What is the meaning of Job 20:21? Nothing is left for him to consume • Zophar pictures the wicked person as having exhausted every resource—there is literally “nothing left.” • This reflects reckless greed: the wicked hoards and devours without restraint (Proverbs 1:19; Proverbs 11:24: “One gives freely, yet gains even more; another withholds what is right, only to become poor”). • Such total consumption leaves no margin for repentance or restoration. Compare Luke 12:20-21 where the rich fool’s wealth is suddenly useless because he spent it all on himself. • Job himself has suffered loss, but Zophar wrongly assumes Job’s calamity is proof of wickedness. Still, Scripture upholds the broader truth that sin ultimately depletes (Psalm 37:35-36; James 5:1-3). thus his prosperity will not endure • The Hebrew parallelism ties depleted resources to perishing success: once the storehouse is empty, “prosperity will not endure.” • Psalm 49:16-17 echoes the thought: “Do not be amazed when a man grows rich… for when he dies, he will take nothing with him.” • Proverbs 13:11 reminds us that ill-gotten gain “dwindles away,” while true prosperity rests on righteousness (Proverbs 10:2-3). • Zophar sees a moral law at work—sin plants seeds of collapse. Though he misapplies it to Job, the principle is affirmed elsewhere: Galatians 6:7-8 warns that a man reaps what he sows, and Isaiah 48:22 declares, “There is no peace,” says the LORD, “for the wicked.” summary Job 20:21 warns that unchecked greed ends in emptiness and the loss of lasting prosperity. All who consume without honoring God will discover their wealth cannot protect them, while those who fear the Lord find enduring treasure in Him. |
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