Continuing in a Bible study of Job, we resume with Job still speaking. In my past studies on Job, I usually separated blog posts between speakers, but Job was especially long-winded this time, speaking for several chapters, so I will devote a blog post to each chapter.
(Job 27:1) Moreover Job continued his parable, and said, (2) "As God lives, who has taken away my justice, and the Almighty, who has vexed my soul,"
As a child, I always thought "parable" just meant "story", but it actually has a weightier meaning. The original word, "mashal" has a primitive root that means to rule or to have or make dominion over, so the sense of the word here, quoting Strong's, is that "in some original sense of superiority in mental action; properly a pithy maxim, usually of a metaphorical nature; hence a simile (as an adage, poem, discourse): - byword, like, parable, proverb."
"As God lives" begins Job's oath, but he describes God as one who has so afflicted him that he cannot be judged fairly, and therefore has made his soul bitter, as the original word translated as "vexed" also means.
3) "All the while my breath is in me, and the spirit of God in my nostrils, (4) My lips will not speak wickedness, nor my tongue utter deceit. (5) God forbid that I should justify you; till I die I will not put away my integrity from me. (6) My righteousness I hold fast, and will not let it go; my heart shall not reproach me as long as I live."
As long as Job lives, he will not speak wickedness or deceit, therefore he could never concede that his friends were correct; as he was a man of integrity, nothing could induce him to abandon his convictions. He holds fast to his integrity and uprightness, and his heart will not betray him by being false. I have to wonder if this is one of those times when God could reprimand Job. Is there a hint of self-righteousness here? I don't think it is disrespectful of Job to cling to "his righteousness", as I believe that he knew his righteousness was not his personal righteousness, but his justified righteousness before God, because he adhered to the laws of his Lord. This is the time before Jesus and men were justified by adhering to certain sacrificial laws. I think he is saying here that even though he feels he has been afflicted by God, he would never abandon God and His laws. However, I do think he threw in a self-righteous barb when he said that he, righteous Job, would never abandon his convictions even though God, the One he held to, had taken away his justice and caused the bitterness of his soul.
(7) "Let my enemy be as the wicked, and he who rises up against me like the unrighteous."
The exact meaning of this scripture is a little difficult for me. Is Job accusing his friends who reject his claim of innocence of being wicked and unrighteous? Or perhaps he is just trying to draw a distinction between himself and the wicked, the unrighteous, and the hypocrite, that he describes in the next verse. His friends have claimed that he must be a hypocrite or unrighteous because of his afflictions, so perhaps he is saying he is nothing like the wicked and considers the unrighteous enemies.
(8) "For what is the hope of the hypocrite, though he has gained, when God takes away his soul? (9) Will God hear his cry when trouble comes upon him? (10) Will he delight himself in the Almighty? Will he always call on God?"
Verse 8 reminds me of what Jesus said in Matthew 16:26, "For what is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? Or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?" Job points out that even though the wicked may prosper in this world, they have no hope of anything else in eternity. There is nothing left when God takes his soul; the wicked has nothing if he can't call on God.
(11) "I will teach you by the hand of God; what is with the Almighty I will not conceal."
Once again the NKJV, NIV, and just about every one of the newer translations, translated the first part of this verse as, "I will teach you about the hand of God". Fascinating subtle change there! That would make Job appear a self-righteous boastful man if he declared that HE would teach them about GOD! What can mortal man really know about the mind of Almighty God? What Job was saying was that "by the hand of God", or by the Holy Spirit of God, he would teach them everything Almighty God was revealing to him.
For some fascinating links about just how much NIV translators changed the original Greek texts of the Bible, see a previous study here.
(12) "Behold, all of you yourselves have seen it; why then are you so altogether vain?"
Although they did seem to get way off-track during the course of their conversations in the book of Job, remember that Job's friends were good righteous men, who more than likely knew God. Job is probably now appealing to the fact that they, too, have been lead by the Spirit of God before, so why now do they speak such nonsense of themselves?
(13) "This is the portion of a wicked man with God, and the heritage of oppressors, which they will receive from the Almighty."
Job now returns to the subject of describing the fate of the wicked.
(14) "If his children be multiplied, it is for the sword, and his offspring shall not be satisfied with bread. (15) Those who remain of him will be buried in death, and his widows shall not weep."
Job says that even if the wicked appear blessed with large families after them, those descendants will die by the sword and by famine, and no one will lament their passing.
(16) "Though he heaps up silver like dust, and piles up clothing like clay, (17) He may pile it up, but the just will wear it, and the innocent will divide the silver."
Job says that although the wicked may have piled up riches and "things" while on earth, those things will be left behind to be used by the innocent. "You can't take it with you", and Job has already stated that the wicked's descendants will neither be there to enjoy the riches.
(18) "He builds his house like a moth, and as a hut that the keeper makes."
The obvious meaning is akin to Jesus's example of a man who builds his house on sand. It is only temporary and has no real foundation. However, the theologian Albert Barnes took it a step further. The house of a moth is made of wool from the clothing of others upon which it fed. Could that be the more complete picture Job is trying to illustrate here? The house of the wicked that was obtained at the expense of others is only temporary.
(19) "The rich man will lie down, but he will not be gathered; he opens his eyes, and he is no more."
Job means the rich that are wicked will die, and will not be honorably buried. The expression, "to be gathered to one’s fathers", is seen frequently in the Bible, and probably denotes a peaceful and respectful burial among family. Additionally, the wicked man's life is fleeting; in the twinkling of an eye he is no more.
(20) "Terrors overtake him like a flood; a tempest steals him away in the night. (21) The east wind carries him away, and he departs, and as a storm it hurls him out of his place. (22) For it will cast upon him and not spare; he would gladly flee out of its hand (if he could)."
The KJV reads this way: "For God shall cast upon him, and not spare: he would fain flee out of his hand." The KJV translators read the pronoun "his" instead of "its" and decided the verse must be describing the hand of "God", who, of course, is the source of all that happens to the wicked. However, "God" is italicized, so the KJV translators let us know that they are the ones who added "God" to the verse. I see no reason that the verse couldn't be continuing the thought that the storm will hurl against the wicked and not spare him. Obviously, God is the one who uses the storm to hurl against the wicked, so either translation works. Old Noah Webster wrote that "fain" meant "gladly" and even used this scripture from the Bible in his old dictionary. The wicked would gladly flee, but obviously, he can't.
(23) "Men will clap their hands at him, and will hiss him out of his place."
The word translated as "hiss" also means to whistle, so I believe the context here is that men will cheer and jeer when the wicked are dead and gone.
Job's friends have tried to maintain that righteous men prosper and that the wicked fall, and that his afflictions are a good indication of which he has to be. Job previously spoke at length about how the wicked prosper in this world, and seeks to prove that sometimes they fall after this life on this earth, in ways that are not always obvious to the present human eye. He knows and agrees that ultimately the wicked do fall, but his friends' assessment of his situation as a black and white example of this does not hold water.
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