Job 20:18

18 He has laboured unprofitably and in vain, wealth of which he shall not taste: as a lean thing, unfit for food, which he cannot swallow.

Job 20:18 Meaning and Commentary

Job 20:18

That which he laboured for shall he restore
This explains what was before figuratively expressed by vomiting, ( Job 20:15 ) ; and is to be interpreted either of that which another laboured for; so the Targum paraphrases it,

``another's labour;''

and Mr. Broughton renders it, "he shall restore what man's pain get": and then the sense is, that that which another got by his labour, coming by some means or another into the hand of this rapacious, covetous, wicked man, he shall be obliged to restore to him again; or the hire of the labourer being detained in his hands, he shall be forced to give it to him, as the Egyptians, by lending the Israelites their jewels of gold and silver, restored to them the wages due to them for all their labour among them for many years; or else this is to be understood of what the wicked man himself had laboured for, who with much toil and labour, as well as trick and artifice, had got the wealth of others into his hands; but should be obliged to make restoration of it again, and along with that also what he had laboured for, and had got even in an honest and lawful way, the marathon of unrighteousness corrupting and marring his whole substance:

and shall not swallow [it] down;
or "not have time to devour it", as Mr. Broughton; he shall be obliged so soon to restore it, that it shall be as if he had never had it; he shall have no enjoyment of it, at least no comfort, pleasure, and satisfaction in it:

according to [his] substance [shall] the restitution [be];
the law of Moses required, in some cases, fourfold, in others fivefold, and sometimes sevenfold was exacted; and if a man had not sufficient to pay, all his substance was to go towards payment, and by this means what he lawfully got went along with that which was obtained in an illicit way, as before, see ( Exodus 22:1 ) ( Proverbs 6:31 ) ;

and he shall not rejoice [therein];
not in the restitution he is forced to make, it being greatly against his will; nor in his ill-gotten substance, at least but for a little while, as in ( Job 20:5 ) ; he shall neither enjoy it nor have delight and pleasure in it, nor glory of it, as men are apt to do; Mr. Broughton reads this in connection with the preceding clause thus,

``and never rejoice in the wealth for which he must make recompense.''

Job 20:18 In-Context

16 And let him suck the poison of serpents, and let the serpent's tongue slay him.

17 Let him not see the milk of the pastures, nor the supplies of honey and butter.

18 He has laboured unprofitably and in vain, wealth of which he shall not taste: as a lean thing, unfit for food, which he cannot swallow.

19 For he has broken down the houses of many mighty men: and he has plundered an habitation, though he built not.

20 There is no security to his possessions; he shall not be saved by his desire.