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Commentary on Job 13 verses 1–12
Job here warmly expresses his resentment of the unkindness of his friends.
I. He comes up with them as one that understood the matter in dispute as well as they, and did not need to be taught by them, Job 13:1, Job 13:2. They compelled him, as the Corinthians did Paul, to commend himself and his own knowledge, yet not in a way of self-applause, but of self-justification. All he had before said his eye had seen confirmed by many instances, and his ear had heard seconded by many authorities, and he well understood it and what use to make of it. Happy are those who not only see and hear, but understand, the greatness, glory, and sovereignty of God. This, he thought, would justify what he had said before (Job 12:3), which he repeats here (Job 13:2): "What you know, the same do I know also, so that I need not come to you to be taught; I am not inferior unto you in wisdom." Note, Those who enter into disputation enter into temptation to magnify themselves and vilify their brethren more than is fit, and therefore ought to watch and pray against the workings of pride.
II. He turns from them to God (Job 13:3): Surely I would speak to the Almighty; as if he had said, "I can promise myself no satisfaction in talking to you. O that I might have liberty to reason with God! He would not be so hard upon me as you are." The prince himself will perhaps give audience to a poor petitioner with more mildness, patience, and condescension, than the servants will. Job would rather argue with God himself than with his friends. See here, 1. What confidence those have towards God whose hearts condemn them not of reigning hypocrisy: they can, with humble boldness, appear before him and appeal to him. 2. What comfort those have in God whose neighbours unjustly condemn them: if they may not speak to them with any hopes of a fair hearing, yet they may speak to the Almighty; they have easy access to him and shall find acceptance with him.
III. He condemns them for their unjust and uncharitable treatment of him, Job 13:4. 1. They falsely accused him, and that was unjust: You are forgers of lies. They framed a wrong hypothesis concerning the divine Providence, and misrepresented it, as if it did never remarkably afflict any but wicked men in this world, and thence they drew a false judgment concerning Job, that he was certainly a hypocrite. For this gross mistake, both in doctrine and application, he thinks an indictment of forgery lies against them. To speak lies is bad enough, though but at second hand, but to forge them with contrivance and deliberation is much worse; yet against this wrong neither innocency nor excellency will be a fence. 2. They basely deceived him, and that was unkind. They undertook his cure, and pretended to be his physicians; but they were all physicians of no value, "idol-physicians, who can do me no more good than an idol can." They were worthless physicians, who neither understood his case nor knew how to prescribe to him - mere empirics, who pretended to great things, but in conference added nothing to him: he was never the wiser for all they said. Thus to broken hearts and wounded consciences all creatures, without Christ, are physicians of no value, on which one may spend all and be never the better, but rather grow worse, Mar 5:26.
IV. He begs they would be silent and give him a patient hearing, Job 13:5, Job 13:6. 1. He thinks it would be a credit to them if they would say no more, having said too much already: "Hold your peace, and it shall be your wisdom, for thereby you will conceal your ignorance and ill-nature, which now appear in all you say." They pleaded that they could not forbear speaking (Job 4:2, Job 11:2, Job 11:3); but he tells them that they would better have consulted their own reputation if they had enjoined themselves silence. Better say nothing than nothing to the purpose or that which tends to the dishonour of God and the grief of our brethren. Even a fool, when he holds his peace, is accounted wise, because nothing appears to the contrary, Pro 17:28. And, as silence is an evidence of wisdom, so it is a means of it, as it gives time to think and hear. 2. He thinks it would be a piece of justice to him to hear what he had to say: Hear now my reasoning. Perhaps, though they did not interrupt him in his discourse, yet they seemed careless, and did not much heed what he said. He therefore begged that they would not only hear, but hearken. Note, We should be very willing and glad to hear what those have to say for themselves whom, upon any account, we are tempted to have hard thoughts of. Many a man, if he could but be fairly heard, would be fairly acquitted, even in the consciences of those that run him down.
V. He endeavours to convince them of the wrong they did to God's honour, while they pretended to plead for him, Job 13:7, Job 13:8. They valued themselves upon it that they spoke for God, were advocates for him, and had undertaken to justify him and his proceedings against Job; and, being (as they thought) of counsel for the sovereign, they expected not only the ear of the court and the last word, but judgment on their side. But Job tells them plainly, 1. That God and his cause did not need such advocates: "Will you think to contend for God, as if his justice were clouded and wanted to be cleared up, or as if he were at a loss what to say and wanted you to speak for him? Will you, who are so weak and passionate, put in for the honour of pleading God's cause?" Good work ought not to be put into bad hands. Will you accept his person? If those who have not right on their side carry their cause, it is by the partiality of the judge in favour of their persons; but God's cause is so just that it needs no such methods for the support of it. He is a God, and can plead for himself (Jdg 6:31); and, if you were for ever silent, the heavens would declare his righteousness. 2. That God's cause suffered by such management. Under pretence of justifying God in afflicting Job they magisterially condemned him as a hypocrite and a bad man. "This" (says he) "is speaking wickedly" (for uncharitableness and censoriousness are wickedness, great wickedness; it is an offence to God to wrong our brethren); "it is talking deceitfully, for you condemn one whom yet perhaps your own consciences, at the same time, cannot but acquit. Your principles are false and your arguings fallacious, and will it excuse you to say, It is for God?" No, for a good intention will not justify, much less will it sanctify, a bad word or action. God's truth needs not our lie, nor God's cause either our sinful policies or our sinful passions. The wrath of man works not the righteousness of God, nor may we do evil that good may come, Rom 3:7, Rom 3:8. Pious frauds (as they call them) are impious cheats; and devout persecutions are horrid profanations of the name of God, as theirs who hated their brethren, and cast them out, saying, Let the Lord be glorified, Isa 66:5; Joh 16:2.
VI. He endeavours to possess them with a fear of God's judgment, and so to bring them to a better temper. Let them not think to impose upon God as they might upon a man like themselves, nor expect to gain his countenance in their bad practices by pretending a zeal for him and his honour. "As one man mocks another by flattering him, do you think so to mock him and deceive him?" Assuredly those who think to put a cheat upon God will prove to have put a cheat upon themselves. Be not deceived, God is not mocked. That they might not think thus to jest with God, and affront him, Job would have them to consider both God and themselves, and then they would find themselves unable to enter into judgment with him.
1.Let them consider what a God he is into whose service they had thus thrust themselves, and to whom they really did so much disservice, and enquire whether they could give him a good account of what they did. Consider, (1.) The strictness of his scrutiny and enquiries concerning them (Job 13:9) "Is it good that he should search you out? Can you bear to have the principles looked into which you go upon in your censures, and to have the bottom of the matter found out?" Note, It concerns us all seriously to consider whether it will be to our advantage or no that God searches the heart. It is good to an upright man who means honestly that God should search him; therefore he prays for it: Search me, O God! and know my heart. God's omniscience is a witness of his sincerity. But it is bad to him who looks one way and rows another that God should search him out, and lay him open to his confusion. (2.) The severity of his rebukes and displeasure against them (Job 13:10): "If you do accept persons, though but secretly and in heart, he will surely reprove you; he will be so far from being pleased with your censures of me, though under colour of vindicating him, that he will resent them as a great provocation, as any prince or great man would if a base action were done under the sanction of his name and under the colour of advancing his interest." Note, What we do amiss we shall certainly be reproved for, one way or other, one time or other, though it be done ever so secretly. (3.) The terror of his majesty, which if they would duly stand in awe of they would not do that which would make them obnoxious to his wrath (Job 13:11): "Shall not his excellency make you afraid? You that have great knowledge of God, and profess religion and a fear of him, how dare you talk at this rate and give yourselves so great a liberty of speech? Ought you not to walk and talk in the fear of God? Neh 5:9. Should not his dread fall upon you, and give a check to your passions?" Methinks Job speaks this as one that did himself know the terror of the Lord, and lived in a holy fear of him, whatever his friends suggested to the contrary. Note, [1.] There is in God a dreadful excellency. He is the most excellent Being, has all excellencies in himself and in each infinitely excels any creature. His excellencies in themselves are amiable and lovely. He is the most beautiful Being; but considering man's distance from God by nature, and his defection and degeneracy by sin, his excellencies are dreadful. His power, holiness, justice, yea, and his goodness too, are dreadful excellencies. They shall fear the Lord and his goodness. [2.] A holy awe of this dreadful excellency should fall upon us and make us afraid. This would awaken impenitent sinners and bring them to repentance, and would influence all to be careful to please him and afraid of offending him.
2.Let them consider themselves, and what an unequal match they were for this great God (Job 13:12): "Your remembrances (all that in you for which you hope to be remembered when you are gone) are like unto ashes, worthless and weak, and easily trampled on and blown away. Your bodies are like bodies of clay, mouldering and coming to nothing. Your memories, you think, will survive your bodies, but, alas! they are like ashes which will be shovelled up with your dust." Note, the consideration of our own meanness and mortality should make us afraid of offending God, and furnishes a good reason why we should not despise and trample upon our brethren. Bishop Patrick gives another sense of this verse: "Your remonstrances on God's behalf are no better than dust, and the arguments you accumulate but like so many heaps of dirt."
“Consider now the words which I am about to say in order to correct you, and then judge whether I pronounce them thoughtfully.” “Do you not speak before the Lord and utter deceit before him?” “Do you not realize that God hears your speeches? How do you dare, while he hears you, say false words?” Consider also these words from that blameless and truthful man, how falsehood is able to blame everything, even when one appears to speak according to God. Therefore Job ponders with truth and frankness all the words that are spoken, so that God himself may approve him, as God is the truth. Falsehood, in fact, comes from the evil one, as the Savior says.
36. Now he did well first to bring forward ‘reproof,’ and afterwards ‘judgment.’ For except by reproof first the swelling of the fool be put down, the judgment of the righteous is not by comprehension at all understood.
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SUMMARY
Job 13:6 encapsulates the profound anguish and resolute demand of a suffering man who desperately seeks an impartial and attentive audience for his defense. In this pivotal moment, Job implores his three friends—Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar—to set aside their preconceived theological frameworks and judgmental accusations, and instead, genuinely attend to his carefully reasoned arguments and heartfelt pleas. This verse articulates Job's demand for a fair hearing, not merely as a matter of personal vindication, but as a critical step toward understanding the true nature of his inexplicable affliction and the unwavering integrity he maintains before God.
CONTEXT
EXPOSITION AND ANALYSIS
Key Word Analysis
Verse Breakdown
Literary Devices
Job 13:6 employs several powerful literary devices to convey Job's urgent demand. The most prominent is Parallelism, specifically synonymous parallelism, where the second half of the verse ("and hearken to the pleadings of my lips") reiterates and amplifies the meaning of the first half ("Hear now my reasoning"). This repetition serves to emphasize the urgency and depth of Job's demand for a fair hearing, reinforcing his desire for both intellectual and empathetic attention. The verse also utilizes potent Legal Imagery, as seen in the choice of words like "reasoning" (tôwkêchâh) and "pleadings" (rîyb), which strongly evoke the setting of a courtroom or a formal dispute. This imagery underscores Job's perception of himself as being on trial and his desperate need to present his defense. Furthermore, the verse functions as a powerful Rhetorical Appeal, a direct and passionate address to his audience (his friends) to persuade them to change their behavior and truly listen. It is an appeal for justice and a plea for understanding, demonstrating Job's shift from passive suffering to active engagement in his own defense.
THEOLOGICAL AND THEMATIC CONNECTIONS
Job 13:6 profoundly illuminates the theological tension between conventional wisdom and lived experience, a central theme in the book of Job. It challenges the simplistic notion that suffering is always a direct result of sin, forcing a deeper inquiry into the nature of divine justice and human integrity. Job's demand for a hearing is not merely a personal plea but a theological one, as he seeks to reconcile his blamelessness with his immense suffering. This verse also speaks to the broader biblical emphasis on the importance of genuine listening and compassionate engagement in theological discourse. It implies that true wisdom is not found in rigid adherence to dogma, but in the humility to listen to the voice of the suffering and to grapple with the complexities of God's ways. Job's plea for his "reasoning" and "pleadings" to be heard foreshadows the ultimate vindication of the righteous, even when misunderstood or condemned by human judgment.
REFLECTION AND APPLICATION
Job 13:6 serves as a powerful and timeless reminder of the profound human need to be heard and understood, especially in times of distress or when facing injustice. It challenges us to cultivate a posture of active, empathetic listening, moving beyond our preconceived notions and theological frameworks to truly engage with the experiences and perspectives of others. In a world often characterized by quick judgments and superficial interactions, Job's plea calls us to create spaces where individuals feel safe to articulate their "reasoning" and "pleadings" without fear of immediate condemnation or dismissal. It encourages us to approach difficult conversations with humility, recognizing that true wisdom often begins with genuinely hearing another's story, even when it challenges our own understanding of truth or justice. This verse compels us to consider how our words and our listening habits either build up or tear down, and to strive for communication that honors the dignity and integrity of every person, reflecting the patience and compassion that God Himself extends to us.
Questions for Reflection
FAQ
Why were Job's friends so unwilling to listen to his reasoning?
Answer: Job's friends, Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar, were deeply entrenched in a conventional retribution theology, which posited that all suffering was a direct consequence of sin and that God always rewards the righteous and punishes the wicked. From their perspective, Job's immense suffering could only be explained by some great, hidden transgression on his part. This rigid theological framework blinded them to the possibility of blameless suffering and prevented them from truly listening to Job's fervent declarations of innocence. They were more concerned with defending their theological system and God's perceived justice (as they understood it) than with empathizing with Job's unique and inexplicable plight. Their unwillingness to listen stemmed from their certainty in their own wisdom, believing they already knew the answer to Job's suffering, thus rendering his "reasoning" irrelevant to their predetermined conclusions. This is evident in their repetitive arguments throughout the book, such as Eliphaz's insistence on the fate of the wicked and their collective failure to acknowledge Job's integrity.
CHRIST-CENTERED FULFILLMENT
Job's impassioned plea in Job 13:6 for a fair hearing and vindication finds its ultimate echo and fulfillment in the person and work of Jesus Christ. Like Job, Jesus was profoundly misunderstood, accused, and condemned by those who claimed to speak for God, yet failed to recognize true righteousness. Jesus, the perfectly innocent one, faced the ultimate injustice, enduring the "pleadings" of false witnesses and the "reasoning" of those who sought his death (Matthew 26:59-60). Yet, unlike Job's friends, God the Father heard the "reasoning" and "pleadings" of His Son—not in the sense of a defense against sin, for He had none, but as the perfect obedience that would accomplish salvation. The cross, though appearing as the ultimate condemnation, was in fact God's profound vindication of His suffering Servant, demonstrating that His justice is deeper and more complex than human retribution theology can grasp (Philippians 2:8-9). Furthermore, Christ Himself embodies the perfect listener, always attentive to the cries of the suffering and the "pleadings" of the brokenhearted (Matthew 11:28). In His own suffering, death, and resurrection, Jesus not only received the ultimate vindication but also secured the ultimate hearing and justification for all who trust in Him, offering a righteousness not based on human "reasoning" or "pleadings" but on His perfect, atoning sacrifice (Romans 5:18).