Job 22:5-7

5 Is not thy wickedness [ra`] great [rab]? and thine iniquities [`avon] infinite [qets]?

6 For thou hast taken a pledge [chabal] from thy brother ['ach] for nought [chinnam], and stripped [pashat] the naked [`arowm] of their clothing [beged].

7 Thou hast not given water [mayim] to the weary [`ayeph] to drink [shaqah], and thou hast withholden [mana`] bread [lechem] from the hungry [ra`eb]. KJV-Interlinear

5 'Is not your wickedness great, And your iniquities without end? 6 'For you have taken pledges of your brothers without cause, And stripped men naked. 7 'To the weary you have given no water to drink, And from the hungry you have withheld bread. NASB

Now, for the first time, Eliphaz is going to make an outright accusation against Job. Without any facts to back him up, armed with only his presumption of guilt, Eliphaz has only seen the magnitude of Jobs suffering.

The friends have all along maintained that great sinners would be punished, in this life, for their sins.

The friends of Job have witnessed Jobs affliction, and therefore they presume that his suffering is due to the greatness of his sins.

The only evidence of Jobs sins, is his suffering, and the friends argue their point as though their position could not be disputed.

Do you recall how this book of Job began?

Job 1:1

1 There was a man in the land of Uz, whose name was Job, and that man was blameless, upright, fearing God, and turning away from evil. NASB

These words are from God himself. God even points Job out to Satan.

Job is probably a hundred years old, perhaps older. He has had ten children all grown up and in homes of their own. Prior to his suffering, he had amassed thousands of head of animals, and was very well to do.

Job was known throughout the region and was known by his three friends. We presume that they had known him for decades. Typically, only very good friends will come and see you when you have fallen deathly ill. General acquaintances do not visit those they do not know.

Eliphaz had no basis for his accusations, and no reason for condemning Job, except for his own biased beliefs. Biased beliefs, which are a result of a failure to advance correctly in ones spiritual life.

Job is accused of following unfair lending practices, of making loans to people using their clothing or property as collateral, of demanding excessive collateral for small loans, of employing excessive terms, and of cheating folks out of their property.

Job is accused of being inhospitable to travelers. Of refusing them water to refresh themselves, of refusing food to guests, and so forth.

But we might wonder in whose home is this conversation taking place? Who is the one being hospitable even in the face of gross insults?

Here, Eliphaz begins to overstep his place and his welcome. His premise is defective, his facts are in error, his analysis is flawed, and his conclusions are just simply wrong.

Spiritually deficient people have the capacity to discover, to analyze, and to conclude a matter correctly, but their bias toward worldly views serves as a barrier, which they voluntarily preserve and refuse to accept the truth.

Now is the time to post a prayer.