Job 22:18 Ulasan

Eliphaz here leads on a third attack upon poor Job, in which Bildad followed him, but Zophar drew back, and quitted the field. It was one of the unhappinesses of Job, as it is of many an honest man, to be misunderstood by his friends. He had spoken of the prosperity of wicked men in this world as a mystery of Providence, but they took it for a reflection upon Providence, as countenancing their wickedness; and they reproached him accordingly. In this chapter, I. Eliphaz checks him for his complaints of God, and of his dealings with him, as if he thought God had done him wrong (Job 22:2-4). II. He charges him with many high crimes and misdemeanours, for which he supposes God was now punishing him. 1. Oppression and injustice (Job 22:5-11). 2. Atheism and infidelity (Job 22:12-14). III. He compares his case to that of the old world (Job 22:15-20). IV. He gives him very good counsel, assuring him that, if he would take it, God would return in mercy to him and he should return to his former prosperity (Job 22:21-30).

INTRODUCTION TO JOB 22 This chapter contains the third and last reply of Eliphaz to Job, in which he charges him with having too high an opinion of himself, of his holiness and righteousness, as if God was profited by it, and laid thereby under obligation to him, whereas he was not, Job 22:1; and as if he reproved and chastised him, because of his fear of him, whereas it was because of his sins, Job 22:4; an enumeration of which he gives, as of injustice, oppression, cruelty to the poor, and even of atheism and infidelity, for which snares and fears were around him, and various calamities, Job 22:6; and compares his way and course of life to that of the men of the old world, and the inhabitants of Sodom and Gomorrah, and suggests that his end would be like theirs, unless he repented, Job 22:15; and then concludes with an exhortation to him to return to God by repentance, and to reform, when he should see happy times again, and enjoy much outward and inward prosperity, and be an instrument of doing much good to many, Job 22:21.

The righteous see it, and are glad,.... Not the counsel of the wicked, nor their outward prosperity, but their ruin and destruction, which is sure and certain; though it may sometimes seem to linger, it is often public and visible to the view of every man, being made public examples, see Psa 91:8; and which is matter of joy and gladness to truly good and righteous men; who have the righteousness of Christ on them, his grace in them, and in consequence of that live soberly, righteously, and godly; these rejoice at the vengeance of God on wicked men, Psa 52:5; not that the misery of their fellow creatures is pleasing to them as such; this would be brutish and inhuman, as well as contrary to the grace of God, and to their character as good men, and also would be displeasing to God, Pro 24:17; but partly because they themselves, through the grace and goodness of God, have been kept from such sins as bring to ruin and destruction; and partly because they are delivered out of the hands of these wicked men, who were distressing to them; and chiefly because of the glory of the divine perfections, particularly the holiness and justice of God displayed herein; for God is known and glorified by the judgments which he executeth, see Psa 9:16; and the innocent laugh them to scorn; such as are upright and sincere, live holy and harmless lives and conversations, though not entirely free from sin; these deride them for their impieties, and observe to them the justness of the divine judgments upon them. The Jewish writers, many of them (f), restrain these words to Noah and his sons, who saw with their eyes the flood that destroyed the world of the ungodly, and rejoiced at it, and in their turn had them in derision, who had made a mock at Noah's building of the ark, and at his exhortations to them; but though the characters of righteous and innocent agree with Noah, who was just and perfect in his generation, yet not with all his sons; and it is best to understand this of good men in general; though it must be observed and owned, that the destruction of the wicked by the flood is before spoken of, and their character described. The word "saying" is by some supplied at the close of this verse, and so the following words are what the righteous are represented as saying, upon sight of the destruction of the wicked. (f) Aben Ezra, Ben Gersom, Sephorno, et alii.

Yet He has filled their houses with good things. The Lord 'filleth the houses of the wicked with good things,' in that even to the unthankful He refuses not His gifts, that either they may blush at the loving-kindness of their Creator and be brought back to goodness, or altogether despising to return thereto, may from the same cause be there worse punished, that here they rendered an evil return for God's more bounteous good, so that severer woes should there chastise those whose wickedness here not even gifts overcame. It goes on; But let their sentence be far from me. This too was expressed by blessed Job. For he says, Whose counsel be far from me. Though 'sentence' may be taken for one thing and 'counsel' for another; for 'sentence' is in the mouth, 'counsel' in the thoughts. And so whereas Eliphaz wished himself far from the 'sentence' of the wicked, and blessed Job from the 'counsel,' it is plain without denial, that the first desires to be unlike the words of the wicked, but the other unlike their way of thinking even.

To aggravate their fault he then speaks about their ingratitude saying, "though he filled their houses with good things," with temporal things which are given by God to men. To disprove their assertion he says, "let the opinion of these men be far from me."

A good reputation. The rich and the poor. The idle. Good habits formed in infancy. Injustice and its effects. The providence of God. The lewd woman. The necessity of timely correction. Exhortation to wisdom. Rob not the poor. Be not the companion of the frowward. Avoid suretyship. Be honest. The industrious shall be favored.

But the counsel of the wicked is far from me - Sarcastically quoting Job's words, Job 21:14, Job 21:16. Job, having in the preceding chapter described the wicked, who said unto the Almighty, "Depart from us," etc., adds, But the counsel of the wicked is far from me. Eliphaz here, having described the impious, among whom he evidently ranks Job, makes use of the same expression, as if he had said, "Thank God, I have no connection with you nor your companions, nor is my mind contaminated by your creed."

AS BEFORE, ELIPHAZ BEGINS. (Job 22:1-30) Eliphaz shows that man's goodness does not add to, or man's badness take from, the happiness of God; therefore it cannot be that God sends prosperity to some and calamities on others for His own advantage; the cause of the goods and ills sent must lie in the men themselves (Psa 16:2; Luk 17:10; Act 17:25; Ch1 29:14). So Job's calamities must arise from guilt. Eliphaz, instead of meeting the facts, tries to show that it could not be so.

"Yet" you say (see on Job 21:16) that it is "He who filled their houses with good"--"their good is not in their hand," but comes from God. but the counsel . . . is--rather, "may the counsel be," &c. Eliphaz sarcastically quotes in continuation Job's words (Job 21:16). Yet, after uttering this godless sentiment, thou dost hypocritically add, "May the counsel," &c.