Wherefore is light given to him that is in misery, and life unto the bitter in soul;
Job 3:20 is Job's lament in affliction, asking why light is given to him that is in misery and life to the bitter in soul. It expresses the misery and bitterness of soul that mark his complaint in his trial, despair, and rebellion. It belongs to his description of what his condition would have been if he had died at birth, as death a place of rest where the weary are at rest and the oppressed are no longer troubled. There the dead lie in the same condition regardless of rank or character, so that his question about life continued to the miserable and bitter in soul fits that longing for death as rest.
Connected with this lament, death is a deep repose, the same for all, in which the dead are silent and remain as in a sleep without dreaming until the resurrection. The book to which the verse belongs addresses the great problems that have perplexed humanity through all ages concerning overruling providence, sin, and suffering. In his affliction God is disciplining Job and bringing him through the fire, while his three friends charge him with sin and declare his sufferings are because of sin, showing how humanity misjudges its fellows. The word soul here denotes inner feeling rather than an immaterial or immortal part, for the bitter in soul is the person experiencing deep sorrow. Even a man known for patience had his heart deeply disturbed by trouble, showing that great afflictions can bring turmoil even to the best hearts.
Job 3:20 is Job's lament in affliction, asking why light is given to him that is in misery and life to the bitter in soul. It expresses the misery and bitterness of soul that mark his complaint in his trial, despair, and rebellion. It belongs to his description of what his condition would have been if he had died at birth, as death a place of rest where the weary are at rest and the oppressed are no longer troubled. There the dead lie in the same condition regardless of rank or character, so that his question about life continued to the miserable and bitter in soul fits that longing for death as rest.
Connected with this lament, death is a deep repose, the same for all, in which the dead are silent and remain as in a sleep without dreaming until the resurrection. The book to which the verse belongs addresses the great problems that have perplexed humanity through all ages concerning overruling providence, sin, and suffering. In his affliction God is disciplining Job and bringing him through the fire, while his three friends charge him with sin and declare his sufferings are because of sin, showing how humanity misjudges its fellows. The word soul here denotes inner feeling rather than an immaterial or immortal part, for the bitter in soul is the person experiencing deep sorrow. Even a man known for patience had his heart deeply disturbed by trouble, showing that great afflictions can bring turmoil even to the best hearts.