Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Job 22:3
[Is it] any pleasure to the Almighty, that thou art righteous? or [is it] gain [to him], that thou makest thy ways perfect?
3. Is it any pleasure ] Or, advantage, concern; see on ch. Job 21:21. The idea that men’s actions cannot affect God is common in the Book, see ch. Job 7:20, Job 35:5-8. Job 22:2-3 go together, and express this single conception that God’s treatment of men is not due to any respect He has to Himself, but is strictly according to the character of men.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
Is it any pleasure to the Almighty that thou art righteous? – This is the same sentiment which was advanced in the previous verse. The meaning is, that it can be no advantage to God that a man is righteous. He is not dependent on man for happiness, and cannot be deterred from dealing justly with him because he is in danger of losing anything. In this sense, it is true. God has pleasure in holiness wherever it is, and is pleased when people are righteous; but it is not true that he is dependent on the character of his creatures for his own happiness, or that people can lay him under obligation by their own righteousness. Eliphaz applies this general truth to Job, probably, because he understood him as complaining of the dealings of God with him, as if he had laid God under obligation by his upright life. He supposes that it was implied in the remarks of Job, that he had been so upright, and had been of so much consequence, that God ought to have continued him in a state of prosperity. This supposition, if Job ever had it, Eliphaz correctly meets, and shows him that he was not so profitable to God that he could not do without him. Yet, do people not often feel thus? Do ministers of the gospel not sometimes feel thus? Do we not sometimes feel thus in relation to some man eminent for piety, wisdom, or learning? Do we not feel as if God could not do without him, and that there was a sort of necessity that he should keep him alive? Yet, how often are such people cut down, in the very midst of their usefulness, to show
(1) that God is not dependent on them; and
(2) to keep them from pride, as if they were necessary to the execution of the divine plans; and
(3) to teach his people their dependence on Him, and not on frail, erring mortals. When the church places its reliance on a human arm, God very often suddenly knocks the prop away.
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
Job 22:3
Is it any pleasure to the Almighty that thou art righteous?
Gods pleasure in mans righteousness
To this Eliphaz we cannot take kindly. There is so much in him that reminds us of the Pharisee of our Lords day. With all his conscientiousness–and it is remarkable what sins against God and our brother are committed under the garb of conscientiousness–he seems to be one of those who speak wickedly for God. Looking at the argument of the Temanite in this chapter, it is, at best, a piece of sophistry. The words of the text seem humble words, so calculated to move us in the direction of self-repression; but we are not required to build humility upon a lie.
1. This verse is but an expansion of the thought contained in the previous verse, which reads thus, Can a man be profitable unto God, as he that is wise may be profitable unto himself? The force of this comparison tends to disarm criticism, for the least taught among Christian people can never think they are doing God the service they are rendering themselves. In those cases in which men think they are in some way doing God a splendid service, their presumption is its own condemnation. But such a thought does not enter Christian believing minds. What are they to say to the challenge of the next verse? Is there not something true within us that rises up against its merciless and terrible conclusion? A man may be far from as profitable to God as unto himself. He must feel that all the weight of obligation is on his side, since God alone is the source of all his goodness and power; and yet he may, I think he must, if he have a spark of the Divine life and light in him, resist so fearful and disheartening a conclusion as that God has no pleasure in his rectitude, and that he is all loss and no gain to God.
(1) Such a conclusion is most disheartening to endeavours after goodness. Practically carried into the inner life of men, it would be fatal to that goodness. There can be little faith in a goodness that is not nurtured by love and fed by willing cheerfulness. The difference between a Divine compulsion and the sort of thing called compulsion among men, is that the former is made up of affection, the other of necessity. A Divine compulsion, beginning with love, creates an obedience which becomes more and more congenial and native to the soul of the subject of it. We all need educating in virtue and goodness. Human nature has to be raised and sanctified by the energy of Divine grace. The righteous man is the creation of that Divine grace which comes to the aid of the struggling one in his contest with dark, evil forces. And the more successful will he be in that contest, the more clearly he discerns what that Divine force is which is helping him. Most discouraging is it to all endeavours after a better life that we should doubt the pleasure of the Eternal in those endeavours. If we do so, we misjudge our relation to the Infinite. It will be as new life to us when we learn to believe in the words of Jesus about the Father. Against the unfaith of men in this Divine Fatherhood, we have constantly to contend.
(2) Such a conclusion is also dishonouring to God. It is against the entire scope and tone of Divine revealings from age to age, up to the day when John, the latest seer of the New Testament, spoke of the God of love. It dishonours Him, because it takes away from Him some of those finer instincts which all men worthy of the name have. We take pleasure in endeavours to please us–else we are scarcely human. We allow for infirmity and frailty; and it were indeed a hard and cruel faith about God to deny Him such instincts. And surely God must be pleased with that work into which He throws most of His own pure soul and Spirit. The more of the Divine self in anyone, the truer and more complete the Divine satisfaction.
2. Consider what of truth we can find in these words.
(1) It would be vastly mischievous were we to come to look upon that righteousness as our own, and so try to sever the stream from the fount. It is ours only because it is Gods gift. All our righteousness is of God.
(2) There may be a high-mindedness in Christian service which finds needed correction in the thought that God is not so much served by us as we are served by Him.
3. We need to feel that all the weight of obligations is on our side. When we think of the Divine pleasure and gain, we cannot but think how beneficent that pleasure is. We cannot serve God without a recompense. Yet there are many who shrink from God, as though He were the receiver, instead of the Giver, of all good. They start back from duty as though it would be fatal to their joy. Nothing He commands but for your good. Nothing He orders but for your eternal delight. (G. J. Proctor.)
Fuente: Biblical Illustrator Edited by Joseph S. Exell
Verse 3. Is it any pleasure to the Almighty] Infinite in his perfections, he can neither gain nor lose by the wickedness or righteousness of men.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
Any pleasure, i.e. such a pleasure as he needs for his own ease and contentment, without which he could not be happy, as appears by the foregoing and following words; for otherwise God is oft said to delight in the good actions of his people, to wit, so far as to approve and accept them.
That thou makest thy ways perfect; that thy life is free from blemish, as thou pretendest, but falsely, as I shall show.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
3. pleasureaccession ofhappiness; God has pleasure in man’s righteousness (Ps45:7), but He is not dependent on man’s character for Hishappiness.
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
[Is it] any pleasure to the Almighty that thou art righteous?…. It is not; the Lord indeed takes pleasure in his people, not as sinners, but as righteous; and as they are considered such in Christ, he is well pleased for his righteousness’ sake, and with it, being agreeable to his nature, will, and law; and with his people in Christ, in whom they are accepted, having imputed the righteousness of his Son unto them, and so they stand before him unblamable and irreprovable, and he takes pleasure in the work of his own hands upon them, called the good pleasure of his will, in the new man formed after his image in righteousness and true holiness, in the graces of his Spirit, and in the exercise of them, faith, hope, love, humility, fear of God, c. it is a pleasure to him to hear their prayers and praises, and to observe their ready and cheerful obedience to his will but then all this gives him no new pleasure, or adds anything to the complacency of his mind; he would have had as much delight and pleasure within himself, if there had never been an holy angel in heaven, or a righteous man on earth; he has no such pleasure in either as to be made more happy thereby, or so as to receive any “gain” or profit from it, as the next clause explains it. Some render it, “that thou justifiest thyself” k, or “that thou art just”, or “seemest to be righteous to thyself” l; a self-righteous person is not pleasing to God; it is no pleasure to him when a man seeks for justification by his own works, or reckons them his righteousness; the publican that confessed his sin was rather justified with God than the Pharisee that applauded his own righteousness; such that are conceited of their own righteousness, and despise others, are an offence to God, a “smoke in his nose”, Isa 65:5; for the righteousness of such is not real righteousness in the account of God, and according to his law; it has only the shadow and appearance of one, but is not truly so; and besides, to seek righteousness this way is going contrary to the revealed will of God, to the Gospel scheme of justification by faith in Christ’s righteousness, without the works of the law, and is a setting aside his righteousness, and frustrating and making null and void the death of Christ, and therefore can never be pleasing in the sight of God:
or [is it] gain [to him] that thou makest thy ways perfect? no man’s ways are perfect before God, even the best of men have detects in their works, and failings in their walk and conversations: some men’s ways are indeed clean in their own eyes, and perfect in their own conceit; and if Eliphaz thought Job such an one, he was mistaken, see Job 9:20; there are others, who are in a sense unblamable in their walk and conversation; that is, are not guilty of any notorious crime, but exercise a conscience void of offence towards God and man, walk in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless; and yet this is no “gain” to God; for what does such a man give to him? or what does he receive of his hands? see Job 35:7. This was indeed Job’s case and character.
k “quod justifices te”, Junius Tremellius. l “Quum Justus es apud teipsum”, Schmidt “quod tibi justus esse videris”, Michaelis.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
3. Pleasure to the Almighty , same word as in Job 21:21, which see. It is the necessity of every moral being to delight in those moral qualities that are like its own. A righteous God must take pleasure in that which is righteous. Perhaps there is no object so pleasing to the divine mind as holiness, matured through suffering and trial.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
Job 22:3. Is it any pleasure? &c. Is it any advantage. Heath.
Fuente: Commentary on the Holy Bible by Thomas Coke
Job 22:3 [Is it] any pleasure to the Almighty, that thou art righteous? or [is it] gain [to him], that thou makest thy ways perfect?
Ver. 3. Is it any pleasure to the Almighty, that thou art righteous? ] Num volupe est Omnipotenti? &c. Is anything added to his joy? Or needeth he thy manners and virtues to the making up of his perfection? Nothing less, surely. True it is, that he soliciteth suitors, Joh 4:23 , and is well pleased with our performances, Psa 51:6 . But it is for our sakes, and to our benefit, and not his own. Like as the sun, when he casteth abroad his beams in the world, seemeth to receive light from some other creatures, whereas in truth they all receive light from him, and not he from them; so it is here: and as the same sun draws up vapours from the earth, not for itself, but to render them again to the earth, to moisten and fatten it; so God, the true Sun of our souls, draweth from us our sighs and services, not for his own profit, but to rain them down again upon us in so many blessings.
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
Is it. ? Figure of speech Erotesis. App-6.
THE ALMIGHTY. Hebrew Shaddai. App-4.
infinite = without end.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
any pleasure: 1Ch 29:17, Psa 147:10, Psa 147:11, Pro 11:1, Pro 11:20, Pro 12:22, Pro 15:8, Mal 2:17, Phi 4:18
thou makest: Job 23:10-12, Psa 39:1, Psa 119:3-6, Psa 119:59, Act 24:16, 2Co 7:1
Reciprocal: 2Sa 22:33 – perfect Job 35:7 – General Job 41:11 – Who Psa 16:2 – my goodness Pro 9:12 – General Luk 17:10 – General
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Job 22:3. Is it any pleasure to the Almighty that thou art righteous? That is, any such pleasure as he needs in order to his happiness? Heath renders it, any advantage. God, we know, approves of and accepts the good actions of his people, and is often said in Scripture to delight in them; but certainly cannot be advantaged by them. He needs not us or our services. We are undone, for ever undone, without him: but he is happy, for ever happy, without us.