Job 19:14 (KJV)

What does Job 19:14 mean?

Job 19:14 describes how Job’s own relatives and close friends have abandoned and forgotten him in his suffering. The verse highlights Job’s deep sense of isolation, as even those who should have cared for him have turned away.

In this verse, Job is speaking about his personal experience of being deserted by those closest to him. Job is addressing his friends, who have come to “comfort” him but instead accuse him. He emphasizes that not only strangers, but even his kinsfolk and familiar friends, have failed him, deepening his pain and sense of betrayal.

The Hebrew behind Job 19:14

• The word for “kinsfolk” is קָרֹב (qarov), which often means “those who are near” or “relatives.” This shows Job is not just talking about distant acquaintances but his own family.
• The word translated “failed” is חָדַל (chadal), which means “to cease” or “to stop.” Job’s relatives have not just been absent; they have actively stopped supporting him.
• The word for “friends” is יָדַע (yada‘), which literally means “to know.” Here, it refers to those who are intimately familiar with Job—his close companions.
• The word “forgotten” is שָׁכַח (shakach), meaning “to forget” or “to ignore.” Job’s friends have not just drifted away; they have chosen to disregard him completely.

Why Job 19:14 matters

• This verse clears up the misunderstanding that Job was only abandoned by strangers; it was his own family and closest friends who left him, which makes his suffering even more profound.
• The verse emphasizes the depth of Job’s isolation, showing that his pain is not only physical and emotional but also social and relational.
• Job 19:14 connects to the wider passage by highlighting the complete collapse of Job’s support system, setting the stage for his later appeals to God as his only hope.