Job 11:2 | KingComments | STEP | In his reply to Bildad, Job stated that he experiences God as an adversary, but that a lawsuit against Him is not feasible. This provokes a reaction from Zophar the Naamathite. Because Zophar speaks last, it is likely that he is the youngest of the friends. His speech is more general in character than that of the other friends, but also harsher. Not only does he discuss the content of Job’s argument, but he also attacks Job himself and his integrity in a crude way. With Zophar, we miss Eliphaz’s dignity and Bildad’s skillful arguments. He is impetuous and not sensitive in his speech. Like the other two, he fails to solve the enigma of Job’s suffering. Through his theory that Jobs’ suffering is the result of sins committed by him, he plunges the poor man even deeper into darkness. Zophar paints Job as a foolish mocker, but still tries to lecture him. In his speech, he adopts the attitude of a great sage who possesses all wisdom. He tells Job at length about the greatness of the unfathomable God, and explains to him His actions as if he himself had fully understood this unfathomable God. In his answer (Job 12-14) Job surpasses Zophar by far, both in length and in the fervor of expressions. This is not because Job has a greater ability, but because their gaze is not as wide as his. Zophar the Naamathite responds to Job’s answer to Bildad ( ). He feels compelled to respond to Job’s “multitude of words” ( ). He accuses Job of being “a talkative man”, someone who talks a lot, just to get his right, as if someone is right because he uses a lot of words (c.f. ). By the way, Job not only talks a lot and uses a lot of words, but all his words have no substance either ( ; cf. ). It is much ado about nothing. Zophar calls Job’s words “boasts”. He clearly shows that he thinks Job is talking nonsense. Job shouldn’t think that with such nonsense he silences “men” – i.e. the friends – because they no longer have a response. Zophar adds another qualification. What Job said about God from the deepest misery, has, in his conviction, the character of “mocking”. This must be dealt with. Job must be made aware of the scoff of his words, so that he will be ashamed of what he has said. It indeed is very rude of Zophar to qualify Job’s utterances in this way. How dare he accuse Job of lying and scoffing! Job spoke in despair and said inappropriate things of and about God. But he is far from being a scoffer. On the contrary, he is deeply convinced of God’s high holiness. What he struggles with is how God acts with him. It is a warning for us not to call certain statements about God by people in great distress a defamation of God. Zophar considers the words of Job as pure mockery because he draws false conclusions from what Job has said. According to him, Job has said that his teaching is pure and that he is innocent in God’s eyes ( ). But Job did not say that. He has always maintained his innocence ( ) and impeccability against their false accusations that he is a hypocrite, but never claimed to be perfect. Zophar did not listen carefully. He listened selectively, and heard only that which suited his views of God. Not listening carefully to what someone else is saying has often been a source of miscommunication and misery. We need to listen carefully to what the other person is saying and also try to understand what he is saying. We can hear someone else’s words, but sometimes we can’t understand what he means to say. Sometimes we only hear half of what someone is saying or we forget a part of it. Then words are taken out of context and wrong conclusions are drawn. Suppose I hear someone say: ’I don’t like coffee with milk.’ When I say to someone else: ‘He said: I don’t like coffee’, I quote the other person verbatim and therefore correctly. But because I only partly quote what the other person has said, I tell a lie about him. A half-truth is a whole lie ( ). Zophar’s persistent denial of Job that he has done something evil brings Zophar to the hard sigh that God should open His mouth against Job ( ). Then it would be over and done with Job talking about his uprightness. He says this in the full conviction that God will say to Job what he and both his friends keep saying to him. If only God would reveal the wisdom of His actions to Job ( ). It is a wisdom hidden in Himself. No one will see any of it if He does not make it known. His wisdom is a double wisdom, which means that it is an unfathomable wisdom. If God were to show something of this to Job, he would see that God still treats him very gently with everything that has happened to him, and not charging him everything he deserves. Without any proof, Zophar suggests that God does not even repay all of Job’s sins. Indirectly, he claims that he is aware of God’s wisdom. He sits on God’s chair and states that God forgets much of Job’s iniquity, that is, He does not take it into account. In His judgment of Job, according to Zophar, He allows a number of iniquities to go unpunished, for otherwise nothing would have been left of Job at all. Job should be thankful to God for this, for he got off lightly. Zophar is a hard, legal man. Of his friends he goes furthest in his accusations. In this we find the main point of Zophar’s argument against Job, namely the certainty that God punishes sins, so that according to him, rightly so, Job can never escape his well-deserved punishment.

‏ Job 11:2

Introduction

In his reply to Bildad, Job stated that he experiences God as an adversary, but that a lawsuit against Him is not feasible. This provokes a reaction from Zophar the Naamathite. Because Zophar speaks last, it is likely that he is the youngest of the friends. His speech is more general in character than that of the other friends, but also harsher. Not only does he discuss the content of Job’s argument, but he also attacks Job himself and his integrity in a crude way.

With Zophar, we miss Eliphaz’s dignity and Bildad’s skillful arguments. He is impetuous and not sensitive in his speech. Like the other two, he fails to solve the enigma of Job’s suffering. Through his theory that Jobs’ suffering is the result of sins committed by him, he plunges the poor man even deeper into darkness.

Zophar paints Job as a foolish mocker, but still tries to lecture him. In his speech, he adopts the attitude of a great sage who possesses all wisdom. He tells Job at length about the greatness of the unfathomable God, and explains to him His actions as if he himself had fully understood this unfathomable God.

In his answer (Job 12-14) Job surpasses Zophar by far, both in length and in the fervor of expressions. This is not because Job has a greater ability, but because their gaze is not as wide as his.

Blaming Job’s Flood of Words

Zophar the Naamathite responds to Job’s answer to Bildad (Job 11:1). He feels compelled to respond to Job’s “multitude of words” (Job 11:2). He accuses Job of being “a talkative man”, someone who talks a lot, just to get his right, as if someone is right because he uses a lot of words (c.f. Pro 10:19).

By the way, Job not only talks a lot and uses a lot of words, but all his words have no substance either (Job 11:3; cf. Ecc 5:2). It is much ado about nothing. Zophar calls Job’s words “boasts”. He clearly shows that he thinks Job is talking nonsense. Job shouldn’t think that with such nonsense he silences “men” – i.e. the friends – because they no longer have a response.

Zophar adds another qualification. What Job said about God from the deepest misery, has, in his conviction, the character of “mocking”. This must be dealt with. Job must be made aware of the scoff of his words, so that he will be ashamed of what he has said.

It indeed is very rude of Zophar to qualify Job’s utterances in this way. How dare he accuse Job of lying and scoffing! Job spoke in despair and said inappropriate things of and about God. But he is far from being a scoffer. On the contrary, he is deeply convinced of God’s high holiness. What he struggles with is how God acts with him. It is a warning for us not to call certain statements about God by people in great distress a defamation of God.

Zophar considers the words of Job as pure mockery because he draws false conclusions from what Job has said. According to him, Job has said that his teaching is pure and that he is innocent in God’s eyes (Job 11:4). But Job did not say that. He has always maintained his innocence (Job 9:21 ; Job 10:7) and impeccability against their false accusations that he is a hypocrite, but never claimed to be perfect.

Zophar did not listen carefully. He listened selectively, and heard only that which suited his views of God. Not listening carefully to what someone else is saying has often been a source of miscommunication and misery. We need to listen carefully to what the other person is saying and also try to understand what he is saying. We can hear someone else’s words, but sometimes we can’t understand what he means to say.

Sometimes we only hear half of what someone is saying or we forget a part of it. Then words are taken out of context and wrong conclusions are drawn. Suppose I hear someone say: ’I don’t like coffee with milk.’ When I say to someone else: ‘He said: I don’t like coffee’, I quote the other person verbatim and therefore correctly. But because I only partly quote what the other person has said, I tell a lie about him. A half-truth is a whole lie (Gen 20:2 ; 12).

Zophar’s persistent denial of Job that he has done something evil brings Zophar to the hard sigh that God should open His mouth against Job (Job 11:5). Then it would be over and done with Job talking about his uprightness. He says this in the full conviction that God will say to Job what he and both his friends keep saying to him.

If only God would reveal the wisdom of His actions to Job (Job 11:6). It is a wisdom hidden in Himself. No one will see any of it if He does not make it known. His wisdom is a double wisdom, which means that it is an unfathomable wisdom. If God were to show something of this to Job, he would see that God still treats him very gently with everything that has happened to him, and not charging him everything he deserves.

Without any proof, Zophar suggests that God does not even repay all of Job’s sins. Indirectly, he claims that he is aware of God’s wisdom. He sits on God’s chair and states that God forgets much of Job’s iniquity, that is, He does not take it into account. In His judgment of Job, according to Zophar, He allows a number of iniquities to go unpunished, for otherwise nothing would have been left of Job at all. Job should be thankful to God for this, for he got off lightly. Zophar is a hard, legal man. Of his friends he goes furthest in his accusations.

In this Job 11:6 we find the main point of Zophar’s argument against Job, namely the certainty that God punishes sins, so that according to him, rightly so, Job can never escape his well-deserved punishment.