איוב, פרק ג׳, פסוק כ״א

Extreme suffering can push a person to a breaking point where they actively long for the end of their life. Yet, in a cruel twist of fate, the final rest they desperately want is denied to them. This profound despair is embodied by those who wait and hope for death, only to be left in agony as it constantly delays and refuses to arrive [רש״י, מצודת ציון, ביאור שטיינזלץ].

The primary approach among commentators views this intense longing through a vivid comparison. These broken individuals do not merely wait; they actively hunt for their end, searching through every possible avenue with intense focus [רש״י, מצודת ציון, ביאור שטיינזלץ]. They pursue death with far greater passion and effort than people who dig deep into the earth to uncover hidden treasures [רש״י, רלב״ג, אבן עזרא, תקות אנוש]. Their hopelessness is so absolute that they are completely consumed by a desire to end their lives. In such a dark state, there is no possibility that they will turn back to God in repentance, meaning their immense suffering ultimately fails to bring about any spiritual repair [אלשיך].

A distinctly different perspective presents a tragic and ironic story of human fate. In this view, a poor and suffering person spends his entire life waiting for a death that always eludes him. Eventually, he digs into the ground and discovers a great hidden treasure. However, at the exact moment he works to pull the riches from the earth, a pile of stones collapses and kills him. He literally digs his own death out from the hidden treasure. The tragedy is absolute: as long as he begged to die, he was forced to live, and the very moment he found success and a reason to rejoice in life, death finally caught him [מלבי״ם].