Job 20
Legacy Standard Bible
Zophar Says the Joy of the Wicked Is Short
20 Then Zophar the Naamathite answered and said,
2 “Therefore my disquieting thoughts make me [a]respond,
Even because of my haste within me.
3 I listened to (A)the discipline which dishonors me,
And the spirit of my understanding makes me answer.
4 Do you know this from (B)of old,
From the establishment of man on earth,
5 That the (C)shouts of joy of the wicked are short,
And (D)the gladness of the godless momentary?
6 Though his loftiness (E)goes up to the heavens,
And his head touches the clouds,
7 He (F)perishes forever like his refuse;
Those who have seen him (G)will say, ‘Where is he?’
8 He flies away like a (H)dream, and they cannot find him;
Even like a vision of the night he is (I)chased away.
9 The (J)eye which saw him sees him no longer,
And (K)his place no longer beholds him.
10 His (L)sons seek the favor of the poor,
And his hands (M)give back his wealth.
11 His (N)bones are full of his youthful vigor,
But it lies down with him [b]in the dust.
12 “Though (O)evil is sweet in his mouth
And he hides it under his tongue,
13 Though he [c]desires it and will not forsake it,
And holds it (P)to his palate,
14 Yet his food in his stomach is changed
To the [d]venom of cobras within him.
15 He swallows up wealth,
But will (Q)vomit it up;
God will expel it from his belly.
16 He sucks (R)the poison of cobras;
The viper’s tongue kills him.
17 He does not look at (S)the streams,
The rivers flowing with honey and curds.
18 He (T)returns what he has attained
And cannot swallow it;
As to the wealth of his trading,
He cannot even enjoy it.
19 For he has (U)crushed and forsaken the poor;
He has seized a house which he has not built.
20 “Because he knew no ease within his belly,
In his covetousness, he does (V)not let anything escape.
21 Nothing remains [e]for him to devour;
Therefore (W)his prosperity does not endure.
22 In the fullness of his plenty he will be confined;
The (X)hand of everyone who is troubled will come against him.
23 So it will be that he (Y)fills his belly,
And God will send His burning anger on him
And will (Z)rain it on him [f]while he is eating.
24 He may (AA)flee from the iron weapon,
But the bronze bow will pierce him.
25 It is drawn forth and comes out of his back,
Even the glittering point from (AB)his gall;
(AC)Bouts of dread come upon him.
26 Complete (AD)darkness is held in reserve for his treasures;
A (AE)fire unfanned will devour him;
It will consume the survivor in his tent.
27 The (AF)heavens will reveal his iniquity,
And the earth will rise up against him.
28 The (AG)increase of his house will depart;
His possessions will flow away (AH)in the day of His anger.
29 This is the wicked man’s (AI)portion from God,
Even the inheritance decreed to him by God.”
Job 20
Holman Christian Standard Bible
Zophar Speaks
20 Then Zophar the Naamathite(A) replied:
2 This is why my unsettling thoughts compel me to answer,
because I am upset![a]
3 I have heard a rebuke that insults me,
and my understanding[b] makes me reply.(B)
4 Don’t you know that ever since antiquity,
from the time man was placed on earth,
5 the joy of the wicked has been brief
and the happiness of the godless has lasted only a moment?(C)
6 Though his arrogance reaches heaven,
and his head touches the clouds,(D)
7 he will vanish forever like his own dung.
Those who know[c] him will ask, “Where is he?”(E)
8 He will fly away like a dream and never be found;
he will be chased away like a vision in the night.(F)
9 The eye that saw him will see him no more,(G)
and his household will no longer see him.(H)
10 His children will beg from[d] the poor,
for his own hands must give back his wealth.
11 His bones may be full of youthful vigor,
but will lie down with him in the grave.(I)
12 Though evil tastes sweet in his mouth
and he conceals it under his tongue,
13 though he cherishes it and will not let it go
but keeps it in his mouth,(J)
14 yet the food in his stomach turns
into cobras’ venom inside him.
15 He swallows wealth but must vomit it up;
God will force it from his stomach.
16 He will suck the poison of cobras;
a viper’s fangs[e] will kill him.(K)
17 He will not enjoy the streams,
the rivers flowing with honey and cream.(L)
18 He must return the fruit of his labor without consuming it;
he doesn’t enjoy the profits from his trading.
19 For he oppressed and abandoned the poor;
he seized a house he did not build.(M)
20 Because his appetite is never satisfied,[f]
he does not let anything he desires escape.
21 Nothing is left for him to consume;(N)
therefore, his prosperity will not last.
22 At the height of his success[g] distress will come to him;(O)
the full weight of misery[h] will crush him.
23 When he fills his stomach,
God will send His burning anger against him,
raining(P) it down on him while he is eating.[i]
24 If he flees from an iron weapon,
an arrow from a bronze bow will pierce him.
25 He pulls it out of his back,
the flashing tip out of his liver.[j]
Terrors come over him.(Q)
26 Total darkness is reserved for his treasures.
A fire unfanned by human hands will consume(R) him;
it will feed on what is left in his tent.
27 The heavens will expose his iniquity,(S)
and the earth will rise up against him.(T)
28 The possessions in his house will be removed,
flowing away on the day of God’s anger.
29 This is the wicked man’s lot(U) from God,
the inheritance God ordained for him.
Footnotes
- Job 20:2 Lit because of my feeling within me
- Job 20:3 Lit and a spirit from my understanding
- Job 20:7 Lit have seen
- Job 20:10 Or children must compensate
- Job 20:16 Lit tongue
- Job 20:20 Lit Because he does not know ease in his stomach
- Job 20:22 Lit In the fullness of his excess
- Job 20:22 Some Hb mss, LXX, Vg; other Hb mss read the hand of everyone in misery
- Job 20:23 Text emended; MT reads him, against his flesh
- Job 20:25 Or gallbladder
Legacy Standard Bible Copyright ©2021 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved. Managed in partnership with Three Sixteen Publishing Inc. LSBible.org For Permission to Quote Information visit https://www.LSBible.org.
Copyright © 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2009 by Holman Bible Publishers, Nashville Tennessee. All rights reserved.