Job 15:11 Meaning and Explanation
“Are the consolations of God small with thee? is there any secret thing with thee?”
King James Version (KJV)
Read this verse in context with translation switching:
Read Full Chapter →Eliphaz asks whether Job scorns the comfort God offers through his friends' counsel.
What Does Job 15:11 Mean?
Eliphaz is wounded that Job has not received his words as comfort. Are the consolations of God too small in Job's eyes, he asks, perhaps meaning the gentle counsel the friends believe they have offered on God's behalf? He wonders what hidden thing makes Job resist such help.
The irony is sharp, for Eliphaz mistakes his own hard speeches for the consolations of God. Real divine comfort does not crush the broken; it binds them up. The verse invites self-examination in every helper. Are we offering God's tenderness, or merely our own opinions dressed in his name? The truest consolation flows from the God who draws near to the brokenhearted, not from rebuke delivered to a man already in the dust.
Job 15:11 in the Original Language
tanchumot (תַֽנחוּמוֹת), 'consolations' -- words of comfort meant to soothe and console one in grief.
Frequently Asked Questions About Job 15:11
What does Job 15:11 mean?
Eliphaz asks whether Job scorns the comfort God offers through his friends' counsel.