Bible Strands
Job 21:32
He is carried to the grave, and watch is kept over his tomb.
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — Job addresses his three friends during a dispute over divine justice, responding to their claim that the wicked face immediate exposure and retribution. He describes the actual fate of a prosperous man who dies without public shame.
The words — The verb יוּבָל (yuVal) literally renders "he will be borne" or "carried," while יִשְׁקֹד (yishkod) means "he will keep watch," both describing the physical handling of the corpse and the ongoing vigilance at the burial site.
The thread — The description of descent to the grave and Sheol echoes the fate of the wicked in Psalm 49:14 and Ezekiel 32:21, while the act of being carried to a final resting place contrasts with the angelic transport in Luke 16:22.
Why it lands — The text first records that the wicked man receives a full burial and honored tomb, then forces the reader to abandon the assumption that earthly prosperity guarantees future punishment or that death equals immediate divine reversal.
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
Yet shall he be brought to the grave, and shall remain in the tomb.
Cross-references
- Luke 16:22 One day the beggar died and was carried by the angels to Abraham’s side. And the rich man also died and was buried.
- Psalms 49:14 Like sheep they are destined for Sheol. Death will be their shepherd. The upright will rule them in the morning, and their form will decay in Sheol, far from their lofty abode.
- Ezekiel 32:21 Mighty chiefs will speak from the midst of Sheol about Egypt and her allies: ‘They have come down and lie with the uncircumcised, with those slain by the sword.’