Job 20:17 Commentary and Bible Study

The wicked will not experience the blessings of this life which, according to Zophar, God reserves for the righteous and those he wishes to reward on earth. The streams are full of refreshment as they water the fields and are an emblem of hope and plenty. The rivers are described, in a rich metaphor, as flowing with honey and cream, sustaining the plants and flowers on which the bees feed, and feeding the cattle who provide man with milk and butter for his table. God deprives the wicked of all these good things. They are not allowed to keep the proceeds of their wickedness, but must restore them again. This need not be understood literally, but circumstances will conspire to cause them to use what they have gained, not on themselves, but elsewhere. Their reward will be in their possession only for a moment, so that before they can swallow it down and enjoy what they have, it will be snatched away again. The whole scheme misfires and brings the opposite of the satisfaction that he expected it to bring. It is true that God does work in this way and there are always some whom he frustrates in their efforts to enrich themselves by bringing so much trouble into their lives that it costs them all they have even to survive, but it is by no means always the case. Some go to the grave rich and flourishing and pass their fortunes to their children.‘Because he hath oppressed and hath forsaken the poor.’ The wicked man has taken advantage of his position of power and influence to act unjustly and get gain for himself from those he should be protecting. Those who are the weakest and most vulnerable in society he has targeted with his evil schemes, because they were easiest to oppress and he expected no one would care about them or come to their aid. He is expert in money matters and at home in the world of commerce, so that he can run rings around the poor who know little about such matters. He sees the world as a place in which he can enrich himself by any means and because he does not fear God, he is prepared to act cruelly without any thought of the consequences. ‘Because your conscience is in torment, this proves you can’t be a child of God.’ In this state we are just targets for Satan. The suggestion is that Job’s ill-gotten gains do not bring him any peace of mind but rather trouble him, either because his conscience gnaws away at him or because he cannot stop fretting about his earthly security. Is Zophar making this all up? Is there no evidence at all for these charges? It may be that there had been times when Job as a landowner had had to do hard things to his tenants. This may have hurt Job and therefore he was sensitive to this type of charge even though it was an exaggeration. There may be matters in which we are not at fault, but we are sensitive and our consciences can be made to falsely accuse us.