King James Version
Job 15
35 verses with commentary
Eliphaz's Second Speech: The Wicked Suffer All Their Days
Then answered Eliphaz the Temanite, and said,
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Then answered Eliphaz the Temanite, and said</strong>—This marks the beginning of Eliphaz's second speech (chapters 15-21 contain the second cycle of dialogues). The Hebrew <em>vaya'an</em> (וַיַּעַן) implies a formal response, showing this is structured debate, not casual conversation. Eliphaz from Teman (a region in Edom famed for wisdom, Jeremiah 49:7) now abandons his earlier gentlenes...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**9. I will pay ten thousand talents of silver ... into the king's treasuries--**This sum, reckoning by the Babylonish talent, will be about £2,119,000; but estimated according to the Jewish talent, it will considerably exceed £3,000,000, an immense contribution to be made out of a private fortune. But classic history makes mention of several persons whose resources seem almost incredible.
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 15
Chapter Outline
Eliphaz reproves Job.(1-16)
The unquietness of wicked men.(17-35)
**Verses 1-16**
Eliphaz begins a second attack upon Job, instead of being softened by his complaints. He unjustly charges Job with casting off the fear of God, and all regard to him, and restraining prayer. See in what religion is summed up, fearing God, and praying to him; the former the...
Read full commentary →Should a wise man utter vain knowledge, and fill his belly with the east wind? vain: Heb. knowledge of wind
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KJV Study Commentary
Eliphaz's rebuke intensifies: 'Should a wise man utter vain knowledge, and fill his belly with the east wind?' The 'east wind' metaphor suggests destructive, worthless speech. Eliphaz's rhetoric becomes more aggressive as Job refuses to accept simplistic explanations.
Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(2) **Should a wise man utter vain knowledge . . .**—Job therefore is not wise, and his words have been vain and windy.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**10. the king took his ring from his hand, and gave it unto Haman--**There was a seal or signet in the ring. The bestowment of the ring, with the king's name and that of his kingdom engraven on it, was given with much ceremony, and it was equivalent to putting the sign manual to a royal edict.
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 15
Chapter Outline
Eliphaz reproves Job.(1-16)
The unquietness of wicked men.(17-35)
**Verses 1-16**
Eliphaz begins a second attack upon Job, instead of being softened by his complaints. He unjustly charges Job with casting off the fear of God, and all regard to him, and restraining prayer. See in what religion is summed up, fearing God, and praying to him; the former the...
Read full commentary →Should he reason with unprofitable talk? or with speeches wherewith he can do no good?
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Should he reason with unprofitable talk? or with speeches wherewith he can do no good?</strong>—Eliphaz's rhetorical questions attack Job's words as functionally worthless. The Hebrew <em>lo'-yiska</em> (לֹא־יִסְכֹּן, 'unprofitable') and <em>lo' yo'il</em> (לֹא־יוֹעִיל, 'can do no good') emphasize pragmatic uselessness. This reveals Eliphaz's fundamental criterion: theology must be 'profit...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(3) **Should he reason with unprofitable talk?**—Nay, his arguments, though pretentious and apparently recondite, are unprofitable, and can do no good.
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 15
Chapter Outline
Eliphaz reproves Job.(1-16)
The unquietness of wicked men.(17-35)
**Verses 1-16**
Eliphaz begins a second attack upon Job, instead of being softened by his complaints. He unjustly charges Job with casting off the fear of God, and all regard to him, and restraining prayer. See in what religion is summed up, fearing God, and praying to him; the former the...
Read full commentary →Yea, thou castest off fear, and restrainest prayer before God. castest: Heb. makest void prayer: or, speech
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KJV Study Commentary
Eliphaz accuses: 'Yea, thou castest off fear, and restrainest prayer before God.' The verb parar (פָּרַר, castest off) means to break, frustrate, or annul. Yir'ah (יִרְאָה, fear) denotes reverent awe of God. Gara (גָּרַע, restrainest) means to diminish or detract from. Siach (שִׂיחַ, prayer) refers to meditation or communion with God. Eliphaz accuses Job of undermining piety by questioning God. Th...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(4) **Yea, thou castest off fear.**—The tendency also of Job has been to encourage a kind of fatalism (*e.g., *Job 12:16-25), and therefore to check the offering of prayer to God, besides setting an example which, if followed, as from Job’s position it was likely to be, would lead to murmuring and blasphemy.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**12-15. Then were the king's scribes called ... and there was written--**The government secretaries were employed in making out the proclamation authorizing a universal massacre of the Jews on one day. It was translated into the dialects of all the people throughout the vast empire, and swift messengers were sent to carry it into all the provinces. On the day appointed, all Jews were to be put to...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 15
Chapter Outline
Eliphaz reproves Job.(1-16)
The unquietness of wicked men.(17-35)
**Verses 1-16**
Eliphaz begins a second attack upon Job, instead of being softened by his complaints. He unjustly charges Job with casting off the fear of God, and all regard to him, and restraining prayer. See in what religion is summed up, fearing God, and praying to him; the former the...
Read full commentary →For thy mouth uttereth thine iniquity, and thou choosest the tongue of the crafty. uttereth: Heb. teacheth
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>For thy mouth uttereth thine iniquity, and thou choosest the tongue of the crafty</strong>—Eliphaz escalates from criticizing Job's words to diagnosing their source: <em>'avonecha</em> (עֲוֹנְךָ, 'your iniquity'). He claims Job's mouth betrays hidden sin, and that Job deliberately chooses <em>leshon arumim</em> (לְשׁוֹן עֲרוּמִים, 'tongue of the crafty/shrewd'). The word <em>arum</em> desc...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(5) **Thy mouth uttereth thine iniquity.**—These words may mean either “Thy mouth teacheth thine iniquity,” or “Thine iniquity teacheth thy mouth,” and the second clause must be taken adversatively or otherwise according as we understand the meaning, “Thy mouth proclaimeth thine iniquity, though thou choosest the tongue of the crafty, and so contrivest in some degree to conceal it;” or, “Thine ini...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**12-15. Then were the king's scribes called ... and there was written--**The government secretaries were employed in making out the proclamation authorizing a universal massacre of the Jews on one day. It was translated into the dialects of all the people throughout the vast empire, and swift messengers were sent to carry it into all the provinces. On the day appointed, all Jews were to be put to...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 15
Chapter Outline
Eliphaz reproves Job.(1-16)
The unquietness of wicked men.(17-35)
**Verses 1-16**
Eliphaz begins a second attack upon Job, instead of being softened by his complaints. He unjustly charges Job with casting off the fear of God, and all regard to him, and restraining prayer. See in what religion is summed up, fearing God, and praying to him; the former the...
Read full commentary →Thine own mouth condemneth thee, and not I: yea, thine own lips testify against thee.
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Thine own mouth condemneth thee, and not I: yea, thine own lips testify against thee</strong>—Eliphaz claims neutrality: 'I'm not condemning you—you're condemning yourself.' The Hebrew legal terminology <em>yarshi'echa</em> (יַרְשִׁיעֲךָ, 'condemns you') and <em>ya'anu</em> (יַעֲנוּ, 'testify') creates a courtroom scene where Job is both defendant and prosecution witness. Eliphaz positions...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**12-15. Then were the king's scribes called ... and there was written--**The government secretaries were employed in making out the proclamation authorizing a universal massacre of the Jews on one day. It was translated into the dialects of all the people throughout the vast empire, and swift messengers were sent to carry it into all the provinces. On the day appointed, all Jews were to be put to...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 15
Chapter Outline
Eliphaz reproves Job.(1-16)
The unquietness of wicked men.(17-35)
**Verses 1-16**
Eliphaz begins a second attack upon Job, instead of being softened by his complaints. He unjustly charges Job with casting off the fear of God, and all regard to him, and restraining prayer. See in what religion is summed up, fearing God, and praying to him; the former the...
Read full commentary →Art thou the first man that was born? or wast thou made before the hills?
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KJV Study Commentary
Eliphaz sarcastically asks: 'Art thou the first man that was born? or wast thou made before the hills?' The Hebrew הָרִאשׁוֹן אָדָם (harishon adam—the first man) echoes Genesis 2-3. 'Before the hills' (לִפְנֵי־גְבָעוֹת, lifney-geva'ot) suggests primordial existence. Eliphaz mocks Job's presumption to question traditional wisdom. Yet the irony: Job doesn't claim special knowledge; he claims normal ...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(7) **Art thou the first man that was born?**—This is a retort upon Job 12:2; Job 12:7; Job 12:9, where Job had claimed equal knowledge for the inanimate creation.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**12-15. Then were the king's scribes called ... and there was written--**The government secretaries were employed in making out the proclamation authorizing a universal massacre of the Jews on one day. It was translated into the dialects of all the people throughout the vast empire, and swift messengers were sent to carry it into all the provinces. On the day appointed, all Jews were to be put to...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 15
Chapter Outline
Eliphaz reproves Job.(1-16)
The unquietness of wicked men.(17-35)
**Verses 1-16**
Eliphaz begins a second attack upon Job, instead of being softened by his complaints. He unjustly charges Job with casting off the fear of God, and all regard to him, and restraining prayer. See in what religion is summed up, fearing God, and praying to him; the former the...
Read full commentary →Hast thou heard the secret of God? and dost thou restrain wisdom to thyself?
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KJV Study Commentary
Eliphaz challenges Job: 'Hast thou heard the secret of God? and dost thou restrain wisdom to thyself?' This accuses Job of claiming exclusive divine knowledge. The irony is that Job seeks answers while the friends claim certainty - yet God will later vindicate Job's humility.
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 15
Chapter Outline
Eliphaz reproves Job.(1-16)
The unquietness of wicked men.(17-35)
**Verses 1-16**
Eliphaz begins a second attack upon Job, instead of being softened by his complaints. He unjustly charges Job with casting off the fear of God, and all regard to him, and restraining prayer. See in what religion is summed up, fearing God, and praying to him; the former the...
Read full commentary →What knowest thou, that we know not? what understandest thou, which is not in us?
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>What knowest thou, that we know not? what understandest thou, which is not in us?</strong>—Eliphaz's rhetorical questions assert epistemological equality: Job knows nothing the friends don't know. The parallel structure—<em>yada'ta</em> (יָדַעְתָּ, 'you know') and <em>tavin</em> (תָּבִין, 'you understand')—emphasizes comprehensive knowledge. This dismisses Job's lived experience of undeser...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
CHAPTER 4 Es 4:1-14. Mordecai and the Jews Mourn.
**1-2. When Mordecai perceived all that was done--**Relying on the irrevocable nature of a Persian monarch's decree (Da 6:15), Hamman made it known as soon as the royal sanction had been obtained; and Mordecai was, doubtless, among the first to hear of it. On his own account, as well as on that of his countrymen, this astounding decree must have b...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 15
Chapter Outline
Eliphaz reproves Job.(1-16)
The unquietness of wicked men.(17-35)
**Verses 1-16**
Eliphaz begins a second attack upon Job, instead of being softened by his complaints. He unjustly charges Job with casting off the fear of God, and all regard to him, and restraining prayer. See in what religion is summed up, fearing God, and praying to him; the former the...
Read full commentary →With us are both the grayheaded and very aged men, much elder than thy father.
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KJV Study Commentary
Eliphaz appeals to age and experience: 'With us are both the grayheaded and very aged men, much elder than thy father.' He claims superior wisdom based on generational authority—elders wiser than even Job's father support his theology. This argument from tradition assumes age guarantees truth. Reformed theology respects tradition but recognizes it must be tested by Scripture. Eliphaz's error warns...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
CHAPTER 4 Es 4:1-14. Mordecai and the Jews Mourn.
**1-2. When Mordecai perceived all that was done--**Relying on the irrevocable nature of a Persian monarch's decree (Da 6:15), Hamman made it known as soon as the royal sanction had been obtained; and Mordecai was, doubtless, among the first to hear of it. On his own account, as well as on that of his countrymen, this astounding decree must have b...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 15
Chapter Outline
Eliphaz reproves Job.(1-16)
The unquietness of wicked men.(17-35)
**Verses 1-16**
Eliphaz begins a second attack upon Job, instead of being softened by his complaints. He unjustly charges Job with casting off the fear of God, and all regard to him, and restraining prayer. See in what religion is summed up, fearing God, and praying to him; the former the...
Read full commentary →Are the consolations of God small with thee? is there any secret thing with thee?
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KJV Study Commentary
'Are the consolations of God small with thee? is there any secret thing with thee?' Eliphaz asks if God's 'consolations' (תַּנְחֻמוֹת, tanchumot) are 'small' (מִמְּךָ מְעָט, mimkha me'at—too little) for Job. He implies the friends' words convey divine comfort Job arrogantly rejects. The second question suggests Job harbors 'secret' (לָאט, la'at) sins. This is gaslighting—reframing Job's legitimate...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(11) **Are the consolations of God small with thee?**—This is one of the obscure phrases of Job upon which it is very difficult to decide. The Authorised Version gives very good sense, which seems to suit the context in the following verse; but it is susceptible of other phases of meaning: *e.g*., “or a word that dealeth gently with thee (2Samuel 4:5), such as ours have been (?)”; or “the word tha...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 15
Chapter Outline
Eliphaz reproves Job.(1-16)
The unquietness of wicked men.(17-35)
**Verses 1-16**
Eliphaz begins a second attack upon Job, instead of being softened by his complaints. He unjustly charges Job with casting off the fear of God, and all regard to him, and restraining prayer. See in what religion is summed up, fearing God, and praying to him; the former the...
Read full commentary →Why doth thine heart carry thee away? and what do thy eyes wink at,
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KJV Study Commentary
Eliphaz accuses Job's emotions of betraying him: 'Why doth thine heart carry thee away? and what do thy eyes wink at?' The 'heart carrying away' suggests uncontrolled passion clouding judgment. The 'winking eyes' may indicate scorn or arrogance. Eliphaz pathologizes Job's emotional expressions, assuming passionate speech proves guilt. This reflects common error—mistaking strong emotion for spiritu...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(12) **What do thy eyes wink at?**—Or, Why do they wink? as though it was only thou who perceivedst it.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**4. Then was the queen ... grieved; and ... sent raiment to ... Mordecai--**Her object in doing so was either to qualify him for resuming his former office, or else, perhaps, of fitting him to come near enough to the palace to inform her of the cause of such sudden and extreme distress.
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 15
Chapter Outline
Eliphaz reproves Job.(1-16)
The unquietness of wicked men.(17-35)
**Verses 1-16**
Eliphaz begins a second attack upon Job, instead of being softened by his complaints. He unjustly charges Job with casting off the fear of God, and all regard to him, and restraining prayer. See in what religion is summed up, fearing God, and praying to him; the former the...
Read full commentary →That thou turnest thy spirit against God, and lettest such words go out of thy mouth?
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KJV Study Commentary
Eliphaz accuses Job of speaking against God: 'That thou turnest thy spirit against God, and lettest such words go out of thy mouth?' He interprets Job's questions and complaints as opposition to God. The accusation of 'turning spirit against' God suggests apostasy or rebellion. Eliphaz can't conceive that honest questions arise from deep faith seeking understanding. This error—conflating doubt wit...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**5. Then called Esther for Hatach, one of the king's chamberlains, whom he had appointed to attend upon her--**Communication with the women in the harem is very difficult to be obtained, and only through the medium of the keepers. The chief eunuch receives the message from the lips of the queen, conveys it to some inferior office of the seraglio. When the commission is executed, the subaltern com...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 15
Chapter Outline
Eliphaz reproves Job.(1-16)
The unquietness of wicked men.(17-35)
**Verses 1-16**
Eliphaz begins a second attack upon Job, instead of being softened by his complaints. He unjustly charges Job with casting off the fear of God, and all regard to him, and restraining prayer. See in what religion is summed up, fearing God, and praying to him; the former the...
Read full commentary →What is man, that he should be clean? and he which is born of a woman, that he should be righteous?
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KJV Study Commentary
Eliphaz asks: 'What is man, that he should be clean? and he which is born of a woman, that he should be righteous?' The question echoes Eliphaz's earlier speech (4:17) and anticipates Bildad (25:4). Tahor (טָהוֹר, clean) means pure or undefiled. Tsadaq (צָדַק, righteous) means just or vindicated. Eliphaz correctly identifies universal sinfulness but wrongly applies it—affirming general human depra...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(14) **What **is **man**?—This is the ceaseless burden.·(See Job 4:17; Job 9:2; Job 25:4, &c.)
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 15
Chapter Outline
Eliphaz reproves Job.(1-16)
The unquietness of wicked men.(17-35)
**Verses 1-16**
Eliphaz begins a second attack upon Job, instead of being softened by his complaints. He unjustly charges Job with casting off the fear of God, and all regard to him, and restraining prayer. See in what religion is summed up, fearing God, and praying to him; the former the...
Read full commentary →Behold, he putteth no trust in his saints; yea, the heavens are not clean in his sight.
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KJV Study Commentary
Eliphaz proclaims God's holiness: 'Behold, he putteth no trust in his saints; yea, the heavens are not clean in his sight.' This acknowledges absolute divine transcendence but misapplies it to conclude Job must be guilty. True theology wrongly applied becomes false comfort.
Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(15) **Behold.**—Comp. Job 4:18; Job 5:5.
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 15
Chapter Outline
Eliphaz reproves Job.(1-16)
The unquietness of wicked men.(17-35)
**Verses 1-16**
Eliphaz begins a second attack upon Job, instead of being softened by his complaints. He unjustly charges Job with casting off the fear of God, and all regard to him, and restraining prayer. See in what religion is summed up, fearing God, and praying to him; the former the...
Read full commentary →How much more abominable and filthy is man, which drinketh iniquity like water?
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KJV Study Commentary
Eliphaz concludes his rhetorical question: 'How much more abominable and filthy is man, which drinketh iniquity like water?' The escalation from 'not clean' (v.15) to 'abominable and filthy' intensifies the accusation. The vivid image of drinking iniquity like water suggests sin is so natural to humans that we consume it as readily as water. While Pauline theology affirms human depravity, Eliphaz ...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(16) **How much more abominable and filthy is man . . .**—This strong language, thus couched in general terms, is doubtless intended to reflect on Job, otherwise it would not need to have been so strong.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**8. charge her that she should go in unto the king--**This language is exceedingly strong. As it can scarcely be supposed that Mordecai was still using authority over Esther as his adopted daughter, he must be considered as imploring rather than commanding her, in the name of her brethren and in the name of her God, to make a direct appeal to the feelings of her royal husband.
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 15
Chapter Outline
Eliphaz reproves Job.(1-16)
The unquietness of wicked men.(17-35)
**Verses 1-16**
Eliphaz begins a second attack upon Job, instead of being softened by his complaints. He unjustly charges Job with casting off the fear of God, and all regard to him, and restraining prayer. See in what religion is summed up, fearing God, and praying to him; the former the...
Read full commentary →I will shew thee, hear me; and that which I have seen I will declare;
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>I will shew thee, hear me; and that which I have seen I will declare</strong>—Eliphaz shifts to prophetic authority language: <em>achavvecha</em> (אֲחַוֶּךָּ, 'I will show you') and <em>asapperah</em> (אֲסַפְּרָה, 'I will declare'). The phrase <em>chaziti</em> (חָזִיתִי, 'I have seen') often introduces prophetic vision (Isaiah 6:1, Daniel 8:2). Eliphaz claims experiential authority ('that ...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 17-35**
Eliphaz maintains that the wicked are certainly miserable: whence he would infer, that the miserable are certainly wicked, and therefore Job was so. But because many of God's people have prospered in this world, it does not therefore follow that those who are crossed and made poor, as Job, are not God's people. Eliphaz shows also that wicked people, particularly oppressors, ar...
Read full commentary →Which wise men have told from their fathers, and have not hid it:
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Which wise men have told from their fathers, and have not hid it</strong>—Eliphaz grounds his authority in generational transmission: <em>chachamim</em> (חֲכָמִים, 'wise men') received from <em>avotam</em> (אֲבוֹתָם, 'their fathers') and faithfully transmitted it (<em>lo' kichadu</em>, 'have not hidden it'). This appeals to unbroken tradition—what Christians call apostolic succession or <e...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(18) **Which wise men have told from their fathers.**—Here he adopts the language of Bildad (Job 8:8), appealing both to his own experience and that of universal tradition in an age prior to civil commotion and foreign disturbance.
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 17-35**
Eliphaz maintains that the wicked are certainly miserable: whence he would infer, that the miserable are certainly wicked, and therefore Job was so. But because many of God's people have prospered in this world, it does not therefore follow that those who are crossed and made poor, as Job, are not God's people. Eliphaz shows also that wicked people, particularly oppressors, ar...
Read full commentary →Unto whom alone the earth was given, and no stranger passed among them.
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Unto whom alone the earth was given, and no stranger passed among them</strong>—Eliphaz claims the wise men's tradition comes from a pure, uncontaminated source: <em>zar</em> (זָר, 'stranger/foreigner') never passed among them. This appeals to ethnic and theological purity—their wisdom wasn't corrupted by outside influence. The phrase <em>nittenah ha'aretz</em> (נִתְּנָה הָאָרֶץ, 'the eart...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**11. whosoever, whether man or woman, shall come unto the king into the inner court, who is not called--**The Persian kings surrounded themselves with an almost impassable circle of forms. The law alluded to was first enacted by Deioces, king of Media, and afterwards, when the empires were united, adopted by the Persians, that all business should be transacted and petitions transmitted to the kin...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 17-35**
Eliphaz maintains that the wicked are certainly miserable: whence he would infer, that the miserable are certainly wicked, and therefore Job was so. But because many of God's people have prospered in this world, it does not therefore follow that those who are crossed and made poor, as Job, are not God's people. Eliphaz shows also that wicked people, particularly oppressors, ar...
Read full commentary →The wicked man travaileth with pain all his days, and the number of years is hidden to the oppressor.
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KJV Study Commentary
'The wicked man travaileth with pain all his days, and the number of years is hidden to the oppressor.' Eliphaz describes the wicked's inner torment: 'travaileth with pain' (מִתְחוֹלֵל, mitcholel—writhes, anguishes) 'all his days' (כָּל־יְמֵי רָשָׁע, kol-yemey rasha). Years are 'hidden' (נִצְפְּנוּ, nitsf'nu—concealed, stored up) for 'the oppressor' (לֶעָרִיץ, le'arits—tyrant, ruthless one). The t...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(20) **Travaileth with pain.**—This and the following verses contain the result of this experience. Here, again, we have a highly-coloured and poetical description of the oppressor, true to the character of the speaker in Job 4:12, &c. We should read Job 15:20 : *The wicked man travaileth with pain all his days, even the number of years that are laid up for the oppressor. *It is not an independent...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 17-35**
Eliphaz maintains that the wicked are certainly miserable: whence he would infer, that the miserable are certainly wicked, and therefore Job was so. But because many of God's people have prospered in this world, it does not therefore follow that those who are crossed and made poor, as Job, are not God's people. Eliphaz shows also that wicked people, particularly oppressors, ar...
Read full commentary →A dreadful sound is in his ears: in prosperity the destroyer shall come upon him. A dreadful: Heb. A sound of fears
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KJV Study Commentary
The wicked live in fear: 'A dreadful sound is in his ears: in prosperity the destroyer shall come upon him.' Inner terror haunts the wicked even during external prosperity. The 'dreadful sound' suggests constant dread of judgment. This describes guilty conscience—sin brings psychological torment. While true for the wicked, Eliphaz wrongly assumes Job's distress proves guilt. Anxiety can arise from...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**13-14. Then Mordecai commanded to answer Esther--**His answer was to this effect, that Esther need not indulge the vain hope she would, from her royal connection, escape the general doom of her race--that he (Mordecai) confidently believed God would interpose, and, if not through her, by some other deliverer, save His people; but that the duty evidently devolved on her, as there was great reason...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 17-35**
Eliphaz maintains that the wicked are certainly miserable: whence he would infer, that the miserable are certainly wicked, and therefore Job was so. But because many of God's people have prospered in this world, it does not therefore follow that those who are crossed and made poor, as Job, are not God's people. Eliphaz shows also that wicked people, particularly oppressors, ar...
Read full commentary →He believeth not that he shall return out of darkness, and he is waited for of the sword.
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KJV Study Commentary
The wicked expect doom: 'He believeth not that he shall return out of darkness, and he is waited for of the sword.' Lack of hope characterizes the wicked—they don't expect to escape their dark circumstances. The sword 'waiting for' them suggests inevitable judgment. Eliphaz implies Job's despair indicates wickedness. But righteous sufferers in Scripture often express hopelessness (Psalms, Lamentat...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**13-14. Then Mordecai commanded to answer Esther--**His answer was to this effect, that Esther need not indulge the vain hope she would, from her royal connection, escape the general doom of her race--that he (Mordecai) confidently believed God would interpose, and, if not through her, by some other deliverer, save His people; but that the duty evidently devolved on her, as there was great reason...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 17-35**
Eliphaz maintains that the wicked are certainly miserable: whence he would infer, that the miserable are certainly wicked, and therefore Job was so. But because many of God's people have prospered in this world, it does not therefore follow that those who are crossed and made poor, as Job, are not God's people. Eliphaz shows also that wicked people, particularly oppressors, ar...
Read full commentary →He wandereth abroad for bread, saying, Where is it? he knoweth that the day of darkness is ready at his hand.
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KJV Study Commentary
The wicked wander seeking bread: 'He wandereth abroad for bread, saying, Where is it? he knoweth that the day of darkness is ready at his hand.' Eliphaz describes restless anxiety and deprivation. The wicked suffer hunger and know judgment approaches. This describes real consequences of sin and divine judgment. However, Eliphaz's application to Job fails—Job's suffering doesn't fit this descriptio...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(23) **He wandereth abroad for bread.**—This is one of the points in which the picture seems inconsistent, because overdrawn, except that forage as well as plunder may be the object of marauding raids.
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 17-35**
Eliphaz maintains that the wicked are certainly miserable: whence he would infer, that the miserable are certainly wicked, and therefore Job was so. But because many of God's people have prospered in this world, it does not therefore follow that those who are crossed and made poor, as Job, are not God's people. Eliphaz shows also that wicked people, particularly oppressors, ar...
Read full commentary →Trouble and anguish shall make him afraid; they shall prevail against him, as a king ready to the battle.
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KJV Study Commentary
Fear overwhelms the wicked: 'Trouble and anguish shall make him afraid; they shall prevail against him, as a king ready to the battle.' The imagery of overwhelming military force captures the wicked's experience—trouble and anguish attack like conquering armies. This theologically describes consequences of sin. Yet Eliphaz's error is assuming all who experience such overwhelming suffering must be ...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(24) **As a king ready to the battle.**—Or, They prevail against him like a king: he is destined to be like a ball (comp. Isaiah 22:18), the tennis-ball of calamity.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**16. so will I go in unto the king, which is not according to the law--**The appeal of Mordecai was irresistible. Having appointed a solemn fast of three days, she expressed her firm resolution to make an appeal to the king, though she should perish in the attempt.
**I ... and my maidens--**It is probable that she had surrounded herself with Jewish maidens, or women who were proselytes to that ...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 17-35**
Eliphaz maintains that the wicked are certainly miserable: whence he would infer, that the miserable are certainly wicked, and therefore Job was so. But because many of God's people have prospered in this world, it does not therefore follow that those who are crossed and made poor, as Job, are not God's people. Eliphaz shows also that wicked people, particularly oppressors, ar...
Read full commentary →For he stretcheth out his hand against God, and strengtheneth himself against the Almighty.
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KJV Study Commentary
The wicked oppose God: 'For he stretcheth out his hand against God, and strengtheneth himself against the Almighty.' This describes active rebellion—the wicked don't just fail morally but defiantly oppose God. The imagery of stretching out the hand suggests aggressive attack. Strengthening oneself against God indicates prideful self-reliance. Eliphaz implies Job's questioning constitutes such rebe...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(25) **For he stretcheth out his hand.**—It is instructive to note the difference in time indicated here. “Because he *hath stretched *out his hand against God. and *behaveth *himself proudly against the Almighty. He runneth upon Him with haughty neck, with the thick bosses of his bucklers; “fully protected as he supposes against the vengeance of the Most High. (Comp. Psalm 10:6; Psalm 10:11, &c.)...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 17-35**
Eliphaz maintains that the wicked are certainly miserable: whence he would infer, that the miserable are certainly wicked, and therefore Job was so. But because many of God's people have prospered in this world, it does not therefore follow that those who are crossed and made poor, as Job, are not God's people. Eliphaz shows also that wicked people, particularly oppressors, ar...
Read full commentary →He runneth upon him, even on his neck, upon the thick bosses of his bucklers:
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KJV Study Commentary
The wicked are arrogantly stubborn: 'He runneth upon him, even on his neck, upon the thick bosses of his bucklers.' This violent imagery depicts the wicked charging at God like a warrior with shield prominently displayed—defiant, aggressive, presumptuous. The 'thick bosses' (shield reinforcements) suggest confidence in one's own defenses. Eliphaz portrays the wicked as foolishly attacking omnipote...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 17-35**
Eliphaz maintains that the wicked are certainly miserable: whence he would infer, that the miserable are certainly wicked, and therefore Job was so. But because many of God's people have prospered in this world, it does not therefore follow that those who are crossed and made poor, as Job, are not God's people. Eliphaz shows also that wicked people, particularly oppressors, ar...
Read full commentary →Because he covereth his face with his fatness, and maketh collops of fat on his flanks.
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KJV Study Commentary
The wicked indulge in prosperity: 'Because he covereth his face with his fatness, and maketh collops of fat on his flanks.' This describes self-indulgent wealth—the wicked grow fat through greed and excess. 'Collops' (folds) of fat suggest repulsive over-indulgence. In ancient context where most lived subsistence-level, such obesity indicated both wealth and moral failure (lack of self-control, ig...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
CHAPTER 5 Es 5:1-14. Esther Invites the King and Haman to a Banquet.
**1. Esther put on her royal apparel--**It was not only natural, but, on such occasions, highly proper and expedient, that the queen should decorate herself in a style becoming her exalted station. On ordinary occasions she might reasonably set off her charms to as much advantage as possible; but, on the present occasion, as she...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 17-35**
Eliphaz maintains that the wicked are certainly miserable: whence he would infer, that the miserable are certainly wicked, and therefore Job was so. But because many of God's people have prospered in this world, it does not therefore follow that those who are crossed and made poor, as Job, are not God's people. Eliphaz shows also that wicked people, particularly oppressors, ar...
Read full commentary →And he dwelleth in desolate cities, and in houses which no man inhabiteth, which are ready to become heaps.
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KJV Study Commentary
The wicked dwell in desolation: 'And he dwelleth in desolate cities, and in houses which no man inhabiteth, which are ready to become heaps.' Eliphaz predicts the wicked will inhabit ruins—living in places under divine judgment or curse. Ancient cities lay desolate due to conquest or curse (Jeremiah's prophecies about Babylon, Edom). Living there suggested participation in their judgment. This doe...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(28) **Which are ready to become heaps.**—This completes the description of the haughty tyrant. He dwelt in cities that are to be desolate, or that are desolate, which are ready to become heaps. This may point either to what they were in his intention, or to what he had made them, or to what, in the opinion of the speaker, they were likely to become, notwithstanding his having fortified and dwelt ...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**2. the king held out to Esther the golden sceptre that was in his hand--**This golden scepter receives an interesting illustration from the sculptured monuments of Persia and Assyria. In the bas-reliefs of Persepolis, copied by Sir Robert Ker Porter, we see King Darius enthroned in the midst of his court, and walking abroad in equal state; in either case he carries in his right hand a slender ro...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 17-35**
Eliphaz maintains that the wicked are certainly miserable: whence he would infer, that the miserable are certainly wicked, and therefore Job was so. But because many of God's people have prospered in this world, it does not therefore follow that those who are crossed and made poor, as Job, are not God's people. Eliphaz shows also that wicked people, particularly oppressors, ar...
Read full commentary →He shall not be rich, neither shall his substance continue, neither shall he prolong the perfection thereof upon the earth.
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KJV Study Commentary
The wicked's wealth won't last: 'He shall not be rich, neither shall his substance continue, neither shall he prolong the perfection thereof upon the earth.' Eliphaz promises wealth gained wickedly cannot endure. The threefold negative—not rich, not continue, not prolong—emphasizes complete loss. While Proverbs affirms that ill-gotten gain doesn't profit (Proverbs 10:2), Eliphaz wrongly assumes al...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(29) **He shall not be rich.**—Now comes the destiny which awaits him in the judgment of the speaker. “Neither shall he prolong the perfection thereof upon the earth.” The word rendered “perfection thereof” occurs nowhere else, so that it is very doubtful what it means. Some render, “Neither shall their produce (that of the wicked) bend (luxuriantly) to the earth;” or, “their possessions or their ...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**3. it shall be even given thee to the half of the kingdom--**This mode of speaking originated in the Persian custom of appropriating for the maintenance of great men, or royal favorites, one city for his bread, another for his wine, a third for his clothes, &c., so that the phrase denoted great liberality.
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 17-35**
Eliphaz maintains that the wicked are certainly miserable: whence he would infer, that the miserable are certainly wicked, and therefore Job was so. But because many of God's people have prospered in this world, it does not therefore follow that those who are crossed and made poor, as Job, are not God's people. Eliphaz shows also that wicked people, particularly oppressors, ar...
Read full commentary →He shall not depart out of darkness; the flame shall dry up his branches, and by the breath of his mouth shall he go away.
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KJV Study Commentary
The wicked's branch won't flourish: 'He shall not depart out of darkness; the flame shall dry up his branches, and by the breath of his mouth shall he go away.' Agricultural imagery depicts judgment—the wicked remain in darkness, their branches wither, and God's breath removes them. This powerful imagery of plant withering under heat anticipates Jesus' teaching about branches that don't abide (Joh...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(30) **He shall not depart out of darkness.**—See Job 15:22. “By the breath of his mouth shall he go away.” What this means is not very clear: probably as in Job 11:20; or, “When he expires it shall be the end of him; he shall leave nothing permanent that is destined to last;” or, “He shall pass away suddenly and completely, like his own breath.”
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**4. let the king and Haman come this day unto the banquet that I have prepared for him--**There was great address in this procedure of Esther's; for, by showing such high respect to the king's favorite, she would the better insinuate herself into the royal affections; and gain a more suitable opportunity of making known her request.
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 17-35**
Eliphaz maintains that the wicked are certainly miserable: whence he would infer, that the miserable are certainly wicked, and therefore Job was so. But because many of God's people have prospered in this world, it does not therefore follow that those who are crossed and made poor, as Job, are not God's people. Eliphaz shows also that wicked people, particularly oppressors, ar...
Read full commentary →Let not him that is deceived trust in vanity: for vanity shall be his recompence.
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KJV Study Commentary
'Let not him that is deceived trust in vanity: for vanity shall be his recompence.' Eliphaz warns: don't let the 'deceived' (נִתְעָה, nit'ah) trust in 'vanity' (שָׁוְא, shav—emptiness, worthlessness), for vanity will be his 'recompence' (תְּמוּרָתוֹ, temurato—exchange, wages). The principle is sound: trusting worthless things yields worthless results (Isaiah 30:7, Jeremiah 2:5). The application to...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(31) **Let not him that is deceived trust in vanity.**—Or, *Let him not trust in vanity deceiving himself. *(Comp. James 1:26; 1Samuel 12:21.)
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 17-35**
Eliphaz maintains that the wicked are certainly miserable: whence he would infer, that the miserable are certainly wicked, and therefore Job was so. But because many of God's people have prospered in this world, it does not therefore follow that those who are crossed and made poor, as Job, are not God's people. Eliphaz shows also that wicked people, particularly oppressors, ar...
Read full commentary →It shall be accomplished before his time, and his branch shall not be green. accomplished: or, cut off
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KJV Study Commentary
Judgment arrives suddenly: 'He shall not see his branch, neither shall his offspring spring up as grass.' The wicked won't see descendants flourish—cutting off posterity represented ultimate curse in ancient Israel. Loss of lineage meant loss of future, inheritance, and memory. Eliphaz implies Job's loss of children proves divine judgment. This cruel logic ignores that the righteous also sometimes...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(32) **It shall be accomplished.**—That is, paid in full before its time.
The remainder of this chapter calls for little explanation. In it the speaker only repeats the orthodox and familiar saw that the wicked are punished in life, and therefore, by implication, the good rewarded: a maxim which fails utterly in the face of afflictions like those of Job, unless, as his friends insinuated, he was o...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 17-35**
Eliphaz maintains that the wicked are certainly miserable: whence he would infer, that the miserable are certainly wicked, and therefore Job was so. But because many of God's people have prospered in this world, it does not therefore follow that those who are crossed and made poor, as Job, are not God's people. Eliphaz shows also that wicked people, particularly oppressors, ar...
Read full commentary →He shall shake off his unripe grape as the vine, and shall cast off his flower as the olive.
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KJV Study Commentary
The wicked's labor is futile: 'For the congregation of hypocrites shall be desolate, and fire shall consume the tabernacles of bribery.' Eliphaz promises judgment on hypocrites and the corrupt. Their assemblies will be destroyed, their dwellings consumed. While Scripture affirms God judges hypocrisy and corruption, Eliphaz wrongly assumes Job fits these categories. The accusation of hypocrisy is p...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 17-35**
Eliphaz maintains that the wicked are certainly miserable: whence he would infer, that the miserable are certainly wicked, and therefore Job was so. But because many of God's people have prospered in this world, it does not therefore follow that those who are crossed and made poor, as Job, are not God's people. Eliphaz shows also that wicked people, particularly oppressors, ar...
Read full commentary →For the congregation of hypocrites shall be desolate, and fire shall consume the tabernacles of bribery.
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KJV Study Commentary
The wicked's hope perishes: 'Whose hope shall be cut off, and whose trust shall be a spider's web.' The spider's web imagery is brilliant—it appears substantial but can't bear weight. The wicked's confidence seems secure but proves fragile when tested. This truth about false securities becomes cruel accusation when wrongly applied to Job, whose trust remains in God despite everything. His trust is...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(34) **Desolate.**—This was Job’s own word (Job 3:7), and as it is an uncommon word, there may be some intentional reference to his use of it.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers
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Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**8. let the king and Haman come to the banquet that I shall prepare--**The king ate alone, and his guests in an adjoining hall; but they were admitted to sit with him at wine. Haman being the only invited guest with the king and queen, it was natural that he should have been elated with the honor.
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 17-35**
Eliphaz maintains that the wicked are certainly miserable: whence he would infer, that the miserable are certainly wicked, and therefore Job was so. But because many of God's people have prospered in this world, it does not therefore follow that those who are crossed and made poor, as Job, are not God's people. Eliphaz shows also that wicked people, particularly oppressors, ar...
Read full commentary →They conceive mischief, and bring forth vanity, and their belly prepareth deceit. vanity: or, iniquity
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KJV Study Commentary
The wicked cling to worthless things: 'He shall lean upon his house, but it shall not stand: he shall hold it fast, but it shall not endure.' Continuing the fragility metaphor, the wicked lean on structures that collapse. The repetition—'not stand,' 'not endure'—emphasizes complete failure. While this describes false securities, Eliphaz misapplies it to Job. Job's 'house' (family, wealth) collapse...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 17-35**
Eliphaz maintains that the wicked are certainly miserable: whence he would infer, that the miserable are certainly wicked, and therefore Job was so. But because many of God's people have prospered in this world, it does not therefore follow that those who are crossed and made poor, as Job, are not God's people. Eliphaz shows also that wicked people, particularly oppressors, ar...
Read full commentary →