Here is the fate God allots to the wicked, the heritage a ruthless man receives from the Almighty. However many his children, their fate is the sword; his offspring will never have enough to ea. The plague will bury those who survive him, and their widows will not weep for them.
This is one of the first times that the Bible addresses the notion of the sins of the father being visited on the children. The narration explains that God will not necessarily punish a ruthless, evil man in a way that affects him directly. He will not be struck down, or lose his money or his belongings whilst he is alive. God will punish the man's children for the actions of their father, so they will live lives of violence, hunger and illness.
God will also see to it that the man is not missed when he is gone. Those who leaves behind will not mourn him which also suggests that they have not loved him or respected him at all whilst he is living. The narration explains that what we do in life does not just affect ourselves; we do not live in a vacuum, but affect those around us with every choice that we make.
It is not only the old who are wise, not only the aged who understand what is right.
In most societies in Biblical times, elders were revered primarily because of their age. It was believed that the older a person was, the more wisdom they had accumulated. Part of this wisdom was assumed to be better judgement than that of the young, and a greater understanding of what was right and what was wrong.
This verse contradicts this basic tenet of community and society. Being old does not necessarily mean that one has wisdom. A man can live a very long life without understanding right and wrong, just as a young person can show great wisdom and do the right thing instinctually. Age and character do not necessarily correlate as was generally believed at the time.
And in all the land were no women found so fair as the daughters of Job, and their father gave them inheritance among their brethren. After this lived Job a hundred and forty years, and saw his sons, and his sons' sons, even four generations.
Job learned much during his life and began to understand the path of a righteous man. For his righteousness he has been rewarded with a very long life, and is able to see his sons grow up, and to see their families grow up too. His children have also been rewarded as a reflection of Job's goodness; his daughters are more beautiful than any other women in the land. The gifts that are bestowed upon Job also compare with the fate of the ruthless man described earlier in the Book. Whereas the children of the ruthless man live uncomfortable lives peppered with violence and sickness, Job's children live long, healthy lives surrounded by those who love and value them.
