Job 9:20 Meaning and Explanation
“If I justify myself, mine own mouth shall condemn me: if I say, I am perfect, it shall also prove me perverse.”
King James Version (KJV)
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Read Full Chapter →If Job tries to declare himself righteous, his own words would turn and condemn him.
What Does Job 9:20 Mean?
Job sees that self-justification before God is a trap. The very attempt to declare himself perfect would somehow expose him; his own mouth would condemn him, his claim to be blameless would prove him crooked. The closer one stands to God's light, the less one can boast.
This is a profound spiritual truth. None of us is acquitted by insisting on our own innocence; that road only convicts us further. Righteousness before God is never self-declared but received as a gift. What Job cannot win by argument, the gospel grants by grace, clothing the guilty in a righteousness not their own.
Job 9:20 in the Original Language
tamam (תָמַם), 'be perfect' -- to be complete, blameless, of whole and undivided integrity.
Frequently Asked Questions About Job 9:20
What does Job 9:20 mean?
If Job tries to declare himself righteous, his own words would turn and condemn him.