(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?
It is remarkable that Eliphaz maketh use of the same word as Satan did; Put forth thine hand, said Satan to GOD, and touch all that he hath, and he will curse thee to thy face; chap. 1:11. So again, chap 2:5. And here Eliphaz talks of Job being touched, and now he shows what he is. The whole of Eliphaz's charge is directed, not to comfort the mourner, not to assuage his afflictions, not to console his mind under the pleasing hope, that though outward tribulations were great and heavy upon him, yet the LORD was his friend: But the whole tendency of this man's speech, in those verses, is directed to prove that Job's iniquity was found out, and that his hypocrisy was discovered. Reader! observe these things, and then look at Jobadiah The greatest affliction a child of GOD can feel from the taunts of his enemies, is certainly that which would tempt him to suspect the LORD had forsaken him. David gives an instance of this, when, in the case of his flight from Absalom, Shimei came forth to curse him: the curses of Shimei he could bear, for he saw the LORD'S hand in this trial. But when the taunt was from many, that there was no help for him in his GOD, then the cup of his sorrow run over. As if he had said, LORD! if it were so, I should be ruined indeed: But no; in the midst of all, thou, O LORD, art a shield for me, my glory, and the lifter-up of my head: see 2 Samuel 16:5-8. See also Psalms 3:1-8. both the title and the whole of the Psalm. But when the Reader hath paid all due attention to this interesting subject, as it relates to Job, and David, and the faithful in all ages, I beg of him not to overlook Him who, in his ascent to the same hill as David trod; the Mount of Olives, was assaulted by the powers of darkness, and tempted by the enemy to the same distrust. Oh! precious JESUS! how faded, and shrunk away into nothing, do appear the trials and afflictions of the best of thy servants, in their hours of sorrow, when thy unequalled agonies in temptation are brought forward to view? Luke 22:39-44. Reader! I beseech you, turn to this interesting passage.