Job 15:19
in Job 15to whom alone the land was given when no foreigner passed among them.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
Unto whom alone the land was given, And no stranger passed among them):
KJV
Unto whom alone the earth was given, and no stranger passed among them.
⋯
This verse in Job 15
Commentary
13 notes on this verseTo whom - By the gracious gift of God: this he alleges to make their testimony more considerable, because these were no obscure men, but the most worthy and famous men in their ages; and to confute what Job had said, chap. ix, 24, that the earth was given into the hand of the wicked. By the earth he means the dominion and possession of it.
This site's exposition
Listen to me and I will inform you
on Job 15:17-19
Eliphaz moves from the private vision of chapter 4 to tradition, "what was declared by wise men and was not concealed from their fathers". The line claims an unbroken line of wisdom, which Delitzsch places in the patriarchal age.
This site's exposition
to whom alone the land was given
Wesley and Jamieson, Fausset and Brown read the line as an answer to Job 9:24, where Job said the earth is given to the wicked. Here the land was given to the wise. Barnes adds that the fathers taught before a foreigner's opinion mixed with theirs.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers1 voice
Eliphaz adds, "No stranger marched against them," that is, the wise are those who enjoy peace and transmit it to their descendants. "No stranger marched against them." This means they made no war nor saw any fight nor knew any revolt, but they stood with nobility and bravery. They did not only survive but also possessed great force and power and enjoyed a profound peace.
The Medieval Church2 voices
Ver. 18. Wise men confess, and do not hide their fathers. And at once they leap out in praise of them, and boast that they had been as it were the only rulers of the Church. Hence it is yet further added, Unto whom alone the earth was given, and the stranger passed not among them. They think that 'the earth was given to their fathers alone,' in that the masters of their erroneous teaching alone really had rule in the Church. And who is termed 'the stranger,' but the Apostate Angel?
He then shows why they should not be hidden because of their dignity saying, "The earth has been given to men alone." This statement can be related indifferently and in the same sense either to the wise men or to their fathers, whom he also …
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
On this head he enlarges, showing that even those who impiously dare God's judgments yet cannot but dread them and will feel them at last. He speaks in the singular number-- the wicked man, meaning (as some think) Nimrod; or perhaps Chedorlaomer, or some such mighty hunter before the Lord.
11 Are the consolations of God small with thee? is there any secret thing with thee? 12 Why doth thine heart carry thee away? and what do thy eyes wink at, 13 That thou turnest thy spirit against God, and lettest such words go out of thy mouth? 14 What is man, that he should be clean? and he which is born of a woman, that he should be righteous?
quarantine:scripture (2026-07-29) — verbatim-scripture
5 more voices on this verse
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
), unto whom alone the earth was given, and therefore you may suppose them favourites of Heaven and best capable of making observations concerning the affairs of this earth. The dictates of wisdom come with advantage from those who are in places of dignity and power, as Solomon; yet there is a wisdom which none of the princes of this world knew, 1 Cor. ii.
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — leading-punctuation+unbalanced-parens
Unto whom alone the earth was given,....
The Nineteenth Century3 voices
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
proposed
His words are intended to oppose Job's (Job 9:24); "the earth" in their case was not "given into the hand of the wicked." He refers to the division of the earth by divine appointment (Ge 10:5; Also he may insinuate that Job's sentiments had been corrupted from original purity by his vicinity to the Sabeans and Chaldeans [ROSENMULLER].
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — unbalanced-parens
Unto whom alone the earth was given - He very likely refers to the Israelites, who got possession of the promised land from God himself; no stranger being permitted to dwell in it, as the old inhabitants were to be exterminated. Some think that Noah and his sons may be intended; as it is certain that the whole earth was given to them, when there were no strangers - no other family of mankind - in being. But, system apart, the words seem to apply more clearly to the Israelites.
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
proposed
Unto whom alone the earth was given - The land; the land or country where they dwelt. He refers to the period before they became intermingled with other nations, and before they imbibed any sentiments or opinions from strangers.
The words behind it
8 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| לָהֶ֣ם | lahem | to them | ||
| לְ֭בַדָּם | levadom | to alone them | H905 → | 200 times |
| נִתְּנָ֣ה | nitenah | it was given | H5414 → | 2011 times |
| הָאָ֑רֶץ | haaretz | the land | H776 → | 2504 times |
| וְלֹא־ | velo'- | and not | H3808 → | 5168 times |
| עָ֖בַר | ʾavar | he passed | H5674 → | 556 times |
| זָ֣ר | zar | a stranger | H2114 → | 77 times |
| בְּתוֹכָֽם׃ | betokham | in midst their | H8432 → | 418 times |
לָהֶ֣םto them
lahem
לְ֭בַדָּםto alone them
levadomH905 →200 times
נִתְּנָ֣הit was given
nitenahH5414 →2011 times
הָאָ֑רֶץthe land
haaretzH776 →2504 times
וְלֹא־and not
velo'-H3808 →5168 times
עָ֖בַרhe passed
ʾavarH5674 →556 times
זָ֣רa stranger
zarH2114 →77 times
בְּתוֹכָֽם׃in midst their
betokhamH8432 →418 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Deuteronomy 32:8When the Most High gave the nations their inheritance, when He divided the sons of man, He set the boundaries of the peoples according to the number of the sons of God.
it leads to
- Acts 17:26
From one man He made every nation of men, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and He determined their appointed times and the boundaries of their lands.
Reached by 3 separate paths from here.
- Genesis 10:25
Two sons were born to Eber: One was named Peleg, because in his days the earth was divided, and his brother was named Joktan.
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Genesis 11:8–9
So the LORD scattered them from there over the face of all the earth, and they stopped building the city.
- Acts 17:26
Through
Genesis 10:25Two sons were born to Eber: One was named Peleg, because in his days the earth was divided, and his brother was named Joktan.
it leads to
- 1 Chronicles 1:19
Two sons were born to Eber: One was named Peleg, because in his days the earth was divided, and his brother was named Joktan.
- Genesis 10:32
All these are the clans of Noah’s sons, according to their generations and nations. From these the nations of the earth spread out after the flood.
- Deuteronomy 32:8
When the Most High gave the nations their inheritance, when He divided the sons of man, He set the boundaries of the peoples according to the number of the sons of God.
- 1 Chronicles 1:19
Through
Joel 3:17Then you will know that I am the LORD your God, who dwells in Zion, My holy mountain. Jerusalem will be holy, never again to be overrun by foreigners.
it leads to
- Joel 2:27
Then you will know that I am present in Israel and that I am the LORD your God, and there is no other. My people will never again be put to shame.
- Joel 2:27
Through
Genesis 10:32All these are the clans of Noah’s sons, according to their generations and nations. From these the nations of the earth spread out after the flood.
it leads to
- Genesis 9:19
These three were the sons of Noah, and from them the whole earth was populated.
- Genesis 9:19
About Job
This page draws on 11 works. Open the list of works
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Franz Delitzsch, Biblical Commentary on the Book of Job; Gregory the Dialogist, Morals on the Book of Job, Book XII; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Chrysostom, COMMENTARY ON JOB 15:17-23B; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament; Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible and Thomas Aquinas, Commentary on Job.