New International Reader s Version - NIrV - 1996
Job 11
2
"Don't all of your words require an answer? I'm sure that what you are saying can't be right.
Reference
3
Your useless talk won't keep us quiet. Someone has to correct you when you make fun of truth.
Reference
Parallel theme
Job 17:2
5
I wish God would speak. I wish he'd answer you.
6
I wish he'd show you the secrets of wisdom. After all, true wisdom has two sides. Here's what I want you to know. God has forgotten some of your sins.
Reference
Parallel theme
Lamentations 3:22
Ephesians 3:5
Job 9:4
Matthew 13:35
References God
Ezra 9:13
Job 15:11
Job 15:8
Deuteronomy 29:29
Daniel 2:28
Sin
Job 15:5
7
"Do you know how deep the mysteries of God are? Can you discover the limits of the Mighty One's knowledge?
Reference
Parallel theme
Psalm 145:3
Psalm 77:19
Job 37:23
Job 5:9
Ephesians 3:8
References God
Ecclesiastes 3:11
Romans 11:33
Isaiah 40:28
8
They are higher than the heavens. What can you do? They are deeper than the deepest grave. What can you know?
Reference
9
They are longer than the earth. They are wider than the ocean.
10
"Suppose God comes along and puts you in prison. Suppose he takes you to court. Then who can oppose him?
Reference
11
He certainly knows when people tell lies. When he sees evil, he pays careful attention to it.
Reference
Evil
Habakkuk 1:13
Hosea 7:2
Parallel theme
Hebrews 4:13
Psalm 10:14
Revelation 2:23
Psalm 94:11
Psalm 10:11
Ecclesiastes 5:8
12
A wild donkey's colt can't be born a human being. And a man who doesn't have any sense can't become wise.
Reference
14
Get rid of all of the sin you have. Don't let anything that is evil stay in your tent.
Reference
Sin
Job 22:23
15
Then you can face others without feeling any shame. You can stand firm without being afraid.
Reference
16
You can be sure you will forget your troubles. They will be like water that has flowed on by.
Reference
18
You will be secure, because there is hope. You will look around you and find a safe place to rest.
Reference
19
You will lie down, and no one will make you afraid. Many people will want you to show them your favor.
Reference
Summary of Job 11
Job Chapter 11 introduces Zophar the Naamathite, the third of Job's friends to speak. His response is the most direct and severe so far. While Eliphaz and Bildad have already suggested that Job's suffering must have a moral explanation, Zophar openly accuses Job of speaking too much and believing himself more righteous than he really is.
Zophar begins by questioning whether Job's many words make him right. He believes Job has talked long enough and that his claims of innocence need to be challenged. Zophar wishes that God Himself would speak because, in his view, God's wisdom would expose Job's misunderstanding.
He emphasizes that God's wisdom is far beyond human understanding. God's knowledge reaches higher than the heavens, deeper than the earth, and farther than the sea. No human being can fully understand God's purposes.
This part of Zophar's argument contains an important truth: human beings cannot comprehend everything God knows. However, Zophar uses this truth to support a much more questionable conclusion—namely, that Job must be guilty because God has allowed him to suffer.
Zophar even suggests that Job is receiving less punishment than he deserves.
This is a particularly harsh accusation because the reader already knows that Job's suffering is not punishment for hidden wickedness.
Zophar then tells Job what he believes he must do. He should prepare his heart, stretch out his hands to God, remove wrongdoing from his household, and seek God sincerely. Zophar's advice assumes that Job has committed serious wrongdoing that he has not confessed.
Again, the reader knows that this assumption is incorrect.
Zophar promises that if Job repents, his situation will completely change. He will be able to lift his face without shame, forget his misery, live in the light rather than darkness, and experience hope and security again.
The imagery is strongly positive. Darkness will become like morning. Fear will disappear. Job will sleep safely. People will once again seek his favor.
But Zophar's promise is conditional:
Restoration will come only if Job admits his guilt and changes his ways.
This is the same basic theology that has appeared in the speeches of Job's other friends. They believe there is a predictable relationship between moral behavior and earthly circumstances.
The righteous should ultimately prosper.
The wicked should ultimately suffer.
Therefore, if Job is suffering, he must belong on the wrong side of that equation.
The problem is that Job's actual experience does not support their conclusion.
Zophar's speech also demonstrates how easily a correct theological principle can become a wrong judgment about an individual person. Zophar is right that God knows everything. He is right that God's wisdom is beyond human understanding. He is right that people should seek God and turn away from wrongdoing.
But he has no evidence that Job's suffering is caused by hidden sin.
Instead of listening to Job's experience, Zophar forces Job's situation into his existing belief system.
The chapter therefore increases the tension between Job and his friends. Job is looking for an explanation for suffering that does not require him to confess sins he did not commit. His friends are increasingly convinced that his insistence on innocence is itself evidence of pride.
Zophar's final warning makes the situation even more serious. He says that the wicked will lose their hope and escape, implying that Job's future depends on whether he responds correctly to his accusation.
The historical imagery reflects an ancient Near Eastern setting: prayer with raised hands, household tents, wild donkeys, agricultural life, light and darkness, and the importance of social security and reputation.
The central message of Job Chapter 11 is the danger of assuming that suffering automatically proves guilt. Zophar believes he is defending God's wisdom and justice, but his certainty prevents him from seeing Job's actual situation clearly.
Job is suffering and asking honest questions.
Zophar responds by telling him that his questions are evidence that he needs to repent.
The reader, however, knows something Zophar does not: Job's suffering is not proof of hidden wickedness.
Zophar begins by questioning whether Job's many words make him right. He believes Job has talked long enough and that his claims of innocence need to be challenged. Zophar wishes that God Himself would speak because, in his view, God's wisdom would expose Job's misunderstanding.
He emphasizes that God's wisdom is far beyond human understanding. God's knowledge reaches higher than the heavens, deeper than the earth, and farther than the sea. No human being can fully understand God's purposes.
This part of Zophar's argument contains an important truth: human beings cannot comprehend everything God knows. However, Zophar uses this truth to support a much more questionable conclusion—namely, that Job must be guilty because God has allowed him to suffer.
Zophar even suggests that Job is receiving less punishment than he deserves.
This is a particularly harsh accusation because the reader already knows that Job's suffering is not punishment for hidden wickedness.
Zophar then tells Job what he believes he must do. He should prepare his heart, stretch out his hands to God, remove wrongdoing from his household, and seek God sincerely. Zophar's advice assumes that Job has committed serious wrongdoing that he has not confessed.
Again, the reader knows that this assumption is incorrect.
Zophar promises that if Job repents, his situation will completely change. He will be able to lift his face without shame, forget his misery, live in the light rather than darkness, and experience hope and security again.
The imagery is strongly positive. Darkness will become like morning. Fear will disappear. Job will sleep safely. People will once again seek his favor.
But Zophar's promise is conditional:
Restoration will come only if Job admits his guilt and changes his ways.
This is the same basic theology that has appeared in the speeches of Job's other friends. They believe there is a predictable relationship between moral behavior and earthly circumstances.
The righteous should ultimately prosper.
The wicked should ultimately suffer.
Therefore, if Job is suffering, he must belong on the wrong side of that equation.
The problem is that Job's actual experience does not support their conclusion.
Zophar's speech also demonstrates how easily a correct theological principle can become a wrong judgment about an individual person. Zophar is right that God knows everything. He is right that God's wisdom is beyond human understanding. He is right that people should seek God and turn away from wrongdoing.
But he has no evidence that Job's suffering is caused by hidden sin.
Instead of listening to Job's experience, Zophar forces Job's situation into his existing belief system.
The chapter therefore increases the tension between Job and his friends. Job is looking for an explanation for suffering that does not require him to confess sins he did not commit. His friends are increasingly convinced that his insistence on innocence is itself evidence of pride.
Zophar's final warning makes the situation even more serious. He says that the wicked will lose their hope and escape, implying that Job's future depends on whether he responds correctly to his accusation.
The historical imagery reflects an ancient Near Eastern setting: prayer with raised hands, household tents, wild donkeys, agricultural life, light and darkness, and the importance of social security and reputation.
The central message of Job Chapter 11 is the danger of assuming that suffering automatically proves guilt. Zophar believes he is defending God's wisdom and justice, but his certainty prevents him from seeing Job's actual situation clearly.
Job is suffering and asking honest questions.
Zophar responds by telling him that his questions are evidence that he needs to repent.
The reader, however, knows something Zophar does not: Job's suffering is not proof of hidden wickedness.