Job 36:11
in Job 36If they obey and serve Him, then they end their days in prosperity and their years in happiness.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
If they hearken and serve him, They shall spend their days in prosperity, And their years in pleasures.
KJV
If they obey and serve him, they shall spend their days in prosperity, and their years in pleasures.
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This verse in Job 36
Commentary
9 notes on this verseIf they shall hear and observe Him, they shall fulfil their days in good, and their years in glory; but if they shall not hear, they shall pass away by the sword, and shall be consumed with folly. By 'good,' is designated right conduct, but by 'glory,' heavenly recompense. They, then, who study to obey the Divine commands, fulfil their days in good, and their years in glory. Because they pass the course of this life in right deeds, and perfect their consummation by a blessed retribution.
This site's exposition
God is mighty, but He despises no one
on Job 36:5-12
After “He opens their ears to correction” the obedient “end their days in prosperity”. Barnes calls this a chastening theory, correction meant to be heard, set against the friends' retribution. Delitzsch notes one pattern covering the righteous of verse 7 and men “bound with chains” in verse 8.
This site's exposition
they end their days in prosperity
Albert Barnes reads prosperity as the end God intends by affliction, when men obey and serve Him. Elihu said the same at Job 33:23. Adam Clarke allows apparent exceptions but holds the rule true for all who serve God.
The record, by era
The Medieval Church1 voice
He shows the fruit of this penance when he says, "If they listen," taking it to heart, "and they observe it," completing it with works, they will be brought back to their former state and so "they will complete their days in the good," of …
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
Piety is the only sure way to prosperity and pleasure; this is a certain truth, and yet few will believe it. If we faithfully serve God, (1.) We have the promise of outward prosperity, the promise of the life that now is, and the comforts of it, as far as is for God's glory and our good; and who would desire them any further?
If they obey and serve him,.... That is, God, to whom so many things are ascribed in the preceding verses; and who only is to be obeyed and served in a religious way, with the obedience of faith and love, in all his commands and ordinances.
The Nineteenth Century2 voices
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
If they obey and serve him - That is, if, as the result of their afflictions, they repent of their sins, seek his mercy, and serve him in time to come, they shall be prospered still. The design of affliction, Elihu says, is, not to cut them off, but to bring them to repentance. This sentiment he had advanced and illustrated before at greater length; see the notes at Job 33:23-
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
proposed
serve--that is, worship; as in Isa 19:23. God is to be supplied (compare Isa 1:19, 20).
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — starts-lowercase
1 more voice on this verse
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
If they obey and serve him - There may appear in the course of Providence to be some exceptions to this general rule; but it is most true, that this is literally or spiritually fulfilled to all the genuine followers of God. Every man is happy, in whatsoever circumstances, whose heart is unreservedly dedicated to his Maker.
How the passage was read
What the Jewish commentators add
On the verses either side of this one
and He says that with sufferings, they will repent of iniquity.
This section is reception history: how the passage was read and kept in the Jewish tradition. Where a reading parts from an essential of the Christian faith, the section says so at that point.
Texts and citation data: Sefaria; each excerpt follows its version’s licence. 4 further sources are cited on this chapter that carry no English text this site may quote or only restate the verse.
The words behind it
8 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| אִֽם־ | ʾim- | if | H518 → | 1069 times |
| יִשְׁמְע֗וּ | yishmeu | they will hear | H8085 → | 1159 times |
| וְֽיַ֫עֲבֹ֥דוּ | veyaavodu | and they may serve [him] | H5647 → | 288 times |
| יְכַלּ֣וּ | yekhalu | they will bring to an end | H3615 → | 208 times |
| יְמֵיהֶ֣ם | yemeihem | days their | H3117 → | 2304 times |
| בַּטּ֑וֹב | batov | in <the> good | H2896 → | 538 times |
| וּ֝שְׁנֵיהֶ֗ם | usheneihem | and years their | H8141 → | 877 times |
| בַּנְּעִימִֽים׃ | baneimim | in <the> pleasant [things] | H5273 → |
אִֽם־if
ʾim-H518 →1069 times
יִשְׁמְע֗וּthey will hear
yishmeuH8085 →1159 times
וְֽיַ֫עֲבֹ֥דוּand they may serve [him]
veyaavoduH5647 →288 times
יְכַלּ֣וּthey will bring to an end
yekhaluH3615 →208 times
יְמֵיהֶ֣םdays their
yemeihemH3117 →2304 times
בַּטּ֑וֹבin <the> good
batovH2896 →538 times
וּ֝שְׁנֵיהֶ֗םand years their
usheneihemH8141 →877 times
בַּנְּעִימִֽים׃in <the> pleasant [things]
baneimimH5273 →
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Isaiah 1:19If you are willing and obedient, you will eat the best of the land.
it leads to
- Deuteronomy 30:15–16
See, I have set before you today life and goodness, as well as death and disaster.
- Hebrews 5:9
And having been made perfect, He became the source of eternal salvation to all who obey Him
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Isaiah 3:10
Tell the righteous it will be well with them, for they will enjoy the fruit of their labor.
- Joel 2:26
You will have plenty to eat, until you are satisfied. You will praise the name of the LORD your God, who has worked wonders for you. My people will never again be put to…
- Isaiah 55:6–7
Seek the LORD while He may be found; call on Him while He is near.
- Deuteronomy 30:15–16
Through
Jeremiah 7:23but this is what I commanded them: Obey Me, and I will be your God, and you will be My people. You must walk in all the ways I have commanded you, so that…
it leads to
- Exodus 15:26
saying, “If you will listen carefully to the voice of the LORD your God, and do what is right in His eyes, and pay attention to His commands, and keep all His statutes, then…
- Deuteronomy 5:33
You must walk in all the ways that the LORD your God has commanded you, so that you may live and prosper and prolong your days in the land that you will possess.
- Exodus 15:26
Through
Hebrews 11:8By faith Abraham, when called to go to a place he would later receive as his inheritance, obeyed and went, without knowing where he was going.
it leads to
- Acts 7:2–4
And Stephen declared: “Brothers and fathers, listen to me! The God of glory appeared to our father Abraham while he was still in Mesopotamia, before he lived in Haran,
- Acts 7:2–4
About Job
This page draws on 9 works. Open the list of works
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes on the Book of Job; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Franz Delitzsch, Biblical Commentary on the Book of Job; Gregory the Dialogist, Morals on the Book of Job, Book XXVI; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible and Thomas Aquinas, Commentary on Job.