Job 7:6

"My flesh is clothed with worms and clods of dust. My skin closes up, and breaks out afresh."

Key Reflection

In Job 7:6, the prophet expresses the intensity of his suffering through vivid imagery. His "flesh is clothed with worms and clods of dust," indicating a condition where he feels completely degraded, likely due to leprosy or some other debilitating skin disease that leaves him covered in sores and scabs, much like a corpse. The second part, "My skin closes up, and breaks out afresh," suggests a relentless cycle of healing and re-opening wounds, symbolizing the ongoing and unrelenting nature of his affliction. This passage underscores Job's desperate state, highlighting both the physical deterioration and the persistent hopelessness he experiences.

From the Scholars: Barnes' Notes

My days are swifter than a weaver’s shuttle -That is, they are short and few. He does not here refer so much to the rapidity with which they were passing away as to the fact that they would soon be gone, and that he was likely to be cut off without being permitted to enjoy the blessings of a long life; compare the notes atIsaiah 38:12. The weaver’s shuttle is the instrument by which the weaver inserts the filling in the woof. With us few things would furnish a more striking emblem of rapidity than the speed with which a weaver throws his shuttle from one side of the web to the other.

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