Job · WEB-C
Job
22
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Then Eliphaz the Temanite answered, “Can a man be profitable to God? Surely he who is wise is profitable to himself. See also: Luke 17:10Galatians 6:7-8Job 35:6-8Is it any pleasure to the Almighty that you are righteous? Or does it benefit him that you make your ways perfect? See also: 2 Corinthians 7:1Proverbs 15:8Proverbs 11:1Is it for your piety that he reproves you, that he enters with you into judgment? See also: Job 14:3Psalms 143:2Isaiah 3:14-15Isn’t your wickedness great? Neither is there any end to your iniquities. See also: Psalms 40:12Job 15:5-6Job 4:7-11For you have taken pledges from your brother for nothing, and stripped the naked of their clothing. See also: Exodus 22:26Ezekiel 18:12Ezekiel 18:16You haven’t given water to the weary to drink, and you have withheld bread from the hungry. See also: Job 31:17Matthew 25:42Isaiah 58:7But as for the mighty man, he had the earth. The honorable man, he lived in it. See also: Isaiah 9:15Micah 7:3Job 13:8You have sent widows away empty, and the arms of the fatherless have been broken. See also: Job 24:21Job 24:3Ezekiel 22:7Therefore snares are around you. Sudden fear troubles you, See also: Job 6:4Job 18:8-10Job 13:21or darkness, so that you can not see, and floods of waters cover you. See also: Lamentations 3:54Psalms 69:1-2Jonah 2:3“Isn’t God in the heights of heaven? See the height of the stars, how high they are! See also: Isaiah 66:1Job 11:8Ecclesiastes 5:2You say, ‘What does God know? Can he judge through the thick darkness? See also: Ezekiel 8:12Psalms 10:11Psalms 73:11Thick clouds are a covering to him, so that he doesn’t see. He walks on the vault of the sky.’ See also: Psalms 97:2Psalms 139:11-12Psalms 33:14Will you keep the old way, which wicked men have trodden, See also: Luke 17:26-27Genesis 6:11-13Genesis 6:5who were snatched away before their time, whose foundation was poured out as a stream, See also: Job 15:32Genesis 7:17-24Matthew 24:37-39who said to God, ‘Depart from us!’ and, ‘What can the Almighty do for us?’ See also: Job 21:14-15Psalms 4:6Romans 1:28Yet he filled their houses with good things, but the counsel of the wicked is far from me. See also: Job 21:16Job 12:6Psalms 17:14The righteous see it, and are glad. The innocent ridicule them, See also: Psalms 58:10Psalms 52:6Psalms 107:42saying, ‘Surely those who rose up against us are cut off. The fire has consumed their remnant.’ See also: 2 Peter 2:6-7Job 1:16Genesis 19:24“Acquaint yourself with him now, and be at peace. By it, good will come to you. See also: 1 Chronicles 28:9Isaiah 27:5Philippians 4:7Please receive instruction from his mouth, and lay up his words in your heart. See also: Psalms 119:11Job 23:12Deuteronomy 4:1-2If you return to the Almighty, you will be built up, if you put away unrighteousness far from your tents. See also: Zechariah 1:3Job 11:13-14Job 8:5-6Lay your treasure in the dust, the gold of Ophir among the stones of the brooks. See also: 1 Kings 9:28Isaiah 13:122 Chronicles 1:5The Almighty will be your treasure, and precious silver to you. See also: Isaiah 33:6Psalms 16:5-6Psalms 84:11For then you will delight yourself in the Almighty, and will lift up your face to God. See also: Isaiah 58:14Psalms 37:4Job 27:10You will make your prayer to him, and he will hear you. You will pay your vows. See also: Isaiah 58:91 John 5:14-15Psalms 116:1You will also decree a thing, and it will be established to you. Light will shine on your ways. See also: Matthew 21:22Psalms 90:17Psalms 20:4When they cast down, you will say, ‘be lifted up.’ He will save the humble person. See also: James 4:6Job 5:19-27Luke 1:52He will even deliver him who is not innocent. Yes, he will be delivered through the cleanness of your hands.” See also: Job 42:7-8James 5:15-16Psalms 18:20
See also: Cross references from OpenBible.info (CC BY), derived in part from the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (public domain).
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Notes · Haydock (1859, public domain)24 notes
Notes in English 19th-century Catholic commentary by Fr. George Leo Haydock, shown as published.
These notes keep the polemics of their time: some speak harshly of the Jewish people or of other Christians. The Church teaches otherwise today. The Jewish people may not be blamed for the death of Christ (Nostra Aetate 4; Catechism 597–598), and Christians of other communities are our brothers and sisters in the Lord (Unitatis Redintegratio 3). Christian unity
Job 22:2
Ver. 2. Knowledge. How then canst thou dispute with God?
↑ 2Job 22:3
Ver. 3. Profit. God rules all with justice or with mercy: since, therefore, he punishes, it must be for some guilt, and not for his own advantage. But he might still chastise for the good of man, or to manifest his own power. Jo. ix. 3.
God also punishes the sinner for the wrong which he does to himself. S. Aug.
Conf. iii. 8. Any one may discover the sophism of Eliphaz. If God were indifferent with regard to our virtue, who would be able to advance one step towards him? C. ---
Man is unprofitable indeed to God, but he may reap great advantage from piety himself; and this is what God desires, as well as his own glory. Mat. v. 17. W.
↑ 3Job 22:4
Ver. 4. Fear. Thus malefactors are condemned, that they may no longer disturb society. But may not God afflict the just, though he have nothing to fear? C.
↑ 4Job 22:5
Ver. 5. Iniquities. He adduces no fresh arguments, but boldly taxes Job with many crimes, which a person in his station might have committed. He rashly concludes that he must have fallen into some of them at least. C.
↑ 5Job 22:6
Ver. 6. Pledge. Heb. "person." Debtors might be sold. Matt. xviii. 30.
↑ 6Job 22:7
Ver. 7. Water. Job's disposition was the reverse. C. xxix. 15. Such inhumanity would hardly be conceived possible among us. But he Idumeans were guilty of it; (Num. xx. 18. Isai. xxi. 14.) and if it had not been probable, Eliphaz would not have dared to speak thus. C.
↑ 7Job 22:8
Ver. 8. It. Heb. and Sept. intimate that Job accepted persons, and gave sentence in favour of his rich friends. H.
↑ 8Job 22:9
Ver. 9. Arms; possessions, condemning orphans unjustly.
↑ 9Job 22:11
Ver. 11. Waters, and misery, (C.) which such conduct deserved. H.
↑ 11Job 22:12
This 19th-century note uses polemical language; read it in the light of the note at the top of this panel.
Ver. 12. Stars: and of course, that his Providence regardeth not human affairs.
C. --- When an infidel observed, "I think the gods are too great to want my adoration," Socrates well replied,
"The greater they appear to thee, the more oughtest thou to treat them with respect and honour."
Xenophon, Memor.
↑ 12Job 22:14
This 19th-century note uses polemical language; read it in the light of the note at the top of this panel.
Ver. 14. Doth. Heb. "seeth not." Sept. "is not seen." --- Poles, on which the whole machine seems to turn. C. --- "Hipparchus intimated that there would be a time when the hinges, or poles of heaven, would be moved out of their places." Colum. i. 1. Heb. and Sept. (according to Origen's edition, v. 13 to 16)
"he walketh about in the circuit of heaven." H.
Immortali ævo summâ cum pace fruatur
Semota a nostris rebus, sejunctaque longè. Lucret.
This was the error of the Egyptians, (Arist. Mun. 84.) which Eliphaz unjustly lays to the charge of Job, as heretics often impute condemned tenets to Catholics. W.
↑ 14Job 22:15
Ver. 15. Wicked. Sept. Alex. "just." But Grabe substitutes unjust; (H.) as otherwise, Eliphaz would argue against his own principles: unless just be put ironically for hypocrites. C. --- Wilt thou imitate the ancient giants, before the deluge? C.
↑ 15Job 22:16
Ver. 16. Flood. Heb. "river," (Sept. C.) or "flood." Prot. This does not certainly allude to the deluge, though Job could not be unacquainted with an event (H.) which appears in the writings of the most ancient pagan authors. Grot. Relig.
↑ 16Job 22:18
Ver. 18. From me. He thus insinuates that Job entertained such sentiments, though he seemed to condemn them. C. xxi. 16. C. --- Sept. "is far from him,"
God.
↑ 18Job 22:19
Ver. 19. Shall. Sept. "saw." The Jews explain this of Noe, who saw the ruin of the giants with pity, mixed with joy, as he approved of the divine judgments.
Vatab. &c. --- The just can thus rejoice, only on this account; as they would not be just if they were devoid of charity. S. Greg.
Ps. lvii. 11. and cvi. 42. C.
↑ 19Job 22:20
Ver. 20. Their. Heb. "our." C. --- "Whereas our substance is not cut down." Prot.
H. --- But the Sept. and Chal. agree with the Vulg. which gives a better sense.
--- Fire, which consumed Sodom,
&c. C.
↑ 20Job 22:22
Ver. 22. Law of Moses, (Rabbins) or rather (H.) the natural law, which teaches that God is just, and deserves to be adored. He addresses Job, as if he had acknowledged no law or restraint.
↑ 22Job 22:24
Ver. 24. Gold, to build and adorn thy habitation, v. 23. Heb. "He will give thee gold instead of dust; (or more abundant) yea, gold of the torrents of Ophir."
The Phasis is said to roll gold dust, which is of the purest kind. Gen. ii. 11. C.
--- "Thou shalt lay upon gold as dust, and the gold of Ophir, as the stones of the brooks." Prot. H. --- This is an exaggeration, (3 K. x. 27. C.) and a sort of proverb, intimating that strength and plenty should succeed to infirmity. The foundations should be the hard rock, instead of earth, &c.
↑ 24Job 22:25
Ver. 25. Silver. Sept. "But he shall purify thee, as silver, which has passed the fire." H.
↑ 25Job 22:26
Ver. 26. Face, with confidence of being in favour and accepted. C.
↑ 26Job 22:27
Ver. 27. Vows, after obtaining thy requests. M. ---
Et positis aris jam vota in littore solves. Æn. iii.
↑ 27Job 22:28
Ver. 28. Decree. Thy projects shall succeed. Sept. "But he shall appoint for thee the rule of justice." H.
↑ 28Job 22:29
Ver. 29. Glory, as the gospel declares. Mat. xxiii. 12. The Heb. is more perplexed. "When men are cast down, then thou shalt say, there is lifting up."
Prot. (H.) or "when thy eyes shall be cast down, they shall say to thee, Arise."
C.
↑ 29Job 22:30
Ver. 30. Innocent. Heb. "He shall deliver even the man who is not innocent, and that for the sake of the purity of thy hands." Chal. Jun. &c. --- God will even spare the guilty, to manifest the regard which he has for the intercession of the saints. These interpreters have taken ai in the same sense as ain, which is the case, 1 K. iv. 21. C. --- Others explain, "He shall deliver the island of the innocent, and it is delivered by the pureness of thine hands." Prot. This also would shew the merit and protection of the saints, as a whole island may owe its safety to one of God's servants. In effect, the would stands by the prayers of the saints. H. --- All that has been said from v. 21. tends to shew that God favours his friends; and, consequently, that he would never have punish Job, if he had not been guilty. C.
↑ 30License: Notes by Fr. George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), from the Douay-Rheims Bible with Haydock's commentary (first ed. Thomas Haydock, Manchester/Dublin, 1811–1814; New York: Edward Dunigan & Brother, 1859); New Testament notes compiled with Fr. Benedict Rayment. Public domain. Digital text: "The Haydock Bible", Internet Archive (archive.org/details/TheHaydockBible), uploaded 2011 under the Public Domain Mark. · Credits and licenses