Today’s bible study is all about the chapter of Job 4 – Eliphaz Says Job Has Sinned. According to Bible scholars, the events of the book of Job took place approximately before 2100 B.C.
I encourage you to get your bibles ready and turn to Job 4. Kindly invite the Holy Spirit to guide you as you read Job 4 with me. I am using the New King James Version (NKJV) of the Bible, just in case you want to know. All the scripture references that you find in this post are from the NKJV.
In the Bible Study on Job 3, we read about how Job lamented his very birth and wished for his death. Well, in this Bible study on Job 4, we will read about what Eliphaz the Temanite, one of Job’s three friends, said.
Without any more delay, let us begin!
Eliphaz Tries To Reason With Job
1 Then Eliphaz the Temanite answered and said:
2 “If one attempts a word with you, will you become weary?
But who can withhold himself from speaking?
3 Surely you have instructed many,
And you have strengthened weak hands.
4 Your words have upheld him who was stumbling,
And you have strengthened the feeble knees;
5 But now it comes upon you, and you are weary;
It touches you, and you are troubled.
6 Is not your reverence your confidence?
And the integrity of your ways your hope?
In Verses, 1-6 of Job 4, Eliphaz, the Temanite one of Job’s friends tells Job that he had sinned. He questioned Job’s weariness when one attempted a word ( or give advice) with him. In Verses 3-5 he said that Job had helped others with his words during their times of trouble and had strengthened their feeble knees. However, now that trouble has come upon Job, he is weary and troubled. He refuses to take advice from his friends. In Verse 6 of Job 4, Eliphaz asked is not Job’s reverence of God his confidence and is not Job’s integrity of ways his hope.
Eliphaz, in short, tried to reason with Job. He is telling Job to face his troubles without becoming weary.
Discourse About The Innocent And The Wicked
7 “Remember now, who ever perished being innocent?
Or where were the upright ever cut off?
8 Even as I have seen,
Those who plow iniquity
And sow trouble reap the same.
9 By the blast of God they perish,
And by the breath of His anger they are consumed.
10 The roaring of the lion,
The voice of the fierce lion,
And the teeth of the young lions are broken.
11 The old lion perishes for lack of prey,
And the cubs of the lioness are scattered.
In Verses 7- 8 of Job 4, Eliphaz said that the innocent never perish and the upright are never cut off. He said that those who ploughed iniquity and those who sowed trouble reaped what they sowed and ploughed. In Verses 9-11 of Job 4, he goes on to say that the wicked perish by the breath of God’s anger. Even the voice of the fierce lion and the teeth of young lions break when they provoke God. They are no match before the Creator. Even the old lion dies out of hunger and the young lion cubs scatter someday because of God’s anger.
Observation
Eliphaz referring to the lion speaks of the lion’s strength as the king of the jungle. All the animals of the jungle, both small and huge, fear the lion. However, even the lion, a mighty predator, which once hunted and preyed upon others has to die when it does not find anything to eat for days. Even the young cubs of the lioness which were once fiercely protected by their mother become scattered. Eliphaz spoke about all these things to Job to prove that God tames the proud. And Eliphaz compares Job to a lion. He was once the wealthiest man and now he is reduced to a shameful condition. He also thinks that Job is suffering the consequences of provoking God’s anger.
The Secret Word
12 “Now a word was secretly brought to me,
And my ear received a whisper of it.
13 In disquieting thoughts from the visions of the night,
When deep sleep falls on men,
14 Fear came upon me, and trembling,
Which made all my bones shake.
In Verses 12-14 of Job 4, Eliphaz heard a secret word as a whisper. In Verses 13-14 he goes on to explain how he had some visions of the night that disturbed him and affected his thoughts. At this point, Eliphaz must have been awake, because of his disturbing visions. As Eliphaz sat with his disquieting thoughts, suddenly, fear came upon him and he began trembling so much so that all his bones shook. However, he was not fearful because of his visions and thoughts.
Eliphaz Saw A Spirit
15 Then a spirit passed before my face;
The hair on my body stood up.
16 It stood still,
But I could not discern its appearance.
A form was before my eyes;
There was silence;
In Verses 15-16 of Job 4, Eliphaz explained why he trembled and why his bones shook with fear. He saw a spirit that passed before his face. On seeing this spirit, Eliphaz had goosebumps and the hair on his body stood up. At this point, he must have been gripped with fear that his bones shook. Now the spirit stood still and he could not discern its appearance. He only saw a form before his eyes and there was silence both from Eliphaz and the spirit.
What Did The Voice Say?
Then I heard a voice saying:
17 ‘Can a mortal be more righteous than God?
Can a man be more pure than his Maker?
18 If He puts no trust in His servants,
If He charges His angels with error,
19 How much more those who dwell in houses of clay,
Whose foundation is in the dust,
Who are crushed before a moth?
20 They are broken in pieces from morning till evening;
They perish forever, with no one regarding.
21 Does not their own excellence go away?
They die, even without wisdom.’
Verses 17-21 of Job 4, explain what the voice said. The voice must have come from the spirit that passed before Eliphaz. The voice questioned the righteousness and purity of a mortal (a human) before God (who is Eternal). Verse 18 of Job 4, especially tells that if the Maker did not trust his servants, the angels, and if He charged His angels with error how much more would He charge man with error.
Frailty Of Men
Men are made from the dust of the earth and they live in clay houses. In short, all human beings are nothing more than dust, created in the image of God Himself. We might have built our houses, however, we must remember that even the building materials were created by God in the first place. Everything that is on the earth belongs to the Creator.
Verse 20 of Job 4 explains how men break into pieces from morning till evening and how they perish forever and no one even considers the matter. In Verse 21 of Job 4, the voice says that man’s own excellence is nothing and it doesn’t matter because it is no match before God and it goes away. In thinking that they are excellent, men die without wisdom.
Observation
The voice here distinguishes man from the Creator. Men can never be a Creator, not today, not tomorrow, never ever. Period. You can be a builder but you create with what God has already set in place on the earth. Men’s excellence is nothing before the Maker. There cannot be any comparison between a mere mortal, which is a man, and an Eternal God.
Conclusion
This brings us to the conclusion of Job 4. To sum up, through the recordings of Eliphaz, we learn about Eliphaz’s supernatural encounter with a Spirit and the sayings of the Spirit. In all this, Eliphaz meant to tell Job that Job has sinned and he is suffering the consequences of sin. That is why he compared Job to a lion and spoke about how even a lion without food dies. There are many pearls of wisdom to learn from this chapter of Job 4. However, Eliphaz did not point out what exactly was Job’s sin.
As usual, if you have any questions for me, kindly leave them in the comments box below.
Until Next Time!