Job 21 - Introduction

TODAY'S ENGLISH VERSION

2 Listen to what I am saying;

that is all the comfort I ask from you.

3 Give me a chance to speak and then,

when I am through, sneer if you like.

4 My quarrel is not with mortal men;

I have good reason to be impatient.

5 Look at me. Isn-'t that enough

to make you stare in shocked silence?

6 When I think of what has happened to me,

I am stunned, and I tremble and shake.

7 Why does God let evil men grow old and prosper?
8 Their children and grandchildren

grow up before their very eyes.

9 God does not bring disaster on their homes;

they never have to live in terror.

10 Yes, all their cattle breed

and give birth without trouble.

11 Their children run and play like lambs

12 and dance to the music of harps and flutes.
13 They live out their lives in peace,

and die quietly without suffering.

14 The wicked tell God to leave them alone;

they don-'t want to know his will for their lives.

15 They think there is no need to serve God,

or any advantage in praying to him.

16 They claim they succeed by their own strength,

but their way of thinking I can-'t accept.

17 Was a wicked man's light ever put out?

Did one of them ever meet with disaster?

Did God ever punish the wicked in anger

18 and make them like straw blown by the wind

or like dust carried away in a storm?

19 You claim God punishes a child for the sins of his father.

No! Let God punish the sinners themselves,

and show he does it because of their sins.

20 Let sinners bear their own punishment;

let them feel the wrath of Almighty God.

21 When a man's life is over,

does he really care if his children are happy?

22 Can a man teach God?

Can a man judge Almighty God?

23-24 Some men stay healthy till the day they die;

they die happy and at ease,
and their bodies are well-nourished.

25 Others have no happiness at all;

they live and die with bitter hearts.

26 But all alike die and are buried;

they all are covered with worms.

27 I know what spiteful things you think.
28 You ask, Where is the house of the great man now,

the man who practiced evil?

29 Haven-'t you talked with people who travel?

Don-'t you know the reports they bring back?

30 On the day when God is angry and punishes,

it is the wicked man who is always spared.

31 There is no one to accuse a wicked man,

or pay him back for all he has done.

32 When he is carried to the graveyard,

to where his tomb is guarded,

33 thousands join the funeral procession,

and even the earth lies gently on his body.

34 And you! You try to comfort me with nonsense!

Everything you have said is a lie!

QUESTIONS FOR DISCUSSION 21:1-34

422.

This speech of Job has some distinctive features. Name three of them. Discuss.

423.

How does Job define real consolation?

424.

Give the three answers of Job to the so-called universal principle of retributive justice.

425.

To whom is verse three addressed?

426.

Why is Job impatient with God?

427.

What is meant by laying one's hand on his mouth? Why does Job shudder?

428.

Are only the righteous happy and prosperous? Discuss the contradiction of this in real life.

429.

Job really attacks and refutes the arguments of Bildad. Show how.

430.

Job sets the security of the wicked against what argument?

431.

The American Dream is invalid in verse ten. Discuss.

432.

Joy, singing, dancing are all expressions of both the righteous and the wicked. Explain.

433.

What is the point of Job 21:13?

434.

What is the basis for totalitarianism? Discuss.

435.

Explain in your own words the meaning of Job 21:16.

436.

Job wants to know how often the wicked suffer. Why?

437.

What is the proverb considered in Job 21:19? How answer it? Cf. Job 21:20.

438.

How does the thought that a dead man has no interest in his home relate to the point of these verses?

439.

There is dissimilarity, but not according to the definition of Job's friends. What is the real difference among men?

440.

How are all men alike? Discuss.

441.

Isn-'t there any evident connection between happiness and virtue?

442.

Who is the prince of Job 21:28? How will the wayfarer answer this question? Discuss.

443.

The wicked are actually, at times, led to safety instead of wrath. Why?

444.

Who is involved in Job 21:31? What is the point?