איוב, פרק י״ט, פסוק י״ז

Job's suffering extends far beyond physical pain and the loss of his wealth, reaching a breaking point of absolute alienation and crushing loneliness from his most intimate circle. His severe illness has made him repulsive, causing his very presence and soul to become foreign to his wife [רמב״ן, ביאור שטיינזלץ]. Usually, a husband and wife are bound together by a deep, loving spiritual connection, but for Job, this natural bond has been completely severed [אלשיך]. Another perspective suggests that this alienation is expressed through a rejection of his desires. His requests for intimate closeness are dismissed by his wife, who refuses to listen to him [מצודת דוד, מצודת ציון, חומת אנך].

Driven by this deep isolation, Job is reduced to a state of profound humiliation, forced to beg and plead for compassion. Because his children tragically died at the beginning of his trials, commentators explore who exactly he is pleading with when he mentions the children of his own family. One approach suggests he is begging living people in his immediate surroundings. These might be individuals he raised in his home who were as close to him as his own children [רש״י, ביאור שטיינזלץ], or perhaps grandchildren and children he had with concubines [רמב״ן, מלבי״ם]. It is also possible that at this point in the timeline, which remains somewhat unclear, Job had already fathered new children [רלב״ג].

Other commentators connect his pleading directly back to his wife. In this view, Job begs her to allow them to be close so they can have new children, but she steadfastly refuses [מצודת דוד, רלב״ג, חומת אנך]. Alternatively, he might be pleading for her help by invoking the memory of the children they shared who have already died, hoping that this shared grief will finally awaken her mercy toward him [אלשיך]. Finally, his plea might be entirely hypothetical, meant to illustrate the sheer depth of his degradation. He is expressing that his dignity has fallen so low that even if his children were still alive, he would be forced to beg them for basic kindness [רמב״ן].