Job 22:1
in Job 22Then Eliphaz the Temanite replied:
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
Then answered Eliphaz the Temanite, and said,
KJV
Then Eliphaz the Temanite answered and said,
⋯
This verse in Job 22
Commentary
6 notes on this verseThen 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 Job's arguments and instances, at which he was very angry, betakes himself to calumny and reproach, and to draw invidious consequences, instead of making use of solid reasons for conviction and confutation.
This site's exposition
Eliphaz the Temanite replied
on Job 22:1-3
Eliphaz opens with a premise that removes any divine self-interest: "Can a man be of use to God". So God needs nothing from Job, which clears the way for Eliphaz's conclusion that the suffering traces to Job's guilt. Chapters 1 and 2 have shown another cause of the suffering.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers2 voices
"Then Eliphaz the Temanite answered and said, 'Is it not the Lord who teaches understanding and knowledge?' " After being defeated, Eliphaz eventually agrees with this. Then, since what had been said allowed everyone to come to the conclusion that Job was not impious and that the conduct of a person could not be judged on the basis of his punishments, notice the perfidy at which he almost arrives to suppress the role of Providence.
The things that are administered by the Holy Spirit are worthy of description. Therefore, they are described, so that the reader may take advantage of the things being read.
The Medieval Church1 voice
When blessed Job had finished speaking, Eliphaz did not understand his words according to the intention with which they were spoken. Indeed, when Job had spoken first about the exalted character of the matter, he said "Is my debate against man," (21:4) Eliphaz takes this …
The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice
Much less when it is so far short of being perfect. It is no pleasure to him. God has indeed expressed himself in his word well pleased with the righteous; his countenance beholds them and his delight is in them and their prayers; but all that adds nothing to the infinite satisfaction and complacency which the Eternal Mind has in itself.
The words behind it
4 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וַ֭יַּעַן | vaiyaan | and he answered | H6030 → | 331 times |
| אֱלִיפַ֥ז | ʾelifaz | Eliphaz | H464 → | 15 times |
| הַֽתֵּמָנִ֗י | hatemani | the Temanite | H8489 → | 8 times |
| וַיֹּאמַֽר׃ | vaiyomar | and he said | H559 → | 5305 times |
וַ֭יַּעַןand he answered
vaiyaanH6030 →331 times
אֱלִיפַ֥זEliphaz
ʾelifazH464 →15 times
הַֽתֵּמָנִ֗יthe Temanite
hatemaniH8489 →8 times
וַיֹּאמַֽר׃and he said
vaiyomarH559 →5305 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
About Job
This page draws on Albert Barnes, Notes on the Book of Job; John Chrysostom, COMMENTARY ON JOB 22:2; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament; Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible; Origen of Alexandria, FRAGMENTS ON JOB 16.4 and Thomas Aquinas, Commentary on Job.