Job 29:11-17

b. The cause of his honored position was benevolence and righteousness (Job 29:11-17)

TEXT 29:11-17

11 For when the ear heard me, then it blessed me;

And when the eye saw me, it gave witness unto me:

12 Because I delivered the poor that cried,

The fatherless also, that had none to help him.

13 The blessing of him that was ready to perish came upon me;

And I caused the widow's heart to sing for joy.

14 I put on righteousness, and it clothed me:

My justice was as a robe and a diadem.

15 I was eyes to the blind,

And feet was I to the lame.

16 I was a father to the needy:

And the cause of him that I knew not I searched out.

17 And I brake the jaws of the unrighteous,

And plucked the prey out of his teeth.

COMMENT 29:11-17

Job 29:11Job's righteousness has been vindicated by both his eyes and ears. When his hearers heard of his deeds, they praised him. Their eyes saw his impeccable conduct and also gave witness to his righteousnessGenesis 30:13; Proverbs 31:28; Psalms 72:17. The verb called me blessed (literally pronounced me happy) suggests that Job was not only blessed but that he deserved the blessings from God. All of the evidence bore witness to me, Job declares. Men declared their approval of him.

Job 29:12Job's words stand in radical tension with what Eliphaz had said in Job 22:6 ff. Job had graciously helped the poor[298] and the fatherless as in Job 24:9.

[298] See my analysis of the poor in light of world-wide Christian witness today in my The Word of God for a Broken World, LCC, 1977.

Job 29:13Ministering to those in despair evokes their blessings upon Job. Here Job speaks of high tribute and rich satisfaction for his benevolence. The verb rendered to sing for joy means to raise a ringing cry of either grief or joy. Here the context demands joy.

Job 29:14Job wore his righteousness as a robe, which was publicly visible to allPsalms 132:9; Isaiah 59:17. He was so immersed in just acts that it put on me, i.e., clothed him as a garment. Likewise shame can be worn as a garmentJob 8:22 and Psalms 132:18.

Job 29:15The social significance of Job's piety is here described in a beautiful fashion. He was eyes to the blind and feet to the lame.

Job 29:16As a father who provided for his family, Job expresses his godly natureIsaiah 22:21; 1 Corinthians 4:15. The poor were utterly helpless before the law. Job undertook the task of securing legal justice for the poor. He fed them, protected, and provided in general for their personal and social welfare. Few would even do such a thing for those with whom they were acquainted. Job sought out those who needed help, even when he did not know them personally. He acted selflessly, not as a tyrant, as he was chargedRomans 3:1 ff. So God in Christ sought us out of our darkness. Christ alone is the answer to Job's cries and our needs.

Job 29:17The word rendered jaws as in A. V. literally means fangs or gnawing teeth, not jaws. The oppressive wicked are compared to a wild animal; when his fangs are broken off, its aggressive power is destroyed. Job rescued the poor from their ruthless oppressors, but he also destroyed the power of the aggressor. He rescued them out of the mouth of ruthless animals.