Job - Chapters 3-31

Job, a blameless and upright man, is tested by Satan. His friends believe he is suffering because he has sinned. Job questions why he is suffering and longs to speak with God. Job's friends offer judgment instead of comfort. Job declares his innocence and expresses his desire for his words to be recorded. He yearns for his redeemer and hopes to see God. Job experiences the silence of God and learns lessons in the darkness. He speaks of wisdom and the fear of the Lord. Job longs for the days when God watched over him. Through it all, God is watching over us. It's okay to ask God why and seek answers. Hello ladies and welcome to the amazingbible.book club. I am Julie Calio your host and thanks so much for taking time out of your busy schedule to tune in with me today. If by chance you want to contact me you can do that at vab.bc.pc at gmail.com. Today we are looking at chapters 3-31 of Job. The scene is set and only the readers know what is going on. Job a blameless and upright man who feared God and shunned evil was blessed with family and wealth but then Satan the accuser came before God. God asked him, have you considered my servant Job? Satan said of course but he is faithful because you have blessed him. The first test Satan was allowed to take away all he had but he could not touch Job. At this Job mourned and said naked I came from my mother's womb and naked I will depart. The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away. May the name of the Lord be praised. The narrator explained in all this Job did not sin by charging God with wrong doing. Test 2 is in chapter 2 Satan again goes before God and God asks again, have you considered my servant Job? There is no one on earth like him. He is blameless and upright a man who fears God and shuns evil and he still maintains his integrity though you incited me against him to ruin him without any reason. This time Satan could touch Job's body but not take his life. Job was covered from head to toe with sores. His wife said curse God and die but Job replied you are talking like a foolish woman. Shall we accept good from God and not trouble? Again the narrator explained in all this Job did not sin in what he said. Chapter 2 ended with Job's three friends coming together to comfort him. They sat in silence for seven days and now chapter 3 begins with Job speaking. According to Hill and Walton in a survey of the Old Testament chapter 3 is a soliloquy which is a monologue addressed to oneself with thoughts spoken out loud without addressing another person. Verse 1 of chapter 3 reads after this Job opened his mouth and cursed the day of his birth. The chapter ends with I have no peace, no quietness, I have no rest but only turmoil. Then chapters 4-27 are dialogue between Job's three friends and himself. There are three sets of dialogues chapters 4-14, chapters 15-21 and then chapters 22-27. Eliphaz begins Job responds, Bildad gives his two cents worth Job responds then Zophar chimes in and Job responds. In the third grouping Zophar does not say anything. One thing to keep in mind with this section is that this discussion is from a human perspective not God's perspective. Job's three friends are convinced that Job is suffering because he has sinned and God is punishing him. Job stands firm that he has not sinned. In the Old Testament this view is called retribution principle. What that means is when we obey God he blesses us, when we disobey God he curses us. Job's friends want him to confess his sins so that he can be right with God. The thing is ladies life is not that simple. Jesus said in Matthew chapter 5 verse 45b God causes his son to rise on the evil and the good and he sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. Bad things do happen to good people. In many ways these friends are causing more grief upon Job than just the pain in his body and the grief of losing his family and stuff. In chapter 3 Job cursed the day he was born and in chapter 6 verses 8-10 he says oh that I might have my request that God would grant what I hoped for that God would be willing to crush me to let loose his hand and cut me off then I would still have this comfort my joy and unrelenting pain that I had not denied the words of the Holy One. Here Job is asking the Lord to take his life while he is still being faithful to God. Job recognized that it is the Lord that gives life and the Lord who takes life and that is not our job. In chapter 7 verse 20 Job cries out to God if I have sinned what have I done to you oh watcher of me why have you made me your target. Now ladies since we have the view from the narrator why did God point out Job? Why is Job his target? Because he is blameless and upright and feared God and shunned evil. He is an example of faithfulness to both Satan and to the readers. In chapter 8 verses 4-6 Bildad was even so bold as to say when your children sinned against him he gave them over to the penalty of their sin but if you will look to God and plead with the Almighty if you are pure and upright even now he will rouse himself on your behalf and restore you to your rightful place. It seems like these quote friends of Job have no interest in comforting him but judging him and his family. In chapter 9 Job is asking for a hearing from God so that he can defend his case of innocence. Then verse 33 reads if only there was someone to arbitrate between us to lay his hand upon us both someone to remove God's rod from me so that his terror would frighten me no more. Then in chapter 7 Zophar said in verses 5 and 6 oh how I wish that God would speak that he would open his lips against you and disclose to you the secrets of wisdom for true wisdom has two sides know this God has even forgotten some of your sin. Now one thing to keep in mind is that since this is from a human perspective some of what these guys are saying is true but they all are assuming that Job had sinned which is not true this messes up their counsel to him. In verse 4 Job declares you however smear me with lies you are worthless physicians all of you if only you would be all together silent for you that would be wisdom. One of the classes I took years ago was called pastoral care and counseling Dr. Wayne E. Oates said your presence there represents God to them so say as little as possible but be there. Ladies I don't know about you but it is very easy for me to put my foot in my mouth and regret what I have said. Even in the midst of Job's pain he said in chapter 13 verse 15 though he slay me yet will I hope in him I will surely defend my ways to his face and then in verse 23 Job cries out how many wrongs and sins have I committed show me my offense and my sin. One thing that is clear Job does not understand why he is suffering and he is asking God why. In the second round of discussions chapters 15 through 21 Job again tells his friends in chapter 16 verse 2 that they are all miserable comforters. We see Job's despair in words like chapter 17 verse 11 my days have passed my plans are shattered and so are the desires of my heart. In chapter 19 verse 4 Job tells his friends if it is true that I have gone astray my error remains my concern alone. This reminds me that I am no one's judge each person will stand before God with their life they do not stand before me or you. Verses 23 through 26 of chapter 19 Job says oh that my words were recorded and that they were written on a scroll that they were inscribed with an iron tool on lead or engraved in rock forever. This just makes me wonder if it wasn't one of Job's friends that wrote this stuff down. I know that my redeemer lives and that in the end he will stand upon the earth and after my skin has been destroyed yet in my flesh I will see God I myself will see him with my own eyes I and not another. How my heart yearns within me this makes me think of a lady's Bible study I did a long time ago many of the women were seniors and we were talking of heaven and Jesus coming again and I had to confess that I did not long for that I wanted to see my kids grow up and I hope to have grandkids one day and all the senior ladies in my group said that will change as you get older. I still am not as old as they were but I am about 20 years older and depending upon which restaurant we go to I may be old enough to be on the senior menu but those ladies were right. That is one thing about pain and suffering that's one thing about aches and pains in our bodies it makes us yearn for the day when there is no more pain. In chapter 21 verse 4 says and he will wipe away every tear from their eyes and there will be no longer any death there will no longer be any mourning or crying or pain the first things have passed away pain and suffering turn our eyes toward heaven. In the third round with Eliphaz and Bildad Job said in chapter 23 verses 8-11 but if I go to the east he is not there if I go to the west I do not find him when he is at the work in the north I do not see him and when he turns to the south I catch no glimpse of him but he knows the way I take when he has tested me I will come forth as gold. This has been known as the dark night of the soul when one cries out to God and he is silent. There are lessons to be learned here that cannot be learned in the light. According to Hill and Walton chapter 28 is a hymn of wisdom verse 20 says where then does wisdom come from where does understanding dwell then verse 28 says and he said to man the fear of the Lord that is wisdom and to shun evil is understanding. Chapter 29 starts Job continued his discourse how I long for the months gone by for the days when God watched over me when his lamp shone upon my head and by his light I walk through the darkness. Now as the readers we know that God said to Satan in chapter 2 verse 3 have you considered my servant Job there is no one on earth like him he is blameless and upright a man who fears God and shuns evil and he still maintains his integrity though you incited me against him to ruin him without any reason. Ladies God is watching over us in both the good times and the terrible times. Then chapter 31 ends with the words of Job are ended. Ladies it's okay to ask the Lord why I've shared before that with my dad's death it was a long drawn out process of pain both physical and mental. Many times I'd cry out to take my dad and then I'd rejoice that he hadn't after a special moment that I had with my dad. Life is hard and here on earth we may never have the answers to some of the why questions but God is big enough to handle them. It is okay to ask God to give you some answers and sometimes he gives them and sometimes it's years later but Job said in chapter 13 verse 15a though he slay me yet will I hope in him. One thing Job did was he went to God he cried out to him and that's where we should go to. We don't know what this new year holds but we know who holds it in his hand and he is watching out for us and one thing this Bible is clear on is that God loves us. John 3.16 for God so loved the world that's you that he gave his only begotten son that's Jesus that whosoever believes in him shall not perish but will have everlasting life. Jesus is our mediator our arbitrator that Job was asking for in chapter 9 verse 33. If you have heard his voice today please don't harden your heart instead let us be women who look up and hope in God. Until next time and thanks so much for listening.