Job 5:1

Context

Job 5:1 is spoken by Eliphaz the Temanite, one of Job's three friends, in his first discourse to Job. This verse immediately follows Job's passionate lament and despair, where he curses the day of his birth and longs for death (Job 3:1-26). Eliphaz, attempting to offer counsel, operates from the conventional wisdom of the ancient Near East: that great suffering is a direct consequence of great sin. His words here are a rhetorical challenge, almost a dare, intended to expose what he perceives as the futility of Job's complaints and his lack of righteousness.

Key Themes

• The Challenge to Job's Plea: Eliphaz's opening words, "Call now, if there be any that will answer thee," serve as a sarcastic invitation for Job to seek vindication. He implies that no one, divine or human, would validate Job's lament because, in Eliphaz's faulty theology, Job must be guilty of some hidden sin.
• The Question of Intercession: "And to which of the saints wilt thou turn?" This rhetorical question challenges Job to find any righteous person or angelic being who would support his case or intercede on his behalf. Eliphaz suggests that no "saint" would stand with someone suffering as Job is, reinforcing the idea that Job is isolated and without divine favor due to his presumed iniquity.
• Misguided Human Wisdom: This verse epitomizes the flawed comfort offered by Job's friends. While seemingly wise and pious, their counsel is based on a simplistic and ultimately incorrect understanding of divine justice and suffering. Their words further deepen Job's anguish rather than alleviating it, as God later rebukes them for not speaking what was right about Him (Job 42:7).

Linguistic Insights

The Hebrew word for "saints" in this verse is קְדוֹשִׁים (q'doshim), meaning "holy ones." This term can refer to several possibilities within the context of Job:

• Righteous Human Beings: It could refer to notable righteous individuals or patriarchs of the past, implying that Job could not find any such figure to agree with his lament.
• Angelic Beings: In other Old Testament contexts, "holy ones" can refer to angelic beings or members of God's heavenly court (e.g., Psalm 89:7). Eliphaz might be challenging Job to find any celestial intercessor willing to plead his case.

Practical Application

Job 5:1 serves as a powerful reminder for believers today about the dangers of simplistic explanations for suffering. It challenges us to:

• Avoid Judgmental Counsel: We should be cautious not to attribute suffering directly and solely to sin, as Job's friends did. True comfort involves empathy and understanding, not condemnation or blame.
• Rethink Intercession: While Eliphaz's challenge was flawed, the concept of turning to "saints" or holy ones for help is a theme throughout Scripture. For Christians, this points ultimately to Jesus Christ as the one Mediator between God and humanity, the only one who can truly answer our calls and intercede on our behalf.
• Trust God's Sovereignty: The book of Job ultimately reveals that God's ways are beyond human comprehension, and suffering can have purposes far deeper than immediate retribution for sin. We are called to trust in His character even when we don't understand His methods.