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Job 27

Job holds to his integrity before God while describing the loss of hope and security that awaits the wicked.

Job resumes speaking to his friends with an oath by the God he says has denied him justice. He refuses to endorse their accusations or surrender his integrity, pledging truthful speech for as long as he lives. He then asks what hope the godless have when God takes their life. The speech closes with a grim account of the oppressor’s portion: ruined households, wealth passing to others, and terror sweeping the rich man away.

injustice and angerdoubtsermon or Bible study notes
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1Job again took up his parable, and said,
2“As God lives, who has taken away my right, the Almighty, who has made my soul bitter
3(for the length of my life is still in me, and the spirit of God is in my nostrils);
4surely my lips will not speak unrighteousness, neither will my tongue utter deceit.
5Far be it from me that I should justify you. Until I die I will not put away my integrity from me.
6I hold fast to my righteousness, and will not let it go. My heart will not reproach me so long as I live.
7“Let my enemy be as the wicked. Let him who rises up against me be as the unrighteous.
8For what is the hope of the godless, when he is cut off, when God takes away his life?
9Will God hear his cry when trouble comes on him?
10Will he delight himself in the Almighty, and call on God at all times?
11I will teach you about the hand of God. I will not conceal that which is with the Almighty.
12Behold, all of you have seen it yourselves; why then have you become altogether vain?
13“This is the portion of a wicked man with God, the heritage of oppressors, which they receive from the Almighty.
14If his children are multiplied, it is for the sword. His offspring will not be satisfied with bread.
15Those who remain of him will be buried in death. His widows will make no lamentation.
16Though he heap up silver as the dust, and prepare clothing as the clay;
17he may prepare it, but the just will put it on, and the innocent will divide the silver.
18He builds his house as the moth, as a booth which the watchman makes.
19He lies down rich, but he will not do so again. He opens his eyes, and he is not.
20Terrors overtake him like waters. A storm steals him away in the night.
21The east wind carries him away, and he departs. It sweeps him out of his place.
22For it hurls at him, and does not spare, as he flees away from his hand.
23Men will clap their hands at him, and will hiss him out of his place.
World English BibleRead in NIV in Psalmlog →Highlighted verses are the most connected.
Key verses
Job 27:8This question shifts the speech from Job’s defense of his integrity to the godless person’s lack of hope at death.
Job 27:16The image of silver piled like dust sets up the reversal in which others receive the oppressor’s wealth.
Job 27:10Job’s question links delight in the Almighty with sustained prayer, exposing the godless person’s estrangement from God.
Where this chapter reaches

Proverbs shares Job’s warning that accumulated wealth cannot provide security against God’s judgment and may pass into other hands. Matthew and Luke also connect possessions with the loss of life, exposing the limits of riches when a person faces death.

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Notice

After reading the whole chapter

What stands out about Job swearing by God while saying God has denied him justice?

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How does the closing picture of lost wealth shape your reading of Job’s questions about hope?

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Questions people ask about Job 27

Is Job claiming to be sinless in Job 27?

Job claims integrity and a clear conscience in the dispute with his friends. He refuses to validate their accusations and vows to avoid deceit. His words defend the truth of his case; they do not state that he has never committed any sin throughout his life.

Why does Job describe the punishment of the wicked in Job 27?

Job introduces this section as teaching about God’s hand and the portion of oppressors. His defense of his own integrity stands alongside his affirmation of God’s judgment. The text presents the speech as Job’s, though interpreters debate how its closing description fits his argument against his friends.

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Cross-reference data from OpenBible.info (CC BY). Scripture from the World English Bible (public domain). Arc diagram after Chris Harrison and Christoph Römhild (2007).