Compare Job 21:20 with Proverbs 11:21 on the fate of the wicked. Setting the Scene: Two Passages, One Question • Job 21:20: “Let his own eyes see his destruction; let him drink for himself the wrath of the Almighty.” • Proverbs 11:21: “Be assured that the wicked will not go unpunished, but the offspring of the righteous will escape.” At first glance Job sounds almost despairing, while Proverbs sounds confident. Do they contradict? No—they paint complementary angles of the same truth: God’s certain judgment on the wicked. Job 21:20 – A Call for Personal Reckoning • Context: Job replies to friends who insist calamity always falls immediately on evildoers. • Job’s point: Sometimes the wicked appear to prosper, but he prays they will have to face God’s wrath with their own eyes—no passing it off to heirs or history. • Key ideas – “His own eyes”: personal accountability (cf. Ezekiel 18:20). – “Drink… the wrath”: comprehensive, unavoidable judgment (Revelation 14:10). • Literal takeaway: Even if punishment seems delayed, God’s wrath will eventually confront the sinner directly. Proverbs 11:21 – God’s Guarantee of Justice • Context: Solomon’s wisdom sayings contrast righteous and wicked outcomes. • Promise: “The wicked will not go unpunished.” That verb is emphatic: absolutely certain. • Balance: “Offspring of the righteous will escape” underscores covenant blessing (Psalm 37:25–26). • Literal takeaway: Divine justice is woven into God’s moral order; nobody beats the system (Galatians 6:7). Harmony of the Passages – Present Mystery, Future Certainty • Job highlights the seeming delay: wickedness can flourish for a season (Psalm 73:3–12). • Proverbs guarantees the end result: punishment is inevitable (Deuteronomy 32:35; Hebrews 10:30). • Together they affirm: – God may allow temporal prosperity to test faith (Psalm 73:16–17). – Delay is not denial; judgment day is appointed (Acts 17:31). – The righteous rest in God’s timetable, not visible circumstances (2 Peter 3:9). Key Takeaways on the Fate of the Wicked 1. Personal accountability is inescapable. Each sinner “drinks” God’s wrath himself (Romans 2:5–6). 2. Divine justice is certain, even if deferred. No wicked person will “go unpunished” (Proverbs 11:21). 3. God’s delay showcases mercy, giving space for repentance (2 Peter 3:15). 4. The righteous inherit lasting security—both they and their legacy are under God’s favor (Proverbs 20:7). Further Scriptural Witnesses • Psalm 37:9–10 – “For evildoers will be cut off… yet a little while and the wicked will be no more.” • Ecclesiastes 8:12–13 – Even if a sinner lives long, “it will not go well with the wicked.” • Revelation 20:11–15 – Final, literal judgment before the Great White Throne. • Galatians 6:7–8 – “Whatever a man sows, he will reap.” Both Job and Proverbs assure us: the wicked face God’s sure, personal judgment, while the righteous and their offspring enjoy His covenant care. |
    |