Job 5:22
At destruction and famine thou shalt laugh: neither shalt thou be afraid of the beasts of the earth.
Original Language Analysis
וּלְכָפָ֣ן
and famine
H3720
וּלְכָפָ֣ן
and famine
Strong's:
H3720
Word #:
2 of 7
hunger (as making to stoop with emptiness and pain)
תִּשְׂחָ֑ק
thou shalt laugh
H7832
תִּשְׂחָ֑ק
thou shalt laugh
Strong's:
H7832
Word #:
3 of 7
to laugh (in pleasure or detraction); by implication, to play
וּֽמֵחַיַּ֥ת
of the beasts
H2416
וּֽמֵחַיַּ֥ת
of the beasts
Strong's:
H2416
Word #:
4 of 7
alive; hence, raw (flesh); fresh (plant, water, year), strong; also (as noun, especially in the feminine singular and masculine plural) life (or livin
Cross References
Ezekiel 34:25And I will make with them a covenant of peace, and will cause the evil beasts to cease out of the land: and they shall dwell safely in the wilderness, and sleep in the woods.Isaiah 35:9No lion shall be there, nor any ravenous beast shall go up thereon, it shall not be found there; but the redeemed shall walk there:Psalms 91:13Thou shalt tread upon the lion and adder: the young lion and the dragon shalt thou trample under feet.Isaiah 65:25The wolf and the lamb shall feed together, and the lion shall eat straw like the bullock: and dust shall be the serpent's meat. They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain, saith the LORD.Hosea 2:18And in that day will I make a covenant for them with the beasts of the field, and with the fowls of heaven, and with the creeping things of the ground: and I will break the bow and the sword and the battle out of the earth, and will make them to lie down safely.
Historical Context
Wild beasts were a genuine threat to ancient Near Eastern populations, especially during times of social disorder or agricultural failure. Eliphaz's promise of safety from beasts represents comprehensive divine protection from all natural threats.
Questions for Reflection
- How do you understand God's promise of protection when dangers still threaten?
- What does it mean to laugh at destruction—is this stoic denial or confident faith?
Analysis & Commentary
Eliphaz continues: 'At destruction and famine thou shalt laugh: neither shalt thou be afraid of the beasts of the earth.' To 'laugh' at destruction suggests complete confidence that it cannot harm you. This promise reflects faith in God's sovereign protection (Psalm 91:13), but Eliphaz wrongly makes it conditional on Job repenting from supposed sin. True Reformed theology affirms God's sovereign protection while acknowledging that protection sometimes means preservation through suffering rather than exemption from it.