What is the meaning of Job 4:6? Is your reverence • Eliphaz begins by pointing to what he knows of Job’s life: deep awe for God. Proverbs 1:7 says, “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge,” and Psalm 111:10 adds that such fear brings “good understanding.” • Genuine reverence is more than emotion; it is a settled posture that shapes choices, just as 2 Chronicles 19:9 describes leaders who were to “act in the fear of the LORD, faithfully and wholeheartedly.” • In Job’s biography (Job 1:1, 8), the Holy Spirit already affirmed that Job “feared God and shunned evil.” Eliphaz appeals to that known reality. not your confidence • Eliphaz suggests that reverence itself should produce calm assurance. Proverbs 14:26 links the two: “In the fear of the LORD one has strong confidence.” • Confidence in God, not in circumstances, steadies the heart. Psalm 27:1 declares, “The LORD is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear?” • Yet Eliphaz’s tone hints that Job’s current grief looks, to him, like shaken confidence. He assumes suffering would not occur if reverence were intact—a conclusion the rest of the book proves too simplistic. and the uprightness of your ways • Eliphaz also recalls Job’s blameless conduct. Proverbs 10:9 promises, “He who walks in integrity walks securely,” and 1 Peter 3:16 calls believers to maintain “a clear conscience.” • Upright living flows from a heart bent toward God (Psalm 37:23-24). Job’s habitual righteousness—caring for the needy, refusing lust, acting justly (Job 29-31)—was public knowledge. • By pointing to Job’s uprightness, Eliphaz is urging him to remember that integrity has real, God-given value even when life turns dark. your hope? • Hope is the expectancy that God will act faithfully. Psalm 62:5 urges, “Rest in God alone, O my soul, for my hope comes from Him.” • Romans 5:4-5 explains that tested character “produces hope, and hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured into our hearts.” • Eliphaz assumes a direct link: if Job is truly upright, hope should automatically follow. Scripture does affirm that connection, yet Job’s story reveals that hope can be clouded by pain without being extinguished (Job 19:25-27). summary Job 4:6 records a friend’s challenge: “Is your reverence not your confidence, and the uprightness of your ways your hope?” Eliphaz correctly identifies three pillars of a godly life—reverence, confidence, and hope grounded in upright living. Reverence for God should fuel confidence; integrity should nourish hope. The verse reminds believers that fear of the Lord and righteous conduct are designed to anchor the soul. At the same time, the broader narrative exposes the limitation of assuming trouble always signals weak reverence. In every season, the path is the same: fear God, walk uprightly, and rest confident that such a life is never wasted in the sight of the Lord. |
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