Job Chapter 19

What is the meaning of Job 19?

Introduction to Job 19

Job 19 stands as one of the most profound chapters in Scripture, containing both the depths of human suffering and the heights of prophetic revelation. This pivotal chapter marks a dramatic turning point in Job’s responses to his friends, where despite his intense anguish, he makes one of the most remarkable declarations of faith in the entire Old Testament. The chapter showcases Job’s raw emotional state while simultaneously delivering what many scholars consider to be one of the clearest Messianic prophecies in the Old Testament, pointing to the resurrection and the coming Redeemer.

In this chapter, we witness Job at his lowest point, feeling utterly abandoned by God and man, yet paradoxically making his strongest statement of faith. This tension between despair and hope creates a powerful theological framework for understanding suffering in light of eternal redemption.

Context of Job 19

Job 19 follows immediately after Bildad’s second speech in chapter 18, where he brutally suggested that Job’s sufferings were divine punishment for wickedness. This chapter represents Job’s response to Bildad’s harsh accusations and marks the midpoint of the second cycle of speeches between Job and his friends.

Within the larger narrative of Scripture, Job 19 occupies a unique position in wisdom literature. Unlike Proverbs, which generally presents a straightforward correlation between righteousness and blessing, Job 19 grapples with the mystery of undeserved suffering. This chapter anticipates themes that will later be fully developed in the New Testament, particularly in the epistles of Peter regarding suffering and in Paul’s teachings about resurrection.

The chapter also serves as a bridge between the patriarchal period and later revelations about resurrection and redemption. Job’s remarkable declaration about his Redeemer in verses 25-27 represents one of the earliest and clearest statements about bodily resurrection in the Old Testament, predating similar declarations in Daniel 12:2 and Isaiah 26:19.

Ancient Key Word Study

• גֹּאֲלִי (Go’ali) – “My Redeemer” (v.25): This powerful term comes from the Hebrew root גאל (ga’al), which refers to a kinsman-redeemer who had the right and responsibility to redeem a relative from difficulty or danger. This word choice is particularly significant as it anticipates Yeshua’s role as our Kinsman-Redeemer who became flesh to redeem humanity.
• חָי (Chai) – “Lives” (v.25): This word emphasizes not just existence but vibrant, active life. When Job declares that his Redeemer lives, he uses a term that implies eternal, unending life, pointing to the divine nature of the Redeemer.
• עֹרִי (Ori) – “My skin” (v.26): The Hebrew term specifically refers to the physical body, emphasizing the reality of bodily resurrection. Job is not speaking of a spiritual existence but a physical, bodily resurrection.
• יַעֲמֹד (Ya’amod) – “Stand” (v.25): This verb carries legal connotations of standing as an advocate in court, foreshadowing Messiah’s role as our advocate before the Father.
• עֵינַי (Einai) – “My eyes” (v.27): The emphasis on physical sight reinforces the bodily nature of the resurrection hope. Job expects to see his Redeemer with his own eyes, not merely in a spiritual sense.
• חָקַק (Chaqaq) – “Inscribed” (v.23): This word pictures words being carved in stone, emphasizing the permanence and significance of Job’s declaration about his Redeemer.
• זָר (Zar) – “Stranger” (v.15): This term emphasizes complete alienation, showing the depth of Job’s isolation from human comfort and support.
• חָנַן (Chanan) – “Have pity” (v.21): This verb expresses the deep emotional appeal for mercy and grace, revealing Job’s desperate need for compassion.

Compare & Contrast

• Verse 25’s declaration “I know that my Redeemer lives” (וַאֲנִי יָדַעְתִּי גֹּאֲלִי חָי) uses the emphatic form “va’ani yadati” rather than the simple “yadati.” This emphasis underscores Job’s absolute certainty in his Redeemer despite his circumstances. The choice of present tense “lives” rather than future tense emphasizes the eternal nature of the Redeemer.
• The phrase “will stand upon the earth” in verse 25 uses אַחֲרוֹן (acharon – “at the last”) rather than a simple temporal reference, pointing to an eschatological fulfillment rather than merely a future event.
• Verse 26’s reference to seeing God uses אֶחֱזֶה (echezeh – “behold”) rather than the more common רָאָה (ra’ah – “see”), suggesting a profound, transformative vision rather than mere physical sight.
• The statement “whom I shall see for myself” in verse 27 employs the emphatic לִּי (li – “for myself”) twice, stressing the personal nature of this encounter with the Redeemer.
• Verse 23’s request for his words to be recorded uses חָקַק (chaqaq – “inscribed”) rather than כָּתַב (katav – “write”), emphasizing permanence and divine authority.
• The description of alienation in verse 13 uses רִחַק (richaq – “removed far”) rather than נָטָה (natah – “turned aside”), emphasizing complete separation rather than mere distance.
• Job’s plea in verse 21 employs חָנַן (chanan – “have pity”) rather than רָחַם (racham – “show mercy”), suggesting a deeper appeal to emotional compassion rather than just judicial mercy.

Job 19 Unique Insights

The rabbinical tradition has long recognized Job 19 as containing profound mystical insights about the nature of suffering and redemption. The Talmud (Baba Batra 16a) notes that Job’s declaration about his Redeemer represents one of the earliest expressions of resurrection faith in Scripture, predating even Moses’ writings. This understanding aligns perfectly with the Messianic Jewish perspective that Yeshua’s resurrection was always part of God’s redemptive plan from the beginning.

The chapter presents a fascinating paradox in ancient Near Eastern literature. While other ancient texts typically portrayed suffering as purely punitive, Job 19 introduces the concept of redemptive suffering. This anticipates the Messianic suffering servant motif developed later in Isaiah 53. The early church father Origen noted that Job’s physical afflictions and subsequent restoration prefigured the death and resurrection of the Messiah.

The specific Hebrew phrase used in verse 26, “in my flesh I shall see God,” was understood by ancient Jewish commentators as a reference to bodily resurrection. The Targum renders this passage with explicit reference to the “latter days,” connecting it to the Messianic age. This interpretation gains additional significance when we consider that Job likely lived during the patriarchal period, making his clear testimony to bodily resurrection all the more remarkable.

Rabbi Saadia Gaon, while not accepting Yeshua as Messiah, nonetheless recognized in Job 19 one of the clearest pre-Mosaic testimonies to resurrection, noting that the specific Hebrew terminology used could only refer to a physical, bodily rising from the dead. This aligns perfectly with the New Testament’s teaching about the nature of resurrection in 1 Corinthians 15.

Job 19 Connections to Yeshua

The connections between Job 19 and Yeshua the Messiah are profound and multifaceted. Job’s declaration about his Redeemer (גֹּאֲלִי – Go’ali) directly foreshadows Yeshua’s role as our Kinsman-Redeemer. Just as the go’el in Hebrew culture had to be a kinsman who could pay the price of redemption, so Yeshua became flesh (John 1:14) to serve as our Kinsman-Redeemer.

Job’s confidence that he would see God “in his flesh” after the destruction of his body precisely anticipates the Christian hope of resurrection through Messiah. This parallels Paul’s teaching about the resurrection body in 1 Corinthians 15:42-44, where he describes how our mortal bodies will be raised immortal. Job’s experience of suffering, vindication, and restoration also prefigures Messiah’s death and resurrection, showing how God’s redemptive purposes often work through suffering to achieve glory.

Job 19 Scriptural Echoes

Job’s cry of dereliction echoes forward to Yeshua’s words on the cross (Matthew 27:46), showing how even the most profound suffering can be part of God’s redemptive plan. The theme of resurrection hope expressed in verses 25-27 finds multiple echoes throughout Scripture, including Daniel 12:2, Isaiah 26:19, and ultimately in the New Testament’s teaching about resurrection.

The concept of the Redeemer (גֹּאֲלִי) connects to numerous passages about redemption, including Ruth 4 and Isaiah 59:20. Job’s experience of being forsaken by friends and family parallels both David’s experiences in the Psalms and ultimately Yeshua’s abandonment by His disciples.

Job 19 Devotional

This chapter calls us to embrace a faith that transcends circumstances. Job’s declaration “I know that my Redeemer lives” came at his lowest point, teaching us that true faith isn’t dependent on favorable conditions but on the unchanging character of God. When we face trials, we can draw strength from Job’s example of maintaining trust in God even when we don’t understand His purposes.

The chapter also challenges us to examine our response to suffering, both our own and others’. Job’s friends failed him by trying to fit his suffering into their theological system rather than offering compassion. This reminds us that sometimes the most appropriate response to others’ pain is simply to be present and show empathy rather than trying to explain everything.

Did You Know

• Job’s statement about his Redeemer in verse 25 represents the earliest clear reference to bodily resurrection in the Bible, predating the writing of the Torah.
• The Hebrew word גֹּאֲלִי (Go’ali – “my Redeemer”) appears only once in the entire book of Job, specifically in this crucial declaration of faith.
• Ancient Jewish tradition places Job in the time of the patriarchs, possibly contemporary with Abraham, making his understanding of resurrection even more remarkable.
• The phrase “inscribed with an iron stylus” in verse 24 refers to an ancient practice of carving important texts into rock and filling the carving with lead for permanence.
• The description of skin being destroyed in verse 26 uses medical terminology that was surprisingly advanced for its time, suggesting detailed knowledge of human anatomy.
• The legal language used throughout the chapter reflects ancient Near Eastern court proceedings, with Job appealing his case before the divine court.
• Archaeological discoveries have found similar “declarations of innocence” in ancient Near Eastern literature, but none combine it with such a strong statement of resurrection hope.
• The word order in the Hebrew of verse 25 places “I know” at the beginning for emphasis, showing Job’s absolute certainty despite his circumstances.
• The three-fold repetition of “my” in verses 26-27 emphasizes the personal nature of Job’s hope in seeing his Redeemer.
• The physical symptoms Job describes in this chapter align with modern medical understanding of severe autoimmune conditions.