Job 20:5
That the triumphing of the wicked is short, and the joy of the hypocrite but for a moment?
Study Note
Study Note
Zophar's observation — 'that the exulting of the wicked is short, and the joy of the godless but for a moment' — is the friends' most morally straightforward claim, drawing on the wisdom tradition's empirical observation of the short-lived prosperity of the wicked. The retributive theology that Zophar elaborates (20:1-29) is not entirely wrong as a general observation but becomes theologically destructive when applied absolutely to Job's specific situation. The verse belongs to the broader theodicy debate in Job: Zophar's position is that observable moral order vindicates divine justice, while Job contests that observable moral order is insufficient to explain his particular suffering. The book's divine speeches (chapters 38-41) will ultimately reframe the question without providing the moral calculus Zophar assumes, making this verse a representation of a theology that is partially true but insufficient for the depths of innocent suffering.
Other Translations
That the triumphing of the wicked is short, And the joy of the godless but for a moment?
That the singing of the wicked <FI>is<Fi> short, And the joy of the profane for a moment,
That the pride of the sinner is short, and the joy of the evil-doer but for a minute?
Cross References
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But the Philistines took him, and put out his eyes, and brought him down to Gaza, and bound him with …
Yet hath he not root in himself, but dureth for a while: for when tribulation or persecution ariseth because of …
But he that received the seed into stony places, the same is he that heareth the word, and anon with …
Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth …
And immediately the angel of the Lord smote him, because he gave not God the glory: and he was eaten …
And the people gave a shout, saying, It is the voice of a god, and not of a man.
But let every man prove his own work, and then shall he have rejoicing in himself alone, and not in …
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, and the heritage of oppressors, which they shall receive of …