Thomas Aquinas Commentary Job 6:13-30

"Is it not that I have no help in me, And that wisdom is driven quite from me? To him that is ready to faint kindness [should be showed] from his friend; Even to him that forsaketh the fear of the Almighty. My brethren have dealt deceitfully as a brook, As the channel of brooks that pass away; Which are black by reason of the ice, [And] wherein the snow hideth itself: What time they wax warm, they vanish; When it is hot, they are consumed out of their place. The caravans [that travel] by the way of them turn aside; They go up into the waste, and perish. The caravans of Tema looked, The companies of Sheba waited for them. They were put to shame because they had hoped; They came thither, and were confounded. For now ye are nothing; Ye see a terror, and are afraid. Did I say, Give unto me? Or, Offer a present for me of your substance? Or, Deliver me from the adversary`s hand? Or, Redeem me from the hand of the oppressors? Teach me, and I will hold my peace; And cause me to understand wherein I have erred. How forcible are words of uprightness! But your reproof, what doth it reprove? Do ye think to reprove words, Seeing that the speeches of one that is desperate are as wind? Yea, ye would cast [lots] upon the fatherless, And make merchandise of your friend. Now therefore be pleased to look upon me; For surely I shall not lie to your face. Return, I pray you, let there be no injustice; Yea, return again, my cause is righteous. Is there injustice on my tongue? Cannot my taste discern mischievous things?" — Job 6:13-30 (ASV)

In the preceding verses, Job had shown that while he felt pain and spoke from that pain, he did so rationally and was not carried away by his suffering. However, a person suffering adversity can sometimes guard against pain by finding comfort and help, either from within or from others. To show that his lament was rational, Job now demonstrates that he was lacking this kind of help.

First, he shows that he lacked any remedy from his own resources, stating that he could not help himself. Even if he had only lost some of his possessions, he might have tolerated it without sadness if he could have recovered them and avenged the injury done to him. But he was unable to do this, having lost all his wealth, his children, and even his physical health.

Furthermore, many things we cannot do ourselves, we can accomplish through friends. So, second, Job shows that he was also deprived of his friends' help when he says that those he looked to for aid—his family and servants—had deserted him. To show they are blameworthy for this, he continues by saying that whoever withholds mercy from a neighbor, especially in a time of sorrow, forsakes the fear of the Lord. This "fear" is the reverence due to God, in whom and because of whom we love our neighbor. As John says, Whoever does not love his brother whom he does see, how can he love God whom he cannot see? (1 John 4:20).

Next, Job shows his relatives have abandoned him, saying, My brothers have passed me by. He uses the analogy of a group walking together; if one falls into a ditch, the others pass by, abandoning him. They might be excused if they left only after becoming weary from trying to help, despairing of success. But Job shows that these men are without excuse because they deserted him immediately and suddenly. He illustrates this by comparing them to a torrent, like a stream coursing through the valleys, which moves very quickly.

So they will not think they can do this without consequence, Job adds, Those who fear frost will be covered by snow. This is to say that a person who fails in justice and mercy out of fear of a lesser danger exposes himself to even greater dangers. Likewise, Job’s relatives, who passed him by, unwilling to show compassion, will themselves endure suffering and loss. He continues, showing their future danger will be without remedy: At the time when they will be broken up—that is, when they face dangers—they will perish completely, and they will vanish from their place as though dried up.

He expands on the metaphor of snow. Hard, frozen snow does not melt with the first heat. But snow that is not yet frozen melts and turns to slush as soon as the sun's rays touch it. In the same way, their prosperity will vanish at the first assault of adversity, just as slushy snow disappears in the first heat.

Job reveals the cause of this, saying, The paths they follow are tangled up. Something entangled twists and turns back on itself. So it is with the paths of those who seek only their own advantage from relatives and friends. They pretend to be friends in times of prosperity but pass by in times of adversity. Those who deceitfully seek their own gain often fail to get what they hope for, and so Job adds, They will walk in emptiness. People are said to walk in emptiness when they do not reach their destination. Not only will their hope be fruitless, but the opposite will happen to them, for he adds, and will perish—that is, they will be totally destroyed.

Therefore, Job had no support from himself, his servants, or his relatives. He then demonstrates that he also had no help from his other friends. He says, Look for the paths to Teman, the roads to Saba—lands where he seemed to have his greatest friends, as Eliphaz himself had come from Teman. He tells them to wait for a short while to see if any friends come by these roads to bring him help. But they will see no one, because, as Job says, They are embarrassed to come to him. This is because I hoped for them, meaning there was a time when he could have reasonably hoped for their help. People who do not want to help are often ashamed to visit someone if they think they will be asked for aid. Some did come, but they were covered with shame because they did not give him the help they knew they should have.

Job then turns to his friends. It is not surprising that others refuse to help, since even you, who seem wiser, fail to do so. He continues, Now you have come to see me and, in only seeing my disease, you are afraid. Perhaps you feel obligated to help, but do not be afraid, for I have not asked you for anything. I have not requested money, as when he asks, Have I said: Bring me and give me a gift from your property? Nor have I sought your aid in war: Free me from the clutches of an enemy, or ransom me from the hand of the mighty? Nor have I sought instruction from you in either speculative matters (Teach me, and I will say no more) or practical actions (and if perhaps I have been ignorant, instruct me).

Not only do you offer no help, but you afflict me further with your words. Job asks, Why do you slander true ideas?—referring to the truths in his initial lament, which Eliphaz seemed to rebuke. To show that their criticism is inexcusable, he refutes all the reasons that might justify a critic’s conduct.

1. The first is when someone in greater authority criticizes another for a fault. He refutes this, saying, For none of you can accuse me.
2. The second is when someone criticizes another for their own good, not to make the situation worse. He addresses this, saying, You compose speeches only to rebuke me, and not for my good. You join fine words together, carefully composing them so they do not seem lightly spoken.
3. The third is when someone strengthens their arguments with effective reasons. He excludes this, saying, You cast your words to the wind. In other words, their words are empty because they lack the support of reason.
4. The fourth is when someone criticizes another at a time and in a state where they might become better, not worse, as a result. But if someone criticizes another who is perplexed in soul and prone to anger, it seems they desire not their improvement but their ruin. Thus, Job says, You seize the orphan, and strive to ruin your friend. He calls himself an orphan because, in his sadness, he was lacking help.

So that no one will think he is afraid to argue with them or lacks confidence in his case, Job continues, Despite this, finish what you began to say, so that the truth can come to light from mutual debate. He goes on, Lend an ear (that is, listen) and see (that is, consider) if I am lying.

Job then addresses the impediments to finding truth through debate.

1. The first impediment is when someone refuses to hear what their adversary is saying.
2. The second is when someone responds to what they have heard in a loud and abusive way. To prevent this, Job says, Answer, please, without quarreling. To quarrel, as St. Ambrose defines it, is to attack the truth while relying on shouting.
3. The third impediment is when someone in a debate aims not at truth but at victory or glory, as happens in legal cases or sophistical arguments. To counter this, Job says, In speaking, judge what is right—that is, concede what seems true and deny what seems false.

If you do this, Job says, You will find no evil on my tongue—meaning nothing contrary to the justice owed to a neighbor—nor stupidity in my mouth—meaning nothing against the wisdom by which one thinks correctly about God. For Job intended to defend and prove the truth regarding both divine and human matters.