Job 9 29

Job 9:29 kjv

If I be wicked, why then labour I in vain?

Job 9:29 nkjv

If I am condemned, Why then do I labor in vain?

Job 9:29 niv

Since I am already found guilty, why should I struggle in vain?

Job 9:29 esv

I shall be condemned; why then do I labor in vain?

Job 9:29 nlt

Whatever happens, I will be found guilty.
So what's the use of trying?

Job 9 verses

Job 9 29 Meaning

Job 9:29 encapsulates Job's desperate and rhetorical concession to the perceived reality of his situation: if, for the sake of argument, he is truly wicked as his suffering might suggest, then what is the purpose or gain in any effort he makes, whether moral striving, seeking justice, or trying to comprehend God? He perceives his struggle and his continued effort to be righteous or to understand God's ways as utterly futile, bringing no relief or distinction from the fate of the wicked. This verse highlights his deep frustration with the indiscernible nature of divine justice in his present experience.

Job 9 29 Context

Job 9:29 appears within Job's extended reply to Bildad (Job 9-10), following Bildad's rigid assertion that Job's suffering must be due to sin. Job largely agrees with the premise of God's overwhelming power and justice (Job 9:2-12) but paradoxically uses this truth to argue his despair. He questions how any human, even the blameless, could stand just before such a powerful God.

Throughout Chapter 9, Job laments that God acts in ways humans cannot understand, making a strong point in verse 22 that God "destroys both the blameless and the wicked." Given this perceived indiscriminate destruction, Job's subsequent declaration in verse 29 ("If I am wicked, why then do I toil in vain?") becomes a rhetorical cry of profound disillusionment. He feels trapped: if he tries to prove his righteousness, he is overwhelmed by God's power (vv. 14-20); if he silently accepts suffering, it implies he is wicked; and if the outcome for the righteous is the same as for the wicked, what is the purpose of striving for integrity? The verse underscores Job's central struggle with the retribution theology of his time and his agonizing inability to reconcile his blamelessness with his severe afflictions.

Job 9 29 Word analysis

• If: (Hebrew: הִנֵּה hinneh) - This particle, often translated "behold" or "lo," introduces a conditional clause, but here it functions more like a rhetorical concession or an exasperated "even if" or "granted that." Job is not admitting guilt; rather, he's assuming his friends' (or God's apparent) perspective for the sake of his argument, to show the absurd consequences of such a view.
• I: (Hebrew: אֲנִי ani) - The direct first-person pronoun emphasizes Job's personal identity and predicament. His integrity is deeply connected to his understanding of his standing before God.
• am wicked: (Hebrew: רָשָׁע rasha') - Means "wicked," "guilty," or "unrighteous." This term, highly charged in biblical contexts, describes someone who is in rebellion against God's ways or commits moral evils deserving of punishment. Job uses this term not as a confession, but as an ironic adoption of the label placed upon him by his friends, which he vehemently rejects elsewhere (e.g., Job 6:29-30). He is questioning the logic of being labeled as such while enduring such hardship without clear cause.
• why then: (Hebrew: לָמָּה זֶּה lammah zeh) - An interrogative phrase conveying deep frustration, bewilderment, and a rhetorical question that expects no answer but highlights the perceived irrationality of the situation. It expresses a sense of being lost and confused.
• do I toil: (Hebrew: אִיגָע igah') - Derived from יָגַע yaga', meaning "to labor," "strive," "exert oneself," "be weary," "tire." In this context, it refers not necessarily to physical work, but to Job's consistent moral struggle, his effort to maintain integrity, to seek understanding from God, or even his endurance through his suffering. It implies earnest and persistent effort.
• in vain? (Hebrew: רִיק riq) - Meaning "emptiness," "nothing," "uselessness," "vanity," "waste." This word is central to Job's despair. It implies that any effort Job makes—to live righteously, to understand God's justice, to argue his innocence, or even to bear his suffering patiently—yields no positive outcome and provides no distinction or relief, thus making it pointless. It directly echoes sentiments found in Ecclesiastes about the futility of human endeavor without divine meaning.

• "If I am wicked": This phrase represents a sarcastic or highly cynical premise Job adopts to underscore the absurdity of his predicament. He does not believe he is wicked; rather, he challenges the very concept of divine justice that would allow such suffering to befall him if he were wicked, when in his experience, righteous living brings no protection. It's an indictment of the retributive theology that suffering always signifies sin.
• "why then do I toil in vain?": This rhetorical question expresses Job's existential crisis and spiritual despair. If righteousness yields no different outcome than wickedness—if the innocent suffer like the guilty—then what is the value or purpose of pursuing integrity, truth, or even of trying to appeal to God? It conveys a deep sense of meaninglessness in his struggle and existence, feeling as though his life’s efforts are unrewarded and unrecognized by divine justice.

Job 9 29 Bonus section

• Job's "toil in vain" resonates with universal human experiences of disappointment where significant effort yields no desired or just outcome. This statement marks a low point in Job's spiritual journey, where despair momentarily overshadows his faith in God's ultimate goodness.
• This verse contributes significantly to the problem of evil and suffering explored throughout the Book of Job, questioning the conventional wisdom of God's strict quid pro quo justice and opening the door to a more nuanced understanding of suffering not always being a direct result of personal sin.
• Job's words foreshadow a deep theological question later explored by biblical wisdom literature like Ecclesiastes and the New Testament, namely, the hidden wisdom of God's ways and the ultimate vindication that transcends earthly experience.

Job 9 29 Commentary

Job 9:29 vividly portrays Job's anguish as he grapples with God's seemingly inexplicable justice. Having observed that both the blameless and the wicked can fall victim to indiscriminate calamity, Job expresses profound disillusionment. His rhetorical question, "If I am wicked, why then do I toil in vain?", isn't an admission of guilt, but a desperate challenge to the prevailing theology that linked suffering directly to sin. If God treats the righteous the same as the unrighteous in affliction, then Job's years of righteous living and diligent effort to walk uprightly—his "toil"—feel utterly meaningless and wasted. This verse exposes a foundational human dilemma when faced with apparently undeserved suffering: the feeling that moral effort is futile if divine accountability seems absent or incomprehensible, leading to an existential crisis where the pursuit of goodness feels pointless. It forces a contemplation on whether divine justice aligns with human understanding, ultimately pointing to the unfathomable depth of God's ways that often transcend simplistic human logic.