“Remember that my life is a breath; my eye will never again see good.
English Standard Version (ESV)
Job isn't just saying his life is short; he's pleading with God to remember the fragility of his existence, like a fleeting breath. This isn't about a loss of hope for eternal good, but a desperate plea to experience any good in this world before his eye "shall no more return to see" it.
“Remember that my life is a breath; my eye will never again see good.
English Standard Version (ESV)
Job, in the depths of his suffering, turns his plea to God, lamenting the fleeting nature of his existence and the certainty of death. He compares his life to wind, emphasizing its frailty and swift passing, and concludes that he will no longer experience joy or prosperity in this world. This verse reflects Job's profound anguish and his desire for release from his torment, looking towards the grave rather than continued earthly experience.
Job paints a stark picture of human existence. What does it mean to say our lives are like 'wind' or 'breath'?
Job compares his life to 'wind' (Hebrew: ruach), a word that can also mean 'breath' or 'spirit.' This isn't just about how short life is, but also its fragility and lack of substance when seen apart from God's sustaining power.
A Fragile Existence
Job declares his 'eye will never again see good.' What specific kind of 'good' is he mourning the loss of?
When Job says his 'eye shall no more see good,' he's not necessarily talking about eternal salvation or spiritual joy. The context of his suffering suggests he's lamenting the loss of earthly blessings and the inability to experience God’s favor in the tangible ways he once did.
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Mourning Lost Blessings
Job directly addresses God, urging Him to 'remember.' What does this plea reveal about Job's relationship with the Almighty?
Job’s cry, 'O remember,' is not a reminder to a forgetful God. Instead, it’s a desperate appeal rooted in the belief that God does remember and cares, even when His actions feel harsh.
The Nature of the Plea
Understand the original words
ruach · Hebrew Noun
A metaphor for that which is insubstantial, fleeting, and temporary. It emphasizes the fragility of human life and its dependence on God's sustaining breath (ruach).
This verse directly echoes Job's sentiment, comparing human life to 'a wind that passes away and does not return,' highlighting the fleeting and ephemeral nature of our existence.
Isaiah 38:11King Hezekiah, facing his own mortality, expresses a similar lament to Job, that he would 'see no more of the Lord' in the land of the living, reflecting the deep sorrow of life's end and the cessation of experiencing earthly good.
Ecclesiastes 9:5This passage underscores the finality of death from an earthly perspective, stating that 'the living know that they will die, but the dead know nothing more; they have no further reward, and even the memory of them is forgotten,' which aligns with Job's sense of imminent and irreversible loss.
Psalm 144:4This psalm offers a poetic parallel to Job's understanding of life's brevity, describing human life as 'like a phantom, like fleeting days,' emphasizing the fragility and swift passage of time that Job feels so acutely.
clarkeJob 7:7: "O remember that my life is wind: mine eye shall no more see good."
My life is wind - Mr. Good translates, "O remember that, if my life pass away, mine eye shall turn no more to scenes of goodness;" which he paraphrases thus: "O remember that, if my life pass away, never more shall I witness those scenes of Divine favor, never more adore thee for those proofs of unmerited mercy, which till now have been so perpetually bestowed on me." I think the common translation gives a very good se…
jfbJob 7:7: "O remember that my life is wind: mine eye shall no more see good."
- Address to God.Wind—a picture of evanescence (Ps 78:39).shall no more see—rather, "shall no more return to see good." This change from the different wish in Job 3:17, &c., is most true to nature. He is now in a softer mood; a beam from former days of prosperity falling upon memory and the thought of the unseen world, where one is seen no more (Job 7:8), drew from him an expression of regret at leaving this world of…
Job isn't just saying his life is short; he's pleading with God to remember the fragility of his existence, like a fleeting breath. This isn't about a loss of hope for eternal good, but a desperate plea to experience any good in this world before his eye "shall no more return to see" it.
Job, in the depths of his suffering, turns his plea to God, lamenting the fleeting nature of his existence and the certainty of death. He compares his life to wind, emphasizing its frailty and swift passing, and concludes that he will no longer experience joy or prosperity in this world. This verse reflects Job's profound anguish and his desire for release from his torment, looking towards the grave rather than continued earthly experience.
Job, in the depths of his suffering, turns his plea to God, lamenting the fleeting nature of his existence and the certainty of death. He compares his life to wind, emphasizing its frailty and swift passing, and concludes that he will no longer experience joy or prosperity in this world. This verse reflects Job's profound anguish and his desire for release from his torment, looking towards the grave rather than continued earthly experience.
"“Remember that my life is a breath; my eye will never again see good." — Job isn't just saying his life is short; he's pleading with God to remember the fragility of his existence, like a fleeting breath. This isn't about a loss of hope for eternal good, but a desperate…
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Last reviewed October 2026