifferent to his suffering but are actively intensifying it, pushing him further into the abyss of his affliction. They contribute to his "fall" or "ruin" with purpose.
- "They have no helper": This clause serves as a chilling indictment of Job's tormentors, implying their utter moral bankruptcy and isolation, even among themselves. It amplifies the pathos of Job's situation: he is victimized by those who are themselves outcast, highlighting a deep and perverse irony in his suffering.
Job 30 13 Bonus section
- The description of Job’s tormentors in Job 30:1-12 prior to verse 13 emphasizes the societal humiliation and ostracization Job experiences. For someone of Job's former eminence (Job 29), being persecuted by such disdained individuals would have been intensely demeaning, adding to his emotional anguish beyond just physical pain.
- The phrase "they have no helper" can also be understood as a dark characterization of the oppressors, implying they act without conscience or external accountability. Their recklessness in attacking Job highlights their own desperate and forsaken nature, yet their malicious intent remains directed at Job.
- This verse portrays Job's sense of being a pariah, where even the "refuse" of society is allowed to assault and injure him, indicative of a world turned upside down from his perspective, where order and justice seem utterly absent.
Job 30 13 Commentary
Job 30:13 concisely articulates Job's despair over the relentless persecution he endures from the lowest strata of society. These vile individuals actively work to destroy his very 'path' – his hope, prospects, and future course of life – ensuring his misery is exacerbated. The profound irony is that even these societal outcasts, described as having "no helper" themselves (lacking moral or social support), still find perverse satisfaction in crushing Job, accentuating his utter abandonment. It's a lament of being beaten down by the despised, a symbol of ultimate humiliation. Job perceives these actions as further evidence of his total collapse and the world's malicious alignment against him, compounding his sense of injustice.