Job 22:1-30

Eliphaz comes back against Job with various accusations against him.  He seems to have a fundamental need to accuse Job and is trying to convince him to admit his wrong doing and repent.  He is right in his belief that repentance is the solution to sin as it leads to confession and a change in direction.  However he is wrong about the blanket statements that he makes about Job and about God in general.

ELIPHAZ CONDEMNS JOB’S BEHAVIOR: Finally Eliphaz gives a long list of the transgressions Job has committed.  This is exactly the kind of confrontation that needs to be made of Job, if it is true.  However, Eliphaz has not seen any of this behavior.  He is simply listing a group of common offense against God of which he presumes Job is guilty.  He forms his statement in such a way that they appear to be facts that he has observed; when in reality they should have been stated as questions designed to cause Job to search his past actions to see if perhaps they might be true.  The same wrong assumptions continue to be made about Job: that he is suffering because of his sin.  When we confront people, we must either confront them on behavior that we have observed personally or simply question them in a manner that will encourage them to search their own heart. 


ELIPHAZ CONDEMNS JOB’S BELIEFS: Eliphaz accuses Job of believing that God is unknowing and that God is unloving.  Eliphaz believes that Job is hiding sin in his heart and failing to admit to his sin because he thinks God is unaware of his sin.  He is trying to convince Job that God does see everything; that He knows everything and finally that He does care about men.  Job is not hiding sin from God, but he has been doubting God’s goodness and care in his life.  Job’s words have demonstrated his doubts about God’s love for him.  However, Job does not consider that God is unaware of his sin.  Job’s problem is that he believes God cannot hear his arguments and complaints.  We must be assured that God knows everything, He loves us perfectly and He hears our every prayer. 

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