Job 7:19 kjv
How long wilt thou not depart from me, nor let me alone till I swallow down my spittle?
Job 7:19 nkjv
How long? Will You not look away from me, And let me alone till I swallow my saliva?
Job 7:19 niv
Will you never look away from me, or let me alone even for an instant?
Job 7:19 esv
How long will you not look away from me, nor leave me alone till I swallow my spit?
Job 7:19 nlt
Why won't you leave me alone,
at least long enough for me to swallow!
Job 7 19 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Psa 6:3 | My soul is also sore vexed: but thou, O LORD, how long? | Lament asking God "how long?" |
| Psa 13:1-2 | How long, O LORD? wilt thou forget me for ever?... | Deep personal lament for divine abandonment. |
| Psa 77:7-9 | Will the Lord cast off for ever? and will he be favourable no more? | Questioning God's mercy and enduring anger. |
| Hab 1:2-3 | O LORD, how long shall I cry, and thou wilt not hear!... | Prophet's lament for lack of divine action. |
| Job 10:20-21 | Are not my days few? cease then, and let me alone, that I may take comfort | Direct parallel to Job's plea for a moment's rest. |
| Job 14:6 | Turn from him, that he may rest, till he shall accomplish, as an hireling, his day. | Plea for rest for fragile human life. |
| Psa 139:1-4 | O LORD, thou hast searched me, and known me. Thou knowest my downsitting... | God's all-encompassing knowledge and presence. |
| Heb 4:13 | Neither is there any creature that is not manifest in his sight... | All things are open before God's eyes. |
| Prov 15:3 | The eyes of the LORD are in every place, beholding the evil and the good. | God's constant watchfulness. |
| Jer 17:10 | I the LORD search the heart, I try the reins, even to give every man... | God's deep understanding of human heart. |
| Psa 90:3-6 | Thou turnest man to destruction... our years are as a tale that is told. | Human frailty and brevity of life. |
| Psa 103:15-16 | As for man, his days are as grass: as a flower of the field... | Life is fleeting and temporary. |
| Jas 4:14 | For what is your life? It is even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time | Life as a brief, vanishing mist. |
| 2 Cor 12:8-9 | For this thing I besought the Lord thrice, that it might depart from me... | Paul's plea for relief from an affliction. |
| Job 3:11-13 | Why died I not from the womb? why did I not give up the ghost... | Job's desire for death as ultimate rest. |
| Psa 39:13 | O spare me, that I may recover strength, before I go hence, and be no more. | Plea for space to recover before death. |
| Isa 55:8-9 | For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD. | God's ways are higher and often incomprehensible. |
| Rom 11:33-36 | O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God!... | Acknowledging God's unfathomable wisdom. |
| Lam 3:1-9 | I am the man that hath seen affliction by the rod of his wrath... | Personal lament over deep suffering from God. |
| Mark 15:34 | My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? | Christ's cry of dereliction, feeling abandoned. |
| Job 6:8-10 | Oh that I might have my request; and that God would grant me the thing... | Job desires immediate death as escape from suffering. |
| 1 Pet 5:6-7 | Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God... cast all your care | Trusting God amid His mighty hand, casting anxieties. |
Job 7 verses
Job 7 19 Meaning
Job 7:19 expresses Job’s desperate plea to God for a brief moment of relief and respite from His unrelenting gaze and overwhelming affliction. He longs for a minimal pause, however short, free from divine scrutiny, a break even as fleeting as the act of swallowing his own spittle, signifying a moment of personal privacy and non-interference. It conveys a deep sense of being perpetually burdened and monitored by God.
Job 7 19 Context
Job 7:19 is part of Job's deeply anguished speech in response to Bildad, following the initial rounds of debate with his friends. Job's earlier speeches focused on his profound suffering and desire for death (chapters 3 and 6). In chapter 7, Job continues to lament his plight, comparing his life to forced labor, a passing shadow, and a breath, emphasizing its futility and sorrow. He feels trapped, unable to escape his pain or God's relentless observation and affliction. This particular verse is a direct address to God, questioning the divine rationale behind such persistent torment, reflecting Job's desperation for even a minimal moment of relief. It highlights his perception of God not as a benevolent comforter but as an ever-present overseer who allows no respite from his pain.
Job 7 19 Word analysis
- How long (עַד-מָה, ‘ad-mah): This is a common Hebrew interrogative phrase signifying impatience, weariness, and a plea for an end to a painful situation. It indicates Job's desperate yearning for the cessation of his suffering, implying that his torment has already been protracted beyond endurance. It's a lamentation marker, a cry to God to intervene.
- wilt thou not depart from me (לֹא-תִשְׁעֶה מִמֶּנִּי, lo’-tish‘eh mimmenni):
- תִשְׁעֶה (tish‘eh): From the root שׁעה (sha'ah), meaning "to look away," "to turn aside," "to turn the eyes from," or "to depart." Job feels that God is constantly looking at him, fixing His gaze, and tormenting him, never averting His attention. Job's desire is for God to cease His intense scrutiny and affliction. He perceives God's omnipresence not as comforting but as a burdensome surveillance that compounds his misery.
- מִמֶּנִּי (mimmenni): "From me." This emphasizes the direct target of God's unyielding attention—Job himself.
- nor let me alone (וְלֹא-תַרְפֵּנִי, v'lo-tarppeni):
- תַרְפֵּנִי (tarppeni): From the root רָפָה (raphah), which means "to slacken," "to drop," "to let go," "to release," "to cease." It implies the cessation of a burden, pressure, or pursuit. Job wishes for God to release His grip on him, to stop actively pursuing him with affliction, and grant him peace. The same root is often used in the context of healing, implying a need for spiritual or emotional 'loosening' and relief, not necessarily a physical one here.
- till I swallow down my spittle (עַד-בַּלְּעִי רֻקִּי, ‘ad-balla‘i ruqqi):
- בַּלְּעִי (balla‘i): From the root בלע (bala‘), meaning "to swallow," "to gulp down," "to absorb." It refers to a common, momentary physical action.
- רֻקִּי (ruqqi): "My spittle." This is a deeply poignant idiomatic expression. Swallowing one's spittle is one of the most immediate, unthinking, and fleeting private actions a person performs. The idiom denotes an infinitesimally short period of time, emphasizing Job's desperation for even the briefest, most basic, and uninterrupted moment of rest, privacy, and cessation from divine pressure. He feels he doesn't even have enough time for this minimal, essential biological function without God's intense scrutiny or direct affliction.
Words-group by words-group analysis:
- "How long wilt thou not depart from me, nor let me alone": This grouping conveys Job's utter exhaustion and impatience with God's perceived continuous presence of affliction. It reflects his feeling of being perpetually pursued, besieged, and held under intense divine pressure, without any break. It is a desperate appeal for God to step back and allow him respite.
- "till I swallow down my spittle": This phrase dramatically underscores the extreme brevity of the moment Job desires for relief. It is a hyperbole signifying that he is denied even the most basic, instantaneous, and mundane personal interval free from his suffering or God's gaze. It amplifies the depth of his misery and his longing for immediate and utter quiet from his pain.
Job 7 19 Bonus section
The audacity of Job's plea highlights a crucial aspect of biblical lament: the freedom to express unvarnished despair and even frustration to God. This isn't irreverence but a profound trust that God is mighty enough to hear such cries and just enough to allow them. Job's perception of God's omnipresence has shifted from a comforting thought to an overwhelming burden, a unique inversion often felt in extreme suffering. This verse also serves as a potent reminder that spiritual trials can lead individuals to question not just their circumstances but God's direct involvement in their suffering, a necessary part of a faith journey where easy answers crumble.
Job 7 19 Commentary
Job 7:19 offers a stark insight into the profound psychological and spiritual agony of a suffering righteous man. It captures Job's desperation, not for death itself in this moment, but for a simple, temporary cessation of the divine pressure and pain. He perceives God not as a distant, abstract being, but as an ever-present force, actively engaging him, observing him, and, in his view, persecuting him without end. The cry "How long?" is a universal lament of the suffering soul, questioning the duration and intensity of hardship. The desire for enough time "to swallow my spittle" powerfully encapsulates Job's total deprivation; he feels he has no personal space or even the briefest mental pause to recuperate. This verse reveals Job's profound honesty and audacity in confronting God with his raw anguish, underscoring that authentic prayer often encompasses such direct, challenging expressions in the midst of overwhelming suffering. It is a testament to the fact that faith allows for such blunt questions, even accusations, when wrestled with honestly before the Almighty.