Bible Strands
Job 20:8
He will fly away like a dream, never to be found; he will be chased away like a vision in the night.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — Zophar addresses Job in the midst of their covenant dialogue, describing the sudden and total disappearance of the wicked man who perishes like dung (Job 20:7) and leaves no trace for observers (Job 20:9).
The words — The Hebrew יָ֭עוּף (Yaʿûp) means “he will fly away,” directly linked to כַּ/חֲל֣וֹם (kaḥălôm) “like a dream” and כְּ/חֶזְי֥וֹן (kəḥezYôn) “like a vision.” These terms literally describe a subject that cannot be grasped or located once it vanishes.
The thread — This motif of sudden, untraceable disappearance appears in Psalms 90:5 and Psalms 73:20, where God sweeps away the wicked as a dream fades upon waking. Job 18:18 mirrors the pattern by depicting the wicked man driven from light into darkness and chased from the inhabited world.
Why it lands — The verse states that the wicked will vanish without a trace, requiring the reader to acknowledge that earthly power and presence are inherently temporary. It demands a sober assessment of divine justice that operates with finality, leaving no basis for the persistence or recovery of the condemned.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
He shall fly away as a dream, and shall not be found: yea, he shall be chased away as a vision of the night.
Cross-references
- Psalms 90:5 You sweep them away in their sleep; they are like the new grass of the morning—
- Psalms 73:20 Like one waking from a dream, so You, O Lord, awaken and despise their form.
- Job 18:18 He is driven from light into darkness and is chased from the inhabited world.
- Isaiah 29:7 All the many nations going out to battle against Ariel—even all who war against her, laying siege and attacking her—will be like a dream, like a vision in the night,
- Job 27:21 The east wind carries him away, and he is gone; it sweeps him out of his place.
- Psalms 18:10 He mounted a cherub and flew; He soared on the wings of the wind.