Job’s final speech in the first cycle, divided into three chapters in the Hebrew Bible, can also be split into two major sections: Job addresses his friends (12:2–13:19), and Job addresses God (13:20–14:22).

Job is sharply sarcastic toward his friends as he opens his mouth (12:2–13:19). Oh, yes, they understand everything! But Job is no dolt. He knows no less than others. He seems to recognize that, from others’ point of view, his situation has turned him into a laughingstock. Contempt quickly replaces respect among those who witness the fall of a respected person (12:5). Job further digs at his friends’ notion that they know more than he (12:7–10). In parody Job parrots their style and counsel, even using second-person singular deixis (“you” singular), which the friends use when they sp…