Job 19:16
New International Version
I summon my servant, but he does not answer, though I beg him with my own mouth.

New Living Translation
When I call my servant, he doesn’t come; I have to plead with him!

English Standard Version
I call to my servant, but he gives me no answer; I must plead with him with my mouth for mercy.

Berean Standard Bible
I call for my servant, but he does not answer, though I implore him with my own mouth.

King James Bible
I called my servant, and he gave me no answer; I intreated him with my mouth.

New King James Version
I call my servant, but he gives no answer; I beg him with my mouth.

New American Standard Bible
“I call to my servant, but he does not answer; I have to implore his favor with my mouth.

NASB 1995
“I call to my servant, but he does not answer; I have to implore him with my mouth.

NASB 1977
“I call to my servant, but he does not answer, I have to implore him with my mouth.

Legacy Standard Bible
I call to my servant, but he does not answer; I have to implore him with my mouth.

Amplified Bible
“I call to my servant, but he does not answer; I have to implore him with words.

Christian Standard Bible
I call for my servant, but he does not answer, even if I beg him with my own mouth.

Holman Christian Standard Bible
I call for my servant, but he does not answer, even if I beg him with my own mouth.

American Standard Version
I call unto my servant, and he giveth me no answer, Though I entreat him with my mouth.

Contemporary English Version
and when I call my servants, they pay no attention.

English Revised Version
I call unto my servant, and he giveth me no answer, though I entreat him with my mouth.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
I call my slave, but he doesn't answer, though I beg him.

Good News Translation
When I call a servant, he doesn't answer--even when I beg him to help me.

International Standard Version
"I call to my servant, but he doesn't respond, even though I beg to him earnestly.

Majority Standard Bible
I call for my servant, but he does not answer, though I implore him with my own mouth.

NET Bible
I summon my servant, but he does not respond, even though I implore him with my own mouth.

New Heart English Bible
I call to my servant, and he gives me no answer. I beg him with my mouth.

Webster's Bible Translation
I called my servant, and he gave me no answer; I entreated him with my mouth.

World English Bible
I call to my servant, and he gives me no answer. I beg him with my mouth.
Literal Translations
Literal Standard Version
I have called to my servant, "" And he does not answer, "" With my mouth I make supplication to him.

Young's Literal Translation
To my servant I have called, And he doth not answer, With my mouth I make supplication to him.

Smith's Literal Translation
I called to my servant and he will not answer; I shall entreat him with my mouth.
Catholic Translations
Douay-Rheims Bible
I called my servant, and he gave me no answer, I entreated him with my own mouth.

Catholic Public Domain Version
I called my servant, and he did not respond; I pleaded with him with my own mouth.

New American Bible
I call my servant, but he gives no answer, though I plead aloud with him.

New Revised Standard Version
I call to my servant, but he gives me no answer; I must myself plead with him.
Translations from Aramaic
Lamsa Bible
I called my servant, and he gave me no answer; I entreated him with my mouth and implored him.

Peshitta Holy Bible Translated
I called my Servant and he did not answer me, and I entreated him with the words of my mouth and I begged him
OT Translations
JPS Tanakh 1917
I call unto my servant, and he giveth me no answer, Though I entreat him with my mouth.

Brenton Septuagint Translation
I called my servant, and he hearkened not; and my mouth intreated him.

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
Job: My Redeemer Lives
15My guests and maidservants count me as a stranger; I am a foreigner in their sight. 16I call for my servant, but he does not answer, though I implore him with my own mouth. 17My breath is repulsive to my wife, and I am loathsome to my own family.…

Cross References
Psalm 38:11
My beloved and friends shun my disease, and my kinsmen stand at a distance.

Psalm 88:8
You have removed my friends from me; You have made me repulsive to them; I am confined and cannot escape.

Psalm 31:11
Among all my enemies I am a disgrace, and among my neighbors even more. I am dreaded by my friends—they flee when they see me on the street.

Psalm 69:8
I have become a stranger to my brothers and a foreigner to my mother’s sons,

Isaiah 53:3
He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows, acquainted with grief. Like one from whom men hide their faces, He was despised, and we esteemed Him not.

Lamentations 1:2
She weeps aloud in the night, with tears upon her cheeks. Among all her lovers there is no one to comfort her. All her friends have betrayed her; they have become her enemies.

Lamentations 1:19
I called out to my lovers, but they have betrayed me. My priests and elders perished in the city while they searched for food to keep themselves alive.

Proverbs 19:7
All the brothers of a poor man hate him—how much more do his friends avoid him! He may pursue them with pleading, but they are nowhere to be found.

Micah 7:5-6
Do not rely on a friend; do not trust in a companion. Seal the doors of your mouth from her who lies in your arms. / For a son dishonors his father, a daughter rises against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law. A man’s enemies are the members of his own household.

Matthew 26:56
But this has all happened so that the writings of the prophets would be fulfilled.” Then all the disciples deserted Him and fled.

Matthew 26:69-75
Meanwhile, Peter was sitting out in the courtyard, and a servant girl came up to him. “You also were with Jesus the Galilean,” she said. / But he denied it before them all: “I do not know what you are talking about.” / When Peter had gone out to the gateway, another servant girl saw him and said to the people there, “This man was with Jesus of Nazareth.” ...

Mark 14:50
Then everyone deserted Him and fled.

Mark 14:66-72
While Peter was in the courtyard below, one of the servant girls of the high priest came down / and saw him warming himself there. She looked at Peter and said, “You also were with Jesus the Nazarene.” / But he denied it. “I do not know or even understand what you are talking about,” he said. Then he went out to the gateway, and the rooster crowed. ...

Luke 22:54-62
Then they seized Jesus, led Him away, and took Him into the house of the high priest. And Peter followed at a distance. / When those present had kindled a fire in the middle of the courtyard and sat down together, Peter sat down among them. / A servant girl saw him seated in the firelight and looked intently at him. “This man also was with Him,” she said. ...

John 1:10-11
He was in the world, and though the world was made through Him, the world did not recognize Him. / He came to His own, and His own did not receive Him.


Treasury of Scripture

I called my servant, and he gave me no answer; I entreated him with my mouth.

my servant

Job 1:15,16,17,19
And the Sabeans fell upon them, and took them away; yea, they have slain the servants with the edge of the sword; and I only am escaped alone to tell thee…

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Beg Beseech Cry Entreat Entreated Gives Implore Intreated Mouth Prayer Servant Summon Supplication
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Beg Beseech Cry Entreat Entreated Gives Implore Intreated Mouth Prayer Servant Summon Supplication
Job 19
1. Job, complaining of his friends' cruelty,
6. shows there is misery enough in him to feed their cruelty
21. He craves pity
23. He believes the resurrection














I call for my servant
The Hebrew word for "servant" here is "עֶבֶד" (eved), which often denotes a person in a position of subordination or service. In the ancient Near Eastern context, a servant was expected to be loyal and responsive to their master's needs. Job's use of this term highlights his profound sense of isolation and the breakdown of social order in his life. Despite his status and previous wealth, even those who were once bound to serve him now ignore his pleas, underscoring the depth of his suffering and alienation.

but he does not answer
The lack of response from the servant is significant. In the cultural and historical context of the time, a servant's failure to respond would be seen as a grave breach of duty and respect. This silence symbolizes the complete abandonment Job feels, not just from his servant, but from society and even, as he perceives, from God. It reflects the theme of unanswered cries and the silence of God that runs throughout the Book of Job, challenging the reader to consider the nature of divine justice and human suffering.

though I implore him
The word "implore" translates from the Hebrew "חָנַן" (chanan), which conveys a sense of pleading or seeking favor. This term is often used in the context of seeking mercy or grace, suggesting that Job is not merely issuing a command but is humbly and desperately seeking a response. This highlights Job's vulnerability and the reversal of his fortunes, where he, once a man of great influence, is now reduced to begging for attention and assistance.

with my own mouth
The phrase "with my own mouth" emphasizes the personal and direct nature of Job's plea. It suggests an intimate and earnest appeal, underscoring the sincerity and desperation of his situation. In the broader scriptural context, the mouth is often seen as a symbol of communication and expression of the heart. Job's use of his own mouth to implore his servant indicates the depth of his personal anguish and the breakdown of relationships that once provided him with support and comfort.

Verse 16. - I called my servant, and he gave me no answer. Astounding insolence in an Oriental servant or rather slave (עבד), who should have hung upon his master's words, and striven to anticipate his wishes. I intreated him with my mouth. Begging him probably for some service which was distasteful, and which he declined to render.

Parallel Commentaries ...


Hebrew
I call
קָ֭רָאתִי (qā·rā·ṯî)
Verb - Qal - Perfect - first person common singular
Strong's 7121: To call, proclaim, read

for my servant,
לְעַבְדִּ֣י (lə·‘aḇ·dî)
Preposition-l | Noun - masculine singular construct | first person common singular
Strong's 5650: Slave, servant

but he does not
וְלֹ֣א (wə·lō)
Conjunctive waw | Adverb - Negative particle
Strong's 3808: Not, no

answer,
יַעֲנֶ֑ה (ya·‘ă·neh)
Verb - Qal - Imperfect - third person masculine singular
Strong's 6030: To answer, respond

though I implore
אֶתְחַנֶּן־ (’eṯ·ḥan·nen-)
Verb - Hitpael - Imperfect - first person common singular
Strong's 2603: To bend, stoop in kindness to an inferior, to favor, bestow, to implore

him
לֽוֹ׃ (lōw)
Preposition | third person masculine singular
Strong's Hebrew

with
בְּמוֹ־ (bə·mōw-)
Preposition
Strong's 1119: In, with, by

my own mouth.
פִ֝֗י (p̄î)
Noun - masculine singular construct | first person common singular
Strong's 6310: The mouth, edge, portion, side, according to


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OT Poetry: Job 19:16 I call to my servant and he (Jb)
Job 19:15
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