Albert Barnes Commentary Job 26:5

"They that are deceased tremble Beneath the waters and the inhabitants thereof." — Job 26:5 (ASV)

Dead things – Job here begins his description of God. He aims to show that his views of God's majesty and glory were in no way inferior to what Bildad had expressed, and that Bildad's words offered him no new information.

In this description, he far surpasses Bildad in loftiness of conception and sublimity of description. Indeed, it is debatable whether any description of God's majesty in the Bible surpasses this passage in grandeur.

This passage has led to much discussion and a wide variety of opinions. Our common translation is very weak and does not convey its true force at all. The object of the whole passage is to assert the universal dominion of God.

Bildad had said (Job 25:1–6) that God's dominion extended to the heavens and to the armies of the skies, that God surpassed in majesty the splendor of the heavenly bodies, and that compared with Him, man was a worm.

Job begins his description by stating that God's dominion extended even to the world below. Such were His majesty and power, he implies, that even the shades of the mighty dead trembled at His presence, and Sheol was completely exposed before Him.

The word רפאים (râphâ'ı̂ym) – Rephaim – so weakly translated “dead things,” means the shades of the dead: the departed spirits that live in Sheol (see this word explained at length in the notes on Isaiah 14:9).

These Rephaim are those who have left this world and gone down to live in the world below – the great and mighty conquerors and kings, the illustrious dead of past times, who have departed this world and are gathered in the land of Shades.

Jerome translates it as “gigantes,” and the Septuagint, γίγαντες (gigantes) – giants. This translation stems from a common belief that these shades were larger than life. Thus, Lucretius says:

Quippe et enim jam tum divum mortalia secla
Egregias animo facies vigilante videbant;
Et magis in somnis, mirando corporis aucter
Rer. Nat. ver. 1168.

The word “shades” here expresses the meaning: the departed spirits assembled in Sheol. The Chaldee translates it as גבריא – mighty ones, or giants; the Syriac, similarly, translates it as giants.

Are formed – The Syriac translates this as “are killed.” Jerome translates it as gemunt – “groan.” The Septuagint asks, “Are giants born from beneath the water, and the neighboring places?” It is difficult to determine what idea the authors of that version attached to the passage.

The Hebrew word used here, יחוּללוּ (y^echôlālû) – from חוּל (chûl) – means to twist, to turn, or to be in anguish, as in childbirth. It can then mean to tremble, quake, or be in terror.

The idea here seems to be that the shades of the dead were in anguish, or trembled, at the awesome presence and under the dominion of God. So Luther translates it – understanding it as referring to giants – “Die Riesen angsten sich unter den Wassern.” The meaning would be well expressed as: “The shades of the dead tremble, or are in anguish before Him. They fear His power. They acknowledge His dominion.”

Under the waters – The dwelling place of departed spirits is always placed beneath the ground in this book. But why this dwelling place is placed beneath the waters is not clear. It is usually under the ground, and the entrance to it is through the grave or some dark cavern (compare Virgil’s Aeneid, Book VI).

A different interpretation of this verse has been proposed, which seems to better suit the context. This interpretation understands the phrase תחת (tachath), “under,” as meaning simply “beneath”—thus, “the shades beneath.” It also regards the word מים (mayı̂m), “waters,” as connected with the following phrase:

“The shades beneath tremble;
The waters and the inhabitants thereof.”

Explained this way, the passage means that the whole universe is under God’s control and trembles before Him. Sheol and its shades, the oceans and their inhabitants, stand in awe before Him.

And the inhabitants thereof – This refers to the inhabitants of the waters, the oceans. The idea is that the vast inhabitants of the deep all recognize God’s power and tremble before Him. This description aligns with those given by ancient poets of the power and majesty of the gods, and is no less sublime than any they provided.