Heritage Reformed Baptist Mission
Job
Chapter 15
Job 15:1-35
I. ELIPHAZ REPROVES JOB - vv. 1-16
v. 1 - Here begins the second speech of Eliphaz, the first of Job's friends to answer him.
vv. 2-3 - Eliphaz accuses Job of making speeches that were empty of true knowledge, destructive as the hot east wind of the desert, and therefore worthless for good. Such, says Eliphaz, is not suitable for a wise man, perhaps implying that whatever wisdom Job had was no more.
v. 4 - Eliphaz accuses Job of turning away from God.
vv. 5-6 - Eliphaz, in essence, accuses Job of being deceitful, lying, proving he was guilty of hypocrisy.
vv. 7-8 - Eliphaz sarcastically wonders if Job was the first man born, or created before the world, and if he was even privy to the secret counsels of God and himself adorned with God's wisdom, allowing that no one but himself was wise.
v. 9 - With these questions, Eliphaz asserts that he and his friends know everything Job knows; that Job is in no way superior to them in knowledge and wisdom. cf. Job 12:3
v. 10 - grayheaded; elder . . . = it is possible that Job's three friends were older than he; or, more probably, that Eliphaz here refers to the wisdom of the ancients to which Bildad had referred in Job 8:8.
vv. 11-13 - Again, Eliphaz accuses Job of thinking little of God's providences and turning against Him, judging the words Job has spoken to be false, hypocritical, lies. and evil.
v. 14 - Eliphaz, in somewhat different words, repeats what Job had said in Job 14:4
v. 15 - he = God
saints = holy angels - cf. Job 4:18
heavens . . . not clean - cf. Rom 8:20-22
Though angels and the universe were created holy and without blemish, yet one-third of the angels followed Lucifer in his rebellion against God (cf. Rev 12:4) and the whole of creation was made subject to death because of sin. Only the elect angels (cf. 1 Ti 5:21), i.e., those whom God preserved from falling away with Lucifer, continue to serve the Lord; and though they serve Him willingly and without question (for to question Him would be rebellion), they are still creatures, not Beings (i.e., from everlasting as is God [Father, Son, Holy Spirit]), totally dependent upon the power and purpose of God to keep them from falling, even as we are. Therefore there is nothing about them that is trustworthy except that which God does in and for them. So it is even with us who believe on the Lord Jesus Christ.
However, if we disobey God, we have the privilege of confessing our sin and being forgiven through the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ (cf. 1 Jo 1:7-9). Angels have no such privilege. See Heb 2:16 for the reason why. But, is it possible for the elect angels to disobey God? No, it is not, even as it is not possible for true believers to fall from grace (lose salvation) because of the sovereign and eternal choice of God.
v. 16 - Man, in his sinful condition, is certainly much less trustworthy than the holy angels.
II. ELIPHAZ DESCRIBES THE MISERY OF WICKED MEN - vv. 17-35
vv. 17-19 - Eliphaz says his knowledge of the misery of wicked men is derived from personal observation and the testimony of wise men of old which has been passed on from generation to generation.
v. 20 - travaileth with pain - though some wicked people do indeed prosper in terms of material things, the pain of dissatisfaction continually haunts them and causes them to struggle for more. How much money is enough?, someone reportedly asked John D. Rockefeller. His answer, Just a little more.
oppressor = tyrant; he lives in fear of his life, knowing not when or how or by whose hand he may die, suspicious of all, trusting no one. On the other hand, God's people know they are in His hands and that He has a time for them to leave this world and are content to live day-by-day without fear.
v. 21 - prosperity is no protection from destruction, either in this world or in the world to come - cf. Pro 11:4 (See also Psalm 49)
v. 22 - darkness = symbolic of trouble, affliction, which, when a wicked man has, he has no hope of deliverance; or is fearful of some evil coming upon him which will overcome him.
This may be a jab at Job who despaired of being delivered from his affliction. cf. Job 7:6
waited . . . sword = the ultimate end of the wicked
v. 23 - wandereth . . .bread = EITHER, having had his prosperity taken away, he is reduced to begging and has a hard time finding anyone who will give to him (the law of sowing and reaping); OR, in his prosperity, is beset with an insatiable greediness for more.
knoweth . . . darkness = constantly dreading both the possibility of losing everything in this world and of dying and leaving it all behind.
v. 24 - This is the lot of wicked people. They cannot stand in the face of afflictions of whatever kind they may be, but are surely overcome by them.
vv. 25-26 - Here is the reason the wicked are overcome by afflictions. They set themselves in direct opposition to God, actually attacking Him with all their might and fury. (e.g., Ted Turner, who is quoted as saying, If there is a God, he is not doing a good job of protecting the earth. He's kind of checked out. )
v. 26 - bosses . . . bucklers = the outward curvature of soldiers' shields.
v. 27 - The description of a licentious and gluttonous man, the result of indulging his prosperity and warring against God.
v. 28 - This is a description of the future for the prosperous wicked. His grand mode of living will be reduced to rubble.
v. 29 - cf. Pro 23:5
In the same vein is the following witty verse: Money talks, I can't deny. I heard it once. It said, 'Goodbye'.
v. 30 - branches = all the things he had in prosperity - wealth, power, position, respect, etc; perhaps even alluding to his children; all of these things were taken from Job.
breath . . . mouth = wrath of God
v. 31 - vanity = that which is empty, untrustworthy, both in this life and in eternity.
Here is another example of the law of sowing and reaping.
v. 32 - his time = probably refers to the time he thought/hoped he would live rather than the time determined by God.
v. 33 - The plans and purposes of wicked people never come to fruition as they hope and wish. They are always looking for more because the carnal nature unchecked by God cannot be satisfied; and, in many cases, God thwarts their plans even in this world. cf. Pro 16:33
v. 34 - Eliphaz, in this description of what happens to hypocrites, alludes to Job and his family and possessions.
v. 35 - Alluding to a woman who, thinking herself pregnant, proves not to be.
Everything in this speech of Eliphaz, though he doesn't yet state so specifically (he does in Chapter 22), is unfairly and wantonly applied to Job.