Eliphaz

11Job had three friends. They heard about all the trouble that had come to him. Their names were Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar. Each one came from his own home. They planned together to go and be sad with Job and comfort him.

Now when Job’s three friends heard of all this evil that was come upon him, they came every one from his own place; Eliphaz the Temanite, and Bildad the Shuhite, and Zophar the Naamathite: for they had made an appointment together to come to mourn with him and to comfort him.

NoteThese three friends each came from a town far away. Long ago people were often named for the place they came from. To comfort someone means to sit with them and help them feel less sad.

12They looked up while they were still far away. They could hardly tell it was Job. They cried out loud. Each man tore his coat. They threw dust in the air over their heads.

And when they lifted up their eyes afar off, and knew him not, they lifted up their voice, and wept; and they rent every one his mantle, and sprinkled dust upon their heads toward heaven.

NoteTearing your coat showed everyone that you were very sad. Throwing dust over your head did the same thing. These were the ways people showed big sorrow, the way we might cry at a funeral.

13They sat on the ground with him for seven days and seven nights. No one said a word to him. They saw that his pain was very great.

So they sat down with him upon the ground seven days and seven nights, and none spake a word unto him: for they saw that his grief was very great.

NoteSeven days was how long people usually mourned when someone died. Sitting quietly beside a hurting friend was a way of showing love.

1Then Eliphaz spoke. He came from a place called Teman.

Then Eliphaz the Temanite answered and said,

NoteEliphaz was one of three friends who came to sit with Job. He speaks first. Teman was a town far away, in a land called Edom.

2"If someone says a word to you, will it wear you out? But who can keep quiet?"

If we assay to commune with thee, wilt thou be grieved? but who can withhold himself from speaking?

3"You have taught many people. You have made weak hands strong again."

Behold, thou hast instructed many, and thou hast strengthened the weak hands.

Note"Weak hands" is a word picture. It means people who are tired and ready to give up. Job used to help people like that.

4"Your words held up people who were about to fall. You steadied shaky knees."

Thy words have upholden him that was falling, and thou hast strengthened the feeble knees.

NoteShaky knees are another word picture. Knees wobble when a person is scared or worn out.

5"But now trouble has come to you, and you are worn out. It touches you, and you are upset."

But now it is come upon thee, and thou faintest; it toucheth thee, and thou art troubled.

6"You respect God, and you live an honest life. Isn't that what you trust and hope in?"

Is not this thy fear, thy confidence, thy hope, and the uprightness of thy ways?

NoteThe King James calls this "thy fear." Fearing God here means deep respect and love for him. It does not mean being scared of him.

7"Please think about this. Has anyone innocent ever been destroyed? Where were good people ever wiped out?"

Remember, I pray thee, who ever perished, being innocent? or where were the righteous cut off?

8"Here is what I have seen. People who plow up evil and plant trouble harvest the same thing."

Even as I have seen, they that plow iniquity, and sow wickedness, reap the same.

NoteThese are farming words. Plowing means digging up the ground for seeds. Sowing means planting the seeds. Reaping means gathering what grew. Eliphaz says people get back the same kind of thing they plant.

9"God breathes, and they are gone. His angry breath sweeps them away."

By the blast of God they perish, and by the breath of his nostrils are they consumed.

Note"Blast" means a strong rush of wind. The picture is of God blowing bad people away, the way wind blows dust.

10"A lion may roar. A fierce lion may growl. But the young lions' teeth get broken."

The roaring of the lion, and the voice of the fierce lion, and the teeth of the young lions, are broken.

NoteThe lions here stand for strong people who hurt others. A lion with broken teeth cannot hunt anymore.

11"The old lion dies because it finds nothing to hunt. The lion's cubs are scattered everywhere."

The old lion perisheth for lack of prey, and the stout lion’s whelps are scattered abroad.

Note"Prey" means the animals a lion catches for food. The King James word "whelps" means baby lions, or cubs.

12"A word came to me in secret. My ear caught only a whisper of it."

Now a thing was secretly brought to me, and mine ear received a little thereof.

13"It came in troubling dreams at night, when people are in deep sleep."

In thoughts from the visions of the night, when deep sleep falleth on men,

14"Fear came over me, and I shook. All my bones trembled."

Fear came upon me, and trembling, which made all my bones to shake.

15"Then a spirit slipped past my face. The hair on my body stood up."

Then a spirit passed before my face; the hair of my flesh stood up:

NoteA spirit is a living being you cannot touch or hold. When people are very frightened, the tiny hairs on their skin stand up. That still happens today.

16"It stood still, but I could not tell what it looked like. A shape was there before my eyes. It was quiet. Then I heard a voice say:"

It stood still, but I could not discern the form thereof: an image was before mine eyes, there was silence, and I heard a voice, saying,

17"'Can a person be more right than God? Can anyone be more pure than the God who made him?'"

Shall mortal man be more just than God? shall a man be more pure than his maker?

Note"Pure" here means clean inside, with nothing wrong hiding in you.

18"'God does not fully trust even those who serve him. He finds fault even with his angels.'"

Behold, he put no trust in his servants; and his angels he charged with folly:

NoteAngels are God's messengers and helpers. The King James says God "charged them with folly." That means he found something wrong even in them.

19"'So what about people who live in houses of clay? They are built on dust. They can be crushed as easily as a moth.'"

How much less in them that dwell in houses of clay, whose foundation is in the dust, which are crushed before the moth?

Note"Houses of clay" means people's own bodies. Clay is soft mud that dries hard, and it cracks easily. A moth is a small soft insect, like a butterfly. One finger can crush it.

20"'They are broken to pieces between morning and evening. They are gone forever, and no one even notices.'"

They are destroyed from morning to evening: they perish for ever without any regarding it.

Note"From morning to evening" means inside one single day. It is a picture of how quickly a life can end.

21"'The ropes of their tent are pulled up, and it falls. They die without ever gaining wisdom.'"

Doth not their excellency which is in them go away? they die, even without wisdom.

NoteMany people then lived in tents. Ropes and pegs held the tent up. Pull the ropes out, and the whole tent falls flat. Here that pictures a person dying.

1Then Eliphaz answered him. He came from a place called Teman.

Then answered Eliphaz the Temanite, and said,

NoteJob's three friends came to talk with him after he lost everything. This is Eliphaz's second turn to speak. Each friend keeps saying Job's troubles must be his own fault.

2He said, "Should a wise man answer with empty words? Should he fill himself with hot desert wind?"

Should a wise man utter vain knowledge, and fill his belly with the east wind?

NoteThe east wind blew in from the desert. It was hot and dry, and it burned up plants. Eliphaz says Job's words are like that wind: lots of blowing, no help.

3Should he argue using words that help no one? Should he make speeches that do no good?

Should he reason with unprofitable talk? or with speeches wherewith he can do no good?

4But you chip away at people's respect for God. You get in the way of praying to him.

Yea, thou castest off fear, and restrainest prayer before God.

Note"Fear" here does not mean being scared. It means treating God with great respect.

5Your wrongdoing tells your mouth what to say. You talk like a person who tricks others.

For thy mouth uttereth thine iniquity, and thou choosest the tongue of the crafty.

Note"Crafty" means tricky. It means someone who uses clever words to fool people.

6Your own mouth says you are guilty, not me. Your own lips speak against you.

Thine own mouth condemneth thee, and not I: yea, thine own lips testify against thee.

7Were you the very first person ever born? Were you made before the hills were made?

Art thou the first man that was born? or wast thou made before the hills?

NoteLong ago, people thought the oldest person knew the most. So Eliphaz asks if Job is older than the hills. He is teasing Job for acting like he knows everything.

8Have you listened in while God made his plans? Do you keep all wisdom for yourself?

Hast thou heard the secret of God? and dost thou restrain wisdom to thyself?

NoteKings sat with helpers to make plans in private. Eliphaz asks if Job sneaked in and listened while God made his plans.

9What do you know that we do not know? What do you understand that we have missed?

What knowest thou, that we know not? what understandest thou, which is not in us?

10Gray-haired and very old men agree with us. They are much older than your father is.

With us are both the grayheaded and very aged men, much elder than thy father.

NoteIn Job's time, gray hair meant a person had lived long and learned much. Old men were listened to first.

11Is God's comfort too small for you? Are our gentle words not enough for you?

Are the consolations of God small with thee? is there any secret thing with thee?

12Why does your heart carry you away? Why do your eyes flash with anger?

Why doth thine heart carry thee away? and what do thy eyes wink at,

13You have turned your spirit against God. You let words like these pour out of your mouth.

That thou turnest thy spirit against God, and lettest such words go out of thy mouth?

14What is a person, that he could be pure? Can anyone born of a woman be truly good?

What is man, that he should be clean? and he which is born of a woman, that he should be righteous?

Note"Born of a woman" is just a way of saying "every single person."

15Look, God does not even trust his holy ones. Even the heavens are not clean in his eyes.

Behold, he putteth no trust in his saints; yea, the heavens are not clean in his sight.

NoteThe "holy ones" are God's helpers in heaven, the ones we call angels.

16So a person is far worse. People are dirty inside. They drink up evil the way we drink water.

How much more abominable and filthy is man, which drinketh iniquity like water?

NoteDrinking water is easy, and you do it every day. Eliphaz says people do wrong just as easily.

17Listen to me, and I will tell you. I will explain what I have seen myself.

I will shew thee, hear me; and that which I have seen I will declare;

18Wise men said these things long ago. Their fathers told them, and they did not hide them.

Which wise men have told from their fathers, and have not hid it:

NoteMost people then could not read, and books were rare. Wise sayings were passed down by talking, from parents to children.

19The land was given to those men alone. No one from another country lived among them.

Unto whom alone the earth was given, and no stranger passed among them.

NoteA "stranger" here means a person from another country, not a scary person. Eliphaz means these wise men learned their sayings before anyone else moved in.

20A wicked man twists in pain all his days. A cruel man is given only a few years.

The wicked man travaileth with pain all his days, and the number of years is hidden to the oppressor.

NoteA "wicked" person is someone who chooses to do wrong on purpose.

21Scary sounds fill his ears. Even when things go well, someone comes to destroy him.

A dreadful sound is in his ears: in prosperity the destroyer shall come upon him.

NoteThe "destroyer" is a robber who rides in suddenly and takes everything.

22He does not believe he will come back from the dark. A sword is waiting for him.

He believeth not that he shall return out of darkness, and he is waited for of the sword.

Note"A sword is waiting for him" means he will die in a fight.

23He wanders around looking for food and asks, "Where is it?" He knows a dark day is coming soon.

He wandereth abroad for bread, saying, Where is it? he knoweth that the day of darkness is ready at his hand.

24Trouble and pain make him afraid. They beat him down like a king ready for battle.

Trouble and anguish shall make him afraid; they shall prevail against him, as a king ready to the battle.

25This is because he shook his fist at God. He made himself proud against God, the strongest one.

For he stretcheth out his hand against God, and strengtheneth himself against the Almighty.

26He ran straight at God, carrying a thick shield covered with metal bumps.

He runneth upon him, even on his neck, upon the thick bosses of his bucklers:

NoteShields then were leather with metal bumps on the front. Running at someone with your shield up meant you wanted to fight. Eliphaz means the man acted like he wanted to fight God.

27His face is round with fat. Thick rolls of fat cover his sides.

Because he covereth his face with his fatness, and maketh collops of fat on his flanks.

NoteOnly rich people had lots of food back then. So being round and fat was a way of saying someone was rich.

28But he will live in ruined towns. He will live in empty houses that will soon be piles of stone.

And he dwelleth in desolate cities, and in houses which no man inhabiteth, which are ready to become heaps.

NoteWhen armies destroyed a town, the mud and stone houses fell into heaps. Nobody moved back in.

29He will not stay rich. His money will not last. His things will not spread across the land.

He shall not be rich, neither shall his substance continue, neither shall he prolong the perfection thereof upon the earth.

30He will not get out of the dark. Fire will dry up his branches. God's breath will blow him away.

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.

NoteGod's breath means his wind. It blows the man away like a dry leaf.

31He should not fool himself by trusting in things that are empty. Empty is all he will get back.

Let not him that is deceived trust in vanity: for vanity shall be his recompence.

32He will be paid back before his time is up. His branch will not stay green.

It shall be accomplished before his time, and his branch shall not be green.

NoteA green branch means the plant is alive and growing. A dry branch means it is dead.

33He will be like a vine that drops its grapes too soon. He will be like an olive tree that loses its flowers.

He shall shake off his unripe grape as the vine, and shall cast off his flower as the olive.

NoteFarmers watched for this. If a vine dropped its baby grapes, there would be no grapes to pick. If an olive tree lost its flowers, there would be no olives.

34People who only pretend to be good will end up with nothing. Fire will burn the tents of men who take bribes.

For the congregation of hypocrites shall be desolate, and fire shall consume the tabernacles of bribery.

NoteMost people in this story lived in tents made of cloth. A bribe is money paid in secret so someone will cheat for you.

35They plan trouble, and what comes out is evil. Inside them, they are getting lies ready.

They conceive mischief, and bring forth vanity, and their belly prepareth deceit.

NoteThis is a picture of a baby growing inside a mother and then being born. Eliphaz says trouble grows inside these people, and evil comes out.

1Then Eliphaz, a man from the land of Teman, spoke again.

Then Eliphaz the Temanite answered and said,

NoteEliphaz is one of Job's three friends. Teman was a town far to the south. The friends came to help Job, but they keep saying his troubles are his own fault.

2He said, "Can a person be useful to God? Even a wise man does not add anything to God.

Can a man be profitable unto God, as he that is wise may be profitable unto himself?

3Does God feel happy just because you do what is right? Does he gain anything if you live a good life?

Is it any pleasure to the Almighty, that thou art righteous? or is it gain to him, that thou makest thy ways perfect?

NoteThe Almighty is a name for God. It means he is stronger than anyone or anything.

4Is God correcting you because you respect him? Is that why he brings you to court?

Will he reprove thee for fear of thee? will he enter with thee into judgment?

NoteTo bring someone to court means to take them to a judge. A judge listens and decides who is right.

5No. It is because you have done much wrong. Your sins go on and on.

Is not thy wickedness great? and thine iniquities infinite?

6You made your own brothers give you things to hold. You had no good reason to do it. You took the clothes off people who had almost nothing.

For thou hast taken a pledge from thy brother for nought, and stripped the naked of their clothing.

NoteLong ago, when you lent someone money, they gave you something of theirs to keep. You held it until they paid you back. Eliphaz says Job took things from people who owed him nothing.

7You did not give water to tired people. You kept bread from people who were hungry.

Thou hast not given water to the weary to drink, and thou hast withholden bread from the hungry.

NoteThere were no water taps then. Travelers walked a long way in the hot sun. Giving them a drink was a kind thing everyone was expected to do.

8Meanwhile the strong man owned the land. The man everyone honored lived on it.

But as for the mighty man, he had the earth; and the honourable man dwelt in it.

9You sent widows away with nothing in their hands. Widows are women whose husbands have died. You crushed the strength of children who had no father.

Thou hast sent widows away empty, and the arms of the fatherless have been broken.

NoteA widow is a woman whose husband has died. A child with no father had no one to work for him. Back then these people had no way to earn money. Everyone was supposed to help them.

10That is why traps are all around you now. That is why sudden danger scares you.

Therefore snares are round about thee, and sudden fear troubleth thee;

NoteA trap, or snare, was a hidden rope or net. Hunters used them to catch animals that never saw them coming.

11That is why it is too dark to see. That is why water rises and covers you.

Or darkness, that thou canst not see; and abundance of waters cover thee.

12Is not God high up in the heavens? Look at the highest stars. See how far away they are!

Is not God in the height of heaven? and behold the height of the stars, how high they are!

NoteThe heavens means the sky, way up high above the clouds.

13But you say, "What does God know? Can he judge through the thick dark clouds?

And thou sayest, How doth God know? can he judge through the dark cloud?

14Thick clouds hide him, so he cannot see us. He just walks along the dome of the sky."

Thick clouds are a covering to him, that he seeth not; and he walketh in the circuit of heaven.

NotePeople long ago pictured the sky as a big curved roof over the earth. Job's friend says Job thinks God only walks up there and never looks down.

15Will you keep walking the old road that bad men walked?

Hast thou marked the old way which wicked men have trodden?

16They were snatched away before their time. A flood washed their houses away.

Which were cut down out of time, whose foundation was overflown with a flood:

NoteBefore their time means they died while they were still young.

17They said to God, "Go away from us. What can the Almighty do to us?"

Which said unto God, Depart from us: and what can the Almighty do for them?

18Yet God was the one who filled their houses with good things. So I stay far away from what wicked people plan.

Yet he filled their houses with good things: but the counsel of the wicked is far from me.

19Good people see this and are glad. People who did no wrong laugh at them.

The righteous see it, and are glad: and the innocent laugh them to scorn.

NoteIn old writing, laughing at someone meant being glad that a bully was stopped.

20They say, "Look, our enemies are gone. Fire has burned up all they had left."

Whereas our substance is not cut down, but the remnant of them the fire consumeth.

21So make peace with God now. Then good things will come to you.

Acquaint now thyself with him, and be at peace: thereby good shall come unto thee.

22Please listen to what he teaches you. Keep his words safe in your heart.

Receive, I pray thee, the law from his mouth, and lay up his words in thine heart.

NoteTo keep words in your heart means to remember them always and not forget.

23If you come back to the Almighty, he will build you up again. Get rid of the wrong things done in your tents.

If thou return to the Almighty, thou shalt be built up, thou shalt put away iniquity far from thy tabernacles.

NoteJob's family lived in tents made of cloth and animal hair. Saying your tents is like saying your home and family.

24Throw your gold down in the dirt. Throw the fine gold of Ophir among the rocks in the stream.

Then shalt thou lay up gold as dust, and the gold of Ophir as the stones of the brooks.

NoteOphir was a faraway land known for the very best gold. Throwing gold in the dirt means acting like gold does not matter much.

25Then the Almighty himself will be your gold. He will be your finest silver.

Yea, the Almighty shall be thy defence, and thou shalt have plenty of silver.

26Then you will be glad in the Almighty. You will be able to look up at God's face.

For then shalt thou have thy delight in the Almighty, and shalt lift up thy face unto God.

NoteTo look up at someone's face means you are not ashamed anymore.

27You will pray to him, and he will listen. You will keep the promises you made to him.

Thou shalt make thy prayer unto him, and he shall hear thee, and thou shalt pay thy vows.

NoteA vow is a promise you make to God. People kept their vows very carefully.

28What you decide will happen. Light will shine on the paths you walk.

Thou shalt also decree a thing, and it shall be established unto thee: and the light shall shine upon thy ways.

29When people are pushed down, you will say, "Lift them up!" And God will save the humble.

When men are cast down, then thou shalt say, There is lifting up; and he shall save the humble person.

NoteA humble person does not brag or think he is better than others.

30He will even rescue a person who is guilty. That person is saved because your hands are clean.

He shall deliver the island of the innocent: and it is delivered by the pureness of thine hands.

NoteClean hands means a person has not done wrong. It is not about washing with soap.

7After the LORD said these things to Job, he spoke to Eliphaz from Teman. He said, "I am angry with you and your two friends. You did not say true things about me, but my servant Job did.

And it was so, that after the LORD had spoken these words unto Job, the LORD said to Eliphaz the Temanite, My wrath is kindled against thee, and against thy two friends: for ye have not spoken of me the thing that is right, as my servant Job hath.

NoteEliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar were Job's three friends. They had come to visit him when he lost everything. They kept telling him his troubles were his own fault.

8So bring seven bulls and seven rams. Go to my servant Job. Burn them on an altar as a gift to me for yourselves. Then my servant Job will pray for you. I will listen to his prayer. I will not punish you for your foolish words, though you did not say true things about me, as my servant Job did.

Therefore take unto you now seven bullocks and seven rams, and go to my servant Job, and offer up for yourselves a burnt offering; and my servant Job shall pray for you: for him will I accept: lest I deal with you after your folly, in that ye have not spoken of me the thing which is right, like my servant Job.

NoteA burnt offering was a gift given to God. An animal was burned on a stone table called an altar. Seven bulls and seven rams was a very big, costly gift.

9So Eliphaz from Teman, Bildad from Shuah, and Zophar from Naamah went and did what the LORD said. And the LORD listened to Job's prayer.

So Eliphaz the Temanite and Bildad the Shuhite and Zophar the Naamathite went, and did according as the LORD commanded them: the LORD also accepted Job.

NoteTeman, Shuah, and Naamah were the places the three friends came from.