Job - Chapter 18

Job 18.1 Then answered Bildad the Shuhite, and said, Job 18.2 How long will it be ere ye make an end of words? mark, and afterwards we will speak. Job 18.3 Wherefore are we counted as beasts, and reputed vile in your sight? Job 18.4 He teareth himself in his anger: shall the earth be forsaken for thee? and shall the rock be removed out of his place? Job 18.5 Yea, the light of the wicked shall be put out, and the spark of his fire shall not shine. Job 18.7 The steps of his strength shall be straitened, and his own counsel shall cast him down. Job 18.8 For he is cast into a net by his own feet, and he walketh upon a snare. Job 18.9 The gin shall take him by the heel, and the robber shall prevail against him. Job 18.10 The snare is laid for him in the ground, and a trap for him in the way. Job 18.11 Terrors shall make him afraid on every side, and shall drive him to his feet. Job 18.12 His strength shall be hungerbitten, and destruction shall be ready at his side. Job 18.13 It shall devour the strength of his skin: even the firstborn of death shall devour his strength. Job 18.14 His confidence shall be rooted out of his tabernacle, and it shall bring him to the king of terrors. Job 18.15 It shall dwell in his tabernacle, because it is none of his: brimstone shall be scattered upon his habitation. Job 18.16 His roots shall be dried up beneath, and above shall his branch be cut off. Job 18.17 His remembrance shall perish from the earth, and he shall have no name in the street. Job 18.18 He shall be driven from light into darkness, and chased out of the world. Job 18.19 He shall neither have son nor nephew among his people, nor any remaining in his dwellings. Job 18.20 They that come after him shall be astonied at his day, as they that went before were affrighted. Job 18.21 Surely such are the dwellings of the wicked, and this is the place of him that knoweth not God.

Job : Chapter 18

Bildad's Speech in Job Chapter 18

Job chapter 18 presents us with Bildad's second speech. In this passage, Bildad vividly describes the fate of the wicked. This profound text paints a grim picture of divine judgment on sinners, exploring themes such as the inevitability of divine justice, the terror of the wicked, and the obliterated memory of wrongdoers.

Job 18 offers an uncompromising view of God's judgment, which is implicitly applied to Job himself. We invite you to explore with us five biblical passages that highlight the powerful images presented in this provocative chapter.

Psalms 37:35-36

"I saw a wicked and cruel man flourishing like a leafy tree in his native land, but he soon disappeared; though I looked for him, I could not find him." These verses echo Bildad's speech in Job 18 about the fate of the wicked.

Proverbs 13:9

"The light of the righteous shines, but the The lamp of the wicked is extinguished." This proverb reflects the theme of Job 18:5-6, where Bildad speaks of the extinguishing of the light of the wicked.

Isaiah 14:20-21

"You will not have a funeral like theirs, for you have destroyed your nation and killed your people. Let the descendants of those who do evil never be remembered! Prepare a place to kill their children; they will suffer for the sin of their ancestors. They will not arise to inherit the earth or build cities to fill the world." This passage about the fate of the wicked refers to Bildad's description in Job 18:19-21.

Matthew 7:26-27

"But everyone who hears these words and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. The rain fell, the rivers overflowed, and the winds blew and beat on that house, and it fell. And a great fall was its fall." Jesus' parable of the house built on sand echoes the theme of Job 18:14-15 on the insecurity of the wicked.

2 Peter 2:17

"These people are like fountains without water and like mists driven by a storm. For them is the deepest darkness." Peter's description of false teachers relates to Bildad's language in Job 18:18 about the wicked being cast out of darkness into darkness.

Through these verses, we discern the importance and gravity of Bildad's message, which reminds us of the reality of divine judgment and the call to justice. May these reflections nourish our faith and our commitment to live according to God's precepts.