What is the meaning of Job 22:19? The righteous see it and are glad Eliphaz has just painted the picture of God sweeping away the wicked “before their time” (Job 22:16–18). When that judgment becomes visible, “the righteous see it and are glad.” • They rejoice because God’s holiness is publicly upheld—echoing Psalm 52:6, where “The righteous will see and fear, and will laugh at him,” and Revelation 19:1–2, where heaven celebrates God’s true and just judgments. • Their gladness springs from relief and vindication, much like Israel’s song after the Red Sea (Exodus 14:30–31; 15:1). God’s faithfulness to punish evil guarantees His faithfulness to preserve the upright (Psalm 37:34; Psalm 73:16–18). • This joy is not gloating over pain; it is confidence that righteousness is never wasted (1 Corinthians 15:58). Believers draw courage, knowing that every hidden wrong will ultimately meet divine justice (Romans 12:19). The innocent mock them “The innocent”—those with clean hands like Job described in Job 17:9—“mock” the fallen wicked. • Their mockery is moral commentary, not spite. Scripture often personifies wisdom doing the same (Proverbs 1:26) and even shows God Himself laughing at rebels (Psalm 2:4). • It highlights the sheer folly of sin: what looked powerful collapses, proving Psalm 37:10 true—“Yet a little while, and the wicked will be no more.” • Such mockery warns onlookers. Psalm 58:10–11 pictures the righteous rejoicing so that “mankind will say, ‘Surely there is a reward for the righteous.’” • The attitude must stay humble; Proverbs 24:17 cautions against malicious glee. Innocent mockery draws its tone from reverence for God, not cruelty. summary Job 22:19 records a timeless principle: when God exposes and judges evil, the righteous celebrate His triumph, and the blameless expose the foolishness of rebellion. The verse calls believers to steady faith—trusting that justice will come—and to lives of integrity that stand in bright contrast to the inevitable downfall of wickedness. |
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