3. GOD ACCORDING TO JOB'S FRIENDS. Suppose you are in the hospital with a dreaded disease. You are suffering and discouraged. Then the news comes that friends are going to visit you. You are glad, because you need their sympathy and encouragement.
This was Job's situation. He assumed that his friends had come to listen to his lament and to console him. But what did he hear? Words of comfort and encouragement? No! They ended up telling him that it was all his fault - like a person who visits a cancer patient and tells him that God is punishing him because he is covering up some terrible sin.
Job's three visitors, Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar, were wise, articulate, and respected men of the Middle East. When they heard the news of Job's affliction, they came to console him as custom demanded.
The three men sat in sympathetic silence beside Job for 7 days, the accustomed time set aside for mourning. They did not speak until Job spoke first (ch. 3). They listened intently as Job poured out his feelings. But they felt that Job was not being honest - that what he was saying cast shadows on the justice of God. So they set out to defend the honor of the Lord. They spoke in turn for three cycles of speeches. Job responded to each of their addresses, as the following chart indicates.
The three men lived In different regions around the Middle East. They were different in temperament, yet each knew a lot about God. We will look at the counsel each of them gave to Job.
ELIPHAZ: "Come clean, Job."
Since Eliphaz was the first to respond, it's assumed that he was the eldest. He came from Teman, a region known for its wise men, This philosopher/theologian, who was the most considerate of the three, spoke from the wisdom of his own life and walk with God.
Eliphaz' major point was that people do not suffer without a cause. Experience had taught him that affliction was God's punishment for sin. His view is summarized by this excerpt from his first speech:
Remember now, who ever perished being innocent? Or where were the upright ever cut off? Even as I have seen, those who plow iniquity and sow trouble reap the same. By the blast of God they perish, and by the breath of His anger they are consumed (4:7-9).
Eliphaz did not directly accuse Job of harboring some terrible sin; he merely implied it. But that was the only conclusion one could draw from his first address.
In his second speech, however, Eliphaz spoke more bluntly. "Your iniquity teaches your mouth . . . Your own mouth condemns you" (15:5,6). Again appealing to observation (vv. 17,18), he assumed Job's guilt.
Eliphaz' third speech was an open charge of guilt. Almost cruelly, he accused Job of being filled with evil. "Is not your wickedness great, and your iniquity without end?" he asked (22:5). He concluded by demanding Job's repentance (vv. 22-26).
BILDAD: "You're lying, Job."
Bildad, a resident of Shuah, was a hard-nosed traditionalist. He dismissed Job's protestations of innocence as "strong wind" (8:2). He even said that Job's children had died as punishment for sin. These were hardly words of comfort to a man who had faithfully sacrificed on behalf of his children (1:5).
Bildad assumed Job's terrible guilt on the basis of the past. Here is his philosophy:
For inquire, please, of the former age, and consider the things discovered by their fathers; . . . Will they not teach you and tell you? (8:8,10).
In his second speech, Bildad spoke in harsh, graphic terms of the consequences of evil: the sinner's lamp is snuffed out (18:5), his light is dark (v. 6), a trap lies in his path (v. 10), and terror eats away at his skin (v. 13) - a reference to Job's physical condition.
His third speech is very brief It exalts God and compares man to a maggot - obviously what he thought of Job for insisting on his own integrity at the expense of God (25:6).
ZOPHAR: "You're hopeless, Job."
Zophar of Naamah, a moralist, was arrogant in his orthodoxy. He reasoned that because God is fathomless and almighty, He "knows deceitful men" (11-11). Therefore, if Job would put away his evil, God would restore him (v. 14). His rigid moralistic view is summarized in this excerpt from his second speech:
Do you not know this of old, since man was placed on earth, that the triumphing of the wicked is short, and the joy of the hypocrite is but for a moment? (20:4,5).
Zophar did not offer a third speech. He probably just dismissed Job from his mind as a hopeless case.
ELIHU: "Let a young man speak."
While all this was going on, a young man sat quietly at the edge of the circle. He listened carefully to all that was said. When the cycle of speeches was finally over, he arose to speak As the stormclouds began to gather, he angrily expressed his views in four speeches recorded in chapters 32-37.
In his first speech, Elihu acknowledged that he was with men older and wiser than he (32:6-9). He pointed out that when Job had protested his innocence, no one had proven him guilty (v. 12). He went on to suggest that a person who is suffering may not be enduring punishment but may be receiving a call to uprightness (33:16-18).If men were to be punished to the degree they deserved, none would survive (34:10-15).
Elihu paused, but Job did not respond as he had to the others. So he pressed on to point out that Job had made some hasty remarks about the Lord. Further, he too implied that Job's sin had brought about his suffering (34:10-12,31-37). In chapters 36 and 37, Elihu repeated his basic premise - that a just God would not make a good man suffer - and then closed by saying that God's ways are beyond man's knowledge.
When Elihu was finished, all the talking was done. The wisdom of men had not brought satisfaction. Instead, the emotions of Job had risen with the mounting thunderclouds. The silence between the men was mirrored by the pre-storm stillness. There awaited a more authoritative voice: the thundering voice of God. And from the storm He would speak.
Seeing God
* The three friends of Job were accurate in their view
of God as the One who punishes sin (8:20; 11:6; 18:5-21).
* They were correct in their belief in God as the One who knows men's hearts (11:11; 22:12-18; 34:21).
* They saw God as their Maker and the Sustainer of heaven and earth (4:17; 5:10).
* They were right in seeing God as the One who chastens His own (5:17,18; 36:8-12).
* They believed in God's justice. That's why they assumed Job must be sinning (5:15,16; 34:10-14).
Practical Lessons
* We can learn from Job's friends that we can know some things about God but not everything.
* We can increase the suffering of our friends by jumping to wrong conclusions about them.
* We can speak on behalf of God to our suffering friends just as Job's friends spoke to him.
* We need to beware of assuming that we know what God is doing in someone else's life or in our own.
4. GOD ACCORDING TO JOB'S DIALOGUES. It's one thing when affliction strikes someone else; quite another when it hits you. Even a close friend or loved one cannot know the pain you are experiencing. The time comes when the phone stops ringing, the visitors all leave, the pastor returns to his office, and you are left alone to cope with the reality of your suffering.
* It's then that the hard questions force themselves to the front of your mind.
* It's then that you cry out to God.
* It's then that you find words to express the feelings that are rolling over your soul like the pounding waves of the ocean.
* It's then that you are ready to learn from Job.
We have observed that Job's friends did not console him at all. If anything, they increased his burden. They were actually a third phase of Job's temptation.
This left Job to deal with God about his affliction. And in his words we hear the anguished cries of all who have been afflicted; in his pleadings, their cries for mercy; in his questions, their plea for answers from God for the reasons they are suffering.
What Job said may be examined in four groupings:
We will look now at the first three groupings in detail. The fourth will be examined in the next section.
Group 1: Job's Initial Lament. For 7 days the men of the East sat before Job. Custom demanded that the sufferer speak first, so Job finally broke the silence (ch. 3). His first speech expressed two themes:
* It would be better if I had never been born (vv. 1 -19).
* My life is in turmoil (vv. 25,26).
How many times have we too thought that God made a mistake in bringing us into the world? And haven't we also felt that the world (and we ourselves) would be better off if we were just allowed to die? Life was once so good, but now there is no peace. This is Job's lament.
Group 2: Job's Responses to His Critics. The second grouping of what Job said contains eight speeches. Each time one of Job's friends spoke, he responded. Job's answers to his miserable "comforters" show that he carried mixed feelings about God and his experience. His laments, his wish to die, and his self-defense indicate that he was somewhat self-righteous and rebellious. Yet he also praised God and expressed deep faith in God's goodness.
* He continued his lament. Job repeated his cry (6:4; 7:1-21; 9:17-31; 10:1-22; 12:13-25; 13:20-14:22). His feelings are summed up in 6:4 where he says, "The arrows of the Almighty are within me."
* He defended himself. In response to his critics' insistence that he must have been committing terrible sins, Job consistently maintained his innocence. He did not claim to be sinless. But he firmly believed that his suffering was far worse than any wrongdoing he may have done (9:25-35; 13:1-28; 16:15-21; 27:2-6).
* He expressed his wishes. Job's answers to his critics contained these wishes: (1) A repeated sorrowful wish to die (6:8-10; 7:15). (2) A wish that God would leave him alone (7: 16, 9:34,35; 10:20; 13:21,22; 14:6, 13-15). (3) His wish to be heard (l6:18-22; 19:23,24). (4) His wish to confront God (23:3-12).
* He offered praise to God. In spite of his suffering, Job exalted God for His majesty (9:4,10,11; 12:10,13), His lordship of history (5:11-16; 12:14-25), His power as Creator (9:5-13; 10:8-12), and His work of creation (26:5-14).
* He expressed his trust in God. In one of the most triumphant passages of the Old Testament, Job cried, "I know that my Redeemer lives, and He shall stand at last on the earth" (19:25).
Job's comforters had driven him toward doubt, yet he resisted the onslaught and burst forth with this wonderful expression of triumph. Many feel that this was a turning point in Job's dialogue with his critics.
Group 3: A Series of Monologues. Job concluded his dialogue with a final protest of his innocence.
My righteousness I hold fast, and will not let it go; my heart shall not reproach me as long as I live (27:6).
In chapter 29, Job remembered his happy estate before the attack came. In chapter 30, he expressed the depth of his hurt. Finally, Job challenged God by saying:
Oh, that I had one to hear me! Here is my mark. Oh, that the Almighty would answer me, that my Prosecutor had written a book! (31:35).
Having expressed his feelings, Job fell silent.
Seeing God
* God's majesty as Creator of the universe and Source of life is reflected throughout Job's speeches (9: 15; 26:5-14)
* In good circumstances and bad, God the Living Redeemer will be there when earth passes away (19:25).
* God is our source of wisdom and strength in every changing situation (12:13-17).
Practical Lessons
* When our feelings are in turmoil because of deep trouble, we must cling to what we know about the goodness of God.
* We can express our hurt and anger to God when we are afflicted.
* In trouble, it helps to look beyond the moment to the day when our Living Redeemer returns.
* It helps to praise God in times of suffering.
5. GOD ACCORDING TO HIMSELF.
Our look at God through Job began with Satan's hostile, distorted point of view. It continues through Job's sad experience. It was expressed in the one-dimensional perspective of Job's friends and in the agonized speeches of Job himself. But now, at the close of the ordeal, God Himself speaks. In His two speeches, and in the responses of Job, we find the resource for bearing our own affliction.
God's First Speech (38:2-40:2). Job had challenged God to show him his wrong (31:35). Finally, out of the raging storm, God spoke.
The Lord's first speech began and ended with a reply to Job's challenge (38:2,3; 40:2). In essence, God said, "I am about to speak, Job, And when I am finished, will you have anything left to say?"
After referring to Job's "words without knowledge," God asked a series of penetrating questions. They forced Job to observe the witnesses to God's power and goodness that surrounded him. Job was called to consider evidence he was familiar with; evidence from earth - not heaven. The Lord paraded the witnesses before Job in a poem with two stanzas.
Stanza 1: Witnesses from the created world.
* the earth (38:4-7,18)
* the sea (vv. 8-11,16)
* the sun (vv. 12-15)
* the lower world (v. 17)
* the light and darkness (vv. 19,20)
* the weather (vv. 22-30,34-38)
* the constellations (vv. 31-33)
Stanza 2: Testimony of the animal world.
* the lion (38:39,40)
* the raven (v. 41)
* the mountain goat and the deer (39:1-4)
* the wild donkey (vv. 5-8)
* the wild ox (vv. 9-12)
* the ostrich and the stork (vv. 13-18)
* the war horse (vv. 19-25)
* the hawk (v. 26)
* the eagle (v. 27)
Job's First Response (40:3-5). Job was humbled and silenced before the Lord. Here are his words:
Behold, I am vile; what shall I answer You? I lay my hand over my mouth (40:4).
Faced with the grandeur of God as evidenced in the natural world, Job had nothing more to say.
God's Second Speech (40:7-41:34). God spoke a second time to Job, again telling him to brace himself for some hard questions (40:7; see 38:3). God reminded Job of His ability to judge rightly (40:8-14). Job's only course of action was to place himself in the circle of God's care and to let His justice prevail. He need not try to justify himself any longer.
This was followed by a dramatic description of two mighty beasts: behemoth (40:15-24) and leviathan (41:1-34). These may be references to the hippopotamus and the crocodile. Each description contains a challenge to man to capture these powerful creatures that reflected God's might (40:15-24; 41:1-10).
Job's Second Response (42:2-6). Job responded in two ways. First, he expressed an even deeper understanding of God's greatness.
I know that You can do everything, and that no purpose of Yours can be withheld from You (42:2).
Then, referring to what God had said earlier (38:2,3; 40:7), Job confessed that he had been wrong and repented of his earlier statements. Therefore I abhor myself, and repent in dust and ashes (42:6).
Job acknowledged that he was wrong to challenge God and that he would never do it again. He finally agreed that a God powerful enough to create all things is wise enough to be trusted and loving enough to do what's right.
Seeing God
* The created world witnesses to the greatness of God (38:4-38).
* The animal world testifies to the majesty of God (38:39-39:30).
* God is the righteous Judge (40:4-8).
* God is the Maker of great creatures; He is the Sovereign Lord (40:15-41:34).
* God's ways are to be accepted as right because He is far above man (42:2-7).
Practical Lessons
* When affliction strikes, we cannot let ourselves lose sight of the awesome power of God.
* When trouble comes, we need to remember that God is just in all He does.
* When we cannot understand, we can take refuge in the truth that God's ways are above our ways.
* Repentance and humility are better than questioning God or demanding a trouble-free life.
JOB, GOD, AND ME
Job lived 4,000 years ago in a culture vastly different from ours. Besides, God talked directly to Job. He's not likely to do that with us. So how does the record of his experience help when
* you hear that your lovely, vivacious daughter has MS?
* you learn that you have to go in for dialysis twice a week?
* the doctor tells you that you have a brain tumor?
* you wake up in the hospital to find that 60% of your body has second- and third-degree burns?
* you've attended the funerals of all your children? The book of Job does help. It helps because it not only focuses on one man's suffering, but it also takes us beyond that and into the mind and character of God. It tells us things about the sovereign Lord that help us cope with trouble and heartache. The following principles stand out in the book of Job.
Suffering is part of life. No one has a right to expect a life free from affliction. Even a man as righteous as Job did not escape. True, we can be healed these days in ways that would have seemed miraculous a few short decades ago. But there is still heart disease and cancer. People still have traffic accidents, planes still crash, and children still drown. From the day Adam and Eve left their garden paradise, suffering has been part of life. To expect to live free from it is to ask more than God has said He will grant.
We may never know why. The supernatural reason for our suffering may never be revealed to us. Remember, Job never knew about the confrontation between Satan and God in heaven. We may never know either.
We bring suffering on ourselves. Job's friends were right in recognizing the principle of sowing and reaping (Job 4:8; Gal. 6:7). When we neglect or abuse our bodies, we will suffer the consequences. An alcoholic may get cirrhosis of the liver. A reckless driver may end up in the hospital or the morgue. We have no right to hold it against God if we suffer as a consequence of our own foolish choices. But remember that sometimes our suffering won't be the result of sin. In this case, Job was right.
The resolution to suffering is to be found in God's character. When affliction disrupts our lives and destroys our serenity, we can have refuge in the goodness of God. He is the sovereign Lord. His ways are above our ways. He is the all-wise, infinite, holy, and good God. We are the creatures; He is the Creator. Therefore, like Job, let us rest in Him and trust in His incomprehensible perfection and goodness.
God has joined us in suffering. Job could see only dimly what we can see clearly - that God became man to suffer on our behalf. Jesus knew the reality of excruciating pain. He knew bone-wracking tiredness. He endured mental anguish and emotional distress. He was tempted in every way we are. And He never stops interceding for us.
Our faith need not fail. We may lose loved one after loved one. We may know the reality of prolonged, intense pain. Our bodies may fail and our emotions may crack. But we can always maintain our faith in God. Even though Job struggled to understand why God would allow him to suffer, he kept taking refuge in the knowledge of God's goodness.
IS JOB'S GOD YOUR GOD?
You can't hide from suffering. It forces its way through the petty issues and empty self-deceptions of life. It washes away the naive idea that you will never know the kind of trouble other people are facing. It forces you to face the realities of pain and remorse and sorrow.
At the very heart of the matter, coping with affliction becomes a personal matter between you and God. When your life is built on a solid trust in Him, you can respond to suffering as Job did. It is only a deep faith in God that enables a person to say, "Though He slay me, yet will I trust Him" (Job 13:15).
Perhaps you've been making your way through life without God. You're trying to do it all on your own. If so, you need to trust in Christ and make God a part of your life.
Job said, "I know that my Redeemer lives." That Redeemer is Jesus Christ, who came to rescue you from your sin. Paul wrote, "In Him [Christ] we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins" (Eph. 1:7).
Trust in Him today. Acknowledging that you are a sinner, and admitting that you cannot save yourself, receive Him as your personal Savior (John 3:16).
When you do, Job's God will be your God. And you will know the One in whom you can place your complete trust in every circumstances of life - whether it be in times of great joy or in the kind of affliction Job had to endure.
