Job 10:20
New International Version
Are not my few days almost over? Turn away from me so I can have a moment’s joy

New Living Translation
I have only a few days left, so leave me alone, that I may have a moment of comfort

English Standard Version
Are not my days few? Then cease, and leave me alone, that I may find a little cheer

Berean Standard Bible
Are my days not few? Withdraw from me, that I may have a little comfort,

King James Bible
Are not my days few? cease then, and let me alone, that I may take comfort a little,

New King James Version
Are not my days few? Cease! Leave me alone, that I may take a little comfort,

New American Standard Bible
“Would He not leave my few days alone? Withdraw from me so that I may have a little cheerfulness

NASB 1995
“Would He not let my few days alone? Withdraw from me that I may have a little cheer

NASB 1977
“Would He not let my few days alone? Withdraw from me that I may have a little cheer

Legacy Standard Bible
Would He not cease for a few of my days? Withdraw from me that I may have a little cheer

Amplified Bible
“Would He not let my few days alone, Withdraw from me that I may have a little cheer

Christian Standard Bible
Are my days not few? Stop it! Leave me alone, so that I can smile a little

Holman Christian Standard Bible
Are my days not few? Stop it! Leave me alone, so that I can smile a little

American Standard Version
Are not my days few? cease then, And let me alone, that I may take comfort a little,

Contemporary English Version
I have only a few days left. Why don't you leave me alone? Let me find some relief, *

English Revised Version
Are not my days few? cease then, and let me alone, that I may take comfort a little,

GOD'S WORD® Translation
" 'Isn't my life short enough? So stop [this], and leave me alone. Let me smile a little

Good News Translation
Isn't my life almost over? Leave me alone! Let me enjoy the time I have left.

International Standard Version
My days are so few, aren't they? So leave me alone, then, so I can smile a little

Majority Standard Bible
Are my days not few? Withdraw from me, that I may have a little comfort,

NET Bible
Are not my days few? Cease, then, and leave me alone, that I may find a little comfort,

New Heart English Bible
Aren't my days few? Cease then. Leave me alone, that I may find a little comfort,

Webster's Bible Translation
Are not my days few? cease then, and let me alone, that I may take comfort a little,

World English Bible
Aren’t my days few? Stop! Leave me alone, that I may find a little comfort,
Literal Translations
Literal Standard Version
Are my days not few? Cease then, and put from me, "" And I brighten up a little,

Young's Literal Translation
Are not my days few? Cease then, and put from me, And I brighten up a little,

Smith's Literal Translation
Is it not my days few? He will cease; he will turn from me, and I shall be cheerful a little,
Catholic Translations
Douay-Rheims Bible
Shall not the fewness of my days be ended shortly? suffer me, therefore, that I may lament my sorrow a little:

Catholic Public Domain Version
Will not my few days be completed soon? Release me, therefore, so that I may lament my sorrows a little,

New American Bible
Are not my days few? Stop! Let me alone, that I may recover a little

New Revised Standard Version
Are not the days of my life few? Let me alone, that I may find a little comfort
Translations from Aramaic
Lamsa Bible
The days of my life are few; let me alone, that I may be quiet and rest a little

Peshitta Holy Bible Translated
Few are the days of my life. Depart from me and I shall be quiet and I shall be comforted a little
OT Translations
JPS Tanakh 1917
Are not my days few? Cease then, And let me alone, that I may take comfort a little,

Brenton Septuagint Translation
Is not the time of my life short? suffer me to rest a little,

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
Job's Plea to God
19If only I had never come to be, but had been carried from the womb to the grave. 20Are my days not few? Withdraw from me, that I may have a little comfort, 21before I go—never to return—to a land of darkness and gloom,…

Cross References
Psalm 39:4-5
“Show me, O LORD, my end and the measure of my days. Let me know how fleeting my life is. / You, indeed, have made my days as handbreadths, and my lifetime as nothing before You. Truly each man at his best exists as but a breath. Selah

Psalm 90:10
The length of our days is seventy years—or eighty if we are strong—yet their pride is but labor and sorrow, for they quickly pass, and we fly away.

Ecclesiastes 6:12
For who knows what is good for a man during the few days in which he passes through his fleeting life like a shadow? Who can tell a man what will come after him under the sun?

Ecclesiastes 9:9
Enjoy life with your beloved wife all the days of the fleeting life that God has given you under the sun—all your fleeting days. For this is your portion in life and in your labor under the sun.

James 4:14
You do not even know what will happen tomorrow! What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes.

Psalm 102:11
My days are like lengthening shadows, and I wither away like grass.

Psalm 144:4
Man is like a breath; his days are like a passing shadow.

Isaiah 38:12
My dwelling has been picked up and removed from me like a shepherd’s tent. I have rolled up my life like a weaver; He cuts me off from the loom; from day until night You make an end of me.

1 Peter 1:24
For, “All flesh is like grass, and all its glory like the flowers of the field; the grass withers and the flowers fall,

Job 14:1-2
“Man, who is born of woman, is short of days and full of trouble. / Like a flower, he comes forth, then withers away; like a fleeting shadow, he does not endure.

Psalm 103:15-16
As for man, his days are like grass—he blooms like a flower of the field; / when the wind passes over, it vanishes, and its place remembers it no more.

Isaiah 40:6-8
A voice says, “Cry out!” And I asked, “What should I cry out?” “All flesh is like grass, and all its glory like the flowers of the field. / The grass withers and the flowers fall when the breath of the LORD blows on them; indeed, the people are grass. / The grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of our God stands forever.”

1 Chronicles 29:15
For we are foreigners and strangers in Your presence, as were all our forefathers. Our days on earth are like a shadow, without hope.

Philippians 1:23-24
I am torn between the two. I desire to depart and be with Christ, which is far better indeed. / But it is more necessary for you that I remain in the body.

2 Corinthians 5:1-4
For we know that if the earthly tent we live in is dismantled, we have a building from God, an eternal house in heaven, not built by human hands. / For in this tent we groan, longing to be clothed with our heavenly dwelling, / because when we are clothed, we will not be found naked. ...


Treasury of Scripture

Are not my days few? cease then, and let me alone, that I may take comfort a little,

my days few

Job 7:6,7,16
My days are swifter than a weaver's shuttle, and are spent without hope…

Job 8:9
(For we are but of yesterday, and know nothing, because our days upon earth are a shadow:)

Job 9:25,26
Now my days are swifter than a post: they flee away, they see no good…

cease

Job 7:17-21
What is man, that thou shouldest magnify him? and that thou shouldest set thine heart upon him? …

Job 13:21
Withdraw thine hand far from me: and let not thy dread make me afraid.

Psalm 39:13
O spare me, that I may recover strength, before I go hence, and be no more.

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Almost Alone Brighten Cease Cheer Comfort Eyes Few Find Joy Leave Pleasure Revive Small Turn Turned Withdraw
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Almost Alone Brighten Cease Cheer Comfort Eyes Few Find Joy Leave Pleasure Revive Small Turn Turned Withdraw
Job 10
1. Job, taking liberty of complaint, expostulates with God about his afflictions
18. He complains of life, and craves a little ease before death














Are my days not few?
This phrase reflects Job's acute awareness of the brevity of human life. The Hebrew word for "days" (יָמִים, yamim) often signifies not just the passage of time but the quality and significance of one's life experiences. Job, in his suffering, feels the weight of mortality, echoing the biblical theme found in Psalm 90:10, where human life is described as fleeting. This awareness of life's brevity is a call to humility and dependence on God, recognizing that our time on earth is limited and should be lived with purpose and reverence.

Withdraw from me
Here, Job is expressing a desire for God to cease His perceived scrutiny and allow him some respite. The Hebrew root for "withdraw" (שׁוּב, shuv) can mean to turn away or to relent. In the context of Job's suffering, this plea is not a rejection of God but a cry for relief from the intense trials he is enduring. It reflects a deep, personal struggle with understanding God's presence in times of suffering, a theme that resonates throughout the book of Job. This plea can inspire believers to seek God's presence and comfort, even when His ways are beyond our understanding.

that I may have a little comfort
The word "comfort" (נֶחָם, necham) in Hebrew conveys a sense of consolation and relief. Job longs for a reprieve from his suffering, a moment of peace amidst his turmoil. This desire for comfort is a universal human experience, reminding us of the compassionate nature of God, who is described in 2 Corinthians 1:3-4 as the "God of all comfort." Job's request highlights the importance of seeking God's solace and the hope that, even in our darkest moments, divine comfort is available to us.

(20) Cease then, and let me alone.--According to another reading, "Let him cease, and let me alone." In reading this reply of Job's, one cannot but feel that it moves upon the very verge of blasphemy, and is only redeemed therefrom by its pervading reverence and deep undertone of faith. Job never gives up his faith in God, though, like Jacob, he wrestles with Him in the dark, and the issue shows that God is not displeased with such an unburdening of the soul that keeps close to the straight line of truth, which is, after all, one of the many manifestations of God.

Verse 20. - Are not my days few? Cease then, and let me alone, that I may take comfort a little. Job here returns from vague longings and idle aspirations to actual realities - the facts of the case - and asks, "Is not the time that I now have to live short? Must not my disease make an end of me in a very brief space? If so, then may I not make a request? My petition is that God will 'cease' from me, grant me a respite, 'let me alone' for a short time, remove his heavy hand, and allow me to 'take comfort a little,' recover my strength, and obtain a breathing-space, before my actual end, before the time comes for my descent to Sheol," which is then (vers. 21, 22) described. The parallel with Psalm 39:13 is striking.

Parallel Commentaries ...


Hebrew
Are my days
יָמַ֣י (yā·may)
Noun - masculine plural construct | first person common singular
Strong's 3117: A day

not
הֲלֹא־ (hă·lō-)
Adverb - Negative particle
Strong's 3808: Not, no

few?
מְעַ֣ט (mə·‘aṭ)
Adjective - masculine singular
Strong's 4592: A little, fewness, a few

Withdraw
וַחֲדָ֑ל (wa·ḥă·ḏāl)
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Qal - Imperative - masculine singular
Strong's 2308: To be flabby, desist, be lacking, idle

from me,
מִ֝מֶּ֗נִּי (mim·men·nî)
Preposition | first person common singular
Strong's 4480: A part of, from, out of

that I may have a little comfort,
וְאַבְלִ֥יגָה (wə·’aḇ·lî·ḡāh)
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Hifil - Conjunctive imperfect Cohortative - first person common singular
Strong's 1082: To break off, loose, desist, invade


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OT Poetry: Job 10:20 Aren't my days few? Cease then (Jb)
Job 10:19
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