Job 21:12-13

Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary - Job 21:7-16

All Job's three friends, in their last discourses, had been very copious in describing the miserable condition of a wicked man in this world. ?It is true,? says Job, ?remarkable judgments are sometimes brought upon notorious sinners, but not always; for we have many instances of the great and long prosperity of those that are openly and avowedly wicked; though they are hardened in their wickedness by their prosperity, yet they are still suffered to prosper.? I. He here describes their... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Job 21:12

They take the timbrel and harp ,.... Not the children, but the parents of them; these took these instruments of music into their hands, and played upon them while their children danced; thus merrily they spent their time: or, as Jarchi and Aben Ezra, they lift up the voice with the tabret and harp; that is, while they played on these with their hands, they sung songs with their mouths; they used both vocal and instrumental music together, to make the greater harmony, and give the greater... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Job 21:13

They spend their days in wealth ,.... Or "in good" F16 בטוב "in bono", Pagninus, Montanus, Junius & Tremellius, &c.; ; not in the performance of good works, or in the exercise of that which is spiritually good; or in seeking after spiritual good things, or eternal happiness; but in earthly good, in the enjoyment of the temporal good things of this life, and which to enjoy in a moderate and becoming manner is not criminal, but commendable; but these men, and such as they, seek... read more

Adam Clarke

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - Job 21:12

They take the timbrel and harp - ישאו yisu , they rise up or lift themselves up, probably alluding to the rural exercise of dancing. תף toph , which we translate timbrel, means a sort of drum, such as the tom-tom of the Asiatics. כנור kinnor may mean something of the harp kind. עוגב ugab , organ, means nothing like the instrument now called the organ, though thus translated both by the Septuagint and Vulgate; it probably means the syrinx, composed of several unequal pipes,... read more

Adam Clarke

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - Job 21:13

They spend their days in wealth - There is a various reading here of some importance. In the text we have יבלו yeballu , they grow old, or wear out as with old age, terent vetustate; and in the margin, יכלו yechallu , they consume; and the Masora states that this is one of the eleven words which are written with ב beth and must be read with כ caph . Several editions have the former word in the text, and the latter in the margin; the former being what is called the kethib, the... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Job 21:1-34

Job answers Zophar, as he had answered Bildad, in a single not very lengthy chapter. After a few caustic introductory remarks (verses 2-4), he takes up the challenge which Zophar had thrown out, respecting the certain punishment, in this life, of the wicked ( Job 20:4-29 ), and maintains, "in language of unparalleled boldness'' (Cook), the converse of the proposition. The wicked, he says, live, grow old, attain to great power, have a numerous and flourishing offspring, prosper, grow... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Job 21:1-34

Job to Zophar: Audi alteram partem. I. THE SPIRIT OF JOB 'S REPLY . 1 . Intense earnestness. Indicated by the respectful invitation addressed to his friends to attend to his discourse, the nervous reduplication of the verb "hear," and the assurance that such behaviour on their part would more effectually console him than all their eloquent and laboured harangues. Job's character of eminent sanctity, Job's condition of extreme wretchedness, and Job's condemnation by the... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Job 21:1-34

Diverse interpretations of life. The friends of Job remain entrenched in the one firm position, as they think it, which they have from the first taken up. No appeals on his part have availed to soften their hearts, or induce a reconsideration of the rigid theory of suffering which they have adopted. But he now, no longer confining himself to the assertion of his personal innocence, makes an attack upon their position. He dwells upon the great enigma of life—the prosperity of the wicked... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Job 21:7-15

The perverse misapplication of the Divine goodness. Job is ready with his answer. Although Zophar has correctly represented the judgments that come upon the wicked, and the evils to which wickedness not unfrequently lead, yet many cases of departure from this rule are to be observed. Job therefore proposes a counter-question," Wherefore do the wicked live, become old, yea, are mighty in power? "He then depicts the prosperity which again and again marks the career of the wicked, to whom the... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Job 21:7-21

The prosperity of the wicked. Job here gives his version of the old familiar theme. It is not as the three friends supposed. These neat maxims do not fit in with the facts of life as Job has seen them. The prosperity of the wicked is a real though a mysterious fact, one that cannot be gainsaid. I. THE FACTS AS WITNESSED IN LIFE . 1 . An established family. Job's home is desolate. The seed of the wicked is established in their sight. They have their children about... read more

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