For there is hope for a tree if it be cut down, it will sprout again, and its tender branch will not cease;
Job is near the end of a long reply to his friends. He points to something anyone can check: a tree that is cut down and grows back. Does a person get the same second chance? Commentators call Job's answer honest but incomplete.
Job's reply ends with a comparison between man and a tree.
He closes his answer (Job 14) with wider thoughts on man's miserable lot in this world. Man is frail and faulty by nature, with no hope of coming back to life here — unlike a tree, which can sprout again however low it is cut down.
Job had watched this happen over years.
He started to reason the matter out. He took the example of a tree that had been cut down, its root long in the earth. He had watched the years pass, and the stump left behind had begun to decay. Yet a change came. Something happened. Perhaps an earth tremor cracked the rocks and opened a fresh channel for water to reach its roots. As a result, the dead tree came to life and sprouted again. The hope of Job was that something like that lay before mankind.
Job saw something true here, but he could not see past it.
In Job 14, he does not go beyond this present world of sight, and in the bitterness of his spirit he has no sense of resurrection. The tree sprouts now, here where we can see it — man does not, and never will, unless by a miracle, as with Lazarus. Death has passed fully on him as someone who lives in this world — a child of Adam. Such life he never recovers. Job was right, only he did not see beyond, nor here know Him who is the resurrection and the life.
The mystery lies on the other side of the comparison. One writer points to the part of man that is not the body:
There was no mystery about the tree, but there was about the human race. Like the tree stump, the body of man wasted away in the ground. Yet no sign of continuing life appeared, as it did when the young shoots sprang from the old roots of the tree. Still, Job realised that man is made of more than body, for he spoke of his spirit, and this is what puzzled him.
The chapter records a man reasoning in the dark, and some quote it as if it settled doctrine.
That is the language of man apart from revelation. It is the expression of one who is in darkness and uncertainty. Teachers of error often quote Job and the words of his friends to defend false teachings such as soul-sleep and the annihilation of the wicked, as if these were true revelations from God. But their words are only the expressions of the human mind, and often false and misleading. What Job and his friends said is recorded in an inspired account that cannot fail, yet revelation is a different matter altogether.
Yet Job does not stop where despair usually stops.
People very often stop there, but the Spirit of God does not stop there in Job. It is plain that he says what Scripture fully backs — "till the heavens are no more." That is a remarkable phrase. We might have expected "till the earth is no more," which would be natural enough. But man lives and dies, and does not rise — not till the earth is no more, but "till the heavens are no more he will not awake or be roused out of his sleep."
The same figure is later picked up for a whole nation, and there the hope proves real.
Does this mean that Israel can never be restored? No, it does not. For a tree may die, so that in its first state it bears fruit no more. Yet "there is hope for a tree, if it be cut down, that it will sprout again, and that its shoots will not cease. Though its root grow old in the earth, and its stump die in the soil" (Job 14:7-8). Israel will rise again in a different state from the one that brought her to ruin. This will truly be "life from the dead" (Romans 11:15).
- Cut down. Job argues from something he had watched. A tree was cut down, its stump decayed for years, then water reached it and it sprouted again.
- Contrast. The tree comes back where all can see it. A man does not, and that silence pressed on Job. He had not yet met the One who is the resurrection and the life.
- Caution. These are the words of a man reasoning without revelation. The record is inspired, but his words are not settled teaching about the dead.
- Crack of light. Job says man will not wake "till the heavens are no more" — not the earth, but the heavens. The phrase is larger than the despair around it.
- Confirmation. The same cut-down tree pictures a nation reduced to nothing and sprouting again. The hope Job could only reach for turns out to be real.
Though its root grow old in the earth, and its stock die in the ground,
A cut-down tree can sprout again, even after long years in the ground. Job asks whether a dying man has the same prospect — and how far his own answer reached.
This is no fresh cut. The tree is long past the point where anyone would expect anything from it — and then a change comes.
He took the picture of a tree that had been cut down, its root long in the earth. He had watched the years pass, until the stump left behind began to decay. Yet a change came. Something happened — an earth tremor may have cracked the rocks and opened a fresh channel for water to reach its roots. Then the dead tree came to life and sprouted again. Job's hope was that something like that lay ahead for mankind.
The picture exposes a gap. A plant can lose everything above ground and still rise. For this life, a man cannot.
"Though its root grow old in the earth, and its stump die in the soil, yet at the scent of water it will bud and put out branches like a young plant. But a man dies and is laid low." There is no hope for him in this earthly life; he dies and is done with. A plant, on the other hand, may be brought down to the worst and nothing appear, and yet it may shoot up again, especially if there is water to help it.
Job's sight here stops at the world in front of him.
In Job 14, he does not go beyond this present world of sight, and in the bitterness of his spirit he has no sense of resurrection. The tree sprouts now, in plain view, in this present world. Man does not, and in fact never will, unless by a miracle, as with Lazarus. Death has wholly passed upon him as a dweller in this world — a child of Adam. Such life he never recovers. Job was right, only he did not see beyond, nor here know Him who is the resurrection and the life.
Job speaks here in the dark, and that changes how his words should be used.
He speaks of man who "lies down and rises not." That is the language of man apart from revelation. It is the expression of one who is in darkness and uncertainty. Teachers of error often quote Job and the sayings of these friends to defend false teachings — such as soul-sleep, or the annihilation of the wicked — as if these were true revelations from God. But their words are only the expressions of the human mind, and often false and misleading.
Commentators differ on how much Job himself grasped. Some read the tree as a contrast that defeats him. Others read it as a likeness he failed to press home.
Yet the fact is this. Though man's body decays completely in the grave, the new sprouting of a tree is a comparison, not a contrast, to the eventual "sprouting" of a new body from the old. Man's resurrection is longer delayed, but it is just as certain. Job knew this, as he says in chapter 19:26. But in chapter 14 he is too concerned about the immediate future to give proper weight to the distant future.
One writer takes the old root and the dead stump beyond one man's grave, to a whole nation.
Job can say, "There is hope for a tree, if it be cut down, that it will sprout again … though its root grow old in the earth … yet at the scent of water it will bud and put out branches" (Job 14:7-9). Israel has indeed failed. The tree has been battered by wind and storm among the nations, but the root remains, so Israel will bud and bring forth branches again.
Job had to reason his way to hope from a tree stump. Readers now start from somewhere else.
People in Old Testament times believed that the soul of man survived death and that resurrection lay ahead. Job's words here show it, and the Lord made it plain when He argued with the Sadducees of His day. What God had not yet made known was that for the saint resurrection will mean entering a new and incorruptible order of things. Our Lord showed this when He rose from the dead. So we have no need to discuss the matter and reason it out, as Job does here. God has plainly revealed the whole truth of it.
- The root. An aged root and a decayed stump still hold life; water reaches them, and the dead tree sprouts.
- The gap. What the root has, man does not have in this world — he dies and is laid low, with no new spring to follow.
- The dark. Job speaks apart from revelation. Scripture records his words exactly, but they are not God's doctrine.
- The dispute. Some read the tree as a contrast that leaves Job hopeless. Others read it as a comparison: a resurrection just as certain, only longer delayed.
- The answer. The root remains for Israel. For the saint, Christ's resurrection has made the whole truth plain — nothing left to reason out from a stump.
Yet through the scent of water it will bud, and put forth boughs like a young plant.
Job looks at a felled tree and finds a strange comfort in it. The stump lies dead for years, then water reaches the root and green shoots appear. Then he turns the picture against himself: a man does not come back the way that tree does.
Job is not inventing a symbol. He had watched it happen, and the change came from outside the stump.
He took the analogy of a tree, which had been felled, when its root had been in the earth for a long time. He had seen the years pass, so that the stump left behind had begun to decay. Yet a change had come. Something had happened. Perhaps an earth-tremor had cracked the rocks and opened a fresh channel for water to reach its roots. Then, as a result, the dead tree came to life and sprouted again. Job's hope was that something like that lay ahead for mankind.
The tree is only half the argument. Job puts it beside man, and the comparison collapses at once.
"But man dies, and wastes away." There is no hope for him in this earthly life; he dies and that is the end of it. A plant, on the other hand, may be brought down to the worst state and show nothing. Yet it can shoot up again, especially if there is water to help it. "Yes, man gives up his spirit, and where is he?"
In this chapter Job reasons from what he can see, and no further.
In Job 14 he clearly does not go beyond this present world of sight. In his bitterness of spirit he has no sense of resurrection. The tree sprouts now, and it sprouts in plain sight in this present world. Man does not, and in fact never will, unless by a miracle, as Lazarus was raised. Death has wholly passed upon him as an inhabitant of this world, a child of Adam. Such life he never recovers. Job was right; only he did not see beyond, nor did he know here the One who is the resurrection and the life.
A tree's revival can be seen. A buried man shows nothing. That gap is where Job's question comes from.
There was no mystery about the tree, but there was about the human race. Like the tree stump, the body of man wasted away in the ground. But there was no evidence of continuing life, as there was when young shoots sprang from the old roots of the tree. Still, Job realised that man is made of more than body. He spoke of his spirit, and this was what perplexed him. The body of the man wasted away, but where was the man who lived in that body?
Job's question waited a long time for a plain answer. It came from the Lord Jesus.
Clear, plain teaching about the place a man enters when he dies came only with the Lord Jesus. Job's question was plainly answered by the Lord in Luke 16, where He speaks about the rich man and Lazarus. There we learn what happens to a person who lives without any thought of God. He enters the place of torment when he leaves this world.
Writers also apply the picture to Israel.
The root is the hidden source of life. Christ is the source of spiritual life for every saint of God, and the blessing is sure because the root is perfect. Israel has indeed failed; the tree has been storm-swept and torn among the nations, but the root remains, and so Israel will bud and bring forth branches again.
Another writer names what that reviving water turned out to be in history.
The holy seed was in the people, but they had dwindled to a very small number when the Lord Jesus came. Among them were Zacharias, Elizabeth, Anna, Mary and others who followed Him. But the grace and truth that came by Him was like the scent of water that Job speaks of. There were fine boughs shooting from the stump of Judah.
- Cut down — Job's picture is a felled tree. Its stump has decayed in the ground for years, with nothing showing above the surface.
- Water — what revives it comes from outside: water reaching the root, not strength left in the stump.
- Contrast — the tree sprouts again in this world; man dies and does not. Job's comfort turns into his complaint.
- Question — a stump shows evidence of life; a grave shows none. Job knew man has a spirit, so he asks where the man himself has gone.
- Answer — Job reasoned from nature and could see no further. Clear teaching about life after death came with the Lord Jesus, who is the resurrection and the life.
But a man dieth, and is prostrate; yea, man expireth, and where is he?
Job has just looked at a felled tree that sprouts again from its stump, and the comparison turns bitter. What nature does for timber it does not seem to do for people.
There is no hope for him for this earthly life. He dies and is done with. A plant, on the other hand, may be cut down to the worst state with nothing left showing, and yet it may shoot up again, especially if there is water to help it.
The question is not what happens to the body. Job can watch that. What he cannot trace is the person who lived in it.
There was no mystery about the tree, but there was about the human race. Like the tree stump, the body of man wasted away in the ground. But there was no sign of life going on, as there was when young shoots sprang from the old roots of the tree. Still, Job realised that man was made of more than a body, for he spoke of his spirit, and this is what puzzled him. The body of the man wasted, but where was the man that lived in the body?
Writers note that Job is describing what a man can see from the earth's surface, and no further.
In Job 14, he does not go beyond this present world of sight, and in the bitterness of his spirit he has no sense of resurrection. The tree sprouts now, in plain view, in this present world. Man does not, and in fact never will, unless by a miracle, as with Lazarus. Death has fully passed on him as a dweller in this world — a child of Adam. He never gets that life back. Job was right, only he did not see beyond, nor did he know here Him who is the resurrection and the life.
That difference matters when someone builds a teaching about death on this verse.
That is the language of man apart from revelation. It is the expression of one who is in darkness and uncertainty. Teachers of errors — soul-sleep, the wiping out of the wicked, and so on — often quote Job and the words of these friends to defend their false teachings. They treat them as if they were true revelations from God. But their words are only the expressions of the human mind, and often false and misleading. Scripture gives an unfailing inspired record of what Job and his friends said, but revelation is a different matter altogether.
Job asked; later Scripture replies. The answer is not the same for everyone.
The Lord answered Job's hard question in Luke 16:19–31 and Luke 23:43, and Paul answered it through the Spirit in 2 Corinthians 5:1–8 and Philippians 1:23. For the believer, death means entry into Christ's presence in the heavenly paradise. For the unbeliever, it means entry into hell with all its torments.
Spoken at a graveside, the same reply becomes personal:
Justified and right with God as he was, he has died. That raises another question about him, and we read it in Job 14:10. We may well echo that second question, for we are not left in any doubt about the answer. For this we turn to 2 Corinthians 5:8: "Yes, we are of good courage, and we would rather be away from the body and at home with the Lord." That is where our brother is, WITH THE LORD.
Commentators differ on what Job's picture proves. One reading turns the contrast around: the stump was closer to man's case than Job realised.
Yet here is the fact. Man's body decays completely in the grave, but the fresh sprouting of a tree is a comparison, not a contrast, to the "sprouting" of a new body from the old in the end. Man's resurrection takes longer to come, but it is just as certain. Job knew this, as he says in chapter 19:26. In chapter 14, though, he is too taken up with the near future to give proper weight to the distant future.
One writer finds both resurrections in the book — the just in chapter 19, and the unjust in these verses.
Job had the resurrection of the just before him (Job 19:25-27), and no less the resurrection of the unjust (Job 14:10-12). The first is tied to the Kinsman Redeemer standing up on the last day on this earth of dust. The second is tied to a day when even the heavens are no more.
- The question. A felled tree sprouts again; the man who dies wastes away and leaves no visible trace — so Job asks where he has gone.
- The limit. Job speaks of this world of sight, and speaks in bitterness. He was right about what he could see, and saw no further.
- The warning. These are a man's words, not revelation. Nobody can build soul-sleep or the wiping out of the wicked on them.
- The answer. Later Scripture replies: for the believer, death is entry into Christ's presence; for the unbeliever, entry into hell.
- The certainty. The sprouting stump turns out to be a picture, not a contradiction. Resurrection takes longer, but it is just as sure.
The waters recede from the lake, and the river wasteth and drieth up
A cut-down tree can sprout again, but Job says a man's life drains away like water from a lake. The image raises the book's hardest question — is death simply the end of a man, and if not, when does he come back?
Job sets a cut-down tree beside a dying man, and the tree comes off better. One writer traces the logic of the picture and the sharp turn at the end of it.
"Though the root grows old in the earth, and the stock dies in the ground; yet through the scent of water it will bud, and bring forth boughs like a plant. But man dies, and wastes away." There is no hope for him for this earthly life; he dies and is done with. A plant is different. It may be brought down to its worst, with nothing showing, and yet it may shoot up again, especially if water helps it.
The same writer notes elsewhere that Job is speaking about man as he stands on earth, and that within those limits his words hold exactly.
And the more, as life on earth closes for man hopelessly, though a tree cut down may sprout again, while, like waters that fail and dry up, man lies down, and rises no more while the heavens last. He speaks of "man" for this world, and nothing can really be conceived more exact.
Job sets a time limit on this sleep: the end of the heavens. One writer matches that with a scene in Revelation.
This is man — the prey of sorrow, decay and death, with no ray of divine light, till all ends in utter gloom. But it is not actual extinction. Yet it is a "sleep" only broken when "the heavens are no more." How striking the agreement with Revelation 20:11! This resurrection comes after the resurrection of the blessed and holy, who reign with Christ. It comes only when the thousand years of their reign are over.
The same writer notes which end Job names, and which he does not.
Many people stop there, but the Spirit of God, speaking here through Job, does not... We might have expected "till the earth is no more," which would be natural and easy to understand. But man lives and dies, and does not rise — not till the earth is no more, but till the heavens are no more.
Some read this verse to mean that the dead stop existing. One writer answers that Job's own words say the opposite.
But what is that sleep? That he cannot tell you. He only uses words that fit a man who knows nothing of the other world, or of the state between death and resurrection. Those words certainly do not say the dead have ceased to exist. They imply the opposite. When I say they shall not rise, they shall not awake or arise out of their sleep, these words assume someone who is asleep. He will not wake till a set time. It is not a statement of non-existence, but the contrary... Job does not tell me what becomes of his soul in the meantime, and I do not expect him to. The Lord tells me it is not destroyed with the body. The apostle uses this same word "sleep," adding "in Jesus" for the saints, who have their gain in death, because He receives their spirits.
How should we rate what Job says here? One writer places it between faith and unbelief, and points to fuller light elsewhere in the Old Testament.
He lies down and rises no more, so long as earth and heaven remain. This is not exactly the language of unbelief, nor yet of faith. It is one speaking as a man, and of things upon earth... Thank God, even in the Old Testament there was more light.
Another writer puts it more sharply. Job's sight stops at this world, and his grief leaves him no thought of rising:
In Job 14 he clearly does not go beyond this present world of sight. In the bitterness of his spirit he has no sense of resurrection. The tree sprouts now and visibly in this present world — man does not... Job was right, only he did not see beyond, nor here know Him who is the resurrection and the life.
Job does not stay in this darkness. Later in the book he speaks of a Redeemer, and one writer draws out how much Job knew when he said it.
His wondrous words were "written" — yes, "printed in a book"... A "Redeemer" should one day stand upon the earth. Job knew this; and that, though his body should become the food of worms, yet in his flesh he should see God. He knew that he should die, and rise again... His memorable words are written in the BOOK OF BOOKS forever. So they give us the first clear statement of a life beyond the death that man's sin brought in.
- Picture — A felled tree buds again when water reaches it. A man does not. What drains away does not come back by itself.
- Limit — Job speaks of man as he stands on earth, and inside that limit he is right: this life, once ended, does not start again.
- Clock — He dates the waking not by the earth's end but by the heavens' end, which matches the scene of Revelation 20:11.
- Sleep — "Sleep" assumes a sleeper. Job denies a rising now, not continued existence; the soul is not destroyed with the body.
- Light — Job's sight here stops at this world, and his grief leaves no thought of rising. But the book does not stop here. He later says he will see God in his own flesh.
So man lieth down, and riseth not again; till the heavens be no more, they do not awake, nor are raised out of their sleep.
Job has just compared a man with a felled tree: the stump can smell water and sprout again, but a man who dies wastes away. Verse 12 draws the conclusion, and the surprise lies in its second half — the limit Job sets on the sleep of the dead.
The verse ends a comparison that runs against man. A tree cut to the ground still holds a future in its roots; human life on earth does not.
"But man dies, and wastes away." There is no hope for him for this earthly life; he dies and is done with. A plant on the contrary may be brought down to the worst and nothing appear, and yet it may shoot up again, particularly if there is water to help it.
Job is speaking about man's standing in this present world, and that limit is deliberate.
He speaks of "man" for this world, and nothing could be more exact. It was not the time or place to introduce the special blessedness of the first resurrection, which we shall find has its echo elsewhere in this book. Every scripture is given by inspiration, and consistent with every other.
Most people stop reading at "rises not." The second half of the verse is where the weight falls, and the choice of word is odd enough to demand attention.
There people very often stop, but not so the Spirit of God here by Job. For it is plain here he really does say what Scripture fully warrants — "till the heavens be no more." A very remarkable expression. It might have been thought to be — and that we could easily understand as a natural thing — "till the earth be no more"; but man lives and dies, and does not rise — not till the earth be no more, but — "till the heavens be no more, they shall not awake, nor be raised out of their sleep."
Job elsewhere speaks of seeing his Redeemer stand on the earth. Here he speaks of a different waking — of man generally, at the far end of everything.
Yet it is certain that in Job 14:12 Job speaks of man's resurrection (i.e., of man, as such) when the heavens are no more and eternity begins, contrasted with the rising of the righteous like himself, to enjoy their hope when the Kinsman-Redeemer shall stand on the earth, which is clearly for the kingdom.
The last book of the Bible sets the two events in the same order Job gives.
Commentators differ here. One writer weighs the line against how long the wait felt to Job.
This is an exaggeration because the time seemed so long to Job, as though death was the end of everything.
Others place it between the two extremes — neither despair nor confession.
He lies down and rises no more, so long as earth and heaven remain. This is not exactly the language of unbelief, nor yet of faith. It is one speaking as a man, and of things upon earth.
The verse is a favourite text for those who argue the dead are simply extinguished. One writer answers that granting the words in full does not grant the conclusion drawn from them.
But you chiefly rely on Job 14:12: nor are you singular… Thus speaks Job: "Man lies down and rises not till the heavens be no more, they shall not awake, nor be raised out of their sleep." And if they do not, what does that prove? I believe that fully; but I would remark, that we cannot take all that Job says in the vexation of his spirit as revelations, any more than all his friends say, who did not speak rightly of God as he did.
Whatever Job's grasp of the timing, the added clause carries him past the grave — and the verses that follow show him waiting rather than despairing.
- Tree — a felled tree can sprout again; a man who dies has no hope left for this earthly life. Job describes man in this world; he does not shut the door on eternity.
- Heavens — the clock Job sets is startling. He does not say "till the earth be no more," but the heavens — a limit that reaches past every earthly hope.
- Which waking — commentators read this as the raising of man as such at the end of all things. It is not the rising of the righteous to see their Redeemer stand on the earth.
- Confirmed — Revelation 20 keeps Job's order. Heaven and earth pass away, then the dead, small and great, stand raised at the great white throne.
- Waiting — commentators differ over whether Job spoke prophecy or overstatement in his pain. But sleep supposes a sleeper who will wake, and Job waits for God's appointed time until his change comes. Death is not the end.
Oh that thou wouldest hide me in Sheol, that thou wouldest keep me secret until thine anger be past, that thou wouldest appoint me a set time, and remember me, --
Job has just argued that a cut-down tree can sprout again, but a dying man cannot. Worn out and sure that God is angry with him, he asks for the only shelter he can imagine: the grave, with a promise that God will come back for him.
Job asks God to store him away and to fix a date for his return. That wish leads him straight to the question of whether a dead man lives again. Where the ESV says "Sheol", the older translation these writers quote says "the grave" — the place of the dead.
Job then goes back to what he longs for. He asks God to hide him in the grave till His anger has turned away, to appoint him a time, and then to remember him. If a man dies, shall he live again? Job was the very opposite of a sceptic. He looks for his time of renewal or exchange, and does not doubt, deep down, God's yearning after the work of His hands.
The prayer rests on a wrong belief about why he was suffering.
Job has inferred that death is the end of everything. Even so, he pleads with God that he might die, hoping to be hidden this way until God's anger had subsided. For he thought that his troubles came from the wrath of God (v.13). In this he was totally mistaken. But if he died, would he live again? (v.14) He answered that question himself in chapter 19:26-27. His words here show the confused state he was in, which often made him speak inconsistently.
This belief is what hurt him most.
One thing above all made his grief so sharp. He felt that God's wrath was on him, and that the dreadful poison of God's anger was consuming him. We know he was mistaken. God was chastening His poor servant, and that was only another proof of His love. But he did not know it, and we should not be harsh with one who felt that the Lord was dealing bitterly with him.
The words "appoint me a set time, and remember me" carry more than a wish for relief. They assume God keeps the dead somewhere and comes back for them.
Even though he expected to go to the grave, he could still ask God to hide him, to keep him secret until His wrath was past, to appoint him a set time, and to remember him. Job had some idea that God would keep him in a secret place until He raised his body from the grave. Faith in God had given Job this wonderful knowledge. He would wait in God's secret place, for God's appointed time, until his body was changed.
Where did such words come from?
He recognised that he had an "appointed time," when his "change" would come. He saw that there would be a divine "call," and that he would "answer" it, since he was a "work" of God's hands. In speaking this way he was taught by God, as we can see in the light of the New Testament.
Commentators differ on how much light Job had here. Some see hope in his words.
Job next seems to express a hope — vague and spoiled by evil thoughts of God — of a bright hereafter. He wants to be hidden from God in Sheol until this mighty Being changed His mind and stopped chasing His creature. Then God would look on him with favour; but now He only watched him as an enemy! This is sad beyond words for a man who knew God. But such is unbelief even in a saint. We can catch the gleam of faith in the desire and the question.
Others read the chapter as a man boxed inside what he can see.
In Job 14, he does not go beyond this present world of sight. In his bitterness of spirit he has no sense of resurrection. Job was right, only he did not see beyond, nor did he here know Him who is the resurrection and the life.
How did Job get to any answer at all?
We have the moving record of how he tried to spell out a yes. He reasoned from the picture of a cut-down tree. He did reach the conclusion that death was not the end of men. In the end his change would come, and he would rise in answer to the call of God. Still, at best it was a conclusion he had reached by reasoning and not a plain word of revelation from God.
- Request. Job asks the grave to be a hiding place until God's anger turns, with a set time fixed for his return.
- Error. He read his suffering as wrath; the writers say he was mistaken, and that the chastening was proof of God's love.
- Gleam. Real faith sits inside the wrong belief. God keeps His own in secret, and remembers them at a set time.
- Dispute. Commentators differ. Some hear resurrection hope here. Others hear a man who cannot see past this world.
- Answer. Job reached his hope by reasoning, not by a plain word from God. The New Testament light shows that God Himself had taught him.
(If a man die, shall he live [again]?) all the days of my time of toil would I wait, till my change should come
Job is deep in suffering and looking straight at death. Here he asks the question every mourner asks, and in his day no clear word from God had answered it.
Job raises two great questions with his friends. This is the second of them.
Job put forward two questions of far-reaching importance while talking with his friends. The first — "How can a man be in the right before God?" (Job 9:2). The second — "If a man dies, shall he live again?" (Job 14:14). But no clear and conclusive answer could be given to either one... He believed there would be a resurrection. That belief was the fruit of spiritual insight combined with reason. He had no definite word from God to fall back on to settle the point.
The second half of the verse turns on two terms. William Kelly renders them "warfare" and "exchange", which show a man serving out a hard term of duty and waiting for a swap.
Appoint me a set time, and then remember me! If a man die, shall he live? All the days of my warfare would I wait Till my exchange should come. You would call, and I would answer You: After the work of Your hands You long.
The waiting in the verse has an object. One writer ties it to what Job expects God to do with his body.
He asks the question, "If a man dies, shall he live again?" Then he can say about himself, "All the days of my service I would wait, till my renewal should come" (Job 14:14). Faith in God had given Job this wonderful knowledge: he would wait in God's secret place, for God's appointed time, until his body was changed.
Commentators differ on the tone of the question. William Kelly hears no doubt in it at all.
If a man dies, shall he live again? Job was the very opposite of a sceptic. He looks for his time of renewal or exchange, and does not doubt at bottom that God longs after the work of His hands. Man is surely to live again; spirit, and soul, and body, he will be renewed.
Samuel Ridout hears something more troubled underneath. Job asks to be hidden in Sheol, the place of the dead, and Ridout weighs what he assumes about God.
Job next seems to express a hope of a bright life to come — a hope that is vague, and spoiled by wrong thoughts about God. He wants to be hidden from God in Sheol until this mighty Being had changed His mind and stopped chasing His creature. Job would patiently wait till that change came. Then God would regard him; but now He only watched him with hostility! This is inexpressibly sad, for a man who knew God. But such is unbelief, even in a saint. We can catch the gleam of faith in the desire and the question.
Job does not leave the question open. Later he ties living again to a Redeemer who is Himself alive.
Job is perhaps the only one in the Old Testament who clearly asks this question about the resurrection of the body. He is also the one who answers it, through the Spirit, in Job 19:25, 27. There he speaks the wonderful words: "For I know that my Redeemer lives, and at the last he will stand upon the earth. And after my skin has been thus destroyed, yet in my flesh I shall see God, whom I shall see for myself, and my eyes shall behold, and not another"... The life of the Redeemer is always in the present. He lives forever.
Job's question now has a reply he never heard. One writer answers it from the words of Jesus.
"If a man dies, shall he live again?" Job 14:14. For the answer to this question we turn to John 11:25: "Jesus said to her, 'I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live.'" ... Soon the moment is coming of which we read, "when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is," 1 John 3:2.
The answer is not just information. One writer shows what it does to a life, and what people do to dodge it.
Whoever believes in a resurrection of the dead must arrange his life in the light of eternity. Whoever waits for the "last Adam" will prepare himself to receive Him. But the man who has to fear a reckoning after death often behaves like the ostrich. When it is hunted and sees no escape, it hides (so they say) its head in the sand and denies that the hunter is there.
- Question. Job asks whether death is the end. No plain word from God had settled it yet, so he reasoned his way toward hope.
- Waiting. Job says he will wait through all the days of his service, until God's appointed time.
- Change. What he waits for is a changed body, not mere survival — the same person renewed in spirit, soul and body.
- Redeemer. Commentators differ on whether the question shows faith or faith clouded by wrong thoughts of God. Job answers it himself later: his Redeemer lives, and in his flesh he will see God.
- Answer. Christ's own words settle what Job could only reach for. That certainty should reorder how a person lives now.