Job 16:15
New International Version
“I have sewed sackcloth over my skin and buried my brow in the dust.

New Living Translation
I wear burlap to show my grief. My pride lies in the dust.

English Standard Version
I have sewed sackcloth upon my skin and have laid my strength in the dust.

Berean Standard Bible
I have sewn sackcloth over my skin; I have buried my horn in the dust.

King James Bible
I have sewed sackcloth upon my skin, and defiled my horn in the dust.

New King James Version
“I have sewn sackcloth over my skin, And laid my head in the dust.

New American Standard Bible
“I have sewed sackcloth over my skin, And thrust my horn in the dust.

NASB 1995
“I have sewed sackcloth over my skin And thrust my horn in the dust.

NASB 1977
“I have sewed sackcloth over my skin, And thrust my horn in the dust.

Legacy Standard Bible
I have sewed sackcloth over my skin And thrust my horn in the dust.

Amplified Bible
“I have sewed sackcloth over my skin [as a sign of mourning] And have defiled my horn (symbol of strength) in the dust.

Christian Standard Bible
I have sewn sackcloth over my skin; I have buried my strength in the dust.

Holman Christian Standard Bible
I have sewn sackcloth over my skin; I have buried my strength in the dust.

American Standard Version
I have sewed sackcloth upon my skin, And have laid my horn in the dust.

Contemporary English Version
and so, in my sorrow I dress in sackcloth and sit in the dust.

English Revised Version
I have sewed sackcloth upon my skin, and have laid my horn in the dust.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
"I have sewn sackcloth over my skin, and I have thrown my strength in the dust.

Good News Translation
I mourn and wear clothes made of sackcloth, and I sit here in the dust defeated.

International Standard Version
"I've even sewn sackcloth directly to my skin; I've buried my strength in the dust.

Majority Standard Bible
I have sewn sackcloth over my skin; I have buried my horn in the dust.

NET Bible
I have sewed sackcloth on my skin, and buried my horn in the dust;

New Heart English Bible
I have sewed sackcloth on my skin, and have thrust my horn in the dust.

Webster's Bible Translation
I have sewed sackcloth upon my skin, and defiled my horn in the dust.

World English Bible
I have sewed sackcloth on my skin, and have thrust my horn in the dust.
Literal Translations
Literal Standard Version
I have sewed sackcloth on my skin, "" And have rolled my horn in the dust.

Young's Literal Translation
Sackcloth I have sewed on my skin, And have rolled in the dust my horn.

Smith's Literal Translation
I sewed together sackcloth upon my skin, and I thrust my horn into the dust.
Catholic Translations
Douay-Rheims Bible
I have sowed sackcloth upon my skin, and have covered my flesh with ashes.

Catholic Public Domain Version
I have sewn sackcloth over my skin, and I have covered my body with ashes.

New American Bible
I have sewn sackcloth on my skin, laid my horn low in the dust.

New Revised Standard Version
I have sewed sackcloth upon my skin, and have laid my strength in the dust.
Translations from Aramaic
Lamsa Bible
I have girded sackcloth upon my skin, and I have covered my head with dust.

Peshitta Holy Bible Translated
Sackcloth I put on my skin and I sprinkled my head with dust
OT Translations
JPS Tanakh 1917
I have sewed sackcloth upon my skin, And have laid my horn in the dust.

Brenton Septuagint Translation
They sewed sackcloth upon my skin, and my strength has been spent on the ground.

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
Job Decries his Comforters
14He breaks me with wound upon wound; He rushes me like a mighty warrior. 15I have sewn sackcloth over my skin; I have buried my horn in the dust. 16My face is red with weeping, and deep shadows ring my eyes;…

Cross References
Isaiah 58:5
Is this the fast I have chosen: a day for a man to deny himself, to bow his head like a reed, and to spread out sackcloth and ashes? Will you call this a fast and a day acceptable to the LORD?

Jeremiah 6:26
O daughter of my people, dress yourselves in sackcloth and roll in ashes. Mourn with bitter wailing, as you would for an only son, for suddenly the destroyer will come upon us.

Lamentations 2:10
The elders of the Daughter of Zion sit on the ground in silence. They have thrown dust on their heads and put on sackcloth. The young women of Jerusalem have bowed their heads to the ground.

Ezekiel 27:31
They will shave their heads for you and wrap themselves in sackcloth. They will weep over you with anguish of soul and bitter mourning.

Jonah 3:6
When word reached the king of Nineveh, he got up from his throne, took off his royal robe, covered himself with sackcloth, and sat in ashes.

2 Samuel 13:19
And Tamar put ashes on her head and tore her robe. And putting her hand on her head, she went away crying aloud.

Genesis 37:34
Then Jacob tore his clothes, put sackcloth around his waist, and mourned for his son many days.

1 Kings 21:27
When Ahab heard these words, he tore his clothes, put on sackcloth, and fasted. He lay down in sackcloth and walked around meekly.

Daniel 9:3
So I turned my attention to the Lord God to seek Him by prayer and petition, with fasting, sackcloth, and ashes.

Micah 1:8
Because of this I will lament and wail; I will walk barefoot and naked. I will howl like a jackal and mourn like an ostrich.

Matthew 11:21
“Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the miracles that were performed in you had been performed in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes.

Luke 10:13
Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the miracles that were performed in you had been performed in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago, sitting in sackcloth and ashes.

Matthew 26:38-39
Then He said to them, “My soul is consumed with sorrow to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch with Me.” / Going a little farther, He fell facedown and prayed, “My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me. Yet not as I will, but as You will.”

Mark 14:34-36
Then He said to them, “My soul is consumed with sorrow to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch.” / Going a little farther, He fell to the ground and prayed that, if it were possible, the hour would pass from Him. / “Abba, Father,” He said, “all things are possible for You. Take this cup from Me. Yet not what I will, but what You will.”

Hebrews 5:7
During the days of Jesus’ earthly life, He offered up prayers and petitions with loud cries and tears to the One who could save Him from death, and He was heard because of His reverence.


Treasury of Scripture

I have sewed sackcloth on my skin, and defiled my horn in the dust.

sewed

1 Kings 21:27
And it came to pass, when Ahab heard those words, that he rent his clothes, and put sackcloth upon his flesh, and fasted, and lay in sackcloth, and went softly.

Isaiah 22:12
And in that day did the Lord GOD of hosts call to weeping, and to mourning, and to baldness, and to girding with sackcloth:

defiled my horn

Job 30:19
He hath cast me into the mire, and I am become like dust and ashes.

1 Samuel 2:10
The adversaries of the LORD shall be broken to pieces; out of heaven shall he thunder upon them: the LORD shall judge the ends of the earth; and he shall give strength unto his king, and exalt the horn of his anointed.

Psalm 7:5
Let the enemy persecute my soul, and take it; yea, let him tread down my life upon the earth, and lay mine honour in the dust. Selah.

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Brow Buried Clothing Defiled Dust Haircloth Horn Laid Rolled Sackcloth Sewed Skin Strength Thrust
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Job 16
1. Job reproves his friends for unmercifulness
17. He maintains his innocence














I have sewn sackcloth over my skin
The phrase "I have sewn sackcloth over my skin" is a vivid depiction of Job's deep mourning and repentance. In ancient Near Eastern culture, sackcloth was a coarse material made from goat's hair, often worn as a sign of mourning, penitence, or distress. The Hebrew word for sackcloth, "שַׂק" (saq), indicates a garment of humility and affliction. By sewing it over his skin, Job emphasizes the permanence and intensity of his suffering. This act symbolizes his complete submission to God's will, acknowledging his frailty and the depth of his sorrow. It is a physical manifestation of his inner turmoil and a plea for divine intervention.

I have buried my horn in the dust
The phrase "I have buried my horn in the dust" is rich with symbolic meaning. In biblical literature, the "horn" often represents strength, power, and dignity. The Hebrew word "קֶרֶן" (qeren) is used metaphorically to denote one's might or honor. By stating that he has buried his horn in the dust, Job conveys a profound sense of humiliation and defeat. Dust, in the Hebrew "עָפָר" (afar), is frequently associated with mortality and lowliness, as seen in Genesis 3:19, where man is reminded, "for dust you are and to dust you will return." Job's imagery here reflects his acknowledgment of human frailty and his own reduced state. It is a poignant expression of his loss of status and the stripping away of his former glory, as he grapples with the trials permitted by God. This act of burying his horn signifies Job's recognition of his dependence on God and his hope for restoration, despite his current desolation.

(15) I have sewed sackcloth upon my skin.--Referring, probably, to the state of his skin, which had become hard and rugged as sackcloth. As the second half of the verse must be figurative, there seems to be no reason to understand the first half otherwise.

Verse 15. - I have sewed sackcloth upon my skin. Another transition. Job turns to the consideration of how he has acted under his severe afflictions. In the first place, he has put on sackcloth, not for a time merely, as ordinary mourners do, but for a permanency, so that he may be said to have sewn it to his skin. There is, perhaps, also an allusion to the adhesion of the garment to his many sores. And have defiled my horn in the dust. "My horn" is equivalent to "my pride," "my dignity." Job, when he left his state, and put on sackcloth, and "sat down among the ashes" (Job 2:8), denuded himself of his honour and dignity, and as it were trailed them in the dust

Parallel Commentaries ...


Hebrew
I have sewn
תָּ֭פַרְתִּי (tā·p̄ar·tî)
Verb - Qal - Perfect - first person common singular
Strong's 8609: To sew together

sackcloth
שַׂ֣ק (śaq)
Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 8242: A mesh, coarse loose cloth, sacking, a bag

over
עֲלֵ֣י (‘ă·lê)
Preposition
Strong's 5921: Above, over, upon, against

my skin;
גִלְדִּ֑י (ḡil·dî)
Noun - masculine singular construct | first person common singular
Strong's 1539: The, skin

I have buried
וְעֹלַ֖לְתִּי (wə·‘ō·lal·tî)
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Piel - Conjunctive perfect - first person common singular
Strong's 5953: To effect thoroughly, to glean, to overdo, maltreat, be saucy to, pain, impose

my horn
קַרְנִֽי׃ (qar·nî)
Noun - feminine singular construct | first person common singular
Strong's 7161: A horn, a flask, cornet, an elephant's tooth, a corner, a peak, a ray, power

in the dust.
בֶעָפָ֣ר (ḇe·‘ā·p̄ār)
Preposition-b, Article | Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 6083: Dust, clay, earth, mud


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OT Poetry: Job 16:15 I have sewed sackcloth on my skin (Jb)
Job 16:14
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