Job 14:6 · Bible study
Job 14:6 Commentary: A Plea for Respite from Divine Scrutiny
Hebrew · 10 what the commentators say
Meaning in one sentence
In Job 14:6, Job begs God to look away, to grant a hireling's rest. Explore the Hebrew verbs, interpretive debates, and pastoral meaning of this cry for relief.
Research Summary
- Meaning: Job asks God to stop afflicting him so he can rest and enjoy the short, determined span of his life, like a day labourer who rests at evening.
- Key words: sha'ah (Hiphil, 'look away'), chadal ('cease'), ratsah ('take pleasure in'), sakhir ('hireling').
- Main debate: Does Job ask for respite in this life (consensus) or for release through death? The former is better supported by context and cross-references.
- Theological theme: Human frailty, divine sovereignty, and the legitimacy of lament, the believer may ask God to ease discipline without rejecting His authority.
- Best use: A model for honest, pleading prayer that does not despair but trusts God enough to be vulnerable before Him.
Translation Comparison
BSB Berean Standard Bible 2020
look away from him and let him rest, so he can enjoy his day as a hired hand.
WEB World English Bible 2000
Look away from him, that he may rest, until he accomplishes, as a hireling, his day.
KJV King James Version 1769
Turn from him, that he may rest, till he shall accomplish, as an hireling, his day.
ASV American Standard Version 1901
Look away from him, that he may rest, Till he shall accomplish, as a hireling, his day.
YLT Young's Literal Translation 1898
Look away from off him that he may cease, Till he enjoy as an hireling his day.
Darby Darby Bible 1890
Look away from him; and let him rest, till he accomplish, as a hireling, his day.
Douay-Rheims Douay-Rheims Bible 1899
Depart a little from him, that he may rest until his wished for day come, as that of the hireling.
Translations in other languages (10 available)
Si tú lo dejares, él dejará de ser: entre tanto deseará, como el jornalero, su día.
Desvia-te dele, para que ele tenha repouso; até que, como o empregado, complete seu dia.
Détourne de lui les regards, et donne-lui du relâche,
So tu dich von ihm, daß er Ruhe habe, bis daß seine Zeit komme, deren er wie ein Tagelöhner wartet.
Wend U van hem af, dat hij rust hebbe, totdat hij als een dagloner aan zijn dag een welgevallen hebbe.
storna da lui lo sguardo, sì ch’egli abbia un po’ di requie, e possa godere come un operaio la fine della sua giornata.
Odstąpże od niego, aż odpocznie, aż przejdzie jako najemniczy dzień jego.
то уклонись от него: пусть он отдохнет, доколе не окончит, как наемник, дня своего.
便求你轉眼 不看他，使他得歇息，直等 他像雇工人 完畢 他的日子。
Let your eyes be turned away from him, and take your hand from him, so that he may have pleasure at the end of his day, like a servant working for payment.
Verse in Context
Original Language (Biblical Hebrew)
Old Testament · Biblical Hebrew · Job 14:6
Source: STEPBible TAGNT/TEHB (CC-BY 4.0). Click or tap a morphology code to see the full parsing.
Scholars' Consensus
Commentators agree that Job asks God to stop afflicting him so he may find a measure of peace before his brief life ends. The Hebrew verb sha'ah (Hiphil) means "look away", Job wants God's intense, judgmental gaze to turn aside. Chadal ("cease") carries the sense of resting from unwonted suffering (Cambridge Bible). Barnes notes that Job compares himself to a hireling whose hard, hot day is relieved by evening rest; he does not ask for death but for a temporary reprieve. Gill qualifies that Job is not asking God to withdraw His gracious presence, but to remove His heavy afflicting hand. Keil & Delitzsch observe that the verb ratsah ("take pleasure in") suggests Job wants to enjoy the little time left, not simply endure it. The cross-references in Job 7:19 and 10:20 reinforce this same request: "Leave me alone, that I may find a little comfort." Thus the consensus reads the verse as a plea for respite in this life, not a wish for death.
How settled is the interpretation?
Interpretive difficulty: Low
What is clear: Job asks God to stop afflicting him intensely so that he may find at least a little comfort and rest before his short and painful life ends, comparing himself to a day labourer longing for evening.
What Scholars Agree and Debate
| Topic | Agreed | Debated |
|---|---|---|
| Nature of the request: respite vs. death | Job is asking for relief from intense suffering, not for annihilation or permanent escape from God's presence. | Most commentators see this as a plea for temporary reprieve in this life; a minority (some older interpretations) have read it as a wish for death. The immediate context (vv. 5, 7-12) supports the majority view that Job wants to live out his remaining days with less pain. |
| Meaning of 'accomplish' (ratsah) | The Hebrew verb carries connotations of pleasure, acceptance, or satisfaction. | Some translations render it 'accomplish' (KJV, ASV), implying the hireling finishes his day; others render it 'enjoy' (BSB, Noyes). Keil & Delitzsch argue strongly for 'enjoy', linking it to the hireling's rest. Barnes and Cambridge allow either 'accomplish' or 'enjoy', noting both fit the hireling metaphor. |
| Is Job blaming God for his suffering? | Job attributes his affliction directly to God's attention (v. 3), which is a remarkable honesty in prayer. | Reformed interpreters (Matthew Henry, Gill) caution that Job does not charge God with injustice but pleads for mercy. Some more critical readings (not in these commentaries) have seen Job as moving toward rebellion. The consensus in the supplied sources is that Job remains within the bounds of lament, not accusation. |
| Theological lesson: what does this verse teach about suffering? | It teaches that God permits honest complaint and that suffering can be so severe it feels like divine scrutiny. | Some emphasise that Job's ultimate restoration shows God honours such prayers; others caution against citing this verse to excuse impatience. Both agree that the verse validates the human experience of feeling overwhelmed by God's dealings. |
Historical & Cultural Context
In the ancient Near East, a hireling (Hebrew sakhir) was a day laborer with no job security, no benefits, and a master who could scrutinise every moment of work. From sunrise to sunset the hireling toiled under the sun, often in backbreaking conditions, pausing only for the briefest rest. The only relief came at dusk, when wages were paid and the day was accomplished. Job uses this precise social image: he is like a hireling whose appointed day (his short, suffering life) is set by a master, God.
The surrounding context of Job 14 confirms this. Verse 5 states God has determined man's days and set boundaries he cannot cross. Verse 6 then becomes Job's logical appeal: since my life is already confined and difficult, please relax Your intense scrutiny so I can at least enjoy the few days I have, as a hireling enjoys his rest and perhaps his wages. The poetry in verses 7, 12 contrasts a tree that can sprout again with a man who dies permanently, underscoring the urgency of Job's plea, he has no second chance, so why spend his only days under relentless affliction?
Job's complaint echoes other laments in Psalms and Jeremiah, where the sufferer asks God to stop watching so closely (Ps 39:13; Jer 15:15). This is not a rejection of God's sovereignty but a desperate request for mercy within it: I know You are in control, but please relent. In a culture where honour and shame were paramount, being watched constantly implied accusation. Job feels like a suspected thief whose every move is monitored. He asks for a little dignity and ease before his short day ends.
Textual Notes
Reception History
Preaching This Verse
Three-point outline
- The Scrutiny of God: Job feels God's eye as oppressive (v. 3). We can acknowledge that God's holiness may feel like a burden when we are suffering, even though His love is real.
- The Brevity of Life: Life is a short, appointed day (v. 5). This humble realism makes Job's plea reasonable, why spend such a fleeting life under extra pain?
- The Request for Respite: Job asks not for escape from life, but for relief within it. A hireling longs for evening, not for unemployment. God understands our limits.
Five-point outline
- Our Days Are Numbered, God has set a boundary we cannot pass; this comforts as well as humbles.
- God's Watchful Eye, Job experiences divine attention as punishment; we need to distinguish God's loving gaze from judgment.
- Unclean Cannot Produce Clean, v. 4 reminds us of human frailty and sin; yet God still shows mercy.
- Like a Hireling, Our life is a day of labour; we look for rest and reward, not perfect ease.
- Ask for Relief, It is biblical to pray for a lighter burden while we wait for the ultimate rest.
Illustration hooks
- The overbearing boss: A worker who does his job well but is micromanaged, questioned at every turn. He wishes his supervisor would look away and trust him for an hour.
- The exhausted parent: A mother caring for a sick child, day after day, with no break. She doesn't want to abandon her child, she just wants an afternoon to breathe and sleep.
Questions your congregation is asking
- Is it okay to ask God to stop testing me? Doesn't that show lack of faith?
- How can I tell if God is disciplining me or just allowing ordinary suffering?
- What does it mean to 'enjoy my day' when I feel like a tired labourer?
Leading a Discussion
Job 14:6 sits within a chapter where Job moves from despair about human frailty to a glimmer of hope in the afterlife (v. 13-15). For now, his request is immediate: God, please look away so I can rest. As a group, consider how Job balances total honesty before God with reverent submission. He does not accuse God of injustice, but he does complain openly about the intensity of his suffering. This verse invites us to examine our own prayers: do we feel permission to ask God to ease our load without guilt?
Discussion questions
- Read Job 14:1-6. What picture of human life does Job paint? How does that make his request in verse 6 more urgent?
- Job uses the word 'hireling' (a day labourer). What does this comparison imply about Job's view of his relationship with God?
- The Hebrew verb sha'ah means 'look away' or 'turn the gaze'. Why would Job want God to not look at him? Is that appropriate for a believer today?
- Compare Job 14:6 with Job 7:16-19 and 10:20. What pattern do you see in Job's requests? Does he ever ask to die, or just to be left alone for a while?
- How do verses 7-12 (the tree vs. man contrast) shape the meaning of verse 6? What hope does Job have, if any?
- Job acknowledges his days are determined by God (v. 5). How does that confession coexist with his prayer for relief? Does he think God can change His mind?
- How can we pray honestly for relief from suffering without losing trust in God's sovereignty? Share a time when you felt like a 'hireling' before God.
Word Study
The key original-language words in this verse. Select any word for its full lexicon entry — meaning, every occurrence in Scripture, and related words.
Cross-References
Source: Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (TSK, public domain)
| Job 7:1 | “Isn’t a man forced to labor on earth? Aren’t his days like the days of a hired hand? |
| Job 7:2 | As a servant who earnestly desires the shadow, as a hireling who looks for his wages, |
| Job 7:16 | I loathe my life. I don’t want to live forever. Leave me alone, for my days are but a breath. |
| Job 7:19 | How long will you not look away from me, nor leave me alone until I swallow down my spittle? |
| Job 10:20 | Aren’t my days few? Stop! Leave me alone, that I may find a little comfort, |
| Psalms 39:13 | Oh spare me, that I may recover strength, before I go away and exist no more.” |
| Matthew 20:1 | “For the Kingdom of Heaven is like a man who was the master of a household, who went out early in the morning to hire laborers for his vineyard. |
| Matthew 20:8 | “When evening had come, the lord of the vineyard said to his manager, ‘Call the laborers and pay them their wages, beginning from the last to the first.’ |
Interlinear and lexical data from STEPBible (CC BY 4.0). Cross-reference data from OpenBible.info (CC BY 4.0). Commentaries are public domain.
For personal reflection
Read the devotional page — prayer, application, and "for families"
What the Commentators Say
10 public-domain commentaries, condensed into plain language.
Adam Clarke's Commentary Methodist/Wesleyan 1826
Clarke notes that the person speaking asks God to stop sending more troubles so he can have a short time of relief before leaving life. He believes this brief rest is like a worker getting a pause from hard work.
Barnes' Notes on the Bible Protestant 1832
Barnes argues that Job is not asking for rest but for God to stop afflicting him. The Hebrew words suggest a desire for God to look away, to cease his intense scrutiny, so Job can have some comfort in the little time left. The hireling comparison points to being let alone until the day is finished.
Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges Anglican 1880
Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges notes that the phrase look away from him means stop focusing on God in pain. It also says the person may find peace from suffering so he can experience some joy during his brief life.
Geneva Bible Notes Reformed 1599
Geneva Bible Notes sees the wise man urging others to stop troubling the dead and wait for their appointed time. He compares them to a hired worker who should finish his task before leaving. This view holds that waiting quietly honors the dead and keeps hope alive.
Gill's Exposition of the Bible Baptist 1748
Gill clarifies that Job is not asking God to withdraw His presence but to stop afflicting him so severely. Job longs for a respite from his extraordinary troubles, like a hired worker who eagerly awaits the end of his day.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Commentary Protestant 1871
Jamieson Fausset Brown notes the word enjoy means to have a share of something. He says the dead man gets a share of the rest that a worker who works hard receives through hope of future reward.
Keil & Delitzsch OT Commentary Protestant 1876
Keil and Delitzsch note that Job wishes God would stop watching over him so he can have ordinary rest like a hired worker. He believes absolute purity is impossible for humans.
Lange's Commentary Reformed 1857
Lange highlights the inner conflict in Job's speech: a proud claim to innocence combined with a dark view of God's power as destructive and capricious. Job's description of divine majesty is not faith but a reflection of his own gloom. His longing for restoration in chapter 14 is a momentary dream that quickly fades into resigned despair.
Matthew Henry's Commentary Reformed/Presbyterian 1710
Henry notes that because humans are born of women who are sinners, they inherit sin and become unclean. He believes this explains why human life is short and full of trouble.
Wesley's Explanatory Notes Methodist/Wesleyan 1754
Wesley focuses on the plea for God to withdraw His hand of affliction so the sufferer can have present relief. The period of relief extends only until the end of life, which God has fixed as surely as a master sets a servant's term of service.