Job 19:13
He hath put my brethren far from me, and mine acquaintance are verily estranged from me.
Original Language Analysis
אַ֭חַי
my brethren
H251
אַ֭חַי
my brethren
Strong's:
H251
Word #:
1 of 7
a brother (used in the widest sense of literal relationship and metaphorical affinity or resemblance [like h0001])
מֵעָלַ֣י
H5921
מֵעָלַ֣י
Strong's:
H5921
Word #:
2 of 7
above, over, upon, or against (yet always in this last relation with a downward aspect) in a great variety of applications
הִרְחִ֑יק
He hath put
H7368
הִרְחִ֑יק
He hath put
Strong's:
H7368
Word #:
3 of 7
to widen (in any direction), i.e., (intransitively) recede or (transitively) remove (literally or figuratively, of place or relation)
וְ֝יֹדְעַ֗י
from me and mine acquaintance
H3045
וְ֝יֹדְעַ֗י
from me and mine acquaintance
Strong's:
H3045
Word #:
4 of 7
to know (properly, to ascertain by seeing); used in a great variety of senses, figuratively, literally, euphemistically and inferentially (including o
אַךְ
H389
Cross References
Psalms 88:8Thou hast put away mine acquaintance far from me; thou hast made me an abomination unto them: I am shut up, and I cannot come forth.Psalms 88:18Lover and friend hast thou put far from me, and mine acquaintance into darkness.Psalms 69:8I am become a stranger unto my brethren, and an alien unto my mother's children.Psalms 31:11I was a reproach among all mine enemies, but especially among my neighbours, and a fear to mine acquaintance: they that did see me without fled from me.
Historical Context
Ancient Near Eastern culture was collectivist—identity and survival depended on kinship networks. Job's isolation wasn't mere loneliness but existential threat. His experience foreshadows the ultimate rejection of the Messiah: 'He came unto his own, and his own received him not' (John 1:11).
Questions for Reflection
- How does relational abandonment compound physical suffering in ways that individual pain cannot?
- When have you experienced the pain of being 'estranged' from those who should have been your closest supporters?
- How does Job's social isolation prepare us to understand Christ's abandonment on the cross?
Analysis & Commentary
He hath put my brethren far from me (אַחַי מֵעָלַי הִרְחִיק, achai me'alay hirchik)—The verb רָחַק (rachaq, 'to be far, remove') in the Hiphil stem means God actively caused the distancing. Job's אָח ('ach, 'brothers') could be literal siblings or tribal kinsmen—in either case, those obligated by covenant loyalty have abandoned him.
And mine acquaintance are verily estranged from me (וְיֹדְעַי אַךְ־זָרוּ מִמֶּנִּי)—The verb זוּר (zur, 'to be strange, estranged') creates powerful wordplay with יֹדְעַי (yode'ai, 'those who know me'). Those who once 'knew' Job intimately now treat him as זָר (zar, 'strange/foreign'). This social death anticipates Psalm 69:8: 'I am become a stranger unto my brethren'—a Messianic psalm applied to Christ's rejection.