He lies down wealthy, but will do so no more; when he opens his eyes, all is gone.
Parallel translations
- WEB He lies down rich, but he shall not do so again. He opens his eyes, and he is not.
- KJV The rich man shall lie down, but he shall not be gathered: he openeth his eyes, and he is not.
- NKJV The rich man will lie down, But not be gathered up; He opens his eyes, And he is no more.
- NASB “He lies down rich, but never again; He opens his eyes, and it no longer exists.
- NLT The wicked go to bed rich but wake to find that all their wealth is gone.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Job describes the sudden ruin of the wicked: a rich man lies down secure but wakes to find everything, even his life, gone.
Overview
Continuing his reply to his friends, Job concedes that judgment does fall on the wicked, often suddenly and finally. The rich man's wealth gives no lasting security; in a moment 'he is not.' The verse warns against trusting in riches and points ahead to Christ's teaching that a man's life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions (Luke 12:16-21).
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 15
- Job 24:24They are exalted for a moment, then they are gone; they are brought low and gathered up like all others; they are cut off like heads of grain.
- Ps 58:9Before your pots can feel the burning thorns—whether green or dry—He will sweep them away.
- Ps 73:19–20How suddenly they are laid waste, completely swept away by terrors!
- Jer 8:2They will be exposed to the sun and moon, and to all the host of heaven which they have loved, served, followed, consulted, and worshiped. Their bones will not be gathered up or buried, but will become like dung lying on the ground.
- Gen 49:10The scepter will not depart from Judah, nor the staff from between his feet, until Shiloh comes and the allegiance of the nations is his.
- Job 14:10But a man dies and is laid low; he breathes his last, and where is he?
- Job 30:23Yes, I know that You will bring me down to death, to the place appointed for all the living.
- Job 7:8The eye that beholds me will no longer see me. You will look for me, but I will be no more.
- Job 21:23–26One man dies full of vigor, completely secure and at ease.
- Matt 23:37O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, who kills the prophets and stones those sent to her, how often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were unwilling!
- Job 14:12–15so a man lies down and does not rise. Until the heavens are no more, he will not be awakened or roused from sleep.
- Job 8:22Your enemies will be clothed in shame, and the tent of the wicked will be no more.”
- Job 21:30Indeed, the evil man is spared from the day of calamity, delivered from the day of wrath.
- Job 20:7–9he will perish forever, like his own dung; those who had seen him will ask, ‘Where is he?’
- Matt 3:12His winnowing fork is in His hand to clear His threshing floor and to gather His wheat into the barn; but He will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire.”
Themes, concepts, people & topics
Resources, by level
Commentaries & study tools
Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.
Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.
Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.
Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.
The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).
Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.
Christ at the center
Job's cry for a mediator who can lay his hand on both God and man, and his confidence that 'my Redeemer lives' and will stand on the earth, reaches forward to Jesus the living Redeemer.
How Job 27:19 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.