Job 24:5 Meaning and Explanation
“Behold, as wild asses in the desert, go they forth to their work; rising betimes for a prey: the wilderness yieldeth food for them and for their children.”
King James Version (KJV)
Read this verse in context with translation switching:
Read Full Chapter →The driven poor are likened to wild donkeys, rising early to scratch a living from the wilderness because nowhere else is left to them.
What Does Job 24:5 Mean?
Job's attention now rests on the victims themselves. Stripped of land and home, the poor go out like wild asses in the desert, scavenging at dawn for whatever the harsh wilderness will yield to feed their children. Once settled farmers, they have been reduced to a hand-to-mouth existence in the wastes.
There is deep pathos here: human beings made for community and home are forced into the life of hunted animals. Job lays this before God as a wound that demands an answer. Scripture does not look away from such suffering; it remembers that the Lord feeds the ravens and clothes the lilies, and that the Bread of Life came down for the hungry. The wilderness is never beyond the reach of His provision.
Job 24:5 in the Original Language
pere (פֶּרֶא), 'wild ass' -- the untamed desert donkey, an image of a creature beyond settled life.
Frequently Asked Questions About Job 24:5
What does Job 24:5 mean?
The driven poor are likened to wild donkeys, rising early to scratch a living from the wilderness because nowhere else is left to them.