Job Chapter 22

What is the meaning of Job 22?

Introduction to Job 22

Job 22 marks a pivotal moment in the ongoing dialogue between Job and his friends, as Eliphaz the Temanite delivers his final speech. This chapter represents a crescendo in the mounting tension between Job and his companions, where Eliphaz abandons any pretense of gentle counsel and launches into direct accusations against Job’s character. The significance of this chapter lies in its stark illustration of how human wisdom, even when seemingly logical and pious, can tragically misinterpret God’s ways and inadvertently wound those who are already suffering.

The power of this chapter resonates through the ages as it addresses fundamental questions about suffering, justice, and the nature of God’s dealings with humanity. It serves as a sobering reminder of how religious certainty, when divorced from divine compassion, can lead to false judgments and spiritual pride.

Context of Job 22

Within the immediate context of the book of Job, this chapter begins the third and final cycle of speeches between Job and his friends. By this point, the philosophical discussions about suffering and righteousness have become increasingly heated and personal. Eliphaz, who had initially approached Job with relative gentleness in chapter 4, now resorts to specific accusations and harsh condemnation, revealing the deterioration of their dialogue and friendship.

In the broader biblical narrative, Job 22 exemplifies the limitations of human wisdom in understanding divine purposes. This chapter connects thematically with passages like Isaiah 55:8-9 where God declares that His ways are higher than human ways. It also foreshadows New Testament teachings about not judging others, as seen in Matthew 7:1-2.

The chapter’s position within the wisdom literature of the Hebrew Bible is particularly significant as it demonstrates the insufficiency of conventional wisdom in explaining God’s dealings with humanity. This theme resonates throughout other wisdom books like Ecclesiastes and certain Psalms, where human attempts to fully comprehend divine justice prove inadequate.

Ancient Key Word Study

• יוֹעִיל (yo’iyl) – “Profit” (v.2): This Hebrew term carries the concept of gaining advantage or benefit. Its usage here is deeply ironic as Eliphaz questions whether human righteousness can profit God, missing the fundamental truth that our relationship with God transcends transactional benefit.
• תָּם (tam) – “Perfect/Blameless” (v.3): A key word in Job’s narrative, appearing throughout the book. It denotes moral completeness and integrity, the same word used by God Himself to describe Job in chapter 1. Eliphaz uses it sarcastically, revealing his skepticism about Job’s character.
• יִרְאָתֶךָ (yir’atecha) – “Your fear [of God]” (v.4): This term encompasses more than mere fear, referring to reverent awe and worship. Eliphaz questions whether God is punishing Job because of his fear of God, a tragically ironic accusation given God’s own testimony about Job.
• חֹשֶׁךְ (choshek) – “Darkness” (v.11): Used metaphorically to represent distress and judgment. In Hebrew thought, darkness often symbolized divine judgment and spiritual blindness, making Eliphaz’s accusation particularly cutting.
• רָשָׁע (rasha) – “Wicked” (v.15): This word denotes not just evil actions but a settled disposition of rebellion against God. Eliphaz uses it to link Job with archetypal evildoers of the past, a severe accusation in Hebrew culture.
• שַׁדַּי (Shaddai) – “Almighty” (v.17, 23, 25): This divine name emphasizes God’s power and sovereignty. Its repeated use by Eliphaz shows his attempt to intimidate Job with reminders of divine power while missing God’s character of mercy.
• פָּז (paz) – “Fine gold” (v.24): Beyond merely referring to precious metal, this term symbolized the highest form of material wealth in ancient near eastern culture. Its use here suggests complete surrender of worldly values for spiritual restoration.
• תִּתְעַנָּג (tit’anag) – “Delight yourself” (v.26): This reflexive verb form suggests active pursuit of pleasure or joy. In this context, it speaks of restored fellowship with God, though Eliphaz misunderstands the path to such restoration.

Compare & Contrast

• Verse 2: “Can a man be profitable unto God?” could have been phrased as “Does God need human righteousness?” The chosen phrasing emphasizes the absurdity of thinking human behavior could benefit God, using commercial language (profitable) to highlight the folly of viewing the divine-human relationship in transactional terms.
• Verse 3: The phrase “Is it any pleasure to the Almighty?” uses שַׁדַּי (Shaddai) rather than אלהים (Elohim) or יהוה (YHWH), specifically emphasizing God’s power rather than His covenant relationship or creative nature. This word choice supports Eliphaz’s attempt to intimidate Job with divine power.
• Verse 5: “Is not thy wickedness great?” employs a rhetorical question rather than a direct accusation. This Hebrew literary device carries stronger emotional force than a simple statement would, making the accusation more cutting.
• Verse 12: “Is not God in the height of heaven?” uses מרום שמים (height of heaven) rather than just שמים (heaven), emphasizing divine transcendence over immanence, supporting Eliphaz’s view of God as distant judge rather than intimate covenant partner.
• Verse 21: “Acquaint now thyself with Him” uses הַסְכֶּן־נָא (hasken-na), a term suggesting familiarization through experience, rather than ידע (yada), knowing through relationship. This choice reveals Eliphaz’s mechanical view of spiritual restoration.
• Verse 23: “If thou return to the Almighty” uses תָּשׁוּב (tashuv), the word for physical returning, rather than נחם (nacham), repentance. This choice emphasizes external reform over internal transformation.

Job 22 Unique Insights

The ancient Jewish commentary Pirkei Avot provides an interesting perspective on Eliphaz’s accusations, suggesting that his error wasn’t in the content of his theology but in its application. His statements about God’s justice were theoretically correct but completely misapplied to Job’s situation. This mirrors the rabbinic concept of “truth spoken at the wrong time becomes falsehood,” highlighting how timing and context are crucial in spiritual counsel.

Early church father Gregory the Great, in his “Moralia in Job,” draws attention to the ironic parallel between Eliphaz’s accusation that Job is sitting in the “circuit of heaven” (v.14) and Job’s ultimate vindication when God actually does speak to him from the whirlwind. This demonstrates how Eliphaz’s sarcastic accusation unwittingly pointed to a deeper truth about Job’s relationship with God.

The repeated use of creation imagery in this chapter (heaven’s height, stars, thick clouds) connects to the ancient Jewish understanding of natural revelation as testified in Psalm 19. However, Eliphaz misuses this revelation, turning it into an instrument of accusation rather than worship. This perversion of natural theology reflects the broader theme of how human wisdom can distort divine truth.

The ancient rabbinic tradition notes that Eliphaz’s description of the wicked being “cut down out of time” (v.16) uses language reminiscent of the Flood narrative, suggesting he was attempting to associate Job with the archetypal sinners of Noah’s day. This connection would have carried particular weight in ancient near eastern culture, where flood narratives were widely known and understood as divine judgment.

Job 22 Connections to Yeshua

The false accusations leveled against Job by Eliphaz profoundly parallel the experience of the Messiah Yeshua, who also faced condemnation from religious leaders who misinterpreted His suffering as divine punishment. Just as Job’s friends mistook his suffering as evidence of sin, many failed to recognize Yeshua as Messiah because they couldn’t reconcile His suffering with their understanding of divine blessing, fulfilling Isaiah 53:3-4.

The chapter’s emphasis on restoration through returning to God (v.23) points forward to the ultimate restoration provided through Yeshua’s sacrificial work. The imagery of laying gold in the dust (v.24) finds its fulfillment in Messiah’s teaching about treasures in heaven (Matthew 6:19-20), showing how true wealth is found in relationship with God rather than material prosperity.

Job 22 Scriptural Echoes

This chapter’s themes resonate throughout Scripture, particularly in passages dealing with suffering and divine justice. The accusations against Job mirror the false conclusions drawn about the man born blind in John 9:1-3, where Yeshua explicitly rejects the automatic connection between suffering and sin.

Eliphaz’s call to “return to the Almighty” (v.23) echoes the prophetic literature, particularly Malachi 3:7 and Zechariah 1:3. However, while the prophets called for genuine repentance from actual sin, Eliphaz demands repentance where no sin exists.

The promise that “you will decree a thing, and it shall be established” (v.28) finds both contradiction and fulfillment in Scripture. It’s contradicted by the warnings against presumption in James 4:13-15, yet fulfilled in the promises about prayer aligned with God’s will in 1 John 5:14-15.

Job 22 Devotional

This chapter challenges us to examine our own tendencies to make quick judgments about others’ spiritual conditions based on their circumstances. How often do we, like Eliphaz, assume we understand God’s purposes in someone else’s suffering? The chapter calls us to greater humility in our spiritual assessments and deeper compassion in our responses to others’ pain.

Eliphaz’s words also warn us about the danger of using theological truth as a weapon. We might be technically correct in our understanding of God’s character and ways, yet completely wrong in how we apply that understanding to specific situations. This should drive us to combine truth with love, ensuring our theological knowledge serves to heal rather than wound.

The promise of restoration and renewed intimacy with God (v.21-30) reminds us that God’s ultimate purpose is always redemptive. Even when we’ve misunderstood or been misunderstood, God invites us into deeper relationship with Him. This invitation isn’t based on our performance or others’ opinions of us, but on His gracious character and faithful love.

Did You Know

• The name Eliphaz means “God is fine gold,” making his speech about laying gold in the dust (v.24) particularly ironic – he fails to recognize that his own name calls him to surrender his wealth of human wisdom before God.
• The reference to “thick clouds” as God’s covering (v.14) reflects ancient near eastern concepts of divine dwelling places, similar to those found in Ugaritic literature, showing how Eliphaz used common cultural concepts to support his arguments.
• The phrase “his words were smoother than butter” used elsewhere to describe deceitful speech (Psalm 55:21) shares linguistic parallels with Eliphaz’s earlier gentler speeches, suggesting a calculated progression in his rhetoric.
• The description of the wicked being “cut down out of time” (v.16) uses a Hebrew word (קָמַט – qamat) that appears only here in the entire Old Testament, emphasizing the extreme nature of Eliphaz’s accusation.
• The command to “acquaint yourself with Him” (v.21) uses a Hebrew verb (סָכַן – sakan) related to the word for “steward” or “treasurer,” suggesting a kind of profitable familiarity that fits Eliphaz’s transactional view of relating to God.
• The geographical references in the chapter suggest that Eliphaz was drawing on traditions from multiple ancient near eastern cultures, showing the sophisticated nature of his argument despite its flawed premises.
• The pattern of accusation in this chapter follows ancient legal proceedings, with Eliphaz acting as both prosecutor and judge, a role that properly belongs only to God.