American King James Version - AKJV - 1999
Job 20
3
I have heard the check of my reproach, and the spirit of my understanding causes me to answer.
4
Know you not this of old, since man was placed on earth,
5
That the triumphing of the wicked is short, and the joy of the hypocrite but for a moment?
6
Though his excellency mount up to the heavens, and his head reach to the clouds;
Reference
Parallel theme
Genesis 11:4
7
Yet he shall perish for ever like his own dung: they which have seen him shall say, Where is he?
Reference
Parallel theme
Psalm 83:10
Job 14:10
1 Kings 14:10
2 Kings 9:37
Job 4:20
Job 7:10
Job 8:18
Jeremiah 8:2
8
He shall fly away as a dream, and shall not be found: yes, he shall be chased away as a vision of the night.
Reference
9
The eye also which saw him shall see him no more; neither shall his place any more behold him.
Reference
13
Though he spare it, and forsake it not; but keep it still within his mouth:
14
Yet his meat in his bowels is turned, it is the gall of asps within him.
Reference
Parallel theme
Romans 3:13
15
He has swallowed down riches, and he shall vomit them up again: God shall cast them out of his belly.
Reference
Parallel theme
Proverbs 23:8
16
He shall suck the poison of asps: the viper's tongue shall slay him.
Reference
Parallel theme
Romans 3:13
17
He shall not see the rivers, the floods, the brooks of honey and butter.
Reference
Parallel theme
Job 29:6
18
That which he labored for shall he restore, and shall not swallow it down: according to his substance shall the restitution be, and he shall not rejoice therein.
Reference
19
Because he has oppressed and has forsaken the poor; because he has violently taken away an house which he built not;
Reference
20
Surely he shall not feel quietness in his belly, he shall not save of that which he desired.
21
There shall none of his meat be left; therefore shall no man look for his goods.
22
In the fullness of his sufficiency he shall be in straits: every hand of the wicked shall come on him.
23
When he is about to fill his belly, God shall cast the fury of his wrath on him, and shall rain it on him while he is eating.
Reference
Judgment
Numbers 11:33
25
It is drawn, and comes out of the body; yes, the glittering sword comes out of his gall: terrors are on him.
Reference
26
All darkness shall be hid in his secret places: a fire not blown shall consume him; it shall go ill with him that is left in his tabernacle.
Reference
Darkness
Isaiah 8:22
Matthew 8:12
Jude 1:13
Parallel theme
Psalm 21:9
Psalm 120:4
Isaiah 30:33
Matthew 3:12
28
The increase of his house shall depart, and his goods shall flow away in the day of his wrath.
Summary of Job 20
Job Chapter 20 contains Zophar's second response to Job and presents one of the strongest statements in the book about the temporary nature of wicked prosperity. Zophar is deeply convinced that the wicked may appear successful for a short time, but their success will inevitably end in humiliation, loss, and destruction. His speech is confident, forceful, and highly structured, but it also reveals the growing problem at the center of the friends' reasoning: they continue to apply a general principle about wicked people directly to Job without proving that Job belongs in that category.
Zophar begins by explaining that he feels compelled to answer Job. He believes Job has challenged the wisdom of his friends, and therefore he must defend the traditional understanding that he considers established from ancient times. His argument is based on a simple principle: evil may prosper temporarily, but evil cannot prosper permanently.
From there, Zophar describes the apparent success of a wicked person. Such a person may become powerful, wealthy, proud, and influential, but the success is temporary. Zophar compares it to a dream that disappears when a person wakes. The wicked person's greatness may seem impressive for a while, but eventually it becomes impossible to find any trace of him.
The chapter repeatedly emphasizes the reversal of prosperity. Wealth will be taken away, children may be forced to return what was wrongly obtained, physical strength will disappear, and the person's reputation will vanish. Zophar's argument is that the wicked person cannot ultimately keep what was acquired through wrongdoing.
One of the strongest images in the chapter compares wicked pleasure to sweet food that turns into poison. Evil may initially feel attractive and satisfying, but its consequences eventually become destructive. Zophar develops this idea by describing swallowed wealth, snake venom, lost prosperity, and an appetite that can never be satisfied.
He also identifies a specific cause of the wicked person's downfall: the oppression of the poor. According to Zophar, the wicked person has taken advantage of vulnerable people and benefited from things he did not rightfully earn. His wealth therefore carries within it the seeds of his own destruction.
The second half of the chapter becomes increasingly dramatic. Zophar describes the wicked person as being surrounded by danger. When he escapes one weapon, another awaits him. When he believes he is safe, destruction suddenly arrives. Darkness covers his treasures, fire consumes his household, and heaven and earth become witnesses against him.
The historical imagery reflects an ancient world familiar with warfare, agriculture, wealth accumulation, household inheritance, poverty, trade, hunting, disease, and sudden destruction. Images of iron and bronze weapons, poisonous snakes, flowing streams, food, fire, and ruined households would have been immediately understandable to an ancient audience.
The chapter's final conclusion is that this destruction is the appointed portion of the wicked. Zophar believes he has demonstrated an unchanging law of divine justice.
However, the larger context of the book makes his argument problematic.
Zophar's description of the wicked person sounds remarkably similar to the accusations already made against Job. Job has lost his wealth, family, health, social position, and security. Zophar describes a person whose wealth disappears, whose household is destroyed, whose body suffers, and whose former prosperity is completely reversed.
The implication is difficult to miss: Zophar is effectively explaining Job's suffering as the fate of a wicked person.
But Job has consistently denied that explanation.
This creates an important tension. Zophar is correct that greed, oppression, pride, and injustice can have destructive consequences. His observations contain genuine wisdom. The problem is that he assumes the principle works mechanically in every individual case. If someone suffers greatly, Zophar assumes that person must have committed corresponding wrongdoing.
The book of Job is challenging precisely this assumption.
The central theme of Chapter 20 is the temporary nature of wicked prosperity and the eventual consequences of injustice, but the chapter also exposes the danger of applying that principle without understanding the full circumstances of another person's life.
Zophar believes he is defending God's justice, yet his certainty prevents him from listening to Job. Instead of asking whether his interpretation might be incomplete, he becomes increasingly confident that Job's suffering proves his guilt.
The chapter therefore deepens the conflict between Job and his friends. Zophar sees a simple moral pattern; Job's experience refuses to fit that pattern. This tension is essential to the book because it forces the reader to distinguish between believing that God is just and assuming that human beings can always identify the reason behind another person's suffering.
Job Chapter 20 ultimately shows that a true principle can still be misused when it is applied without wisdom, compassion, and knowledge of the particular situation.
Zophar begins by explaining that he feels compelled to answer Job. He believes Job has challenged the wisdom of his friends, and therefore he must defend the traditional understanding that he considers established from ancient times. His argument is based on a simple principle: evil may prosper temporarily, but evil cannot prosper permanently.
From there, Zophar describes the apparent success of a wicked person. Such a person may become powerful, wealthy, proud, and influential, but the success is temporary. Zophar compares it to a dream that disappears when a person wakes. The wicked person's greatness may seem impressive for a while, but eventually it becomes impossible to find any trace of him.
The chapter repeatedly emphasizes the reversal of prosperity. Wealth will be taken away, children may be forced to return what was wrongly obtained, physical strength will disappear, and the person's reputation will vanish. Zophar's argument is that the wicked person cannot ultimately keep what was acquired through wrongdoing.
One of the strongest images in the chapter compares wicked pleasure to sweet food that turns into poison. Evil may initially feel attractive and satisfying, but its consequences eventually become destructive. Zophar develops this idea by describing swallowed wealth, snake venom, lost prosperity, and an appetite that can never be satisfied.
He also identifies a specific cause of the wicked person's downfall: the oppression of the poor. According to Zophar, the wicked person has taken advantage of vulnerable people and benefited from things he did not rightfully earn. His wealth therefore carries within it the seeds of his own destruction.
The second half of the chapter becomes increasingly dramatic. Zophar describes the wicked person as being surrounded by danger. When he escapes one weapon, another awaits him. When he believes he is safe, destruction suddenly arrives. Darkness covers his treasures, fire consumes his household, and heaven and earth become witnesses against him.
The historical imagery reflects an ancient world familiar with warfare, agriculture, wealth accumulation, household inheritance, poverty, trade, hunting, disease, and sudden destruction. Images of iron and bronze weapons, poisonous snakes, flowing streams, food, fire, and ruined households would have been immediately understandable to an ancient audience.
The chapter's final conclusion is that this destruction is the appointed portion of the wicked. Zophar believes he has demonstrated an unchanging law of divine justice.
However, the larger context of the book makes his argument problematic.
Zophar's description of the wicked person sounds remarkably similar to the accusations already made against Job. Job has lost his wealth, family, health, social position, and security. Zophar describes a person whose wealth disappears, whose household is destroyed, whose body suffers, and whose former prosperity is completely reversed.
The implication is difficult to miss: Zophar is effectively explaining Job's suffering as the fate of a wicked person.
But Job has consistently denied that explanation.
This creates an important tension. Zophar is correct that greed, oppression, pride, and injustice can have destructive consequences. His observations contain genuine wisdom. The problem is that he assumes the principle works mechanically in every individual case. If someone suffers greatly, Zophar assumes that person must have committed corresponding wrongdoing.
The book of Job is challenging precisely this assumption.
The central theme of Chapter 20 is the temporary nature of wicked prosperity and the eventual consequences of injustice, but the chapter also exposes the danger of applying that principle without understanding the full circumstances of another person's life.
Zophar believes he is defending God's justice, yet his certainty prevents him from listening to Job. Instead of asking whether his interpretation might be incomplete, he becomes increasingly confident that Job's suffering proves his guilt.
The chapter therefore deepens the conflict between Job and his friends. Zophar sees a simple moral pattern; Job's experience refuses to fit that pattern. This tension is essential to the book because it forces the reader to distinguish between believing that God is just and assuming that human beings can always identify the reason behind another person's suffering.
Job Chapter 20 ultimately shows that a true principle can still be misused when it is applied without wisdom, compassion, and knowledge of the particular situation.