What is the meaning of Job 21:19?

It is said

“It is said…” (Job 21:19a) introduces Job’s quotation of a common belief.

• Job is not speaking for himself but repeating what others claim about how God works (cf. Job 8:4; Job 20:10).

• Scripture records similar sayings: “Our fathers sinned and are no more, but we bear their punishment” (Lamentations 5:7).

• Generational accountability was assumed in parts of Israel’s history (Exodus 34:7; Deuteronomy 5:9), so Job is interacting with a familiar theological proverb.

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God lays up one’s punishment for his children

“…that God lays up one’s punishment for his children.” (Job 21:19b)

• The saying suggests God stores judgment to be poured out on a sinner’s descendants.

• Examples fit that idea: Saul’s household suffered after his unfaithfulness (2 Samuel 21:1–6). David’s sin affected his child (2 Samuel 12:14).

• Yet the Lord also clarifies individual responsibility: “The soul who sins is the one who will die” (Ezekiel 18:20) and “Everyone will die for his own iniquity” (Jeremiah 31:29–30).

• Job highlights the tension: if justice waits for the next generation, the perpetrator never faces consequences.

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Let God repay the man himself, so he will know it

“Let God repay the man himself, so he will know it.” (Job 21:19c)

• Job longs for visible, immediate justice: “Repay them for their deeds” (Psalm 28:4).

• He challenges the earlier assumption, arguing that the wicked should personally experience God’s retribution (cf. Job 24:1–12).

• Scripture affirms that principle: “Vengeance is Mine; I will repay” (Deuteronomy 32:35) and “A man reaps what he sows” (Galatians 6:7).

• Final judgment guarantees perfect equity: “Each one may receive his due for the things done in the body” (2 Corinthians 5:10).

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summary

Job 21:19 captures Job quoting and critiquing a popular notion that God postpones a sinner’s punishment to his children. Job contends that true justice demands the guilty be repaid directly so they grasp God’s righteousness. The rest of Scripture shows both generational repercussions and individual accountability, but ultimately confirms Job’s conviction that God will personally repay every person for his own deeds, perfectly and unmistakably.