Job 14:6
look away from him and leave him alone, that he may enjoy, like a hired hand, his day.
English Standard Version (ESV)
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This verse reveals a profound sadness: Job isn't just asking for a break from suffering, but for God to look away so he can find even the minimal "pleasure" a hired hand might feel at the end of a toilsome day. It highlights how little enjoyment life holds for him when constantly under God's intense scrutiny.
Job, in the midst of his immense suffering and questioning, pleads with God to simply look away and give him a moment of peace. He compares this brief respite to a hired hand who, despite a long, hard day of work, can at least anticipate the end of his labor and the fulfillment of his contract. This verse sits within Job's broader reflection on the fragility and brevity of human life, especially when contrasted with the possibility of renewal in nature.
Job feels intensely watched, almost interrogated, by God. What does he ask for in this unbearable scrutiny?
Job's plea in this verse is layered. He's not just asking for physical relief; he's asking for a pause in God's intense examination.
What does comparing human life to a 'hired hand's day' reveal about our existence?
The imagery of a 'hired hand's day' is striking and poignant. It speaks to the limited, often arduous nature of human life.
Understand the original words
sha'ah · Hebrew Verb
To turn the eyes toward or away; implies divine attention or the withholding of divine scrutiny, which, in Job's context, can be a form of judgment or a burden.
sakir · Hebrew Noun
A laborer hired for wages; one who works for a set time, often implying a perspective on life as temporary, constrained, or subject to the demands of a master.
This passage shows Job's earlier plea for respite, mirroring the sentiment in Job 14:6 where he asks God to 'look away' and grant him rest. Both verses highlight his deep weariness with suffering.
Psalm 39:4This psalm expresses a similar awareness of life's brevity and unpredictability, asking God to make known 'my end' and the 'number of my days.' This echoes Job's desire for his allotted time, even as a 'hired hand,' to be acknowledged and perhaps eased.
Ecclesiastes 9:7-9This passage encourages enjoying life's simple pleasures with joy, 'for all that your hand finds to do, do it with all your might, for there is no work or thought or knowledge or wisdom in Sheol, to which you are going.' This resonates with Job's desire for a measure of enjoyment or rest during his 'day,' before it ends and he enters the silent grave.
Matthew 6:34Jesus' teaching not to worry about tomorrow, but to let 'each day's own trouble be sufficient for it,' offers a different perspective on managing one's 'day.' While Job sees his day as a burden to endure with brief respite, Jesus calls us to live fully in the present, trusting God's provision.
pooleJob 14:6: "Turn from him, that he may rest, till he shall accomplish, as an hireling, his day."
Turn from him; withdraw thine afflicting hand from him. That he may rest; that he may have some present comfort and ease. Or, and let it cease , to wit, the affliction, which is sufficiently implied. Others, and let him cease , to wit, to live, i.e. take away my life. But that seems not to agree with the following clause of this verse, nor with the succeeding verses. Till he shall accomplish, as an h…
cambridgeJob 14:6: "Turn from him, that he may rest, till he shall accomplish, as an hireling, his day."
6 . turn from him ] lit. look away from him , cf. ch. Job 7:19 , Job 10:20 .—turn thy keen scrutiny away from him. may rest ] i. e. have peace , from unwonted affliction. till he shall accomplish ] Or, so that he may enjoy —so that he may have such pleasure as is possible in his brief and evil life, which is of no higher kind than the joy of the labourer during his hot and toilsome “day,” cf. ch. Job…
This verse reveals a profound sadness: Job isn't just asking for a break from suffering, but for God to look away so he can find even the minimal "pleasure" a hired hand might feel at the end of a toilsome day. It highlights how little enjoyment life holds for him when constantly under God's intense scrutiny.
Job, in the midst of his immense suffering and questioning, pleads with God to simply look away and give him a moment of peace. He compares this brief respite to a hired hand who, despite a long, hard day of work, can at least anticipate the end of his labor and the fulfillment of his contract. This verse sits within Job's broader reflection on the fragility and brevity of human life, especially when contrasted with the possibility of renewal in nature.
Job, in the midst of his immense suffering and questioning, pleads with God to simply look away and give him a moment of peace. He compares this brief respite to a hired hand who, despite a long, hard day of work, can at least anticipate the end of his labor and the fulfillment of his contract. This verse sits within Job's broader reflection on the fragility and brevity of human life, especially when contrasted with the possibility of renewal in nature.
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"look away from him and leave him alone, that he may enjoy, like a hired hand, his day." — This verse reveals a profound sadness: Job isn't just asking for a break from suffering, but for God to look away so he can find even the minimal "pleasure" a hired hand might feel at the end of a to…
