Albert Barnes Commentary Job 5:2

"For vexation killeth the foolish man, And jealousy slayeth the silly one." — Job 5:2 (ASV)

For wrath killeth the foolish man — That is, the wrath of God. The word "foolish" here is used as synonymous with "wicked," because wickedness is supreme folly. The general proposition here is that the wicked are cut off and are overtaken with heavy calamities in this life. In proof of this, Eliphaz appeals in the following verses to his own observation. The implied inference is that Job, having had all his possessions taken away and having been overwhelmed with unspeakably great personal calamities, was to be regarded as having been a great sinner.

Some suppose, however, that the word “wrath” here relates to the indignation or the repining of the individual himself, and that the reference is to the fact that such wrath or repining preys upon the spirit and draws down divine vengeance. This is the view of Schultens and of Noyes. But it seems more probable that Eliphaz means to state the proposition that the wrath of God burns against the wicked, and that the following verses are an illustration of this sentiment, derived from his own observation.

And envy — Margin, “indignation.” Jerome, invidia, envy. Septuagint, ζῆλος (zēlos). Castellio, severitas ac vehementia. The Hebrew word קנאה (qı̂n'âh) means jealousy, envy, ardor, or zeal. It may be applied to any strong affection of the mind—any fervent, glowing, and burning emotion. Gesenius supposes it means here envy, as excited by the prosperity of others. To me, it seems that the connection requires us to understand it as wrath or indignation, as in Deuteronomy 29:20 and Psalm 79:5. As applied to God, it often means his jealousy or his anger when the affections of people are placed on other objects than himself; Numbers 25:11; Zephaniah 1:18; and others.

Slayeth the silly one — Good and Noyes render this, “the weak man.” Jerome, parvulum, the little one. The Septuagint, πεπλανημένον (peplanēmenon) — the erring. Walton, ardelionem, the busy-body. The Hebrew word פתה (poteh) is from פתה (pâthâh) — to open, to expand; and hence, the participle is applied to one who opens his lips, or whose mouth is open (that is, a garrulous person, Proverbs 20:19); and also to one who is open-hearted, frank, ingenuous, unsuspicious; and hence, one who is easily influenced by others, or whose heart may be easily enticed.

Thus, it comes to mean one who is simple and foolish. In this sense it is used here, to denote one who is so simple and foolish as to be drawn aside by weak arguments and unfounded opinions. I have no doubt that Eliphaz meant, by insinuation, to apply this to Job, as being a weak-minded man for having allowed the views he entertained to make such an impression on his mind, and for having expressed himself as he had done. The proposition is general, but it would be easy to understand how he intended it to be applied.