איוב, פרק כ״ב, פסוק ט׳

The harsh accusations directed at a suffering man outline a profound moral failure involving the abuse of society's most defenseless members. The claim is that such intense suffering is never accidental, but rather a direct consequence of mistreating widows and orphans. God is the ultimate protector of these vulnerable individuals, and He immediately steps forward to fight their battles and exact justice on their behalf [מלבי״ם].

The primary approach among commentators is that this mistreatment involved active cruelty, specifically through robbery and forced eviction. Widows, who lacked the social power to defend their own rights [ביאור שטיינזלץ], were brutally driven from their homes and stripped of everything they owned. They were cast out entirely destitute and empty-handed [ביאור שטיינזלץ, מצודת דוד, רמב״ן]. Alternatively, this failure is viewed as a sin of neglect and apathy. In this light, when widows approached asking for help, they were simply turned away without any support, perhaps out of a desire to avoid personal involvement or social gossip [אלשיך].

The mistreatment of these mothers inevitably devastated their children. The orphans were stripped of their power [ביאור שטיינזלץ], and every single source of their strength was completely shattered [רלב״ג, אבן עזרא, מצודת ציון]. Perspectives vary on exactly how these children were broken. The most physical and graphic view suggests that as the orphans clung desperately to the corners of their homes to resist eviction, their arms were literally broken to tear them away from the property [רמב״ן]. A more indirect approach argues that once the mothers were expelled and their belongings seized, the children's foundation of support was automatically destroyed, leaving them with absolutely no one to rely on [מצודת דוד]. Finally, aligning with the idea of neglect, the damage inflicted on the children was deeply psychological and social. Watching their mothers being turned away taught the orphans that society despised the unfortunate. Consequently, even when these children faced abuse from others, they no longer dared to ask for help, leaving them to endure their oppression in total isolation [אלשיך].