Job 5:2
Surely vexation kills the fool, and jealousy slays the simple.
English Standard Version (ESV)
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Job 5:2
Surely vexation kills the fool, and jealousy slays the simple.
English Standard Version (ESV)
This page isn't yet indexed by search engines.
What's often missed is that "wrath" and "jealousy" here aren't just abstract emotions. They describe the destructive internal turmoil and resentful complaints of someone who doesn't trust God, and this inner chaos is presented as the very thing that leads to their downfall. Eliphaz is implying that Job's complaints reveal him to be exactly this kind of foolish, self-destructive person.
Eliphaz has just challenged Job to call for help, implying that no one, not even the "saints," can answer his pleas. This verse is Eliphaz's direct response, arguing that Job's own angry complaints and impatience are actually signs of foolishness that lead to destruction, not deliverance. He's essentially accusing Job of making his own situation worse through his reactions to suffering.
Eliphaz doesn't just say that difficult emotions are unpleasant. He claims they are deadly. What does this intense language reveal about the spiritual life?
The verse uses strong words like 'kills' and 'slays' to describe the impact of internal states. Eliphaz is talking about more than just feeling bad; he's describing a destructive force that can ruin a person's life.
These aren't external enemies; they are internal battles that, left unchecked, can lead to spiritual death, severing one's connection with God and ultimately bringing ruin.
Eliphaz labels the people affected by these emotions as 'foolish' and 'simple.' What does this tell us about how the Bible defines true wisdom?
The Bible often defines 'foolishness' not by a lack of intelligence, but by a lack of wisdom in how one responds to life, particularly in suffering.
Eliphaz implies that falling prey to vexation and jealousy is the ultimate sign of not having true wisdom. It's a failure to trust God when things get tough, a characteristic he's subtly attributing to Job.
Understand the original words
ka'as · Hebrew Noun
Emotional agitation, irritation, or grief; often used to describe the internal turmoil resulting from a lack of trust in God's sovereignty.
eviyl · Hebrew Noun
In wisdom literature, one who lacks moral discernment and rejects God’s instruction, choosing a path of self-will and folly.
qin'ah · Hebrew Noun
An intense, often destructive, desire or rivalry; in a moral sense, it reflects a sinful resentment of God's blessings upon others or a covetous spirit.
pethiy · Hebrew Noun
One who is naive, open-minded to bad influence, or lacking maturity, making them easily swayed away from the path of righteousness.
This verse echoes Job 5:2 by stating that a tranquil heart is life to the body, while envy is like rot to the bones, directly linking inner turmoil and envy to physical decay, much like Job's companions suggest these emotions lead to destruction.
Proverbs 17:22This proverb offers a very similar thought to Job 5:2, explaining that a joyful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones. It highlights how internal emotional states, like wrath and envy, can have a destructive physical impact.
Psalm 73:3The Psalmist here admits to envying the arrogant when he saw the prosperity of the wicked, a sentiment Eliphaz seems to be accusing Job of feeling in Job 5:2. This shows that even righteous people can struggle with envy, and it can lead them to question God's ways.
Galatians 5:15Paul warns that if believers keep on biting and devouring one another, they will be consumed by one another. This passage illustrates the destructive nature of internal conflict and strife, much like the 'vexation' and 'jealousy' mentioned in Job 5:2 that consume a person.
1 John 3:15This verse states that everyone who hates his brother is a murderer, and that no murderer has eternal life. It connects intense negative emotions like hatred and envy to a spiritual death, mirroring the idea in Job 5:2 that these feelings can lead to destruction.
bensonJob 5:2: "For wrath killeth the foolish man, and envy slayeth the silly one."
Job 5:2 . For wrath killeth the foolish man, &c. — That is, say some, a man’s wrath and impatience prey upon his spirit, and so hasten his death. But the meaning seems rather to be, as Bishop Patrick observes, that “God in his anger and indignation destroys the wicked, and such as err from his precepts.” It is probable that Eliphaz intended to distinguish Job by the characters of foolish and silly one, to insinuate th…
jfbJob 5:2: "For wrath killeth the foolish man, and envy slayeth the silly one."
- wrath … envy—fretful and passionate complaints, such as Eliphaz charged Job with (Job 4:5; so Pr 14:30). Not, the wrath of God killeth the foolish, and His envy, &c.
What's often missed is that "wrath" and "jealousy" here aren't just abstract emotions. They describe the destructive internal turmoil and resentful complaints of someone who doesn't trust God, and this inner chaos is presented as the very thing that leads to their downfall. Eliphaz is implying that Job's complaints reveal him to be exactly this kind of foolish, self-destructive person.
Eliphaz has just challenged Job to call for help, implying that no one, not even the "saints," can answer his pleas. This verse is Eliphaz's direct response, arguing that Job's own angry complaints and impatience are actually signs of foolishness that lead to destruction, not deliverance. He's essentially accusing Job of making his own situation worse through his reactions to suffering.
Eliphaz has just challenged Job to call for help, implying that no one, not even the "saints," can answer his pleas. This verse is Eliphaz's direct response, arguing that Job's own angry complaints and impatience are actually signs of foolishness that lead to destruction, not deliverance. He's essentially accusing Job of making his own situation worse through his reactions to suffering.
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"Surely vexation kills the fool, and jealousy slays the simple." — What's often missed is that "wrath" and "jealousy" here aren't just abstract emotions. They describe the destructive internal turmoil and resentful complaints of someone who doesn't trust God, and…