Job 18:8

8 They get all tangled up in their own red tape,

Job 18:8 Meaning and Commentary

Job 18:8

For he is cast into a net by his own feet
He goes into it of himself, incautious and imprudent; the counsels, schemes, and methods he takes to hurt others, issue in his own ruin; the pit he digs for them, he falls and sinks into himself; and the net which he has spread and hid for others, in it is his own foot taken; and the ways and means he takes to do himself good, to amass riches and advance his family, being illicit ones, prove snares and nets unto him, those leading him into many foolish and hurtful lusts, which bring him to perdition, ( Psalms 9:15 ) ( 1 Timothy 6:9 ) ; even the various sins and transgressions he commits are snares unto him, by which he is enticed and drawn in: for in "the transgression of an evil man there is a snare", ( Proverbs 29:6 ) ; these promise him peace, and pleasure, and liberty, but give neither; they are nets in which he is entangled, and cords by which he is held, ( Psalms 9:15 Psalms 9:16 ) ; into which his own feet carry him: some render it, "he goes with a net at his feet" F14, or with his feet in a net; he cannot go where he would, or do as he pleases; he is restrained by the providence of God; as the devils are held in chains, so the feet of wicked men are entangled in a net, that they cannot move and act as they are desirous of:

and he walketh upon a snare:
laid for him, and hidden to him, and therefore walks on boldly and unconcerned, not being apprehensive of any danger, though greatly exposed to it; he walks on as on firm and good ground, and in a broad road, but destruction and misery are in his ways; yet he walks on of himself willingly, and with all his strength, pleasing himself in the path he treads, not dreaming of the mischief that awaits him; or "upon a thicket" F15 of thorns and briers, his sins and iniquities with which he is entangled, and out of which he cannot extricate himself, or afflictive providences with which his way is hedged up; though the former sense seems best; Mr. Broughton renders it, "a platted gin".


FOOTNOTES:

F14 (wylgrb tvrb xlv yk) "nam it cum reti in pedibus suis", Cocceius.
F15 (hkbv le) "in perplexo", Cocceius.

Job 18:8 In-Context

6 Their house goes dark - every lamp in the place goes out.
7 Their strong strides weaken, falter; they stumble into their own traps.
8 They get all tangled up in their own red tape,
9 Their feet are grabbed and caught, their necks in a noose.
10 They trip on ropes they've hidden, and fall into pits they've dug themselves.
Published by permission. Originally published by NavPress in English as THE MESSAGE: The Bible in Contemporary Language copyright 2002 by Eugene Peterson. All rights reserved.