TRV
Translation
Complete Jewish Bible
Did I say to you, 'Give me something,'or, 'From your wealth, offer a bribe on my behalf,'
American Standard Version
Did I say, Give unto me? Or, Offer a present for me of your substance?
World English Bible Messianic
Did I say, ‘Give to me?’ or, ‘Offer a present for me from your substance?’
Geneva Bible (1599)
Was it because I said, Bring vnto me? or giue a rewarde to me of your substance?
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In the KJVVerse 13,001 of 31,102
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Commentary on Job 6 verses 22–30
22 ¶ Did I say, Bring unto me? or, Give a reward for me of your substance?
23 Or, Deliver me from the enemy's hand? or, Redeem me from the hand of the mighty?
24 Teach me, and I will hold my tongue: and cause me to understand wherein I have erred.
25 How forcible are right words! but what doth your arguing reprove?
26 Do ye imagine to reprove words, and the speeches of one that is desperate, which are as wind?
27 Yea, ye overwhelm the fatherless, and ye dig a pit for your friend.
28 Now therefore be content, look upon me; for it is evident unto you if I lie.
29 Return, I pray you, let it not be iniquity; yea, return again, my righteousness is in it.
30 Is there iniquity in my tongue? cannot my taste discern perverse things?
Poor Job goes on here to upbraid his friends with their unkindness and the hard usage they gave him. He here appeals to themselves concerning several things which tended both to justify him and to condemn them. If they would but think impartially, and speak as they thought, they could not but own,
I. That, though he was necessitous, yet he was not craving, nor burdensome to his friends. Those that are so, whose troubles serve them to beg by, are commonly less pitied than the silent poor. Job would be glad to see his friends, but he did not say, Bring unto me (Job 6:22), or, Deliver me, Job 6:23. He did not desire to put them to any expense, did not urge his friends either, 1. To make a collection for him, to set him up again in the world. Though he could plead that his losses came upon him by the hand of God and not by any fault or folly of his own, - that he was utterly ruined and impoverished, - that he had lived in good condition, and that when he had wherewithal he was charitable and ready to help those that were in distress, - that his friends were rich, and able to help him, yet he did not say, Give me of your substance. Note, A good man, when troubled himself, is afraid of being troublesome to his friends. Or, 2. To raise the country for him, to help him to recover his cattle out of the hands of the Sabeans and Chaldeans, or to make reprisals upon them: "Did I send for you to deliver me out of the hand of the mighty? No, I never expected you should either expose yourselves to any danger or put yourselves to any charge upon my account. I will rather sit down content under my affliction, and make the best of it, than sponge upon my friends." St. Paul worked with his hands, that he might not be burdensome to any. Job's not asking their help did not excuse them from offering it when he needed it and it was in the power of their hands to give it; but it much aggravated their unkindness when he desired no more from them than a good look, and a good word, and yet could not obtain them. It often happens that from man, even when we expect little, we have less, but from God, even when we expect much, we have more, Eph 3:20.
II. That, though he differed in opinion from them, yet he was not obstinate, but ready to yield to conviction, and to strike sail to truth as soon as ever it was made to appear to him that he was in an error (Job 6:24, Job 6:25): "If, instead of invidious reflections and uncharitable insinuations, you will give me plain instructions and solid arguments, which shall carry their own evidence along with them, I am ready to acknowledge my error and own myself in a fault: Teach me, and I will hold my tongue; for I have often found, with pleasure and wonder, how forcible right words are. But the method you take will never make proselytes: What doth your arguing reprove? Your hypothesis is false, your surmises are groundless, your management is weak, and your application peevish and uncharitable." Note, 1. Fair reasoning has a commanding power, and it is a wonder if men are not conquered by it; but railing and foul language are impotent and foolish, and it is no wonder if men are exasperated and hardened by them. 2. It is the undoubted character of every honest man that he is truly desirous to have his mistakes rectified, and to be made to understand wherein he has erred; and he will acknowledge that right words, when they appear to him to be so, though contrary to his former sentiments, are both forcible and acceptable.
III. That, though he had been indeed in a fault, yet they ought not to have given him such hard usage (Job 6:26, Job 6:27): "Do you imagine, or contrive with a great deal of art" (for so the word signifies), "to reprove words, some passionate expressions of mine in this desperate condition, as if they were certain indications of reigning impiety and atheism? A little candour and charity would have served to excuse them, and to put a better construction upon them. Shall a man's spiritual state be judged of by some rash and hasty words, which a surprising trouble extorts from him? Is it fair, is it kind, is it just, to criticize in such a case? Would you yourselves be served thus?" Two things aggravated their unkind treatment of him: - 1. That they took advantage of his weakness and the helpless condition he was in: You overwhelm the fatherless, a proverbial expression, denoting that which is most barbarous and inhuman. "The fatherless cannot secure themselves from insults, which emboldens men of base and sordid spirits to insult them and trample upon them; and you do so by me." Job, being a childless father, thought himself as much exposed to injury as a fatherless child (Psa 127:5) and had reason to be offended with those who therefore triumphed over him. Let those who overwhelm and overpower such as upon any account may be looked upon as fatherless know that therein they not only put off the compassions of man, but fight against the compassions of God, who is, and will be, a Father of the fatherless and a helper of the helpless. 2. That they made a pretence of kindness: "You dig a pit for your friend; not only you are unkind to me, who am your friend, but, under colour of friendship, you ensnare me." When they came to see and sit with him he thought he might speak his mind freely to them, and that the more bitter his complaints to them were the more they would endeavour to comfort him. This made him take a greater liberty than otherwise he would have done. David, though he smothered his resentments when the wicked were before him, would probably have given vent to them if none had been by but friends, Psa 39:1. But this freedom of speech, which their professions of concern for him made him use, had exposed him to their censures, and so they might be said to dig a pit for him. Thus, when our hearts are hot within us, what is ill done we are apt to misrepresent as if done designedly.
IV. That, though he had let fall some passionate expressions, yet in the main he was in the right, and that his afflictions, though very extraordinary, did not prove him to be a hypocrite or a wicked man. His righteousness he holds fast, and will not let it go. For the evincing of it he here appeals, 1. To what they saw in him (Job 6:28): "Be content, and look upon me; what do you see in me that bespeaks me either a madman or a wicked man? Nay, look in my face, and you may discern there the indications of a patient and submissive spirit, for all this. Let the show of my countenance witness for me that, though I have cursed my day, I do not curse my God." Or rather, "Look upon my ulcers and sore boils, and by them it will be evident to you that I do not lie," that is, "that I do not complain without cause. Let your own eyes convince you that my condition is very sad, and that I do not quarrel with God by making it worse than it is." 2. To what they heard from him, Job 6:30. "You hear what I have to say: Is there iniquity in my tongue? that iniquity that you charge me with? Have I blasphemed God or renounced him? Are not my present arguings right? Do not you perceive, by what I say, that I can discern perverse things? I can discover your fallacies and mistakes, and, if I were myself in an error, I could perceive it. Whatever you think of me, I know what I say." 3. To their own second and sober thoughts (Job 6:29): "Return, I pray you, consider the thing over again without prejudice and partiality, and let not the result be iniquity, let it not be an unrighteous sentence; and you will find my righteousness is in it," that is, "I am in the right in this matter; and, though I cannot keep my temper as I should, I keep my integrity, and have not said, nor done, nor suffered, any thing which will prove me other than an honest man." A just cause desires nothing more than a just hearing, and if need be a re-hearing.
Matthew Henry (1662–1714) — Commentary on the Whole Bible. This section covers verses 22–30. Public domain.
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John ChrysostomAD 407
COMMENTARY ON JOB 6:24A
However, even in such a condition, Job does not refuse to learn. “You may say something useful. I will be silent, if you speak helpful words.” But they could not, to be sure, present evidence, but simply proceeded through conjectures. And since Job’s life was manifestly full of virtue, they supposed that it was not the ground of his punishments.
Gregory the DialogistAD 604
50. If these words are referred to the person of Holy Church, as we have said that blessed Job's friends bear the likeness of heretics, he rightly declares that he does not ‘want their substance.’ For the ‘substance’ of heretics is not unsuitably taken for carnal wisdom, by which whilst they are wickedly sustained, they as it were show themselves rich in words, which Holy Church does not go after, in proportion as she goes beyond it by spiritual understanding. But oftentimes, while heretics maintain wrong things concerning the Faith, they utter various refined sayings against our old Enemy concerning the temptations of the flesh. For sometimes they as it were show in themselves healthy limbs of practice, in the same degree that as wounded in faith they are held in the head by the fangs of the envenomed serpent. But Holy Church is not minded to hear refined sayings concerning temptation from those, who, whilst they deliver some truths that relate to practice, are leading men onward into the falsities of misbelief. Whence it is rightly said in this place, Did I say, Bring unto me? or, Give me aught of your substance? or, Deliver me from the enemy's hand? or, Redeem me from the hand of the mighty? For he calls the strength of Satan, ‘the enemy's hand,’ and the powers of evil spirits, ‘the hand of the mighty.’ Whom he in this respect calls mighty, in that whereas they were created void of fleshly infirmity, no impotency being mixed therewith obstructs their wicked efforts.
Source: Quotations drawn from early Church Fathers and historical Christian theologians (AD 100–1500). Some quotes address the surrounding passage context rather than this verse alone.
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SUMMARY
Job 6:22 captures Job's impassioned denial of any self-serving or manipulative intent behind his profound lament. He vehemently refutes the unspoken accusation that his cries for understanding and relief are veiled requests for financial assistance or a bribe from his friends. Amidst his overwhelming suffering and the misinterpretations of Eliphaz, Job asserts his unblemished integrity, emphasizing that his distress is a genuine outpouring of pain and a desperate plea for empathy and vindication, not a calculated attempt to gain material possessions or charity. This verse powerfully underscores the vast chasm between Job's authentic agony and his friends' judgmental suspicions, highlighting his steadfast character even under immense pressure.
CONTEXT
Literary Context: This verse is situated within Job's initial, raw response to Eliphaz, spanning Job 6 and Job 7. Eliphaz, adhering to the conventional retribution theology, had implied that Job's unprecedented suffering must be a direct consequence of hidden sin, as articulated in Job 4 and Job 5. Job's subsequent speeches are a passionate defense of his innocence, a visceral expression of his overwhelming grief, and a lament against the perceived injustice of his situation, compounded by the lack of genuine comfort from his companions. Job 6:22 specifically addresses the potential misinterpretation of his lament as a plea for material gain, clarifying that his anguish is not a transactional request but a genuine outpouring of a broken spirit seeking solace and vindication.
Historical & Cultural Context: In the ancient Near East, societal norms placed a high value on hospitality, mutual support, and kinship solidarity, especially in times of distress. Friends and family were expected to offer comfort and practical assistance. However, the concept of a "reward" or "bribe" (Hebrew: shochad) was also well-established, often associated with influencing legal judgments, securing favorable treatment, or manipulating situations for personal gain. Job's friends, having traveled to "comfort" him, would have been expected to offer support, but their theological framework led them to suspect Job's motives rather than simply empathize. Job's emphatic denial in this verse is a powerful assertion of his moral standing within a culture that highly valued integrity and vehemently despised deceitful or opportunistic behavior, particularly from someone in a vulnerable position. He is not merely denying a request for money; he is refuting an accusation of manipulative and dishonest conduct.
Key Themes: Job 6:22 significantly contributes to several overarching themes in the Book of Job. Firstly, it powerfully reinforces the theme of Job's Integrity, a central tenet challenged by Satan in Job 1:9-11. Job's steadfast refusal to seek material gain, even in his dire circumstances, underscores his blameless character and his commitment to God for God's sake, not for the blessings He bestows. Secondly, it highlights the pervasive theme of Misunderstanding and False Accusation that plagues the entire dialogue between Job and his friends. They repeatedly misinterpret his words and suffering, projecting their own rigid theological assumptions onto his experience, leading to accusations of hidden sin or, as here, ulterior motives. Finally, the verse implicitly speaks to the Nature of True Comfort. By denying a request for "substance," Job subtly points out that what he truly needs is not material aid, but genuine empathy, understanding, and a listening ear, which his friends tragically fail to provide, opting instead for judgment and suspicion.
EXPOSITION AND ANALYSIS
Key Word Analysis
Verse Breakdown
Literary Devices
Job 6:22 is a powerful example of Rhetorical Question. Job uses two direct questions, "Did I say, Bring unto me?" and "or, Give a reward for me of your substance?", not to elicit information, but to make an emphatic statement of denial. These questions serve to underscore his innocence and the absurdity of any suggestion that he is seeking material gain. This device also highlights the profound Irony of the situation: Job, in his profound anguish, is not only misunderstood but also suspected of ulterior motives by the very people who came to comfort him. His denial functions as a poignant Plea for his friends to recognize the authenticity of his suffering and a sharp Rebuke of their judgmental and unhelpful suspicions, challenging their shallow understanding of his plight.
THEOLOGICAL AND THEMATIC CONNECTIONS
Job 6:22 offers a profound statement on the nature of suffering, integrity, and true compassion. It challenges the simplistic retribution theology prevalent in Job's time and among his friends, asserting that not all suffering is a direct result of sin, nor are all cries for help motivated by greed. Job's steadfastness in denying any manipulative intent, even when stripped of everything, prefigures the New Testament emphasis on integrity of heart and the selfless nature of love. The verse implicitly critiques superficial comfort and calls for a deeper, more empathetic engagement with those in distress, reminding us that true solace often lies in presence and understanding, not merely material solutions. It underscores that genuine spiritual and emotional needs cannot be met with transactional offerings.
REFLECTION AND APPLICATION
Job 6:22 serves as a powerful and timeless lesson for how we approach and interact with those who are experiencing profound grief or suffering. It compels us to critically examine our own assumptions and biases, particularly the temptation to attribute suffering to hidden sin or to suspect ulterior motives in someone's cries for help. Instead of rushing to offer unsolicited advice, judgment, or even material solutions that haven't been requested, this verse calls us to cultivate genuine empathy, to offer a compassionate presence, and to simply listen. Understanding that a person's lament is often a desperate plea for understanding, validation, or simply to be heard, rather than a demand for resources, is crucial for providing meaningful comfort. It challenges us to move beyond superficial responses and to truly "weep with those who weep," extending grace and avoiding the judgmental spirit that so tragically characterized Job's friends. Our role is often to bear witness to pain, not to fix it or to question its authenticity.
Questions for Reflection
FAQ
Was Job actually asking for money or gifts from his friends, and then denying it?
Answer: No, Job 6:22 is Job's emphatic denial that he ever asked for financial assistance or a "reward" (which could imply a bribe or manipulative payment) from his friends. His rhetorical questions, "Did I say, Bring unto me? or, Give a reward for me of your substance?", are a strong refutation of any such insinuation. His friends, particularly Eliphaz, had been implying that Job's suffering was due to some hidden sin, and perhaps suspected that Job's laments were a manipulative attempt to gain their sympathy and material support. Job vehemently denies this, asserting that his cries are born purely out of overwhelming pain and a desperate desire for understanding and vindication, not out of a need for their material possessions or charity. This denial underscores his integrity and the purity of his motives, a central theme throughout the Book of Job.
CHRIST-CENTERED FULFILLMENT
Job 6:22, with Job's steadfast denial of seeking material gain amidst his profound suffering, profoundly foreshadows the integrity and selflessness of Christ. Job, though innocent, was accused and misunderstood, his pain dismissed as a consequence of sin or a manipulative ploy. Similarly, Jesus, the sinless Lamb of God, endured immense suffering and false accusations, not for His own gain, but for the redemption of humanity. He did not come to be served or to acquire "substance," but to serve and to give His life as a ransom for many. Unlike Job's friends who suspected ulterior motives, Jesus consistently demonstrated a heart of pure compassion, identifying with the suffering and never seeking personal profit from His ministry, famously stating that the Son of Man had nowhere to lay His head. Job's integrity in the face of accusation points to the ultimate integrity of Christ, who, though tempted in every way, remained without sin (Hebrews 4:15). His suffering was not a transactional request but a selfless act of divine love, fulfilling God's redemptive plan and offering true comfort and salvation that far transcends any material "substance" or earthly reward.