Job 11
Zophar: Shame on you, Job
Shame on you for insulting God
1Zophar from Naamah [1] replied to Job.2A volley of words like that needs answered. Right?
You can’t shoot your guilt out of the sky with words.
3Should we keep quiet and let you babble on?
When you insult God like you just did,
Shouldn’t someone work up the courage to say,
“Shame on you, Job”?
4You sit there and say,
“I’m a good guy,
On good terms with God.”
5I wish God would speak up
And share some insights with you.
6There’s mystery in the way God works.
If he could reveal some of that to you,
Maybe you’d realize that your tragedies,
Which God used to punish you,
Are less than you deserve.
7Have you solved the mysteries of God?
Do you now know everything the Almighty God [2] knows?
8God's knowledge rises higher than heaven.
What about you? What can you do?
His knowledge dives deeper than the underworld. [3]
How deep does your knowledge go?
9His knowledge stretches wider than the world
And longer than the sea.
Don’t be a hopeless fool
10If God puts someone in prisonOr holds a person accountable another way
Who could stop him?
11He knows when a person is good for nothing.
When he sees sin, he tags it with a searing brand. [4]
12We’ll make a fool wise
When we make a jackass [5] human.
Repent and life will get better than ever
13Reset your heart to God.Go to him in prayer and talk with him.
14If you’ve got sin on your hands,
Wash your hands.
Don’t bring anything sinful into your life. Get rid of it.
15Then you can hold your head high,
Free of those blisters—
Fearless, safe, and secure.
16Then your misery will fade into history,
Water under the bridge.
17Your world will shine brighter than noontime
And your night will light up like the day.
18Your hope will give you confidence
And you’ll live safe and secure.
Your life will be protected,
And you’ll live in peace.
19You’ll settle into a life of comfort,
And no one will frighten you.
People will come to you for help.
20But the wicked can't see past their troubles.
They can't find a way of escape.
All they have left is the wish to die. [6]
Footnotes
Naamah’s location is unknown.
The Hebrew title of God used here is Shaddai.
Literally Sheol, a Hebrew word for the place of the dead. Greeks later translated the word as “Hades.”
In Job’s case, if Zophar’s theology is correct, Job’s tragedies serve as the mark that lets everyone know God considers him a sinner. That mark is as real as a branding iron that sears into his forehead the word “sinner.”
Literally a “wild ass,” which refers to several species of wild equine mammals, generally considered ancestors of domesticated donkeys. “Jackass” seems a word that best fits the insult Zophar intended. A jackass is a male donkey. In human terms, it’s a fool. Which is ironic because with that understanding, a jackass has become human, so there’s hope for a fool. But that’s probably not where Zophar was headed.
It seems clear that Zophar was talking about Job, who had just finished giving speeches saying he didn’t want to live. “I would rather choke to death” (Job 7: 15). “I wish I had been born dead on arrival” (Job 10:18).
Discussion Questions
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