Job 42 8

Job 42:8 kjv

Therefore take unto you now seven bullocks and seven rams, and go to my servant Job, and offer up for yourselves a burnt offering; and my servant Job shall pray for you: for him will I accept: lest I deal with you after your folly, in that ye have not spoken of me the thing which is right, like my servant Job.

Job 42:8 nkjv

Now therefore, take for yourselves seven bulls and seven rams, go to My servant Job, and offer up for yourselves a burnt offering; and My servant Job shall pray for you. For I will accept him, lest I deal with you according to your folly; because you have not spoken of Me what is right, as My servant Job has."

Job 42:8 niv

So now take seven bulls and seven rams and go to my servant Job and sacrifice a burnt offering for yourselves. My servant Job will pray for you, and I will accept his prayer and not deal with you according to your folly. You have not spoken the truth about me, as my servant Job has."

Job 42:8 esv

Now therefore take seven bulls and seven rams and go to my servant Job and offer up a burnt offering for yourselves. And my servant Job shall pray for you, for I will accept his prayer not to deal with you according to your folly. For you have not spoken of me what is right, as my servant Job has."

Job 42:8 nlt

So take seven bulls and seven rams and go to my servant Job and offer a burnt offering for yourselves. My servant Job will pray for you, and I will accept his prayer on your behalf. I will not treat you as you deserve, for you have not spoken accurately about me, as my servant Job has."

Job 42 verses

Job 42 8 Meaning

This verse signifies God's vindication of Job and His authoritative correction of Job's three friends, Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar. God commands the friends to perform a specific sacrificial ritual (seven bulls and seven rams as a burnt offering) to atone for their sins. Crucially, they must present this offering through Job, whom God twice refers to as "My servant." Job is then to intercede on their behalf, and God promises to accept Job's prayer, thereby sparing them from the consequences of their foolish and misguided words. The verse concludes with God's clear indictment: the friends had misrepresented Him, unlike Job who, despite his suffering and complaints, had spoken truly about God. It highlights God's justice, mercy, and the power of righteous intercession.

Job 42 8 Context

Job 42:8 concludes the narrative where God directly intervenes to address the protracted dispute between Job and his three friends. Throughout the book, Job's friends had relentlessly accused him of specific, hidden sins as the cause of his suffering, adhering to a rigid theology of retribution: great suffering must imply great sin. Job, though deeply distraught and questioning, maintained his innocence before God, never abandoning his core faith, despite challenging God's justice.

The verse is part of God's final speech, delivered after Job has humbled himself and repented of speaking beyond his understanding (Job 42:1-6). God begins His discourse (Job 38-41) by exposing the limits of human wisdom and highlighting His infinite power and inscrutable wisdom, rendering the friends' dogmatic assertions meaningless.

Historically, this verse reflects an ancient Near Eastern understanding of ritual purity, sacrifice for atonement, and the concept of intercession by a righteous individual. It powerfully rebukes the friends' limited theological understanding and spiritual pride, contrasting it sharply with Job's, who, despite his vehement complaints, spoke more truly about God's nature than those who defended Him with flawed arguments. It is the culmination of God's vindication of Job's integrity and a profound demonstration of His mercy and sovereignty.

Job 42 8 Word analysis

• Now therefore (וְעַתָּה): A transitional phrase signaling a divine decree or consequence. It marks the pivotal shift from God's rebuke to His command and resolution.
• take for yourselves (לְקְחוּ לָכֶם, _lĕqāḥū lāḵem_): "Take" is a command (imperative). "For yourselves" (a dative pronoun) emphasizes that the responsibility for procuring and offering the sacrifice lies personally with the friends, for their own benefit and atonement. This highlights their direct culpability and the need for their active participation in their reconciliation with God.
• seven bulls and seven rams (שִׁבְעָה פָרִים וְשִׁבְעָה אֵילִים, _shīḇʿāh fārîm wĕshīḠʿāh ʾêlîm_):
  • Seven: A number of divine completion, perfection, and sacredness in biblical numerology. It signifies the fullness of the offering required and the seriousness of their transgression. It often denotes a divinely appointed action or covenantal initiation.
  • Bulls and Rams: Common sacrificial animals for burnt offerings (עוֹלָה, _ʿōlāh_) which signified complete dedication and atonement. These animals were typically expensive, symbolizing the magnitude of their error and the costly nature of sin.
• My servant Job (עַבְדִּי אִיּוֹב, _ʿaḇdî ʾiyyôḇ_): God’s direct, twice-repeated designation.
  • My servant: A highly significant title, bestowing divine approval and intimacy. It contrasts sharply with the friends' accusations that Job was wicked and deserving of punishment. This title was applied to great figures like Abraham (Gen 26:24), Moses (Num 12:7), David (Ps 89:3), and prophets like Isaiah, representing a special relationship of faithfulness and divine trust. Here, it marks Job's vindication as one who had genuinely sought God, despite his distress and mistaken understandings.
• offer up a burnt offering (וְהַעֲלוּ לָכֶם עוֹלָה, _wĕhaʿălû lāḵem ʿōlāh_):
  • Burnt offering: (עוֹלָה, _ʿōlāh_, from root meaning "to go up") A sacrifice entirely consumed by fire on the altar, symbolizing complete devotion, propitiation, and atonement for sin. It signified the whole life being given over to God and symbolized comprehensive purification.
• shall pray for you (וְאִיּוֹב עַבְדִּי יִתְפַּלֵּל בַּעֲדְכֶם, _wĕʾiyyôḇ ʿaḇdî yiṯpallel baʿăḏĕḵem_):
  • Pray for you: This highlights Job's role as an intercessor. The friends, who were unable to pray effectively for themselves due to their sin, must rely on Job's spiritual standing with God. This required humility from the friends, as they needed to be saved by the one they had condemned. It demonstrates the power of a righteous person's prayer (Jas 5:16).
• for I will accept his prayer (כִּי אִם־פָּנָיו אֶשָּׂא, _kî ʾim-pānāyw ʾessāʾ_):
  • Accept his prayer: Literally, "lift up his face." This idiomatic expression denotes granting favor, showing approval, and listening with grace. It assures the friends that Job's intercession will be efficacious and that God will not hold their transgression against them once it has been offered through Job. It signifies God's delight in and acceptance of Job's uprightness.
• not to deal with you according to your folly (לְבִלְתִּי עֲשׂוֹת עִמָּכֶם נְבָלָה, _ləḇiltî ʿăsôt ʿimmāḵem nĕḇālāh_):
  • Folly (נְבָלָה, _nĕḇālāh_): More than just a mistake; it implies moral and theological depravity, gross absurdity, or sin committed against divine instruction, particularly involving a failure to grasp God's true nature or character. The friends' "folly" lay in their judgmental pronouncements and their misguided attempts to defend God by maligning Job and distorting God's character. God recognizes their action as stemming from a lack of moral and theological wisdom.
• not spoken of Me what is right (לֹא דִּבַּרְתֶּם אֵלַי נְכוֹנָה, _lōʾ dibbartem ʾēlay nĕḵônāh_):
  • Not spoken... what is right: This is the core accusation against the friends. "Right" (נְכוֹנָה, _nĕḵônāh_) implies truth, firmness, precision, and alignment with reality. The friends spoke dogmatically about God from their limited perspective, attributing actions and motives to Him that were not accurate. Their theological assertions were founded on flawed premises regarding suffering and divine justice, thereby misrepresenting God's true nature and dealings.
• as My servant Job has (כְּעַבְדִּי אִיּוֹב): This final comparison emphatically vindicates Job. Though Job had his own misguided outbursts and challenged God, his underlying heart posture of trust and direct, albeit agonizing, communication with God, was considered "right" in God's eyes compared to the friends' rigid and judgmental pronouncements. Job had honestly wrestled with the reality of suffering and God's sovereignty, acknowledging his limitations (Job 42:3), while the friends maintained a rigid, incomplete, and ultimately false theological framework.

Job 42 8 Bonus section

This verse carries a powerful implication regarding the nature of God's desired relationship with humanity and the kind of speech that honors Him. The friends were condemned for speaking about God, based on their limited, human-centric wisdom, failing to truly grasp His inscrutable ways or the depths of His love and sovereignty beyond simplistic cause-and-effect. Job, in contrast, despite his raw anguish and at times questioning attitude, was engaged in a deep, agonizing, but honest dialogue with God. This authentic, relational engagement, though imperfect, was considered "right" by God. It highlights that God values truthful wrestling and earnest seeking of Him more than rigid, defensive theology that may distort His character. Job’s final submission (Job 42:1-6) made him a worthy vessel for God's mercy and an intercessor, even for his tormentors. Furthermore, Job's role here foreshadows the ultimate Intercessor, Jesus Christ, who sacrifices Himself and continuously intercedes for humanity before God, demonstrating that the only way to be accepted by God is through the mediation of a perfect Servant.

Job 42 8 Commentary

Job 42:8 serves as the climactic turning point in the Book of Job, marking God's definitive judgment on the friends and vindication of Job. God commands the friends to humble themselves through a significant, costly sacrifice, which they must bring to Job, thereby acknowledging his spiritual standing, which they had vehemently denied. Their sin was not simply intellectual error, but spiritual arrogance and a misrepresentation of God's character through their rigid, formulaic theology.

The requirement that Job pray for them is paramount. It not only restores Job's honor publicly but elevates him to a position of intercessor, mirroring the roles of patriarchs like Abraham and Moses. This act demands profound humility from the friends and incredible magnanimity from Job, who must pray for those who had cruelly accused him. God's acceptance of Job's prayer underscores His graciousness and validates Job's ultimate faithfulness, despite his severe testing and complaints. The folly of the friends lay in their presumptive theology that tried to fit God into their neat retribution paradigm, rather than humbly seeking His truth. In contrast, Job, who spoke frankly to God even in his confusion and pain, was declared to have spoken "what is right," not because his every word was perfect, but because his core perception of God's sovereignty and justice was more authentic than the friends' superficial reasoning. The verse exemplifies divine justice, the efficacy of intercession, the cost of theological error, and God's profound mercy for those who ultimately submit.