He has no offspring or descendant among his people: verse 19 provides the explanation of verses 16 and 17. The wicked person’s roots dry up in verse 16, and he is forgotten in verse 17, because he has no offspring or descendant. Offspring or descendant translates a Hebrew fixed pair of terms, “son or kinsman,” which Gordis tries to parallel in English with “neither kith nor kin.”

And no survivor where he used to live: that is, “in his dwelling.” Some interpreters take this to mean “in his home.” However, his home has been destroyed. Other suggestions do not throw significant light on the phrase, and Good News Translation considers it redundant and so does not translate it. Bible en français courant sees it as placing emphasis upon the lack of members of his family to live on after him, and translates “Of all his household no one will survive.” Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch translates verse 19 “No son or grandson to carry on the family, and from his household not one survivor.” Other translatable models are: “He leaves behind no children or other offspring, and where he used to live there are no survivors” or “He is without offspring, and no one has survived in the house where he once lived.”

Quoted with permission from Reyburn, Wiliam. A Handbook on Job. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 1992. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .