The Scales of Justice
So that He sets on high those who are lowly, and those who mourn are lifted to safety. Job 5:11 NASB
Sets on high – Eliphaz the Temanite offers Job an answer to his plight. It’s not what you want to hear, and certainly not the explanation Job desires, but it’s a pretty common argument when things go very badly. The premise of the argument is found in the evidence Eliphaz presents in chapter four. “Remember now, who ever perished being innocent? Or where were the upright destroyed?” (Job 4:7). Essentially the argument is as follows:
- God blesses those who are upright in His eyes.
- God punishes those who have sinned.
- If you are being punished, then you must have committed an offense against God.
Of course, the argument has a lot of flourish, but when Eliphaz gets to the statement in chapter 5 verse 11, he’s not offering Job hope. He’s reminding Job that his troubles must mean Job has done something wrong. Confess and God will restore. Pretend that you’re innocent and you only confirm your guilt. God doesn’t punish the faithful.
One of the most important lessons of Job is the destruction of this common theological view. In a perfect world, justice would mean the righteous are rewarded and the wicked punished. But this isn’t a perfect world. Why not? Well, the most significant factor that makes this world less than perfect is the presence of human beings. Free will agents other than God affect the world. This, of course, gives rise to wickedness, but rather than instantly (or perhaps even ultimately) correct the situation by divine fiat, God chooses to forestall the reckoning. This means that some evil acts go unpunished, at least in this life, and that some evil things implied in the partially perfect world affect the righteous even if they don’t deserve it. It all makes sense from God’s point of view because He sees the ultimate outcome. But we don’t! As a result, we are inclined, like Eliphaz, to interpret circumstances according to our conception of the ultimate outcome, but that is a big mistake. Simply because God will finally balance the scales does not mean that what appears to be a consequence now is actually a final outcome. Yeshua basically said the same thing when he was queried about the blind man. What you see is not what you get when it comes to understanding justice. While we can assert that evil will be punished, we cannot assert that apparent punishment means an evil act was committed. In God’s moral government, the verdict isn’t clear. We simply have to wait.
Unfortunately, there are a lot of Eliphaz fans around. They see bad things and conclude that the cause must be a bad act. Job teaches us otherwise. Yeshua confirms it (so does the rest of the Bible if you look carefully). What this means for us is uncertainty. Uncertainty about the true cause of bad circumstances. And since it is uncertain for us, it’s probably a good idea to withhold judgment, something Eliphaz had to learn later.
Topical Index: justice, punishment, evil acts, Eliphaz, Job 5:11
