Job 10:8

¶ Thine hands have made me and fashioned me together round about; yet thou dost destroy me.

Thine hands {H3027} have made {H6087} me and fashioned {H6213} me together {H3162} round about {H5439}; yet thou dost destroy {H1104} me.

Your own hands shaped me, they made me; so why do you turn and destroy me?

Your hands shaped me and altogether formed me. Would You now turn and destroy me?

Thy hands have framed me and fashioned me Together round about; yet thou dost destroy me.

Job 10:8 captures the profound agony of Job, who grapples with the paradox of God as both his meticulous Creator and the perceived source of his destruction. This verse is a poignant expression of his bewilderment and pain.

Context

This verse is part of Job's impassioned plea to God in Job chapter 10, where he expresses his deep frustration and confusion over his intense suffering. Having lost his children, wealth, and health, and receiving little comfort from his friends, Job turns directly to the Almighty. He is not accusing God of evil, but rather questioning the divine logic behind his afflictions, especially given God's intimate involvement in his very formation. Job feels unjustly treated, despite his acknowledged righteousness, leading him to challenge God directly about the apparent contradiction between His creative power and His destructive actions in Job's life.

Key Themes

  • The Divine Creator and Sustainer: Job acknowledges God's intricate and deliberate work in his formation, using terms like "made me and fashioned me together round about." This echoes the biblical understanding of God's personal involvement in creating humanity with purpose and detail. It highlights God's sovereignty over life itself.
  • The Paradox of Suffering and Sovereignty: The core tension in this verse lies in Job's recognition that the very same divine hands that carefully crafted him are now, in his perception, dismantling him through suffering. This raises universal questions about how a loving, powerful God can allow or inflict such pain upon His creation, especially one who feels undeserving.
  • Job's Lament and Questioning: This verse is a raw and honest expression of Job's desperate cry for understanding. He feels utterly undone by the very hand that brought him into being, illustrating the depth of his spiritual and emotional struggle as he seeks to reconcile God's character with his circumstances.

Linguistic Insights

The Hebrew words for "made" (עָשָׂה, ‘asah) and "fashioned" (כּוּן, kun, or related to shaping/establishing) emphasize God's deliberate and purposeful action in forming Job. The phrase "round about" (סָבִיב, saviv) implies a complete, encompassing work, highlighting the totality of God's creative involvement in every aspect of Job's being. The stark contrast with "destroy" (בָּלַע, bala', meaning to swallow up, consume, or annihilate) intensifies Job's feeling of being utterly undone by the very hand that brought him into being, creating a profound sense of irony and betrayal in his mind.

Related Scriptures

  • For the intricate creation of humanity by God, see Psalm 139:14, which celebrates being "fearfully and wonderfully made."
  • Job's initial acceptance of suffering is seen in Job 1:21 ("The LORD gave, and the LORD hath taken away; blessed be the name of the LORD"), but his prolonged pain leads to this poignant lament and questioning.

Practical Application

Job's raw honesty in this verse resonates deeply with anyone who has experienced prolonged, inexplicable suffering or loss. It affirms that it is permissible to voice our pain and questions to God, even when we don't understand His ways. Job's struggle reminds us that faith is not always about having all the answers, but about maintaining a relationship with God even amidst profound confusion and despair. While God's ultimate purposes may remain mysterious, as revealed later in the book when Job confesses "I know that thou canst do every thing, and that no thought can be withholden from thee", this verse encourages us to bring our whole selves, including our doubts and pain, before Him. It's a powerful reminder that even in our darkest moments, the Creator who fashioned us is intimately aware of our struggles.

Note: Commentary was generated by an advanced AI, utilizing a prompt that emphasized Biblical fidelity over bias. We've found these insights to be consistently reliable, yet we always encourage prayerful discernment through the Holy Spirit. The Scripture text and cross-references are from verified, non-AI sources.

  • Psalms 119:73

    ¶ JOD. Thy hands have made me and fashioned me: give me understanding, that I may learn thy commandments.

  • Isaiah 43:7

    [Even] every one that is called by my name: for I have created him for my glory, I have formed him; yea, I have made him.

  • Jeremiah 18:3

    Then I went down to the potter's house, and, behold, he wrought a work on the wheels.

  • Jeremiah 18:10

    If it do evil in my sight, that it obey not my voice, then I will repent of the good, wherewith I said I would benefit them.

  • Job 10:3

    [Is it] good unto thee that thou shouldest oppress, that thou shouldest despise the work of thine hands, and shine upon the counsel of the wicked?

  • Genesis 6:6

    ¶ And it repented the LORD that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart.

  • Genesis 6:7

    And the LORD said, I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth; both man, and beast, and the creeping thing, and the fowls of the air; for it repenteth me that I have made them.
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