Eliphaz

January 31, 2017

The questions for Edom (Jer 49:7-49:9)

“Concerning Edom!

Thus says Yahweh of hosts!

‘Is there no longer wisdom

In Teman?

Has counsel perished

From the prudent?

Has their wisdom vanished?

Flee!

Turn back!

Get down low!

O inhabitants of Dedan!

I will bring

The calamity of Esau

Upon him,

Like the time

When I punished him.

If grape-gatherers

Came to you,

Would they not

Leave gleanings?

If thieves came

By night,

Would they not pillage

Only what they wanted?”

Edom was south of the Dead Sea, south of Moab and south of Judah. Its biblical origin was the place where Esau, the twin brother of Jacob, went to live in Genesis, chapter 36. Yahweh has a series of questions for Edom. What happened to their wisdom, especially at Teman, perhaps a tribal group in Edom, since Teman was the name of the grandson of Esau. One of Job’s friends Eliphaz was a Temanite. Obadiah, an almost unknown minor prophet, seemed to take some of this diatribe against Edom into most of his work. Something has happened to the counsel and prudence of Edom. Has all their wisdom vanished? Dedan was a tribe involved in commerce. Both grape gatherers and thieves would leave something behind. They would not take everything. Thus the grape pickers would leave some grapes for the later gleaners to come along and get some of these overlooked grapes. The same is true about nightly thieves who would only take what they needed.

August 5, 2015

Yahweh blames the three wise men (Job 42:7-42:9)

“After Yahweh had spoken these words to Job, Yahweh said to Eliphaz the Temanite.

‘My wrath is kindled against you!

My wrath is kindle against your two friends!

You have not spoken of me what is right.

But my servant Job has.

Now therefore take seven bulls!

Take seven rams!

Go to my servant Job!

Offer up for yourselves a burnt offering!

My servant Job shall pray for you.

I will accept his prayer.

That is to not deal with you according to your folly.

You have not spoken of me what is right.

But my servant Job has done so.’

So Eliphaz the Temanite, Bildad the Shuhite, and Zophar the Naamathite went and did what Yahweh had told them. Yahweh accepted Job’s prayer.”

Yahweh was not mad at Job, but rather his 3 friends, Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar. He spoke directly to Eliphaz but he told him that he and his 2 friends were wrong when they spoke about Yahweh to Job. Job was right. As a punishment, the 3 of them were to take 7 bulls and 7 rams to make a burnt offering. Job would pray for them. Thus the prayer of Job was answered in the positive by Yahweh, the God of Israel. Obviously, since they were not Jewish they were not going to go to Jerusalem. However, it was a common ancient practice to offer sacrifices for absolving sins. So now we know the rest of the story as far as the 3 amigos of Job were concerned.

July 25, 2015

Elihu points out the failure of the three wise comforters (Job 32:11-32:14)

“See!

I waited for your words.

I listened for your wise sayings.

While you searched out what to say.

I gave you my attention.

However, there was in fact no one that confuted Job.

No one among you answered his words.

Yet you do not say.

‘We have found wisdom.

God may vanquish him,

Not a human.’

He has not directed his words against me.

I will not answer him with your speeches.”

Elihu turned first to the 3 comforters, Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar. He said that he had listened to their wise sayings. He paid close attention, but they did not refute Job. No one was able to respond to him. They did not even say that they had human or divine wisdom. Although Job had not directed his words against Elihu, he was still going to answer Job.

July 15, 2015

The fate of the wicked (Job 24:22-24:25)

“Yet God prolongs the life of the mighty by his power.

They rise up when they despair of life.

He gives them security.

They are supported.

His eyes are upon their ways.

They are exalted a little while.

Then they are gone.

They wither and fade like the mallow.

They are cut off like the heads of grain.

If it is not so,

Who will prove me a liar?

Who will show that there is nothing in what I say?”

Once again, these verses are not in the Jerusalem Bible. However, here it seems like the argument of Eliphaz but assigned to Job. He maintained that God prolonged the life of the mighty. He gave them support and security. However, they were only exalted for a little while. Then they were gone. They faded away. They were like grain stalks with their heads cut off. Who was going to prove him a liar?

July 14, 2015

Eliphaz wants Job to reconcile with God (Job 22:21-22:30)

“Agree with God!

Be at peace!

In this way good will come to you.

Receive instruction from his mouth.

Lay up his words in your heart.

If you return to the Almighty Shaddai,

You will be restored.

If you remove unrighteousness from your tents,

If you treat gold like dust,

If you treat the gold of Ophir like the stones of the torrent bed,

If the Almighty Shaddai is your gold,

If the Almighty Shaddai is your precious silver,

Then you will delight yourself in the Almighty Shaddai.

Lift up your face to God!

You will pray to him!

He will hear you.

You will pay your vows!

You will decide on a matter!

It will be established for you.

Light will shine on your ways.

When others are humiliated,

You say it is pride.

God saves the humble.

He will deliver even those who are guilty.

They will escape

Because of the cleanness of your hands.”

Eliphaz wanted Job to admit his guilt so that everything would be fine. He wanted him to just agree with God. Then Job would be at peace. He should listen to God and admit his failings. He wanted him to return to the almighty Shaddai. The almighty one should be his gold, silver, and precious metal. Then he could lift up his face to God since God would hear his prayers. God does not like the haughty, but prefers the humble. Eliphaz wanted Job to be humble before God. Thus even if he was guilty, God would forgive him because of his clean hands.

July 14, 2015

Eliphaz claims that Job had much and did not share it (Job 22:8-22:11)

“The powerful possess the land.

The favored people live in it.

You have sent widows away empty.

You have crushed the arms of the orphans.

Therefore snares are around you.

Sudden terror overwhelms you.

Your light is darkened.

Thus you cannot see.

A flood of water covers you.”

Eliphaz claimed that Job had land, yet he sent widows and orphans away empty handed. Thus the snares and terrors are all around him because he was not kind to others. He was now in a situation where it was dark. He could not see because a flood of water had covered him. He was in a state or personal distress.

July 14, 2015

Eliphaz accuses Job of wrong doing (Job 22:1-22:7)

“Then Eliphaz the Temanite answered.

‘Can a mortal be of use to God?

Can even the wisest be of service to him?

Is it any pleasure to the Almighty Shaddai?

Even if you are righteous,

Is it gain to him if you make your ways blameless?

Is it for your piety that he reproves you?

Does he enter into judgment with you?

Is not your wickedness great?

There is no end to your iniquities.

You have exacted pledges

From your family brothers

For no reason.

You have stripped the naked of their clothing.

You have given no water to the weary to drink.

You have withheld bread from the hungry.’”

Eliphaz reminded Job that God only punishes in a just fashion. How could he be of service to God? How could he bring pleasure to the almighty one, Shaddai? Even if he was blameless and righteous, what had he gained? However, Eliphaz said that Job’ wickedness was great. He had treated people unfairly. He then enumerated the evil things that Job had done. He exacted pledges from his family. He striped clothes to make people naked. He failed to give water and bread to the hungry and thirsty people. These were explicit things that Job had done wrong.

July 10, 2015

Eliphaz ridicules Job (Job 15:7-15:16)

“Are you the first man that was born?

Were you brought forth before the hills?

Have you listened in the council of God?

Do you limit wisdom to yourself?

What do you know that we do not know?

What do you understand that is not clear to us?

The gray-haired and the aged are on our side.

Those people are older than your father.

Are the consolations of God too small for you?

Are the word that deals gently with you too small for you?

Why does your heart carry you away?

Why do your eyes flash?

You turn your spirit against God.

You let such words go out of your mouth.

What are mortals?

Can mortals be clean?

God puts no trust even in his holy ones.

The heavens are not clean in his sight.

How much less one who is abominable and corrupt!

You are a man who drinks iniquity like water!”

Eliphaz now ridicules Job. He wanted to know if he was the first person born so that he was older than the hills. Was he some kind of conciliar to God? Did he think that he was the only person with wisdom? Did he think that he was smarter than everyone else? There were a lot older people living longer than Job’s father. Was God too small for Job? Why did he have flashing eyes? Why has he turned against God? Why has be spoken such words? Any mortal born of a woman is unclean and not righteous. God does not even trust his holy angels in heaven because there is uncleanness there. Job was drinking iniquity like water. Once again, this is a harsh condemnation of Job.

July 10, 2015

Job is condemned by his own language (Job 15:1-15:6)

“Then Eliphaz the Temanite answered.

‘Should the wise men answer with windy knowledge?

Should the wise men fill themselves with the east wind?

Should they argue in unprofitable talk?

Should they argue in words with which they can do no good?

But you are doing away with the fear of God.

You are hindering meditation before God.

Your iniquity teaches your mouth.

You choose the tongue of the crafty.

Your own mouth condemns you!

Not I!

Your own lips testify against you.’”

This is now a second round of discourses, like a work of the Greek philosopher Plato. This time Eliphaz began again by ripping into Job, claiming that Job should be condemned by his own words. Wise men do not answer with windy knowledge. This was an unprofitable east wind talk that does no good. Job was doing away with the fear of God, hindering mediation about God. There was iniquity in the mouth of Job with his crafty tongue. He was condemned by his own mouth and lips. This was very harsh about Job after his original kind words in the first discourse.

July 7, 2015

Job responds that God is powerful (Job 9:1-9:12)

“Then Job answered.

‘Indeed I know that it is so.

But how can a man be just before God?

If one wished to contend with him,

One could not answer him once in a thousand times.

God has a wise heart.

He is mighty in strength.

Who has resisted God?

Who has succeeded?

He removes mountains.

They do not know it,

When he overturns them in his anger.

Who shakes the earth out of its place?

Who makes its pillars tremble?

Who commands the sun?

It does not rise without him.

Who seals up the stars?

Who alone stretched out the heavens?

Who trampled the waves of the sea?

Who made the Bear?

Who made the Orion?

Who made the Pleiades?

Who made the chambers of the south?

Who does great things beyond understanding?

Who does marvelous things without number?

Look!

He passes by me.

I do not see him.

He moves on.

But I do not perceive him.

He snatches away.

Who can stop him?

Who will say to him?

‘What are you doing?’”

Job posed the basic question of how could a mere moral become just before God? What is righteousness? In a sense he is answering Eliphaz rather than Bildad. God is a thousand times better than man. He is wise and strong. Who could resist God successfully? He moves mountains in his anger and they do not even know it. He commands the sun, the stars, and the waves of the sea.  He makes all the heavenly constellations of stars like the Bear, the Orion, and the Pleiades. In fact these clusters of stars were sometimes thought of as gods. God stretches out the heavens like a tent. He does great marvelous things that we sometimes do not understand. He passes by and we don’t see him. No one asks him what he is doing. He just does it. No one can stop him.