But man ¹  dies and is powerless; ²  he expires – and where is he? ³ 

biblegateway Job 14:10

"But man dies and lies prostrate. Man expires, and where is he?

But a man dies and fades away; he breathes his last--where is he?

But a human dies and is powerless. A person breathes his last breath, and where is he?

biblegateway Job 14:10

But man dies and is laid low; he breathes his last and is no more.

But a man dies and is laid low; man breathes his last, and where is he?

bibleoremus Job 14:10

But mortals die, and are laid low; humans expire, and where are they?

But when a human being dies all his power vanishes; he expires, and where is he then?

biblegateway Job 14:10

But man dies and is laid away; Indeed he breathes his last And where is he?

But man dieth, and wasteth away: yea, man giveth up the ghost, and where [is] he?

biblegateway Job 14:10

But man ¹  dies and is powerless; ²  he expires – and where is he? ³ 

¹ tn There are two words for “man” in this verse. The first (גֶּבֶר, gever) can indicate a “strong” or “mature man” or “mighty man,” the hero; and the second (אָדָם, ’adam) simply designates the person as mortal.

² tn The word חָלַשׁ (khalash) in Aramaic and Syriac means “to be weak” (interestingly, the Syriac OT translated חָלַשׁ [khalash] with “fade away” here). The derived noun “the weak” would be in direct contrast to “the mighty man.” In the transitive sense the verb means “to weaken; to defeat” (Exod 17:13); here it may have the sense of “be lifeless, unconscious, inanimate” (cf. E. Dhorme, Job, 199). Many commentators emend the text to יַחֲלֹף (yakhalof, “passes on; passes away”). A. Guillaume tries to argue that the form is a variant of the other, the letters שׁ (shin) and פ (pe) being interchangeable (“The Use of halas in Exod 17:13, Isa 14:12, and Job 14:10,” JTS 14 [1963]: 91-92). G. R. Driver connected it to Arabic halasa, “carry off suddenly” (“The Resurrection of Marine and Terrestrial Creatures,” JSS 7 [1962]: 12-22). But the basic idea of “be weak, powerless” is satisfactory in the text. H. H. Rowley (Job [NCBC], 105) says, “Where words are so carefully chosen, it is gratuitous to substitute less expressive words as some editors do.”

³ tn This break to a question adds a startling touch to the whole verse. The obvious meaning is that he is gone. The LXX weakens it: “and is no more.”