For God maketh my heart soft, and the Almighty troubleth me:
Job 23:16 belongs to Job's reply to the third speech of Eliphaz, in which Eliphaz accuses Job. It describes Job as deeply troubled by God's dealings with him, as part of his account of suffering and confusion. In that setting it expresses Job's confidence in God's mercy in connection with the end of the wicked. It does not teach that suffering proves God's displeasure, and the friends' general teaching about divine correction was misapplied to Job's case.
Job 23:16 belongs to Job's reply to the third speech of Eliphaz, in which Eliphaz accuses Job. It describes Job as deeply troubled by God's dealings with him, as part of his account of suffering and confusion. In that setting it expresses Job's confidence in God's mercy in connection with the end of the wicked. It does not teach that suffering proves God's displeasure, and the friends' general teaching about divine correction was misapplied to Job's case.