Job 17:16
New International Version
Will it go down to the gates of death? Will we descend together into the dust?”

New Living Translation
No, my hope will go down with me to the grave. We will rest together in the dust!”

English Standard Version
Will it go down to the bars of Sheol? Shall we descend together into the dust?”

Berean Standard Bible
Will it go down to the gates of Sheol? Will we go down together into the dust?”

King James Bible
They shall go down to the bars of the pit, when our rest together is in the dust.

New King James Version
Will they go down to the gates of Sheol? Shall we have rest together in the dust?”

New American Standard Bible
“Will it go down with me to Sheol? Shall we together go down into the dust?”

NASB 1995
“Will it go down with me to Sheol? Shall we together go down into the dust?”

NASB 1977
“Will it go down with me to Sheol? Shall we together go down into the dust?”

Legacy Standard Bible
Will it go down with me to Sheol? Shall we together go down into the dust?”

Amplified Bible
“Will my hope go down with me to Sheol (the nether world, the place of the dead)? Shall we go down together in the dust?”

Christian Standard Bible
Will it go down to the gates of Sheol, or will we descend together to the dust?

Holman Christian Standard Bible
Will it go down to the gates of Sheol, or will we descend together to the dust?

American Standard Version
It shall go down to the bars of Sheol, When once there is rest in the dust.

Contemporary English Version
Will it keep me company in the world of the dead?

English Revised Version
It shall go down to the bars of Sheol, when once there is rest in the dust.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
Will hope go down with me to the gates of the grave? Will my hope rest with me in the dust?"

Good News Translation
Hope will not go with me when I go down to the world of the dead.

International Standard Version
Will it go down to the bars that lock the doors of the afterlife? Will we descend together into the dust?"

Majority Standard Bible
Will it go down to the gates of Sheol? Will we go down together into the dust?”

NET Bible
Will it go down to the barred gates of death? Will we descend together into the dust?"

New Heart English Bible
Shall it go down with me to the gates of Sheol, or descend together into the dust?"

Webster's Bible Translation
They shall go down to the bars of the pit, when our rest together is in the dust.

World English Bible
Shall it go down with me to the gates of Sheol, or descend together into the dust?”
Literal Translations
Literal Standard Version
You go down [to] the parts of Sheol, "" If we may rest together on the dust.”

Young's Literal Translation
To the parts of Sheol ye go down, If together on the dust we may rest.

Smith's Literal Translation
They shall go down to the bars of hades if together we shall go down to the dust.
Catholic Translations
Douay-Rheims Bible
All that I have shall go down into the deepest pit: thinkest thou that there at least I shall have rest?

Catholic Public Domain Version
Everything of mine will descend into the deepest underworld; do you think that, in that place at least, there will be rest for me?

New American Bible
Will they descend with me into Sheol? Shall we go down together into the dust?

New Revised Standard Version
Will it go down to the bars of Sheol? Shall we descend together into the dust?”
Translations from Aramaic
Lamsa Bible
They shall go down to the bottom of Sheol; they shall descend together into the dust.

Peshitta Holy Bible Translated
Into the bottom to Sheol you will go down!’ And together to the dust they shall descend!”
OT Translations
JPS Tanakh 1917
They shall go down to the bars of the nether-world, When we are at rest together in the dust.

Brenton Septuagint Translation
Will they go down with me to Hades, or shall we go down together to the tomb?

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
Job Prepares for Death
15where then is my hope? Who can see any hope for me? 16Will it go down to the gates of Sheol? Will we go down together into the dust?”

Cross References
Psalm 88:3-5
For my soul is full of troubles, and my life draws near to Sheol. / I am counted among those descending to the Pit. I am like a man without strength. / I am forsaken among the dead, like the slain who lie in the grave, whom You remember no more, who are cut off from Your care.

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

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 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.

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 10:21-22
before I go—never to return—to a land of darkness and gloom, / to a land of utter darkness, of deep shadow and disorder, where even the light is like darkness.”

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

Psalm 30:9
“What gain is there in my bloodshed, in my descent to the Pit? Will the dust praise You? Will it proclaim Your faithfulness?

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 21:26
But together they lie down in the dust, and worms cover them both.

Job 24:19
As drought and heat consume the melting snow, so Sheol steals those who have sinned.

Matthew 8:22
But Jesus told him, “Follow Me, and let the dead bury their own dead.”

John 11:25-26
Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in Me will live, even though he dies. / And everyone who lives and believes in Me will never die. Do you believe this?”

1 Corinthians 15:42-44
So will it be with the resurrection of the dead: What is sown is perishable; it is raised imperishable. / It is sown in dishonor; it is raised in glory. It is sown in weakness; it is raised in power. / It is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body. If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body.

1 Corinthians 15:54-55
When the perishable has been clothed with the imperishable and the mortal with immortality, then the saying that is written will come to pass: “Death has been swallowed up in victory.” / “Where, O Death, is your victory? Where, O Death, is your sting?”


Treasury of Scripture

They shall go down to the bars of the pit, when our rest together is in the dust.

the bars of the pit

Job 18:13,14
It shall devour the strength of his skin: even the firstborn of death shall devour his strength…

Job 33:18-28
He keepeth back his soul from the pit, and his life from perishing by the sword…

Psalm 88:4-8
I am counted with them that go down into the pit: I am as a man that hath no strength: …

rest

Job 3:17-19
There the wicked cease from troubling; and there the weary be at rest…

Ezekiel 37:11
Then he said unto me, Son of man, these bones are the whole house of Israel: behold, they say, Our bones are dried, and our hope is lost: we are cut off for our parts.

2 Corinthians 1:9
But we had the sentence of death in ourselves, that we should not trust in ourselves, but in God which raiseth the dead:

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Job 17
1. Job appeals from men to God
6. The unmerciful dealing of men with the afflicted may astonish,
9. but not discourage the righteous
11. His hope is not in life, but in death














Will it go down
The phrase "Will it go down" suggests a movement towards a lower place, both physically and metaphorically. In the Hebrew context, the verb "yarad" is often used to describe descending or going down. This descent can symbolize a journey into despair or death, reflecting Job's deep sense of hopelessness. In the ancient Near Eastern culture, descending often implied entering a realm of darkness or the unknown, which aligns with Job's lamentation over his dire circumstances.

to the gates
The "gates" in ancient times were not just physical entry points but also symbolic of transition and judgment. In the Hebrew Bible, gates often represent places of decision-making and authority. Here, the gates of Sheol signify the threshold between life and death, a place where earthly life ends and the afterlife begins. This imagery underscores the finality and inevitability of death, which Job feels is approaching.

of Sheol
"Sheol" is a Hebrew term referring to the abode of the dead, a shadowy place where the departed spirits reside. It is not equivalent to the Christian concept of hell but rather a neutral place of the dead. In the Old Testament, Sheol is often depicted as a place of silence and forgetfulness, emphasizing the separation from the living and from God. Job's reference to Sheol highlights his profound sense of isolation and the cessation of life as he knows it.

Will we descend
The phrase "Will we descend" continues the theme of moving downward, suggesting a collective journey into death. The use of "we" implies a shared human experience, acknowledging that death is a common destiny for all. This communal aspect reflects the biblical understanding of humanity's shared mortality and the inevitability of returning to the earth.

together
"Together" emphasizes unity in the human experience of death. It suggests that despite the individual nature of suffering, there is a collective aspect to mortality. This can be seen as a comfort or a further lament, depending on the perspective. In Job's context, it may reflect his feeling of solidarity with others who suffer, yet also a deep loneliness in his personal plight.

into the dust
The phrase "into the dust" evokes the creation narrative in Genesis, where humanity is formed from the dust of the ground. It signifies the return to the earth, the cycle of life and death. Dust is a powerful biblical symbol of mortality and humility, reminding believers of their origins and their ultimate return to the earth. For Job, this return to dust is a poignant reminder of his frailty and the transient nature of life.

(16) They shall go down to the bars of the pit.--The last verse of this chapter, which is itself one of the most difficult, is the most difficult of all. The difficulty consists in this: the bars of the grave are masculine, and the verb, they shall go down, is feminine plural; it seems improbable that the bars of the grave should be the subject of the verb (though perhaps not absolutely impossible); but if the bars of the grave are the place to which the going down is, as in the Authorised Version, then what is the subject to the verb, go down, seeing that hope, the apparent subject, is a feminine singular? Some render "it shall go down," but this is in defiance of the grammar, though, probably, the meaning it conveys is not far from the truth. The words clearly express a condition of utter despair, and that Job's only hope of rest is in the grave. It is a rule in Hebrew grammar that when the verb precedes its subject it need not agree with it in gender or number; but here the verb must, at all events, come after its subject, and consequently, it is very difficult to determine what that subject is. The only apparent subject is to be found in the corruption of the worm of Job 17:14; but they, instead of going down to the grave, are already there.

Verse 16. - They shall go down to the bars of the pit, when our rest together is in the dust. There is great difficulty in determining the subject to the verb "go down," which is the third person plural feminine, whereas the only plural substantive at all near - the word translated "bars" - is masculine. Some suppose Job's hopes to be meant, "hope" in the preceding verse having the force of any number of "hopes" (so the R.V.) Others disregard the grammatical difficulty of the plural feminine verb, and, making "bars" the nominative, translate, "The bars of Sheol shall go down," i.e. "be broken down, perish;" or interrogatively, "Shall the bars of Sheol go down?" This rendering is thought to be "in harmony with the whole undercurrent of thought in the chapter;" but it has not approved itself to many commentators. The present commentator must acknowledge that he is unable to attach any satisfactory meaning to the words of the Hebrew text.



Parallel Commentaries ...


Hebrew
Will it go down
תֵּרַ֑דְנָה (tê·raḏ·nāh)
Verb - Qal - Imperfect - third person feminine plural
Strong's 3381: To come or go down, descend

to the gates
בַּדֵּ֣י (bad·dê)
Noun - masculine plural construct
Strong's 905: Separation, a part of the body, branch of a, tree, bar for, carrying, chief of

of Sheol?
שְׁאֹ֣ל (šə·’ōl)
Noun - common singular
Strong's 7585: Underworld (place to which people descend at death)

Will we go down
נָֽחַת׃ (nā·ḥaṯ)
Verb - Qal - Imperfect - first person common plural
Strong's 5183: A descent, imposition, unfavorable, favorable, restfulness

together
יַ֖חַד (ya·ḥaḏ)
Adverb
Strong's 3162: A unit, unitedly

into
עַל־ (‘al-)
Preposition
Strong's 5921: Above, over, upon, against

the dust?”
עָפָ֣ר (‘ā·p̄ār)
Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 6083: Dust, clay, earth, mud


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OT Poetry: Job 17:16 Shall it go down with me (Jb)
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