King James Version

What Does Job 7:4 Mean?

Job 7:4 in the King James Version says “When I lie down, I say, When shall I arise, and the night be gone? and I am full of tossings to and fro unto the dawning...” — study this verse from Job chapter 7 with commentary, cross-references, and original Hebrew word analysis.

“When I lie down, I say, When shall I arise, and the night be gone? and I am full of tossings to and fro unto the dawning of the day. the night: Heb. the evening be measured?”

Job 7:4 · KJV

Context

2

As a servant earnestly desireth the shadow, and as an hireling looketh for the reward of his work: earnestly: Heb. gapeth after

3

So am I made to possess months of vanity, and wearisome nights are appointed to me.

4

When I lie down, I say, When shall I arise, and the night be gone? and I am full of tossings to and fro unto the dawning of the day. the night: Heb. the evening be measured?

5

My flesh is clothed with worms and clods of dust; my skin is broken, and become loathsome.

6

My days are swifter than a weaver's shuttle, and are spent without hope.

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Commentary

KJV Study Commentary
Job's description of insomnia captures the torment of sleepless suffering. The question 'When shall I arise?' (matay akum, מָתַי אָקוּם) expresses desperate longing for morning—yet when morning comes, he longs for it to pass. This psychological agony reveals suffering's disorienting power. The phrase 'full of tossings' uses the Hebrew nadad (נָדַד), meaning restless wandering or fleeing, suggesting violent, involuntary movements from pain.

The temporal marker 'unto the dawning of the day' (neshef, נֶשֶׁף) refers to twilight or dawn—Job endures all night awaiting relief that brings only continued misery. This creates a vicious cycle where neither night nor day provides respite. Theologically, this reflects humanity's inability to escape suffering through mere time's passage. Only divine intervention, not temporal progression, brings redemption.

Job's experience foreshadows the psalmists' cries (Psalm 6:6, 'I am weary with my groaning; all the night make I my bed to swim') and anticipates Christ's agony in Gethsemane where the night hours brought intensifying dread. The Reformed tradition recognizes that God sometimes answers prayer not with immediate relief but with sustaining grace through prolonged trial (2 Corinthians 12:9).

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Historical & Cultural Context

Ancient Near Eastern culture practiced sunrise-to-sunset daily rhythms without artificial lighting. Nighttime represented vulnerability to danger and inability to work. For Job, night's normal rest becomes torment, inverting creation's good pattern (Genesis 1:5). This inversion signals creation's subjection to futility through the fall.

Reflection Questions

  1. How do we maintain faith when time itself seems to offer no relief from suffering?
  2. What does Job's honest description of sleepless nights teach us about bringing raw, unedited prayers to God?
  3. In what ways does Christ's own nighttime agony in Gethsemane validate and transform the suffering of sleepless saints?

Original Language Analysis

Hebrew · 11 words
אִם1 of 11
H518

used very widely as demonstrative, lo!; interrogative, whether?; or conditional, if, although; also oh that!, when; hence, as a negative, not

שָׁכַ֗בְתִּי2 of 11

“When I lie down”

H7901

to lie down (for rest, sexual connection, decease or any other purpose)

וְאָמַ֗רְתִּי3 of 11

“I say”

H559

to say (used with great latitude)

מָתַ֣י4 of 11
H4970

properly, extent (of time); but used only adverbially (especially with other particle prefixes), when (either relative or interrogative)

אָ֭קוּם5 of 11

“When shall I arise”

H6965

to rise (in various applications, literal, figurative, intensive and causative)

וּמִדַּד6 of 11

“be gone”

H4059

flight

עָ֑רֶב7 of 11

“and the night”

H6153

dusk

וְשָׂבַ֖עְתִּי8 of 11

“and I am full”

H7646

to sate, i.e., fill to satisfaction (literally or figuratively)

נְדֻדִ֣ים9 of 11

“of tossings to and fro”

H5076

properly, tossed; abstractly, a rolling (on the bed)

עֲדֵי10 of 11
H5704

as far (or long, or much) as, whether of space (even unto) or time (during, while, until) or degree (equally with)

נָֽשֶׁף׃11 of 11

“unto the dawning of the day”

H5399

properly, a breeze, i.e., (by implication) dusk (when the evening breeze prevails)

Study Guide

Historical Context

This verse is found in the book of Job. Understanding the historical and cultural background helps illuminate its meaning for the original audience and for us today.

Theological Significance

Job 7:4 contributes to our understanding of God's character and His relationship with humanity. Consider how this verse connects to the broader themes of Scripture.

Cross-References

Verses related to Job 7:4 from Treasury of Scripture Knowledge

Deuteronomy 28:67Job 7:13-14Psalms 77:4Psalms 130:6Job 30:17Psalms 6:6

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