Job 14 · Verse 19

Job 14:19

The waters wear the stones: thou washest away the things which grow out of the dust of the earth; and thou destroyest the hope of man.
Job 14:19, King James Version

Job 14:19 in other translations

BSBas water wears away the stones and torrents wash away the soil, so You destroy a man’s hope.
WEBThe waters wear the stones. The torrents of it wash away the dust of the earth. So you destroy the hope of man.
ASVThe waters wear the stones; The overflowings thereof wash away the dust of the earth: So thou destroyest the hope of man.
YLTStones have waters worn away, Their outpourings wash away the dust of earth, And the hope of man Thou hast destroyed.
DARBYThe waters wear the stones, the floods thereof wash away the dust of the earth; and thou destroyest the hope of man.
BBEThe stones are crushed small by the force of the waters; the dust of the earth is washed away by their overflowing: and so you put an end to the hope of man.
WebsterThe waters wear the stones: thou washest away the things which grow out of the dust of the earth; and thou destroyest the hope of man.

What does Job 14:19 mean?

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown
19. The Hebrew order is more forcible: "Stones themselves are worn away by water." things which grow out of--rather, "floods wash away the dust of the earth." There is a gradation from "mountains" to "rocks" (Job 14:18), then "stones," then last "dust of the earth"; thus the solid mountain at last disappears utterly.

Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown, 1871 · public domain

Adam Clarke's Commentary
Verse 19 The waters wear the stones - Even the common stones are affected in the same way. Were even earthquakes and violent concussions of nature wanting, the action of water, either running over them as a stream, or even falling upon them in drops, will wear these stones. Hence the proverb: - Gutta cavat lapidem non vi sed saepe cadendo. "Constant droppings will make a hole in a flint." Εκ θαμινης ραθαμιγγος, ὁκως λογος, αιες ιοισας, Χ' ἁ λιθος ες ρωχμον κοιλαινεται. "From frequent dropping, as the proverb says, perpetually falling, even a stone is hollowed into a hole." Thou washest away the things - Alluding to sudden falls of rain occasioning floods, by which the fruits of the earth are swept away; and thus the hope of man - the grain for his household, and provender for his cattle, is destroyed.

Adam Clarke, 1831 · public domain

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on Job 14:16-22

Job's faith and hope spake, and grace appeared to revive; but depravity again prevailed. He represents God as carrying matters to extremity against him. The Lord must prevail against all who contend with him. God may send disease and pain, we may lose all comfort in those near and dear to us, every hope of earthly happiness may be destroyed, but God will receive the believer into realms of eternal happiness. But…

Read the full comment on Job 14:16-22 →

Job 14:19 in the original Hebrew

Word-by-word with transliteration, English gloss and Strong's number. Tap a number for the full definition and every place the word is used.

אֲבָנִ֤ים\׀'a.va.NimstonesH68
שָׁ֥חֲקוּSha.cha.kuthey rub awayH7833
מַ֗יִםMa.yimwatersH4325
תִּשְׁטֹֽף\־tish.tof-it washes offH7857
סְפִיחֶ֥יהָse.fi.Chei.haoverflowings itsH5599
עֲפַר\־'a.far-[the] dust ofH6083
אָ֑רֶץ'A.retz[the] earthH776
וְתִקְוַ֖תve.tik.Vatand [the] hope ofH8615
אֱנ֣וֹשׁ'e.No.oshhumankindH582
הֶאֱבַֽדְתָּ\׃he.'e.Vad.tayou destroyH6

Source: STEPBible TAHOT/TAGNT (Tyndale House, CC BY 4.0).

Cross references for Job 14:19

  • Job 7:6

    My days are swifter than a weaver’s shuttle, and are spent without hope.

  • Job 19:10

    He hath destroyed me on every side, and I am gone: and mine hope hath he removed like a tree.

  • Job 27:8

    For what is the hope of the hypocrite, though he hath gained, when God taketh away his soul?

  • Luke 12:19-20

    And I will say to my soul, Soul, thou hast much goods laid up for many years; take thine ease, eat, drink, and be merry. But God said unto him, Thou fool, this night thy soul shall be required of thee: then whose shall those things be, which thou hast provided?

  • Genesis 6:17

    And, behold, I, even I, do bring a flood of waters upon the earth, to destroy all flesh, wherein is the breath of life, from under heaven; and every thing that is in the earth shall die.

  • 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.

  • Psalms 30:6-7

    And in my prosperity I said, I shall never be moved. Lord, by thy favour thou hast made my mountain to stand strong: thou didst hide thy face, and I was troubled.

  • Genesis 7:21-23

    And all flesh died that moved upon the earth, both of fowl, and of cattle, and of beast, and of every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth, and every man: All in whose nostrils was the breath of life, of all that was in the dry land, died. And every living substance was destroyed which was upon the face of the ground, both man, and cattle, and the creeping things, and the fowl of the heaven; and they were destroyed from the earth: and Noah only remained alive, and they that were with him in the ark.

Ranked by reader votes · OpenBible.info cross references (CC BY).

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
The waters.Hence the proverb, "Constant droppings make a hole in a stone."
washest. Heb. overflowest.
Ge 6:17; 7:21-23
destroyest.
19:10; 27:8; Ps 30:6,7; Eze 37:11; Lu 12:19,20

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (Samuel Bagster, c. 1836) · public domain

Context

  • Job 14:18

    And surely the mountain falling cometh to nought, and the rock is removed out of his place.

  • Job 14:19

    The waters wear the stones: thou washest away the things which grow out of the dust of the earth; and thou destroyest the hope of man.

  • Job 14:20

    Thou prevailest for ever against him, and he passeth: thou changest his countenance, and sendest him away.

Read all of Job 14

Job 14:19 in other languages

Spanish
Reina-Valera 1909		Las piedras son desgastadas con el agua impetuosa, que se lleva el polvo de la tierra: de tal manera haces tú perecer la esperanza del hombre.
French
Bible J.N. Darby 1885		Les eaux usent les pierres, leur débordement emporte la poussière de la terre: ainsi tu fais périr l’espoir de l’homme.
German
Elberfelder 1871		Wasser zerreiben die Steine, ihre Fluten schwemmen den Staub der Erde hinweg; aber du machst zunichte die Hoffnung des Menschen.
Latin
Clementine Vulgate		lapides excavant aquæ, et alluvione paulatim terra consumitur: et hominem ergo similiter perdes.