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This Chapter Verse Commentaries:
(1) a direct reproof of Job for presumption and impiety (verses 1-6);
(2) a sarcastic reflection on him for conceit and arrogance (verses 7-16);
(3) an exposition of God's ways with man, based upon the experience of ancient sages (verses 17-35).
Job_15:1, Job_15:2
Then answered Eliphaz the Temanite, and said, Should a wise man utter vain knowledge! literally, knowledge of wind—knowledge, i.e.' which is vain, idle, inflated, without solidity or substance. Job, as setting up to be "a wise man," should not have indulged in such empty and foolish speaking. It is observable that Eliphaz does not point out what part of Job's discourses he considers objectionable, but condemns the whole of them under this broad and general description, which even he could not have regarded as applicable to more than a portion of what Job had said. And fill his belly with the east wind? The east wind was regarded as the worst of winds. In Palestine it blew from the great Syrian and North Arabian desert, and was of the nature of a sirocco. (On its deleterious effects, see Gen_41:6, Gen_41:23; Jer_18:17; Eze_17:10; Eze_19:12; Eze_27:26; Hos_13:15, etc.)
Job_15:3
Should he reason with unprofitable talk! Such, Eliphaz implies, had been Job's talk, altogether idle and unprofitable. A wise man should have abstained from such profitless arguments. They were speeches wherewith he could do no good.
Job_15:4
Yea, thou castest off fear. To Eliphaz, Job's words—his bold expostulations (Job_13:3, Job_13:15, Job_13:22, etc.), his declarations that he knows he will be justified (Job_13:8), and that God will be his Salvation (Job_13:16)—seem to imply that he has cast off altogether the fear of God, and is entirely devoid of reverence. Some of his expressions certainly seem over-bold; but, on the other hand, his sense of God's purity, perfectness, and transcendent power is continually manifest, and should have saved him from the rude reproach here launched against him (comp. Job_9:1-13; Job_12:24 25; Job_13:11, Job_13:21, etc.). And restrainest prayer before God; rather, and hinderest devout meditation before God. Eliphaz means that Job expresses himself in a way so of. fensive to devout souls, that he disturbs their minds and prevents them from indulging in those pious meditations on the Divine goodness which would otherwise occupy them (comp. Psa_119:97). Thus, according to Eliphaz, Job is not only irreligious himself, but the cause of irreligion in others.
Job_15:5
For thy mouth uttereth thine iniquity. Some render, "Thine iniquity teacheth thy mouth," causing it to utter such profane speeches (Vulgate, Dillmann, Canon Cook, Revised Version); but the translation of the Authorized Version is defensible on grammatical grounds, and yields a good sense, so that no alteration is necessary. And thou choosest the tongue of the crafty; or, the tongue of the subtle (comp. Gen_3:1, where the epithet assigned to the serpent is the same). Eliphaz probably means to tax Job with cloaking his real impiety under a pretence of religiousness.
Job_15:6
Thine own mouth condemneth thee. So of a greater than Job it was said, "He hath spoken blasphemy; what further need have we of witnesses? behold, now ye have heard his blasphemy. What think ye? They answered and said, He is guilty of death" (Mat_26:65, Mat_26:66). Malevolence delights in misunderstanding and misinterpreting the utterances of the righteous. And not I. A weak disclaimer! As if Job's supposed guilt did not depend on the construction put upon his words. Yea, thine own lips testify against thee. Therefore, "what further need of witnesses?"
Job_15:7
Art thou the first man that was born? That is, "Dost thou claim to have the wisdom of that first human intelligence, which, proceeding direct from God (Gen_1:27), was without fault or flaw—a perfect intelligence, which judged all things aright?" It is not clear that Eliphaz had ever heard of Adam; but he evidently believed in a "first man," from whom all others were descended, and he attributed to this first man a mind and intellect surpassing those of all other men. His question is, of course, rather a scoff than an inquiry. He knows that Job makes no such foolish pretence; but he throws it in his teeth that, from what he has said, men might suppose he took some such view of himself. Or wast thou made before the hills? This is a taunt of the same kind as the previous one, but intensified. Wisdom is the result of experience. Art thou older than all the rest of us—older than the earth itself, than "the everlasting hills"? There were Greeks who claimed to be ethnically προσέληνοι , "older than the moon," but no inhabitant of earth was ever so foolish as to imagine himself individually more ancient than the earth on which he lived.
Job_15:8
Hast thou heard the secret of God? or, Hast thou been a hearer in the secret counsel of God?. No mortal man was ever admitted to the secret counsel of the Most Highest (comp. Rom_11:34). And dost thou restrain wisdom to thyself? or, Dost thou confine (appropriate) wisdom to thyself? i.e. Dost thou suppose that thou art the only wise man in all the world? (comp. Job_12:2, where Job had brought the same charge against his three friends).
Job_15:9
What knowest thou, that we know not? So far as worldly wisdom went, this was probably quite true. Job was not more advanced in knowledge than Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar. But he had a keener spiritual insight. He was wiser in the "wisdom which is from above." Perplexed and confused as were his thoughts concerning the Divine government of the universe, they were nearer the truth, more worthy of the Divine nature, than those of his adversaries. In his reply, without claiming any special wisdom, he pours contempt on their pretensions to spiritual understanding (Job_17:4, Job_17:10). What understandest thou, which is not in us? A mere repetition of the first member of the verse in different words.
Job_15:10
With us are both the greyheaded and very aged men. "With us" seems to mean "of our party," or "on our side." Eliphaz claims that all the greybeards of the time, as well as all the ancient men of past times (comp. Job_8:8, and below, Job_8:18), are on his side. and think as he does. Much elder than thy father. Men, i.e.' not merely of the preceding, but of much more distant generations His Latin to be supported by the voice of antiquity was, no doubt, in strict accordance with fact.
Job_15:11
Are the consolations of God small with thee? By "the consolations of God" Eliphaz probably means the hopes which he and his friends had held out, speaking in God's Name, that if Job would humble himself, and confess his guilt, and sue to God for pardon, he would be restored to favour, recover his prosperity, and live to a good old age in tranquil happiness (see Job_5:18-27; Job_8:20-22; Job_11:13-19). He wishes to know if Job thinks lightly of all this, regards it as of small account, will make no effort to obtain the blessings held out to him. This is all reasonable enough from his standpoint, that Job is conscious of secret heinous guilt; but it can make no impression on Job, who is conscious of the reverse. Is there any secret thing with thee? rather, And is the word [of small account that dealeth] gently with thee? Eliphaz considers that his own words and those of his two companions have been soft words, dealing "gently" with Job's refractoriness, and that Job ought to have been impressed by them.
Job_15:12
Why doth thine heart carry thee away? or, Whither doth thine heart carry thee away? i.e. to what a pitch of presumption and audacity do thy proud thoughts carry thee? And what do thy eyes wink at? or, Wherefore do thy eyes roll? The verb used occurs only in this place. Its meaning is very doubtful.
Job_15:13
That thou turnest thy spirit against God. To Eliphaz and his companions, the wild remonstrances of Job, Iris vehement expostulations and despairing outcries, are, one and all, nothing better than indications of a proud and rebellious spirit, that sets itself up against the Almighty, and openly contends with him. They view Job, after the speeches that he has made, as a declared rebel, and no longer regard it as incumbent upon them to use any "gentleness" in their reprimands. And lettest such words go out of thy mouth? It is remarkable that neither Eliphaz nor either of his friends ever points out what particular words of Job they object to and regard as impious, so as to give him the opportunity of defending, explaining, or retracting them. They take refuge in vague generalities, with which it is impossible to grapple. But this vagueness and want of logical accuracy is characteristic of the Oriental nations, who scarcely ever reason cogently or bring matters to a point.
Job_15:14
What is man, that he should be clean? A vain "beating of the air." Eliphaz had asserted the same truth in his first speech, when he said, "Shall mortal man be more just than God? shall a man be more pure than his Maker? Behold, he put no trust in his servants; and his angels he taxeth with folly: how much less in them that dwell in houses of clay' whose foundation is in the dust, which are crushed before the moth?" (Job_4:17-19); and Job had given his full assent to it, when he exclaimed, "I know it is so of a truth: but how should man be just with God? If he will contend with him, he cannot answer him one of a thousand" (Job_9:2, Job_9:3). The true question was not whether Job or any other man was" clean," i.e. wholly sinless' but whether Job had sinned so deeply and grievously that his sufferings were the natural and just punishment for his sins. And a mere repetition of the statement that all men were sinful and unclean was off the point—nihil ad rem-altogether futile and superfluous. And he that is born of a woman, that he should be righteous? (setup. Job_25:4). The clause is a mere variant of the preceding one.
Job_15:15
Behold, he putteth no trust in his saints; rather, in his holy ones (see the Revised Version). The word "saint" has in course of time come to be so exclusively attached to holy men, that it can no longer be applied, without danger of being misunderstood, to angels. Eliphaz here, as in Job_5:1, speaks not of holy men, but of the holy angels. Without taxing them with sin, he is strongly convinced of their imperfection—their defective wisdom (Job_5:18), weakness, and untrustworthiness. His views are decidedly peculiar, and not borne out by the rest of Scripture. Yea, the heavens are not clean in his sight. The material heavens are probably intended. That limpid liquid blue in which the human eye sees no stain or speck, to the Divine eye is tinged with uncleanness The idea is that neither animate nor inanimate nature contains any form of being that is absolutely without spot or blemish. In God alone is there perfect purity.
Job_15:16
How much more abominable and filthy is man, which drinketh iniquity like water? rather, How much less one that is abominable and impure, a man that drinketh in iniquity, etc.? It cannot be doubted that Job is individually pointed at. Not mankind generally, but a particular man, is intended; and the particular man can be none other than Job. Thus we see how the progress of the controversy has tended to exasperate the disputants, and change the "comforters" from smooth-tongued friends into open enemies and accusers.
Job_15:17
I will show thee, hear me; and that which I have seen I will declare. Eliphaz here introduces, with an elaborate preface (Job_15:17-19) what is either a citation from a book, as Professor Lee thinks, or a studied description by himself of the proceedings and consequent sufferings of the wicked. This description extends from Job_15:20 to the end of the chapter, and is plainly levelled at Job, though it may originally have been intended to apply to some other person or persons.
Job_15:18
Which wise men have told from their fathers, and have not hid it (comp. Job_8:8-10). Whether the words are his own or not, the sentiments, at any rate, Eliphaz declares to have come down to him from remote times. The "wise men" to whom he refers may have been men of the Beni Kedem (Job_1:3). who were noted for their wisdom (1Ki_4:30), or possibly Egyptians or Babylonians. Books containing moral aphorisms and instructions were certainly composed both in Egypt and in Babyhmia at a very ancient date.
Job_15:19
Unto whom alone the earth was given. The reference is clearly to a very remote time, when men were comparatively few, and lived in quiet possession of their own lands, undisturbed by invasions, wars, or struggles for territory. Professor Lee thinks that the times immediately after, and even those before, the Flood are glanced at; while Schultens regards Eliphaz as alluding to the first settlements of the Joktanidae in Arabia. In either case, the passage tells in favour or, and not against, the antiquity of the Book of Job, since it marks the composer as "living at a time when the memory of an age of patriarchal simplicity was yet fresh in men's minds" (Canon Cook). And no stranger passed among them. Races were not mixed up one with another, and so the purity of primitive doctrine remained undisturbed.
Job_15:20-35
Schultens calls this "a magnificently elaborate oration, crowded with illustrations and metaphors, in which it is shown that the wicked cannot possibly escape being miserable, but that the punishment which they have so richly deserved assuredly awaits them, and is to be inflicted on them, as an example and terror to others, by a holy and just God, because, just as he loves virtue, so he pursues vice with a fierce and deadly hatred".
Job_15:20
The wicked man travaileth with pain all his days. Certainly an over-statement of the truth. With a much nearer approach to the facts of the case, the Psalmist remarked, "I was grieved at the wicked: I do also see the ungodly in such prosperity. For they are in no peril of death, but are lusty and strong. They come in no misfortune like other folk; neither are they plagued like other men" (Psa_73:3-5). And the number of years is hidden to the oppressor; rather, even the number of years that is laid up for the oppressor. So Merx and the Revised Version. Another possible meaning is, "And a [small] number of years is laid up," etc. If we take the former view, we must regard the clause as exegetical of "all his days."
Job_15:21
A dreadful sound is in his ears; literally, a sound of terrors. Fears of all kinds beset him, lest he should lose his prosperity. Sometimes they seem actually to sound in his ears. Prosper as he may, he feels that in prosperity the destroyer shall one day come upon him. "The destroyer" may be either the destroying angel, or the avenger of blood, or a robber-chief at the head of a band of marauders.
Job_15:22
He believeth not that he shall return out of darkness. He has no hope of recovering his prosperity, when calamity has once stricken him down, since he knows that his calamity is deserved, and feels that it is God's judgment upon him for his sins. And he is waited for of the sword. He feels as if an enemy was lying in wait for him at every turn, with his sword drawn, ready to slay him. Professor Lee compares the words of Cain, "It shall come to pass, that every one that findeth me shall slay me" (Gen_4:14).
Job_15:23
He wandereth abroad for bread, saying, Where is it? This, again, might appropriately have been said of Cain, who was "a fugitive and a vagabond in the earth" (Gen_4:14), and may at times have had difficulty in procuring his daily bread. At any rate, it is the frequent experience of the wicked who lose their ill-gotten gains, and are brought down to abject poverty, and actual want of the necessaries of life. "He wanders abroad to be the food of vultures" is a translation of the passage suggested by some moderns (as Merx), and has the support of the Septuagint, κατατέτακται εῖς σῖτα ψυψίν . But it requires a slight change in the pointing. He knoweth that the day of darkness is nigh at hand. "The day of darkness" is probably the day of his decease: this he "knows," or at any rate, surmises, to be near.
Job_15:24
Trouble and anguish shall make him afraid; they shall prevail against him, as a king ready to the battle. Eliphaz seems covertly to allude to Job's misfortunes, which came against him with such force, and crushed him as a mighty king crushes his foes in battle.
Job_15:25
For he stretcheth out his hand against God. The wicked man ventures even to threaten the Almighty. So in Eastern legend Nimrod was supposed to have done, and in Greek legend the giants. And strengtheneth himself against the Almighty; rather, behaveth himself proudly. See the Revised Version, and compare Schultens, who renders the Hebrew éúâáÌø , by "ferocius et insolentius se gessit."
Job_15:26
He runneth upon him, even on his neck; rather, with his neck. It is not God who runneth upon the wicked man, as our translators seem to have supposed, but the wicked man who rushes furiously against God. Like an infuriated bull, he makes his charge with his neck, i.e. with head lowered and neck stiffened, thinking to carry all before him. Upon the thick bosses of his bucklers; rather, with the thick bosses of his shield' The metaphor of the bull is dropped, and God's enemy represented as charging him like a warrior, with the shield-arm outstretched, and the heavy bosses of the shield pressing him down.
Job_15:27
Because he covereth his face with his fatness. The ground and origin of the wicked man's audacity is his luxurious and intemperate living. In the days of his prosperity he pampered his body, freely indulged all his carnal appetites, and gave himself up to gluttony and gourmandism. This depraved his moral nature, separated between him and God, and finally produced in him the insolence and presumption described in Job_15:25, Job_15:26 And maketh collops of fat on his flanks. The same idea, only very slightly varied, as so often in the second member of a verse.
Job_15:28
And he dwelleth in desolate cities. Blot only was he sensual and gluttenous, but he was covetous and rapacious also. He dwelt in cities which his hand had desolated—in houses which no man inhabiteth—since he had driven their owners from them—and which were ready to become heaps, i.e. were in a ruinous condition.
Job_15:29
He shall not be rich; i.e. he shall not increase, or maintain, his riches. Neither shall his substance continue, His riches shall make themselves wings, and take their departure. Neither shall he prolong the perfection thereof upon the earth; rather, neither shall their possessions be extended upon the earth. (So Rosenmuller, Professor Lee, and Renan.) The transition from the singular to the plural is not unusual, when it is a class, and not an individual, that is really spoken of.
Job_15:30
He shall not depart out of darkness (comp. Job_15:23, where the wicked man is threatened with "a day of darkness"). When the darkness once falls, it shall continue; there shall be no escaping out of it The flame shall dry up his branches; rather, a flame. The "flame" intended seems to be the wrath of God. ' And by the breath of his mouth; i.e. "of God's mouth" (comp. Job_4:9). Shall he go away; or, pass away; i.e. disappear, be consumed, perish.
Job_15:31
Let not him that is deceived trust in vanity; rather, let him not trust in vanity (or, in falsehood)' deceiving himself (see the Revised Version). All the supports and stays of the wicked are vanity—unsubstantial, futile, utterly vain and useless. It is only a man who "deceives himself" that can trust in them. For vanity shall be his recompense. Such as do so trust gain nothing by it; they sow vanity and reap vanity.
Job_15:32
It shall be accomplished before his time. "It [i.e. the recompense] shall be accomplished [or, 'paid in full '] before its time [i.e. before payment is due]." A vague threat, probably intended to signify that death will come upon the wicked man prematurely, before he has lived out halt the days of his natural life. And his branch shall not be green; i.e. he shall wither and fade, like a tree not planted by the waterside (Psa_1:3).
Job_15:33
He shall shake off his unripe grape as the vine. Blight and untimely cold cause the vine to drop its grapes before they are mature. So the wicked man will be deprived, one by one, of his possessions. And shall cast off his flower as the olive. The olive often sheds its blossoms in vast numbers. "In spring," says Canon Tristram, "one may see the bloom, on the slightest breath of wind, shed like snowflakes, and perishing by millions". According to some commentators, this happens regularly in alternate years.
Job_15:34
For the congregation of hypocrites shall be desolate; or, shall be sterile' or barren' like the vine and olive of the preceding verse. The entire company of the wicked shall suffer this punishment. And fire shall consume the tabernacles of bribery. God's lightning shall fall from heaven, and burn up the tents (i.e. the habitations) of those who take bribes to pervert justice. It is suggested that Eliphaz intends to accuse Job of the two secret sins of hypocrisy and corruption.
Job_15:35
They conceive mischief, and bring forth vanity; rather, as in the margin, iniquity. And their belly prepareth deceit. Internally, i.e. in their inner nature—in their heart, as we should any—they make ready deceits. "The viscera," as Professor Lee observes, "are often made by the Hebrews the seat of thought."
1. Unprofitable talk. The replies given by Job in the preceding colloquy Eliphaz characterizes as
(1) unbecoming, altogether unworthy of a wise man such as Job had professed (Job_12:23; Job_13:2), and had indeed been recognized (Job_29:8, Job_29:9, Job_29:21, Job_29:23),to be—an allegation which, though not in point as directed against the patriarch, may suggest the propriety of wise, and much more of good, men always speaking and acting in character, watching over their words as well as works, and studying, if possible, to avoid even the appearance of inconsistency, especially in the eyes of weak brethren (Rom_14:21);
(2) unsubstantial, mere empty harangues and impassioned tirades, "vain knowledge," literally, knowledge of wind (verse 2; cf. Job_8:2; Job_11:2), instead of sound and solid sense—a character, again, which could not fairly be ascribed to Job's reasonings and supplications, though, alas! it not inaptly describes much of human speech and speculation;
(3) worthless, being, in respect of use, only "unprofitable talk," "speeches by which no good is done" (verse 3), which, however magniloquently set forth and wearisomely iterated, contribute nothing towards the elucidation of a great problem, and serve in no degree to aid the speaker in making good his case; and
(4) pernicious, in their ultimate results being comparable to nothing so appropriately as to the scorching (Jon_4:8), blasting (Gen_41:23), vehement (Exo_14:21), and destructive (Psa_48:7) east wind (verse 2)—and few things are more injurious to the minds that conceive them, or more hurtful to society at large when it must endure them, than such windy orations, "full of sound and fury, signifying nothing," like" tales told by idiots," such as are alluded to by Eliphaz, although amongst such it was incorrect to number the burning thoughts and winged words of Job.
2. Manifest impiety. Eliphaz had already (Job_4:6) insinuated that Job was devoid of true religion; here he regards the insinuation as substantiated by the conduct of Job himself in three particulars.
(1) The adoption of irreligious sentiments (verse 4). The views propounded by Job were calculated to subvert the fundamental principle of all religion, viz. the fear of God, and to put an end to the outward expression of religion in devout meditation or prayer. Though wrong as to the estimate he put on Job's theology, Eliphaz was right in regarding reverence for God as the foundation of all piety in man, in thinking that no man's religion can be genuine which does not engender the spirit, and lead to the practice, of prayer, and in maintaining that good men should be careful of either entertaining views or promulgating doctrines which have a tendency, however slight, to hinder devotion or destroy veneration in themselves or others.
(2) The publication of infidel opinions. Not only had Job allowed himself to form such unhallowed notions, but he had openly proclaimed them (verse 5). Hence Eliphaz inferred his heart could not be fight with God. "As a man thinketh in his heart so is he" (Pro_23:7); and "out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh" (Luk_6:45). And certainly the deduction is a sound one, that no truly pious man will receive, far less disseminate, principles subversive, or even seemingly so, of the fear and worship of God. Only of such behaviour Job had not been guilty.
(3) The defence of damnable heresies. It was impossible that wickedness could further go than it had done with Job, who had not only for himself embraced heretical beliefs, but had fearlessly stated them, and even unblushingly attempted to prove them, using for that purpose "the tongue of the crafty ' (verse 5), of which he was a master. Undoubtedly it was outrageous ungodliness, if only the theology of the friends upon which Job had poured his withering scorn, biting sarcasm, and scalding indignation had been the infallible truth of God, which it was not. But Eliphaz and his brethren, thinking it to be so, pronounced Job a self-convicted sinner (verse 6).
3. Astounding presumption. Stung by Job's ridicule of himself and his colleagues (Job_12:2), and forgetful that "a soft answer turneth away wrath," while "grievous words stir up anger' (Pro_15:1) Eliphaz retorts, with a keen-edged irony scarcely second to Job's, that no doubt Job was a wise man, a very wise man, in fact the only wise man, since
(1) Job had been born first of men (verse 7), and as a consequence enjoyed "the most direct and profound insight into the mysteries of the world, which came into existence at the same time as himself" (Delitzsch);
(2) had even preceded the mountains in his appearance upon earth (verse 7)—the mountains and hills being represented as the oldest of created things (Psa_90:2), and the language being applied to Wisdom in the Book of Pro_8:23-26;
(3) had been admitted to the cabinet of heaven, and listened to the councils of the Supreme (Pro_8:8), the allusion being to the divan of an Oriental prince; nay
(4) as a consequence had engrossed or monopolized wisdom to himself, like some grand vizier whose soul was burdened with state secrets; and
(5) was possessed of sources of information immensely superior to theirs, although with them were both the greyheaded and very aged men, much older than his father (Pro_8:10).
4. Contemptuous indifference.
(1) To the consolations of God (Pro_8:11). That God is pre-eminently the God of all comfort and consolation (2Co_1:3; 2Co_7:6): that he can comfort with a mother's tenderness (Isa_66:13), a father's pity (Psa_103:13), a husband's love (Hos_2:14); that in Christ (Php_2:1) he hath provided rich consolations for his people (2Co_1:5), suitable for every circumstance and situation that may occur in their lives (2Co_1:4); that delightful wells of consolation are sometimes found in the events of providence (2Co_7:6), and always in the promises of the gospel (2Pe_1:4), especially when applied to the heart by the Holy Ghost (Joh_14:26); that these consolations are not small in themselves, being abundant (2Co_1:5), satisfying (Isa_66:11), strong (Heb_6:18), and everlasting (2Th_2:16), and. should by none be reputed small or lightly esteemed, considering the source whence they come, the love of God, the channel through which they flow, the cross of Christ, the Agent by whom they are applied, the Holy Spirit, the comfort they impart, the peace of God which passeth understanding, and the freeness with which they are bestowed, without money and without price; that all these are precious truths is undeniable; but Eliphaz understood by God's consolations the promises held forth by himself and his friends in their discourses, which, however applicable they may have been to an unconverted sinner, were not suitable to meet the case of a suffering saint like Job.
(2) To the kindness of men. Without doubt sincerely Eliphaz commends his own and his friends' orations as gentle addresses, the utterances of tender pity (verse 11); and, if they were so, unquestionably Job erred in receiving them with such palpable scorn as he did. Kindness honestly offered, even when mistaken, and somewhat harsh and ungracious, should be politely, and even thankfully, received. But it is not so obvious as it seemed to Eliphaz that either he or Bildad, not to mention Zophar, had spoken tenderly.
5. Passionate rebellion. Job allowed his feelings to get the better of his understanding—his passion to overwhelm his judgment. It is the part of wisdom and the work of grace to restrain angry emotions (Pro_29:8; Eph_4:26). Uncontrolled excitement leads to sin (Pro_29:22). It had hurried Job into vehement expressions against God, which seemed to show an embittered and hostile spirit in
(1) insolent grimaces, the winking of the eyes (verse 12) having the significance, it is probable, of the similar expressions in Psa_35:19, Pro_6:3, and Isa_3:16;
(2) wrathful opposition, the turning of the spirit (or of one's rage) against God (Isa_3:13) being a characteristic of wicked men (Rom_8:7; Gal_5:17); and
(3) foolish speaking, Job's discourses being styled "words," i.e. words as contrasted with wisdom, words destitute of meaning and intelligence.
II. OLD THEOLOGY RESTATED. The crowning sin of Job, in the estimation of Eliphaz, was his persistent attempts at self-justification. As if to give this tremendous heresy its final quietus, the solemn Arabian seer once more advances the humbling doctrine of man's universal depravity, which he establishes from a fourfold consideration.
1. Man's constitutional frailty. Man is essentially a frail and diseased creature, enosh (verse 14); and, although physical weakness is not the same thing as moral pollution, yet the former is inconceivable except as the result of the latter.
2. Man's depraved origin. Mortal man is descended from fallen woman, and, as a consequence, inherits her depravity. So Job admitted (Job_14:2), David bewailed (Psa_51:5), and Christ taught (Joh_3:6). To this law human history knows of only one exception. Christ, though the Seed of the woman, was untainted by hereditary corruption. Holy in his birth (Luk_1:35), he continued throughout life "holy, harmless, undefiled, and separate from sinners" (Heb_7:26). The moral purity of Jesus was indispensable to his mediator-ship (Heb_7:27).
3. Man's inferiority to the angels. Man occupies a lower place in the universe than the angels who inhabit heaven (verse 15). Yet even these bright intelligences appear tarnished in God's sight. How much less, then, can a claim of moral parity be made good for man? If God's hell, less, the standard of all creature excellence, is so absolute that even the heavens with their holy inhabitants are not pure in his sight (verse 15), it is sheer folly to expect that man can establish his moral cleanness before the eyes of the Omniscient One (cf. Job_4:17, Job_4:18, homiletics). On the contrary, man must be entirely abominable in the estimation of a holy God, because wholly corrupt (verse 16), sin being that abominable thing which God hates (Jer_44:4), and which renders everything it infects hateful, because of changing its nature, and making sour, putrid, corrupt, disorganized, what God had at first pronounced fair, orderly, and very good.
4. Man's habitual practice. This the culminating proof of man's total and universal depravity. Wherever man exists he is found to drink up iniquity like water; i.e. to commit sin as regularly, eagerly, abundantly, easily, naturally, as the ox or the horse drinks up water.
Learn:
1. Men often fail to see in themselves the faults they condemn in others,
2. The faculty of speech was given to every man to profit withal.
3. The tongue is badly used when it is employed to either afflict saints or encourage sinners.
4. "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom."
5. Prayer is one of the natural instincts of the human heart.
6. A man's creed is commonly an index to his character.
7. The man who condemns himself need not wonder if he be condemned by others.
8. The older a man grows the wiser should he become.
9. Divine consolation may be, but is not always, administered by man.
10. "Better is he that ruleth his spirit than he that taketh a city."
11. The month should never be allowed to go wit. hoot a bridle.
12. The doctrine of man's depravity is very old.
Job_15:4
I. THERE IS NO GOD TO PRAY TO. This the reason of the atheist. But the existence of a supreme First Cause, possessed of intelligence and moral character, is to faith assured by:
1. The intuitions of the human mind, which may sometimes attempt to argue itself out of, but never needs to reason itself into, the belief in a Divine Being.
2. The witness of the creatures, which, by countless instances of special contrivance and design, attest the eternal power and Godhead of their Artificer (Rom_1:20).
3. The intimations of Scripture, which never demonstrate, but always assume, that a God exists, and man knows it. Hence, since there is a Supreme Being, the folly, as well as sin, of withholding from him that tribute of devotion which is his due.
II. THERE IS NO EFFICACY IN PRAYER. The usual objections to the possibility of prayer may be here stated, such as that the whole universe having been placed under the dominion of fixed and invariable law, there can, properly speaking, be no room for the exercise of prayer; that the Bible itself, by representing all things as coming to pass in accordance with a prearranged plan, seems expressly to exclude the idea of prayer; that the multiplicity and even contradictoriness of human interests is so great as to reduce the whole business of praying to an absurdity; and that, as no one pretends to be able to dispense with his own labours even while he prays, it seems hard to know precisely wherein lies the special virtue of devotion. Without replying to these seriatim in this place, it may suffice to observe:
1. The exact import of the assertion that there is no efficacy in prayer, which is that the individual so asserting has been able to place himself precisely where God stands in relation to the universe, to make a survey of the entire compass of created things, to sound the unfathomable depths of the Divine resources, and, as the result of his examination, to announce that prayer cannot be answered; in other words, such a confident dogmatist arrogates to himself the attributes of God.
2. The complete worthlessness of the assertion when set against the testimony of the human consciousness, especially when supported by the evidence of incontrovertible fact that prayer can be, and has been, answered.
III. THE ABSENCE OF A FELT NEED OF PRAYER. This is the reason of the worldling. The things he regards as constituting the summum bonum of existence—wealth, pleasure, fame, power, and such like—seem to belong to a sphere that is not much affected by prayer; while, having never experienced any desire for those spiritual realities comprehended in the gospel, blessing of salvation, viz. the pardon of sin, the renovation of the heart, the spirit of adoption, and so on, he has never deemed it necessary to trouble the King of heaven with supplications for their bestowal. But
(1) the bleatings of the gospel are none the less indispensable for the soul's happiness that the soul does not realize its lack of them;
(2) the absence of any felt necessity for prayer is the best proof the soul can desire that prayer is in reality its one thing needful;
(3) the exercise of prayer will not interfere with a just devotion to the ordinary businesses and duties of daily life;
(4) not even the most material of earthly blessings belongs to a region that lies beyond the influence of prayer (Php_4:6).
IV. THE LACK OF ANSWERS TO PRAYERS. This is the reason of the faithless Christian. And it is undoubtedly hard for a soul to keep on praying when to all appearance the ear of God is deaf. But in such circumstances the petitioner should consider
(1) whether a prayer might not be answered without the praying one being distinctly conscious of it at the time;
(2) whether the prayer to which no answer is returned may not simply be delayed, and not denied;
(3) whether, even on the hypothesis of its denial, it may not after all be for the best that the thing asked for should be withheld;
(4) whether the indispensable conditions of true prayer, such as faith (Heb_11:6; Jas_1:6), humility (Gen_32:10), sincerity (Psa_66:18), etc.. have been complied with.
V. THE WANT OF ANY TRUE RELISH IN PRAYER. This is the reason of the spiritually declining saint. Now
(1) it is certain that the exercise of prayer ought to be delightful to the Christian, prayer being as much a natural function of the gracious soul as breathing is of the body. But
(2) it is equally apparent that over spiritual as well us physical functions times of languor steal, these being induced in the former mostly by a want of watchfulness against the encroachments of the world, or by a careless dalliance with sin, or by a growing spirit of formality. Hence
(3) so far from being a reason for discontinuing devotion, the lack of spiritual relish should rather stir the praying soul to greater earnestness and zeal.
VI. THE INDULGENCE OF KNOWN SIN. This is the reason of the conscious backslider. Nothing so effectually extinguishes the altar-fire of a spiritual devotion as the practice of secret sin.
(1) It disqualifies for coming to the throne (Isa_1:15);
(2) it prevents God from listening to prayer (Psa_66:18);
(3) it deadens the spiritual life from which prayer comes (Psa_32:3);
(4) it represses all desire within the soul for converse with God; and
(5) it finally silences the voice of prayer altogether.
Job_15:17-35
1. Old; i.e. derived from a remote antiquity. The traditionary lore about to he cited by Eliphaz had been manufactured by primeval sages, from whom it had been carefully transmittal to the "wise men" who had told it to Eliphaz. The "fathers," "unto whom alone the earth was given," and "among whom no stranger passed," were either patriarchal descendants of Noah prior to the time of Peleg, when the earth was divided (Gen_10:25), or the early progenitors of the Arabian races.
2. Pure; i.e. unmixed with foreign elements. Whether the ancients were pre-Pelegites or post-, the fact to which Eliphaz calls attention remains unaltered. "Purity of race was from the earliest times considered by the sons of the East as the sign of highest nobility" (Delitzsch). That this isolation of the Arabian fathers would tend to preserve the current of primitive tradition pure and unalloyed, and might even favour the healthy development of independent views, "derived from their own experience and undisturbed by foreign influence," can scarcely be questioned, it would seem also as if in the world's infancy other methods of conserving Divine truth were impracticable. At least Israel was separated from the other nations of the earth in order to serve as a depositary for the gospel promise in order to preserve it till the fulness of the times. Hence she was forbidden to make marriage or other alliances with the nations around for fear of learning their ways. But now the truth of God, under the Christian dispensation, has been revealed with such clearness and fulness of illumination, that it does nor require to be hedged about by safeguards of race, nationality, etc.; though it is still true Christian people that "evil communications corrupt good manners" (1Co_15:33).
3. Certain; i.e. verified by experience. In the preceding colloquy Eliphaz had treated Job to wisdom he had learnt in ecstatic vision (Job_4:12); here he lays before him the results of observation through the ordinary channels of information. He does not claim for his approaching utterances the high authority of messages from the spirit-world; still, he guarantees their veracity on the double testimony of eye and ear. What the wise men had reported to his sense of hearing he had taken care to verify by the organ of seeing; so that practically he seems to say, "In the mouth of two witnesses is every word established."
II. THE PURPORT OF THIS WISDOM. Briefly, it is the dogma that a moral order exists in the world, that good always comes to the good, and in particular that evil never fails to overtake the evil.
1. The wicked man's doom. Painted in lurid colours, as consisting mainly in two things.
(1) The terrors of an evil conscience, which are represented as:
(a) Self-inflicted. "The wicked man writhes or torments himself" (verse 20). Conscience always is its own avenger. Gagged for a season, it eventually speaks out with greater power because of previous repression. "No man ever offended his own conscience, but first or last it was revenged upon him for it" (South).
(b) Excruciatingly painful, like the pains of parturition. "Conscience is a thousand swords" ('King Richard III.,' act 5. sc. 2). "Methought a legion of foul fiends environed me" (ibid; act 1. sc. 4). "The mind that broods o'er guilty woes is like the scorpion girt by fire" (Byron 'Giaour').
(c) Never ceasing; the anguish of the stricken wretch continuing "all his days." Except in rare instances, this part of Eliphaz's description can scarcely be regarded as literally correct. Yet it teaches that, from one end of life to the other, the wicked man enjoys no security against his guilty fears, which may spring forth upon him at any moment, the exact instant when they shall do so being hidden from his view (verse 20).
(d) Horribly terrifying; filling him with dismal forebodings of evil. The sound of approaching calamity ever ringing in his ears (verse 21), every footfall appears to be that of a destroyer: "How is't with me, when every noise appals me?" ('Macbeth,' act 2. sc. 2); and "The wicked flee when no man pursueth" (Pro_28:1). His imagination suggests, even in the midst of prosperity, that the devastator is upon him (verse 21), that every one who finds him shall slay him (Gen_4:14), that his destruction will be sudden and complete—a fate reserved for unbelievers in the great day of the Lord (1Th_5:3). His guilty conscience peopling the dark with assassins causes him to live in constant terror of the sword (verse 22)—"Thus conscience does make cowards of us all" ('Hamlet,' act 3. sc. 1). His feeble spirit agonized by fears of starvation even in the midst of abundance (verse 23), roams abroad in search of bread, saying, "Where is it?" and he becomes a fugitive and a vagabond on the earth, like another Cain (Gen_4:12), and like wicked men generally whose evil hearts are restless as the troubled sea (Isa_57:20). His crowding fears of impending calamity so unman him that when trouble and anguish gather round like royal armies prepared for battle, they paralyze him with dread, and render resistance or escape impossible (verse 24).
(2) The miseries of an evil fortune form the second ingredient in his unhappy lot. He shall never attain to true, permanent, or abundant wealth. If he make money, he shall make nothing else. And that money shall take wings and flee away. So that, notwithstanding his apparent success, he shall be always a poor man. It is often true of the wicked that they make money only to put it into a bag with holes (Hag_1:6). Ill-gotten wealth never lasts long. The wicked man shall never be out of misfortune, in himself or in his family. "He shall not escape darkness" (verse 30). He shall eventually be overwhelmed in ruin; painful, like the burning of a flame; speedy, like a blast of wind; divinely sent, the agent of his destruction being the breath of God's mouth, which will ultimately consume the enemies of Christ (2Th_2:8; Rev_19:15); and therefore complete and final, the wicked perishing utterly, as all the ungodly will do hereafter.
2. The wicked man's crime.
(1) Tyrannical oppression of men (verse 20). The ungodly persons alluded to by Eliphaz were proud imperious sinners who trampled recklessly on the rights of others. All sin is more or less an infringement of the rights sod liberties of men; and much of the wickedness with which earth is overrun partakes of this character—the strong tyrannizing over the weak, the ambitious making stepping-stones of those who are humble the powerful treading down the feeble and unresisting (cf. Cowper, 'Task,' bk. 2.). The giants of Noah's (Gen_6:4) and the Arabian robbers of Job's time (Job_12:6; Job_20:19) were men of this type.
(2) Defiant antagonism to God (verses 25, 26). Hostility to God is the natural characteristic of the sinful heart (Rom_8:7); but all tyrannical oppression of men is practically a fighting against God. And the particular aggravation of the wicked man's offence lies in this, that, though clearly understanding himself to be acting contrary to God's Law, and thus virtually entering the lists against Jehovah, he persists in his nefarious behaviour, with much braggadocio "stretching out his hand," and "affecting to play the hero against God" (verse 25); with immeasurable insolence "strengthening himself against the Almighty," a feeble worm presuming to contend with the Lord of hosts; with infinite zest "running upon him," as if eager to close in mortal combat with his celestial Adversary (verse 26); with fierce determination, "with a stiffened neck," expressive of haughty resolution; with amazing self-sufficiency, dashing up against him with "the thick bosses of his bucklers" (verse 26), as if expecting to overwhelm the Supreme with ignominious defeat. Examples of such defiers of God may be found in Pharaoh (Exo_5:2), Sennacherib (Isa_36:20), the crucifiers of Christ (Psa_2:1; Act_4:25-27); though all sin is essentially an insolent rejection of God's rule and defiance of his authority (Luk_19:14, Luk_19:27).
(3) Licentious indulgence of self (verse 27). The language describes one given over to gluttony, a person whose "god is his belly" (Php_3:19). Luxurious living an object of ambition to most men (Luk_12:19); a frequent mark of wicked men (Psa_17:14; Psa_73:7; Luk_16:19); a special danger for all men (Deu_8:12). Fat feeding and fair clothing have a tendency to beget and foster pride. "It is a common proverb that provender pricketh men" (Calvin). When Jeshurun waxed fat he kicked (Deu_32:15). If in politics and civil matters lean men are dangerous ('Julius Caesar,' act 1. sc. 2), in religion it is mostly otherwise. Hence the wisdom of Agur's prayer (Pro_30:8, Pro_30:9).
(4) Complete insensibility to sin (verse 28). The wicked man takes up his abode in cities like Jericho (Jos_6:26), which God's curse has rendered desolate through some overwhelming visitation, thus evincing not so much his insolent defiance of God, as the stolidity of his wicked soul, his utter want of pious feeling, the complete callousness and deadness of his moral and spiritual nature. All sin gravitates towards "a conscience past feeling" (Eph_4:19).
III. THE APPLICATION OF THIS WISDOM.
1. A wicked insinuation. "Let not him that is deceived" (verse 31), i.e. Job. Eliphaz charges Job with a false confidence in his own integrity. Though not true of Job, it is certain that of many it is not false. Hence the propriety of self-examination as to the grounds on which our assurance rests. If it rest on the Spirit's witness to our faith in Christ, it is good and will never disappoint our expectations; if it is based on any of those "vanities" alluded to by Eliphaz, it is false, and will eventually overwhelm us in despair.
2. An excellent admonition. "Let him not trust in vanity." Everything outside of God and his favour, on which a human soul grounds its confidence of safety, or in which it thinks to find happiness, is vanity—moral excellence, evangelical fervour, general philanthropy, intellectual power, social position, commercial credit, political influence, no less than successful wickedness and unchecked antagonism to God. Yet the human heart is insanely prone to clasp these to its bosom, saying, "Be thou my confidence," instead of trusting in the living God. But to do so is the merest self-deception. For none of these things, nor all of them, can satisfy a human soul. Only God can so occupy the heart as to fill it with happiness and render it secure. God alone is the saint's portion and trust.
3. A fearful prediction. "Vanity," probably in the sense of calamity, "shall be his recompense" (verse 31). And this reward, for which the self-deceived man toils, shall be paid:
(1) Fully; "it shall be accomplished" (verse 32), i.e. his punishment will be fully measured out, his wage paid to the full—that wage being death (cf. Rom_6:23).
(2) Prematurely; "before his time," i.e. before the natural termination of his life, sin having a tendency to shorten (Psalm Iv. 23), as godliness has to prolong life; before any of his schemes have reached completion, like a vine shaking off its unripe grapes and an olive casting off its flowers (verse 33).
(3) Sadly; involving his family in his ruin, for "the family of the hypocrites shall be desolate" (verse 34), the wicked man carrying the contagion of ungodliness into his home, and bringing down upon it the curse of God (Pro_3:33), as certainly as the good man surrounds his children with an atmosphere of salvation (Luk_19:9; Act_16:31), and draws down upon them by his prayers the benison of love.
(4) Utterly; the judgments of the Almighty consuming the tabernacles of bribery and their wicked inhabitants, who conceive mischief and bring forth vanity, and whose belly prepareth deceit (verse 35). A description, again, which, though inapplicable to Job, for whom it was wrongfully meant, has sometimes been realized, as in the case of the cities of the plain.
Learn:
1. That the true Divider of countries to nations and of lands to individuals is God. A man can receive nothing except it be given him from above.
2. That if the intercourse of peoples and tribes with one another be productive of good, it is by no means unattended with danger. Sinful practices and opinions are more easily adopted than their opposites.
3. That the way of transgressors is commonly as hard to themselves as to their victims. "Evil pursueth sinners."
4. That the fiercest enemy a soul has to encounter is an awakened conscience. It is hard to contend against a foe through whose face God looks.
5. That the biggest coward upon earth is a bragging tyrant who oppresses the weak. Man's moral strength rises in proportion to the meekness with which he can endure, not the cruelty with which he can inflict, wrong.
6. That the man who thinks to conquer God in battle is a fool. The way to victory with God is by faith and prayer, humility and submission.
7. That a fat body may become the grave of a lean soul. The man that would have a prosperous and luxuriant soul must keep the body under.
8. That the best-deceived man on earth is he who trusts in earthly vanities. If he who trusts in his own heart is a fool, what must he be who trusts in unsubstantial nothingness?
9. That wicked men's families are often ruined by their parents. A father should lead his child to heaven by holy deeds, not point him the way to hell by transgression.
10. That the ultimate perdition of ungodly men is sure. "It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God."
I. ARGUMENT: INTRODUCTION. (Verses 2-6.) Eliphaz, as the oldest and most experienced of the friends, seeks to abash and humiliate Job by raising doubts of his sense and wisdom.
1. The characteristics of unwisdom are indulgence in windy words—in "words from the paunch," the seat of wild and ungovernable passion, as constructed with words that are uttered from the heart (Job_8:10), and are those of experience, sense, and truth; in words that are useless because there are no corresponding deeds. Here is a good test of the value of speech—Has it any tendency to bear fruit in deeds? can it be followed up and expressed in deeds or no? Those words are vain on which we dare not set the stamp and seal of action.
2. Proofs of guilt. These wild speeches are not only idle, but worse, mischievous. The tongue is a powerful agent, either of good or evil. It builds up those who listen in faith and goodness, or loosens the root of piety in the soul. Further, the tongue may be used as the weapon of the crafty—a disingenuous means of defence. And does not this show that Job is utterly corrupt; that, like an unprincipled scoundrel, he would attempt to clear himself by throwing blame on others?
II. HUMILIATING CENSURES. (Verses 7-13.)
1. Ironical rebuke of his assumption Is he the first-born man—older than the hills? Does he stand at the head of mankind, and, therefore, know better than all his fellows? So Ezekiel satirizes the King of Tyre, "Thou stalest up the sum, full of wisdom, and perfect in beauty" (Eze_28:12). The Hindus have a proverb used in the same sense, "Yea, indeed, he is the first man; no wonder that he is so wise." The great Greek sage, on the other hand, being declared the wisest of men, interpreted the oracle as meaning that h-e alone of men knew that he was ignorant. It is better to place one's self on a level with the meanest and the most ignorant than to assume superiority in matters about which all men may reasonably think themselves equally well informed.
2. Expostulation against a bitter temper. It is a temper that will not soften at the word of comfort, as the rock will not melt in the sun. Eliphaz thinks that all his good instruction and consolation have been lavished in vain upon this obdurate heart. The "refusing to be comforted," the obstinate nourishing of grief, is a temper that must be changed, otherwise the mental view cannot become clear and calm. Other signs of temper are pride; the heart carried away by its passionate egotism; the gleaming or rolling eyes (verse 12), and the unbridled wildness of the tongue. These symptoms prove a disease, and that disease is self-will.
III. THE RIGHT OF COMPLAINT AGAINST GOD DENIED. (Verses 14-16.) Here the speaker repeats himself, for he has nothing more deeply impressed upon his own mind than the folly and impatience of complaints from infirm man against the supreme and all-holy One (comp. Job 4:17—5:7).
1. The hereditary taint in man (verse 14).
2. The relative impurity of heavenly beings in the sight of God.
3. Man's choice of sin (this is especially emphatic here).
All these considerations show the impiety of daring to question any action of God. Man has a thirst for sin (verse 16): shall such a creature, from the edge of its muddy pool, lift itself presumingly against Heaven?
IV. DEMAND FOR ATTENTION TO INSTRUCTION. (Verses 17-19.) In this short preface the wisdom of the speaker is described as
(1) derived from personal experience;
(2) confirmed by ancient tradition;
(3) as pure, unadulterated wisdom,
coming from a time when foreign opinions and foreign manners had not corrupted the simplicity of ancient truth.—J.
Job_15:20-35
1. Lifelong pain. Notwithstanding all appearances of ease and prosperity, the bad man only suffers. The sword seems ever suspended above the tyrant's head. The serpent is ever busy with the tooth of remorse at his heart.
2. Dread fancies throng through every sound into his imagination; he is ever in terror of some sudden doom. He sees a darkness coming upon him from which there is no possibility of escape. In the glance of dread fancy he sees himself already singled out for the fatal sword-stroke. The gaunt shape of famine seems to haunt his steps; from his soft couch and splendid table he looks out into a dark scene, a