Job 27:16
Though he heap up silver like dust, and pile up clothing like clay,
English Standard Version (ESV)
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Job 27:16
Though he heap up silver like dust, and pile up clothing like clay,
English Standard Version (ESV)
This page isn't yet indexed by search engines.
This verse highlights not just the quantity of riches, but the lack of value the wealthy man places on them. He heaps up silver like insignificant dust and piles up clothes like common clay, showing how his immense wealth has actually desensitized him to its true worth and potential.
Job is fiercely defending his integrity, arguing that the wicked, despite their outward prosperity, ultimately face ruin. This verse highlights the immense, almost careless, accumulation of wealth by the unrighteous, contrasting it with the eventual fate awaiting them and the just who will inherit what they leave behind.
Job paints a picture of extreme wealth – vast piles of silver and countless garments. But what's the point if it can't be enjoyed?
Job uses vivid imagery to describe the immense, almost careless, accumulation of wealth. "Heap up silver like dust" and "pile up clothing like clay" aren't just about having a lot; they suggest riches so plentiful they lose their value, like common dirt or mud. In ancient Eastern cultures, clothing was a significant measure of wealth, stored in vast wardrobes. This verse highlights the sheer quantity of possessions someone might amass, seemingly beyond any practical need or enjoyment.
Is all wealth ultimately a curse? This verse hints at a deeper spiritual reality behind material abundance.
While the verse focuses on the amount of wealth, the surrounding context and commentary strongly suggest that such riches, when held by the unrighteous, are not a true blessing. They are described as "unsanctified wealth" that becomes a curse. This wealth provides the means for greater sin and immediate gratification but doesn't bring lasting security or joy. The contrast is stark: the wicked man piles up riches, but the righteous person will ultimately "put it on" – inheriting or receiving what the wicked man hoarded, either through divine providence or restoration.
Understand the original words
kesep · Hebrew Noun
The precious metal, often symbolizing worldly wealth, influence, or the vanity of seeking security in earthly riches rather than in God.
This passage uses the same imagery of amassing wealth 'like dust' to describe a city's abundance, highlighting the immense, almost careless, accumulation of riches.
1 Kings 10:27It parallels the immense quantity of silver to 'stones' in Jerusalem, emphasizing how wealth can become so abundant it's treated casually, much like dust or clay.
Matthew 6:19Jesus teaches about storing treasures in heaven rather than on earth, contrasting the impermanence of earthly riches (like piled-up clothing) with eternal spiritual wealth.
James 5:2This verse warns against the corruption of riches and the eventual decay of earthly treasures, directly echoing the idea of wealth, like clothing, becoming worthless and even a source of judgment.
bensonJob 27:16: "Though he heap up silver as the dust, and prepare raiment as the clay;"
Job 27:16-18 . Prepare raiment as the clay — In great abundance. But the just shall put it on — Either because it shall be given to him by the magistrate, to recompense him for those injuries which he had received from the oppressor; or because the right of it is, in some other way, transferred upon him by divine providence. He buildeth his house as a moth — Which settleth itself in a garment, but is quickly and…
clarkeJob 27:16: "Though he heap up silver as the dust, and prepare raiment as the clay;"
Though he heap up silver - Though he amass riches in the greatest abundance, he shall not enjoy them. Unsanctified wealth is a curse to its possessor. Money, of all earthly possessions, is the most dangerous, as it is the readiest agent to do good or evil. He that perverts it is doubly cursed, because it affords him the most immediate means of sinful gratification; and he can sin more in an hour through this, th…
This verse highlights not just the quantity of riches, but the lack of value the wealthy man places on them. He heaps up silver like insignificant dust and piles up clothes like common clay, showing how his immense wealth has actually desensitized him to its true worth and potential.
Job is fiercely defending his integrity, arguing that the wicked, despite their outward prosperity, ultimately face ruin. This verse highlights the immense, almost careless, accumulation of wealth by the unrighteous, contrasting it with the eventual fate awaiting them and the just who will inherit what they leave behind.
Job is fiercely defending his integrity, arguing that the wicked, despite their outward prosperity, ultimately face ruin. This verse highlights the immense, almost careless, accumulation of wealth by the unrighteous, contrasting it with the eventual fate awaiting them and the just who will inherit what they leave behind.
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"Though he heap up silver like dust, and pile up clothing like clay," — This verse highlights not just the quantity of riches, but the lack of value the wealthy man places on them. He heaps up silver like insignificant dust and piles up clothes like common clay, show…