Job 27:1

JOB 27

JOB'S FINAL STATEMENT (JOB 27-31):

JOB AGAIN SPEAKS OF HIS RIGHTEOUSNESS

Job 27:1-7

"And Job again took up his parable, and said,

As God liveth who hath taken away my right,

And the Almighty who hath vexed my soul

(For my life is yet whole in me,

And the Spirit of God is in my nostrils);

Surely my lips shall not speak unrighteousness,

Neither shall my tongue utter deceit.

Far be it from me that I should justify you:

Till I die, I will not put away mine integrity from me.

My righteousness I hold fast, and will not let it go:

My heart shall not reproach me so long as I live.

Let mine enemy be as the wicked,

And let him that riseth up against me be as the unrighteous."

The next five chapters, beginning here, are Job's summary and restatement of all that he has been saying, As Dr. Hesser noted, "Bildad had just finished (Job 25); it was Zophar's time to speak. Job waited a moment for him to begin; but when it became clear that all of his friends had been silenced, Job `took up his parable,' that is, `his weighty discourse.'"[1]

"As God liveth who hath taken away my right, ... who hath vexed my soul" (Job 27:2). Such words as these must be understood, not as any peevish criticism of God, but as the acknowledgment that, in the ancient sense, God does all that he allows. Men are not blaming God, when speaking of some terrible calamity, they say, "The Lord has given, and the Lord has taken away. Blessed be the name of the Lord." Job's oath that he is speaking the truth is found in the words, "as God liveth"; and his thus swearing by the living God is an eloquent testimony that Job does not attach any moral blame to God for what has happened to him, however impossible he finds it to understand. Heavenor called this, "The most extraordinary form of oath in the Scriptures."[2] He is swearing by the very God who has permitted all of his misfortunes. We cannot agree with Hesser that, "Job was making a mistake"[3] in these words.

"The Spirit of God is in my nostrils" (Job 27:3). This is a declaration that Job is speaking by the Spirit of God; and this whole paragraph is an emphatic affirmation by Job of his integrity, of his keeping it till death, and that what he says is the truth. Blair agreed with this. "It suggests that he spoke with the authority of God."[4]

Andersen's summary of this opening paragraph is that, "Job had already said that his friends' allegations were nothing but falsehoods (Job 21:34), and he had challenged them to prove him a liar (Job 24:25). Both of these thoughts come together here in this paragraph."[5]

"All of the challenges of his friends have only served to crystallize and clarify Job's thoughts; and what he now says exhibits calm assurance and absolute certainty."[6]