Even those who appear powerful and prosperous will ultimately be brought low when wealth is acquired unjustly.
“His sons favor the poor, And his hands give back his wealth.” (Job 20:10)
Zophar the Naamathite is the speaker in this passage. He is one of Job’s three friends who attempt to explain Job’s suffering by accusing Job of moral wrongdoing, contending that divine justice demands the wicked be punished. In “His sons favor the poor, And his hands give back his wealth” (Job 20:10), Zophar declares that even the children of a wrongdoer must eventually yield to those in need, repaying whatever has been unjustly gained. This assertion fits into Zophar’s broader argument that life’s injustices will inevitably be corrected, and that the wealth of the wicked cannot be preserved, even if they try to pass it on to their descendants.
In the backdrop to these words, the story of Job takes place in the land of Uz, an area near the Sabeans and Chaldeans, possibly somewhere within the broader region of the Fertile Crescent. Job lived around the time of the patriarchs, in an era long before the Law of Moses was given, which places him sometime between 2100 and 1700 BC. During this period, it was commonly understood that children might share in the repercussions of their father’s actions, because ancestral sin was believed to carry lasting consequences. Thus, Zophar’s claim that “His sons favor the poor” implies a forced humility upon future generations due to misdeeds of the parent, reflecting his belief that God ensures ultimate justice for the oppressed.
At a deeper level, Zophar’s statement underscores that power and riches can vanish as quickly as they come. If someone has built up their possessions through wrongdoing, Zophar insists that cosmic justice will demand restitution. This reaffirms the main tension in the book of Job: Job’s friends, including Zophar, maintain that suffering is usually conclusive proof of moral failure, whereas Job protests that his sufferings are not the direct result of sin. Nonetheless, Zophar’s outlook in Job 20:10 continues to challenge readers to acknowledge God’s authority over wealth and the importance of caring for those in need.
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Job 20:10 meaning
“His sons favor the poor, And his hands give back his wealth.” (Job 20:10)
Zophar the Naamathite is the speaker in this passage. He is one of Job’s three friends who attempt to explain Job’s suffering by accusing Job of moral wrongdoing, contending that divine justice demands the wicked be punished. In “His sons favor the poor, And his hands give back his wealth” (Job 20:10), Zophar declares that even the children of a wrongdoer must eventually yield to those in need, repaying whatever has been unjustly gained. This assertion fits into Zophar’s broader argument that life’s injustices will inevitably be corrected, and that the wealth of the wicked cannot be preserved, even if they try to pass it on to their descendants.
In the backdrop to these words, the story of Job takes place in the land of Uz, an area near the Sabeans and Chaldeans, possibly somewhere within the broader region of the Fertile Crescent. Job lived around the time of the patriarchs, in an era long before the Law of Moses was given, which places him sometime between 2100 and 1700 BC. During this period, it was commonly understood that children might share in the repercussions of their father’s actions, because ancestral sin was believed to carry lasting consequences. Thus, Zophar’s claim that “His sons favor the poor” implies a forced humility upon future generations due to misdeeds of the parent, reflecting his belief that God ensures ultimate justice for the oppressed.
At a deeper level, Zophar’s statement underscores that power and riches can vanish as quickly as they come. If someone has built up their possessions through wrongdoing, Zophar insists that cosmic justice will demand restitution. This reaffirms the main tension in the book of Job: Job’s friends, including Zophar, maintain that suffering is usually conclusive proof of moral failure, whereas Job protests that his sufferings are not the direct result of sin. Nonetheless, Zophar’s outlook in Job 20:10 continues to challenge readers to acknowledge God’s authority over wealth and the importance of caring for those in need.