For you have exacted pledges of your brothers for nothing
and stripped the naked of their clothing.
You have given no water to the weary to drink,
and you have withheld bread from the hungry.
The man with power possessed the land,
and the favored man lived in it.
You have sent widows away empty,
and the arms of the fatherless were crushed.
Therefore snares are all around you,
and sudden terror overwhelms you,
or darkness, so that you cannot see,
and a flood of water covers you.
The above verses appear in the last cycle of speeches given to Job by one of his friends. It is delivered by Eliphaz and it is, by far, the most condemning of the three men’s speeches. Up to this point they have tried to prod and persuade Job to confess whatever sin he has done. It is their belief and philosophy that no one will experience what Job is experiencing if it were not for sin in that person’s life. They have condemned him with many words, but in the above speech Eliphaz condemn him with up to now unmentioned wicked deeds. We are not sure where these accusations come from. Before we consider them we might want to go back to the beginning of the book and read again what God’s testimony is about Job:
Job 1:1 (ESV)
There was a man in the land of Uz whose name was Job, and that man was blameless and upright, one who feared God and turned away from evil.
Job 1:8 (ESV)
And the LORD said to Satan, “Have you considered my servant Job, that there is none like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man, who fears God and turns away from evil?”
Job 2:3 (ESV)
And the LORD said to Satan, “Have you considered my servant Job, that there is none like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man, who fears God and turns away from evil? He still holds fast his integrity, although you incited me against him to destroy him without reason.”
If we had a trial for Job and we had Eliphaz testify about Job’s character and then God testify about Job’s character, the jury would be quite confused. You might think they are talking about two different men. We have no place in the narrative that Job committed any of the sins that Eliphaz is brining to Job’s attention. He is, in essence, being accused of using his previously held power and prestige to his own advantage. He is accused of increasing the interest on loans and ignoring the lessor souls of the community by denying them compassion and care. These are not things God would overlook. God would never promote someone who violated His very nature. We have to ask ourselves the question as to why Eliphaz is saying all these things about Job? We are not given any basis for his comments. We can only suppose that Eliphaz has the elements of Job’s previous life in his mind. He mixes those thoughts with Job’s current condition. The only equation he can create in his simply logic is that Job must have abused others with his power and is now being condemned by God. That is a typical thought process today. Today, those who have means are often thought of as the oppressor. Today many people believe those who are down and out are in this condition only because they are oppressed by a bigger power in their life. This is what Eliphaz believes about Job. He must be using his power to oppress the down and out. Therefore God is punishing him. It is quite easy for people to condemn those who have more than they have. We are never told how Job acquired his wealth and power. Perhaps Eliphaz knows something we don’t know. But, it would apparently be something God doesn’t know, as well. When we judge and condemn others by our logic we might want to be careful we don’t run and judge contrary to God’s view of others. Eliphaz would do well to use the power he has in this situation (his health) and use it to show compassion on Job. The very things he accuses Job of doing he is demonstrating in his condemnation of Job.
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