Job 20:22 kjv
In the fulness of his sufficiency he shall be in straits: every hand of the wicked shall come upon him.
Job 20:22 nkjv
In his self-sufficiency he will be in distress; Every hand of misery will come against him.
Job 20:22 niv
In the midst of his plenty, distress will overtake him; the full force of misery will come upon him.
Job 20:22 esv
In the fullness of his sufficiency he will be in distress; the hand of everyone in misery will come against him.
Job 20:22 nlt
"In the midst of plenty, they will run into trouble
and be overcome by misery.
Job 20 22 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Ps 73:18-19 | Surely you set them in slippery places; you cast them down to destruction. How they are destroyed in a moment! | Sudden ruin from prosperity |
| Prov 1:27 | Your dread comes like a storm, and your calamity comes like a whirlwind. | Sudden, overwhelming disaster |
| Lk 12:19-20 | "Soul, take your ease; eat, drink, and be merry." But God said to him, "Fool! This night your soul is required of you." | Death at height of worldly security |
| Ps 49:6-7 | Those who trust in their wealth and boast... cannot redeem his brother. | Wealth offers no salvation from fate |
| Prov 11:4 | Riches do not profit in the day of wrath, but righteousness delivers from death. | Wealth's futility in judgment |
| Rom 2:9 | There will be tribulation and distress for every human being who does evil. | Inevitable anguish for evildoers |
| 1 Thess 5:3 | When people say, "There is peace and security," then sudden destruction will come upon them. | Destruction at peak of perceived safety |
| Jam 5:1 | Come now, you rich, weep and howl for the miseries that are coming upon you. | Anguish for the oppressive rich |
| Mic 2:3 | From which you cannot remove your necks, nor shall you walk haughtily. | Inescapable judgment for oppressors |
| Is 13:6-8 | Wail, for the day of the LORD is near; it will come as destruction from the Almighty... every heart will melt. | Anguish during divine judgment |
| Job 27:16-17 | Though he heap up silver like dust... the righteous will wear it. | Wicked's wealth transferred to righteous |
| Job 18:7 | His strong steps are shortened, and his own plan throws him down. | Strength failing and self-inflicted downfall |
| Job 21:30 | For the evil man is reserved for the day of calamity; they are led forth to the day of wrath. | Calamity awaits the wicked |
| Amos 5:18-20 | Woe to you who desire the day of the LORD! Why would you have the day of the LORD? It is darkness, and not light. | Day of judgment brings only distress |
| Dan 5:3-6, 26-28 | They drank wine and praised the gods... Belshazzar's knees knocked together... God has numbered your kingdom. | Sudden, terrifying end for presumptuous king |
| Eze 28:18-19 | I poured out your disgrace upon the earth... I brought you to ashes on the earth. | Humiliation for pride and riches |
| Hos 13:8 | I will meet them like a bear robbed of her cubs; I will tear open their breast. | Fierce, sudden judgment |
| Ps 9:15-16 | The nations have sunk... in the net that they hid their own foot is caught. | Wicked caught by own devices |
| Ps 7:14-16 | Behold, the wicked man conceives evil... and falls into the pit that he made. | Own actions lead to downfall |
| Ps 37:35-36 | I have seen a wicked, ruthless man... but when I passed by, behold, he was gone. | Sudden disappearance of the wicked |
| Jer 17:11 | Like the partridge that gathers a brood which she has not hatched, so is he who gets riches but not by justice. | Riches obtained unjustly do not endure |
| Rev 18:7 | As she glorified herself and lived in luxury, so give her the same measure of torment and sorrow. | Retribution for luxury and pride |
Job 20 verses
Job 20 22 Meaning
Job 20:22 declares that even when a wicked person has achieved the peak of his prosperity and feels utterly secure, distress will suddenly overwhelm him. This anguish will be pervasive and inescapable, stemming from the very afflictions that he either caused others or neglected to relieve, bringing consequences back upon him. It paints a picture of abrupt and comprehensive downfall, even from a position of abundant self-sufficiency.
Job 20 22 Context
Job chapter 20 presents Zophar's second, most severe, and final discourse in the book. Having listened to Job's despair and his lament about the wicked often prospering (Job 19:6-21), Zophar responds with unyielding conviction, reaffirming the traditional Retribution Theology of their day. He argues vehemently that the triumph of the wicked is short-lived, despite any apparent prosperity (Job 20:5). He paints a graphic and extensive picture of the wicked man's demise, asserting that his prosperity, ill-gotten gains, children, and very essence will be consumed by God's fierce wrath (Job 20:6-21). Verse 22 functions as a concluding stroke to this depiction, emphasizing that the climax of the wicked man's "sufficiency"—the moment he feels most secure—is precisely when his swift and total destruction will begin. Historically, this perspective reflects ancient Near Eastern beliefs where misfortune was frequently attributed to divine judgment for sin, a framework Job's suffering deeply challenged.
Job 20 22 Word analysis
- In the fullness (בְּמְלֹא, bə·mə·lōʾ): From məloʾ, meaning fullness, abundance, completeness. Indicates a peak, a state of satiety or maximum provision. This implies the wicked person has everything desired, feeling totally supplied.
- of his sufficiency (שְׂפִיקוֹ, śə·p̄î·qōw): From śāp̄īq, meaning enough, sufficient, abundant supply. Often related to being fully satisfied. When combined with "fullness," it signifies the utmost extent of prosperity, wealth, and self-assuredness. It highlights a state of extreme worldly contentment and apparent lack of need.
- he will be in anguish (יֵצֶר־לוֹ, yē·ṣer-lōw): From yāṣar, to press, narrow, be constrained, distressed, vexed. It implies sudden, severe, inescapable distress or hardship. This is a dramatic contrast to the preceding words, highlighting an ironic reversal of fortune from abundance to severe constriction.
- the hand (יַד, yaḏ): A common Hebrew word for hand, but also metaphorically representing power, authority, agency, control, or means. It signifies active influence or instrument.
- of everyone who suffers (כָּל־עָמֵל, kāl-‘āmēl): kāl means "all" or "every." ‘āmēl refers to one who toils, labors, or is afflicted, suffering, and miserable. This refers to the oppressed, the poor, or those upon whom the wicked man may have inflicted injustice. It's often linked to hard labor or affliction.
- will come upon him (תְבוֹאֶנּוּ, tə·ḇō·w·’en·nū): From bôʾ, to come, arrive, enter. Denotes inevitability and direct impact. The affliction is certain to arrive and personally affect the wicked.
Words-group by words-group analysis:
- In the fullness of his sufficiency: This phrase powerfully describes the zenith of the wicked individual's perceived success and worldly security. It's the moment when he believes he is invulnerable, lacking nothing, and completely content in his earthly achievements. This setting intensifies the irony and suddenness of the subsequent downfall.
- he will be in anguish: This emphasizes a severe, internal, and unavoidable distress that pierces the wicked's former sense of ease. It is a reversal, showing that earthly plenty cannot shield one from the consequences of unrighteousness or divine judgment.
- the hand of everyone who suffers will come upon him: This imagery suggests that the very struggles, misfortunes, and injustices (the 'hand' representing either their active revenge, or simply the aggregate 'pain' they embody) typically associated with the oppressed will now collectively fall upon the oppressor. It signifies a profound retributive justice, where the wicked's prior actions (or indifference to suffering) manifest as his own inevitable misery. The pain of the afflicted becomes an instrument of his own undoing.
Job 20 22 Bonus section
While Zophar intends this verse as a direct accusation and predictive certainty against Job, the book of Job ultimately challenges this simplistic understanding of suffering and retribution. Zophar's words here represent a common but limited theological perspective that assumes direct, immediate, and proportional divine judgment for every sin. However, the dramatic irony lies in how accurately Job 20:22 could describe Job's own situation (though not as a consequence of wickedness but as a divine test), or conversely, how Job’s very existence at this point undermines Zophar's absolute pronouncement regarding all suffering. The specific language of the "hand of everyone who suffers" can also subtly allude to a wider societal consequence, implying that injustice not only offends God but also accumulates a 'debt' of grievance from those wronged, which contributes to the oppressor's eventual downfall.
Job 20 22 Commentary
Zophar's assertion in Job 20:22 crystallizes his deep-seated conviction about divine justice: no amount of wealth or apparent security can protect the wicked from an inescapable, profound anguish. This anguish is presented not as a distant possibility but as an immediate and unavoidable consequence, especially severe because it strikes at the moment of peak complacency. The "fullness of his sufficiency" highlights the perverse irony of a life built on material gain without moral foundation—such a life is most vulnerable precisely when it appears strongest. Furthermore, the vivid image of "the hand of everyone who suffers" coming upon him directly links the wicked man's undoing to the very afflictions he perhaps caused, ignored, or exploited. This implies a cumulative divine judgment, a cosmic reversal where the burdens once borne by the righteous or the oppressed are collectively laid upon the unjust. Zophar presents this as a universal and certain principle, emphasizing the catastrophic finality of God's verdict on the unrighteous, even for a moment he perceives no threat.