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Commentary on Job 4 verses 7–11
Eliphaz here advances another argument to prove Job a hypocrite, and will have not only his impatience under his afflictions to be evidence against him but even his afflictions themselves, being so very great and extraordinary, and there being no prospect at all of his deliverance out of them. To strengthen his argument he here lays down these two principles, which seem plausible enough: -
I. That good men were never thus ruined. For the proof of this he appeals to Job's own observation (Job 4:7): "Remember, I pray thee; recollect all that thou hast seen, heard, or read, and give me an instance of any one that was innocent and righteous, and yet perished as thou dost, and was cut off as thou art." If we understand it of a final and eternal destruction, his principle is true. None that are innocent and righteous perish for ever: it is only a man of sin that is a son of perdition, Th2 2:3. But then it is ill applied to Job; he did not thus perish, nor was he cut off: a man is never undone till he is in hell. But, if we understand it of any temporal calamity, his principle is not true. The righteous perish (Isa 57:1): there is one event both to the righteous and to the wicked (Ecc 9:2), both in life and death; the great and certain difference is after death. Even before Job's time (as early as it was) there were instances sufficient to contradict this principle. Did not righteous Abel perish being innocent? and was he not cut off in the beginning of his days? Was not righteous Lot burnt out of house and harbour, and forced to retire to a melancholy cave? Was not righteous Jacob a Syrian ready to perish? Deu 26:5. Other such instances, no doubt, there were, which are not on record.
II. That wicked men were often thus ruined. For the proof of this he vouches his own observation (Job 4:8): "Even as I have seen, many a time, those that plough iniquity, and sow wickedness, reap accordingly; by the blast of God they perish, Job 4:9. We have daily instances of that; and therefore, since thou dost thus perish and art consumed, we have reason to think that, whatever profession of religion thou hast made, thou hast but ploughed iniquity and sown wickedness. Even as I have seen in others, so do I see in thee."
1.He speaks of sinners in general, politic busy sinners, that take pains in sin, for they plough iniquity; and expect gain by sin, for they sow wickedness. Those that plough plough in hope, but what is the issue? They reap the same. They shall of the flesh reap corruption and ruin, Gal 6:7, Gal 6:8. The harvest will be a heap in the day of grief and desperate sorrow, Isa 17:11. He shall reap the same, that is, the proper product of that seedness. That which the sinner sows, he sows not that body that shall be, but God will give it a body, a body of death, the end of those things, Rom 6:21. Some, by iniquity and wickedness, understand wrong and injury done to others. Those who plough and sow them shall reap the same, that is, they shall be paid in their own coin. Those who are troublesome shall be troubled, Th2 1:6; Jos 7:25. The spoilers shall be spoiled (Isa 33:1), and those that led captive shall go captive, Rev 13:10. He further describes their destruction (Job 4:9): By the blast of God they perish. The projects they take so much pains in are defeated; God cuts asunder the cords of those ploughers, Psa 129:3, Psa 129:4. They themselves are destroyed, which is the just punishment of their iniquity. They perish, that is, they are destroyed utterly; they are consumed, that is, they are destroyed gradually; and this by the blast and breath of God, that is, (1.) By his wrath. His anger is the ruin of sinners, who are therefore called vessels of wrath, and his breath is said to kindle Tophet, Isa 30:33. Who knows the power of his anger? Psa 90:11. (2.) By his word. He speaks and it is done, easily and effectually. The Spirit of God, in the word, consumes sinners; with that he slays them, Hos 6:5. Saying and doing are not two things with God. The man of sin is said to be consumed with the breath of Christ's mouth, Th2 2:8. Compare Isa 11:4; Rev 19:21. Some think that in attributing the destruction of sinners to the blast of God, and the breath of his nostrils, he refers to the wind which blew the house down upon Job's children, as if they were therefore sinners above all men because they suffered such things. Luk 13:2.
2.He speaks particularly of tyrants and cruel oppressors, under the similitude of lions, Job 4:10, Job 4:11. Observe, (1.) How he describes their cruelty and oppression. The Hebrew tongue has five several names for lions, and they are all here used to set forth the terrible tearing power, fierceness, and cruelty, of proud oppressors. They roar, and rend, and prey upon all about them, and bring up their young ones to do so too, Eze 19:3. The devil is a roaring lion; and they partake of his nature, and do his lusts. They are strong as lions, and subtle (Psa 10:9; Psa 17:12); and, as far as they prevail, they lay all desolate about them. (2.) How he describes their destruction, the destruction both of their power and of their persons. They shall be restrained from doing further hurt and reckoned with for the hurt they have done. An effectual course shall be taken, [1.] That they shall not terrify. The voice of their roaring shall be stopped. [2.] That they shall not tear. God will disarm them, will take away their power to do hurt: The teeth of the young lions are broken. See Psa 3:7. Thus shall the remainder of wrath be restrained. [3.] That they shall not enrich themselves with the spoil of their neighbours. Even the old lion is famished, and perishes for lack of prey. Those that have surfeited on spoil and rapine are perhaps reduced to such straits as to die of hunger at last. [4.] That they shall not, as they promise themselves, leave a succession: The stout lion's whelps are scattered abroad, to seek for food themselves, which the old ones used to bring in for them, Nah 2:12. The lion did tear in pieces for his whelps, but now they must shift for themselves. Perhaps Eliphaz intended, in this, to reflect upon Job, as if he, being the greatest of all the men of the east, had got his estate by spoil and used his power in oppressing his neighbours, but now his power and estate were gone, and his family was scattered: if so, it was a pity that a man whom God praised should be thus abused.
The writer mentions natural things, that is, nothing that is new or unusual. Certain laws regulate everything, and nothing has changed. Indeed, if what concerns wild beasts remains the same, even more so what concerns us remains unchanged. If it is not possible to restrain “the strength of the lion,” then the righteous also cannot be prevented from talking frankly. In fact, as the wild beast naturally possesses strength, so also the righteous person possesses a natural power and force. Actually it is more likely for a lion to become weak than for a righteous person to allow others to manipulate him.
41. Forasmuch as the nature of every thing is compounded of different elements, in Holy Writ different things are allowably represented by anyone thing. For the lion has magnanimity, it has also ferocity: by its magnanimity then it represents the Lord, by its ferocity the devil. Hence it is declared of the Lord, Behold, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David hath prevailed. [Rev. 5, 5] Hence it is written of the devil, Your adversary, the devil, like a roaring lion, walketh about seeking whom he may devour. [1 Pet. 5, 8] But by the title of a ‘lioness’ sometimes Holy Church, sometimes Babylon is represented to us. For on this account, that she is bold to encounter all that withstand, the Church is called a ‘lioness,’ as is proved by the words of blessed Job, who in pointing out Judaea forsaken by the Church, says, The sons of the traders have not trodden, nor the lioness passed by it. [Job 28, 8. Vulg.] And sometimes under the title of a lioness is set forth the city of this world, which is Babylon, which ravins against the life of the innocent with terribleness of ferocity, which being wedded to our old enemy like the fiercest lion, conceives the seeds of his froward counsel, and produces from her own body reprobate sons, as cruel whelps, after his likeness. But the ‘lion's whelps’ are reprobate persons, engendered to a life of sin by the misleading of evil spirits, who both all of them together constitute that great city of the world which we have declared before, even Babylon; and yet these same sons of Babylon severally are called not ‘a lioness’ but ‘a lioness's whelps.’ For as the whole Church together is denominated Sion, but the several individual Saints the sons of Sion, so both the several individuals among the reprobate are called the children of Babylon, and all the reprobate together are designated the same Babylon.
42. But so long as good men remain in this life, they keep watch over themselves with anxious heed, lest the lion that goeth about surprise them by guile, i.e. lest our old enemy slay them under some show of virtue; lest the voice of the lioness stun their ears, i.e. lest the glory of Babylon catch away their minds from the love of the heavenly country; lest ‘the teeth of the young lions’ bite them, i.e. lest the promptings of the reprobate gain power in their heart. But, on the other hand, heretics are already as if secured touching holiness, because they fancy that they have surmounted all obstacles by the preeminent merit of their life. And hence it is said here, The roaring of the lion, and the voice of the lioness, and the teeth if the young lions are broken. As though it were expressed in plain words; ‘We for this reason are never beaten and bruised with any strokes, for that we tread under at once the might of the old enemy, and the lust of earthly glory, and the promptings of all the reprobate, overcoming them by the preeminence of our life.’
38. For what does he call the roaring of the lion but, as we have said a little above, the severe character of that man? what the voice of the lioness, but his wife's loquacity? what the teeth of the young lions, but the greediness of his children? For because his sons had perished when feasting, they are denoted by the term of ‘teeth;’ and while unsparing Eliphaz rejoices that they are all ‘broken,’ he denounces them as deservedly condemned. And he yet further doubles the cruelty of his reproaches.
The author signifies by “the lion” those powerful men who inspire people with fear, as lions do. By “lioness” he means their wives, who were evil and inspired fear simply by speaking. In the same manner, their children were arrogant and quite cruel. All these have perished. They were extinguished instantly.
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SUMMARY
Job 4:10, a pronouncement from Eliphaz the Temanite, masterfully employs vivid leonine imagery to assert a foundational principle of traditional wisdom: that the wicked, regardless of their perceived power or destructive capacity, are ultimately rendered impotent by divine judgment. This verse is embedded within Eliphaz's initial discourse with Job, where he endeavors to interpret Job's profound suffering as a direct consequence of unconfessed sin, firmly positing that God invariably shatters the strength of those who oppress and exploit others, much like a predator's instruments of destruction are decisively broken.
CONTEXT
EXPOSITION AND ANALYSIS
Key Word Analysis
Verse Breakdown
Literary Devices
Job 4:10 is profoundly enriched by its masterful use of Imagery, primarily through the extended Metaphor of the lion. The lion, a universally recognized symbol of immense strength, primal ferocity, and predatory power, is skillfully employed to represent the wicked and oppressive. The vivid descriptions of its "roaring," its "voice," and its "teeth" collectively create a palpable and terrifying sense of the threat posed by such individuals. The verse also employs a strong form of Parallelism, specifically a combination of synonymous and climactic parallelism. The phrases "roaring of the lion," "voice of the fierce lion," and "teeth of the young lions" build upon each other, each emphasizing a distinct aspect of the oppressor's destructive nature (auditory threat, authoritative command, and physical capacity for harm, respectively). The culminating clause, "are broken," serves as a powerful and decisive resolution, delivering the final, irreversible judgment that applies to all preceding elements. This strategic use of vivid, escalating imagery and a tightly structured parallel construction effectively communicates the overwhelming and inevitable power of divine retribution against evil.
THEOLOGICAL AND THEMATIC CONNECTIONS
While Eliphaz's direct application of this principle to Job's suffering was profoundly misguided and ultimately proven incorrect, the underlying theological truth articulated in Job 4:10 remains a fundamental biblical conviction: God is absolutely sovereign over all earthly power, and ultimately, He will bring to an end the destructive forces of evil and oppression. This verse, though spoken from a flawed human understanding of suffering's causes, points to a core biblical assurance that the seemingly invincible power of the wicked is temporary, finite, and irrevocably subject to divine justice. It offers a profound glimpse into God's character as the one who champions the vulnerable, defends the oppressed, and decisively dismantles the strongholds of injustice, ensuring that no earthly power can ultimately thwart His righteous and holy will. The breaking of the lion's strength is a powerful and enduring assurance that God observes the actions of the wicked and will, in His perfect timing, act decisively against those who seek to devour others.
REFLECTION AND APPLICATION
Job 4:10, despite its problematic placement within Eliphaz's misguided counsel to Job, nonetheless conveys a profound spiritual truth that resonates deeply with believers today: no matter how formidable, terrifying, or seemingly insurmountable the forces of evil and oppression may appear, their power is ultimately finite, temporary, and irrevocably subject to the sovereign hand of God. In a world frequently marked by pervasive injustice, rampant exploitation, and heartbreaking cruelty, this verse stands as a powerful, unwavering reminder that God not only sees the "roaring" and the "teeth" of those who seek to devour, but He also promises to decisively break their strength. For those who are experiencing oppression, grappling with overwhelming challenges, or witnessing widespread wickedness, this verse instills profound hope and cultivates an unshakeable trust in God's ultimate and perfect justice. It calls us not to despair in the face of evil's apparent triumph, but rather to anchor our faith firmly in the God who is mighty to save, whose judgment will one day render all destructive power utterly broken, harmless, and completely nullified.
Questions for Reflection
FAQ
Why does Eliphaz use the metaphor of lions to describe the wicked?
Answer: Eliphaz employs the metaphor of lions because, in the ancient Near East, lions were the quintessential and most powerful symbol of raw strength, untamed ferocity, and predatory behavior. They were renowned for their intimidating "roaring" that instilled fear, their powerful "voice" that commanded terror, and their razor-sharp "teeth" used to seize, tear, and devour prey. By comparing the wicked to various types of lions—the generic "lion," the formidable "fierce lion," and the actively predatory "young lions"—Eliphaz effectively emphasizes different facets of their destructive nature: their verbal threats, their authoritative and aggressive declarations, and their active capacity for physical harm and exploitation. This vivid imagery powerfully conveys that the wicked are like relentless predators who oppress and consume others, making their ultimate downfall, symbolized by their broken strength, all the more impactful and a clear demonstration of divine retribution. This aligns perfectly with the ancient wisdom tradition that God will ultimately dismantle the power of those who act like oppressive beasts, as seen in passages like Psalm 7:15-16.
CHRIST-CENTERED FULFILLMENT
While Job 4:10 speaks of the breaking of the wicked's power in a general, earthly sense, its most profound and ultimate fulfillment is found in the person and redemptive work of Jesus Christ. The "roaring lion" imagery finds its most significant spiritual application in 1 Peter 5:8, where the devil, humanity's ultimate spiritual adversary, is vividly depicted as a "roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour." This cosmic oppressor, who introduced sin and death into the world, wielded immense power, enslaving humanity and threatening to consume all. However, Christ, through His sacrificial death on the cross and His glorious resurrection, decisively "broke" the power of this ultimate adversary. His victory on the cross disarmed the spiritual rulers and authorities (Colossians 2:15), rendering the devil's "teeth"—his power to condemn, accuse, and destroy—utterly ineffective for all who are united with Christ by faith. The resurrection of Jesus is the definitive demonstration that the "roaring" of evil has been silenced and its destructive capacity "broken," powerfully foreshadowing the day when every enemy, including death itself, will be finally and completely destroyed (1 Corinthians 15:26). Thus, Job 4:10, though spoken by Eliphaz in a limited context, points forward to the definitive and eternal triumph of God's perfect justice over all forms of evil through the finished work of Christ.