The Great Debate Rhetorical Analysis

Job declares this after Eliphaz has accused him of being wicked a second time. Eliphaz believes Job is not as wise as he appears, since he limits his wisdom to himself and does not listen to the wisdom of others. Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar have already accused Job of being wicked in the first cycle of speeches, and now the second cycle in “The Great Debate” has begun. Nevertheless, Job responds to Eliphaz’s accusations by calling his friends “sorry comforters” (Job 16:2) and declaring that his “friends are my scoffers” (Job 16:20). Job continues in his speech testifying that, although he is being accused of being wicked, his “prayer is pure” (Job 16:17), and he has not done any wrong. In chapter 19, Job actually confronts his friends that

He questions how long Job will complain and describes the suffering of the wicked to try convince Job to repent and ask the Lord for forgiveness. By now, Job has been accused by all three of his friends at least once and responds to Bildad that he is insulted. Job continues calling out to and questioning the Lord, and he describes all that the Lord has done to him. Nevertheless, Job ends his soliloquy by stating, as the verse says, that his Redeemer lives and that redemption is still coming to this earth. This verse and the verse that follows, saying that “even after my skin is destroyed, yet from my flesh I shall see God,” implies that Job believes he will only see God after he has died and gone to Heaven. This reveals that Job still believes his time for death is soon and that he will not be on this earth much longer. This verse is significant throughout the entirety of Job, because it proves that Job has not and will not lose his faith or stop trusting in the Lord. No matter how many times his friends accuse and insult him, he knows that he is good and righteous in the sight of the Lord and that one day, through the power and grace of God, he will be restored to health and prosperity. Although “those (he) love(s) have turned against (him)” (Job 19:19), Job recognizes that the Lord will never leave or forsake him, even if his friends and family will. Even though Bildad attempts to convince Job

They have all accused him of being wicked even though they cannot actually say what he has done wrong, and Zophar gives a lengthy description of the fleeting triumph of the wicked and how God will sweep the wicked into darkness. However, Job responds with a speech proving that sometimes the wicked do live easy, prosperous lives, and some even die peacefully. Job knows that it is not only the wicked who are punished and asks his friends to listen to his plea and then they “may mock” (Job 21:3). This verse is significant because Job openly confronts his “friends” about being “sorry comforters” (Job 16:2) and finally accuses them of something that is actually true—that everything they are saying is full of lies. All of his friends’ efforts are in vain, for nothing they say is true. Instead of encouraging him and speaking the truths of the Lord, they blame and discourage him, assuming that everything that is happening to him is due to his own fault. This verse’s significance also rises from the fact that it reveals that Job only needs and only relies on the Lord. Even though his own friends turn against him and falsely accuse him, Job’s faith is not shaken and he continues to seek the Lord. This fact shows Job to be faithful, perseverant, and dedicated to his Father. Job knows that the wicked, perhaps including his friends, are “reserved for the day of calamity…and…will be led forth at