Job 5 is the fifth
chapter of the
Book of Job
The Book of Job (; hbo, אִיּוֹב, ʾIyyōḇ), or simply Job, is a book found in the Ketuvim ("Writings") section of the Hebrew Bible (Tanakh), and is the first of the Poetic Books in the Old Testament of the Christian Bible. Scholars ar ...
in the
Hebrew Bible
The Hebrew Bible or Tanakh (;["Tanach"](_blank)
''Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary''. Hebrew: ''Tān ...
or the
Old Testament
The Old Testament (often abbreviated OT) is the first division of the Christian biblical canon, which is based primarily upon the 24 books of the Hebrew Bible or Tanakh, a collection of ancient religious Hebrew writings by the Israelites. The ...
of the
Christian
Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...
Bible
The Bible (from Koine Greek , , 'the books') is a collection of religious texts or scriptures that are held to be sacred in Christianity, Judaism, Samaritanism, and many other religions. The Bible is an anthologya compilation of texts of a ...
.
[Holman Illustrated Bible Handbook. Holman Bible Publishers, Nashville, Tennessee. 2012.] The book is anonymous; most scholars believe it was written around 6th century BCE. This chapter records the speech of
Eliphaz
Eliphaz ( "My Elohim is gold", Standard Hebrew Elifaz, Tiberian Hebrew ʾĔlîp̄az / ʾĔlîp̄āz) was the first-born son of Esau and his wife Adah (biblical figure), Adah. He had six sons, of whom Omar (biblical figure), Omar was the firstbor ...
the Temanite (one of
Job
Work or labor (or labour in British English) is intentional activity people perform to support the needs and wants of themselves, others, or a wider community. In the context of economics, work can be viewed as the human activity that contr ...
's friends), which belongs to the Dialogue section of the book, comprising
Job 3:1–
31:40.
Text
The original text is written in
Hebrew language
Hebrew (; ; ) is a Northwest Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Historically, it is one of the spoken languages of the Israelites and their longest-surviving descendants, the Jews and Samaritans. It was largely preserved ...
.
This chapter is divided into 27 verses.
Textual witnesses
Some early manuscripts containing the text of this chapter in
Hebrew
Hebrew (; ; ) is a Northwest Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Historically, it is one of the spoken languages of the Israelites and their longest-surviving descendants, the Jews and Samaritans. It was largely preserved ...
are of the
Masoretic Text
The Masoretic Text (MT or 𝕸; he, נֻסָּח הַמָּסוֹרָה, Nūssāḥ Hammāsōrā, lit. 'Text of the Tradition') is the authoritative Hebrew and Aramaic text of the 24 books of the Hebrew Bible (Tanakh) in Rabbinic Judaism. ...
, which includes the
Aleppo Codex
The Aleppo Codex ( he, כֶּתֶר אֲרָם צוֹבָא, romanized: , lit. 'Crown of Aleppo') is a medieval bound manuscript of the Hebrew Bible. The codex was written in the city of Tiberias in the tenth century CE (circa 920) under the ...
(10th century), and
Codex Leningradensis
The Leningrad Codex ( la, Codex Leningradensis [Leningrad Book]; he, כתב יד לנינגרד) is the oldest complete manuscript of the Hebrew Bible in Hebrew, using the Masoretic Text and Tiberian vocalization. According to its colopho ...
(1008).
There is also a translation into
Koine Greek
Koine Greek (; Koine el, ἡ κοινὴ διάλεκτος, hē koinè diálektos, the common dialect; ), also known as Hellenistic Greek, common Attic, the Alexandrian dialect, Biblical Greek or New Testament Greek, was the common supra-reg ...
known as the
Septuagint
The Greek Old Testament, or Septuagint (, ; from the la, septuaginta, lit=seventy; often abbreviated ''70''; in Roman numerals, LXX), is the earliest extant Greek translation of books from the Hebrew Bible. It includes several books beyond th ...
, made in the last few centuries BC; some extant ancient manuscripts of this version include
Codex Vaticanus
The Codex Vaticanus ( The Vatican, Bibl. Vat., Vat. gr. 1209), designated by siglum B or 03 (in the Gregory-Aland numbering), δ 1 ( von Soden), is a fourth-century Christian manuscript of a Greek Bible, containing the majority of the Greek Old ...
(B;
B; 4th century),
Codex Sinaiticus
The Codex Sinaiticus (Shelfmark: London, British Library, Add MS 43725), designated by siglum [Aleph] or 01 (in the Gregory-Aland numbering of New Testament manuscripts), δ 2 (in the von Soden numbering of New Testament manuscripts) ...
(S;
BHK:
S; 4th century), and
Codex Alexandrinus
The Codex Alexandrinus (London, British Library, Royal MS 1. D. V-VIII), designated by the siglum A or 02 (in the Gregory-Aland numbering of New Testament manuscripts), δ 4 (in the von Soden numbering of New Testament manuscripts), is a manu ...
(A;
A; 5th century).
Analysis
The structure of the book is as follows:
*The Prologue (chapters 1–2)
*The Dialogue (chapters 3–31)
*The Verdicts (32:1–42:6)
*The Epilogue (42:7–17)
Within the structure, chapter 5 is grouped into the Dialogue section with the following outline:
*Job's Self-Curse and Self-Lament (3:1–26)
*Round One (4:1–14:22)
**Eliphaz (4:1–5:27)
***Introduction (4:1-6)
***A Summary Outline of Retribution (4:7-11)
***Eliphaz's Vision and Its Implications (4:12-21)
***The Experience of the Fool (5:1-7)
***Commit your Cause to God, Who Is Active (5:8-16)
***God Will Reward the Righteous (5:17-27)
**Job (6:1–7:21)
**Bildad (8:1–22)
**Job (9:1–10:22)
**Zophar (11:1–20)
**Job (12:1–14:22)
*Round Two (15:1–21:34)
*Round Three (22:1–27:23)
*Interlude – A Poem on Wisdom (28:1–28)
*Job's Summing Up (29:1–31:40)
The Dialogue section is composed in the format of poetry with distinctive syntax and grammar. The first speech of Eliphaz in
chapters 4 and 5 can be broken down into three main sections:
*Job 4:1-11: Eliphaz wonders that Job should fall into such despair, despite having comforted so many people in trouble, and having been so pious, so Eliphaz accuses Job of forgetting the great truth that the righteous never perish under affliction—calamity only destroys the wicked.
*Job 4:12-5:7: Eliphaz tries to warn Job about complaining against God because only the ungodly resent the dealings of God and by their impatience bring down his wrath upon them.
*Job 5:8-27: Eliphaz appeals to Job to follow a different course, to seek after God, for God only smites to heal or to correct, to draw people to himself and away from evil.
Eliphaz: The experience of the fool (5:1–7)
In this section Eliphaz responds directly to Job regarding Job's request for someone to answer him. Eliphaz compared Job's current experiences with those of persons who would be the opposite of the 'wise' (implying that Job is a fool), as these calamities are generally regarded as the fate of the wicked, according to the classical retribution theology.
Eliphaz appeals to the obvious insights encapsulated in proverbial sayings (4:8, 'those who plough iniquity and sow trouble reap the same'; 5:2, 'Surely vexation kills the fool, and jealousy slays the simple').
![Job and his friends](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/8c/Job_and_his_friends.jpg)
Verse 1
:
liphaz said:''"Call out now;''
::''Is there anyone who will answer you?''
::''And to which of the holy ones will you turn?"''
*"Holy ones": is rendered in Greek
Septuagint
The Greek Old Testament, or Septuagint (, ; from the la, septuaginta, lit=seventy; often abbreviated ''70''; in Roman numerals, LXX), is the earliest extant Greek translation of books from the Hebrew Bible. It includes several books beyond th ...
as “holy angels” (cf. Job 1:6; 2:1; 4:18).
Job later responds that he desires for 'such a mediator to present his case before God' (Job 9:33; 16:19–21).
Eliphaz suggests to commit one's cause to God who will reward the righteous (5:8–27)
This section can be divided into parts comprising verses 8–16, verses 17–26 and verse 27 as the conclusion of Eliphaz's first speech. Verse 8 starts a new topic with a 'strong adversative' "As for me" (or "But I") to commend a solution that Job "put his matter" (or "commit his cause") to God. Ironically, in the whole book, only Job who does talk to God, whereas all others restrict to 'pontificating about God'. The last statement for this first part (verse 16) emphasizes again the negative aspect of the retributive justice with 'a declaration that injustice has shut its mouth'. The next part (verses 17–26) deals with God acting in 'reproving' and 'disciplining', emphasizing the positive aspect of the doctrine of retribution, that the righteous will be rewarded. Eliphaz suggests that 'Job's only task was to apply the traditional teachings to himself, not to persist in his protest' (verse 27); it is the climax to Eliphaz's first speech.
Verse 17
:
liphaz said:''“Behold, blessed is the one whom God reproves;
::''therefore despise not the discipline of the Almighty.''
*"Blessed is the one": a standard wisdom phrase that is used, among others, in Psalm 1:1.
*"Almighty": translated from the word "''
Shaddai''"; this is the first of 31 occurrences in the Book of Job.
[Note on Job 5:17 in NET Bible]
Despite his vision in
Job 4:17, Eliphaz presents a faulty opinion in 5:17 about the disciplinary view of suffering (which will later be corrected by Elihu), because Job's suffering is not due to God's discipline.
See also
*Related
Bible
The Bible (from Koine Greek , , 'the books') is a collection of religious texts or scriptures that are held to be sacred in Christianity, Judaism, Samaritanism, and many other religions. The Bible is an anthologya compilation of texts of a ...
parts:
Job 3
Job 3 is the third chapter of the Book of Job in the Hebrew Bible or the Old Testament of the Christian Bible.Holman Illustrated Bible Handbook. Holman Bible Publishers, Nashville, Tennessee. 2012. The book is anonymous; most scholars believe it ...
,
Job 42
Job 42 is the 42nd (and the final) chapter of the Book of Job in the Hebrew Bible or the Old Testament of the Christian Bible.Holman Illustrated Bible Handbook. Holman Bible Publishers, Nashville, Tennessee. 2012. The book is anonymous; most s ...
,
Psalm 1
Psalm 1 is the first psalm of the Book of Psalms, beginning in the English King James Version: "Blessed is the man", and forming "an appropriate prologue" to the whole collection.Kirkpatrick, A. F. (1906)Cambridge Bible for Schools and Collegeson ...
References
Sources
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External links
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Jewish
Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...
translations:
*
Iyov - Job - Chapter 5 (Judaica Press)translation
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*_
Christian_
Christians_()_are_people_who_follow_or_adhere_to_Christianity,_a__monotheistic__Abrahamic_religion_based_on_the_life_and_teachings_of_Jesus_Christ._The_words_''Christ''_and_''Christian''_derive_from_the_Koine_Greek_title_''Christós''_(Χρι_...