Job 15:19
Unto whom alone the earth was given, and no stranger passed among them.
Original Language Analysis
לְ֭בַדָּם
H905
לְ֭בַדָּם
Strong's:
H905
Word #:
2 of 8
properly, separation; by implication, a part of the body, branch of a tree, bar for carrying; figuratively, chief of a city; especially (with preposit
נִתְּנָ֣ה
was given
H5414
נִתְּנָ֣ה
was given
Strong's:
H5414
Word #:
3 of 8
to give, used with greatest latitude of application (put, make, etc.)
הָאָ֑רֶץ
Unto whom alone the earth
H776
הָאָ֑רֶץ
Unto whom alone the earth
Strong's:
H776
Word #:
4 of 8
the earth (at large, or partitively a land)
וְלֹא
H3808
וְלֹא
Strong's:
H3808
Word #:
5 of 8
not (the simple or abs. negation); by implication, no; often used with other particles
עָ֖בַר
passed
H5674
עָ֖בַר
passed
Strong's:
H5674
Word #:
6 of 8
to cross over; used very widely of any transition (literal or figurative; transitive, intransitive, intensive, causative); specifically, to cover (in
Historical Context
Post-exilic Judaism increasingly emphasized separation from foreign influence (Ezra 9-10, Nehemiah 13). Some scholars date Job to this period as a counter-voice, reminding Israel that God's wisdom transcends ethnic boundaries. The book's non-Israelite setting deliberately challenges theological ethnocentrism.
Questions for Reflection
- When has your theological tradition used 'purity' arguments to resist necessary correction from outside voices?
- How does the church's history of learning from 'outsiders' challenge claims to pure, uncontaminated tradition?
- What voices are today's Eliphaz-figures excluding as 'strangers' who might actually speak God's truth?
Analysis & Commentary
Unto whom alone the earth was given, and no stranger passed among them—Eliphaz claims the wise men's tradition comes from a pure, uncontaminated source: zar (זָר, 'stranger/foreigner') never passed among them. This appeals to ethnic and theological purity—their wisdom wasn't corrupted by outside influence. The phrase nittenah ha'aretz (נִתְּנָה הָאָרֶץ, 'the earth was given') echoes Genesis 1:28 and suggests original, Edenic wisdom.
The supreme irony: Job is set in the land of Uz (likely Edomite territory), Job and his friends are probably non-Israelites, and the book itself represents 'foreign' wisdom literature influencing Hebrew thought. The claim to pure, unmixed tradition is fiction. Moreover, Scripture repeatedly validates 'foreign' wisdom—Melchizedek, Jethro, Ruth, the Magi. Theological xenophobia always produces distorted truth.