How does Job 5:7 align with the concept of original sin? Immediate Literary Context Eliphaz, speaking to Job, argues that suffering is an inescapable aspect of human existence. Though his pastoral application to Job is misguided, his aphorism in 5:7 is given biblical affirmation when later Scripture reiterates humanity’s universal sin-trouble condition (Psalm 51:5; Romans 3:23). Original Hebrew Nuances • “Man” (אָדָם, ʼādām) recalls Adam, anchoring the statement in humanity’s common ancestor. • “Born” (יּוּלַד, yullad) is passive, stressing an inherited condition, not a chosen one. • “Trouble” (עָמָל, ʽāmāl) denotes misery produced by moral perversity (cf. Psalm 7:14). The lexeme regularly pairs with sin and curse motifs in Wisdom literature. • “Sparks fly upward” is a natural law illustration; the inevitability of upward-rising cinders mirrors the inevitability of Adam’s offspring inheriting adversity. Canonical Connection to Original Sin 1. Corporate Solidarity in Adam – Romans 5:12, 19 explains that “sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin.” Job 5:7 describes the experiential result of that forensic reality: perpetual trouble. 2. Inherited Nature – Psalm 51:5 “Surely I was sinful at birth.” Job 5:7 likewise roots trouble at birth, supporting the doctrine that corruption precedes personal acts. 3. Universality – Ecclesiastes 7:20; 1 Kings 8:46; Romans 3:23 echo Job’s observation that no descendant of Adam escapes the fallen condition. 4. Inevitable Consequence – Genesis 3:17-19 details that toil and pain accompany the curse; Job 5:7 is a Wisdom restatement of Genesis 3 in proverbial form. Historical Exegesis • Augustine (Contra Julianum 6.5.15) cited Job 5:7 to reinforce inherited sinfulness. • Aquinas (ST I-II, 85.5) classified the verse as evidence that human nature, though good in creation, is now wounded. • Reformers (Calvin, Institutes II.1.5) used it to argue that misery is native, not accidental, to post-fall humanity. Philosophical and Behavioral Observations Empirical studies of moral development reveal a universal bias toward self-interest in infants (e.g., Yale Infant Cognition Center findings). Such data coheres with Scripture’s claim that fallen inclination emerges early, not merely as a social construct. Christological Fulfillment Original sin’s problem finds its antithesis in the Second Adam: “In Christ all will be made alive” (1 Corinthians 15:22). Job anticipates redemptive hope in 19:25: “I know that my Redeemer lives.” Trouble’s inevitability drives the narrative toward the necessity of resurrection, historically secured “on the third day” (1 Corinthians 15:4) and attested by over five hundred eyewitnesses (v.6), as collated in early creedal material dated within five years of the event. Practical Application Recognizing that trouble’s root is original sin prevents naïve optimism about human perfectibility and drives seekers to the sole remedy: repentance and faith in the risen Christ (Acts 17:30-31). For believers, Job 5:7 cultivates realistic expectations while magnifying grace (Romans 8:23). Conclusion Job 5:7 aligns seamlessly with the doctrine of original sin by asserting that adversity is congenital to humanity, a direct consequence of Adam’s fall, universally observed, textually secure, philosophically coherent, and ultimately answered only in the redemptive work of Jesus Christ. |
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