JOB’S THREE FRIENDS

 “Iron sharpeneth iron” Pro 27:17

It will be helpful, before examining the real intent and purpose of this book, to take a short look at the other characters in the story of Job. We will begin with Job’s three friends. Since their discourse with Job takes up a large portion of the Book of Job, it would be hard to completely disregard them and what they had to say. However, it is probably more important to examine what their arguments provoked Job to say, and that we will incorporate later. Although much of what they had to say was irrelevant to Job’s situation, we must not dismiss them as misguided old men. There is still much wisdom and insight in what they put forth. While not examining in depth their conclusions about Job, it is important to understand why they thought Job was going through this trial. These men were not fools, but could be regarded as very wise in their understanding of how men view the workings of God. The fact that they were friends with Job, reveals that he esteemed them very highly. It was only when Job saw that their arguments missed the mark, did he begin to have bitter disagreements with them. Much of what they said is the prevailing thought of why people suffer; but as we will learn from them, man’s thoughts are not God’s thoughts, and man’s ways are not God’s ways.

Psa 141:5 Let the righteous smite me; it shall be a kindness: and let him reprove me; it shall be an excellent oil, which shall not break my head: for yet my prayer also shall be in their calamities.

Pro 27:6 Faithful are the wounds of a friend; but the kisses of an enemy are deceitful.

Pro 27:17 Iron sharpeneth iron; so a man sharpeneth the countenance of his friend.

Isa 55:8 For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD.
9 For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.

The first to speak was Eliphaz, the eldest of the three. At first he is very kind and sympathetic to Job, not making any outright accusations. He tries instead to cause Job, to come to see on his own, what was plain to Eliphaz and his companions. Eliphaz began to hint that Job was being corrected for some secret sin, and that he needed to do some genuine soul searching to discover what he had done to displease God.  When Job rejected his arguments, Eliphaz finally, in frustration, accused him of outright wickedness. The common response of others, whether they say it or not, is that we must have done something to deserve our suffering. Also, when we personally are going through rough times, we tend to gravitate to this level of thinking, asking ourselves, ‘What have I done to deserve this?’

Job 4:1 Then Eliphaz the Temanite answered and said,
2 If we assay to commune with thee, wilt thou be grieved? but who can withhold himself from speaking?
3 Behold, thou hast instructed many, and thou hast strengthened the weak hands.
4 Thy words have upholden him that was falling, and thou hast strengthened the feeble knees.
5 But now it is come upon thee, and thou faintest; it toucheth thee, and thou art troubled.
6 Is not this thy fear, thy confidence, thy hope, and the uprightness of thy ways?
7 Remember, I pray thee, who ever perished, being innocent? or where were the righteous cut off?
8 Even as I have seen, they that plow iniquity, and sow wickedness, reap the same.
9 By the blast of God they perish, and by the breath of his nostrils are they consumed.

Job 5:17 Behold, happy is the man whom God correcteth: therefore despise not thou the chastening of the Almighty:
18 For he maketh sore, and bindeth up: he woundeth, and his hands make whole.
19 He shall deliver thee in six troubles: yea, in seven there shall no evil touch thee.
20 In famine he shall redeem thee from death: and in war from the power of the sword.
21 Thou shalt be hid from the scourge of the tongue: neither shalt thou be afraid of destruction when it cometh.
22 At destruction and famine thou shalt laugh: neither shalt thou be afraid of the beasts of the earth.
23 For thou shalt be in league with the stones of the field: and the beasts of the field shall be at peace with thee.
24 And thou shalt know that thy tabernacle shall be in peace; and thou shalt visit thy habitation, and shalt not sin.
25 Thou shalt know also that thy seed shall be great, and thine offspring as the grass of the earth.
26 Thou shalt come to thy grave in a full age, like as a shock of corn cometh in his season.
27 Lo this, we have searched it, so it is; hear it, and know thou it for thy good.

Job 22:1 Then Eliphaz the Temanite answered and said,
2 Can a man be profitable unto God, as he that is wise may be profitable unto himself?
3 Is it any pleasure to the Almighty, that thou art righteous? or is it gain to him that thou makest thy ways perfect?
4 Will he reprove thee for fear of thee? will he enter with thee into judgment?
5 Is not thy wickedness great? and thine iniquities infinite?
6 For thou hast taken a pledge from thy brother for nought, and stripped the naked of their clothing.
7 Thou hast not given water to the weary to drink, and thou hast withholden bread from the hungry.
8 But as for the mighty man, he had the earth; and the honourable man dwelt in it.
9 Thou has sent widows away empty, and the arms of the fatherless have been broken.
10 Therefore snares are round about thee, and sudden fear troubleth thee

The final thing we will say about Eliphaz, concerns his vision of the night. Scripturally, it could have been a message from God, as He certainly works through dreams. The vision’s message also had some of the same elements of reasoning that Elihu would later use. Even the Lord Himself used a similar statement when He spoke to Job out of the whirlwind. Now, it is not possible to ascertain just when Eliphaz had his dream, either before his encounter with Job or in the days when they sat in silence, but the vision had a profound effect upon him. The voice that spoke had also given him great food for thought—“Shall mortal man be more just than God? shall a man be more pure than his maker?” We could possibly ascertain that God was reaching out to Job through the vision of Eliphaz.

Job 4:12 Now a thing was secretly brought to me, and mine ear received a little thereof. (Eliphaz speaking)
13 In thoughts from the visions of the night, when deep sleep falleth on men,
14 Fear came upon me, and trembling, which made all my bones to shake.
15 Then a spirit passed before my face; the hair of my flesh stood up:
16 It stood still, but I could not discern the form thereof: an image was before mine eyes, there was silence, and I heard a voice, saying,
17 Shall mortal man be more just than God? shall a man be more pure than his maker?

Job 35:1 Elihu spake moreover, and said,
2 Thinkest thou this to be right, that thou saidst, My righteousness is more than God's?

Job 40:6 Then answered the LORD unto Job out of the whirlwind, and said,
7 Gird up thy loins now like a man: I will demand of thee, and declare thou unto me.
8 Wilt thou also disannul my judgment? wilt thou condemn me, that thou mayest be righteous?

Bildad was the second to speak. He accused Job of being a hypocrite and forsaking God. After listening to Job reject the argument of Eliphaz, which he had totally concurred with, he was much bolder to speak out in his condemnation of Job. He accused Job of outwardly implying that God is unjust. He entreated Job to return to God, forsake his sin, and plead for God’s mercy and forgiveness. How often have we played judge, jury, and executioner when it comes to the trials of others; or have placed ourselves in the stead of God in letting others know just exactly what they have done wrong? How often do we drown our own selves in discouragement and despair while we listen to the condemnations of the Devil through our own inner thoughts?

Job 8:1 Then answered Bildad the Shuhite, and said,
2 How long wilt thou speak these things? and how long shall the words of thy mouth be like a strong wind?
3 Doth God pervert judgment? or doth the Almighty pervert justice?
4 If thy children have sinned against him, and he have cast them away for their transgression;
5 If thou wouldest seek unto God betimes, and make thy supplication to the Almighty;
6 If thou wert pure and upright; surely now he would awake for thee, and make the habitation of thy righteousness prosperous.
7 Though thy beginning was small, yet thy latter end should greatly increase.
8 For inquire, I pray thee, of the former age, and prepare thyself to the search of their fathers:
9 (For we are but of yesterday, and know nothing, because our days upon earth are a shadow:)
10 Shall not they teach thee, and tell thee, and utter words out of their heart?
11 Can the rush grow up without mire? can the flag grow without water?
12 Whilst it is yet in his greenness, and not cut down, it withereth before any other herb.
13 So are the paths of all that forget God; and the hypocrite's hope shall perish:

Zophar, possibly being the youngest of the three, was the last to speak his thoughts. He had become a boiling teapot by the time it was his turn to offer Job advice. In his mind, all of Job’s arguments were only meant to justify himself and to accuse God of being unjust. He even accused Job of mocking God and of being proud of his wickedness. To him, Job had become such a self-righteous hypocrite that, in spite of blatant outright sins, he still saw himself as pure before God. Many there are who deem it their duty to seek out and condemn the true servants of God. They accuse them of pious wickedness, pride, and hypocrisy because they have no perception of true spiritual matters. We allow ourselves to be beaten down by satanic thoughts that inwardly accuse us of hypocrisy and sin, while we profess to be a Christian. We condemn and are condemned because we do not understand the workings of God in our lives; we do not understand the spiritual warfare that goes on inside of believers—the constant battle of our two natures; nor do we recognize the workings of Satan and of the world as they seek to discourage us.

Job 11:1 Then answered Zophar the Naamathite, and said,
2 Should not the multitude of words be answered? and should a man full of talk be justified?
3 Should thy lies make men hold their peace? and when thou mockest, shall no man make thee ashamed?
4 For thou hast said, My doctrine is pure, and I am clean in thine eyes

Job 20:1 Then answered Zophar the Naamathite, and said,
2 Therefore do my thoughts cause me to answer, and for this I make haste.
3 I have heard the check of my reproach, and the spirit of my understanding causeth me to answer.
4 Knowest thou not this of old, since man was placed upon earth,
5 That the triumphing of the wicked is short, and the joy of the hypocrite but for a moment?

Job 20:28 The increase of his house shall depart, and his goods shall flow away in the day of his wrath.
29 This is the portion of a wicked man from God, and the heritage appointed unto him by God.

There were three exchanges each between Job and his three friends. They had concluded that though Job professed to be righteous, he was actually a hypocrite, harboring some secret sins for which God was judging him. The reasoning of Job’s friends is similar to the reasoning’s of the world and its systems of works religions. Natural man views God as an accountant who collects and pays accordingly to what man deserves. Most people have embraced the philosophy that wicked men are punished in the earth for their deeds and good people are rewarded. Job argued against this simplistic reasoning, knowing in himself that it did not give him an answer for what he was going through. He did not claim to be perfect, but he knew that he was not being judged because of sinful acts or a wicked lifestyle. 

Job 32:1 So these three men ceased to answer Job, because he was righteous in his own eyes.

Job 9: 1 Then Job answered and said,
2 I know it is so of a truth: but how should man be just with God?
3 If he will contend with him, he cannot answer him one of a thousand.

Job 10:1 My soul is weary of my life; I will leave my complaint upon myself; I will speak in the bitterness of my soul.
2 I will say unto God, Do not condemn me; shew me wherefore thou contendest with me.
3 Is it good unto thee that thou shouldest oppress, that thou shouldest despise the work of thine hands, and shine upon the counsel of the wicked?
4 Hast thou eyes of flesh? or seest thou as man seeth?
5 Are thy days as the days of man? are thy years as man's days,
6 That thou inquirest after mine iniquity, and searchest after my sin?
7 Thou knowest that I am not wicked; and there is none that can deliver out of thine hand.

This retribution philosophy has developed out of man’s quest to be a god, determining his own destiny. It is our fallen human nature for men to try and find a reason for everything that happens in their lives. We feel we must understand why this happens or why that, because it gives us some sense of control over our lives. We have to figure out a reason for every circumstance in order to remain the captain of our own ship, to be in control of our own course. We have done this and so this has happened, we have done that and so that has happened. We do good and so good comes to us, we have sinned and so we are punished. However, each of us, like Job, must come to the realization that—first, troubles and trials are not so easy to understand; second, that in spite our best efforts, we have very little control over the events that happen to us; last, we are dealing with a sovereign God “who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will.”

Gen 3:5 For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.

Eph 1:11 In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will:

Dan 4:35 And all the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing: and he doeth according to his will in the army of heaven, and among the inhabitants of the earth: and none can stay his hand, or say unto him, What doest thou?

In summation, the lessons we can learn from Job’s discourse with his three friends are:

1. We must be careful in passing judgment upon others, and even ourselves because of outward circumstances.

1 Cor 4:3 But with me it is a very small thing that I should be judged of you, or of man's judgment: yea, I judge not mine own self.
4 For I know nothing by myself; yet am I not hereby justified: but he that judgeth me is the Lord.
5 Therefore judge nothing before the time, until the Lord come, who both will bring to light the hidden things of darkness, and will make manifest the counsels of the hearts: and then shall every man have praise of God.

Jas 4:12 There is one lawgiver, who is able to save and to destroy: who art thou that judgest another?

2. Life is not so simplistic, especially for the child of God.

Job 10:15 If I be wicked, woe unto me; and if I be righteous, yet will I not lift up my head. I am full of confusion; therefore see thou mine affliction;

Psa 44:15 My confusion is continually before me, and the shame of my face hath covered me,
16 For the voice of him that reproacheth and blasphemeth; by reason of the enemy and avenger.

3. We can not always understand what God is doing and why.

Isa 55:8 For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD.
9 For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.

4. We must “walk by faith and not by sight” when circumstances are beyond our understanding and control.

2 Cor 5:7 (For we walk by faith, not by sight:)

Psa 61:2 From the end of the earth will I cry unto thee, when my heart is overwhelmed: lead me to the rock that is higher than I.

This is not to say that we must live our lives in ignorance, because there are spiritual reasons for the things that God is doing. We are told to “be ye of an understanding heart” and to “apply thine heart to understanding.” The children of Israel, in their deliverance from Egypt and their wanderings in the wilderness, only saw the physical aspects of what God was doing, but Moses was given to know the “ways” of the Lord. Job and his friends had a certain knowledge of God, but they did not have an understanding of what God was doing in Job’s life. That is the intent and purpose of this book, that we might gain some understanding of what God is working to accomplish in our lives, especially through trials and suffering. We may never know all the answers to our questions, but at least we can know that God has a purpose that is for our good and His eternal glory.

Pro 8:5 O ye simple, understand wisdom: and, ye fools, be ye of an understanding heart.

Pro 2:1 My son, if thou wilt receive my words, and hide my commandments with thee;
2 So that thou incline thine ear unto wisdom, and apply thine heart to understanding;
3 Yea, if thou criest after knowledge, and liftest up thy voice for understanding;
4 If thou seekest her as silver, and searchest for her as for hid treasures;
5 Then shalt thou understand the fear of the LORD, and find the knowledge of God.
6 For the LORD giveth wisdom: out of his mouth cometh knowledge and understanding.

Psa 103:7 He made known his ways unto Moses, his acts unto the children of Israel.

Rom 8:28 And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.