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Commentary on Job 27 verses 11–23
Job's friends had seen a great deal of the misery and destruction that attend wicked people, especially oppressors; and Job, while the heat of disputation lasted, had said as much, and with as much assurance, of their prosperity; but now that the heat of the battle was nearly over he was willing to own how far he agreed with them, and where the difference between his opinion and theirs lay. 1. He agreed with them that wicked people are miserable people, that God will surely reckon with cruel oppressors, and one time or other, one way or other, his justice will make reprisals upon them for all the affronts they have put upon God and all the wrongs they have done to their neighbours. This truth is abundantly confirmed by the entire concurrence even of these angry disputants in it. But, 2. In this they differed - they held that these deserved judgments are presently and visibly brought upon wicked oppressors, that they travail with pain all their days, that in prosperity the destroyer comes upon them, that they shall not be rich, nor their branch green, and that their destruction shall be accomplished before their time (so Eliphaz, Job 15:20, Job 15:21, Job 15:29, Job 15:32), that the steps of their strength shall be straitened, that terrors shall make them afraid on every side (so Bildad, Job 18:7, Job 18:11), that he himself shall vomit up his riches, and that in the fulness of his sufficiency he shall be in straits, so Zophar, Job 20:15, Job 20:22. Now Job held that, in many cases, judgments do not fall upon them quickly, but are deferred for some time. That vengeance strikes slowly he had already shown (ch. 21 and 24); now he comes to show that it strikes surely and severely, and that reprieves are no pardons.
I. Job here undertakes to set this matter in a true light (Job 27:11, Job 27:12): I will teach you. We must not disdain to learn even from those who are sick and poor, yea, and peevish too, if they deliver what is true and good. Observe, 1. What he would teach them: "That which is with the Almighty," that is, "the counsels and purposes of God concerning wicked people, which are hidden with him, and which you cannot hastily judge of; and the usual methods of his providence concerning them." This, says Job, will I not conceal. What God has not concealed from us we must not conceal from those we are concerned to teach. Things revealed belong to us and our children. 2. How he would teach them: By the hand of God, that is, by his strength and assistance. Those who undertake to teach others must look to the hand of God to direct them, to open their ear (Isa 50:4), and to open their lips. Those whom God teaches with a strong hand are best able to teach others, Isa 8:11. 3. What reason they had to learn those things which he was about to teach them (Job 27:12), that it was confirmed by their own observation - You yourselves have seen it (but what we have heard, and seen and known, we have need to be taught, that we may be perfect in our lesson), and that it would set them to rights in their judgment concerning him - "Why then are you thus altogether vain, to condemn me for a wicked man because I am afflicted?" Truth, rightly understood and applied, would cure us of that vanity of mind which arises from our mistakes. That particularly which he offers now to lay before them is the portion of a wicked man with God, particularly of oppressors, Job 27:13. Compare Job 20:29. Their portion in the world may be wealth and preferment, but their portion with God is ruin and misery. They are above the control of any earthly power, it may be, but the Almighty can deal with them.
II. He does it, by showing that wicked people may, in some instances, prosper, but that ruin follows them in those very instances; and that is their portion, that is their heritage, that is it which they must abide by.
1.They may prosper in their children, but ruin attends them. His children perhaps are multiplied (Job 27:14) or magnified (so some); they are very numerous and are raised to honour and great estates. Worldly people are said to be full of children (Psa 17:14), and, as it is in the margin there, their children are full. In them the parents hope to live and in their preferment to be honoured. But the more children they leave, and the greater prosperity they leave them in, the more and the fairer marks do they leave for the arrows of God's judgments to be levelled at, his three sore judgments, sword, famine, and pestilence, Sa2 24:13. (1.) Some of them shall die by the sword, the sword of war perhaps (they brought them up to live by their sword, as Esau, Gen 27:40, and those that do so commonly die by the sword, first or last), or by the sword of justice for their crimes, or the sword of the murderer for their estates. (2.) Others of them shall die by famine (Job 27:14): His offspring shall not be satisfied with bread. He thought he had secured to them large estates, but it may happen that they may be reduced to poverty, so as not to have the necessary supports of life, at least not to live comfortably. They shall be so needy that they shall not have a competency of necessary food, and so greedy, or so discontented, that what they have they shall not be satisfied with, because not so much, or not so dainty, as what they have been used to. You eat, but you have not enough, Hag 1:6. (3.) Those that remain shall be buried in death, that is, shall die of the plague, which is called death (Rev 6:8), and be buried privately and in haste, as soon as they are dead, without any solemnity, buried with the burial of an ass; and even their widows shall not weep; they shall not have wherewithal to put them in mourning. Or it denotes that these wicked men, as they live undesired, so they die unlamented, and even their widows will think themselves happy that they have got rid of them.
2.They may prosper in their estates, but ruin attends them too, Job 27:16-18. (1.) We will suppose them to be rich in money and plate, in clothing and furniture. They heap up silver in abundance as the dust, and prepare raiment as the clay; they have heaps of clothes about them, as plentiful as heaps of clay. Or it intimates that they have such abundance of clothes that they are even a burden to them. They lade themselves with thick clay, Hab 2:6. See what is the care and business of worldly people - to heap up worldly wealth. Much would have more, until the silver is cankered and the garments are moth-eaten, Jam 5:2, Jam 5:3. But what comes of it? He shall never be the better for it himself; death will strip him, death will rob him, if he be not robbed and stripped sooner, Luk 12:20. Nay, God will so order it that the just shall wear his raiment and the innocent shall divide his silver. [1.] They shall have it, and divide it among themselves. In some way or other Providence shall so order it that good men shall come honestly by that wealth which the wicked man came dishonestly by. The wealth of the sinner is laid up for the just, Pro 13:22. God disposes of men's estates as he pleases, and often makes their wills against their wills. The just, whom he hated and persecuted, shall have rule over all his labour, and, in due time, recover with interest what was violently taken from him. The Egyptians' jewels were the Israelites' pay. Solomon observes (Ecc 2:26) that God makes the sinners drudges to the righteous; for the sinner he gives travail to gather and heap up, that he may give to him that is good before God. [2.] They shall do good with it. The innocent shall not hoard the silver, as he did that gathered it, but shall divide it to the poor, shall give a portion to seven and also to eight, which is laying up the best securities. Money is like manure, good for nothing if it be not spread. When God enriches good men they must remember they are but stewards and must give an account. What bad men bring a curse upon their families with the ill-getting of good men bring a blessing upon their families with the well-using of. He that by unjust gain increaseth his substance shall gather it for him that will pity the poor, Pro 28:8. (2.) We will suppose them to have built themselves strong and stately houses; but they are like the house which the moth makes for herself in an old garment, out of which she will soon be shaken, Job 27:18. He is very secure in it, as a moth, and has no apprehension of danger; but it will prove of as short continuance as a booth which the keeper makes, which will quickly be taken down and gone, and his place shall know him no more.
3.Destruction attends their persons, though they lived long in health and at ease (Job 27:19): The rich man shall lie down to sleep, to repose himself in the abundance of his wealth (Soul, take thy ease), shall lie down in it as his strong city, and seem to others to be very happy and very easy; but he shall not be gathered, that is, he shall not have his mind composed, and settled, and gathered in, to enjoy his wealth. He does not sleep so contentedly as people think he does. He lies down, but his abundance will not suffer him to sleep, at least not so sweetly as the labouring man, Ecc 5:12. He lies down, but he is full of tossings to and fro till the dawning of the day, and then he opens his eyes and he is not; he sees himself, and all he has, hastening away, as it were, in the twinkling of an eye. His cares increase his fears, and both together make him uneasy, so that, when we attend him to his bed, we do not find him happy there. But, in the close, we are called to attend his exit, and see how miserable he is in death and after death.
(1.)He is miserable in death. It is to him the king of terrors, Job 27:20, Job 27:21. When some mortal disease seizes him what a fright is he in! Terrors take hold of him as waters, as if he were surrounded by the flowing tides. He trembles to think of leaving this world, and much more of removing to another. This mingles sorrow and wrath with his sickness, as Solomon observes, Ecc 5:17. These terrors put him either [1.] Into a silent and sullen despair; and then the tempest of God's wrath, the tempest of death, may be said to steal him away in the night, when no one is aware or takes any notice of it. Or, [2.] Into an open and clamorous despair; and then he is said to be carried away, and hurled out of his place as with a storm, and with an east wind, violent, and noisy, and very dreadful. Death, to a godly man, is like a fair gale of wind to convey him to the heavenly country, but, to a wicked man, it is like an east wind, a storm, a tempest, that hurries him away in confusion and amazement, to destruction.
(2.)He is miserable after death. [1.] His soul falls under the just indignation of God, and it is the terror of that indignation which puts him into such amazement at the approach of death (Job 27:22): For God shall cast upon him and not spare. While he lived he had the benefit of sparing mercy; but now the day of God's patience is over, and he will not spare, but pour out upon him the full vials of his wrath. What God casts down upon a man there is no flying from nor bearing up under. We read of his casting down great stones from heaven upon the Canaanites (Jos 10:11), which made terrible execution among them; but what was that to his casting down his anger in its full weight upon the sinner's conscience, like the talent of lead? Zac 5:7, Zac 5:8. The damned sinner, seeing the wrath of God break in upon him, would fain flee out of his hand; but he cannot: the gates of hell are locked and barred, and the great gulf fixed, and it will be in vain to call for the shelter of rocks and mountains. Those who will not be persuaded now to fly to the arms of divine grace, which are stretched out to receive them, will not be able to flee from the arms of divine wrath, which will shortly be stretched out to destroy them. [2.] His memory falls under the just indignation of all mankind (Job 27:23): Men shall clap their hands at him, that is, they shall rejoice in the judgments of God, by which he is cut off, and be well pleased in his fall. When the wicked perish there is shouting, Pro 11:10. When God buries him men shall hiss him out of his place, and leave on his name perpetual marks of infamy. In the same place where he has been caressed and cried up he shall be laughed at (Psa 52:7) and his ashes shall be trampled on.
“The scorching wind shall carry him off and take him away.” Who is it that is here called the “scorching wind”? None other than the evil spirit who stirs up the flames of diverse lusts in the heart that he may drag it to an eternity of punishments. And so “the scorching wind” is said to “carry off” the bad people, because the plotter, the evil spirit, inflames a person who is drawn toward evil and drags him when dying to torments.…“And as a whirlwind shall carry him out of his place.” “The place” of the wicked is the gratification of the temporal life and the enjoyment of the flesh. Therefore, every single individual is in a sense “carried out of his place by a whirlwind.” He is overwhelmed with terror on the last day, severed from all gratifications. Regarding this same last day, it is immediately added, and rightly, “For he shall let loose upon him and not spare.” God, as often as he chastises the sinner by smiting him, “lets loose” the scourge, precisely that he may “spare” him. But when, by punishing him, he brings his life to an end while remaining in sin, he “lets loose” the scourge and does not “spare.” For the same one who “lets loose” the scourge in order that he might “spare” will one day “let it loose” with this in view—that he may not spare. For in this life the Lord is able more to spare in proportion as he scourges those who are in waiting. This is what he himself said to John by the voice of the angel, “As many as I love, I rebuke and chastise;” and as it is elsewhere spoken, “For whom the Lord loves, he chastises.” But, in reverse, it is written of the scourge of condemnation, “The wicked is trapped in the work of his own hands.” According to Jeremiah, when the Lord sees the multitude transgressing irreclaimably, whom he now no longer regards as sons under discipline but as enemies under unmitigated scourging, he says: “For I have wounded you with the wound of an enemy, with a cruel chastisement.” …
Then he says, “He shall bind up his hands over him.” To “bind up the hands” is to establish the practices of his life in uprightness. Hence Paul also says, “Therefore lift up the loosed hands and the unstrung knees.” While, then, they behold the destruction of another, they are made to turn back to the conscience. There they are to remind themselves of their own acts, by which one person is carried to torments and another is freed from torments. And so “he binds up his hands over him,” because he observes in the punishment of another what to be afraid of. While he sees one living in transgression as smitten, he binds fast with the sinews of righteousness his own loose practices. And so it is brought to pass that he who, being a bad person while living, had drawn numbers into transgression by the seductiveness of sin, may in dying recover some from transgression by the terribleness of their torments.…
“And he shall hiss upon him, beholding his place.” What is expressed in the hissing other than the wrenching of wonder? But if in the hissing there is some other meaning sought, when the sinner dies, those who witness his death draw tight the mouth in hissing, in the sense that they are converted to those spiritual words that they themselves had condemned, so that they henceforth begin to believe and to teach that which before, while they perceived the wicked person thriving, they earlier had not believed. For it very often happens that the mind of the weak is the more unsteadied from the hearing of the truth precisely by seeing the despisers of the truth flourishing. But when just punishment takes away the unjust, it keeps others away from wickedness.
30. Let us look now at the want of the rich man as burning, whose abundance was so great as feasting. For he says, Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus that he may dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue for I am tormented in this flame. [Luke 16, 24] By which same words it is not this that is made known to us, that there in that excessive burning a single drop of water is then asked for as a sufficiency of refreshment, but that he who has sinned by abundance should there be consumed by a want burning to excess. For we see in the words of the rich man, resulting from the exactest judgment of God, how proportionate a punishment answered such sin. For moved by want, he is there driven to beg for the very least, who here, moved by covetousness, went so far as to refuse the very least. What can be paid back more exactly, what more strictly? He begged a drop of water, who refused crumbs of bread; and so ‘want taketh hold of him like water.’ That want is then not unsuitably likened to water, because there is that tormenting in hell, which, as swallowing up those it receives in the depths below, is used to be denoted by the title of a’ lake.’ Whence it is delivered by the Prophet in the voice of mankind, My life is fallen into the lake. [Lam. 3, 53] But by the triumphing of those that are escaped it is sung, O Lord my God, I cried unto Thee and Thou hast healed me. O Lord, Thou hast b1’ough’t up my sold from the grave: Thou hast kept me from them that go down into the lake. [Ps. 30, 2. 3.]
31. A tempest shall overwhelm him in the flight. What in this place does he call’ the night,’ but the hidden time of sudden departing? And by the name of ‘tempest’ he represents the whirlwind of the Judgment. Which the Psalmist also testifies, in the words, Our God shall come in state, our God, and shall not keep silence; a fire shall devour before Him, and round about Him a mighty tempest. [Ps. 50, 3] Of which same ‘tempest’ Wisdom also saith by Solomon; I also will laugh at your calamity, I will mock when your fear cometh; when your fear cometh as desolation, and your destruction cometh as a whirlwind. [Prov. 1, 26. 27.] And because the very ignorance of the coming departure is itself called ‘Night,’ ‘in the night a tempest shall overwhelm him,’ i.e. the whirlwind of Divine Judgment, whilst he is ignorant, shall seize upon Him. For it is hence that Truth saith by Itself, But know this, that if the good man of the house had known in what watch the thief would come, he would have watched, and would not have suffered his house to be broken up. Therefore be ye also ready. For in such an hour as ye think not the Son of Man cometh. [Mal. 24, 43. 44.] Hence also it is spoken against the ‘evil servant;’ But if that evil servant shall say in his heart, My Lord delayeth His coming; and shall begin to smite his fellow servants, and to eat and drink with the drunken. The Lord of that servant shall come in a day when he looketh not for him, and in an hour that he is not aware of. Hence Paul says to the disciples, But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief. Ye are all the children of the light and the children of the day. We are not of the night nor of darkness. [1 Thess. 5, 4. 5.] Hence to the rich man, ‘giving loose to pride, it is said by the voice of God, Thou fool, this night thy soul shall be required of thee; then whose shall those things be which thou hast provided? [Luke 12, 20] In the night he is described as giving up his soul, who whilst not seeing death beforehand is carried off in darkness of the heart. Thus then he saith, A tempest shall overwhelm him in the night. For because he is not minded to do the good things that he sees, he is caught by the tempest of his destruction which he seeth not.
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SUMMARY
Job 27:20 powerfully articulates the terrifying and inescapable judgment awaiting the wicked, employing vivid natural metaphors to convey its sudden, overwhelming, and destructive nature. This verse, situated within Job's final discourse, underscores his unwavering conviction in God's ultimate justice, asserting that despite any temporary prosperity, those who live in wickedness will face a divinely ordained and terrifying end, contrasting sharply with the righteous.
CONTEXT
EXPOSITION AND ANALYSIS
Key Word Analysis
Verse Breakdown
Literary Devices
Job 27:20 is rich in Imagery, drawing heavily on natural phenomena to depict divine judgment. The comparison of "terrors" to "waters" (a Simile) creates a powerful visual of an overwhelming, engulfing force, much like a destructive flood. The subsequent mention of a "tempest" (a Metaphor for judgment) further intensifies this natural disaster imagery, portraying judgment as a violent, uncontrollable storm. The phrase "stealeth him away" employs Personification, attributing the action of "stealing" to the tempest, thereby emphasizing its active, cunning, and decisive removal of the wicked. The inclusion of "in the night" uses Symbolism to convey suddenness, vulnerability, and the absence of warning or escape. Together, these devices create a vivid and terrifying picture of the wicked's inevitable and inescapable doom, emphasizing God's sovereign control over justice.
THEOLOGICAL AND THEMATIC CONNECTIONS
Job 27:20 profoundly reinforces the biblical principle of divine retribution, asserting that God's justice is not only righteous but also ultimately inescapable for those who persist in wickedness. It challenges the human tendency to question God's fairness when the wicked appear to prosper, reaffirming that their temporary success is merely a prelude to a terrifying and sudden end. This verse serves as a stark reminder of God's sovereignty over all creation, including the destinies of humanity, and His unwavering commitment to upholding moral order, even if its full manifestation is delayed from a human perspective. It underscores the contrast between the fleeting security of the wicked and the enduring hope of the righteous.
REFLECTION AND APPLICATION
Job 27:20 offers a sobering yet ultimately comforting message for believers today. In a world often characterized by apparent injustice, where the wicked seem to flourish and the righteous suffer, this verse serves as a powerful anchor, reminding us that God's justice is not only real but also inevitable. It calls us to trust in His perfect timing and sovereign plan, even when His ways are beyond our immediate comprehension. For those who might be tempted by the allure of worldly gain through unrighteous means, it stands as a stark warning: temporary prosperity gained through wickedness is a fleeting illusion, leading only to ultimate terror and destruction. Conversely, for the righteous enduring hardship, it offers profound encouragement, assuring them that their steadfastness in faith is not in vain. It prompts us to examine our own lives, ensuring that our foundations are built on God's enduring truth, not on the shifting sands of worldly success, so that when the storms of life and judgment come, we may stand secure.
Questions for Reflection
FAQ
Does Job 27:20 imply that all suffering is a direct result of wickedness?
Answer: No, the Book of Job as a whole, and Job's discourse in particular, challenges the simplistic notion that all suffering is a direct consequence of personal sin. While Job 27:20 describes the ultimate fate of the wicked, Job's own experience throughout the book clearly demonstrates that righteous individuals can also suffer immensely without having committed hidden sins. Job's friends repeatedly assert this direct correlation, but Job himself, and ultimately God in Job 38-41, refute this narrow view. This verse specifically addresses the end of the wicked, affirming that their apparent prosperity is temporary and their judgment is certain, but it does not negate the reality of righteous suffering.
CHRIST-CENTERED FULFILLMENT
Job 27:20, with its chilling depiction of the wicked's terrifying and inescapable end, finds its profound Christ-centered fulfillment in the stark contrast between the fate of those outside of Christ and the secure hope offered through Him. The "terrors" that "take hold" of the wicked are ultimately the terrors of divine wrath and eternal separation from God, a judgment that every human being deserves due to sin (Romans 3:23). However, Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God, perfectly absorbed this divine wrath on the cross, becoming the ultimate sacrifice for sin (2 Corinthians 5:21). Those who trust in Him are delivered from the "tempest" of judgment, for there is now "no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus" (Romans 8:1). While the wicked are "stolen away in the night" to destruction, Christ promises His followers eternal life and security, assuring them that "no one will snatch them out of my hand" (John 10:28). He is the light that overcomes the "night" of sin and death (John 8:12), offering not terror, but peace and everlasting life to all who believe.