Job 14:6Meaning & Commentary from the Church Fathers

Who can be free from impurity? No one can, even if they live just a single day on this earth. The duration of their life is determined by the Almighty. You have established the time, and it cannot be exceeded. “Depart from me, that I may find rest and be content during my time as a laborer.” This reveals how he again seeks solace in his inherent nature, asserting that purity is unattainable. His statement reflects not merely our frailty, brevity, and despair that permeate our existence, but rather that true purity is impossible. He continues, “Depart from me, that I may find rest and be content during my time as a laborer.” Once more, he alludes to life’s brevity, toil, and suffering. In his exhaustion and affliction, he pleads for release from his burdens. Ultimately, he illustrates that humanity is more wretched than all creation—the trees, the rivers, and the sea.

Verse 6. Withdraw from him for a moment, so he can find solace, as the long-awaited day of his toil unfolds, akin to the hired worker. Job 14:6. Here, to withdraw from him signifies to mitigate the severity of the trials faced. Yet, how can he attain rest when it is from Him that he turns away, He who embodies true rest? The further a person distances himself from Him, the more peace he forfeits. Therefore, in this context, to 'withdraw from him' should be understood as 'remove the punishment,' since it is immediately mentioned: while his long-awaited day is unfolding, just like that of the hired laborer. Just as the laborer's end is still distant, so too is the reward for his efforts.

In the narrative of Job's experience, God reveals Himself through the medium of suffering, prompting Job to avoid expressing anger. This divine interaction can occur in both a spirit of communion and a sense of righteous wrath. Job's companions mistakenly believed his afflictions were due to his transgressions, leading him to assert, "Man is short-lived and like a flower that falls, and like a shadow" (Job 14:1-2). Through this, God seeks to illustrate that Job's pain is not a punishment for wrongdoing. In response, Job implores his friends to "Shun him," suggesting that if God overwhelms someone with afflictions, that individual lacks the opportunity to seek repentance.

Job possesses an understanding of the situation that is shared by his friends, and he stands prepared to present his case before God if required. However, he is perplexed by the unwavering confidence with which they uphold their misguided beliefs (13:1-12). He urges them to listen intently, for his willingness to face the most severe scrutiny is not without purpose, and he calls upon the Lord Himself to assess him based on their testimony (13-19). Subsequently, he turns his attention to the Lord, beseeching Him for an explanation regarding the extent of his suffering (20-28) and questioning whether humanity, in its frailty and fleeting existence, is worthy of enduring such afflictions (14:1-6).