No one is just before God
1 Eliphaz the Temanite spoke next:
2 Shall we speak? Do you mind?
For who could remain silent?
3 Remember how you have taught many others,
how you have strengthened their feeble hands.
4 Your words have supported those who wavered,
have steadied the knees that faltered.
5 But when your turn has come, you are discouraged;
as soon as you are struck, you are dismayed.
6 Should you not rely on your piety,
and find assurance in your integrity?
7 Have you seen a guiltless man perish,
or an upright man done away with?
8 As I see it, those who plow evil
or those who sow trouble reap the same.
9 By the breath of God they are swept away;
by the blast of his wrath they are destroyed.
10 The lion may roar and growl; it will fall,
the teeth of its cubs will be broken.
11 The lion will die for lack of prey,
and the whelps of its mate will stray.
12 I had a secret revelation;
a whisper of it reached my ear.
13 Amid thoughts from night visions,
when people are heavily wrapped in slumber,
14 I was seized with fear and trembling
that shook me to my very bones.
15 A spirit passed over my face,
and the hair of my body stood on end.
16 It stopped and stood before my eyes,
but I could not make out what it was.
Silence… and then – a voice was heard:
17 “Can a mortal be just in the eyes of God?
Can a man be pure before his Maker?
18 If God can put no trust in his servants,
if he can charge his angels with error,
19 how much more those who live in houses of clay,
whose foundation is in the dust,
who are crushed as easily as moths!
20 Between dawn and dusk they perish,
and unheeded, vanish forever,
21 Their tent has been unpegged
and they died without knowing why.
- Genesis 15,12
- 1 Kings 19,13
Eliphaz is a believer. Faced with Job's grief, he repeats what was commonly said in those days:
- God is just in this life: he rewards the just with health and prosperity.
- If you are sick and abandoned, it is because you have sinned.
Eliphaz is not wrong in recalling that the wicked are afflicted with misfortune and that God's providence favors his friends. The Bible does state that, as anyone can easily verify. The prophets did not hesitate to repeat to Israel that its difficulties were the consequence of its sins. Deuteronomy also declares this (Dt 30:15-20) and the Book of Judges claims to prove it through historical events (Jdg 2:11-19).
Eliphaz claims he is speaking because of a revelation from God such as many prophets had in their dreams. He is surely pointing out the truth: can a mortal be just in the eyes of God? Can anyone be pure before God? People complain that life is meaningless, but maybe sin prevents them from seeing its meaning.
Have you seen a guiltless man perish? (v. 7). People of faith understand that God "brings the powerful down and he exalts the humble," but daily experience often seems to show the opposite. According to the Gospel, wealth can be a negative sign. Eliphaz speaks with such assurance because he has not suffered in his own flesh, nor does he pay enough attention to those who suffer.
