Old Testament · Wisdom

Job 2

Skin for Skin

Satan raises the stakes: take his health. Job sits in ashes, scraping his sores, and his wife tells him to curse God and die.

King James Version BSB KJV

1Again there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the LORD, and Satan came also among them to present himself before the LORD.

2And the LORD said unto Satan, From whence comest thou? And Satan answered the LORD, and said, From going to and fro in the earth, and from walking up and down in it.

3And the LORD said unto Satan, Hast thou considered my servant Job, that there is none like him in the earth, a perfect and an upright man, one that feareth God, and escheweth evil? and still he holdeth fast his integrity, although thou movedst me against him, to destroy him without cause.

4And Satan answered the LORD, and said, Skin for skin, yea, all that a man hath will he give for his life.

5But put forth thine hand now, and touch his bone and his flesh, and he will curse thee to thy face.

6And the LORD said unto Satan, Behold, he is in thine hand; but save his life.

7So went Satan forth from the presence of the LORD, and smote Job with sore boils from the sole of his foot unto his crown.

8And he took him a potsherd to scrape himself withal; and he sat down among the ashes.

9Then said his wife unto him, Dost thou still retain thine integrity? curse God, and die.

10But he said unto her, Thou speakest as one of the foolish women speaketh. What? shall we receive good at the hand of God, and shall we not receive evil? In all this did not Job sin with his lips.

11Now when Job’s three friends heard of all this evil that was come upon him, they came every one from his own place; Eliphaz the Temanite, and Bildad the Shuhite, and Zophar the Naamathite: for they had made an appointment together to come to mourn with him and to comfort him.

12And when they lifted up their eyes afar off, and knew him not, they lifted up their voice, and wept; and they rent every one his mantle, and sprinkled dust upon their heads toward heaven.

13So they sat down with him upon the ground seven days and seven nights, and none spake a word unto him: for they saw that his grief was very great.

Understand This

Job 2, explained

What Job 2 is saying

The heavenly scene repeats with escalated stakes: the adversary argues that Job will curse God if his own body is afflicted. God permits physical suffering, and Job is struck with painful sores from head to foot. His wife urges him to 'curse God and die,' but Job refuses, accepting adversity as he accepted prosperity. Three friends—Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar—arrive and sit in silence with him for seven days.

The background behind it

Job's affliction with shehin (boils or sores) echoes the covenant curses of Deuteronomy 28:35. The seven days of silence observe the ancient mourning custom that would later formalize in Jewish shiva practice. The three friends represent the wisdom tradition's conventional theology.

Themes running underneath

The adversary's accusation intensifies: 'skin for skin'—self-preservation is the ultimate motive. Job's wife voices the temptation to abandon faith, yet Job's response distinguishes between accepting suffering and understanding it. The friends' initial silent compassion represents the best pastoral response before their theology overtakes their empathy.

Why it still matters

The seven days of silence before the friends speak remains the gold standard for accompanying the suffering—presence before explanation. Job's refusal to equate suffering with divine rejection maintains the tension the book requires.

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Scripture text: King James Version — public domain.