At Job’s house, the first of his friends to speak is Eliphaz the Temanite. He begins to comfort Job by telling him, “…you have strengthened the weak hands” (Job 4:3). He tells Job that he has helped others in the past. However, Eliphaz then asks, “…who that was innocent ever perished?” (Job 4:7). Eliphaz says the innocent are never punished and the wicked perish by the wrath of God. In his statement, Eliphaz subtly questions the innocence of Job himself. By saying the innocent are not punished, he suggests Job

isn’t free of sin as he is one suffering by the punishment of God. Eliphaz tells Job to seek God and repent his actions before him. He defends God’s actions, while questioning Job’s pureness and righteousness, and says everything he does is for a good reason.

In response to each of his friends, Job defends himself and proclaims his innocence to each of them. Replying to Eliphaz, Job declares, “…I have not denied the words of the Holy One” (Job 6:10). He maintains that he is free of sin by stating this oath of innocence. Similarly, responding to Bildad, Job says, “…I am innocent… I am blameless…” (Job 9:20). Despite the constant preaching from his friends and the pressure to repent his wrongdoings, Job continues to believe that he has not sinned and is still innocent. Job is so confident he is not guilty, that he challenges his friends to

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