Job 18 15

Job 18:15

ESV: In his tent dwells that which is none of his; sulfur is scattered over his habitation.

KJV: It shall dwell in his tabernacle, because it is none of his: brimstone shall be scattered upon his habitation.

NIV: Fire resides in his tent; burning sulfur is scattered over his dwelling.

NKJV: They dwell in his tent who are none of his; Brimstone is scattered on his dwelling.

NLT: The homes of the wicked will burn down;
burning sulfur rains on their houses.

Meaning

Job 18:15 describes the catastrophic and irreversible destruction of the wicked person's dwelling. It proclaims that what they built or claimed will be utterly dispossessed, taken over by strangers, and supernaturally devastated with divine judgment, leaving it forever uninhabitable and accursed. Bildad is here elaborating on the miserable fate he believes awaits all who turn from God.

Cross References

Context

Job 18:15 is part of Bildad's second speech to Job, found in Job 18. This chapter immediately follows Job's lamentations in chapter 17, where Job expresses despair, isolation, and a plea for vindication, still believing in his own righteousness. Bildad, along with Eliphaz and Zophar, rigidly adheres to the traditional understanding of divine retribution: the righteous prosper, and the wicked suffer. Since Job is suffering, Bildad concludes he must be wicked.

Bildad’s entire speech in Job 18 is a detailed and severe description of the destruction that awaits the wicked. He paints a stark picture of a wicked person's inevitable downfall, detailing their entrapment (vv. 7-10), famine and disease (vv. 12-14), and ultimate expulsion and desolation (vv. 15-21). This verse, specifically, focuses on the destruction and repossession of the wicked person's dwelling place. It highlights the perceived certainty that the wicked will lose their stability, property, and legacy, a notion that Job vehemently disputes throughout the book. This speech does not address Job's arguments but rather dismisses them by restating orthodox dogma, emphasizing Job's guilt through implication.

Word analysis

• Brimstone (גָּפְרִית, gofrit):

  • Hebrew word specifically for sulfur.
  • Strongly associated with divine judgment and utter destruction, as seen in the account of Sodom and Gomorrah (Gen 19:24).
  • Symbolizes a burning, consuming judgment initiated by God, leaving behind desolation and a foul odor.
  • It's not just physical fire but carries the connotation of spiritual condemnation and divine wrath.

• scattered (תְּזֹרֶה, tezoreh):

  • From the root זָרָה (zarah), meaning "to scatter," "to winnow," "to spread out."
  • In this context, it suggests complete dispersal, demolition, and a breaking apart into unrecognisable pieces.
  • Implies that the elements of judgment, the brimstone, are not just in one spot but are dispersed widely over the dwelling, ensuring its thorough ruin.
  • Signifies total destruction and desecration.

• upon his dwelling (עַל־נָוֵהוּ, al navehu):

  • dwelling (נָוֵה, naveh): From the root meaning "pasture" or "habitation." Can refer to a shepherd's encampment, a fold, or generally a pleasant resting place or home. It signifies security, comfort, and possession.
  • The use of naveh emphasizes that the very place of a person's presumed safety and heritage becomes the site of their ultimate downfall and disgrace.
  • It points to a direct judgment against the locus of the wicked person's life and identity.

• It shall dwell (יִשְׁכָּן, yishkan):

  • From the root שָׁכַן (shakan), "to dwell," "to settle," "to inhabit." This root also forms mishkan (dwelling, tabernacle).
  • Here, used to mean "dwell" or "settle" upon, indicating something alien or destructive now permanently occupying the former place.
  • Suggests a haunting or desolate presence where life once was.

• in his dwelling that is not his (בְּאָהֳלוֹ מִבְּלִי־לוֹ, be’ohalo mibbeliy-lo):

  • his dwelling (בְּאָהֳלוֹ, be’ohalo): Refers to "his tent" or "his dwelling." The tent was a central feature of nomadic and semi-nomadic life, symbolizing one's identity, family, and inheritance. Its loss is complete disinheritance.
  • that is not his (מִבְּלִי־לוֹ, mibbeliy-lo): Literally "without him" or "from not to him." This strong phrase highlights complete dispossession and alienation. The wicked loses all claim to their property, becoming a stranger in their own home. It suggests that foreign or hostile elements (like the "terror," mentioned elsewhere by Bildad) take root there, or simply that no one truly belonging to the wicked will ever inhabit it again.

Commentary

Job 18:15 encapsulates Bildad's unwavering belief in the immediate, observable retribution for the wicked. He asserts that the wicked person's home—the symbol of their stability, security, and legacy—will be fundamentally undermined and consumed by divine judgment. The imagery of "brimstone scattered upon his dwelling" invokes a Sodom-like devastation, a public and unambiguous sign of God's wrath, leaving a ruin where habitation was once found. Furthermore, the declaration that "it shall dwell in his dwelling that is not his" conveys the profound humiliation of dispossession; their former place of security becomes alien and desolate, a monument to their destruction. This perspective, though harsh and ultimately misapplied to Job's situation, highlights a significant biblical truth: that ultimate divine judgment will indeed fall upon wickedness, rendering any perceived human security ultimately fleeting if it is not rooted in righteousness. However, Job’s suffering challenges the immediacy and universality of this punitive model for all cases of affliction.

Bonus section

The concept of brimstone in the Bible signifies not just destruction, but often a definitive, irreversible divine act of purification through fire and an everlasting judgment that carries a stench and leaves a permanent scar on the land. Bildad's use of this imagery against Job implies the depth of sin he perceives, though unstated, in Job. The reference to the "dwelling that is not his" suggests more than mere abandonment; it signifies a void filled with dread or, by implication, inherited by those whom the wicked disdained, serving as a silent, permanent curse on the space. This is a common motif in wisdom literature, illustrating how earthly accumulations offer no true security in the face of divine decree (Ps 49:10-13, Jer 12:7).

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