Eliphaz (the Temanite)

Biblical Account

Eliphaz appears only in the Book of Job, where he is called "the Temanite." Teman is a place in the land of Edom. When he heard of the calamity that had befallen Job, he arranged with Bildad the Shuhite and Zophar the Naamathite to come and comfort Job (Job 2:11). Seeing Job so changed that they could scarcely recognize him, they wept and tore their robes, and they sat with him seven days and seven nights without saying a word (Job 2:12-13).

After Job poured out his lament, Eliphaz was the first to respond, and in each of the three cycles of debate he speaks first.

• First speech (chapters 4–5): He asks whether anyone innocent has ever perished (Job 4:7). Recounting words spoken by a spirit that passed before him in the night, he asserts that no mortal can be more just than God (Job 4:12-17). He urges Job not to despise the chastening of the Almighty (Job 5:17).
• Second speech (chapter 15): He rebukes Job, charging that his words undermine the fear of God, and describes at length the fate that awaits the wicked.
• Third speech (chapter 22): He accuses Job of specific sins, such as stripping the poor of their clothing and sending widows away empty-handed (Job 22:5-9). He urges Job to be reconciled to God, promising that blessing will then return.

At the conclusion of the book, God speaks directly to Eliphaz, declaring that His wrath is kindled against him and his two friends because they have not spoken of Him the thing that is right, as Job has. God then commands them to take seven bullocks and seven rams and offer a burnt offering (a sacrifice in which the whole animal is burned). The three men did as they were told, and when Job prayed for them, the Lord accepted Job (Job 42:7-10).

Significance Within Scripture

Eliphaz represents the logic of retribution—the idea that people are repaid according to their deeds—which explains suffering as punishment or chastisement for sin. Job 1–2 informs the reader at the outset that Job's suffering is not due to his sin, so Eliphaz's reasoning is shown not to fit Job's case. Teman is mentioned in Jeremiah 49:7 and Obadiah 1:8-9 as a place renowned for wisdom, and for this reason some read Eliphaz as a spokesman for the wisdom tradition.

His name does not appear in the New Testament. However, in 1 Corinthians 3:19 Paul quotes Eliphaz's statement that God "taketh the wise in their own craftiness" (Job 5:13), introducing it with the words "it is written."

Interpretations and Debates

• Rebuke and quotation: The fact that Paul quotes the words of a man whom God rebuked is frequently discussed. Many commentators hold that some of Eliphaz's statements are correct as general truths, but that the premises on which he applied them to Job, and the manner in which he did so, were mistaken. Those who affirm the inspiration of Scripture generally take this view as well: Scripture accurately records what Eliphaz said, but this does not mean that everything he said is correct.
• The night vision (Job 4:12-21): Some regard it as a revelation from God. Others see it as a subjective experience of Eliphaz's own or as the work of a spirit of uncertain origin.
• Age: Because he always speaks first and refers to "the grayheaded and very aged men" (Job 15:10), some infer that he was the eldest of the friends. The text, however, does not say so.
• Relation to the son of Esau: Genesis 36 mentions Eliphaz, the firstborn son of Esau, and his son Teman. Some traditions, including the postscript appended to the end of Job in the Septuagint, are reported to connect the Eliphaz of Job with the descendants of Esau. The Hebrew text, however, says nothing about any relationship between the two.