Job 21: Group Study Handout

Overview

In Job chapter 21, Job responds to Zophar's previous speech, challenging the simplistic notion that the wicked are always punished and the righteous are always rewarded in this life. Job observes that the wicked often live long and prosperous lives, dying peacefully without experiencing the calamities that his friends insist inevitably follow unrighteous living. This discrepancy perplexes Job and highlights the limited human understanding of divine justice.

Key verse

“They spend their days in prosperity. In an instant they go down to Sheol.”

Job 21:13 (WEB)

Outline

1. Job 21:1–6 Job's challenge to his friends
2. Job 21:7–16 Observations on the wicked
3. Job 21:17–26 The fate of the wicked
4. Job 21:27–34 A critique of simplistic theology

Discussion questions

1. In v7, why does Job ask why the wicked seem to prosper?
2. What does Job say about the children of the wicked in vv. 11-12?
3. Job's assertion in v15, that the wicked say, 'What profit should we have,' raises what question about their view of God?
4. In v34, what does Job mean by saying his friends' answers contain 'only falsehood'?
5. When have you felt astonished by someone's prosperity despite their actions, as Job expresses in v5?

Go deeper

Passages that echo Job 21: Psalm 1, Psalm 73, Job 22.

Before next time: read Job 22.