Finally Job summarizes his tragedy. In verse 22 those who find the grave rejoice and are glad. By contrast Job in life finds just the opposite: no ease, quiet, or rest—only troubles. The verb of state translated quiet is the same as in verse 13, and rest is the same as in verse 17. These verb forms in Hebrew are in the perfect tense, which could be taken to mean they refer to Job’s past experiences; accordingly King James Version translates “I was not in safety, neither had I rest, neither was I quiet.” In this way verse 26 links up with the prologue. However, all modern translations consulted relate verse 26 to the rest of chapter 3 through the use of the present tense, as in Good News Translation “I have no peace, no rest….”

Good News Translation understands ease and rest as synonymous and therefore reduces them to “rest.” I am not at ease is sometimes rendered, for example, “my heart is not cool” or “my heart does not sit in the shade.”

The trouble Job mentions (also in verse 20) is his continuing anguish, which affects his inner self and creates his confusion. In some languages trouble is expressed as the subject of a transitive verb; for example, “troubles never stop taking hold of me.”

Job concludes his discourse. He has cursed his birth and longed for death, but he has not cursed God, nor has he died. The friends, who have sat in silence for seven days and nights, have now heard Job’s outbursts of emotions and are ready to take their turns to dispute with him.

Quoted with permission from Reyburn, Wiliam. A Handbook on Job. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 1992. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .