Job 5 16

Job 5:16 kjv

So the poor hath hope, and iniquity stoppeth her mouth.

Job 5:16 nkjv

So the poor have hope, And injustice shuts her mouth.

Job 5:16 niv

So the poor have hope, and injustice shuts its mouth.

Job 5:16 esv

So the poor have hope, and injustice shuts her mouth.

Job 5:16 nlt

And so at last the poor have hope,
and the snapping jaws of the wicked are shut.

Job 5 verses

Job 5 16 Meaning

Job 5:16 proclaims a divine principle: God brings hope to the downtrodden and silences the claims or actions of injustice. It asserts that those who are oppressed find a reason to hope, implying divine intervention or vindication, while the very presence or boasts of iniquity are rendered mute, incapacitated by a greater power. This verse encapsulates Eliphaz’s belief in a righteous God who ensures justice prevails.

Job 5 16 Context

Job 5:16 is part of Eliphaz the Temanite's first speech (Job 4-5) to Job, who is suffering greatly. Eliphaz, a representative of conventional ancient Near Eastern wisdom theology, posits that suffering is primarily a consequence of sin, and divine blessing follows righteousness. In chapter 5, Eliphaz counsels Job to appeal to God, asserting that God intervenes justly. He details the Lord’s power over the wicked (vv. 12-14) and His salvation of the poor and needy (vv. 15-16). Verse 16 specifically offers a vision of divine justice where the disadvantaged receive hope and the unjust are silenced. While comforting in its assertion of God’s justice, Eliphaz's underlying assumption that Job’s suffering is due to his sin profoundly misunderstands Job’s situation, as the reader knows from the book's prologue.

Job 5 16 Word analysis

• So: Conveys a consequence or a natural outcome derived from the preceding statements about God's activity in saving the needy (Job 5:15). It connects God's action to the resulting state of the poor and the wicked.
• the poor: דָּל (dal - Hebrew). Refers to the weak, the oppressed, the lowly, the vulnerable, those without social power or economic means. In biblical context, often encompasses more than just financial poverty, extending to general helplessness and oppression. It signifies those in need of divine intervention for vindication and succor.
• has hope: תִּקְוָה (tiqvah - Hebrew). Denotes expectation, hope, or even a 'cord' or 'line'—something stretched out or relied upon. Here, it signifies the certainty of a positive future for the poor due to divine intervention. It's not wishful thinking but a firm anticipation rooted in God's character.
• and iniquity: וְעַוְלָתָה (ve’awlatah - Hebrew). עַוְלָה (awlah) refers to injustice, perversity, unrighteousness, wrongdoing. It encompasses both wicked actions and the inherent character of unrighteousness. Here personified, representing wicked individuals or the abstract principle of injustice.
• stops her mouth: תִּקְפָּץ־פִּיהָ (tikpats-pihā - Hebrew). קָפַץ (qaphats) means to shut, close, or stop. פִּיהָ (pihā) is "her mouth." This vivid imagery suggests being silenced due to shame, defeat, conviction, or inability to make further false claims or accusations. It means iniquity loses its voice, its power to speak, accuse, or boast, in the face of divine justice.

Words-group analysis

• The poor has hope: This phrase highlights God’s advocacy for the downtrodden. It implies that God is on the side of the vulnerable, offering them a future when earthly systems may offer none. This hope is active and divinely assured.
• and iniquity stops her mouth: This parallel clause speaks of the defeat and silencing of unrighteousness. The imagery suggests that when divine justice intervenes, wickedness is rendered powerless and unable to prevail, expose its lies, or make boasts. It's a vivid depiction of righteousness prevailing.
• So the poor has hope, and iniquity stops her mouth: This entire verse forms a couplet expressing a balanced view of divine justice: the uplifting of the oppressed contrasted with the silencing of the oppressor or the principle of oppression itself. It encapsulates Eliphaz’s theological conviction in a world where God actively corrects imbalance.

Job 5 16 Bonus section

The phrasing "iniquity stops her mouth" carries a polemic against the notion that the wicked forever succeed in their schemes or continue to speak falsehoods unpunished. It suggests a divine intervention that halts their narrative and their influence. This aligns with a broader biblical theme where God is seen as the one who brings down the proud and elevates the humble. Eliphaz's perspective, while narrow, accurately reflects the ultimate sovereignty of God over injustice, even if he misjudges its immediate application. The irony for the reader of Job is that Job's 'iniquity' is silenced, but it is the false accusations of his friends and his own human understanding of justice, not a sin from Job's part, that eventually lose their voice before God's majesty.

Job 5 16 Commentary

Job 5:16 expresses a fundamental aspect of divine justice within Eliphaz's worldview: God, being righteous, not only attends to the cry of the oppressed, instilling hope within them, but also effectively silences the wicked. This "stopping of the mouth" of iniquity implies that the claims, boasts, accusations, or destructive words of the unrighteous are nullified or unable to stand against divine truth and judgment. It is a powerful affirmation that wrongdoing cannot ultimately triumph, and the vulnerable will find their vindication. While generally true in Scripture, Eliphaz applies this principle rigidly to Job, suggesting that if Job were righteous, his suffering would end, and his accusers (including presumably the internal voice of sin) would be silenced. This verse, though used in a flawed argument by Eliphaz regarding Job's specific plight, articulates a truth about God’s character as a champion of justice for the oppressed.