Job 7:15
New International Version
so that I prefer strangling and death, rather than this body of mine.

New Living Translation
I would rather be strangled— rather die than suffer like this.

English Standard Version
so that I would choose strangling and death rather than my bones.

Berean Standard Bible
so that I would prefer strangling and death over my life in this body.

King James Bible
So that my soul chooseth strangling, and death rather than my life.

New King James Version
So that my soul chooses strangling And death rather than my body.

New American Standard Bible
So that my soul would choose suffocation, Death rather than my pains.

NASB 1995
So that my soul would choose suffocation, Death rather than my pains.

NASB 1977
So that my soul would choose suffocation, Death rather than my pains.

Legacy Standard Bible
So that my soul would choose suffocation, Death rather than my pains.

Amplified Bible
So that I would choose suffocation, Death rather than my pain.

Christian Standard Bible
so that I prefer strangling — death rather than life in this body.

Holman Christian Standard Bible
so that I prefer strangling— death rather than life in this body.

American Standard Version
So that my soul chooseth strangling, And death rather than these my bones.

Contemporary English Version
I'd rather choke to death than live in this body.

English Revised Version
So that my soul chooseth strangling, and death rather than these my bones.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
My throat would rather be choked. My body would prefer death [to these dreams].

Good News Translation
until I would rather be strangled than live in this miserable body.

International Standard Version
I would rather die by strangulation than continue living.

Majority Standard Bible
so that I would prefer strangling and death over my life in this body.

NET Bible
so that I would prefer strangling, and death more than life.

New Heart English Bible
so that my soul chooses strangling, death rather than my bones.

Webster's Bible Translation
So that my soul chooseth strangling, and death rather than my life.

World English Bible
so that my soul chooses strangling, death rather than my bones.
Literal Translations
Literal Standard Version
And my soul chooses strangling, "" Death rather than my bones.

Young's Literal Translation
And my soul chooseth strangling, Death rather than my bones.

Smith's Literal Translation
And my soul will choose strangling; death rather than my bones.
Catholic Translations
Douay-Rheims Bible
So that my soul rather chooseth hanging, and my bones death.

Catholic Public Domain Version
so that, because of these things, my soul would choose hanging, and my bones, death.

New American Bible
So that I should prefer strangulation and death rather than my existence.

New Revised Standard Version
so that I would choose strangling and death rather than this body.
Translations from Aramaic
Lamsa Bible
Thou hast drawn my life out of destruction, and my bones out of death.

Peshitta Holy Bible Translated
And you picked my soul out of destruction, and my bones from death
OT Translations
JPS Tanakh 1917
So that my soul chooseth strangling, And death rather than these my bones.

Brenton Septuagint Translation
Thou wilt separate life from my spirit; and yet keep my bones from death.

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
Job Continues: Life Seems Futile
14then You frighten me with dreams and terrify me with visions, 15so that I would prefer strangling and death over my life in this body. 16I loathe my life! I would not live forever. Leave me alone, for my days are but a breath.…

Cross References
Psalm 42:6
O my God, my soul despairs within me. Therefore I remember You from the land of Jordan and the peaks of Hermon—even from Mount Mizar.

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.

Psalm 31:9-10
Be merciful to me, O LORD, for I am in distress; my eyes fail from sorrow, my soul and body as well. / For my life is consumed with grief and my years with groaning; my iniquity has drained my strength, and my bones are wasting away.

Psalm 38:17
For I am ready to fall, and my pain is ever with me.

Psalm 6:6
I am weary from groaning; all night I flood my bed with weeping and drench my couch with tears.

Psalm 13:2
How long must I wrestle in my soul, with sorrow in my heart each day? How long will my enemy dominate me?

Psalm 22:1-2
For the choirmaster. To the tune of “The Doe of the Dawn.” A Psalm of David. My God, my God, why have You forsaken me? Why are You so far from saving me, so far from my words of groaning? / I cry out by day, O my God, but You do not answer, and by night, but I have no rest.

Psalm 69:1-3
For the choirmaster. To the tune of “Lilies.” Of David. Save me, O God, for the waters are up to my neck. / I have sunk into the miry depths, where there is no footing; I have drifted into deep waters, where the flood engulfs me. / I am weary from my crying; my throat is parched. My eyes fail, looking for my God.

Psalm 102:3-5
For my days vanish like smoke, and my bones burn like glowing embers. / My heart is afflicted, and withered like grass; I even forget to eat my bread. / Through my loud groaning my skin hangs on my bones.

Jeremiah 20:14-18
Cursed be the day I was born! May the day my mother bore me never be blessed. / Cursed be the man who brought my father the news, saying, “A son is born to you,” bringing him great joy. / May that man be like the cities that the LORD overthrew without compassion. May he hear an outcry in the morning and a battle cry at noon, ...

Lamentations 3:17-20
My soul has been deprived of peace; I have forgotten what prosperity is. / So I say, “My strength has perished, along with my hope from the LORD.” / Remember my affliction and wandering, the wormwood and the gall. ...

2 Corinthians 1:8-9
We do not want you to be unaware, brothers, of the hardships we encountered in the province of Asia. We were under a burden far beyond our ability to endure, so that we despaired even of life. / Indeed, we felt we were under the sentence of death, in order that we would not trust in ourselves, but in God, who raises the dead.

2 Corinthians 4:8-10
We are hard pressed on all sides, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; / persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed. / We always carry around in our body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body.

2 Corinthians 11:23-27
Are they servants of Christ? (I am speaking as if I were out of my mind.) I am so much more: in harder labor, in more imprisonments, in worse beatings, in frequent danger of death. / Five times I received from the Jews the forty lashes minus one. / Three times I was beaten with rods, once I was stoned, three times I was shipwrecked. I spent a night and a day in the open sea. ...

Philippians 1:23-24
I am torn between the two. I desire to depart and be with Christ, which is far better indeed. / But it is more necessary for you that I remain in the body.


Treasury of Scripture

So that my soul chooses strangling, and death rather than my life.

chooseth.

2 Samuel 17:23
And when Ahithophel saw that his counsel was not followed, he saddled his ass, and arose, and gat him home to his house, to his city, and put his household in order, and hanged himself, and died, and was buried in the sepulchre of his father.

Matthew 27:5
And he cast down the pieces of silver in the temple, and departed, and went and hanged himself.

life.

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Job 7
1. Job excuses his desire of death.
12. He complains of his own restlessness, and reasons with God.














so that I would prefer
The phrase "so that I would prefer" indicates a deep longing or desire. In the Hebrew text, the word used here is "בָּחַר" (bachar), which means to choose or select. This choice is not made lightly; it reflects Job's intense suffering and his desperate wish for relief. Historically, this reflects the human condition of seeking escape from unbearable pain, a theme that resonates throughout the Bible. Job's preference for death over life underscores the depth of his despair, a sentiment that is echoed in other biblical figures who faced severe trials, such as Elijah and Jonah.

strangling
The term "strangling" is translated from the Hebrew word "חֶנֶק" (chenek), which literally means choking or suffocation. This vivid imagery conveys the suffocating nature of Job's suffering. In the ancient Near Eastern context, strangling was sometimes associated with execution or a violent end, highlighting the extremity of Job's anguish. The use of such a graphic term emphasizes the intensity of his desire to escape his current state, illustrating the profound psychological and physical torment he is experiencing.

and death
The word "death" here is "מָוֶת" (maveth) in Hebrew, a term that signifies the end of life. In the biblical context, death is often seen as the ultimate release from earthly suffering. For Job, death represents a preferable alternative to his ongoing misery. This reflects a common biblical theme where death is sometimes viewed as a gateway to peace, especially in the face of relentless suffering. Job's longing for death is not a rejection of life itself but a cry for deliverance from his overwhelming pain.

over my life
The phrase "over my life" suggests a comparison between two states of being. The Hebrew word for life, "חַי" (chai), encompasses not just physical existence but also the quality and vitality of life. Job's lament here is that his current existence is so fraught with suffering that he would choose death over continuing in such a state. This highlights the biblical understanding of life as a gift from God, yet acknowledges that life in a fallen world can be filled with profound suffering.

in this body
The term "body" is translated from the Hebrew "עֶצֶם" (etsem), which can mean bone or self, indicating the physical aspect of human existence. Job's reference to his body underscores the physical dimension of his suffering. In the ancient world, the body was seen as integral to one's identity and experience. Job's lament reflects the biblical theme of the body as both a vessel of life and a source of suffering. His desire to escape his bodily existence speaks to the depth of his affliction and the longing for a release from the physical and emotional pain that has become unbearable.

(15) So that my soul maketh choice of strangling and death rather than a life like this. Literally, than these my bones, or, as some take it, a death by these my members: a death inflicted by myself, suicide.

Verse 15. - So that my soul chooseth strangling; i.e. "so that I would prefer strangling to such horrid dreams," which are worse than any physical sufferings. Some see here a reference to suicide: but this is s very forced explanation. Suicide, as already observed, seems never even to have occurred to the thoughts of Job (see the comment on Job 6:8). And death rather than my life; literally, rather than my bones. Death, that is, would be preferable to such a life as he leads, which is that of a living skeleton.

Parallel Commentaries ...


Hebrew
so that I
נַפְשִׁ֑י (nap̄·šî)
Noun - feminine singular construct | first person common singular
Strong's 5315: A soul, living being, life, self, person, desire, passion, appetite, emotion

would prefer
וַתִּבְחַ֣ר (wat·tiḇ·ḥar)
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Qal - Consecutive imperfect - third person feminine singular
Strong's 977: To try, select

strangling
מַחֲנָ֣ק (ma·ḥă·nāq)
Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 4267: Strangling, suffocation

and death
מָ֝֗וֶת (mā·weṯ)
Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 4194: Death, the dead, their place, state, pestilence, ruin

over my life in this body.
מֵֽעַצְמוֹתָֽי׃ (mê·‘aṣ·mō·w·ṯāy)
Preposition-m | Noun - feminine plural construct | first person common singular
Strong's 6106: A bone, the body, the substance, selfsame


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OT Poetry: Job 7:15 So that my soul chooses strangling death (Jb)
Job 7:14
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