Study notes

Job 6

Introducing JobWho wrote it, when, why, and what to look for as you read

4:1–31:40 Section

Eliphaz and Bildad each spoke three times. Zophar spoke twice. All of their speeches are recorded as long poems.

Eliphaz, Bildad and Zophar explained the reason why they thought Job was suffering. Throughout his life, Eliphaz had noticed that trouble came to foolish people. Suffering was how they were taught as well as punished for their sins. Eliphaz believed that this was a pattern for how things work in the world. He believed that it was happening in Job’s case.

Bildad had noticed that God didn’t bring judgement against people who hadn’t sinned. This was a lesson that people had taught for hundreds of years. Bildad believed it was a pattern for how things work in the world. So he thought that Job and his family were being punished for their sins.

Zophar was sure that ungodly people are always punished. He believed that this is how things had always been in the world. He was sure that God was bringing judgement on Job for sins Job had committed.

Job answered Eliphaz, Bildad and Zophar each time after they spoke. Job was sad and angry because his friends said things that weren’t helpful. Many of the things they said were true. But the patterns they noticed in life didn’t apply to Job’s case. Job hadn’t sinned in secret. Job didn’t claim to have never sinned. But he knew that God wasn’t punishing him for his sins. Job knew that he had lived the way God wanted people to live. His friends didn’t understand him. They accused him falsely.

Job believed that God did understand him. Job believed that God knew that he wasn’t guilty of secret sins. Job wanted God to explain why his life had become so difficult. Job was very confused by God and angry at him. But Job continued to have respect for God and to avoid evil. He did this even though he was suffering terribly. This showed that Job had wisdom and understanding.

6:1–7:21

Job responds by criticizing his counselors and questioning God (chapters 6 and 7). He explains his intense words by indicating his deep "grief" or "anguish" (6:2–3; 7:11). Job states that Eliphaz has not provided comfort or sympathy as a friend. Instead, Eliphaz chose to argue about out of date religious or theological ideas.

6:3–4

In the Old Testament, arrows symbolize danger, disease, and destruction from God (7:20; 16:12–13; Deuteronomy 32:23–24, 42; Psalms 7:12–13; 38:2; 64:7; 91:5–6; Lamentations 2:4; 3:12–13; Ezekiel 5:16).

6:6

The tasteless food … the white of an egg? Job's complaint in the form of a word puzzle (riddle) probably refers to both Eliphaz's weak advice and the situation God allowed him to endure that Job hates.

6:9

At one time, both the prophets Moses and Elijah asked God to end their lives (Numbers 11:15; 1 Kings 19:4).

6:14–27

Job and his friends might have shared a covenant (special agreement) of loyalty and faith (Hebrew khesed; see Genesis 21:23; Exodus 15:13; 1 Chronicles 16:34). This bond would have made them like brothers, those who protect, and friends he could trust (Job 6:14–15; 6:21–23, 27). If they were in a covenant with one another, Job was accusing his friends of violating their covenant with him.

6:19

The city of Tema, located in the northern Arabian desert, was at the place roads crossed from Damascus to Mecca and from the Persian Gulf to Aqaba (Isaiah 21:14; Jeremiah 25:23). They might have named it after an ancestor who descended from Ishmael (Genesis 25:15). It was different from "Teman," which was Eliphaz’s home in Edom.
Sheba, situated in southwest Arabia, was a trading city for valuable goods (Psalm 72:10, 15; Isaiah 60:6; Jeremiah 6:20; Ezekiel 27:22–23; 38:13).

6:27

even cast lots for an orphan: Job once protected orphans (31:17, 21). He used a common saying to show his counselors' lack of compassion for those who had no one to defend them (see 17:5).

6:30

Can my mouth not discern malice?: Job might have been referring to his earlier comment about a "tasteless" and unpleasant diet (6:6–7).

Verse notes: Adapted by Mission Mutual (Aquifer Open Study Notes) from Tyndale Open Study Notes © 2023 Tyndale House Publishers. CC BY-SA 4.0. Section notes: Biblica Study Notes © 2023 Biblica, Inc. CC BY-SA 4.0, via BibleAquifer. About the sources