so a man lies down and rises not again; till the heavens are no more he will not awake or be roused out of his 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 Tree and the Man
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.
William Kelly"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.
William KellyHe 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.
"Till the Heavens Be No More"
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.
William KellyThere 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."
Which Resurrection Job Describes
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.
William KellyYet 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.
Prophecy or Overstatement
Commentators differ here. One writer weighs the line against how long the wait felt to Job.
Leslie M. GrantThis 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.
Samuel RidoutHe 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.
Misused to Deny Life After Death
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.
J. N. DarbyBut 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.
Job's Own Hope Beyond the Sleep
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.
Summary
- 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.