What is the Almighty, that we should serve him? And what profit do we get if we pray to him?’
English Standard Version (ESV)
These words reveal a profound disconnect: the question "What is the Almighty?" isn't really about God's power, but about His relevance to their lives. They’re not seeking to understand God's worthiness of service, but rather calculating if God offers them tangible, worldly gain for their obedience.
What is the Almighty, that we should serve him? And what profit do we get if we pray to him?’
English Standard Version (ESV)
Job's friends have argued that suffering is a sign of God's displeasure with sin, but Job has pushed back, pointing out that the wicked often prosper. In this passage, Job relays the defiant words of these prosperous ungodly people who question God's authority and the benefit of serving Him, framing their success as evidence that their own way is better than righteousness.
When life’s challenges hit hard, it’s easy to question God’s presence and purpose. But how we frame those questions reveals a lot about our heart.
These words from Job 21:15 aren't just a casual inquiry; they are dripping with defiance. The people speaking are essentially asking, 'Who is this God that He deserves our obedience? And what’s in it for us if we bother to talk to Him?'
Striking at the Core
This isn't about seeking understanding; it's about rejecting obligation. It’s like a child asking, 'Who is my parent that I should listen to them?' It dismisses the fundamental relationship and the inherent authority that comes with it. These speakers are refusing to acknowledge God's sovereignty – His right to rule and be served, simply because He is God, the Almighty.
Worldly Focus
Their worldview is entirely self-centered and earth-bound. They see life only through the lens of immediate, tangible benefits. If serving God doesn't boost their bank account or improve their social standing now, then what’s the point? It’s a transactional approach to faith, devoid of any recognition of God’s intrinsic worth or the deeper, unseen rewards of a relationship with Him.
We often fall into the trap of thinking that our actions should always result in immediate, visible rewards. But what if the greatest 'profit' isn't something we can easily measure?
The heart of the question, 'what profit should we have, if we pray to him?', reveals a deep-seated misunderstanding of what true gain is.
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Missing the Real Investment
These speakers are only looking for a financial or worldly return on their investment. They don't see the immeasurable value in prayer itself – the intimate connection with the Creator, the peace that transcends circumstances, the strength to endure. They’re missing out on the 'unspeakable gift' (2 Corinthians 9:15) because they’re only looking for pocket change.
The Long Game of Faith
True profit in serving God isn't always immediate or obvious. It's the deep-seated transformation of character, the quiet assurance of His presence, and the eternal hope that prayer cultivates. The benefits might not appear on a balance sheet, but they are infinitely more valuable than any worldly gain.
Understand the original words
Shadday · Hebrew Noun
A title for God emphasizing His omnipotence, sovereign power, and sufficiency; He is the One who is all-mighty and able to perform His will.
abad · Hebrew Verb
To serve God is to acknowledge His lordship through worship, obedience, and submission; it is the act of living in accordance with His commands.
yathar · Hebrew Noun
An advantage, benefit, or gain; here, the wicked question the pragmatic value of maintaining a relationship with or seeking God.
paga · Hebrew Verb
A form of communication with God involving adoration, confession, thanksgiving, and supplication; it is an act of dependence on God’s grace and intervention.
Job 21:15 reflects a moment of profound crisis where the conventional understanding of divine justice—that suffering equals sin—is challenged by Job's own experience and the perceived prosperity of the wicked.
c. 10th-4th century BC
Composition of the Book of Job
The Book of Job is traditionally attributed to Job himself or King Solomon, though scholarly consensus places its composition much later, possibly during the Babylonian Exile or the post-exilic period.
c. 10th-4th century BC
The Story of Job's Sufferings
Job, a righteous man, experiences immense loss: his livestock, servants, and all ten children die. He is then afflicted with painful sores from head to foot.
c. 10th-4th century BC
Job's Friends Arrive
Three friends—Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar—come to comfort Job, but their presence soon turns into an argument as they try to explain his suffering.
c. 10th-4th century BC— this verse
Job's Lament and Defense
Job laments his condition and vehemently defends his innocence, challenging the conventional wisdom that suffering is always a punishment for sin.
c. 10th-4th century BC
Elihu's Intervention
A younger man, Elihu, joins the discussion, offering a perspective that neither Job nor his friends have considered, emphasizing God's majesty and justice.
c. 10th-4th century BC
God's Appearance
The Lord God appears to Job out of a whirlwind, addressing him with a series of rhetorical questions about creation and His sovereign power.
c. 10th-4th century BC
Job's Restoration
Humbled and repentant, Job acknowledges God's greatness. God rebukes Job's friends for misrepresenting Him and restores Job's fortunes, giving him twice what he had before.
Pharaoh's defiant question, 'Who is the LORD, that I should obey his voice?', echoes Job's friends' challenge, revealing a similar spirit of rebellion against God's authority and a refusal to acknowledge His claims.
Malachi 3:14This passage directly addresses the same cynical sentiment as Job 21:15, questioning the benefit of serving God when the wicked seem to prosper, highlighting the recurring human tendency to measure faith by worldly gain.
Proverbs 30:9Agur's prayer expresses a fear of being made poor and then, out of desperation, denying God and cursing Him, illustrating the dangerous spiritual territory explored by Job's friends when they discount the value of serving God.
Romans 1:21-23This New Testament passage describes people who, though they knew God, did not honor Him as God or give thanks, instead becoming futile in their thinking and exchanging the truth of God for a lie, paralleling the ungrateful and self-serving mindset in Job's verse.
Psalm 73:11-13Asaph grapples with the prosperity of the wicked, similar to the people speaking in Job 21, confessing his own foolishness and near-misstep in thinking it was useless to keep his heart pure and wash his hands in innocence.
clarkeJob 21:15: "What is the Almighty, that we should serve him? and what profit should we have, if we pray unto him?"
What is the Almighty - What allegiance do we owe to him? We feel no obligation to obey him; and what profit can we derive from prayer? We are as happy as flesh and blood can make us: our kingdom is of this world; we wish for no other portion than that which we have. Those who have never prayed as they ought know nothing of the benefits of prayer.
bensonJob 21:15: "What is the Almighty, that we should serve him? and what profit should we have, if we pray unto him?"
Job 21:15 . What is the Almighty, that we should serve him? — What is he to us? What excellence is there in him? What advantage have we, or can we expect from him? Strange that ever creatures should speak so insolently respecting their Creator, on whom they are every moment dependant for life, and breath, and all things! that ever reasonable creatures should speak so absurdly and un…
These words reveal a profound disconnect: the question "What is the Almighty?" isn't really about God's power, but about His relevance to their lives. They’re not seeking to understand God's worthiness of service, but rather calculating if God offers them tangible, worldly gain for their obedience.
Job's friends have argued that suffering is a sign of God's displeasure with sin, but Job has pushed back, pointing out that the wicked often prosper. In this passage, Job relays the defiant words of these prosperous ungodly people who question God's authority and the benefit of serving Him, framing their success as evidence that their own way is better than righteousness.
Job's friends have argued that suffering is a sign of God's displeasure with sin, but Job has pushed back, pointing out that the wicked often prosper. In this passage, Job relays the defiant words of these prosperous ungodly people who question God's authority and the benefit of serving Him, framing their success as evidence that their own way is better than righteousness.
"What is the Almighty, that we should serve him? And what profit do we get if we pray to him?’" — These words reveal a profound disconnect: the question "What is the Almighty?" isn't really about God's power, but about His relevance to their lives. They’re not seeking to understand God's worthi…
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Last reviewed October 2026