March 22, 2024

Is it possible to lovingly admonish a friend?

Job 15

Pam Rittenberry
Friday's Devo

March 22, 2024

Friday's Devo

March 22, 2024

Friday's Devo

March 22, 2024

Friday's Devo

March 22, 2024

Big Book Idea

God is at work even when we can't see it.

Key Verse | Job 15:31

Let him not trust in emptiness, deceiving himself,
for emptiness will be his payment.

Job 15

Eliphaz Accuses: Job Does Not Fear God

1 Then Eliphaz the Temanite answered and said:

2  “Should a wise man answer with windy knowledge,
    and fill his belly with the east wind?
3  Should he argue in unprofitable talk,
    or in words with which he can do no good?
4  But you are doing away with the fear of God 1 15:4 Hebrew lacks of God
    and hindering meditation before God.
5  For your iniquity teaches your mouth,
    and you choose the tongue of the crafty.
6  Your own mouth condemns you, and not I;
    your own lips testify against you.

7  Are you the first man who was born?
    Or were you brought forth before the hills?
8  Have you listened in the council of God?
    And do you limit wisdom to yourself?
9  What do you know that we do not know?
    What do you understand that is not clear to us?
10  Both the gray-haired and the aged are among us,
    older than your father.
11  Are the comforts of God too small for you,
    or the word that deals gently with you?
12  Why does your heart carry you away,
    and why do your eyes flash,
13  that you turn your spirit against God
    and bring such words out of your mouth?
14  What is man, that he can be pure?
    Or he who is born of a woman, that he can be righteous?
15  Behold, God 2 15:15 Hebrew he puts no trust in his holy ones,
    and the heavens are not pure in his sight;
16  how much less one who is abominable and corrupt,
    a man who drinks injustice like water!

17  I will show you; hear me,
    and what I have seen I will declare
18  (what wise men have told,
    without hiding it from their fathers,
19  to whom alone the land was given,
    and no stranger passed among them).
20  The wicked man writhes in pain all his days,
    through all the years that are laid up for the ruthless.
21  Dreadful sounds are in his ears;
    in prosperity the destroyer will come upon him.
22  He does not believe that he will return out of darkness,
    and he is marked for the sword.
23  He wanders abroad for bread, saying, ‘Where is it?’
    He knows that a day of darkness is ready at his hand;
24  distress and anguish terrify him;
    they prevail against him, like a king ready for battle.
25  Because he has stretched out his hand against God
    and defies the Almighty,
26  running stubbornly against him
    with a thickly bossed shield;
27  because he has covered his face with his fat
    and gathered fat upon his waist
28  and has lived in desolate cities,
    in houses that none should inhabit,
    which were ready to become heaps of ruins;
29  he will not be rich, and his wealth will not endure,
    nor will his possessions spread over the earth; 3 15:29 Or nor will his produce bend down to the earth
30  he will not depart from darkness;
    the flame will dry up his shoots,
    and by the breath of his mouth he will depart.
31  Let him not trust in emptiness, deceiving himself,
    for emptiness will be his payment.
32  It will be paid in full before his time,
    and his branch will not be green.
33  He will shake off his unripe grape like the vine,
    and cast off his blossom like the olive tree.
34  For the company of the godless is barren,
    and fire consumes the tents of bribery.
35  They conceive trouble and give birth to evil,
    and their womb prepares deceit.”

Footnotes

[1] 15:4 Hebrew lacks of God
[2] 15:15 Hebrew he
[3] 15:29 Or nor will his produce bend down to the earth
Table of Contents
Introduction to Job

Introduction to Job

Timeline

Author and Date

The unknown Israelite author of this book presents Job as a person living in Uz (see note on 1:1). Job’s godliness (1:1) matches the ideals of Israelite wisdom literature. He clearly knows Yahweh (1:21). The events of the book seem to be set in the times of the patriarchs (Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob).

Theological Themes

The book of Job concerns itself with the question of faith in a sovereign God. Can God be trusted? Is he good and just in his rule of the world? The book shows that the reasons for human suffering often remain a secret to human beings.

In the book of Job, God seems both too close and too far away. On the one hand, Job complains that God is watching him every moment so that he cannot even swallow his spit (7:19). On the other hand, Job finds God elusive (9:11). Though God is greatly concerned about humans, he does not always answer their most agonizing questions.

At the same time, Job’s friends offer no real help. They come to “comfort” him (2:11), but Job ends up declaring them “miserable comforters” who would console him “with empty nothings” (21:34). These friends represent an oversimplified view of faith. They think that all human troubles are divine punishments for wrongdoing. Their “comfort” consists largely of urging Job to identify his sin and repent of it. These friends are negative examples of how to comfort those who are suffering.

The book illustrates that one does not need to fully understand God’s will in order to be faithful while suffering. Those who suffer need not be afraid to express to God their confusion and questions.

Purpose

The book of Job was written to those who struggle with the question of how God can be good when the world is filled with suffering.

The author does not provide a formal defense of God’s justice. Rather, as Job’s friends offer their inadequate answers, the author shows how their reasoning fails. Then, in chs. 38–41, the Lord speaks in his own defense, bringing Job to fuller understanding (ch. 42).

Even during his suffering and confusion, before God finally speaks, Job can triumphantly declare, “I know that my Redeemer lives” (19:25).

Outline

  1. Prologue: Job’s Character and the Circumstances of His Test (1:1–2:13)
  2. Dialogue: Job, His Suffering, and His Standing before God (3:1–42:6)
    1. Job: despair for the day of his birth (3:1–26)
    2. The friends and Job: can Job be right before God? (4:1–25:6)
      1. First cycle (4:1–14:22)
      2. Second cycle (15:1–21:34)
      3. Third cycle (22:1–25:6)
    3. Job: the power of God, place of wisdom, and path of integrity (26:1–31:40)
    4. Elihu: suffering as a discipline (32:1–37:24)
    5. Challenge: the Lord answers Job (38:1–42:6)
  3. Epilogue: The Vindication, Intercession, and Restoration of Job (42:7–17)
The Global Message of Job

The Global Message of Job

Universal Questions

With its story of one man’s life and suffering, the book of Job raises universal questions. Why do people suffer, especially godly people? Where is God in suffering? Can God be trusted amid suffering? Job’s friends try to answer such questions with superficial and simplistic solutions, eventually earning God’s rebuke (Job 42:7–9).

Ultimately we learn from Job that we can hope steadfastly in our sovereign God. Instead of providing easy answers to hard questions, this incomparably glorious, all-knowing, and almighty God presents to people in all places and in all times the simplest, most powerful, and most universal answer to these questions. God’s answer to human suffering has everything to do with his own infinite goodness and care for his creation.

Suffering in a Fallen World

In the life of Job we see the breadth and depth of human suffering. We see suffering in health (Job 2:7), suffering in the loss of property (1:14–17), and suffering in the tragic death of family members (1:18–19). In Job we also listen in on a discussion in the heavenly courtroom between God and Satan (1:6–12; 2:1–7), in which God delights in the upright life of Job. There we are given a window into the normally invisible reasons for our trials and suffering.

Sin and suffering. Suffering is universal, though the kind of suffering differs from circumstance to circumstance. Sometimes we suffer because of our own sin. There is no such thing as sin without consequences. Sometimes God himself directly chastises his people for their sins. However, Job’s friends are wrong to assume that his suffering is a direct result of disobedience (Job 8:4), and it would likewise be wrong to conclude that all or even most suffering in the world today is divine punishment for specific sins. The speeches of Eliphaz (chs. 4; 5; 15; 22), Bildad (chs. 8; 18; 25), and Zophar (chs. 11; 20) reflect such wrong assumptions.

Common suffering. Another type of suffering is what we might call “common suffering.” This is suffering that affects all people without distinction. It is simply the result of living in a fallen world. It includes health problems from colds to cancer. It includes bad weather, earthquakes, and typhoons. It includes financial struggles, and even death itself. Each tragic incident in Job’s life includes an element of this common suffering.

Godliness and suffering. Not only are godly people afflicted with suffering just as others are, but the godly experience some kinds of suffering due specifically to their godliness (Matt. 10:24–33; Acts 14:22; 2 Tim. 3:12). Faithfulness to Christ will bring insult and at times persecution—suffering that could be avoided if we were not disciples of Christ. We see this principle in Job, for it was precisely Job’s uprightness that prompted God to single him out to Satan and then led Satan to seek to afflict him (Job 1:8–12).

Devastating suffering. Job’s suffering is uniquely profound and painful. Some suffering, we learn, defies any category. We discover in Job that Satan has a hand in some of the suffering of God’s people (Job 1:6–12; 2:1–7; compare 2 Cor. 12:1–10). But even such demonically instigated suffering is not outside of God’s sovereignty. Nor should our focus be on Satan when we suffer but rather on persisting in steadfast faith amid such God-ordained pain. At the very least a lesson to be learned from Job is that our vision and insight into suffering is severely limited. What is not limited, however, is God’s perfect understanding and sovereign control over every event in our lives. In the “Yahweh speeches” of Job (chs. 38–41), God does not engage Job in the details of his questions and complaints. Rather, God reminds Job that God is God and Job is not. God laid the foundation of the earth (38:4); he is God over the seas (38:8, 16), over the stars (38:31–33), and over every creature (39:1–30; 40:15–41:34).

A Global Message of Comfort and Hope

The almighty, all-good God. Despite its focus on challenges and sufferings, the book of Job speaks a message of great hope to the world. We live in a world longing for comfort and hope, and such hope is found in the sovereign God who sees, who is good, and who is faithful. We are not victims of random fate or uncontrolled circumstances. We are loved faithfully and passionately by a sovereign God who works all things for our good (Rom. 8:28). The suffering global church can take comfort amid suffering, knowing that God is pleased with our faithfulness to him, even as God expressed delight in “my servant Job” (Job 1:6–8; 2:3). James 5:11 reminds us that God will fulfill his good purposes and is indeed compassionate and merciful toward his people.

No neat formulas. Living an upright life of faith in God does not exempt us from suffering. This was the fundamental misunderstanding of Job’s friends (Job 8:6) and the reason that their “comfort” was so “miserable” (16:2). Indeed, in Job and in all of Scripture we see that suffering is a part of the experience of godly people, and that suffering is also a means for our sanctification. Suffering is a blessing as through it we learn that God’s ways and purposes are much greater than we can know (chs. 40–41). His purposes and faithfulness are much greater than the achievement of ease and a comfortable life; the global church must not make an idol out of worldly comfort and earthly abundance.

The sufferings of the Savior. Job confessed faith in the living Redeemer (Job 19:25). That Redeemer would one day come and suffer for us on a cross. Here we have yet another kind of suffering, the atoning sufferings of Christ. He suffered for our salvation, bearing the penalty for our sin. It is also our great privilege to share in his suffering (2 Cor. 1:5; 2 Tim. 1:8; 2:3; 1 Pet. 4:13). These are not the sufferings of health problems or bad weather or the consequences of our own folly. These are sufferings that flow from our union with and loyalty to Christ. There is a global attack on the righteous, but God will continue to provide sufficient grace to his people (2 Cor. 12:9).He will grow both his people and his kingdom through such suffering as it is endured in faith.

Our Intercession and Mission of Hope

Though God’s righteous anger burned against the three friends of Job, their folly was forgiven in response to the righteous intervention of Job’s prayers (Job 42:7–9). What then is the Christian response to those who suffer—and to those who cause suffering?

We are to intercede for the world, both in prayer and in life. We are to “comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God” (2 Cor. 1:4). This comfort must find expression in our ministry and service to those in need both where we live as well as around the world—to orphans, widows, and all those who suffer.

This comfort is most gloriously and eternally known as the church ministers the gospel of new hope in Christ to the world—to the lost, to the downtrodden, and even to our enemies (Matt. 5:44). For the greatest suffering in this world is not the loss of property or even family; it is to be lost in sin, without the living Redeemer.

Proverbs Fact #1: Wisdom

Fact: Wisdom

Wisdom is a key term in Job, Proverbs, and Ecclesiastes. The word can mean “skilled at making sound decisions in life.” Proverbs 9:10 states that “the fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom.”

Job Fact #1: Comfort

Fact: Comfort

Comfort is a key word in the book of Job. When faced with personal tragedies, Job receives no comfort from his friends (16:2). But when God answers him (see chs. 38–41), he finds the comfort he needs.

Job Fact #7: Three cycles of conversations

Fact: Three cycles of conversations

The book of Job includes three cycles of conversations in which the friends of Job offer their comfort and advice, and then listen as Job responds. The first cycle covers chs. 4–14.

Job Fact #15: Elihu

Fact: Elihu

Elihu is the only character in the book of Job with a Hebrew name.

Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar

Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar

After the Lord allowed Satan to afflict Job, three of his friends, Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar, came to comfort him. However, all three wrongly assumed that Job’s suffering was the result of some hidden sin. Each man urged Job to repent so that God would have mercy on him. But Job insisted that he was innocent. Although it is true that some suffering is a result of sin, Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar oversimplified this truth. They believed that all troubles are punishments for wrongdoing, which was not the case for Job. The wrong actions of Job’s three friends should remind believers today to be wise and sensitive when dealing with people in distress. The Lord rebuked Job’s three friends and instructed Job to pray for them. (Job 42:7–9)

Study Notes

Job 15:2 Eliphaz says Job is full of wind rather than wisdom.

Study Notes

Job 15:4 you are doing away with the fear of God. The Hebrew lacks the words “of God” (see ESV footnote). However, the reference to God in the second half of the verse and the overall emphasis of vv. 2–6 show that this is precisely what Eliphaz is saying. He thinks Job has become careless in his complaint to God and is thus “doing away with” the very thing that will bring him relief, namely, repentance and humility before God.

Study Notes

Job 15:8 Have you listened in the council of God? The question ought to appear ironic to the reader, who has overheard the conversations between the Lord and Satan in the prologue (1:7–12; 2:2–6). Eliphaz is guilty of the very sort of presumption for which he criticizes Job. He has concluded wrongly that Job’s suffering is an obvious indicator of God’s judgment.

Study Notes

Job 15:14–16 Eliphaz revisits the central questions of his first response (see 4:17–21): if God does not trust fully even his heavenly servants, how can Job, a mere man, continue to claim innocence?

Study Notes

Job 15:27 The double occurrence of fat in this verse should call to mind other uses of the word to describe a proud disregard of God (see Ps. 73:7; 119:70; contrast Job 16:8 and note).

Study Notes

Job 15:1–35 As in the first round of dialogues, Eliphaz speaks first.

Job 15:20–35 Eliphaz describes the wicked man. He hopes that Job will see himself in the descriptions and will repent.

Job 15:31–35 Assuming that his perspective is correct, Eliphaz mercilessly chooses words that focus on the loss of Job’s children as an indication of God’s judgment. Given what the reader knows about Job, this section ought to instill humility in any person who seeks to rebuke another. Job has endured not only his children’s deaths but also the condemning “comfort” of his friends.

S3:060 Job 15

Listen Now

Dive Deeper | Job 15

Let's start with a question. Is it possible to lovingly admonish a friend? The short answer is, yes. But it probably doesn't end up looking like we thought it would. The challenge of Job 15 is expressed as a reminder in Constable's commentary that the book of Job raises the question of how God's "attributes can be reconciled with His actions, especially when those actions appear to run counter to all He claims to be?" (Constable's Notes on Job, p. 5, quoting Eugene H. Merrill, The Old Testament Explorer, p. 376.) Even as we know the purpose of the entire book of Job is to teach, we also realize that the truth about suffering is not why or when it occurs but our response to it.

I recognize myself in the speeches of Job's friends, and it is a rebuke to remember how often there are no reasonable answers to suffering. Focusing on Paul's encouragement to find our way through suffering can seem nearly impossible, "[W]hatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, . . . if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things." (Philippians 4:8, NASB 1995).

As Job's suffering wore on, his friends, in a second cycle, repeat the same points they had already made in previous chapters. It is almost like trying to raise your voice to be heard because you think it's being heard that is at issue, not what is or is not being said. Job's friends saw his suffering as God's retribution for sin in Job's life. Job continued longing to draw closer to the God he knew. Job determined in his heart to glorify God. Job's response in chapter 16 is to speak to his companions as "pain-inflicting comforters" (Constable's Notes on Job, p. 69.).

As I walk through this portion of Job's journey, I am reminded of the admonition in Galatians 6:1b, to "restore him in a spirit of gentleness." May we all remember it is the Spirit's work to convict, ours is to point to Christ and His work in the human heart to redeem and comfort when someone is in need. In this way, we can lovingly admonish a friend.

This month's memory verse

but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

– Romans 5:8

Discussion Questions

1. The counsel of God-honoring friends can be invaluable. What was a time when your choices and the end results were different after godly counsel? 

2. Often, when "life happens," it may not be just for us but for the benefit of others around us. Have you experienced this awareness for yourself or someone else? How does this challenge a set idea about suffering?

3. Waiting to understand while we are in the middle of suffering can be almost unbearable. How do you respond in the "silences"?

As we gear up to release even more features for Join The Journey in 2025, our staff team, unfortunately, no longer has the margin to continue to support the comment functionality. We have big things in store for Join The Journey 2025. Stay tuned!

MS

Michael Scaman

Eliphaz doubles down Eliphaz's response in Job 15 largely echoes the sentiments he expressed in his previous speech in Job 4-5. However, there are some nuances and additional emphases in his second speech: Job more directly of wrongdoing and rebellion against God. Job's suffering is a result of his own sins. Job is not as wise or knowledgeable as he claims to be (Job 15:2, 8-9). Job's words and actions are evidence of his guilt and rebellion against God. While Eliphaz's second speech in Job 15 largely reiterates the themes and accusations from his first speech, it does so with added intensity and directness, reflecting his growing frustration and impatience with Job's refusal to admit wrongdoing or accept traditional theological explanations for suffering. Eliphas doubled down but is much shorter a response than Job. Job will pick up steam and his "friends" will wind down.
MS

Michael Scaman

If there was a full page advert in the New York TImes for Eliphaz speech it migt look like this Unraveling Eliphaz's Discourse: A Hard Hitting Analysis of Job 15: Critics proclaim why you should read the riviting rebuttal to Job by Eliphaz! Unveiling the Depths of Moral Turmoil: In his timeless manner, Dostoevsky would laud Eliphaz's response as a poignant exploration of human culpability and divine judgment. With piercing insight, Eliphaz's words echo through the ages, inviting readers to confront the complexities of sin, suffering, and the elusive quest for spiritual truth. Echoes of Spiritual Crisis: Eliot, the master of poetic reflection, would find resonance in Eliphaz's impassioned defense. Through Eliot's lens, Eliphaz's response becomes a haunting meditation on the fragility of human understanding and the eternal struggle to reconcile faith with the enigma of suffering. A captivating testament to the perennial questions that haunt the human soul. A Divine Drama Unfolds: Milton, the bard of epic proportions, would hail Eliphaz's speech as a riveting portrayal of humanity's quest to justify the ways of God. With echoes of "Paradise Lost," Eliphaz's words resonate with the grandeur of Miltonic verse, inviting readers into a cosmic drama of sin, redemption, and the eternal battle between good and evil. An enthralling testament to the enduring power of theological inquiry.
GJ

greg jones

Good morning Pam. Great bio I really enjoyed reading your deeper dive and appreciate the perspective that you brought to it. “Job continued longing to draw closer to the God he knew.” Did he? Or is his perspective of the God he has known changing? I’m not sure. Have you not put a hedge around him and his house and all that he has, on every side? You have blessed the work of his hands, and his possessions have increased in the land. Job 1:10 Job’s question to God is why did that change? “I recognize myself in the speeches of Job's friends.” Me too. For Job’s friends the idea that God could operate outside of their perspective of who he is is hard to swallow. What has happened to Job is an affront to a belief of God that they hold. all the nations will say, (Job would ask) ‘Why has the Lord done thus to this land? What caused the heat of this great anger?’ Then people will say, (his friends would answer) ‘It is because they abandoned the covenant of the Lord, the God of their fathers, which he made with them when he brought them out of the land of Egypt, and went and served other gods and worshiped them, gods whom they had not known and whom he had not allotted to them. Therefore the anger of the Lord was kindled against this land, bringing upon it all the curses written in this book, and the Lord uprooted them from their land in anger and fury and great wrath, and cast them into another land, as they are this day.’ Deuteronomy 29:24-28 In a nutshell the type of conversation Job and his friends are having when you insert them into the verses. Comfort, comfort my people, (Job) says your God. Speak tenderly to Jerusalem, (Job) and cry to her (Job)
that her (Job’s) warfare is ended, that her Job’s) iniquity is pardoned, that she (Job) has received from the Lord's hand double for all her (his) sins. In a nutshell how the conversation between Job and his friends isn’t going when you insert a name into the verses. Over time the theology of Judah developed evolved from what is heard in Deuteronomy to include what is being heard in the later parts of Isaiah starting in chapter 40. Considering the theologies of others, or a change in perspective within a theology for that matter, has always been a challenge for me. As a matter of fact it usually takes an experience over an argument to get me to do so. I see the struggles Job’s friends are having and my struggles as being similar.
SB

Sue Bohlin

Thanks, Pam, for contrasting Job's friends' speeches with the New Testament direction to restore in a spirit of gentleness. My heart hurts for Job being so misunderstood and judged--that, in fact, his friends turned up the volume on their wrong assessment of Job's suffering. I receive instruction from this continued hurtfulness to BACK OFF when my admonition to a friend is not received well. I may be wrong in how I see their situation. I need to choose the path of gentleness and remember that I don't want to be like Job's friends.
MS

Michael Scaman

Looks like Job is shelved here and moving to other books. But if you step back at the whole book there is a picture being painted about Jesus beyond what any of the mere people or angels know. Regarding Job as a picture of Jesus: Job is called God's servant at the start of the book Job is called God's servant at the end of the book. In the depest darkest time of Job's suffering, God's suffering servant makes intercession for others and then God raises him up. Regarding councilling: For Job's friends, ust listening would have been better. Regarding human suffering: Job's worse suffering was in a wind event with the loss of all his chidren God spoke to Job in a wind event. Regarding Elihu: Job wants to speak with God but God doesn't just show up on demand and Elihu is like a buffer Elihu brings up a positive purpose of suffering in Job 36:15 "He delivers the afflicted by their affliction and opens their ear by adversity." Regating Satan: God was always superintending things for his glory. It was God not Satan who brought Job up first.
AL

Amy Lowther

1. There are seven days in a week. My seven days were filled and seemed like one day. Each day was jam packed with activities. After godly counsel, I “changed playgrounds” in a few areas of my life (thus changed activities of the time into better, more needed activities) and my days became seven days again. 2. “Life happens“ is true, but I don’t have any stories in this area at this time. When “life happens” to me, I have to accept it “as is” and move forward being as positive as I can. I usually learn something from life happening and things get better. 3. I pray to God and work to see life like God. It helps me overcome impatience. Pam - Thank you for sharing your ideas. You make a good point in saying, “it is the Spirit's work to convict, ours is to point to Christ and His work in the human heart to redeem and comfort when someone is in need”. When we believe, others will believe.