ESTUDIO DEL CAPÍTULO
Job 22 — Eliphaz Accuses and Invites Repentance
Eliphaz the Temanite delivers his third speech, arguing that human righteousness cannot profit God, then accusing Job of specific sins against the poor and concluding with an invitation to repent and find restoration.
Escritura
- 1.Respondió Elifaz temanita, y dijo:Then answered Eliphaz the Temanite, and said,
- 2.¿Traerá el hombre provecho a Dios? Al contrario, para sí mismo es provechoso el hombre sabio.Can a man be profitable unto God? Surely he that is wise is profitable unto himself.
- 3.¿Tiene contentamiento el Omnipotente en que tú seas justificado, O provecho de que tú hagas perfectos tus caminos?Is it any pleasure to the Almighty, that thou art righteous? Or is it gain to him, that thou makest thy ways perfect?
- 4.¿Acaso te castiga, O viene a juicio contigo, a causa de tu piedad?Is it for thy fear of him that he reproveth thee, That he entereth with thee into judgment?
- 5.Por cierto tu malicia es grande, Y tus maldades no tienen fin.Is not thy wickedness great? Neither is there any end to thine iniquities.
- 6.Porque sacaste prenda a tus hermanos sin causa, Y despojaste de sus ropas a los desnudos.For thou hast taken pledges of thy brother for nought, And stripped the naked of their clothing.
- 7.No diste de beber agua al cansado, Y detuviste el pan al hambriento.Thou hast not given water to the weary to drink, And thou hast withholden bread from the hungry.
- 8.Pero el hombre pudiente tuvo la tierra, Y habitó en ella el distinguido.But as for the mighty man, he had the earth; And the honorable man, he dwelt in it.
- 9.A las viudas enviaste vacías, Y los brazos de los huérfanos fueron quebrados.Thou hast sent widows away empty, And the arms of the fatherless have been broken.
- 10.Por tanto, hay lazos alrededor de ti, Y te turba espanto repentino;Therefore snares are round about thee, And sudden fear troubleth thee,
- 11.O tinieblas, para que no veas, Y abundancia de agua te cubre.Or darkness, so that thou canst not see, And abundance of waters cover thee.
- 12.¿No está Dios en la altura de los cielos? Mira lo encumbrado de las estrellas, cuán elevadas están.Is not God in the height of heaven? And behold the height of the stars, how high they are!
- 13.¿Y dirás tú: ¿Qué sabe Dios? ¿Cómo juzgará a través de la oscuridad?And thou sayest, What doth God know? Can he judge through the thick darkness?
- 14.Las nubes le rodearon, y no ve; Y por el circuito del cielo se pasea.Thick clouds are a covering to him, so that he seeth not; And he walketh on the vault of heaven.
- 15.¿Quieres tú seguir la senda antigua Que pisaron los hombres perversos,Wilt thou keep the old way Which wicked men have trodden?
- 16.Los cuales fueron cortados antes de tiempo, Cuyo fundamento fue como un río derramado?Who were snatched away before their time, Whose foundation was poured out as a stream,
- 17.Decían a Dios: Apártate de nosotros. ¿Y qué les había hecho el Omnipotente?Who said unto God, Depart from us; And, What can the Almighty do for us?
- 18.Les había colmado de bienes sus casas. Pero sea el consejo de ellos lejos de mí.Yet he filled their houses with good things: But the counsel of the wicked is far from me.
- 19.Verán los justos y se gozarán; Y el inocente los escarnecerá, diciendo:The righteous see it, and are glad; And the innocent laugh them to scorn,
- 20.Fueron destruidos nuestros adversarios, Y el fuego consumió lo que de ellos quedó.Saying, Surely they that did rise up against us are cut off, And the remnant of them the fire hath consumed.
- 21.Vuelve ahora en amistad con él, y tendrás paz; Y por ello te vendrá bien.Acquaint now thyself with him, and be at peace: Thereby good shall come unto thee.
- 22.Toma ahora la ley de su boca, Y pon sus palabras en tu corazón.Receive, I pray thee, the law from his mouth, And lay up his words in thy heart.
- 23.Si te volvieres al Omnipotente, serás edificado; Alejarás de tu tienda la aflicción;If thou return to the Almighty, thou shalt be built up, If thou put away unrighteousness far from thy tents.
- 24.Tendrás más oro que tierra, Y como piedras de arroyos oro de Ofir;And lay thou thy treasure in the dust, And the gold of Ophir among the stones of the brooks;
- 25.El Todopoderoso será tu defensa, Y tendrás plata en abundancia.And the Almighty will be thy treasure, And precious silver unto thee.
- 26.Porque entonces te deleitarás en el Omnipotente, Y alzarás a Dios tu rostro.For then shalt thou delight thyself in the Almighty, And shalt lift up thy face unto God.
- 27.Orarás a él, y él te oirá; Y tú pagarás tus votos.Thou shalt make thy prayer unto him, and he will hear thee; And thou shalt pay thy vows.
- 28.Determinarás asimismo una cosa, y te será firme, Y sobre tus caminos resplandecerá luz.Thou shalt also decree a thing, and it shall be established unto thee; And light shall shine upon thy ways.
- 29.Cuando fueren abatidos, dirás tú: Enaltecimiento habrá; Y Dios salvará al humilde de ojos.When they cast thee down, thou shalt say, There is lifting up; And the humble person he will save.
- 30.El libertará al inocente, Y por la limpieza de tus manos éste será librado.He will deliver even him that is not innocent: Yea, he shall be delivered through the cleanness of thy hands.
Qué significa este pasaje
Eliphaz structures his speech in three movements: a theological premise (vv. 2-4), a list of specific accusations (vv. 5-9), and a call to repentance (vv. 21-30). His opening premise argues from God's transcendence: if even a wise man only profits himself, how much less can finite human righteousness add anything to the Almighty? This establishes what Eliphaz considers the necessary framework for understanding suffering — God is so far above human transactions that Job's self-defense about innocence is irrelevant.
The accusations in vv. 5-9 are presented as obvious conclusions rather than proved charges. Eliphaz lists social crimes: seizing pledges without cause, stripping the naked, withholding water and bread from the weary, favoring the powerful, sending widows away empty, and breaking the arms of the fatherless. Each item addresses mistreatment of the vulnerable, the kind of oppression the Mosaic law explicitly forbids. The logic is retribution-based: because such snares and floods surround Job (vv. 10-11), he must have committed these sins. Eliphaz compares Job to the wicked of old who were cut off prematurely (vv. 15-20), concluding that God fills their houses with good things while distancing Himself from their counsel.
The closing exhortation (vv. 21-30) is Eliphaz's pastoral appeal: 'Acquaint now thyself with him, and be at peace.' He urges Job to receive instruction, return to the Almighty, value material wealth as dust, and find the Almighty himself as treasure. The promised blessings — answered prayer, established plans, light on the path, deliverance of even the not-innocent — form one of the richest restoration passages in Job. Yet the speech collapses because its premise is wrong: Eliphaz never proves Job's guilt, and his theology cannot account for the righteous sufferer.
Contexto
Job 22 is the third and final speech of Eliphaz the Temanite in the dialogue cycle of Job (chs. 3-31). Eliphaz spoke first in chs. 4-5, Bildad in chs. 8 and 18, and Zophar in chs. 11 and 20. Each friend grows more severe; Eliphaz's accusations here are the most specific and harshest of his three speeches, directly naming alleged crimes Job never mentions. The chapter stands within the broader argument that the friends maintain — that suffering proves hidden sin — while Job insists on his integrity. The chapter note provided indicates this passage belongs to the backfilled chapters of Job outside the priority P0/P1 set. Job's responses to this third speech appear in chs. 23-24, where he protests God's hiddenness rather than engaging Eliphaz's specific accusations, suggesting the friendship has broken down into mutual incomprehension.
Palabras clave del original
- H7706 Shadday (שַׁדַּי) appears twice in this chapter (vv. 3, 25) as a name for God, often rendered 'the Almighty.' Eliphaz uses the title in his opening question about whether righteousness pleases Shadday and again in his promise that Shadday will become Job's treasure if he repents. The repetition frames Eliphaz's whole speech as a summons back to covenant relationship with this sovereign name.
- H5532 The verb sakan (סָכַן, 'to be of use / to be serviceable') occurs twice in v. 2, forming the rhetorical hinge of Eliphaz's opening. 'Can a man be of use to God? Surely he that is wise is of use to himself.' The doubled use creates a sharp contrast: any benefit humans produce flows back to themselves, never adding to God's being.
- H2656 The noun hephes (חֵפֶץ, 'pleasure / desire / valuable thing') appears in v. 3: 'Is it any pleasure to the Almighty that you are righteous?' The word can denote delight, a matter of will, or something prized. Eliphaz's question presupposes that God's delight cannot be purchased by human moral performance — a premise Job himself would not entirely reject, though Job insists God's justice should still examine him.
Versículos relacionados
- Matthew 21:22 Eliphaz promises in 22:27, 'Thou shalt make thy prayer unto him, and he will hear thee.' Matthew 21:22 reports Jesus' parallel claim that whatever is asked in prayer, believing, will be received. Both texts link answered prayer to a reconciled relationship — for Eliphaz, reconciliation with the Almighty; for Jesus, alignment with the Father's will.
- Psalms 90:17 Eliphaz urges Job to 'lay up his words in his heart' (22:22) and to receive instruction from God's mouth. Psalm 90:17 asks that the favor of the Lord establish the work of hands. Both texts treat God's word as the foundation for human action being established rather than wasted.
- Isaiah 27:5 Eliphaz's invitation 'Acquaint now thyself with him, and be at peace' (22:21) is mirrored in Isaiah 27:5, where the Lord invites the offender to take hold of His strength and make peace. Both passages frame reconciliation with God as the decisive act that reverses the consequences of wrongdoing.
Preguntas frecuentes
Why does Eliphaz accuse Job of sins Job never mentioned?
Eliphaz reasons from effect to cause: because Job suffers greatly, Job must have committed great sin. The specific list in vv. 6-9 reflects the kinds of oppression the Mosaic law condemns and that Eliphaz assumes would naturally provoke divine punishment. The chapter never establishes Job's actual guilt; the accusation is a deduction from Eliphaz's retribution theology, not from evidence.
What is the structure of Job 22?
The chapter divides into three sections: vv. 2-4 give the theological premise that human righteousness profits God nothing; vv. 5-20 level specific accusations and recall the fate of the ancient wicked; vv. 21-30 offer an invitation to repent with promises of restoration, answered prayer, and divine light on the path. The third section contains some of the most beautiful restoration language in Job, even though its premise is mistaken.
Is Eliphaz's advice in vv. 21-30 true?
Many individual statements in the invitation are true in themselves — God does hear prayer, does lift up the humble, does value clean hands. But the chapter presents them as conditional on Job confessing the sins Eliphaz has wrongly attributed to him, so the framework is false even where the lines are true. Later Scripture echoes these promises (answered prayer, light on the path, salvation of the humble) but grounds them in Christ rather than in a demand that the sufferer first prove hidden guilt.