Job 42
Job 42 is the conclusion of the Book of Job. It consists of Job’s response (verses 1–6) after the conversation between Job and God ends, God’s commands to Eliphaz and the friends (verses 7–9), and finally Job’s restoration and blessing (verses 10–17). This chapter presents the climax of Job’s story, which raised profound questions about God, human beings, and the meaning of suffering amid trials that came without warning.
1verseThen Job answered the LORD:
2verse“I know that you can do all things, and that no purpose of yours can be restrained.
3verseYou asked, ‘Who is this who hides counsel without knowledge?’ therefore I have uttered that which I didn’t understand, things too wonderful for me, which I didn’t know.
4verseYou said, ‘Listen, now, and I will speak; I will question you, and you will answer me.’
5verseI had heard of you by the hearing of the ear, but now my eye sees you.
6verseTherefore I abhor myself, and repent in dust and ashes.”
7verseIt was so, that after the LORD had spoken these words to Job, the LORD said to Eliphaz the Temanite, “My wrath is kindled against you, and against your two friends; for you have not spoken of me the thing that is right, as my servant Job has.
8verseNow therefore, take to yourselves seven bulls and seven rams, and go to my servant Job, and offer up for yourselves a burnt offering; and my servant Job shall pray for you, for I will accept him, that I not deal with you according to your folly. For you have not spoken of me the thing that is right, as my servant Job has.”
9verseSo Eliphaz the Temanite and Bildad the Shuhite and Zophar the Naamathite went and did what the LORD commanded them, and the LORD accepted Job.
10verseThe LORD restored Job’s prosperity when he prayed for his friends. The LORD gave Job twice as much as he had before.
11verseThen all his brothers, all his sisters, and all those who had been of his acquaintance before, came to him and ate bread with him in his house. They comforted him, and consoled him concerning all the evil that the LORD had brought on him. Everyone also gave him a piece of money, and everyone a ring of gold.
12verseSo the LORD blessed the latter end of Job more than his beginning. He had fourteen thousand sheep, six thousand camels, one thousand yoke of oxen, and a thousand female donkeys.
13verseHe had also seven sons and three daughters.
14verseHe called the name of the first, Jemimah; and the name of the second, Keziah; and the name of the third, Keren Happuch.
15verseIn all the land were no women found so beautiful as the daughters of Job. Their father gave them an inheritance among their brothers.
16verseAfter this Job lived one hundred forty years, and saw his sons, and his sons’ sons, to four generations.
17verseSo Job died, being old and full of days.
Job’s Humble Confession and God’s Response
Job responds to the way God impressed upon him his limitations through the natural world and the order of creation. He acknowledges his misunderstanding of himself and his limits, confessing that God is the One who knows everything(Verses 1–6). Job humbly admits that he spoke “ignorant words” and humbles himself before God. This symbolizes a humble attitude before the limits of human rational inquiry and the mystery of God.
God’s Rebuke of the Friends and Reconciliation
God rebukes Job’s three friends for not speaking what was right about Job as Job did(Verses 7–8). They interpreted Job’s suffering in a schematic way and condemned him, but God did not approve of their attitude. Still, God commands them to offer burnt offerings—bulls and sheep—and when Job prays for them, God forgives the friends(Verse 9). This suggests the meaning of reconciliation in human relationships and of intercession.
Job’s Restoration and God’s Goodness
After Job prays for his friends, he receives even more blessings than before(Verses 10–17). The added blessings of property, family, and longevity are not simply a compensatory meaning; they can also be seen as a symbol of God’s care and goodness that continue even after suffering, as well as the restoration of community. However, what matters most is that the chapter emphasizes a change in Job’s faith and attitude from the time suffering ends until restoration comes(
Meditation Points
- Let us reflect on whether we have a humble heart that does not define God by only our own understanding and experience, but acknowledges mystery and limitations.
- Let us consider whether, perhaps, we did not hastily explain or judge someone else’s suffering.
- From the end of despair and suffering, let us meditate on the truth that moving beyond restoration toward reconciliation of relationships and community is the journey of faith.
Try Applying It to Yourself
- Let us live a life in which we ask honestly before God, and at times admit my own limits, seeking the LORD’s will with humility.
- When faced with someone’s pain and wounds, let us decide to become an interceding neighbor who prays together rather than making quick judgments.
This is the last chapter of Job.