In the passage below, Zophar describes the judgement awaiting the wicked man both in heaven and earth. As he describes how the gain of the wicked man is quite fleeting, he goes on to describe the numerous punishments. This may not be too different to hearing various religious ideas, especially those that focusses on judgement and avoidance.

There are two major assumptions in Zophar's argument. He already assumes that Job is guilty of specific sins which brought about the disaster. The second assumption assumes a rigid and unmerciful God. We know both to be false. So although Zophar's arguments may sound like justice is being done on the wicked, it is also being applied in an incorrect context.

Job 20

 ¹ Then Zophar the Naamathite answered and said:
 ² “ Therefore my anxious thoughts make me answer,
      Because of the turmoil within me.
 ³ I have heard the rebuke that reproaches me,
      And the spirit of my understanding causes me to answer.
 ⁴ “Do you not know this of old,
      Since man was placed on earth,
 ⁵ That the triumphing of the wicked is short,
      And the joy of the hypocrite is but for a moment?
 ⁶ Though his haughtiness mounts up to the heavens,
      And his head reaches to the clouds,
 ⁷ Yet he will perish forever like his own refuse;
      Those who have seen him will say, ‘Where is he?’
 ⁸ He will fly away like a dream, and not be found;
      Yes, he will be chased away like a vision of the night.
 ⁹ The eye that saw him will see him no more,
      Nor will his place behold him anymore.
 ¹⁰ His children will seek the favor of the poor,
      And his hands will restore his wealth.
 ¹¹ His bones are full of his youthful vigor,
      But it will lie down with him in the dust.
 ¹² “ Though evil is sweet in his mouth,
      And he hides it under his tongue,
 ¹³ Though he spares it and does not forsake it,
      But still keeps it in his mouth,
 ¹⁴ Yet his food in his stomach turns sour;
      It becomes cobra venom within him.
 ¹⁵ He swallows down riches
      And vomits them up again;
      God casts them out of his belly.
 ¹⁶ He will suck the poison of cobras;
      The viper’s tongue will slay him.
 ¹⁷ He will not see the streams,
      The rivers flowing with honey and cream.
 ¹⁸ He will restore that for which he labored,
      And will not swallow it down;
      From the proceeds of business
      He will get no enjoyment.
 ¹⁹ For he has oppressed and forsaken the poor,
      He has violently seized a house which he did not build.
 ²⁰ “ Because he knows no quietness in his heart,^[a]
      He will not save anything he desires.
 ²¹ Nothing is left for him to eat;
      Therefore his well-being will not last.
 ²² In his self-sufficiency he will be in distress;
      Every hand of misery will come against him.
 ²³ When he is about to fill his stomach,
      God will cast on him the fury of His wrath,
      And will rain it on him while he is eating.
 ²⁴ He will flee from the iron weapon;
      A bronze bow will pierce him through.
 ²⁵ It is drawn, and comes out of the body;
      Yes, the glittering point comes out of his gall.
      Terrors come upon him;
 ²⁶ Total darkness is reserved for his treasures.
      An unfanned fire will consume him;
      It shall go ill with him who is left in his tent.
 ²⁷ The heavens will reveal his iniquity,
      And the earth will rise up against him.
 ²⁸ The increase of his house will depart,
      And his goods will flow away in the day of His wrath.
 ²⁹ This is the portion from God for a wicked man,
      The heritage appointed to him by God.”

Job's friend Zophar speaks

Job faced a stronger rebuke from his friend Zophar, who clearly thinks that Job was guilty. Like his other friends, Zophar also understands the Greatness of God and His Sovereignty, with verses like "Can you find out the limits of the Almighty?" and "If He passes by, imprisons, and gathers to judgment, Then who can hinder Him?"

In v13-16, Zophar believing that Job had sinned somehow, asked Job to repent. We see the Zophar understands repentence well,  in that he knew if anyone repents, then God's forgiveness would restore them again. Zophar describes the result of having forgiven with words like "Yes, you could be steadfast, and not fear", "take your rest in safety", "many would court your favor", "And your life would be brighter than noonday", from v15-19.


Despite, like many others, Zophar thinks that all misfortunes are punishment for sins, we can still learn very much from Zophar and Job's other friends in how they understand the greatness of God, the authority and will of God, and grace and living in the forgiveness of God.




Job 11


 ¹ Then Zophar the Naamathite answered and said:
 ² “ Should not the multitude of words be answered?
      And should a man full of talk be vindicated?
 ³ Should your empty talk make men hold their peace?
      And when you mock, should no one rebuke you?
 ⁴ For you have said,

      ‘My doctrine is pure,
      And I am clean in your eyes.’
 ⁵ But oh, that God would speak,
      And open His lips against you,
 ⁶ That He would show you the secrets of wisdom!
      For they would double your prudence.
      Know therefore that God exacts from you
      Less than your iniquity deserves.
 ⁷ “Can you search out the deep things of God?
      Can you find out the limits of the Almighty?
 ⁸ They are higher than heaven— what can you do?
      Deeper than Sheol— what can you know?
 ⁹ Their measure is longer than the earth
      And broader than the sea.
 ¹⁰ “If He passes by, imprisons, and gathers to judgment,
      Then who can hinder Him?
 ¹¹ For He knows deceitful men;
      He sees wickedness also.
      Will He not then consider it?
 ¹² For an empty-headed man will be wise,
      When a wild donkey’s colt is born a man.
 ¹³ “If you would prepare your heart,
      And stretch out your hands toward Him;
 ¹⁴ If iniquity were in your hand, and you put it far away,
      And would not let wickedness dwell in your tents;
 ¹⁵ Then surely you could lift up your face without spot;
      Yes, you could be steadfast, and not fear;
 ¹⁶ Because you would forget your misery,
      And remember it as waters that have passed away,
 ¹⁷ And your life would be brighter than noonday.
      Though you were dark, you would be like the morning.
 ¹⁸ And you would be secure, because there is hope;
      Yes, you would dig around you, and take your rest in safety.
 ¹⁹ You would also lie down, and no one would make you afraid;
      Yes, many would court your favor.
 ²⁰ But the eyes of the wicked will fail,
      And they shall not escape,
      And their hope—loss of life!”

Job's Grief

As Job started to grief, we firstly see Job being consoled by his 3 friends, Eliphaz, Bildad and Zophar. In Job 2:13 we see one of the best ways for friends to provide comfort by just being there for support, not needing to say anything in particular.


In Job 3 we can see Job's griefing process involve a lot of self-pitying thoughts. Most of us felt like this one degree or other at some time in our lives. Although Job sounded quite extreme, to the point of questioning whether he should be born, one of the best thing about Job is that he was not blaming God, even though he believed God was responsible.


Verse 23 reference to light, seems to show that Job realized that God had great favor on him, and also hinting that he knows about God's Hedge of protection around him. Perhaps like us sometimes, Job doesn't fully understand why disaster is happening in his life, but the good thing about Job is that he realizes that he is favored by God.






Job 2:
¹¹ Now when Job’s three friends heard of all this adversity that had come upon him, each one came from his own place—Eliphaz the Temanite, Bildad the Shuhite, and Zophar the Naamathite. For they had made an appointment together to come and mourn with him, and to comfort him. ¹² And when they raised their eyes from afar, and did not recognize him, they lifted their voices and wept; and each one tore his robe and sprinkled dust on his head toward heaven. ¹³ So they sat down with him on the ground seven days and seven nights, and no one spoke a word to him, for they saw that his grief was very great.


Job 3:


¹ After this Job opened his mouth and cursed the day of his birth. ² And Job spoke, and said:
 ³ “May the day perish on which I was born,
      And the night in which it was said, 

      ‘A male child is conceived.’
 ⁴ May that day be darkness;
      May God above not seek it,
      Nor the light shine upon it.
 ⁵ May darkness and the shadow of death claim it;
      May a cloud settle on it;
      May the blackness of the day terrify it.
 ⁶ As for that night, may darkness seize it;
      May it not rejoice^[a] among the days of the year,
      May it not come into the number of the months.
 ⁷ Oh, may that night be barren!
      May no joyful shout come into it!
 ⁸ May those curse it who curse the day,
      Those who are ready to arouse Leviathan.
 ⁹ May the stars of its morning be dark;
      May it look for light, but have none,
      And not see the dawning of the day;
 ¹⁰ Because it did not shut up the doors of my mother’s womb,
      Nor hide sorrow from my eyes.
 ¹¹ “Why did I not die at birth?
      Why did I not perish when I came from the womb?
 ¹² Why did the knees receive me?
      Or why the breasts, that I should nurse?
 ¹³ For now I would have lain still and been quiet,
      I would have been asleep;
      Then I would have been at rest
 ¹⁴ With kings and counselors of the earth,
      Who built ruins for themselves,
 ¹⁵ Or with princes who had gold,
      Who filled their houses with silver;
 ¹⁶ Or why was I not hidden like a stillborn child,
      Like infants who never saw light?
 ¹⁷ There the wicked cease from troubling,
      And there the weary are at rest.
 ¹⁸ There the prisoners rest together;
      They do not hear the voice of the oppressor.
 ¹⁹ The small and great are there,
      And the servant is free from his master.
 ²⁰ “Why is light given to him who is in misery,
      And life to the bitter of soul,
 ²¹ Who long for death, but it does not come,
      And search for it more than hidden treasures;
 ²² Who rejoice exceedingly,
      And are glad when they can find the grave?
 ²³ Why is light given to a man whose way is hidden,
      And whom God has hedged in?
 ²⁴ For my sighing comes before I eat,^[b]
      And my groanings pour out like water.
 ²⁵ For the thing I greatly feared has come upon me,
      And what I dreaded has happened to me.
 ²⁶ I am not at ease, nor am I quiet;
      I have no rest, for trouble comes.”