Job 27:20
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Job 27:20
20 Terrors take hold on him as waters, a tempest stealeth him away in the night.
Chapter Context
Job 27 is a wisdom dialogue chapter in the Old Testament that explores themes of truth, sacrifice, judgment. Written during the patriarchal period (literary composition later), this chapter should be understood within its historical context: Ancient wisdom traditions often wrestled with the problem of suffering and divine justice.
The chapter can be divided into several sections:
- Verses 1-5: Introduction and setting the context
- Verses 6-12: Development of key themes
- Verses 13-20: Central message and teachings
- Verses 21-23: Conclusion and application
This chapter is significant because it contributes to the biblical metanarrative of redemption. When studying this passage, it's important to consider both its immediate context within Job and its broader place in the scriptural canon.
Verse Study
Job 27:20
20 Terrors take hold on him as waters, a tempest stealeth him away in the night.
Analysis
Terrors take hold on him as waters—the noun בַּלָּהוֹת (ballahot, terrors/calamities) with the verb נָשַׂג (nasag, overtake/seize) depicts overwhelming dread. The simile "as waters" (כַּמַּיִם, kamayim) suggests a flood drowning the victim—uncontrollable, inescapable destruction. A tempest stealeth him away in the night uses סוּפָה (sufah, storm/whirlwind) with גָּנַב (ganav, steal away), emphasizing sudden, secret removal. Night (לַיְלָה, laylah) suggests vulnerability and lack of warning—he cannot see the storm coming.
Job concludes his description of the wicked's end with vivid catastrophe imagery: overwhelming terror like drowning, sudden destruction like a nighttime storm. This poetic climax emphasizes divine judgment's inevitability and inescapability. The wicked may accumulate wealth (v. 16-17) and build houses (v. 18), but terror and tempest will ultimately sweep them away. Yet Job himself has experienced this terror—the Satan-sent "great wind" that killed his children (1:19) came suddenly. Job maintains that despite experiencing the wicked's described fate, he remains innocent.
Historical Context
Ancient Near Eastern literature often depicted divine judgment as storm or flood—chaotic waters representing threat and destruction (see Psalm 18:4, 16; 69:1-2, 14-15). The storm theophany appears throughout Scripture as God's instrument of judgment (Psalm 83:15, Nahum 1:3). Job's audience, familiar with devastating storms in the ancient Near East, would recognize this imagery's power. Nighttime storms were particularly terrifying without modern weather prediction or lighting.
Reflection
- How does Job's description of divine judgment challenge comfortable assumptions about security and safety?
- What is the relationship between fearing God (reverential awe) and the terror that comes upon the wicked?
- How can we prepare spiritually for life's sudden storms, whether judgment or permitted testing?