When Comfort Turns to Condemnation
Job 6:14-16, 21-22 NKJV
[14] “To him who is afflicted, kindness should be shown by his friend, Even though he forsakes the fear of the Almighty. [15] My brothers have dealt deceitfully like a brook, Like the streams of the brooks that pass away, [16] Which are dark because of the ice, And into which the snow vanishes....[21] For now you are nothing, You see terror and are afraid. [22] Did I ever say, ‘Bring something to me’? Or, ‘Offer a bribe for me from your wealth’?
Job could not take it any longer. He challenges Eliphaz and his other friends. His accusations expose the danger of careless counsel: words meant to heal can actually wound deeper. Eliphaz’s counsel was empty and harsh (Job 6:25–26). Job describes his words as “windy” and unhelpful. Instead of comfort, Eliphaz offered arguments that increased Job’s pain. Harsh truth without love is cruelty. Counsel must carry grace. When someone is broken, they don’t need a lecture—they need empathy. " Job here made his most basic accusation against Eliphaz: “You should show me kindness, even if it were true that I had forsaken the fear of the Almighty.”
Guzik summarizes Smick: “Verse 21 is the climax of Job’s reaction to his friends’ counsel. They offered no help. The verse is like a sermon about the special strength needed to be willing to make oneself available when we see others in a truly dreadful condition. The risk involved makes us afraid.” Guzik sums it up: "Job wasn’t asking his friends to pay him money or to ransom him from kidnappers. All he wanted was some words of comfort, and he heard none". Has anyone been in a moment like this?
Eliphaz failed the test of friendship (Job 6:14–15). Job says: “A despairing man should have the devotion of his friends.” Eliphaz was like a dried-up brook—absent when needed most. True friendship is proven in crisis. We should be a fountain of encouragement, not a drain of hope. Eliphaz represents well-meaning but misguided counsel. He had empty words instead of comfort. He misjudged instead of being understanding. He showed betrayal instead of loyalty. He ran on presumption instead of truth. How's your friendship? Good morning.
