Job 5:1–27 (NIV)
“Call if you will, but who will answer you?
To which of the holy ones will you turn?
In the above verse, Eliphaz warns Job that he shouldn't complain to God. Remember, in the last chapter, Eliphaz said he'd heard an angel tell him, “Can mortal man be more just than God?” So here's he's basically saying, that he's not going to be answered if he complains to God because he has no right to complain. Angels would see the complaint as foolish, so he has no one to intercede with God for him.
2 Resentment kills a fool,
and envy slays the simple.
Eliphaz saw Job's previous complaint as nothing but that of a fool. I know that sounds really harsh, but again we have to try and put ourselves in their shoes. These were all basically "elders" and they'd known Job for years and heard him counsel many others when they were having problems. So he was a respected friend. But now, suddenly, when the shoe is on the other foot all of a sudden, Job turns around and sounds worse then any of those who'd come to him for counsel before! So he's telling Job, "Stop acting like a fool, that's not you, you're better then that!" Kind of like when a child does something wrong because a friend did it, and the mother says, "if your friend jumped off a cliff, would you?", and then tells them to stop being foolish.
I'm not saying Eliphaz was right, I'm only trying to help you see what it must have looked and sounded like in "real life".
3 I myself have seen a fool taking root,
but suddenly his house was cursed.
4 His children are far from safety,
crushed in court without a defender.
5 The hungry consume his harvest,
taking it even from among thorns,
and the thirsty pant after his wealth.
Remember, the first half of what Eliphaz said was based on a "vision" or dream. We've already begun to see why it's not wise to make decisions or determine our doctrine because of a dream or vision we've had. We know that God tells us that we are only to base our doctrine on His Word, not dreams, visions, feelings, observations, or anything else. Now he's basing his information on his own observations. In this part of his observation, what he tells Job he's seen throughout his life, is very similar to what actually happened to Job and hearing it must have hurt Job terribly.
We often get things wrong when we base what we believe in on our observations. One reason we get things wrong is because our observations are severely limited. We can't see what's happening to everyone in the world, but only a small portion. Secondly, often what we see isn't what really happened anyway, since we tend to see things through the corruption of sin in our minds and so draw wrong conclusions about what we see. So if we have a problem with jealousy, and we see another woman talking to our boy friend, we may think she's flirting with him, or that they're meeting secretly, when what's really happening is nothing like that at all. Or if we have a tendency to think that everyone is against us, then that's exactly what we're going to see, even if it's not really there, and so on.
The truth is that some sinners are judged for their sins almost immediately, while others spend their lives in prosperity and die in peace (Ecc. 8:10–14).
Eliphaz is correct when he says that people who are complaining to God about what's happened to them are foolish and shows that they're out of relationship with God. That doesn't mean they're not saved, just that for that moment at least, they aren't trusting Him and so aren't abiding in Him. Depending on the person, it could be a long lasting condition where they haven't been abiding in God for some time, or it could be a condition that only lasts a few moments until they get themselves back in control. It's definitely a danger signal though when we find ourselves complaining about things, for we know the Lord tells us that's a sin.
6 For hardship does not spring from the soil,
nor does trouble sprout from the ground.
7 Yet man is born to trouble
as surely as sparks fly upward.
In the above verses, Eliphaz is saying that sin is inevitable as we tend to sin all the time and that as a result, trouble is also inevitable for everyone. He's saying too that because of this, we bring trouble on ourselves, and that it's also our lot as a natural result of the fall of humanity.
You see, the truth is that even Jesus told us that we would have trouble in this life. When He called us, He didn't call us to a tea party, but to a battle. And while we may be saved now, we haven't been saved our entire lives. We too were once unsaved, and once just like the worst of sinners are now. The only difference between them and us is that now, because of God's Grace and mercy, we've been saved and have a choice as to whether or not we're going to continue in sin or not. We now know the Truth and have been set free from being slaves to sin. That doesn't mean that we've been set free from troubles though. The Lord tells us that He will deliver us from them, but He will do it in His time, not ours. We have to realize that it may not happen until we get to heaven. While the Lord does sometimes deliver us here and now, there is no guarantee that He will save us from the earthly troubles until He takes us Home.
That may not sound so great when we're in great difficulty here and now, but it really is because sinners have nothing to look forward to. We may have to go through a lifetime of troubles like everyone else, but ultimately, we will be vindicated and live for the rest of eternity without any troubles at all. Compare a few seconds with 1000 years and we have a little bit of an idea of the difference between our lifetime here and eternity with the Lord.
There's another side to what the Lord tells us too. While we may sometimes have to wait till we get to Heaven to be delivered from some of our troubles, we never have to wait to be delivered from emotional problems. That, the Lord gives us now, for as long as we are abiding in Him, we will be at peace and content no matter what's happening to us. It's really all about abiding in Him - loving and trusting the Lord, which is kind of what Eliphaz tells Job in the next verses:
8 “But if it were I, I would appeal to God;
I would lay my cause before him.
We can view this last verse as Eliphaz reminding Job that if he's righteous as he says, or even if he's sinned deliberately, then all he has to do is stop complaining and pray, trusting God to help him.
The Teachers Commentary gives us a short summary of what both Job and Eliphaz are really saying so far. When we read it like this, it can be a real eye opener because it sounds like a lot of people today. In fact, often we can even say it sounds just like ourselves! I'm going to post them here so we can discuss it.
First Job:
Job (3:1–26) “I’m sorry I was ever born. Why didn’t I die at birth? I’d have been better off. At least there’s no misery then. I knew things were going to be no good. I was afraid of something like this all along. I’d be better off dead than suffering all this trouble.”
When you read what Job was saying, how does it make you feel? If you had to judge his beliefs based only on these words, what would you say that he believed about God and life? Does he trust God? Does he think God loves him? Does he think God is merciful and gracious?
OK, now Eliphaz:
Eliphaz (4:1–5:27) “I’ve got to answer that. Remember how you counseled other people? Remember how you held out hope to those who would walk in integrity? After all, the innocent don’t perish. God punishes the sinner. If I were you, I’d turn to God. God is clearly chastising you, and when you turn to Him, He’ll restore you.”
Based only on these words, what would you say that Eliphaz believed about God and life? Do you think he saw God as merciful or loving? Do you think he's right?
Here's a few verses I wanted to share with you that may help with what we're talking about today.
John 16:33 —“I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” *
Acts 14:22 —strengthening the disciples and encouraging them to remain true to the faith. “We must go through many hardships to enter the kingdom of God,” they said. *
Psalm 34:19 —A righteous man may have many troubles, but the Lord delivers him from them all; *
1 Thessalonians 3:3 —so that no one would be unsettled by these trials. You know quite well that we were destined for them. *
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