KJV ORIGINAL
For there is hope of a tree, if it be cut down, that it will sprout again, and that the tender branch thereof will not cease.
Close to the original. Clear modern English.
✦ MADE SIMPLE
There is hope for a tree that gets cut down—it can sprout again, and its young branches will keep growing.
⚡ THE BOTTOM LINE
Job is saying that even a cut-down tree has hope because it can grow back to life.
📚 Historical Context
Job spoke these words during his intense suffering, as he reflected on life, death, and hope. In ancient times, people were very familiar with how trees could regrow from their stumps after being cut down, making this a powerful image everyone would understand. Job was comparing the hope that exists in nature with questions about human mortality and whether people have similar hope after death.
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