Job 22:1-11

Job’s sins

1 Then Eliphaz from Teman answered:
2 Can a human being be useful to God? Can an intelligent person bring profit?
3 Does the Almighty delight in your innocence? Does he gain when you perfect your ways?
4 Does he rebuke you for your piety, bring you in for judgment?
5 Isn't your wickedness massive, your iniquity endless?
6 You have taken payments from your family for no reason; stripped the naked, leaving no clothes;
7 denied water to the thirsty, withheld bread from the starving.
8 (The powerful own land; the favored live in it.)
9 You have sent widows away empty; crushed orphans' resources.
10 For this reason, snares surround you; sudden dread brings panic to you
11 or a darkness that you can't see; rushing water will cover you.

Job 22:1-11 Meaning and Commentary

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 22:1-3; and as if he reproved and chastised him, because of his fear of him, whereas it was because of his sins, Job 22:4,5; 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 22:6-14; 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 22:15-20; 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 22:21-30.

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