The rich man shall lie down, but he shall not be gathered: he openeth his eyes, and he is not.
Parallel translations
- WEB He lies down rich, but he shall not do so again. He opens his eyes, and he is not.
- BSB He lies down wealthy, but will do so no more; when he opens his eyes, all is gone.
- 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 little while, but are gone and brought low; they are taken out of the way as all other, and cut off as the tops of the ears of corn.
- Ps 58:9Before your pots can feel the thorns, he shall take them away as with a whirlwind, both living, and in his wrath.
- Ps 73:19–20How are they brought into desolation, as in a moment! they are utterly consumed with terrors.
- Jer 8:2And they shall spread them before the sun, and the moon, and all the host of heaven, whom they have loved, and whom they have served, and after whom they have walked, and whom they have sought, and whom they have worshipped: they shall not be gathered, nor be buried; they shall be for dung upon the face of the earth.
- Gen 49:10The sceptre shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet, until Shiloh come; and unto him shall the gathering of the people be.
- Job 14:10But man dieth, and wasteth away: yea, man giveth up the ghost, and where is he?
- Job 30:23For I know that thou wilt bring me to death, and to the house appointed for all living.
- Job 7:8The eye of him that hath seen me shall see me no more: thine eyes are upon me, and I am not.
- Job 21:23–26One dieth in his full strength, being wholly at ease and quiet.
- Matt 23:37O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not!
- Job 14:12–15So man lieth down, and riseth not: till the heavens be no more, they shall not awake, nor be raised out of their sleep.
- Job 8:22They that hate thee shall be clothed with shame; and the dwelling place of the wicked shall come to nought.
- Job 21:30That the wicked is reserved to the day of destruction? they shall be brought forth to the day of wrath.
- Job 20:7–9Yet he shall perish for ever like his own dung: they which have seen him shall say, Where is he?
- Matt 3:12Whose fan is in his hand, and he will throughly purge his floor, and gather his wheat into the garner; but he will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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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.