Day 1,131: Job 20- Fading Fun Or Fruitful Life?

Then Zophar the Naamathite answered and said:
2 “Therefore my thoughts answer me,
    because of my haste within me.

3 I hear censure that insults me,
    and out of my understanding a spirit answers me.

4 Do you not know this from of old,
    since man was placed on earth,
5 that the exulting of the wicked is short,
    and the joy of the godless but for a moment?

6 Though his height mount up to the heavens,
    and his head reach to the clouds,
7 he will perish forever like his own dung;
    those who have seen him will say, ‘Where is he?’

8 He will fly away like a dream and not be found;
    he will be chased away like a vision of the night.

9 The eye that saw him will see him no more,
    nor will his place any more behold him.

10 His children will seek the favor of the poor,
    and his hands will give back his wealth.

11 His bones are full of his youthful vigor,
    but it will lie down with him in the dust.
 
12 “Though evil is sweet in his mouth,
    though he hides it under his tongue,
13 though he is loath to let it go
    and holds it in his mouth,
14 yet his food is turned in his stomach;
    it is the venom of cobras within him.
15 He swallows down riches and vomits them up again;
    God casts them out of his belly.

16 He will suck the poison of cobras;
    the tongue of a viper will kill him.

17 He will not look upon the rivers,
    the streams flowing with honey and curds.

18 He will give back the fruit of his toil
    and will not swallow it down;
from the profit of his trading
    he will get no enjoyment.

19 For he has crushed and abandoned the poor;
    he has seized a house that he did not build.
20 “Because he knew no contentment in his belly,
    he will not let anything in which he delights escape him.

21 There was nothing left after he had eaten;
    therefore his prosperity will not endure.
22 In the fullness of his sufficiency he will be in distress;
    the hand of everyone in misery will come against him.

23 To fill his belly to the full,
    God will send his burning anger against him
    and rain it upon him into his body.

24 He will flee from an iron weapon;
    a bronze arrow will strike him through.

25 It is drawn forth and comes out of his body;
    the glittering point comes out of his gallbladder;
    terrors come upon him.

26 Utter darkness is laid up for his treasures;
    a fire not fanned will devour him;
    what is left in his tent will be consumed.

27 The heavens will reveal his iniquity,
    and the earth will rise up against him.

28 The possessions of his house will be carried away,
    dragged off in the day of God's wrath.
29 This is the wicked man's portion from God,
    the heritage decreed for him by God.”
 
Meditation
God’s steadfast love invites you to anchor hope in Heaven. Despair awaits those whose hope is horizontal (Ecclesiastes 2:1, 20), fleeting fun that will fade to nothing. Strength from God’s steadfast love awaits those whose hope is in the Lord (Isaiah 40:31).
 
Job continues to endure “council” from his “comforters,” now on the wrong side of Zophar’s furry. Job agreed with Bildad, hell awaits those who oppose God, but insisted he does not deserve the hell he’s enduring. Zophar counters, emphasizing God’s terrifying judgement for the wicked, again misapplying it to Job. The self-righteousness of Job’s “friends” has no category for a righteous person suffering, furthering Job’s misery and proving they do not understand the core of the gospel.
 
Zophar’s doubling down on God’s wrath against the wicked is truth misapplied, more abuse for Job. Yes, the wicked are delusional and will be disappointed by fleeting fun (1-11) because “the joy of the godless is but for a moment” (5).  Yes, what the wicked taste as sweet will quickly turn to venom in their belly, riches and profit ultimately leading to pain and deeper longing (12-20). Yes, the wicked person will be overwhelmed by God’s wrath, unable to escape as they are “dragged off” when God’s wrath comes (20-28). But no, this is not Job! Job is “blameless” and “righteous,” a reality pointing forward to Christ’s suffering.
 
Jesus was “dragged off” to endure God’s wrath for the wicked so believers can be forgiven, satisfied in God’s steadfast love, and freed to seek the things that are above (Colossians 3:1).
 
Richly Dwelling
-What stands out to you about Zophar’s speech? Where does the warning against the wicked, by emphasizing God’s wrath, get traction in your heart?
 
-How does his misapplication reveal his misunderstanding of the gospel and expose his self-righteousness? Where do you identify?
 
-Jesus endured the curse of the wicked so believers can welcome abundant life in God’s steadfast love. Where do you need to respond to God’s grace by re-orienting your heart to seek the things of Heaven? Be specific.
 
Key Verse
5 that the exulting of the wicked is short, and the joy of the godless but for a moment?