Job 8:21
He will yet fill your mouth with laughter, and your lips with a shout of joy.
He will yet fill your mouth with laughter
This phrase suggests a future restoration and blessing, indicating that God has the power to transform sorrow into joy. In the context of the Book of Job, Bildad is speaking to Job, suggesting that if Job repents, God will restore his fortunes. The idea of laughter as a sign of divine blessing is seen elsewhere in Scripture, such as in Genesis 21:6, where Sarah laughs upon the birth of Isaac, a fulfillment of God's promise. Laughter here symbolizes a return to a state of well-being and divine favor, contrasting with Job's current suffering.

and your lips with a shout of joy
This part of the verse emphasizes vocal expressions of happiness and triumph. In the cultural context of the ancient Near East, public expressions of joy were often associated with celebrations of victory or deliverance. The shout of joy can be seen as a communal expression, reflecting not only personal restoration but also a testimony to others of God's faithfulness. This connects with Psalm 126:2, where the return from exile is marked by mouths filled with laughter and tongues with songs of joy, highlighting God's redemptive power. Theologically, this anticipates the ultimate joy found in Christ, who brings eternal restoration and joy to believers.

Persons / Places / Events
1. Job
A man described as blameless and upright, who feared God and shunned evil. He is the central figure in the Book of Job, experiencing intense suffering and loss.

2. Bildad the Shuhite
One of Job's three friends who visit him to offer counsel. Bildad speaks in Job 8, attempting to explain Job's suffering through traditional wisdom.

3. Uz
The land where Job lived, often associated with the region east of Israel, possibly in Edom or northern Arabia.

4. God
The sovereign Creator who allows Job's testing and ultimately restores him.

5. Satan
The adversary who challenges Job's integrity, suggesting that Job is faithful only because of his prosperity.
Teaching Points
God's Promise of Restoration
Despite current suffering, God promises to restore joy and laughter. Trust in His timing and faithfulness.

The Role of Friends in Suffering
Bildad's counsel, though well-intentioned, was based on incomplete understanding. Be cautious in offering advice; seek to comfort and support rather than judge.

Endurance Through Trials
Like Job, believers are called to endure suffering with faith, trusting that God will ultimately bring joy and vindication.

Joy as a Gift from God
True joy and laughter are gifts from God, often following periods of trial. Seek joy in God's presence and promises.

Hope in God's Character
God's nature is compassionate and merciful. Even when circumstances are bleak, hope in His unchanging character.
Bible Study Questions
1. How does Job 8:21 reflect the character of God in terms of His ability to restore joy and laughter? Consider other biblical examples of restoration.

2. In what ways can we be like Bildad, offering advice without fully understanding someone's situation? How can we better support those who are suffering?

3. Reflect on a time when you experienced a transition from sorrow to joy. How did your faith play a role in that transformation?

4. How can the promise of future joy and laughter in Job 8:21 encourage you in your current trials? What practical steps can you take to hold onto this promise?

5. Compare Job's account with other biblical figures who endured suffering. What common themes of faith and restoration do you observe, and how can they apply to your life today?
Connections to Other Scriptures
Psalm 126:2
This verse speaks of mouths filled with laughter and tongues with songs of joy, similar to the promise in Job 8:21, highlighting God's ability to restore joy after hardship.

James 5:11
James refers to the perseverance of Job, emphasizing the Lord's compassion and mercy, which aligns with the hope of restoration in Job 8:21.

Isaiah 61:3
This passage speaks of God giving a "garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair," paralleling the transformation from sorrow to joy promised in Job 8:21.
Shall not the Judge of All... Do Right?E. Johnson Job 8:1-22
God's Care of the Perfect ManR. Green Job 8:20-22
Moral Character Determines a Man's DestinyHomilistJob 8:20-22
People
Bildad, Job
Places
Uz
Topics
Cries, Fill, Filleth, Full, Joy, Laughing, Laughter, Lips, Mouth, Rejoicing, Shouting, Shouts, Till, Whilst, Yet
Dictionary of Bible Themes
Job 8:21

     4016   life, human
     5164   lips
     5167   mouth
     5528   shouting
     5900   laughter
     8287   joy, experience

Library
Two Kinds of Hope
'Whose hope shall be cut off, and whose trust shall be a spider's web.'--JOB viii. 14. 'And hope maketh not ashamed.'--ROMANS v. 5. These two texts take opposite sides. Bildad was not the wisest of Job's friends, and he gives utterance to solemn commonplaces with partial truth in them. In the rough it is true that the hope of the ungodly perishes, and the limits of the truth are concealed by the splendour of the imagery and the perfection of artistic form in which the well-worn platitude is draped.
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture

The Beginning, Increase, and End of the Divine Life
Now, the utterances of Bildad, and of the other two men who came to comfort Job, but who made his wounds tingle, are not to be accepted as being inspired. They spake as men--as mere men. They reasoned no doubt in their own esteem logically enough; but the Spirit of God was not with hem in their speech, therefore with regard to any sentiment which we find uttered by these men, we must use our own judgment; and if it be not in consonance with the rest of Holy Scriptures, it will be our bounden duty
Charles Haddon Spurgeon—Spurgeon's Sermons Volume 6: 1860

Whether all Merits and Demerits, One's Own as Well as those of Others, Will be Seen by Anyone at a Single Glance?
Objection 1: It would seem that not all merits and demerits, one's own as well as those of others, will be seen by anyone at a single glance. For things considered singly are not seen at one glance. Now the damned will consider their sins singly and will bewail them, wherefore they say (Wis. 5:8): "What hath pride profited us?" Therefore they will not see them all at a glance. Objection 2: Further, the Philosopher says (Topic. ii) that "we do not arrive at understanding several things at the same
Saint Thomas Aquinas—Summa Theologica

The Hebrew Sages and their Proverbs
[Sidenote: Role of the sages in Israel's life] In the days of Jeremiah and Ezekiel (Jer. xviii. 18; Ezek. vii. 26) three distinct classes of religious teachers were recognized by the people: the prophets, the priests, and the wise men or sages. From their lips and pens have come practically all the writings of the Old Testament. Of these three classes the wise men or sages are far less prominent or well known. They wrote no history of Israel, they preached no public sermons, nor do they appear
Charles Foster Kent—The Origin & Permanent Value of the Old Testament

The Eternity and Unchangeableness of God.
Exod. iii. 14.--"I AM THAT I AM."--Psal. xc. 2.--"Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever thou hadst formed the earth and the world, even from everlasting to everlasting thou art God."--Job xi. 7-9.--"Canst thou by searching find out God? canst thou find out the Almighty unto perfection? It is as high as heaven; what canst thou do? deeper than hell; what canst thou know? The measure thereof is longer than the earth, and broader than the sea." This is the chief point of saving knowledge,
Hugh Binning—The Works of the Rev. Hugh Binning

Instruction for the Ignorant:
BEING A SALVE TO CURE THAT GREAT WANT OF KNOWLEDGE, WHICH SO MUCH REIGNS BOTH IN YOUNG AND OLD. PREPARED AND PRESENTED TO THEM IN A PLAIN AND EASY DIALOGUE, FITTED TO THE CAPACITY OF THE WEAKEST. 'My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge.'--Hosea 4:6 ADVERTISEMENT BY THE EDITOR. This little catechism is upon a plan perfectly new and unique. It was first published as a pocket volume in 1675, and has been republished in every collection of the author's works; and recently in a separate tract.
John Bunyan—The Works of John Bunyan Volumes 1-3

Job
The book of Job is one of the great masterpieces of the world's literature, if not indeed the greatest. The author was a man of superb literary genius, and of rich, daring, and original mind. The problem with which he deals is one of inexhaustible interest, and his treatment of it is everywhere characterized by a psychological insight, an intellectual courage, and a fertility and brilliance of resource which are nothing less than astonishing. Opinion has been divided as to how the book should be
John Edgar McFadyen—Introduction to the Old Testament

Links
Job 8:21 NIV
Job 8:21 NLT
Job 8:21 ESV
Job 8:21 NASB
Job 8:21 KJV

Job 8:21 Commentaries

Bible Hub
Job 8:20
Top of Page
Top of Page