איוב, פרק כ״א, פסוק ט״ו

The wicked openly express a deep-seated contempt and a complete rejection of divine providence. Fueled by a sense of pride and self-sufficiency, they challenge the very foundation of faith through two primary arguments: questioning the obligation to serve God, and doubting the practical value of praying to Him.

Their initial challenge reflects a profound disdain, as they genuinely wonder why they should be expected to serve God at all [מצודת דוד, ביאור שטיינזלץ]. Going beyond mere disrespect, this attitude can be understood as an outright denial of His very existence [מלבי״ם]. Alternatively, this rebellion is explained as stemming from a flawed theology of dualism. According to this perspective, the wicked believe in two separate powers, dividing the divine realm into a god of goodness and another force responsible for evil and destruction. They argue that there is simply no logical reason to serve the source of destruction, as He provides no positive benefits for them to gain [אלשיך].

The second argument questions the practical benefit of reaching out to God. The primary approach among commentators is that the wicked see absolutely no use in asking Him for anything through prayer. This feeling of uselessness comes from a few interconnected ideas. First, they experience such a sense of material abundance that they feel completely detached from any need for divine assistance. They argue that they do not even need God for basic necessities like rain, believing that the earth is fully capable of watering itself through its own natural vapors [רש״י].

Furthermore, even if they concede that God exists, they entirely deny His active involvement in the world. They claim that He does not listen to human prayers and remains completely uninvolved in the actions of mankind [מלבי״ם]. This aligns with the belief that God's attention is focused solely on the upper, celestial realms. By this logic, He completely ignores the lower, physical world, making it absolutely pointless to pray to Him, even for protection from harm and sorrow [אלשיך].