Friday, November 24, 2017

Job 22:1 says, Then Eliphaz the Temanite answered and said,  Eliphaz still believed that he was right and Job was wrong.  Sometimes people will hang on to their preconceived ideas about God even if it is pointed out by someone else, or even the working of the world itself, that they are wrong.  Verse two asks, Can a man be profitable unto God, as he that is wise may be profitable unto himself?  There is nothing wrong with the question that Eliphaz asks.  Man can never be profitable to God from his own nature.  People have nothing that God needs, but God will make a person profitable to Himself if they follow His will.  Verse three asks, Is it any pleasure to the Almighty, that thou art righteous? or is it gain to him, that thou makest thy ways perfect?  Our righteousness does not give God anything that He doesn't already have.  If we live a righteous life to the best of our ability, it is not God Who profits, but we ourselves who profit.  We need to always remember that God already owns it all.  In verse four Eliphaz asks, Will he reprove thee for fear of thee? will he enter with thee into judgment?  Again, these are all good questions about the nature of God, but they are being applied wrong.  God does not enter into any relationship out of fear.  We are to serve God in fear, which I believe means acknowledging God's greatness.  I do not believe that we should serve God out of fear of His punishment, but out of love for His forgiveness.  Verse five asks, Is not thy wickedness great? and thine iniquities infinite?  Job's friends had been speaking in more general terms about sin and hypocrisy being punished in this life, but now Eliphaz makes it more personal.  Eliphaz asks Job if he doesn't realize that his wickedness and iniquity were infinite.  Eliphaz was basically saying that Job's sins were immeasurable.  His attack was now very personal.  Even if we are stating the truth about God's nature, we cannot do so simply to condemn someone else.  Verse six states, For thou hast taken a pledge from thy brother for nought, and stripped the naked of their clothing.  Eliphaz was now making up false accusations to accuse Job with.  Eliphaz said that Job was not dealing fairly with those he helped, but was really out to strip them bare for his own benefit.  Hopefully, if someone attempts to judge us as wicked and hypocritical today they will have to base their judgment on lies.  In verse seven, Eliphaz continues to condemn Job by asking, Thou hast not given water to the weary to drink, and thou hast withholden bread from the hungry.  Eliphaz had supposedly come to comfort Job and at first accused Job of being guilty of some secret sin, but now he was accusing Job of deliberately sinning in all his actions.  Eliphaz was again attempting to prove that Job's suffering was a direct result of God's punishment for Jobs sins, so he now began to invent reasons for it.  It is bad enough if we prejudge people without adding lying about them to the list.  Verse eight says, But as for the mighty man, he had the earth; and the honourable man dwelt in it.  Eliphaz accused Job of allowing the rich to get away with crimes while he punished the poor.  We see this seemingly happen a lot in the world today, but hopefully it is not the case with those who are God's people.  Verse nine states, Thou hast sent widows away empty, and the arms of the fatherless have been broken.  Eliphaz was saying that not only did Job not help the poor, but he made it impossible for them to help themselves.  Verse ten states, Therefore snares are round about thee, and sudden fear troubleth thee;  I believe that Eliphaz was saying that God had set up situations where Job could prove he was righteous, and that Job's failure to act in a righteous manner became a snare to him.  God will never tempt us to do evil to prove us unworthy of His love and forgiveness, because we already are.  Only through accepting Christ as Savior and Lord can we find forgiveness and restoration with God, and when we do the Holy Spirit will be with us to keep us from temptation.  Verse eleven says, Or darkness, that thou canst not see; and abundance of waters cover thee.  Eliphaz was still telling Job that his suffering was of his own making due to sin in his life and that Job could not see the light of truth.  Verse twelve says, Is not God in the height of heaven? and behold the height of the stars, how high they are!  Eliphaz was reminding Job of how much higher God and His ways were compared to man's ways.  Though true, Elipaz was applying this truth in the wrong manner.  Verse thirteen says, And thou sayest, How doth God know? can he judge through the dark cloud? Then verse fourteen states, Thick clouds are a covering to him, that he seeth not; and he walketh in the circuit of heaven.  I believe in these two verses Eliphaz was asking Job if he thought his sins were hidden from God.  We can be sure that our sins will never be hidden from God, but we can only account for our own sins.  We should never attempt to judge anyone else's suffering in life to be a result of God's punishment for some sin in their life.

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