HiobKapitel 21

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Then Job answered:

"Listen closely to what I say; let this be the comfort you offer me.

Bear with me while I speak, and after I have spoken, mock if you must.

Is my complaint against a mere man? Why then should I not lose patience?

Look at me and be appalled; clap your hand over your mouth.

When I remember, I am terrified, and shuddering seizes my flesh.

Why do the wicked go on living, growing old and increasing in power?

Their children are secure around them, their offspring before their eyes.

Their homes are safe and free from fear; the rod of God does not fall on them.

Their bull breeds and never fails; their cow calves and does not miscarry.

They send out their little ones like a flock; their children dance about.

They lift their voices with tambourine and lyre, and rejoice at the sound of the pipe.

They spend their days in prosperity and in a moment go down to the grave.

Yet they say to God, 'Leave us alone! We have no desire to know your ways.

Who is the Almighty, that we should serve him? What would we gain by praying to him?'

But their prosperity is not in their own hands; the counsel of the wicked is far from me.

How often is the lamp of the wicked snuffed out? How often does disaster overtake them, and God in his anger deal out their portion of pain?

How often are they like straw before the wind, like chaff swept away by a storm?

You say, 'God stores up a man's punishment for his children.' Let him repay the man himself, so that he knows it!

Let his own eyes see his ruin; let him drink the wrath of the Almighty.

For what does he care about the household he leaves behind, when the number of his months is cut off?

Can anyone teach knowledge to God, who judges even those on high?

One man dies in full vigor, wholly at ease and secure;

his sides are filled with fat, and the marrow of his bones is moist.

Another dies with a bitter soul, having never tasted anything good.

Side by side they lie down in the dust, and worms cover them both.

I know full well what you are thinking, the schemes by which you would wrong me.

For you ask, 'Where now is the nobleman's house? Where are the tents the wicked lived in?'

Have you never asked those who travel the roads? Do you not recognize the signs they give—

that the evil man is spared in the day of calamity, led away safe on the day of wrath?

Who confronts him to his face with his conduct? Who repays him for what he has done?

He is carried to the grave, and watch is kept over his tomb.

The clods of the valley are sweet to him; everyone follows in his train, and those who went before him are beyond number.

So how can you comfort me with empty words? Of your answers, nothing remains but falsehood."

Nachschlagen

Zusammenfassung2

Kapitel 21

Main Theme: Job rejects his friends' simplistic doctrine of retribution by showing that the wicked often live happily and die in peace.

Content: Job urges his friends to listen carefully before answering (vv. 2-6). He describes how the ungodly often prosper with family, wealth, and security, even though they reject God and say, "Depart from us!" (vv. 7-16). Job asks rhetorically how often the wicked are truly struck by disaster (vv. 17-21), pointing out that both the righteous and the unrighteous end up in the same grave (vv. 23-26). He concludes by dismissing his friends' comfort as empty and deceitful (v. 34).

Key Words/Images:

The Prosperity of the Wicked (vv. 7-13): The ungodly live long, become powerful, have secure homes, and children who play—directly contradicting the doctrine of retribution.
"Depart from us, God" (vv. 14-15): The wicked openly reject God yet suffer no consequences.
Common Grave (v. 26): Both the joyful and the bitter are laid in the dust—death levels all.
Empty Comfort (v. 34): Job rejects his friends' answers as meaningless deceit (Heb. ma'al).

Historischer Kontext

Events and Customs

Job 21 contains several references to burial customs in the ancient Near East. In verses 32–33, it describes how the wicked are "brought to the grave" and how "the clods of the valley are sweet to him"—a poetic depiction of burial. The expression that "all people follow after him" reflects the ancient custom of a funeral procession, in which the entire local community participated. That there is also "watch kept over the mound" (גָּדִישׁ) points to the tradition of guarding or gathering at the grave in the period following burial, which was common in Mesopotamian and Canaanite cultures to protect the deceased and show respect.

Key Terms

The phrase "שֵׁבֶט אֱלוֹהַּ" (God's rod/discipline) in verse 9 is a central expression that combines the image of the shepherd's staff with divine discipline. In wisdom literature, the "rod" represented both protection and correction. Job observes that the wicked apparently escape this divine discipline.

In verse 17, the image "נֵר רְשָׁעִים" (the lamp of the wicked) is used—a common wisdom motif symbolizing life, prosperity, and family line. For a lamp to be "extinguished" meant not only death but also the obliteration of one's legacy and descendants. Here Job directly challenges his friends' claim (compare Bildad's speech in 18:5–6) by asking: "How often does this actually happen?"

The expression "חֲבָלִים יְחַלֵּק בְּאַפּוֹ" (he apportions calamities in his anger) in verse 17 uses the word "חֲבָלִים", which can mean both "ropes/bands," "birth pains," and "calamity/destruction"—a deliberately ambiguous term that strengthens the image of divine judgment.

Personen

Keine bekannten Personen in diesem Kapitel.

Schlüsselwörter8

Eliphaz — One of Job's three friends who came to comfort and speak with Job during his trials.
Job — The main character in the book, a righteous man who experiences great suffering and seeks to understand God's will.
Righteousness — A moral quality that involves acting in accordance with divine or moral laws and principles.
Suffering — Physical or emotional pain, distress, or discomfort that Job endures throughout the book.
Wisdom — The ability to use knowledge and experience to make good decisions and judge rightly.
Fear of God — Respect and reverence for God, recognized as an important part of living a righteous life.
Comfort — Support and care that Eliphaz and the other friends try to give Job during his trials.
Trials — The difficult situations and challenges Job must face as a result of his suffering.