What happened to Job’s wife after she repeatedly told him to curse his God and die? Did she die before him or was she with him when he was cured and had a new family?
Listen: 67 Question 4
Let’s start by looking a little at who Job was. We read in Job 1:1-2 that, “There was a man in the land of Uz, whose name was Job; and that man was perfect and upright, and one that feared God, and eschewed evil. And there were born unto him seven sons and three daughters.” Most of us are familiar with the trials that Job endured. Let’s read Job 2:1-10, “Again 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. And 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. And 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. And Satan answered the LORD, and said, Skin for skin, yea, all that a man hath will he give for his life. But put forth thine hand now, and touch his bone and his flesh, and he will curse thee to thy face. And the LORD said unto Satan, Behold, he is in thine hand; but save his life. So went Satan forth from the presence of the LORD, and smote Job with sore boils from the sole of his foot unto his crown. And he took him a potsherd to scrape himself withal; and he sat down among the ashes. Then said his wife unto him, Dost thou still retain thine integrity? curse God, and die. But 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.”
I’m sure that Job’s wife was greatly concerned about Job’s well-being, but her advice to him was foolish, as Job pointed out to her. Job correctly reminded her that if we receive from the Lord things that are good, we should not speak evil against Him when He sends us situations that are hard to handle. The word ‘evil, that Job speaks of the Lord sending to him is better translated as ‘trouble’. Of course, by this time, Job’s children had already been killed as we read Job 1:18. We can rightly assume that Job’s wife suffered right along with Job over the loss of their children. Although Job did not heed his wife’s advice and curse God so that he might die, in chapter three of Job, we see that he wanted to die. So great was his sufferings.
In Job, chapter two, we have the last mention of Job’s wife. So, what became of her? Because the scripture is silent on this, I cannot speak authoritatively about it. Did she leave Job because of all the sufferings? Did she die? We know that Job’s wealth and family were greatly restored and increased to him as we read in Job 42:12-13, “So the LORD blessed the latter end of Job more than his beginning: for he had fourteen thousand sheep, and six thousand camels, and a thousand yoke of oxen, and a thousand she asses. He had also seven sons and three daughters.” I really see no reason to doubt that Job had these ten children with his wife, but I just don’t know. Some things we are just not told as we read in Deuteronomy 29:29, “The secret things belong unto the LORD our God…”