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When the Almighty was yet with me, when my children were about me;
Job 29:5 · King James Version
Parallel translations
  • WEB when the Almighty was yet with me, and my children were around me,
  • BSB when the Almighty was still with me and my children were around me,
  • NKJV When the Almighty was yet with me, When my children were around me;
  • NASB When the Almighty was still with me, And my children were around me;
  • NLT The Almighty was still with me, and my children were around me.

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 recalls when the Almighty was present with him and his children surrounded him.

Overview

Job's memory centers on two great blessings: God's presence and a flourishing family. The loss of both makes his lament especially poignant, since his children had died. The verse reminds us that earthly blessings, however precious, are gifts held in God's hands, and that lasting comfort rests in His abiding presence.

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 17

  • Ps 128:3Thy wife shall be as a fruitful vine by the sides of thine house: thy children like olive plants round about thy table.
  • Ps 127:3–5Lo, children are an heritage of the LORD: and the fruit of the womb is his reward.
  • Deut 33:27–29The eternal God is thy refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms: and he shall thrust out the enemy from before thee; and shall say, Destroy them.
  • Ps 30:7LORD, by thy favour thou hast made my mountain to stand strong: thou didst hide thy face, and I was troubled.
  • Josh 1:9Have not I commanded thee? Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the LORD thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest.
  • Song 3:1–2By night on my bed I sought him whom my soul loveth: I sought him, but I found him not.
  • Song 2:4He brought me to the banqueting house, and his banner over me was love.
  • Jer 14:8O the hope of Israel, the saviour thereof in time of trouble, why shouldest thou be as a stranger in the land, and as a wayfaring man that turneth aside to tarry for a night?
  • Ps 44:8–9In God we boast all the day long, and praise thy name for ever. Selah.
  • Matt 9:15And Jesus said unto them, Can the children of the bridechamber mourn, as long as the bridegroom is with them? but the days will come, when the bridegroom shall be taken from them, and then shall they fast.
  • Ps 43:2For thou art the God of my strength: why dost thou cast me off? why go I mourning because of the oppression of the enemy?
  • Job 1:2–5And there were born unto him seven sons and three daughters.
  • Judg 6:12–13And the angel of the LORD appeared unto him, and said unto him, The LORD is with thee, thou mighty man of valour.
  • Job 23:3Oh that I knew where I might find him! that I might come even to his seat!
  • Job 23:8–10Behold, I go forward, but he is not there; and backward, but I cannot perceive him:
  • Job 42:13–16He had also seven sons and three daughters.
  • Prov 17:6Children’s children are the crown of old men; and the glory of children are their fathers.

Resources, by level

Commentaries & study tools

  • VideoBibleProject — Job videosBibleProject · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.

  • VideoWatch teaching on Job 29:5YouTube · Lay · Free

    Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.

  • CommentaryEnduring Word — verse-by-verseDavid Guzik · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.

  • CommentaryClassic commentaries for this verseBibleHub (20+ works) · Pastoral · Free

    Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.

  • CommentaryMatthew Henry on JobMatthew Henry · Pastoral · Free · evangelical

    The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).

  • ReferenceInterlinear, lexicon & Strong'sBlue Letter Bible · Seminary · Free

    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 29:5 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.