Job

Job 3:20–21

²⁰Why is light given to the miserable,

and life to the bitter of soul,

²¹who long for death that does not come,

and search for it like hidden treasure,

Word by word

Each English word or phrase beside the Hebrew it translates, in the order of the English. Choose a number to open that word’s study.

English	Hebrew	Sounds like	Grammar	Word study
Why	לָ֤מָּה	lām·māh	Interrogative	H4100 what? how? aught
is light	א֑וֹר	’ō·wr	Noun - common singular	H216 light
given	יִתֵּ֣ן	yit·tên	Verb - Qal - Imperfect - third person masculine singular	H5414 give, put, set
to the miserable	לְעָמֵ֣ל	lə·‘ā·mêl	Preposition-l; Noun - masculine singular	H6001 labourer, sufferer
and life	וְ֝חַיִּ֗ים	wə·ḥay·yîm	Conjunctive waw; Noun - masculine plural	H2416 alive, living
to the bitter	לְמָ֣רֵי	lə·mā·rê	Preposition-l; Adjective - masculine plural construct	H4751 bitter, bitterness
of soul	נָֽפֶשׁ׃	nā·p̄eš	Noun - feminine singular	H5315 soul, living being, life, self, person, desire, appetite, emotion, and passion

English	Hebrew	Sounds like	Grammar	Word study
who long	הַֽמְחַכִּ֣ים	ham·ḥak·kîm	Article; Verb - Piel - Participle - masculine plural	H2442 wait, await
for death	לַמָּ֣וֶת	lam·mā·weṯ	Preposition-l, Article; Noun - masculine singular	H4194 death
that does not come	וְאֵינֶ֑נּוּ	wə·’ê·nen·nū	Conjunctive waw; Adverb; third person masculine singular	H369 nothing, nought
and search for it	וַֽ֝יַּחְפְּרֻ֗הוּ	way·yaḥ·pə·ru·hū	Conjunctive waw; Verb - Qal - Consecutive imperfect - third person masculine plural; third person masculine singular	H2658 dig, search for
like hidden treasure	מִמַּטְמוֹנִֽים׃	mim·maṭ·mō·w·nîm	Preposition-m; Noun - masculine plural	H4301 hidden treasure, treasure

Other passages that speak to the same thing. Point at one to read it.

Job 3:20 Jeremiah 20:18 · Job 7:15–16 · 1 Samuel 1:10 · Proverbs 31:6

Job 3:21 Revelation 9:6 · Proverbs 2:4 · Jonah 4:8 · 1 Kings 19:4 · Numbers 11:15 · Jonah 4:3

Cross-references from OpenBible.info, used under CC BY 4.0. The best-supported references for each verse are shown.

Scripture text: Berean Standard Bible.