John Gill

He has no offspring or posterity among his people, no survivor where he once lived.

“He shall neither have son nor nephew among his people,.... Neither son, nor son's son, or grandson; so the Targum, Jarchi, and Bar Tzemach; that is, he shall be childless, and have no heirs, successors, or survivors, to inherit his estate, bear and perpetuate his…”

I have heard a rebuke that insults me, and my understanding prompts a reply.

“I have heard the check of my reproach,.... He took it that Job had reproached him and his friends, by representing them as hardhearted men, and persecuting him wrongly in a violent manner; and he had observed the "check" or reproof given for it, by…”

It is drawn out of his back, the gleaming point from his liver. Terrors come over him.

“It is drawn, and cometh out of the body,.... That is, the arrow with which a wicked man is stricken through; either it is drawn, and comes out of the quiver, as Broughton; or rather is drawn out of the body of a wicked man…”

Then Job answered:

“But Job answered and said. In reply to what Zophar had asserted, concerning the prosperity of the wicked being only for a short time, Job 20:5; the contrary to which he most clearly proves, and that in many instances their prosperity continues as long as…”

They spend their days in prosperity and go down to Sheol in peace.

“They spend their days in wealth,.... Or "in good" (p); not in the performance of good works, or in the exercise of that which is spiritually good; or in seeking after spiritual good things, or eternal happiness; but in earthly good, in the enjoyment of…”

Then Eliphaz the Temanite replied:

“Then Eliphaz the Temanite answered and said. As Eliphaz was the first that entered the discussion with Job, being perhaps the oldest man, and might be reckoned the wisest, so he gives the lead in every course of disputation; and here, instead of replying to…”

“Can a man be of use to God? Can even a wise man benefit Him?

“Can a man be profitable unto God?.... Eliphaz imagined that Job thought so, by his insisting so much on his integrity, and complaining of his afflictions; and that God was beholden to him for his holiness and righteousness, and that instead of afflicting him, should…”

For you needlessly demanded security from your brothers and deprived the naked of their clothing.

“For thou hast taken a pledge from thy brother for nought,.... It can hardly be thought that it was for nothing at all, on no consideration whatever, or that nothing was lent, for which the pledge was taken; but that it was a small trifling…”

If I go east, He is not there, and if I go west, I cannot find Him.

“Behold, I go forward, but he is not there,.... Job here returns to what he had said before, Job 23:3; as Jarchi observes, where he expresses his earnest desire after God, that he might know where he was, and come up to his seat; here…”

I have not departed from the command of His lips; I have treasured the words of His mouth more than my daily bread.

“Neither have I gone back from the commandment of his lips,.... From any of the commandments his lips had uttered; meaning not the ten commandments given to Israel, which perhaps as yet were not given, or had not come to the knowledge of Job; some…”

The fatherless infant is snatched from the breast; the nursing child of the poor is seized for a debt.

“They pluck the fatherless from the breast,.... Either on purpose to starve it, which must be extremely barbarous; or to sell it to be brought up a slave; or by obliging the mother to wean it before the due time, that she might be the…”

Then Job answered:

“But Job answered,.... In a very sharp and biting manner; one would wonder that a man in such circumstances should have so much keenness of spirit, and deal in so much irony, and be master of so much satire, and be able to laugh at…”

I will cling to my righteousness and never let go. As long as I live, my conscience will not accuse me.

“My righteousness I hold fast, and will not let it go,.... Meaning not his personal righteousness, or the righteousness of his works, as his justifying righteousness before God, and for acceptance with him; which no man that is convinced of the insufficiency of, as Job…”

This is the wicked man’s portion from God—the heritage the ruthless receive from the Almighty.

“This is the portion of a wicked man with God,.... Not to be punished in this life, but after death. This is what Job undertook to teach his friends, and is the purport of what follows in this chapter.”

Though his sons are many, they are destined for the sword; and his offspring will never have enough food.

“If his children be multiplied,.... As it is possible they may; this is one external blessing common to good men and bad men.”

His survivors will be buried by the plague, and their widows will not weep for them.

“Those that remain of him,.... Of the wicked man after his death; or such that remain, and have escaped the sword and famine: shall be buried in death: the pestilence, emphatically called death by the Hebrews, as by us the mortality, see Rev 6:”

Iron is taken from the earth, and copper is smelted from ore.

“Iron is taken out of the earth,.... Very easily, and in great plenty, and is more common, being in most countries, is nearer the surface of the earth, and here said to be taken "out of the dust" (x); which, being melted in a furnace…”

Far from human habitation he cuts a shaft in places forgotten by the foot of man. Far from men he dangles and sways.

“The flood breaketh out from the inhabitant,.... Or, "so that there is no inhabitant" (z); of the mine, as the miner may be said to be, who lives there continually; and, when a flood of water arises, which is an usual thing in mines, he…”

Neither gold nor crystal can compare to it, nor jewels of fine gold be exchanged for it.

“The gold and the crystal cannot equal it,.... Crystal was found in an island of the Red sea, situated before Arabia, called Neron, and in another, which from a gem found in it bears the name of Topazion, and may be thought therefore to be…”

Coral and quartz are unworthy of mention; the price of wisdom is beyond rubies.

“No mention shall be made of coral, or of pearls,.... Coral is a marine plant, is as hard as a stone, and of such value as to be reckoned among precious stones; See Gill on Eze 27:16.”

Topaz from Cush cannot compare to it, nor can it be valued in pure gold.

“The topaz of Ethiopia shall not equal it,.... Not Ethiopia Abyssinia, or that which lies beyond Egypt in Africa; for, as Ludolphus (x) says, there are no gems found there, or very rarely; but Cush, as the word is, or Arabia Chusaea, the same with…”

The princes refrained from speaking and covered their mouths with their hands.

“The princes refrained talking,.... Who were in court before Job came in, and were either talking with one another about indifferent matters, or were giving their opinion in a case before them; but no sooner did Job make his appearance, but they left off talking…”

so that they lived on the slopes of the wadis, among the rocks and in holes in the ground.

“To dwell in the cliffs of the valleys,.... Or "brooks" (l), in such hollow places as were made by floods and streams of waters: in caves of the earth, and in the rocks; where they betook themselves for fear of men, and through shame, being…”

My skin grows black and peels, and my bones burn with fever.

“My skin is black upon me,.... Either through deep melancholy, as may be observed in persons of such a disposition, through grief and trouble; or rather through the force of his disease, the burning ulcers and black scabs with which he was covered, as the…”

If I have denied the desires of the poor or allowed the widow’s eyes to fail,

“If I have withheld the poor from their desire,.... Their reasonable desires, and which it was in his power to grant; as when they desired a piece of bread, being hungry, or clothes to cover them, being naked; but not unreasonable desires, seeking and asking…”