Job 17:9 Explained

"The righteous also shall hold on his way, and he that hath clean hands shall be stronger and stronger." — Job 17:9 (KJV)

Said by a man who had lost his children, his health and his reputation, and who was in the middle of arguing that God was treating him unjustly.

Read it in context: The Book of Job. Also gathered under verses about perseverance.

Job 17:9 in context

What does Job 17:9 mean?

'Hold on his way' is continuation, not progress — staying on the road rather than covering ground. The strengthening is attached to that persistence, not to circumstances improving, and Job's do not improve for another twenty-four chapters. Coming from him, the sentence is not optimism; it is a claim made in the teeth of the evidence.

What is the context of Job 17:9?

Chapter 17 is one of Job's bleakest speeches. He has just said the grave is his house and corruption his father. The friends are still explaining that he must have deserved it. This line appears with no relief around it on either side.

How do I pray Job 17:9?

Pray it on a long stretch where nothing is getting better and quitting has become reasonable. Do not ask for the situation to turn — Job does not, here. Ask to hold on the way, which is a smaller and more honest request, and note that the strengthening in the verse is described as slow.

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