Commentaries:
Barnes' Notes
At destruction and famine thou shalt laugh - That is thou shalt be perfectly safe and happy. They shall not come upon thee; and when they approach with threatening aspect, thou shalt smile with conscious security. The word here rendered famine ( kâphân ) is an unusual word, and differs from that occurring in Job 5:20, râ‛âb . This word is derived from kâphan - to languish, to pine from hunger and thirst. It then means the languid and feeble state which exists where there is a lack of proper nutriment. A sentiment similar to that which is here expressed occurs in Martial, iv. 19, 4. Ridebis ventos line munere tectus, et imbres. "Neither shalt thou be afraid of the beasts of the earth." Wild beasts in new countries are always objects of dread, and in the fastnesses and deserts of Arabia, they were especially so. They abounded there; and one of the highest images of happiness there would be, that there would be perfect safety from them. A similar promise occurs in Psalms 91:13 :
Thou shalt tread upon the lion and adder;
The young lion and the dragon shalt thou trample under foot.
And a promise similar to this was made by the Savior to his disciples: "They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them." The sentiment of Eliphaz is, that they who put their trust in God would find protection, and have the consciousness that they were secure wherever they were.
Other Barnes' Notes entries containing Job 5:22:
Job 5:21
Job 11:13
Job 29:24
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