Job 10:21
New International Version
before I go to the place of no return, to the land of gloom and utter darkness,

New Living Translation
before I leave—never to return— for the land of darkness and utter gloom.

English Standard Version
before I go—and I shall not return— to the land of darkness and deep shadow,

Berean Standard Bible
before I go—never to return—to a land of darkness and gloom,

King James Bible
Before I go whence I shall not return, even to the land of darkness and the shadow of death;

New King James Version
Before I go to the place from which I shall not return, To the land of darkness and the shadow of death,

New American Standard Bible
Before I go—and I shall not return— To the land of darkness and deep shadow,

NASB 1995
Before I go— and I shall not return— To the land of darkness and deep shadow,

NASB 1977
Before I go—and I shall not return— To the land of darkness and deep shadow;

Legacy Standard Bible
Before I go—and I shall not return— To the land of darkness and shadow of death,

Amplified Bible
Before I go—and I shall not return— To the land of darkness and the deep shadow [of death],

Christian Standard Bible
before I go to a land of darkness and gloom, never to return.

Holman Christian Standard Bible
before I go to a land of darkness and gloom, never to return.

American Standard Version
Before I go whence I shall not return, Even to the land of darkness and of the shadow of death;

Contemporary English Version
before I travel to the land

English Revised Version
Before I go whence I shall not return, even to the land of darkness and of the shadow of death;

GOD'S WORD® Translation
before I go away to a land of darkness and gloom,

Good News Translation
I am going soon and will never come back--going to a land that is dark and gloomy,

International Standard Version
before I go, never to return, leaving for the land of deep darkness and shadow.

Majority Standard Bible
before I go?never to return?to a land of darkness and gloom,

NET Bible
before I depart, never to return, to the land of darkness and the deepest shadow,

New Heart English Bible
before I go where I shall not return from, to the land of darkness and of the shadow of death;

Webster's Bible Translation
Before I go whence I shall not return, even to the land of darkness, and the shades of death;

World English Bible
before I go where I will not return from, to the land of darkness and of the shadow of death;
Literal Translations
Literal Standard Version
Before I go, and do not return, "" To a land of darkness and death-shade,

Young's Literal Translation
Before I go, and return not, Unto a land of darkness and death-shade,

Smith's Literal Translation
Before I shall go and turn back to the land of darkness and the shadow of death;
Catholic Translations
Douay-Rheims Bible
Before I go, and return no more, to a land that is dark and covered with the mist of death:

Catholic Public Domain Version
before I depart and return no more to a land that is dark and covered with the fog of death,

New American Bible
Before I go whence I shall not return, to the land of darkness and of gloom,

New Revised Standard Version
before I go, never to return, to the land of gloom and deep darkness,
Translations from Aramaic
Lamsa Bible
Before I go from whence I shall not return, even to the land of darkness and the shadow of death.

Peshitta Holy Bible Translated
Before I shall go and I shall not return again, to the land of darkness and of the shadows of death
OT Translations
JPS Tanakh 1917
Before I go whence I shall not return, Even to the land of darkness and of the shadow of death;

Brenton Septuagint Translation
before I go whence I shall not return, to a land of darkness and gloominess;

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
Job's Plea to God
20Are my days not few? Withdraw from me, that I may have a little comfort, 21before I go— never to return— to a land of darkness and gloom, 22to a land of utter darkness, of deep shadow and disorder, where even the light is like darkness.”…

Cross References
Job 3:13-19
For now I would be lying down in peace; I would be asleep and at rest / with kings and counselors of the earth, who built for themselves cities now in ruins, / or with princes who had gold, who filled their houses with silver. ...

Job 7:9-10
As a cloud vanishes and is gone, so he who goes down to Sheol does not come back up. / He never returns to his house; his place remembers him no more.

Job 14:10-14
But a man dies and is laid low; he breathes his last, and where is he? / As water disappears from the sea and a river becomes parched and dry, / so a man lies down and does not rise. Until the heavens are no more, he will not be awakened or roused from sleep. ...

Job 17:13-16
If I look for Sheol as my home, if I spread out my bed in darkness, / and say to corruption, ‘You are my father,’ and to the worm, ‘My mother,’ or ‘My sister,’ / where then is my hope? Who can see any hope for me? ...

Ecclesiastes 9:10
Whatever you find to do with your hands, do it with all your might, for in Sheol, where you are going, there is no work or planning or knowledge or wisdom.

Psalm 88:10-12
Do You work wonders for the dead? Do departed spirits rise up to praise You? Selah / Can Your loving devotion be proclaimed in the grave, Your faithfulness in Abaddon? / Will Your wonders be known in the darkness, or Your righteousness in the land of oblivion?

Psalm 39:13
Turn Your gaze away from me, that I may again be cheered before I depart and am no more.”

Isaiah 38:18
For Sheol cannot thank You; Death cannot praise You. Those who descend to the Pit cannot hope for Your faithfulness.

Psalm 6:5
For there is no mention of You in death; who can praise You from Sheol?

Psalm 49:14
Like sheep they are destined for Sheol. Death will be their shepherd. The upright will rule them in the morning, and their form will decay in Sheol, far from their lofty abode.

Psalm 103:14-16
For He knows our frame; He is mindful that we are dust. / As for man, his days are like grass—he blooms like a flower of the field; / when the wind passes over, it vanishes, and its place remembers it no more.

Daniel 12:2
And many who sleep in the dust of the earth will awake, some to everlasting life, but others to shame and everlasting contempt.

Matthew 8:12
But the sons of the kingdom will be thrown into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”

Matthew 22:13
Then the king told the servants, ‘Tie him hand and foot, and throw him into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’

John 11:11-14
After He had said this, He told them, “Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep, but I am going there to wake him up.” / His disciples replied, “Lord, if he is sleeping, he will get better.” / They thought that Jesus was talking about actual sleep, but He was speaking about the death of Lazarus. ...


Treasury of Scripture

Before I go from where I shall not return, even to the land of darkness and the shadow of death;

I go whence

Job 7:8-10
The eye of him that hath seen me shall see me no more: thine eyes are upon me, and I am not…

Job 14:10-14
But man dieth, and wasteth away: yea, man giveth up the ghost, and where is he? …

2 Samuel 12:23
But now he is dead, wherefore should I fast? can I bring him back again? I shall go to him, but he shall not return to me.

the land

Job 3:5
Let darkness and the shadow of death stain it; let a cloud dwell upon it; let the blackness of the day terrify it.

Psalm 88:6,11,12
Thou hast laid me in the lowest pit, in darkness, in the deeps…

the shadow.

Job 3:5
Let darkness and the shadow of death stain it; let a cloud dwell upon it; let the blackness of the day terrify it.

Psalm 23:4
Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.

Jeremiah 2:6
Neither said they, Where is the LORD that brought us up out of the land of Egypt, that led us through the wilderness, through a land of deserts and of pits, through a land of drought, and of the shadow of death, through a land that no man passed through, and where no man dwelt?

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Black Dark Darkness Death Death-Shade Deep Gloom Shades Shadow Whence
Job 10
1. Job, taking liberty of complaint, expostulates with God about his afflictions
18. He complains of life, and craves a little ease before death














before I go
This phrase captures Job's anticipation of his impending death. The Hebrew root for "go" is "halak," which often signifies a journey or a transition from one state to another. In the context of Job's lament, it reflects his resignation to the inevitability of death. Historically, the ancient Near Eastern cultures viewed life as a journey, and death as the final departure. Job's use of this phrase underscores his deep despair and the transient nature of human life, reminding us of the brevity and fragility of our earthly existence.

never to return
The finality of death is emphasized here. The Hebrew word "shub" means to return or to turn back. Job acknowledges that death is a one-way journey with no possibility of return to the land of the living. This reflects the ancient understanding of Sheol, the abode of the dead, from which no one returns. In a broader scriptural context, this phrase highlights the stark reality of mortality, urging believers to live with an eternal perspective, knowing that our earthly life is but a prelude to eternity.

to a land of darkness
The "land of darkness" is a metaphor for Sheol, the shadowy realm of the dead in Hebrew thought. The word "choshek" in Hebrew signifies not just physical darkness, but also a lack of understanding or hope. This imagery conveys Job's perception of death as a place devoid of God's light and presence. For the conservative Christian, this darkness contrasts with the promise of eternal life through Christ, who is the Light of the World, offering hope beyond the grave.

and gloom
The term "gloom" is translated from the Hebrew word "tsalmaveth," which combines "tselem" (shadow) and "maveth" (death), often rendered as "deep shadow" or "death-shadow." This word paints a picture of profound despair and the oppressive nature of death. In the biblical narrative, such imagery is used to evoke the fear and uncertainty associated with death. However, for believers, the New Testament reveals that Christ has overcome the power of death, transforming our understanding of the grave from a place of gloom to a gateway to eternal life with God.

Verse 21. - Before I go whence I shall not return (comp. Job 7:9; and see 2 Samuel 12:23). Even to the land of darkness and the shadow of death. Job's idea of the receptacle of the dead, while it has some analogies with the Egyptian under-world, and even more with the Greek and Roman conceptions of Hades or Orcus, was probably derived from Babylonia, or Chaldea, on which the land that he inhabited bordered (Job 1:17). It was within the earth, consequently dark and sunless (compare the Umbrae of the Romans, and Euripides's νέκρων κευθμῶνα καὶ σκότου πύλας), deep (Job 11:8), dreary, fastened with belts and bars (Job 17:16). The Babylonians spoke of it as "the abode of darkness and famine, where earth was men's food, and their nourishment clay; where light was not seen, but in darkness they dwelt; where ghosts, like birds, fluttered their wings; and where, on the doors and on the door-posts, the dust lay undisturbed" (Transactions of the Society of Biblical Archaeology, vol. 1. p. 118).

Parallel Commentaries ...


Hebrew
before
בְּטֶ֣רֶם (bə·ṭe·rem)
Preposition-b | Adverb
Strong's 2962: Non-occurrence, not yet, before

I go—
אֵ֭לֵךְ (’ê·lêḵ)
Verb - Qal - Imperfect - first person common singular
Strong's 1980: To go, come, walk

never
וְלֹ֣א (wə·lō)
Conjunctive waw | Adverb - Negative particle
Strong's 3808: Not, no

to return—
אָשׁ֑וּב (’ā·šūḇ)
Verb - Qal - Imperfect - first person common singular
Strong's 7725: To turn back, in, to retreat, again

to
אֶל־ (’el-)
Preposition
Strong's 413: Near, with, among, to

a land
אֶ֖רֶץ (’e·reṣ)
Noun - feminine singular construct
Strong's 776: Earth, land

of darkness
חֹ֣שֶׁךְ (ḥō·šeḵ)
Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 2822: The dark, darkness, misery, destruction, death, ignorance, sorrow, wickedness

and gloom,
וְצַלְמָֽוֶת׃ (wə·ṣal·mā·weṯ)
Conjunctive waw | Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 6757: Death-like shadow, deep shadow


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OT Poetry: Job 10:21 Before I go where I shall not (Jb)
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