Job 3:21

American Standard Version with Strong's Numbers

Who long for death, but it cometh not, And dig for it more than for hid treasures;

Grammatical Analysis

Original Text

הַֽמְחַכִּ֣ים לַמָּ֣וֶת וְאֵינֶ֑נּוּ וַֽ֝יַּחְפְּרֻ֗הוּ מִמַּטְמוֹנִֽים׃

Transliteration

hamməḥakkîm lammāwet wəʾênenū wayyaḥpərūhû mimmaṭmônîm

Grammar Details

*hamməḥakkîm*: definite article + verb, Piel participle, masculine plural - the ones waiting
*lammāwet*: preposition with definite article + noun, masculine singular - for the death
*wəʾênenū*: conjunction + particle of negation with 3rd masculine singular suffix - but it is not
*wayyaḥpərūhû*: conjunction + verb, Qal imperfect consecutive, 3rd masculine plural with 3rd masculine singular suffix - and they dig for it
*mimmaṭmônîm*: preposition + noun, masculine plural - more than hidden treasures

Word Meanings

*hamməḥakkîm*: the ones waiting/the ones longing
*māwet*: death/dying
*wayyaḥpərūhû*: and they dig for it/and they search for it
*maṭmônîm*: hidden treasures/buried treasures

ℹ️

About this Translation

American Standard Version with Strong's Numbers

Formal EquivalenceSource: American Standard VersionBest for: Word studies and original-language research

🎯 Translation Approach

A highly literal, word-for-word translation (ASV, 1901) augmented with Strong's numbering to connect English words to underlying Hebrew and Greek terms for study.

Word-for-word

5/5

Readability

2/5

💎 Distinctive Features

Integrated Strong's numbering: Links English terms to underlying Hebrew and Greek words for deeper lexical study.
Formal equivalence: Prioritizes close alignment with source-language forms and structures.
Divine name rendering: Frequently renders the Tetragrammaton as Jehovah in the Old Testament, following ASV tradition.
Study-focused formatting: Optimized for reference and research rather than casual reading.

✅ Strengths

High fidelity to original languages
Includes Strong's numbers for precise word study
Consistent lexical choices aid exegesis
Stable, longstanding scholarly text

⚠️ Considerations

Archaic language reduces readability
Older textual basis compared to some modern translations
Strong's numbers are a concordance index, not full lexical definitions

👥 Who is this for?

Ideal for

Pastors and teachers
Seminary students
Serious Bible students
Readers conducting word studies
Those referencing Hebrew/Greek tools

Consider alternatives for

Casual readers
Children and early teens
ESL learners seeking simple English
Readers preferring contemporary language

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Additional Resources

Referenced Verses

Rev 9:6 : 6 And in those days men shall seek death, and shall in no wise find it; and they shall desire to die, and death fleeth from them.
Prov 2:4 : 4 If thou seek her as silver, And search for her as for hid treasures:
Jonah 4:3 : 3 Therefore now, O Jehovah, take, I beseech thee, my life from me; for it is better for me to die than to live.
Jonah 4:8 : 8 And it came to pass, when the sun arose, that God prepared a sultry east wind; and the sun beat upon the head of Jonah, that he fainted, and requested for himself that he might die, and said, It is better for me to die than to live.
Num 11:15 : 15 And if thou deal thus with me, kill me, I pray thee, out of hand, if I have found favor in thy sight; and let me not see my wretchedness.
1 Kgs 19:4 : 4 But he himself went a day's journey into the wilderness, and came and sat down under a juniper-tree: and he requested for himself that he might die, and said, It is enough; now, O Jehovah, take away my life; for I am not better than my fathers.

Similar Verses (AI)

These verses are found using AI-powered semantic similarity based on meaning and context. Results may occasionally include unexpected connections.

Job 3:22-23
2 verses
87%
22Who rejoice exceedingly, And are glad, when they can find the grave?
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Job 3:20
80%
20Wherefore is light given to him that is in misery, And life unto the bitter in soul;
Job 21:25-26
2 verses
76%
25And another dieth in bitterness of soul, And never tasteth of good.
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Job 14:13-14
2 verses
74%
13Oh that thou wouldest hide me in Sheol, That thou wouldest keep me secret, until thy wrath be past, That thou wouldest appoint me a set time, and remember me!
14If a man die, shall he live [again]? All the days of my warfare would I wait, Till my release should come.
Rev 9:6
74%
6And in those days men shall seek death, and shall in no wise find it; and they shall desire to die, and death fleeth from them.
Job 28:13
73%
13Man knoweth not the price thereof; Neither is it found in the land of the living.
Job 21:21
73%
21For what careth he for his house after him, When the number of his months is cut off?
Prov 21:6
72%
6The getting of treasures by a lying tongue Is a vapor driven to and fro by them that seek death.
Job 17:13
72%
13If I look for Sheol as my house; If I have spread my couch in the darkness;
Job 33:21-22
2 verses
72%
21His flesh is consumed away, that it cannot be seen; And his bones that were not seen stick out.
22Yea, his soul draweth near unto the pit, And his life to the destroyers.
Job 21:32-33
2 verses
72%
32Yet shall he be borne to the grave, And men shall keep watch over the tomb.
33The clods of the valley shall be sweet unto him, And all men shall draw after him, As there were innumerable before him.
Job 30:24
72%
24Howbeit doth not one stretch out the hand in his fall? Or in his calamity therefore cry for help?
Job 10:20-21
2 verses
71%
20Are not my days few? cease then, And let me alone, that I may take comfort a little,
21Before I go whence I shall not return, [Even] to the land of darkness and of the shadow of death;
Eccl 6:3
71%
3If a man beget a hundred children, and live many years, so that the days of his years are many, but his soul be not filled with good, and moreover he have no burial; I say, that an untimely birth is better than he:
Job 21:13
71%
13They spend their days in prosperity, And in a moment they go down to Sheol.
Eccl 6:5-7
3 verses
71%
5moreover it hath not seen the sun nor known it; this hath rest rather than the other:
6yea, though he live a thousand years twice told, and yet enjoy no good, do not all go to one place?
7All the labor of man is for his mouth, and yet the appetite is not filled.
Job 7:15-16
2 verses
71%
15So that my soul chooseth strangling, And death rather than [these] my bones.
16I loathe [my life]; I would not live alway: Let me alone; for my days are vanity.
Job 17:1
71%
1My spirit is consumed, my days are extinct, The grave is [ready] for me.
Eccl 4:2-3
2 verses
71%
2Wherefore I praised the dead that have been long dead more than the living that are yet alive;
3yea, better than them both [did I esteem] him that hath not yet been, who hath not seen the evil work that is done under the sun.
Eccl 9:10
71%
10Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do [it] with thy might; for there is no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom, in Sheol, whither thou goest.
Ps 89:48
71%
48What man is he that shall live and not see death, That shall deliver his soul from the power of Sheol? {H5542}
Lam 3:6
71%
6He hath made me to dwell in dark places, as those that have been long dead.
Job 36:20
70%
20Desire not the night, When peoples are cut off in their place.
Job 27:19
70%
19He lieth down rich, but he shall not be gathered [to his fathers]; He openeth his eyes, and he is not.
Eccl 2:23
70%
23For all his days are [but] sorrows, and his travail is grief; yea, even in the night his heart taketh no rest. This also is vanity.
Ps 6:5
70%
5For in death there is no remembrance of thee: In Sheol who shall give thee thanks?
Eccl 7:24
70%
24That which is, is far off and exceeding deep; who can find it out?
Job 17:15
70%
15Where then is my hope? And as for my hope, who shall see it?
Eccl 11:8
70%
8Yea, if a man live many years, let him rejoice in them all; but let him remember the days of darkness, for they shall be many. All that cometh is vanity.
Eccl 2:25
70%
25For who can eat, or who can have enjoyment, more than I?
Ps 143:3
70%
3For the enemy hath persecuted my soul; He hath smitten my life down to the ground: He hath made me to dwell in dark places, as those that have been long dead.
Eccl 9:5
70%
5For the living know that they shall die: but the dead know not anything, neither have they any more a reward; for the memory of them is forgotten.
Prov 27:20
70%
20Sheol and Abaddon are never satisfied; And the eyes of man are never satisfied.
Ps 34:12
70%
12What man is he that desireth life, And loveth [many] days, that he may see good?
Prov 2:4
70%
4If thou seek her as silver, And search for her as for hid treasures:
Eccl 2:17
70%
17So I hated life, because the work that is wrought under the sun was grievous unto me; for all is vanity and a striving after wind.
Eccl 5:20
70%
20For he shall not much remember the days of his life; because God answereth [him] in the joy of his heart.
Job 4:21
70%
21Is not their tent-cord plucked up within them? They die, and that without wisdom.
Isa 38:18
70%
18For Sheol cannot praise thee, death cannot celebrate thee: They that go down into the pit cannot hope for thy truth.
Eccl 3:12
70%
12I know that there is nothing better for them, than to rejoice, and to do good so long as they live.