The big picture
Job 42 opens in verse 1 with “Then Job answered the LORD , and said,”, reaches its middle movement near verse 9 with “So Eliphaz the Temanite and Bildad the Shuhite and Zophar the Naamathite went, and did…”, and closes in verse 17 with “So Job died, being old and full of days.” Repeated or prominent terms include LORD, servant, sons, gave, name. Together, those details trace this chapter’s own movement from its opening to its conclusion.
Scripture beside the summary
Job · King James Version · 17Job 42:1-6
1–6: Job answered the LORD , and said,
Job 42:1–6 opens with “Then Job answered the LORD , and said,” and reaches “Wherefore I abhor myself, and repent in dust and ashes.” by its final verse. That movement develops the focus on Job listening in humility and withdrawing his demand after encountering the limits of his understanding; Job praying for his friends and later surrounded by restored family and community, without implying that new children erase the grief of those lost, with particular weight carried by abhor, ashes, beseech.
Job 42:1-6
King James Version1Then Job answered the LORD , and said,
2I know that thou canst do every thing, and that no thought can be withholden from thee.
3Who is he that hideth counsel without knowledge? therefore have I uttered that I understood not; things too wonderful for me, which I knew not.
4Hear, I beseech thee, and I will speak: I will demand of thee, and declare thou unto me.
5I have heard of thee by the hearing of the ear: but now mine eye seeth thee.
6Wherefore I abhor myself, and repent in dust and ashes.
Job 42:7-12
7–12: It was so, that after the LORD had spoken these words unto Job, the LORD…
Job 42:7–12 opens with “And it was so, that after the LORD had spoken these words unto Job, the LORD said to Eliphaz the…” and reaches “So the LORD blessed the latter end of Job more than his beginning: for he had fourteen thousand…” by its final verse. That movement develops the focus on Job listening in humility and withdrawing his demand after encountering the limits of his understanding; Job praying for his friends and later surrounded by restored family and community, without implying that new children erase the grief of those lost, with particular weight carried by LORD, servant, Eliphaz.
Context that brings the passage to life
“And it was so, that after the LORD had spoken these words unto Job, the LORD said to Eliphaz the Temanite, My wrath is…” The number two makes the report concrete. Ask whether it measures time, people, distance, repetition, or completeness before deciding what weight it carries.
“Therefore take unto you now seven bullocks and seven rams, and go to my servant Job, and offer up for yourselves a…” This line supplies a reason, result, or conclusion. It should stay attached to the claim or action that gives it meaning.
“So Eliphaz the Temanite and Bildad the Shuhite and Zophar the Naamathite went, and did according as the LORD commanded…” This line supplies a reason, result, or conclusion. It should stay attached to the claim or action that gives it meaning.
Job 42:7-12
King James Version7And it was so, that after the LORD had spoken these words unto Job, the LORD said to Eliphaz the Temanite, My wrath is kindled against thee, and against thy two friends: for ye have not spoken of me the thing that is right, as my servant Job hath.
8Therefore 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.
9So Eliphaz the Temanite and Bildad the Shuhite and Zophar the Naamathite went, and did according as the LORD commanded them: the LORD also accepted Job.
10And the LORD turned the captivity of Job, when he prayed for his friends: also the LORD gave Job twice as much as he had before.
11Then came there unto him all his brethren, and all his sisters, and all they that had been of his acquaintance before, and did eat bread with him in his house: and they bemoaned him, and comforted him over all the evil that the LORD had brought upon him: every man also gave him a piece of money, and every one an earring of gold.
12So the LORD blessed the latter end of Job more than his beginning: for he had fourteen thousand sheep, and six thousand camels, and a thousand yoke of oxen, and a thousand she asses.
Job 42:13-17
13–17: He had also seven sons and three daughters.
Job 42:13–17 opens with “He had also seven sons and three daughters.” and reaches “So Job died, being old and full of days.” by its final verse. That movement develops the focus on Job listening in humility and withdrawing his demand after encountering the limits of his understanding; Job praying for his friends and later surrounded by restored family and community, without implying that new children erase the grief of those lost, with particular weight carried by sons, name, daughters.
Job 42:13-17
King James Version13He had also seven sons and three daughters.
14And he called the name of the first, Jemima; and the name of the second, Kezia; and the name of the third, Keren-happuch.
15And in all the land were no women found so fair as the daughters of Job: and their father gave them inheritance among their brethren.
16After this lived Job an hundred and forty years, and saw his sons, and his sons’ sons, even four generations.
17So Job died, being old and full of days.
Details worth noticing
The opening image
Job 42:1 begins with “Then Job answered the LORD , and said,”
Where the chapter turns
Job 42:8 forms a natural hinge: “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…”
The final note
Job 42:17 leaves the reader with “So Job died, being old and full of days.”
A word trail through the chapter
The words LORD, servant, sons, gave, name, seven help reveal the chapter’s repeated concerns.
What new information appears about the original betrayal?
The brothers remember Joseph's distress and pleas, which they refused to hear.
Why does the returned money frighten them?
They already fear accusation and divine reckoning; unexplained money makes their position seem more dangerous.
KJV words made clear
- unto
- to
- thee
- you
- thou
- you
- thy
- your
- hath
- has
Text first
Where readers differ
The chapter summary begins with what the passage says and how its parts fit together. It does not assume one denomination has already settled every question. Where a conclusion depends on a tradition, literary theory, or historical reconstruction, that dependence is named openly.
The KJV text is presented first. Interpretive conclusions are labeled, and differences are introduced only when they help a reader understand why serious communities do not always reach the same answer.
Comparative interpretive notes for this chapter are in preparation. Until reviewed notes are ready, this page separates the KJV text from summary and application without claiming that serious readers agree on every question.