Commentary - Job 22:15-20

Bird's-eye view

In this section of Job, we are listening in on the third and final speech from Eliphaz the Temanite. As with his previous discourses, Eliphaz is operating on a faulty, yet tragically common, theological syllogism: major premise, God is just and always punishes wickedness; minor premise, Job is suffering terribly; conclusion, Job must be a terrible sinner. This is a tidy system, and it has the benefit of explaining away difficult providences, but it has the major drawback of not being true. God's justice is not a simplistic tit-for-tat vending machine, and the book of Job is the definitive refutation of that idea.

Eliphaz, in this passage, is accusing Job of walking in the "ancient path" of wicked men. He paints a picture of arrogant rebels who, puffed up by their temporary prosperity, tell God to get lost. He then describes their sudden and catastrophic judgment, contrasting their demise with the gladness and mockery of the righteous. The irony, of course, is that Eliphaz is completely misdiagnosing Job. He is holding up a mirror of wickedness and telling Job that this is his reflection. But in his attempt to condemn Job, Eliphaz inadvertently preaches a sermon on the absolute sovereignty of God and the ultimate fate of those who defy Him, a truth that stands firm regardless of the misapplication.

Outline

Context In Job

We are deep into the cycles of debate between Job and his three friends. Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar have come to "comfort" Job, but their comfort has been a series of accusations rooted in what is often called retribution theology. They are convinced that Job's immense suffering must be the direct result of some heinous, secret sin. Job, for his part, has maintained his integrity, not claiming sinlessness, but rightly denying that his suffering is a direct punishment for a particular transgression. He has been wrestling with God's hiddenness and what appears to be divine injustice.

Eliphaz's speech here in chapter 22 is his last word in the debate. He doubles down, moving from insinuations to outright, specific, and entirely fabricated accusations (vv. 5-9). The passage we are examining (vv. 15-20) is part of his "case study" to prove his point. He is essentially saying, "Job, you are acting just like those guys from the old days, and you see what happened to them." He is likely thinking of the generation of the Flood, or perhaps Sodom and Gomorrah, men who were swept away by a sudden, watery judgment. He is using historical precedent as a club to beat Job into a confession.

Key Issues

Commentary

15 Will you keep to the ancient path Which wicked men have trod,

Eliphaz opens with a rhetorical question, and the expected answer is a hearty "No!" He is setting a trap for Job. The "ancient path" here is not the good kind of ancient path, the "ancient landmark" which the fathers have set (Prov. 22:28). This is the old, well-worn road to destruction. It is the path of Cain, of the generation of Noah, of the men of Babel. It is the path of rebellion against God that began in the Garden. Eliphaz is accusing Job of being a traditionalist, but a traditionalist in rebellion. He is saying, "Job, are you really going to align yourself with the long and sordid history of God's enemies?" The assumption is that Job's complaints and his refusal to repent place him squarely on this path. Every generation has to choose its path, and Eliphaz is framing the choice in the starkest possible terms.

16 Who were snatched away before their time, Whose foundations were washed away by a river?

Here Eliphaz describes the end of that ancient path. It does not lead to a peaceful retirement. It leads to being "snatched away before their time." The Hebrew word here has the sense of being seized or arrested. It is a violent, premature end. Their foundations, everything they built their lives on, were washed away by a river. This is almost certainly an allusion to the Flood (Genesis 6-8). The wicked of that generation built their world, their families, their reputations, and it all seemed so solid. But their foundation was sand, and when the flood of God's judgment came, it was all obliterated. Eliphaz's point to Job is clear: "This is what happens to men who defy God. Their security is an illusion, and judgment is swift and total. Look at your own life, Job. Your foundations have been washed away. Connect the dots."

17 They said to God, ‘Depart from us!’ And ‘What can the Almighty do to them?’

Now Eliphaz puts words in the mouths of these wicked men, and by extension, into Job's mouth. This is the creed of the practical atheist. First, they want God to leave them alone. 'Depart from us!' This is the cry of the sinful heart that loves its autonomy. It does not want to be bothered by moral absolutes or divine accountability. It wants to be its own god. Second, they question God's power and relevance. 'What can the Almighty do to them?' This is a taunt. It is a dismissal of God's sovereignty. They look at their own strength, their own wealth, their own accomplishments, and they conclude that they have no need of God. They think Shaddai, the Almighty, is impotent to affect their lives. This is the pinnacle of hubris, to look at the Creator of the cosmos and ask, "What can He do?"

18 Yet He filled their houses with good things, But the counsel of the wicked is far from me.

This verse contains a crucial observation, one that complicates Eliphaz's simplistic theology, though he doesn't seem to notice. He admits that God, in His common grace, "filled their houses with good things." The wicked did prosper, for a time. God gave them sun and rain, families and wealth. This is a reality that Asaph wrestled with in Psalm 73. The wicked prosper, and this can be a stumbling block for the righteous. Eliphaz notes the fact of their prosperity but uses it to highlight the severity of their rebellion. They took God's gifts and used them to fuel their defiance. Then Eliphaz distances himself from them with a pious platitude: "But the counsel of the wicked is far from me." This is a quote from Job himself (Job 21:16), and Eliphaz is throwing it back in his face, as if to say, "You say this, Job, but your actions and your attitude prove otherwise."

19 The righteous see and are glad, And the innocent mock them,

Here is the other side of the coin. When the judgment described in verse 16 falls, what is the reaction of the righteous? They "see and are glad." This is not sadistic glee in the suffering of others. This is gladness in the vindication of God's justice. When God finally acts to overthrow evil, it is a cause for rejoicing for those who love righteousness. The "innocent mock them," not with sinful taunting, but with the righteous laughter of vindication. Think of Psalm 2, where God sits in the heavens and laughs at the plotting of the nations. The saints, in a finite way, share in that laughter when they see God's enemies brought to nothing. It is a confirmation that God is on His throne and that He will not allow evil to have the last word.

20 Saying, ‘Truly those who rise against us are wiped out, And their abundance the fire has consumed.’

Eliphaz concludes this section by giving voice to the mockery of the innocent. "Truly those who rise against us are wiped out." The enemies of the righteous are ultimately the enemies of God, and their doom is certain. They are "wiped out," utterly effaced. "And their abundance the fire has consumed." Whether by flood or by fire (an allusion to Sodom), the judgment is total. All the "good things" that filled their houses (v. 18) become fuel for the fire of God's wrath. Their prosperity, which was the foundation of their arrogance, is turned to ash. This is the end of the ancient path. It is a road that promises freedom and self-fulfillment but delivers only destruction. Eliphaz's application is all wrong, but his theology of judgment, taken on its own terms, is profoundly biblical.

Application

Eliphaz, for all his fumbling as a pastoral counselor, stumbles upon a perennial truth here. There is an ancient path of wickedness, and it is always characterized by the arrogant dismissal of God. Our modern world is walking this path with a confident swagger. We tell God to depart from our schools, our governments, our bedrooms. We ask, "What can the Almighty do to us?" as we build our towers of technological and economic might. And all the while, God is filling our houses with good things, with blessings of prosperity and peace that are historically unprecedented.

We must take care not to be like Eliphaz and misapply this truth. We cannot look at someone's suffering and draw a straight line back to a specific sin. That is the friends' error. But we must also not be like the wicked he describes. We must not take God's common grace for granted. Every good gift is from Him, and it is meant to lead us to repentance, not to arrogance (Rom. 2:4).

For the believer, this passage is a reminder that God's justice will prevail. It may seem that the wicked prosper and that their path is the smart one. But their foundation is on the sand, next to a river that is beginning to rise. Our foundation is the Rock, Christ Jesus. And when the flood of judgment comes, we will be the ones who see it and are glad, not because men are perishing, but because God is being glorified. Our joy is in the vindication of His holy name. Therefore, let us ensure that the counsel of the wicked is truly far from us, and that we are walking in that other ancient path, the path of the just, which is like the shining light, that shines more and more unto the perfect day (Prov. 4:18).