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◄ Job 17:14►

New International Version
if I say to corruption, ‘You are my father,’ and to the worm, ‘My mother’ or ‘My sister,’

New Living Translation
What if I call the grave my father, and the maggot my mother or my sister?

English Standard Version
if I say to the pit, ‘You are my father,’ and to the worm, ‘My mother,’ or ‘My sister,’

Berean Standard Bible
and say to corruption, ‘You are my father,’ and to the worm, ‘My mother,’ or ‘My sister,’

King James Bible
I have said to corruption, Thouart my father: to the worm,Thou art my mother, and my sister.

New King James Version
If I say to corruption, ‘Youare my father,’ And to the worm, ‘Youare my mother and my sister,’

New American Standard Bible
If I call to the grave, ‘You are my father’; To the maggot, ‘my mother and my sister’;

NASB 1995
If I call to the pit, ‘You are my father’ To the worm, ‘my mother and my sister’

NASB 1977
If I call to the pit, ‘You are my father’; To the worm, ‘my mother and my sister’;

Legacy Standard Bible
If I call to the pit, ‘You are my father’; To the worm, ‘my mother and my sister’;

Amplified Bible
If I call out to the pit (grave), ‘You are my father’; And to the worm [that feeds on decay], ‘You are my mother and my sister [because I will soon be closest to you],’

Christian Standard Bible
and say to corruption, “You are my father,” and to the maggot, “My mother” or “My sister,”

Holman Christian Standard Bible
and say to corruption: You are my father, and to the maggot: My mother or my sister,

American Standard Version
If I have said to corruption, Thou art my father; To the worm, Thou art my mother, and my sister;

Contemporary English Version
Then I could greet the grave as my father and say to the worms, "Hello, mother and sisters!"

English Revised Version
If I have said to corruption, Thou art my father; to the worm, Thou art my mother, and my sister;

GOD'S WORD® Translation
if I say to the pit, 'You are my father,' and to the worm, 'You are my mother and sister,'

Good News Translation
I will call the grave my father, and the worms that eat me I will call my mother and my sisters.

International Standard Version
if I call out to the Pit, 'You're my father!' or say to the worm, 'My mother!' or 'My sister!'

NET Bible
If I cry to corruption, 'You are my father,' and to the worm, 'My Mother,' or 'My sister,'

New Heart English Bible
If I have said to corruption, 'You are my father;' to the worm, 'My mother,' and 'my sister;'

Webster's Bible Translation
I have said to corruption, Thou art my father: to the worm, Thou art my mother, and my sister.

Majority Text Translations

Majority Standard Bible
and say to corruption, ‘You are my father,’ and to the worm, ‘My mother,’ or ‘My sister,’

World English Bible
if I have said to corruption, ‘You are my father,’ and to the worm, ‘My mother,’ and ‘My sister,’

Literal Translations

Literal Standard Version
To corruption I have called: You [are] my father. To the worm: My mother and my sister.

Young's Literal Translation
To corruption I have called: -- 'Thou art my father.' 'My mother' and 'my sister' -- to the worm.

Smith's Literal Translation
I called to the pit: Grave, thou my father: and to the worm, My mother, and my sister.

Catholic Translations

Douay-Rheims Bible
If I have said to rottenness: Thou art my father; to worms, my mother and my sister.

Catholic Public Domain Version
I have said to decay and to worms: “You are my father, my mother, and my sister.”

New American Bible
If I am to say to the pit, “You are my father,” and to the worm “my mother,” “my sister,”

New Revised Standard Version
if I say to the Pit, ‘You are my father,’ and to the worm, ‘My mother,’ or ‘My sister,’

Translations from Aramaic

Lamsa Bible
I have said to corruption, You are my father; to the worm, You are my mother and my sister.

Peshitta Holy Bible Translated
To destruction I cried to the worm: ‘you are my father!’, and ‘my mother and my sister!’

OT Translations

JPS Tanakh 1917
If I have said to corruption: 'Thou art my father', To the worm: 'Thou art my mother, and my sister';

Brenton Septuagint Translation
I have called upon death to be my father, and corruptionto be my mother and sister.

Additional Translations ...

Audio Bible

Context

Job Prepares for Death
…13If I look for Sheol as my home, if I spread out my bed in darkness,14and say to corruption,‘You are my father,’and to the worm,‘My mother,’or ‘My sister,’15where then is my hope? Who can see any hope for me?…

Berean Standard Bible ·Download

Cross References

Genesis 3:19
By the sweat of your brow you will eat your bread, until you return to the ground—because out of it were you taken. For dust you are, and to dust you shall return.”

Psalm 22:15
My strength is dried up like a potsherd, and my tongue sticks to the roof of my mouth. You lay me in the dust of death.

Ecclesiastes 12:7
before the dust returns to the ground from which it came and the spirit returns to God who gave it.

Isaiah 26:19
Your dead will live; their bodies will rise. Awake and sing, you who dwell in the dust! For your dew is like the dew of the morning, and the earth will bring forth her dead.

Daniel 12:2
And many who sleep in the dust of the earth will awake, some to everlasting life, but others to shame and everlasting contempt.

Psalm 30:9
“What gain is there in my bloodshed, in my descent to the Pit? Will the dust praise You? Will it proclaim Your faithfulness?

Psalm 49:14
Like sheep they are destined for Sheol. Death will be their shepherd. The upright will rule them in the morning, and their form will decay in Sheol, far from their lofty abode.

Psalm 88:4-5
I am counted among those descending to the Pit. I am like a man without strength. / I am forsaken among the dead, like the slain who lie in the grave, whom You remember no more, who are cut off from Your care.

Psalm 103:14
For He knows our frame; He is mindful that we are dust.

Isaiah 38:18
For Sheol cannot thank You; Death cannot praise You. Those who descend to the Pit cannot hope for Your faithfulness.

Matthew 8:22
But Jesus told him, “Follow Me, and let the dead bury their own dead.”

Matthew 23:27
Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You are like whitewashed tombs, which look beautiful on the outside but on the inside are full of dead men’s bones and every kind of impurity.

John 5:28-29
Do not be amazed at this, for the hour is coming when all who are in their graves will hear His voice / and come out—those who have done good to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil to the resurrection of judgment.

John 11:25-26
Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in Me will live, even though he dies. / And everyone who lives and believes in Me will never die. Do you believe this?”

Romans 6:23
For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Treasury of Scripture

I have said to corruption, You are my father: to the worm, You are my mother, and my sister.

said.

Job 21:32,33
Yet shall he be brought to the grave, and shall remain in the tomb…

Psalm 16:10
For thou wilt not leave my soul in hell; neither wilt thou suffer thine Holy One to see corruption.

Psalm 49:9
That he should still live for ever,and not see corruption.

to the worm

Job 19:26
Andthough after my skinworms destroy thisbody, yet in my flesh shall I see God:

Job 24:20
The womb shall forget him; the worm shall feed sweetly on him; he shall be no more remembered; and wickedness shall be broken as a tree.

Isaiah 14:11
Thy pomp is brought down to the grave,and the noise of thy viols: the worm is spread under thee, and the worms cover thee.

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Job 17

1.Job appeals from men to God
6.The unmerciful dealing of men with the afflicted may astonish,
9.but not discourage the righteous
11.His hope is not in life, but in death

Study Bible

Book ◦ Chapter

and say to corruption, ‘You are my father,’
In this phrase, Job is expressing a deep sense of despair and resignation to his fate. The term "corruption" here refers to decay and death, symbolizing the grave. In the ancient Near Eastern context, familial terms like "father" were used to denote origin or source. Job is acknowledging that death and decay are now his closest kin, highlighting his feeling of abandonment and the inevitability of death. This reflects the broader theme of mortality found inEcclesiastes 3:20, where all return to dust, andGenesis 3:19, which speaks of humanity's return to the ground.

and to the worm, ‘My mother,’
The "worm" is often associated with decay and the process of decomposition, as seen inIsaiah 14:11 andMark 9:48. By calling the worm "my mother," Job is poetically illustrating his intimate connection with death, as a mother is a source of life and nurture. This stark contrast emphasizes the reversal of life’s natural order due to his suffering. It also reflects the cultural understanding of the grave as a place where the body returns to the earth, a theme echoed inPsalm 22:6, where the psalmist feels like a worm, despised and lowly.

or ‘My sister,’
The use of "sister" further personalizes Job's relationship with death, suggesting a close, familial bond. In biblical times, siblings were often seen as companions and confidants. By referring to the worm as his sister, Job underscores his isolation from human relationships and his acceptance of death as his only companion. This can be connected to the broader biblical narrative of human frailty and the transient nature of life, as seen inJames 4:14, which describes life as a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes.

Persons / Places / Events

1.Job
The central figure in the Book of Job, a man of great faith and integrity who undergoes severe trials and suffering. His lament in this verse reflects his deep despair and sense of abandonment.

2.Corruption
In this context, "corruption" refers to decay or the grave, symbolizing death and the inevitable return to dust. It is personified as a familial figure, indicating Job's acceptance of his mortality.

3.The Worm
Represents decay and the process of decomposition after death. By calling the worm his "mother" or "sister," Job emphasizes his intimate relationship with death and decay.

4.The Grave
Implicit in the imagery of corruption and the worm, the grave is the place where Job feels he is headed, highlighting his hopelessness.

5.Job's Friends
Though not directly mentioned in this verse, the context of Job's dialogue with his friends is crucial. Their failure to provide comfort or understanding exacerbates Job's sense of isolation.

Teaching Points

Acknowledging Mortality
Job's words remind us of the reality of death and the importance of living with an eternal perspective. Reflect on how this awareness can shape our daily lives and priorities.

Expressing Despair
Job's candid expression of despair teaches us that it's okay to bring our deepest feelings to God. We can be honest in our prayers, trusting that God understands our struggles.

The Need for Comfort
Job's experience highlights the importance of providing genuine comfort and empathy to those who are suffering. Consider how we can be better friends and supporters to those in distress.

Hope Beyond the Grave
While Job's words are filled with despair, the broader biblical account offers hope through the resurrection and eternal life in Christ. Reflect on how this hope can transform our view of suffering and death.

Family in Christ
Job's use of familial terms for corruption and the worm contrasts with the New Testament concept of being part of God's family. Consider how our identity in Christ redefines our relationships and sense of belonging.

Lists and Questions

Top 10 Lessons from Job 17

What is the essence of the Angelic Conflict?

Acts 13:36–37: Paul claims David “saw corruption” while Jesus did not; how is this consistent with other scriptural passages about bodily decay and resurrection?

Do the despairing references to the grave and Sheol in Job 17:13-16 conflict with later biblical teachings on hope and resurrection?

If God is just, why does He allow innocent people to suffer?

Pulpit Commentary

Verse 14. -I have said to corruption,Thouart my father;i.e. I do not murmur; I accept my lot; I am ready to lie down with corruption, and embrace it, and call it "my father," and henceforth remain with it. The idea that the soul is still with the body in the grave, more or less closely attached to it, and sensible of its condition and changes, was widely prevalent in the ancient world. Where bodies were simply buried, the horrible imagination of a close association with corruption naturally and almost necessarily intruded itself, and led to such reflections as those of Job in this verse. It was partly to get rid of this terrible nightmare that the Egyptians were so careful to embalm the bodies of their dead, and that the Babylonians deposited them in baked clay coffins, which they filled with honey (Herod., 1:198); while others still more effectually prevented the process of corruption by cremation. The modern revival of cremation is remarkable as indicating a peculiar form of atavism or recurrence to ancient types. For many ages after the coming of Christ, men so separated between the soul and the body after death that the corruption of the grave had no horror for them. Now materialistic ideas have so far recurred, that many of those who believe the soul to live on after death are doubtful whether it may not still be attached to the body more or less, end, dreading contact with the corruption, of the latter, fall back upon the old remedy.To the worm, Thou art my mother, and my sister. An expansion of the idea contained in the previous clause.

Parallel Commentaries ...

Hebrew

and say
קָ֭רָאתִי(qā·rā·ṯî)
Verb - Qal - Perfect - first person common singular
Strong's 7121:To call, proclaim, read

to corruption,
לַשַּׁ֣חַת(laš·ša·ḥaṯ)
Preposition-l, Article | Noun - feminine singular
Strong's 7845:A pit, destruction

‘You [are]
אָ֑תָּה(’āt·tāh)
Pronoun - second person masculine singular
Strong's 859:Thou and thee, ye and you

my father,’
אָ֣בִי(’ā·ḇî)
Noun - masculine singular construct | first person common singular
Strong's 1:Father

and to the worm,
לָֽרִמָּֽה׃(lā·rim·māh)
Preposition-l, Article | Noun - feminine singular
Strong's 7415:A maggot

‘My mother,’
אִמִּ֥י(’im·mî)
Noun - feminine singular construct | first person common singular
Strong's 517:A mother, )

or ‘My sister,’
וַ֝אֲחֹתִ֗י(wa·’ă·ḥō·ṯî)
Conjunctive waw | Noun - feminine singular construct | first person common singular
Strong's 269:Sister -- a sister

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OT Poetry: Job 17:14 If I have said to corruption 'You (Jb)