In the midst of his plenty, he will be distressed; the full force of misery will come upon him. In the midst of his plenty, he will be distressed;This phrase highlights the transient nature of wealth and prosperity. In the biblical context, Job's friends, including Zophar who speaks in this chapter, often equate material wealth with divine favor and suffering with divine punishment. However, this statement challenges that notion by suggesting that even in abundance, one can experience distress. This reflects the broader biblical theme that true security and peace come from God, not material possessions ( Proverbs 11:28, Matthew 6:19-21). Historically, the ancient Near East was a region where wealth was often measured in livestock, land, and servants, and losing these could lead to significant distress. This phrase also foreshadows the New Testament teaching that earthly treasures are temporary and can lead to spiritual peril ( Luke 12:15-21). the full force of misery will come upon him.
This part of the verse emphasizes the inevitability and completeness of the suffering that will befall the wicked. In the context of Job, Zophar is asserting that those who seem prosperous but are unrighteous will ultimately face divine retribution. This reflects the retributive justice theology common in the wisdom literature of the Old Testament, where actions are believed to have direct consequences (Psalm 37:35-36, Proverbs 22:8). The phrase "full force of misery" suggests an overwhelming and inescapable suffering, which can be seen as a type of the ultimate judgment that is fulfilled in the New Testament (Revelation 20:11-15). This also points to the eschatological hope that God will ultimately set things right, a theme that runs throughout Scripture and finds its fulfillment in the person and work of Jesus Christ, who offers redemption and relief from ultimate misery (John 3:16-17). Persons / Places / Events 1. Zophar the NaamathiteOne of Job's three friends who comes to comfort him. Zophar is known for his harsh and direct speeches, often emphasizing God's justice and the consequences of sin. 2. JobThe central figure of the Book of Job, a man known for his righteousness and suffering. Job's account explores themes of suffering, justice, and faithfulness. 3. The Land of UzThe setting of the Book of Job, traditionally considered to be in the region of Edom or northern Arabia. It serves as the backdrop for Job's trials and dialogues with his friends. 4. The DialogueThe Book of Job is structured around dialogues between Job and his friends, including Zophar, who speaks in this passage. These dialogues explore deep theological and philosophical questions about suffering and divine justice. 5. The Concept of Divine JusticeA central theme in the Book of Job, where the friends argue that suffering is a result of sin, while Job maintains his innocence. Teaching Points The Illusion of Security in WealthWealth and abundance can create a false sense of security. True security is found in God alone. The Reality of Divine JusticeGod's justice may not always align with human understanding. Trust in His ultimate wisdom and timing. The Danger of Misjudging OthersLike Zophar, we must be cautious not to assume that others' suffering is due to their sin. Compassion and understanding are crucial. The Importance of Spiritual RichesFocus on accumulating spiritual wealth, which is eternal, rather than material wealth, which is temporary. The Role of Suffering in Spiritual GrowthSuffering can be a tool for spiritual growth and deeper reliance on God, rather than merely a punishment for sin. Bible Study Questions 1. How does Zophar's perspective on wealth and distress challenge or affirm your own views on material abundance? 2. In what ways can we ensure that our security is rooted in God rather than in our possessions? 3. How can we apply the lessons from Job's account to our understanding of suffering and divine justice in our own lives? 4. What are some practical steps we can take to accumulate spiritual wealth in our daily lives? 5. How can we cultivate a compassionate attitude towards those who are suffering, avoiding the pitfalls of judgment seen in Job's friends? Connections to Other Scriptures Proverbs 11:28This verse warns that those who trust in their riches will fall, similar to Zophar's assertion that distress will come upon the wealthy. Luke 12:16-21Jesus' parable of the rich fool echoes the idea that earthly abundance can lead to spiritual poverty and unexpected distress. 1 Timothy 6:9-10Paul warns about the dangers of desiring wealth, which can lead to ruin and destruction, paralleling Zophar's warning of distress in the midst of plenty. People Job, ZopharPlaces UzTopics Care, Cramped, Distress, Force, Full, Fullness, Fulness, Meet, Misery, Overtake, Perverse, Plenty, Straitened, Straits, Suffers, Sufficiency, Trouble, Wealth, Wicked, WretchedDictionary of Bible Themes Job 20:20-23 5185 stomach Library June 9 Evening
The triumphing of the wicked is short.--JOB 20:5. Thou shalt bruise his heel.--This is your hour, and the power of darkness.--As the children are partakers of flesh and blood he also himself likewise took part of the same; that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil.--Having spoiled principalities and powers, he made a shew of them openly, triumphing over them in it. Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about …
Anonymous—Daily Light on the Daily PathThe Christian Urged To, and Assisted In, an Express Act of Self-Dedication to the Service of God.
1. The advantages of such a surrender are briefly suggested.-- 2, 3, 4. Advice for the manner of doing it; that it be deliberate, cheerful, entire, perpetual.--5. And that it be expressed with some affecting solemnity.--6. A written instrument to be signed and declared before God, at some season of extraordinary devotion, reposed. The chapter concludes with a specimen of such an instrument, together with an abstract of it, to be used with proper and requisite alterations. 1. AS I would hope, that, …
Philip Doddridge—The Rise and Progress of Religion in the Soul Whether the Ashes from which the Human Body Will be Restored have any Natural Inclination Towards the Soul which Will be United to Them?
Objection 1: It would seem that the ashes from which the human body will be restored will have a natural inclination towards the soul which will be united to them. For if they had no inclination towards the soul, they would stand in the same relation to that soul as other ashes. Therefore it would make no difference whether the body that is to be united to that soul were restored from those ashes or from others: and this is false. Objection 2: Further, the body is more dependent on the soul than …
Saint Thomas Aquinas—Summa Theologica God.
GLORY OF GOD. God is the chief good--good so as nothing is but himself. He is in himself most happy; yea, all good and all true happiness are only to be found in God, as that which is essential to his nature; nor is there any good or any happiness in or with any creature or thing but what is communicated to it by God. God is the only desirable good; nothing without him is worthy of our hearts. Right thoughts of God are able to ravish the heart; how much more happy is the man that has interest in …
John Bunyan—The Riches of Bunyan The Hardening Operation of Love.
"Being grieved for the hardness of their heart."--Mark iii. 5. Love may also be reversed. Failing to cherish, to uplift, and to enrich, it consumes and destroys. This is a mystery which man can not fathom. It belongs to the unsearchable depths of the divine Being, of which we do not wish to know more than has been revealed. But this does not alter the fact. No creature can exclude itself from the divine control. No man can say that he has nothing to do with God; that he or any other creature exists …
Abraham Kuyper—The Work of the Holy Spirit Tit. 2:06 Thoughts for Young Men
WHEN St. Paul wrote his Epistle to Titus about his duty as a minister, he mentioned young men as a class requiring peculiar attention. After speaking of aged men and aged women, and young women, he adds this pithy advice, "Young men likewise exhort to be sober-minded" (Tit. 2:6). I am going to follow the Apostle's advice. I propose to offer a few words of friendly exhortation to young men. I am growing old myself, but there are few things I remember so well as the days of my youth. I have a most …
John Charles Ryle—The Upper Room: Being a Few Truths for the Times The Barren Fig-Tree;
OR, THE DOOM AND DOWNFALL OF THE FRUITLESS PROFESSOR: SHOWING, THAT THE DAY OF GRACE MAY BE PAST WITH HIM LONG BEFORE HIS LIFE IS ENDED; THE SIGNS ALSO BY WHICH SUCH MISERABLE MORTALS MAY BE KNOWN. BY JOHN BUNYAN 'Who being dead, yet speaketh.'--Hebrews 11:4 London: Printed for J. Robinson, at the Golden Lion, in St. Paul's Churchyard, 1688. This Title has a broad Black Border. ADVERTISEMENT BY THE EDITOR. This solemn, searching, awful treatise, was published by Bunyan in 1682; but does not appear …
John Bunyan—The Works of John Bunyan Volumes 1-3 A Few Sighs from Hell;
or, The Groans of the Damned Soul: or, An Exposition of those Words in the Sixteenth of Luke, Concerning the Rich Man and the Beggar WHEREIN IS DISCOVERED THE LAMENTABLE STATE OF THE DAMNED; THEIR CRIES, THEIR DESIRES IN THEIR DISTRESSES, WITH THE DETERMINATION OF GOD UPON THEM. A GOOD WARNING WORD TO SINNERS, BOTH OLD AND YOUNG, TO TAKE INTO CONSIDERATION BETIMES, AND TO SEEK, BY FAITH IN JESUS CHRIST, TO AVOID, LEST THEY COME INTO THE SAME PLACE OF TORMENT. Also, a Brief Discourse touching the …
John Bunyan—The Works of John Bunyan Volumes 1-3 An Exhortation to Love God
1. An exhortation. Let me earnestly persuade all who bear the name of Christians to become lovers of God. "O love the Lord, all ye his saints" (Psalm xxxi. 23). There are but few that love God: many give Him hypocritical kisses, but few love Him. It is not so easy to love God as most imagine. The affection of love is natural, but the grace is not. Men are by nature haters of God (Rom. i. 30). The wicked would flee from God; they would neither be under His rules, nor within His reach. They fear God, …
Thomas Watson—A Divine Cordial Man's Misery by the Fall
Q-19: WHAT IS THE MISERY OF THAT ESTATE WHEREINTO MAN FELL? A: All mankind by their fall lost communion with God, are under his wrath and curse, and so made liable to all the miseries in this life, to death itself, and to the pains of hell for ever. 'And were by nature children of wrath.' Eph 2:2. Adam left an unhappy portion to his posterity, Sin and Misery. Having considered the first of these, original sin, we shall now advert to the misery of that state. In the first, we have seen mankind offending; …
Thomas Watson—A Body of Divinity Job
The book of Job is one of the great masterpieces of the world's literature, if not indeed the greatest. The author was a man of superb literary genius, and of rich, daring, and original mind. The problem with which he deals is one of inexhaustible interest, and his treatment of it is everywhere characterized by a psychological insight, an intellectual courage, and a fertility and brilliance of resource which are nothing less than astonishing. Opinion has been divided as to how the book should be …
John Edgar McFadyen—Introduction to the Old Testament Links Job 20:22 NIVJob 20:22 NLTJob 20:22 ESVJob 20:22 NASBJob 20:22 KJV
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