What is the meaning of Job 22:10? Therefore Eliphaz has spent the first nine verses charging Job with hidden sin; the term “Therefore” ties every calamity Job faces to those accusations. Scripture often links consequence to conduct: • “Be sure your sin will find you out” (Numbers 32:23). • “Do not be deceived: God is not mocked. For whatever a man sows, that he will also reap” (Galatians 6:7). Eliphaz believes that same principle is now operative in Job’s life. Although he misjudges Job’s innocence (Job 1:8), the Spirit-inspired record faithfully preserves the argument so we can weigh it against God’s later verdict (Job 42:7-8). snares surround you The imagery is of hidden traps closing in on a prey. Eliphaz pictures Job hemmed in on every side, unable to escape the consequences he assumes must flow from secret wickedness. Other passages employ similar language: • “His own iniquities entrap the wicked man; the cords of his sin entangle him” (Proverbs 5:22). • “He will rescue you from the snare of the fowler” (Psalm 91:3)—a promise contrasting the danger with God’s deliverance. • “They spread out a net for my feet; my soul is despondent” (Psalm 57:6). Eliphaz’s logic: since Job will not admit wrongdoing, those “snares” must now be God’s just punishment. and sudden peril terrifies you Eliphaz underscores the shock value—disaster strikes “suddenly,” rattling Job’s sense of security. Similar warnings appear throughout Scripture: • “Do not fear sudden terror, nor the ruin that overtakes the wicked” (Proverbs 3:25-26), a verse promising God’s protection to the upright—again countering Eliphaz’s claim. • “Destruction will come upon them suddenly, like labor pains on a pregnant woman, and they will not escape” (1 Thessalonians 5:3). • “What the wicked dreads will overtake him” (Proverbs 10:24). Eliphaz is certain that the dread now consuming Job proves divine judgment. summary Job 22:10 captures Eliphaz’s core accusation: Job’s losses and fears are the direct, deserved outcome of hidden sin. While Eliphaz wrongly applies this counsel to a righteous sufferer, the verse still teaches a timeless truth affirmed elsewhere—sin does entangle, and judgment can fall swiftly. Later chapters reveal that God allows such dialogues so readers can discern the difference between human assumptions and God’s perfect assessment. |
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