Job 15:28

28 he will inhabit ruined towns and houses where no one lives, houses crumbling to rubble.

Job 15:28 in Other Translations

28 And he dwelleth in desolate cities, and in houses which no man inhabiteth, which are ready to become heaps.

28 and has lived in desolate cities, in houses that none should inhabit, which were ready to become heaps of ruins;

28 But their cities will be ruined. They will live in abandoned houses that are ready to tumble down.

28 They'll end up living in a ghost town sleeping in a hovel not fit for a dog, a ramshackle shack.

28 he will dwell in ruined cities, in abandoned houses destined to become piles of rubble.

Job 15:28 Meaning and Commentary

Job 15:28

And he dwelleth in desolate cities
This is either a continuation of the account of the wicked man's prosperity, which makes him haughty; such is his might and power, that he destroys cities and palaces, built and enjoyed by others, and then out of the ruins of them builds greater cities and more noble palaces, to perpetuate his name to posterity; which sense agrees with ( Job 3:14 ) ; and with the Targum,

``and he makes tabernacles in desert cities, that he may dwelt in houses which were not inhabited;''

and so Ben Gersom: and hence because of his success among men, and the grandeur he lives in, his heart is lifted up, and his hand is stretched out against God; or else this may express the sinful course of life such a man lives, who chooses to dwell in desolate places, and deserts, to do harm to others, to seize upon travellers as they pass by, and rob and plunder them of their substance, sitting and waiting for them in such places, as the Arabians in the wilderness, ( Jeremiah 3:2 ) ; which is the sense of some, as Aben Ezra observes; or rather this points at the punishment of the wicked man, who though for the present may be in great prosperity, possessed of large cities and stately palaces, "yet" or "but" ^F1, for so the particle may be rendered, "he dwelleth in desolate cities"; in such as shall become desolate, being destroyed by a superior enemy, that shall come upon him; or through his subjects forsaking him, not being able to bear his tyranny and cruelty; or he shall be driven from his dominions by them, and be obliged to fly, and dwell in desert places; or he shall choose to dwell there, through the horrors of a guilty conscience; or, best of all, he shall be reduced to such distress and poverty, that he shall not have a house fit to dwell in; but "shall inhabit the parched places in the wilderness, in a salt land, and not inhabited", ( Jeremiah 17:6 ) ; as follows:

[and] in houses which no man inhabiteth, which are ready to become
heaps;
such as have been deserted by their former inhabitants, because come to decay, and ready to fall down upon them, and become heaps of stones and rubbish.

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FOOTNOTES:

F1 So the Annotator of the Assembly of Divines.

Job 15:28 In-Context

26 defiantly charging against him with a thick, strong shield.

27 “Though his face is covered with fat and his waist bulges with flesh,

28 he will inhabit ruined towns and houses where no one lives, houses crumbling to rubble.

29 He will no longer be rich and his wealth will not endure, nor will his possessions spread over the land.

30 He will not escape the darkness; a flame will wither his shoots, and the breath of God’s mouth will carry him away.

Cross References

• 1. Isaiah 5:9
• 2. S Job 3:14