Job 16
Job 16 begins as Job responds to his friends once again. Disappointed with the argument of his earlier friend Eliphaz, Job says that their comfort only adds to his suffering. The text can be divided into Job’s deep sense of loss regarding what his friends say (verses 1–5), his severe suffering (verses 6–14), and his plea to God (verses 15–22).
1verseThen Job answered,
2verse“I have heard many such things. You are all miserable comforters!
3verseShall vain words have an end? Or what provokes you that you answer?
4verseI also could speak as you do. If your soul were in my soul’s place, I could join words together against you, and shake my head at you,
5versebut I would strengthen you with my mouth. The solace of my lips would relieve you.
6verse“Though I speak, my grief is not subsided. Though I forbear, what am I eased?
7verseBut now, God, you have surely worn me out. You have made all my company desolate.
8verseYou have shriveled me up. This is a witness against me. My leanness rises up against me. It testifies to my face.
9verseHe has torn me in his wrath and persecuted me. He has gnashed on me with his teeth. My adversary sharpens his eyes on me.
10verseThey have gaped on me with their mouth. They have struck me on the cheek reproachfully. They gather themselves together against me.
11verseGod delivers me to the ungodly, and casts me into the hands of the wicked.
12verseI was at ease, and he broke me apart. Yes, he has taken me by the neck, and dashed me to pieces. He has also set me up for his target.
13verseHis archers surround me. He splits my kidneys apart, and does not spare. He pours out my bile on the ground.
14verseHe breaks me with breach on breach. He runs at me like a giant.
15verseI have sewed sackcloth on my skin, and have thrust my horn in the dust.
16verseMy face is red with weeping. Deep darkness is on my eyelids,
17versealthough there is no violence in my hands, and my prayer is pure.
18verse“Earth, don’t cover my blood. Let my cry have no place to rest.
19verseEven now, behold, my witness is in heaven. He who vouches for me is on high.
20verseMy friends scoff at me. My eyes pour out tears to God,
21versethat he would maintain the right of a man with God, of a son of man with his neighbor!
22verseFor when a few years have come, I will go the way of no return.
Job’s Wounds and Confession to His Friends
Job feels frustrated that his friends accuse him and do not understand him. He describes their words as meager comfort (verses 2–3) and challenges them by saying that if their positions were reversed, he would have been ready to comfort them (verses 4–5). This shows how important empathy is for those who are suffering.
Job’s Description of Real Suffering
From verse 6 onward, Job depicts his suffering plainly. He honestly admits that his words are not bringing him comfort, and he expresses feelings as if God were attacking him (verses 7–14). Such descriptions reveal the deep sorrow and despair that a person experiences in the midst of hardship.
Job’s Cry to God and His Hope
Starting in verse 15, Job pours out his heart with an attitude of mourning and pleading. He mentions a faint hope that there will be a heavenly “intercessor” and “witness” (verses 19–21), revealing his hope that his desperate cries will reach heaven. Even in a tragic reality, his determination not to let go of God is striking.
Meditation Points
- When delivering comfort to someone who is going through difficulty, think again about why sincere empathy and attentive listening are so important.
- Between the despair and cries Job experienced, you can meditate on the traces of faith that does not abandon God.
Try Applying It to Yourself
- In my own life, in places of suffering like Job’s, I reflect on the attitude of the comfort I offer.
- I learn the courage to hold onto hope even amid pain and to bring my heart honestly to God.
