What is the meaning of Job 20:16?

He will suck the poison of cobras

• Zophar pictures the wicked person willingly drawing venom into himself, as someone putting a deadly straw to his lips (Deuteronomy 32:33; Psalm 58:3-4).

• The image stresses personal choice: sin is not an accidental sip but a deliberate act, motivated by craving (Proverbs 4:17; James 1:14-15).

• Just as cobra venom spreads quickly, so sin’s corruption moves from the heart into every corner of life (Psalm 36:1-3; Galatians 6:7-8).

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the fangs of a viper

• The metaphor shifts from drinking poison to being bitten, highlighting sin’s aggressive, unavoidable strike once invited in (Romans 3:13; Isaiah 59:5).

• Fangs pierce deeply; hidden consequences surface suddenly (Proverbs 5:3-4).

• Scripture consistently links serpents with deception and lethal power (Genesis 3:1-4; Revelation 12:9), underscoring the spiritual reality behind outward acts.

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will kill him

• Venom finishes what the fangs began; judgment follows transgression with certainty (Ezekiel 18:4; Proverbs 14:12).

• Zophar insists there is no antidote apart from God’s mercy; self-made defenses fail (Job 20:22-23; Psalm 49:6-9).

• Ultimate death includes both physical end and separation from God, the “wages of sin” Paul later articulates (Romans 6:23; Matthew 10:28).

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summary

Job 20:16 warns that choosing sin is like voluntarily drinking cobra venom: it tastes enticing, strikes inevitably, and ends fatally. The verse assures us that God’s moral order is unbreakable—evil carries its own lethal poison, and only turning to the Lord brings deliverance from its bite.