Job 3:18
New International Version
Captives also enjoy their ease; they no longer hear the slave driver’s shout.

New Living Translation
Even captives are at ease in death, with no guards to curse them.

English Standard Version
There the prisoners are at ease together; they hear not the voice of the taskmaster.

Berean Standard Bible
The captives enjoy their ease; they do not hear the voice of the oppressor.

King James Bible
There the prisoners rest together; they hear not the voice of the oppressor.

New King James Version
There the prisoners rest together; They do not hear the voice of the oppressor.

New American Standard Bible
“The prisoners are at ease together; They do not hear the voice of the taskmaster.

NASB 1995
“The prisoners are at ease together; They do not hear the voice of the taskmaster.

NASB 1977
“The prisoners are at ease together; They do not hear the voice of the taskmaster.

Legacy Standard Bible
The prisoners are at ease together; They do not hear the voice of the taskmaster.

Amplified Bible
“There the prisoners rest together; They do not hear the taskmaster’s voice.

Christian Standard Bible
The captives are completely at rest; they do not hear a taskmaster’s voice.

Holman Christian Standard Bible
The captives are completely at ease; they do not hear the voice of their oppressor.

American Standard Version
There the prisoners are at ease together; They hear not the voice of the taskmaster.

Contemporary English Version
Everyone is there--

English Revised Version
There the prisoners are at ease together; they hear not the voice of the taskmaster.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
There the captives have no troubles at all. There they do not hear the shouting of the slave driver.

Good News Translation
Even prisoners enjoy peace, free from shouts and harsh commands.

International Standard Version
In that place, those who once were prisoners will be at ease together; they won't hear the voice of oppressors.

Majority Standard Bible
The captives enjoy their ease; they do not hear the voice of the oppressor.

NET Bible
There the prisoners relax together; they do not hear the voice of the oppressor.

New Heart English Bible
There the prisoners are at ease together. They do not hear the voice of the taskmaster.

Webster's Bible Translation
There the prisoners rest together; they hear not the voice of the oppressor.

World English Bible
There the prisoners are at ease together. They don’t hear the voice of the taskmaster.
Literal Translations
Literal Standard Version
Together prisoners have been at ease, "" They have not heard the voice of an exactor,

Young's Literal Translation
Together prisoners have been at ease, They have not heard the voice of an exactor,

Smith's Literal Translation
They being bound, rested together; they heard not the voice of the taskmaster.
Catholic Translations
Douay-Rheims Bible
And they sometime bound together without disquiet, have not heard the voice of the oppressor.

Catholic Public Domain Version
And at such times, having been bound together without difficulty, they have not heard the voice of the bailiff.

New American Bible
The captives are at ease together, and hear no overseer’s voice.

New Revised Standard Version
There the prisoners are at ease together; they do not hear the voice of the taskmaster.
Translations from Aramaic
Lamsa Bible
There the prisoners rest together; they hear not the voice of the oppressor.

Peshitta Holy Bible Translated
Together prisoners are calm and they do not hear the voice of the oppressor
OT Translations
JPS Tanakh 1917
There the prisoners are at ease together; They hear not the voice of the taskmaster.

Brenton Septuagint Translation
And the men of old time have together ceased to hear the exactor's voice.

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
Job Laments His Birth
17There the wicked cease from raging, and there the weary find rest. 18The captives enjoy their ease; they do not hear the voice of the oppressor. 19Both small and great are there, and the slave is freed from his master.…

Cross References
Revelation 14:13
And I heard a voice from heaven telling me to write, “Blessed are the dead—those who die in the Lord from this moment on.” “Yes,” says the Spirit, “they will rest from their labors, for their deeds will follow them.”

Isaiah 14:3
On the day that the LORD gives you rest from your pain and torment, and from the hard labor into which you were forced,

Matthew 11:28
Come to Me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.

Hebrews 4:9-10
There remains, then, a Sabbath rest for the people of God. / For whoever enters God’s rest also rests from his own work, just as God did from His.

Ecclesiastes 4:1-3
Again I looked, and I considered all the oppression taking place under the sun. I saw the tears of the oppressed, and they had no comforter; the power lay in the hands of their oppressors, and there was no comforter. / So I admired the dead, who had already died, above the living, who are still alive. / But better than both is he who has not yet existed, who has not seen the evil that is done under the sun.

Isaiah 57:2
Those who walk uprightly enter into peace; they find rest, lying down in death.

Revelation 6:11
Then each of them was given a white robe and told to rest a little while longer until the full number of their fellow servants, their brothers, were killed, just as they had been killed.

Psalm 55:6
I said, “Oh, that I had wings like a dove! I would fly away and find rest.

2 Thessalonians 1:7
and to grant relief to you who are oppressed and to us as well. This will take place when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with His mighty angels

Jeremiah 31:25
for I will refresh the weary soul and replenish all who are weak.”

1 Thessalonians 4:13-14
Brothers, we do not want you to be uninformed about those who sleep in death, so that you will not grieve like the rest, who are without hope. / For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, we also believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in Him.

Psalm 94:13
to grant him relief from days of trouble, until a pit is dug for the wicked.

Daniel 12:13
But as for you, go on your way until the end. You will rest, and then you will arise to your inheritance at the end of the days.”

1 Corinthians 15:51-52
Listen, I tell you a mystery: We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed— / in an instant, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed.

Isaiah 26:19
Your dead will live; their bodies will rise. Awake and sing, you who dwell in the dust! For your dew is like the dew of the morning, and the earth will bring forth her dead.


Treasury of Scripture

There the prisoners rest together; they hear not the voice of the oppressor.

they.

Job 39:7
He scorneth the multitude of the city, neither regardeth he the crying of the driver.

Exodus 5:6-8,15-19
And Pharaoh commanded the same day the taskmasters of the people, and their officers, saying, …

Judges 4:3
And the children of Israel cried unto the LORD: for he had nine hundred chariots of iron; and twenty years he mightily oppressed the children of Israel.

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Captives Driver's Ears Ease Enjoy Exactor Hear Heard Longer Oppressor Overseer Peace Prisoners Rest Shout Slave Together Voice
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Captives Driver's Ears Ease Enjoy Exactor Hear Heard Longer Oppressor Overseer Peace Prisoners Rest Shout Slave Together Voice
Job 3
1. Job curses the day and services of his birth.
13. The ease of death.
20. He complains of life, because of his anguish.














The captives enjoy their ease;
In this context, "captives" refers to those who have been imprisoned or enslaved, often due to war or conquest. In the ancient Near East, captivity was a common fate for those defeated in battle. The phrase suggests a state of rest or peace, which is paradoxical given their previous suffering. This can be seen as a metaphor for death, where earthly struggles cease. Biblically, this reflects the idea that in death, the burdens of life are lifted, as seen in Ecclesiastes 9:5-6, where the dead are free from the troubles of the living. Theologically, it can be interpreted as a foreshadowing of the ultimate rest found in Christ, who offers freedom from spiritual captivity (Luke 4:18).

they do not hear the voice of the oppressor.
The "voice of the oppressor" symbolizes the constant demands and harsh treatment experienced by captives. In ancient times, oppressors were often foreign rulers or slave masters who exerted control over their captives. The absence of this voice in death suggests a release from suffering and injustice. This echoes the biblical theme of God as a deliverer from oppression, as seen in the Exodus narrative (Exodus 3:7-8). It also points to the eschatological hope found in Revelation 21:4, where God promises to wipe away every tear, and there will be no more pain or suffering. This phrase can be seen as a type of Christ, who silences the ultimate oppressor, sin, and offers eternal peace to believers.

Persons / Places / Events
1. Job
A man described as blameless and upright, who feared God and shunned evil. He is the central figure in the Book of Job, experiencing intense suffering and questioning the reasons behind it.

2. Captives
Refers to those who are imprisoned or enslaved, often used metaphorically to describe those in spiritual or emotional bondage.

3. Oppressor
Represents those who exert control or inflict suffering on others, whether physically, emotionally, or spiritually.
Teaching Points
Understanding Suffering
Job's lament highlights the depth of human suffering and the longing for relief. It is important to acknowledge the reality of suffering in our lives and the lives of others.

Hope for the Oppressed
The verse points to a future hope where captives find ease. As Christians, we are called to be agents of hope and freedom, advocating for those who are oppressed.

Spiritual Rest
True rest from oppression comes through a relationship with God. In Christ, we find spiritual rest and freedom from the bondage of sin.

Empathy and Compassion
Job's expression of suffering encourages us to develop empathy and compassion for those who are in distress, offering support and understanding.(18) The oppressor.--As this is the word rendered taskmaster in Exodus, some have thought there may be an allusion to that history here.

Verse 18. - There the prisoners rest together. "There those who in life were prisoners, condemned to work at enforced labours, enjoy sweet rest together." They hear not the voice of the oppressor; rather, of the taskmaster (comp. Exodus 3:7; Exodus 5:6, where the same word is used). The task. master continually urged on the wearied labourers with such words as those of Exodus 5:13, "Fulfil your works, fulfil your daily tasks. In the grave these hated sounds would not be heard.

Parallel Commentaries ...


Hebrew
The captives
אֲסִירִ֣ים (’ă·sî·rîm)
Noun - masculine plural
Strong's 615: A bondman, prisoner

enjoy
יַ֭חַד (ya·ḥaḏ)
Adverb
Strong's 3162: A unit, unitedly

their ease;
שַׁאֲנָ֑נוּ (ša·’ă·nā·nū)
Verb - Piel - Perfect - third person common plural
Strong's 7599: To be at ease or at peace, rest securely

they do not
לֹ֥א (lō)
Adverb - Negative particle
Strong's 3808: Not, no

hear
שָׁ֝מְע֗וּ (mə·‘ū)
Verb - Qal - Perfect - third person common plural
Strong's 8085: To hear intelligently

the voice
ק֣וֹל (qō·wl)
Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 6963: A voice, sound

of the oppressor.
נֹגֵֽשׂ׃ (nō·ḡêś)
Verb - Qal - Participle - masculine singular
Strong's 5065: To drive, to tax, harass, tyrannize


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OT Poetry: Job 3:18 There the prisoners are at ease together (Jb)
Job 3:17
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