Job 24:18
in Job 24They are but foam on the surface of the water; their portion of the land is cursed, so that no one turns toward their vineyards.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
Swiftly they pass away upon the face of the waters; Their portion is cursed in the earth: They turn not into the way of the vineyards.
KJV
He is swift as the waters; their portion is cursed in the earth: he beholdeth not the way of the vineyards.
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This verse in Job 24
Commentary
9 notes on this verseHe is swift as the waters - Literally, Light is he on the face of the waters: and cursed shall be their portion on the earth, which Mr. Good translates: - Miserable is this man on the waters: Deeply miserable the lot of those on dry land. He beholdeth not the way of the vineyards - These no longer flourish or bring forth fruit. The labor of the vintage fails.
This site's exposition
They are but foam on the surface of the water
on Job 24:18-21
"As drought and heat consume the melting snow, so Sheol steals those who have sinned", the swift retribution the friends have preached. Readers divide over whether Job speaks this as his own concession that judgment is only delayed, or sets the friends' creed inside his speech.
The record, by era
The Medieval Church1 voice
Second, they put great faith in a small and frail thing, and so he says, "he," the adulterer, "is light on the surface of the waters," as if to say: He moves so lightly that it seems to him that he can pursue his own …
The Puritans and the Awakening4 voices
, and 23-25 ), so that, upon the whole matter, we cannot say that all who are in trouble are wicked; for it is certain that all who are in prosperity are not righteous.
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — leading-punctuation+unbalanced-parens
Swift - That is, he quickly passeth away with all his glory, as the waters which never stay in one place, but are always hasting away. Portion - His habitation and estate which he left behind him.
He is swift as the waters,....
Some are abusive to those that are in trouble, and add affliction to the afflicted. Barrenness was looked upon as a great reproach, and those that fall under that affliction they upbraid with it, as Peninnah did Hannah, on purpose to vex them and make them to fret, which is a barbarous thing.
2 more voices on this verse
The Nineteenth Century2 voices
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
proposed
In Job 24:22-24, he states his own observation as the opposite. You say, "The sinner is swift, that is, swiftly passes away (as a thing floating) on the surface of the waters" (Ec 11:1; Ho 10:7). is cursed--by those who witness their "swift" destruction. beholdeth not--"turneth not to"; figuratively, for He cannot enjoy his pleasant possessions (Job 20:17;
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — unbalanced-parens
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
proposed
He is swift as the waters - Noyes renders this, “They are as swift as the skiff upon the waters.” Dr. Good, “Miserable is this man upon the waters.” Wemyss, “Such should be as foam upon the waters.” Le Clerc says that there is scarcely any passage of the Scriptures more obscure than this, and the variety of rendering adopted will show at once the perplexity of expositors. Rosenmuller supposes that the particle of comparison (כ k) is to be understood, and that the meaning is, “he is as a light thing upon the waters;” and this probably expresses the true sense. It is a comparison of the thief with a light boat, or any other light thing that moves gently on the face of the water, and that glides along without noise. So gently and noiselessly does the thief glide along in the dark. He is rapid in his motion, but he is still. It is not uncommon to describe one who is about to commit crime in the night as moving noiselessly along, and as taking every precaution that the utmost silence should be preserved. So Macbeth, when about to commit murder, soliloquizes: Now o’er the one half world Nature seems dead - And withered murder, Alarm’d by his sentinel, the wolf, Who’s howl’d his watch, thus with his stealthy pace, With Tarquin’s ravishing strides, towards his design Moves like a ghost. Thou sure and firm-set earth, Hear not my steps, which way they walk, for fear The very stones prate of my whereabout. I do not know, however, that this comparison of a thief, with a light object on the waters, is to be found any where else, but it is one of great beauty. The word rendered “swift” (קל qal) may denote either that which is swift, or that which is light. In Isa 30:16, it is applied to a fleet horse. […]
The words behind it
12 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| קַֽל־ | kal- | [is] swift | H7031 → | |
| ה֤וּא׀ | hu' | he | H1931 → | 1879 times |
| עַל־ | ʾal- | on | H5921 → | 5755 times |
| פְּנֵי־ | penei- | [the] surface of | H6440 → | 2123 times |
| מַ֗יִם | mayim | [the] waters | H4325 → | 581 times |
| תְּקֻלַּ֣ל | tekulal | it is cursed | H7043 → | 82 times |
| חֶלְקָתָ֣ם | chelkatam | portion their | H2513 → | |
| בָּאָ֑רֶץ | baaretz | in the land | H776 → | 2504 times |
| לֹֽא־ | lo'- | not | H3808 → | 5168 times |
| יִ֝פְנֶה | yifneh | anyone turns | H6437 → | 135 times |
| דֶּ֣רֶךְ | derekh | [the] direction of | H1870 → | 707 times |
| כְּרָמִֽים׃ | keramim | vineyards | H3754 → |
קַֽל־[is] swift
kal-H7031 →
ה֤וּא׀he
hu'H1931 →1879 times
עַל־on
ʾal-H5921 →5755 times
פְּנֵי־[the] surface of
penei-H6440 →2123 times
מַ֗יִם[the] waters
mayimH4325 →581 times
תְּקֻלַּ֣לit is cursed
tekulalH7043 →82 times
חֶלְקָתָ֣םportion their
chelkatamH2513 →
בָּאָ֑רֶץin the land
baaretzH776 →2504 times
לֹֽא־not
lo'-H3808 →5168 times
יִ֝פְנֶהanyone turns
yifnehH6437 →135 times
דֶּ֣רֶךְ[the] direction of
derekhH1870 →707 times
כְּרָמִֽים׃vineyards
keramimH3754 →
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
Proverbs 3:33The curse of the LORD is on the house of the wicked, but He blesses the home of the righteous.
it leads to
- Leviticus 26:14–46
If, however, you fail to obey Me and to carry out all these commandments,
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Psalms 37:22
Surely those He blesses will inherit the land, but the cursed will be destroyed.
- Job 8:6–7
if you are pure and upright, even now He will rouse Himself on your behalf and restore your righteous estate.
- Psalms 91:10
no evil will befall you, no plague will approach your tent.
- Malachi 2:2
If you do not listen, and if you do not take it to heart to honor My name,” says the LORD of Hosts, “I will send a curse among you, and I will curse…
- Leviticus 26:14–46
Through
Malachi 2:2If you do not listen, and if you do not take it to heart to honor My name,” says the LORD of Hosts, “I will send a curse among you, and I will curse…
it leads to
- Luke 17:18
Was no one found except this foreigner to return and give glory to God?”
- Revelation 14:7
And he said in a loud voice, “Fear God and give Him glory, because the hour of His judgment has come. Worship the One who made the heavens and the earth and the sea…
- Luke 17:18
Through
Psalms 69:22May their table become a snare; may it be a retribution and a trap.
it leads to
- 1 Thessalonians 5:3
While people are saying, “Peace and security,” destruction will come upon them suddenly, like labor pains on a pregnant woman, and they will not escape.
- 1 Thessalonians 5:3
About Job
This page draws on 9 works. Open the list of works
This page draws on A. B. Davidson, The Book of Job, Cambridge Bible; Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Franz Delitzsch, Biblical Commentary on the Book of Job; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; 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.