Job 42:11 — meaning, Hebrew and Greek word study, commentary
Job 42:11
Then came there unto him all his brethren, and all his sisters, and all they that had been of his acquaintance before, and did eat bread with him in his house: and they bemoaned him, and comforted him over all the evil that the LORD had brought upon him: every man also gave him a piece of money, and every one an earring of gold.
to go or come (in a wide variety of applications) · conjunction + verb, qal sequential imperfect, 3rd person masculine plural
brethren
אֶחָ֨יו'e.Chav
H251
a brother (used in the widest sense of literal relation… · noun, common masculine plural construct + pronominal suffix, 3rd person masculine singular
sisters
אַחְיוֹתָ֜יו'ach.yo.tav
H269
a sister (used very widely (like brother) · noun, common feminine plural construct + pronominal suffix, 3rd person masculine singular
acquaintance
יֹדְעָ֣יוyo.de.'Av
H3045
to know (properly · verb, qal active participle, masculine plural construct + pronominal suffix, 3rd person masculine singular
before
לְפָנִ֗יםle.fa.Nim
H6440
the face (as the part that turns) · preposition + noun, common masculine plural absolute
eat
וַיֹּאכְל֨וּvai.yo.khe.Lu
H398
Strong's Exhaustive Concordance (James Strong, 1890/1894), public domain; digitized by Open Scriptures (CC BY-SA). KJV word tagging: eBible.org (public domain). Original-language text, parsing and brief lexicon: STEPBible.org data from Tyndale House, Cambridge (CC BY 4.0).
Cross-references
Job 2:11 Now when Job’s three friends heard of all this evil that was come upon him, they came every one from his own place; Eliphaz the Temanite, an…
Job 19:13-14 He hath put my brethren far from me, and mine acquaintance are verily estranged from me.
Genesis 24:22 And it came to pass, as the camels had done drinking, that the man took a golden earring of half a shekel weight, and two bracelets for her…
Proverbs 16:7 When a man’s ways please the LORD, he maketh even his enemies to be at peace with him.
Romans 12:15 Rejoice with them that do rejoice, and weep with them that weep.
Hebrews 12:12 Wherefore lift up the hands which hang down, and the feeble knees;
Genesis 24:53 And the servant brought forth jewels of silver, and jewels of gold, and raiment, and gave them to Rebekah: he gave also to her brother and t…
Genesis 37:35 And all his sons and all his daughters rose up to comfort him; but he refused to be comforted; and he said, For I will go down into the grav…
Cross-references from OpenBible.info (CC BY), in the lineage of the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (public domain).
Commentary
Matthew Henry on Job 42:10–end
You have heard of the patience of Job (says the apostle, Jam 5:11) and have seen the end of the Lord, that is, what end the Lord, at length, put to his troubles. In the beginning of this book we had Job's patience under his troubles, for an example; here, in the close, for our encouragement to follow that example, we have the happy issue of his troubles and the prosperous condition to which he was restored after them, which confirms us in counting those happy which endure. Perhaps, too, the extraordinary prosperity which Job was crowned with after his afflictions was intended to be to us Christians a type and figure of the glory and happiness of heaven, which the afflictions of this present…
It was Job's complaint in his misery that his "brethren," were "estranged" from him (Job 19:13); these now return with the return of his prosperity (Pro 14:20; Pro 19:6-7); the true friend loveth at all times (Pro 17:17; Pro 18:24). "Swallow friends leave in the winter and return with the spring" [HENRY].
eat bread--in token of friendship (Psa 41:9).
piece of money--Presents are usual in visiting a man of rank in the East, especially after a calamity (Ch2 32:23). Hebrew, kesita. MAGEE translates "a lamb" (the medium of exchange then before money was used), as it is in Margin of Gen 33:19; Jos 24:32. But it is from the Arabic kasat, "weighed out" [UMBREIT], not coined; so Gen 42:35; Gen 3…
Then came there unto him all his brethren - "Job being restored to his former health and fortunes, the author," says Mr. Heath, "presents us with a striking view of human friendship. His brethren, who, in the time of his affliction, kept at a distance from him; his kinsfolk, who ceased to know him; his familiar friends, who had forgotten him; and his acquaintance, who had made themselves perfect strangers to him; those to whom he had showed kindness, and who yet had ungratefully neglected him, on the return of his prosperity now come and condole with him, desirous of renewing former familiarity; and, according to the custom of the Eastern countries, where there is no approaching a great man…
The Church Fathers
But there came to him all his brethren, and all his sisters, and all that knew him before, and did eat bread with him in his house, and moved the head over him. 23. What is designated by the eating of bread but charity, and what by the moving of the head but admiration? But it is well subjoined, And comforted him over all the evil that the Lord had brought upon him. For to console the grief of one that had been smitten, is to rejoice with him on his pardon after he had been smitten. For the more a person is seen to rejoice on the restoration of his neighbour's health, the more does he give proof that he had grieved at its loss. And they gave him each one sheep, and one earring of gold. 24. Although all these things are truly stated according to the history, we are yet compelled by the very gifts which were offered to go back to the mystery of allegory. For we ought not to hear in a listless manner that they offered a sheep, and a single one, and a golden earring, and a single one. And if perhaps it is not wonderful in the mere letter why the sheep which was offered was one, yet it is very wonderful why the earring was one. But what reference has a sheep to an earring, or an earring to a sheep? We are compelled therefore, by the very definiteness ['fine'] of the gifts, to examine in the mysteries of allegory the former statements also, which we have run through and treated superficially according to the mere history. Because therefore Christ and the Church, that is, the Head and the body, are one person, we have often said that blessed Job sometimes typifies the head, sometimes the body. Preserving then the truth of the history, let us understand that as performed under the type of the Church, which is written, The Lord added all that had been to Job twofold. For though Holy Church now loses many by the stroke of temptation, yet in the end of this world she receives those things that are her own, twofold, when, having received the Gentiles in full number, all Judaea also which shall then be found, agrees to run to her faith. For hence it is written, Until the fulness of the Gentiles should come in, and so all Israel should be saved. [Rom. 11, 25. 26.] Hence the Truth also says in the Gospel, Elias shall come, and he shall restore all things. [Matt. 17, 11] For now the Church has lost the Israelites, which she was unable to convert by preaching, but when, at…
The Church Fathers: public-domain translations (Ante-Nicene and Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers), verse-indexed by SermonIndex (CC BY 4.0).
Dictionary and topics
Coin — Before the Exile the Jews had no regularly stamped money. They made use of uncoined shekels or talents of silver, which they weighed out (Gen. 23:16; Ex. 38:24; 2 Sam. 18:12). Probably the silver…
Earrings — Rings properly for the ear (Gen. 35:4; Num. 31:50; Ezek. 16:12). In Gen. 24:47 the word means a nose-jewel, and is so rendered in the Revised Version. In Isa. 3:20 the Authorized Version has…
Kesitah — (Gen. 33:19, R.V., marg., a Hebrew word, rendered, A.V., pl. “pieces of money,” marg., “lambs;” Josh. 24:32, “pieces of silver;” Job 42:11, “piece of money”). The kesitah was probably a piece of…
Job · .Later blessings and riches of — .Later blessings and riches of
Money · Was given: Custom of presenting a piece of — Was given: Custom of presenting a piece of
Presents · Were given: On restoration to prosperity — Were given: On restoration to prosperity
Rings · Were worn: In the ears — Were worn: In the ears
Dictionary: Easton's (1897) and Smith's (1863), public domain. Topics: Nave's Topical Bible (1896) and Torrey's Topical Textbook (1897), public domain. Both as parsed by NEUU (CC BY 4.0).
to eat (literally or figuratively) · conjunction + verb, qal sequential imperfect, 3rd person masculine plural
bread
לֶחֶם֮le.Chem
H3899
food (for man or beast) · noun, common masculine singular absolute
house
בְּבֵיתוֹ֒be.vei.To
H1004
a house (in the greatest variation of applications · preposition + noun, common masculine singular construct + pronominal suffix, 3rd person masculine singular
bemoaned
וַיָּנֻ֤דוּvai.ya.Nu.du
H5110
to nod · conjunction + verb, qal sequential imperfect, 3rd person masculine plural
Then came there unto him all his brethren, and all his sisters,.... Which may be taken not in a strict sense, but in a larger sense for all that were related to him; the same with his kinsfolks, Job 19:14;
and all they that had been of his acquaintance before; that knew him, visited him, conversed with him, and kept up a friendly correspondence with him; the circle of his acquaintance must have been large, for wealth makes many friends: now these had been shy of him, and kept at a distance from him, during the time of his affliction and distress; see Job 19:13; but hearing he was in the favour of God, and the cause was given on his side, and against his friends, and his affairs began to tak…
Although Job was restored, he still needed to be consoled and comforted for the loss of his children. Following Job’s own earlier practice (4:4; 16:5), his family and former friends took up where the three other friends left off (2:11; cp. 2 Cor 7:6). • The gift of money was not so much charity to provide a financial basis for Job’s restored fortune as it was to honor and seek the favor of an influential man (e.g., Prov 18:16), and perhaps even to assuage disfavor (e.g., Gen 32:20; 33:10; 43:11; 1 Sam 25:27). • A gold ring was worn in a woman’s nose (Gen 24:47; Prov 11:22; Isa 3:21) or on the ears of either men or women (Gen 35:4; Exod 32:2-3; Judg 8:24).
Rashi on Job 42:11
previous All who were his friends and acquaintances before the sufferings befell him.
and they bemoaned him Complaindre in Old French, to complain.
one piece of money a ma’ah.
and each one and every one of them.
