Job Chapter 27
Job 27:1–6
“Moreover Job continued his parable, and said,
As God liveth, who hath taken away my judgment; and the Almighty, who hath vexed my soul;
All the while my breath is in me, and the spirit of God is in my nostrils;
My lips shall not speak wickedness, nor my tongue utter deceit.
God forbid that I should justify you: till I die I will not remove 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.”
Job resumes speaking because his friends fall silent. The cycle of speeches has stalled. Zophar, who should answer next, says nothing. Their silence is not repentance but exhaustion. They have no new argument. They have concluded that Job is incorrigible. Instead of engaging truth, they retreat into silence. In contrast, Job advances. He continues his “parable,” that is, his weighty discourse of wisdom. The man under suffering now becomes the theologian in the room.
Job swears an oath. He does not say, “as I live,” but “as God liveth.” This is significant. He anchors his integrity in the living God even while accusing that same God of taking away his judgment. The language is bold. He says God has taken away his judgment and has vexed his soul. Yet he does not deny God’s existence, sovereignty, or ultimate righteousness. He wrestles with providence, not with the being of God. The tension reveals deep faith under strain. Only a man who truly believes in God can speak this way without collapsing into atheism.
He recognizes that his breath itself comes from God. “All the while my breath is in me, and the spirit of God is in my nostrils.” This echoes Genesis 2:7, “And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.” Job understands creaturely dependence. Even in protest, he confesses that every breath is sustained by divine power. This guards him from blasphemy. His complaint never becomes rebellion.
Job’s integrity centers on speech. “My lips shall not speak wickedness, nor my tongue utter deceit.” In the wisdom tradition, righteousness is often demonstrated through controlled speech. Proverbs 8:7 declares, “For my mouth shall speak truth; and wickedness is an abomination to my lips.” Job aligns himself with that standard. He refuses to lie about his condition simply to satisfy his friends’ theology.
“God forbid that I should justify you.” Here is the heart of the matter. To agree with his friends would require confessing sins he did not commit. That would be false witness. The Ninth Commandment stands in the background. Exodus 20:16 states, “Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbour.” Job will not bear false witness against himself either. He would rather die than concede to theological error that misrepresents God’s dealings and his own conscience.
“Till I die I will not remove mine integrity from me.” Integrity is wholeness. It means moral consistency before God. This anticipates the divine verdict in Job 1:1, “There was a man in the land of Uz, whose name was Job; and that man was perfect and upright, and one that feared God, and eschewed evil.” Job clings to the character God Himself affirmed. His righteousness is not sinless perfection but covenant faithfulness.
“My heart shall not reproach me so long as I live.” Conscience plays a major role here. Job stands before God with a clear heart. This anticipates the New Testament emphasis on a clean conscience. Acts 24:16 declares, “And herein do I exercise myself, to have always a conscience void of offence toward God, and toward men.” Job models this centuries earlier. His friends accuse, but his conscience does not condemn.
This passage reveals a critical theological principle. Suffering does not automatically equal divine punishment for personal sin. Job refuses a simplistic retribution theology. He maintains that righteousness can coexist with severe affliction. That truth runs through Scripture and finds ultimate expression in Christ, the Righteous Sufferer. 1 Peter 3:18 says, “For Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God.” Job foreshadows this category of suffering.
Job 27:7–10
“Let mine enemy be as the wicked, and he that riseth up against me as the unrighteous.
For what is the hope of the hypocrite, though he hath gained, when God taketh away his soul?
Will God hear his cry when trouble cometh upon him?
Will he delight himself in the Almighty? will he always call upon God?”
Job now turns the accusation back on his accusers. If there must be a wicked man in this debate, let it be the one falsely charging the innocent. This aligns with the Mosaic principle of just recompense. Deuteronomy 19:16–19 declares, “If a false witness rise up against any man to testify against him that which is wrong;
Then both the men, between whom the controversy is, shall stand before the LORD, before the priests and the judges, which shall be in those days;
And the judges shall make diligent inquisition: and, behold, if the witness be a false witness, and hath testified falsely against his brother;
Then shall ye do unto him, as he had thought to have done unto his brother: so shalt thou put the evil away from among you.” Job is essentially invoking that covenant principle.
He then addresses hypocrisy directly. “For what is the hope of the hypocrite, though he hath gained, when God taketh away his soul?” Job agrees that the hypocrite has no lasting hope. External prosperity cannot save when God requires the soul. This echoes Psalm 49:16–17, “Be not thou afraid when one is made rich, when the glory of his house is increased;
For when he dieth he shall carry nothing away: his glory shall not descend after him.”
“Will God hear his cry when trouble cometh upon him?” Scripture consistently teaches that persistent hypocrisy severs fellowship with God. Psalm 66:18 states, “If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me.” Job affirms this truth. The hypocrite may pray in crisis, but he does not live in communion.
“Will he delight himself in the Almighty? will he always call upon God?” Here Job defines true piety. It is not occasional prayer under pressure but continual reliance. A hypocrite uses God. A righteous man delights in God. This anticipates Psalm 37:4, “Delight thyself also in the LORD; and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart.”
The final clause is decisive, “will he always call upon God?” Perseverance in prayer marks authenticity. Temporary religion collapses under silence. Job, despite God’s apparent silence, continues calling. That is his evidence of sincerity. He does not abandon God because of unanswered questions. This reflects 1 Thessalonians 5:17, “Pray without ceasing.”
The theological weight of this section is substantial. Job affirms orthodox doctrine concerning the fate of the wicked and the hypocrisy of false religion. He does not reject divine justice. He rejects misapplication of divine justice. His friends weaponize truth without discernment. Job preserves both doctrine and integrity.
Job 27:11–12
“I will teach you by the hand of God: that which is with the Almighty will I not conceal.
Behold, all ye yourselves have seen it; why then are ye thus altogether vain?”
Job now shifts tone. Having defended his integrity, he affirms a foundational truth, God does judge the wicked. His dispute with his friends has never been over whether God is just. The dispute concerns how and when that justice is manifested.
“I will teach you by the hand of God.” The “hand of God” speaks of divine activity, especially in judgment and providence. Scripture consistently uses this expression to describe God’s direct intervention. Exodus 9:3 declares, “Behold, the hand of the LORD is upon thy cattle which is in the field, upon the horses, upon the asses, upon the camels, upon the oxen, and upon the sheep: there shall be a very grievous murrain.” The hand of God brings judgment. Job does not deny this. He insists he understands it.
“That which is with the Almighty will I not conceal.” Job accuses his friends of partial theology. They know truths about God but apply them without discernment. Job promises not to conceal the full picture of divine justice. This echoes the responsibility later expressed by Paul in Acts 20:27, “For I have not shunned to declare unto you all the counsel of God.” Selective truth can become error when misapplied.
“Behold, all ye yourselves have seen it; why then are ye thus altogether vain?” They have observed the realities of life. They know the wicked do not always fall immediately. Yet they stubbornly insist that Job’s suffering must equal guilt. The word “vain” points to emptiness and futility. Their reasoning collapses under scrutiny because it reduces God’s providence to a mechanical formula.
This is an important doctrinal moment. Job affirms divine justice while rejecting simplistic retribution theology. God is just, but His timing and methods are not always immediate or visible. Ecclesiastes 8:11 states, “Because sentence against an evil work is not executed speedily, therefore the heart of the sons of men is fully set in them to do evil.” Delay does not mean denial of justice.
Job 27:13–23
“This is the portion of a wicked man with God, and the heritage of oppressors, which they shall receive of the Almighty.
If his children be multiplied, it is for the sword: and his offspring shall not be satisfied with bread.
Those that remain of him shall be buried in death: and his widows shall not weep.
Though he heap up silver as the dust, and prepare raiment as the clay;
He may prepare it, but the just shall put it on, and the innocent shall divide the silver.
He buildeth his house as a moth, and as a booth that the keeper maketh.
The rich man shall lie down, but he shall not be gathered: he openeth his eyes, and he is not.
Terrors take hold on him as waters, a tempest stealeth him away in the night.
The east wind carrieth him away, and he departeth: and as a storm hurleth him out of his place.
For God shall cast upon him, and not spare: he would fain flee out of his hand.
Men shall clap their hands at him, and shall hiss him out of his place.”
“This is the portion of a wicked man with God.” Job agrees in principle with his friends. The wicked ultimately receive judgment from the Almighty. He does not deny divine moral order. Scripture affirms the same. Psalm 1:6 declares, “For the LORD knoweth the way of the righteous: but the way of the ungodly shall perish.”
“If his children be multiplied, it is for the sword.” The wicked cannot secure their legacy. Even apparent blessing may become judgment. This reflects covenant warnings such as Deuteronomy 28:41, “Thou shalt beget sons and daughters, but thou shalt not enjoy them; for they shall go into captivity.” The increase of offspring does not guarantee security under divine wrath.
“Though he heap up silver as the dust.” Earthly accumulation cannot shield from judgment. Wealth offers temporary power but no eternal protection. 1 Timothy 6:7 states, “For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out.” Job recognizes that material success is not proof of divine favor.
“He buildeth his house as a moth.” A moth’s dwelling is fragile and temporary. The wicked man’s estate, however impressive, lacks permanence. Christ later echoed this imagery in Matthew 6:19–20, “Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal:
But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal.”
“The rich man shall lie down, but he shall not be gathered.” This phrase likely points to dishonorable death. To not be gathered suggests exclusion from honorable burial among one’s fathers. Scripture often speaks of being “gathered” as covenantal rest. Genesis 25:8 says, “Then Abraham gave up the ghost, and died in a good old age, an old man, and full of years; and was gathered to his people.” The wicked man lacks such honor.
“Terrors take hold on him as waters.” Judgment may come suddenly, like a flood. This recalls the pattern of divine judgment seen in Noah’s day. Genesis 7:23 declares, “And every living substance was destroyed which was upon the face of the ground… and they were destroyed from the earth: and Noah only remained alive, and they that were with him in the ark.” When judgment comes, it is decisive.
“For God shall cast upon him, and not spare.” The ultimate agent is God Himself. Divine justice is personal and deliberate. This aligns with Hebrews 10:31, “It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.”
“Men shall clap their hands at him, and shall hiss him out of his place.” The end of the wicked is public disgrace. The one who once wielded power becomes an object of scorn. Proverbs 11:10 affirms, “When it goeth well with the righteous, the city rejoiceth: and when the wicked perish, there is shouting.”
The theological weight of this section must be handled carefully. Many of these descriptions resemble Job’s own suffering. Children lost. Wealth gone. Social humiliation. Yet Job’s point is not confession. His point is contrast. He understands what divine judgment on the wicked looks like. His situation resembles it outwardly, but he knows inwardly he is not under punitive wrath.
The central disagreement remains unchanged. God is just. Wickedness will be judged. The question is whether every present calamity is proof of wickedness. Job denies that conclusion. He affirms divine justice while rejecting mechanical theology.
