Thy Strong Word — Job 4: Even Good People Sug

Ever had a friend who, with the best intentions, just completely missed the mark? You’re pouring out your heart, and they hit you with, “well, everything happens for a reason”—yeah, thanks for that. When we face suffering, well-meaning friends often try to offer wisdom—sometimes helpful, sometimes not so much. In Job 4, Eliphaz steps forward with what he believes is sound advice, drawing from his own experience and understanding of God’s justice. But does his counsel bring clarity, or does it miss the deeper reality of Job’s suffering?

The Rev. Roger Mullet, pastor of Prince of Peace Lutheran Church in Buffalo, WY, joins the Rev. Dr. Phil Booe to study Job 4.

Thy Strong Word, hosted by Rev. Dr. Phil Booe, pastor of St. John Lutheran Church of Luverne, MN, reveals the light of our salvation in Christ through study of God’s Word, breaking our darkness with His redeeming light. Each weekday, two pastors fix our eyes on Jesus by considering Holy Scripture, verse by verse, in order to be strengthened in the Word and be equipped to faithfully serve in our daily vocations. Submit comments or questions to: thystrongword@kfuo.org.

Thy Strong Word is graciously underwritten by the Lutheran Heritage Foundation. Through the mission gifts of people like you, LHF translates, publishes, distributes and introduces books that are Bible-based, Christ-centered and Reformation-driven. Learn more at lhfmissions.org.

Job 4

Eliphaz Speaks: The Innocent Prosper

4 Then Eliphaz the Temanite answered and said:

²“If one ventures a word with you, will you be impatient?
    Yet who can keep from speaking?
³Behold, you have instructed many,
    and you have strengthened the weak hands.
⁴Your words have upheld him who was stumbling,
    and you have made firm the feeble knees.
⁵But now it has come to you, and you are impatient;
    it touches you, and you are dismayed.
⁶Is not your fear of God^[a] your confidence,
    and the integrity of your ways your hope?

⁷“Remember: who that was innocent ever perished?
    Or where were the upright cut off?
⁸As I have seen, those who plow iniquity
    and sow trouble reap the same.
⁹By the breath of God they perish,
    and by the blast of his anger they are consumed.
¹⁰The roar of the lion, the voice of the fierce lion,
    the teeth of the young lions are broken.
¹¹The strong lion perishes for lack of prey,
    and the cubs of the lioness are scattered.

¹²“Now a word was brought to me stealthily;
    my ear received the whisper of it.
¹³Amid thoughts from visions of the night,
    when deep sleep falls on men,
¹⁴dread came upon me, and trembling,
    which made all my bones shake.
¹⁵A spirit glided past my face;
    the hair of my flesh stood up.
¹⁶It stood still,
    but I could not discern its appearance.
A form was before my eyes;
    there was silence, then I heard a voice:
¹⁷‘Can mortal man be in the right before^[b] God?
    Can a man be pure before his Maker?
¹⁸Even in his servants he puts no trust,
    and his angels he charges with error;
¹⁹how much more those who dwell in houses of clay,
    whose foundation is in the dust,
    who are crushed like^[c] the moth.
²⁰Between morning and evening they are beaten to pieces;
    they perish forever without anyone regarding it.
²¹Is not their tent-cord plucked up within them,
    do they not die, and that without wisdom?’

Footnotes

Job 4:6 Hebrew lacks of God
Job 4:17 Or more than; twice in this verse
Job 4:19 Or before

Rev. Dr. Phil Booe

Native North Carolinian Rev. Dr. Phil Booe serves pastor of St. John Lutheran Church of Luverne, MN, and host of Thy Strong Word on KFUO Radio. His parishioners probably think he can’t teach Bible study without a mug of coffee in his hand, and he’ll always be happy to eat a plate of sushi. When he’s not shepherding his flock or teaching on the radio, you might find him watching bad movies from the 50s, 60s, and 70s, and especially binging RiffTrax and MST3K episodes. Some day he’d love to travel to the Lutheran homeland in Germany, but for now he spends time in Minnesota with his wife, son, daughter, and cat, and looks forward to Holy Week every year.