Job 22:1 - Meaning and Application

Eliphaz is implying that because Job complained so much about his suffering, he must have thought God was unjust in afflicting him. That was a forced and unfair suggestion, and Job was far from thinking that way. Still, what Eliphaz says here is true in itself, even if it is wrongly applied to Job.

First, when God does us good, it is not because he owes us anything. If God were actually in our debt, then someone might try to argue that he is unfair when he afflicts us. But anyone who claims that he has done enough good to make God his debtor should prove that claim, and then he will not lose his reward (Romans 11:35). Who has ever given God anything so that God must pay him back?

Eliphaz is really showing that even the best person’s righteousness and moral perfection do not help God in any way. Because of that, such goodness cannot earn anything from him. Human piety, or devotion to God, brings God no profit and no gain (Job 22:1, Job 22:2). If anything could earn God’s favor, it would be our godliness, our righteousness, and our upright conduct. If that does not earn it, then nothing else will. If a person cannot make God his debtor by obedience, honesty, and holiness, then surely he cannot do it by cleverness, learning, or worldly skill.

So Eliphaz asks whether any person can truly be useful to God. The answer is no. A wise person may be useful to himself. Our wisdom and our devotion to God are great blessings to us, and they are likely to keep blessing us. Wisdom helps us know how to live (Ecclesiastes 10:10). Godliness is useful in every way (1 Timothy 4:8). If you are wise, you are wise for your own good (Proverbs 9:12). The benefits of religion are far greater than its losses, and that becomes clear when they are weighed fairly. But can a human being be useful to God in the same way? No. God is perfectly complete, so nothing can be added to him. Man is weak and limited, so he cannot give God any real benefit. Can the light of a candle help the sun, or can a drop from a bucket help the ocean? A wise person can help himself with guidance, protection, honor, and comfort. He can even enrich his own life with wisdom. But can he make God richer or better? No. God does not need us or our service. We are lost without him, but he is perfectly happy without us. Even if our way were completely perfect, what would God gain from it? And since our way falls so far short of perfection, the answer is even clearer.

Second, when God corrects or rebukes us, it is not because he is afraid of us or jealous of us (Job 22:4). Eliphaz means, “Does God rebuke you because he fears you, or bring you down from your prosperity because he worries you may become too great for him?” Some rulers do act that way. They try to hold down a rising subject so he will not become a threat. Satan made a similar lie to our first parents, saying that God kept them from the tree of knowledge because he feared they would become like gods and rival him. But that was a wicked lie. God corrects the good because he loves them, never because he fears them. He does not go looking for a quarrel with people or accuse them out of concern that they might diminish his honor or damage his rule.

People in authority often punish others out of fear. Pharaoh oppressed Israel because he feared them. Herod killed the children of Bethlehem because he feared the child Jesus. The Jews persecuted Christ and his apostles for the same reason. But God never acts that way. He does not twist justice because he is afraid of anyone (Job 35:5-8).