The Meaning of Job 29:13 Explained

Job 29:13

KJV: The blessing of him that was ready to perish came upon me: and I caused the widow's heart to sing for joy.

YLT: The blessing of the perishing cometh on me, And the heart of the widow I cause to sing.

Darby: The blessing of him that was perishing came upon me, and I caused the widow's heart to sing for joy.

ASV: The blessing of him that was ready to perish came upon me; And I caused the widow's heart to sing for joy.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

The blessing  of him that was ready to perish  came  upon me: and I caused the widow's  heart  to sing for joy. 

What does Job 29:13 Mean?

Context Summary

Job 29:1-25 - The Bitter Memory Of The Happy Past
How many thousands, looking back on the beautiful dawn of life which has become overcast, have uttered the thought of the opening words of this chapter! The worldling has no hope of the renewal of that blessed past; but the believer knows that in Christ he belongs to the eternal order, which enters into the devastation wrought by sin, arresting, canceling and converting evil into good.
If we believe in Jesus Christ, submit to His will, and unite ourselves to His heart, "a statelier Eden" comes back to us. God watches over us for good; His lamp shines on our way; His friendship is in our tent, and His love transfigures all things. The graphic description which follows of the life of a godly man is still true when a man's ways please the Lord. [source]

Chapter Summary: Job 29

1  Job bemoans his former prosperity

What do the individual words in Job 29:13 mean?

The blessing of a perishing [man] upon me came and the heart widow's I caused to sing for joy
בִּרְכַּ֣ת אֹ֭בֵד עָלַ֣י תָּבֹ֑א וְלֵ֖ב אַלְמָנָ֣ה אַרְנִֽן

בִּרְכַּ֣ת  The  blessing 
Parse: Noun, feminine singular construct
Root: בְּרָכָה  
Sense: blessing.
אֹ֭בֵד  of  a  perishing  [man] 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Participle, masculine singular
Root: אָבַד  
Sense: perish, vanish, go astray, be destroyed.
עָלַ֣י  upon  me 
Parse: Preposition, first person common singular
Root: עַל 
Sense: upon, on the ground of, according to, on account of, on behalf of, concerning, beside, in addition to, together with, beyond, above, over, by, on to, towards, to, against.
תָּבֹ֑א  came 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperfect, third person feminine singular
Root: בֹּוא 
Sense: to go in, enter, come, go, come in.
וְלֵ֖ב  and  the  heart 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Noun, masculine singular construct
Root: לֵב 
Sense: inner man, mind, will, heart, understanding.
אַלְמָנָ֣ה  widow's 
Parse: Noun, feminine singular
Root: אַלְמָנָה  
Sense: widow.
אַרְנִֽן  I  caused  to  sing  for  joy 
Parse: Verb, Hifil, Imperfect, first person common singular
Root: רוּן 
Sense: to overcome.