The youthful vigor that fills his bones will lie down with him in the dust. The youthful vigorThe phrase "the youthful vigor" refers to the strength and vitality often associated with youth. In Hebrew, the word for vigor can be linked to "עֹ֫צֶם" (otsem), which conveys a sense of physical strength and robustness. This vigor is often seen as a blessing and a gift from God, symbolizing the potential and energy of life. In the context of Job, it serves as a reminder of the fleeting nature of human strength and the inevitable decline that comes with age. Theologically, it underscores the idea that human vitality is temporary and should be used wisely in service to God. that fills his bones
The imagery of vigor filling one's bones suggests a deep, intrinsic strength that supports and sustains life. In ancient Near Eastern culture, bones were often seen as the core of one's being, representing both physical and spiritual strength. The Hebrew word for bones, "עֶ֫צֶם" (etsem), is used throughout the Old Testament to denote the essence of a person. This phrase highlights the idea that true strength is not merely superficial but is deeply embedded within us. It serves as a metaphor for the inner life and character that should be nurtured and aligned with God's will. will lie down with him
The phrase "will lie down with him" is a poetic way of describing death. In Hebrew, the concept of lying down often connotes rest or sleep, which is a common metaphor for death in the Bible. This reflects the belief that death is a natural part of life, a return to the earth from which humanity was formed. Theologically, it suggests that all human attributes, including strength and vigor, are temporary and will ultimately succumb to mortality. This serves as a humbling reminder of the transient nature of life and the importance of living righteously before God. in the dust
The phrase "in the dust" refers to the grave or the state of death. In Hebrew, "עָפָר" (afar) means dust or earth, symbolizing the material from which humans were created and to which they return. This imagery is rooted in Genesis 3:19, where God tells Adam, "For dust you are, and to dust you shall return." It emphasizes the humility and mortality of human life, reminding believers of their dependence on God for both life and salvation. In the context of Job, it serves as a sobering conclusion to the discussion of human strength, pointing to the ultimate need for divine grace and redemption. Persons / Places / Events 1. Zophar the NaamathiteOne of Job's three friends who comes to comfort him. Zophar is known for his harsh and direct speeches, often emphasizing God's justice and the fate of the wicked. 2. JobThe central figure of the Book of Job, a man known for his righteousness and suffering. Job's account is a profound exploration of faith, suffering, and divine justice. 3. The DustSymbolic of death and the grave, representing the end of life and the return to the earth from which humans were formed. Teaching Points The Transience of Youthful StrengthYouthful vigor is temporary and will eventually fade. This should remind us to use our strength and energy for God's purposes while we have it. The Certainty of MortalityLife is fleeting, and death is certain. This truth should lead us to live with an eternal perspective, focusing on what truly matters. The Consequences of WickednessZophar's speech emphasizes that the wicked will not escape judgment. This serves as a warning to live righteously and seek God's forgiveness. The Importance of HumilityRecognizing our mortality should humble us and lead us to depend on God rather than our own strength or achievements. Bible Study Questions 1. How does the concept of youthful vigor lying down in the dust challenge our society's view of youth and strength? 2. In what ways can we use our current strengths and abilities to serve God, knowing that they are temporary? 3. How does the certainty of death influence your daily decisions and priorities? 4. What are some practical ways to cultivate humility in light of our mortality? 5. How do other scriptures, such as Ecclesiastes 12:7 and Genesis 3:19, deepen our understanding of Job 20:11? Connections to Other Scriptures Ecclesiastes 12:7This verse speaks about the body returning to the dust and the spirit returning to God, echoing the theme of mortality and the transient nature of life. Psalm 103:14This verse reminds us that God knows our frame and remembers that we are dust, highlighting human frailty and dependence on God. Genesis 3:19The curse pronounced upon Adam, stating that humans will return to the ground, connects to the inevitability of death mentioned in Job 20:11. People Job, ZopharPlaces UzTopics Bones, Dust, Fills, Full, Lie, Lies, Lieth, Sin, Strength, Vigor, Youth, YouthfulDictionary of Bible Themes Job 20:11 5137 bones
5746 youth Job 20:6-11 6203 mortality Library June 9 Evening
The triumphing of the wicked is short.--JOB 20:5. Thou shalt bruise his heel.--This is your hour, and the power of darkness.--As the children are partakers of flesh and blood he also himself likewise took part of the same; that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil.--Having spoiled principalities and powers, he made a shew of them openly, triumphing over them in it. Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about …
Anonymous—Daily Light on the Daily PathThe Christian Urged To, and Assisted In, an Express Act of Self-Dedication to the Service of God.
1. The advantages of such a surrender are briefly suggested.-- 2, 3, 4. Advice for the manner of doing it; that it be deliberate, cheerful, entire, perpetual.--5. And that it be expressed with some affecting solemnity.--6. A written instrument to be signed and declared before God, at some season of extraordinary devotion, reposed. The chapter concludes with a specimen of such an instrument, together with an abstract of it, to be used with proper and requisite alterations. 1. AS I would hope, that, …
Philip Doddridge—The Rise and Progress of Religion in the Soul Whether the Ashes from which the Human Body Will be Restored have any Natural Inclination Towards the Soul which Will be United to Them?
Objection 1: It would seem that the ashes from which the human body will be restored will have a natural inclination towards the soul which will be united to them. For if they had no inclination towards the soul, they would stand in the same relation to that soul as other ashes. Therefore it would make no difference whether the body that is to be united to that soul were restored from those ashes or from others: and this is false. Objection 2: Further, the body is more dependent on the soul than …
Saint Thomas Aquinas—Summa Theologica God.
GLORY OF GOD. God is the chief good--good so as nothing is but himself. He is in himself most happy; yea, all good and all true happiness are only to be found in God, as that which is essential to his nature; nor is there any good or any happiness in or with any creature or thing but what is communicated to it by God. God is the only desirable good; nothing without him is worthy of our hearts. Right thoughts of God are able to ravish the heart; how much more happy is the man that has interest in …
John Bunyan—The Riches of Bunyan The Hardening Operation of Love.
"Being grieved for the hardness of their heart."--Mark iii. 5. Love may also be reversed. Failing to cherish, to uplift, and to enrich, it consumes and destroys. This is a mystery which man can not fathom. It belongs to the unsearchable depths of the divine Being, of which we do not wish to know more than has been revealed. But this does not alter the fact. No creature can exclude itself from the divine control. No man can say that he has nothing to do with God; that he or any other creature exists …
Abraham Kuyper—The Work of the Holy Spirit Tit. 2:06 Thoughts for Young Men
WHEN St. Paul wrote his Epistle to Titus about his duty as a minister, he mentioned young men as a class requiring peculiar attention. After speaking of aged men and aged women, and young women, he adds this pithy advice, "Young men likewise exhort to be sober-minded" (Tit. 2:6). I am going to follow the Apostle's advice. I propose to offer a few words of friendly exhortation to young men. I am growing old myself, but there are few things I remember so well as the days of my youth. I have a most …
John Charles Ryle—The Upper Room: Being a Few Truths for the Times The Barren Fig-Tree;
OR, THE DOOM AND DOWNFALL OF THE FRUITLESS PROFESSOR: SHOWING, THAT THE DAY OF GRACE MAY BE PAST WITH HIM LONG BEFORE HIS LIFE IS ENDED; THE SIGNS ALSO BY WHICH SUCH MISERABLE MORTALS MAY BE KNOWN. BY JOHN BUNYAN 'Who being dead, yet speaketh.'--Hebrews 11:4 London: Printed for J. Robinson, at the Golden Lion, in St. Paul's Churchyard, 1688. This Title has a broad Black Border. ADVERTISEMENT BY THE EDITOR. This solemn, searching, awful treatise, was published by Bunyan in 1682; but does not appear …
John Bunyan—The Works of John Bunyan Volumes 1-3 A Few Sighs from Hell;
or, The Groans of the Damned Soul: or, An Exposition of those Words in the Sixteenth of Luke, Concerning the Rich Man and the Beggar WHEREIN IS DISCOVERED THE LAMENTABLE STATE OF THE DAMNED; THEIR CRIES, THEIR DESIRES IN THEIR DISTRESSES, WITH THE DETERMINATION OF GOD UPON THEM. A GOOD WARNING WORD TO SINNERS, BOTH OLD AND YOUNG, TO TAKE INTO CONSIDERATION BETIMES, AND TO SEEK, BY FAITH IN JESUS CHRIST, TO AVOID, LEST THEY COME INTO THE SAME PLACE OF TORMENT. Also, a Brief Discourse touching the …
John Bunyan—The Works of John Bunyan Volumes 1-3 An Exhortation to Love God
1. An exhortation. Let me earnestly persuade all who bear the name of Christians to become lovers of God. "O love the Lord, all ye his saints" (Psalm xxxi. 23). There are but few that love God: many give Him hypocritical kisses, but few love Him. It is not so easy to love God as most imagine. The affection of love is natural, but the grace is not. Men are by nature haters of God (Rom. i. 30). The wicked would flee from God; they would neither be under His rules, nor within His reach. They fear God, …
Thomas Watson—A Divine Cordial Man's Misery by the Fall
Q-19: WHAT IS THE MISERY OF THAT ESTATE WHEREINTO MAN FELL? A: All mankind by their fall lost communion with God, are under his wrath and curse, and so made liable to all the miseries in this life, to death itself, and to the pains of hell for ever. 'And were by nature children of wrath.' Eph 2:2. Adam left an unhappy portion to his posterity, Sin and Misery. Having considered the first of these, original sin, we shall now advert to the misery of that state. In the first, we have seen mankind offending; …
Thomas Watson—A Body of Divinity Job
The book of Job is one of the great masterpieces of the world's literature, if not indeed the greatest. The author was a man of superb literary genius, and of rich, daring, and original mind. The problem with which he deals is one of inexhaustible interest, and his treatment of it is everywhere characterized by a psychological insight, an intellectual courage, and a fertility and brilliance of resource which are nothing less than astonishing. Opinion has been divided as to how the book should be …
John Edgar McFadyen—Introduction to the Old Testament Links Job 20:11 NIVJob 20:11 NLTJob 20:11 ESVJob 20:11 NASBJob 20:11 KJV
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