The Place of Understanding

The Place of Understanding

Job Chapters 22-28

 

The Last of the Friends

When trouble overtook Job, his friends came to him and sat with him in companionable, comforting silence for seven days. Job broke the silence with an opening soliloquy. The end of the silence was also the end of the companionship and comfort, as the friends were affronted by Job’s statements, and he by their reactions. In the escalating cycle of charge and response, Job begins to display his proverbial patience by sarcastically acknowledging his friends as the only source of human wisdom (12:2) calls them miserable comforters (16:2-5) and declares that there is not a wise man among them (17:10). In this lesson we will see the dialogue finally break down, and find Job once again engaged in an extended soliloquy.

As has been the case in the first two cycles of dialogue, this final cycle begins with Eliphaz addressing Job. It may be that Eliphaz could find no new expression of his charge, or perhaps that his increasing alarm prompted to speak plainly – whatever the reason, he drops all pretense of deference and in sharply accusatory terms summarizes for us the position the friends have maintained from the beginning: Job is suffering because of his sin (22:4-5). The friends are confident in the order of the universe, which requires the Lord to bring suffering on the wicked, requires the wicked to submit to the Lord for guaranteed relief and prosperity, and allows the righteous just delight in this process (22:15-23).

Wearied of such discussion, Job does not even respond to these accusations but addresses his own accusation directly to God. On the one hand, Job complains that his unquestionable innocence is continually punished (23:1-12). On the other, he observes that the guilt of the wicked is continually rewarded (24:1-12).

Bildad begins a reply (25:1-6) but he is interrupted by Job, who so bitingly addresses the worthlessness of his friends (26:1-4) and so forcefully asserts his own value (27:3-6) that any charge from Zophar is completely forestalled.

The Place of Understanding

For quite a long time now, the 28^th chapter of Job has been my favorite extended passage in all the Bible. It is powerful in its theology, its inspiration, and its language – I find it to be one if the best examples of the preservation of poetic impact from source through the modern translations.¹

The chapter begins with the observation that things have there places (28:1-11). Everything is to be found somewhere, and the human race has exhibited impressive (if we must say) ingenuity and enterprise in locating and acquiring these things. In the first masterful pivot point in the passage, Job, in the face human knowledge and accomplishment, asks “But where can wisdom be found?” (28:12-22) The question points out to us that true wisdom is not among, nor does it arise from, the entirety of our domain. This realization provides urgency to the search for the place of understanding – an anxiety that only heightens as each possible location is sought and discarded

In the second powerful transition in the passage, the resounding “God understands” (28:23-27) transforms the anxious energy of the passage to a calm but unrelenting drive to the conclusion. In the KJV, the command to “Behold” provides a final pivot that is missing from our modern translations

And unto man he said, Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom; and to depart from evil is understanding. (Job 28:28 KJV)

This is an exciting and astounding climax as Job, who has previously given us words with prophetic content (19:25-27) now is unquestionably speaking for us the very words of God – words that neatly sum for us the issue of the Book of Job. The question is asked for us in many ways. Why do the good suffer? Why (as it sometimes seems more important) do the wicked prosper? If our piety does not ensure our safety, much less our prosperity, then what value has it to us? The problem may be summarized, variously, as the problem of God and pain, the problem of God and suffering, or the problem of God and evil. Job speaks for us the answer that we did not expect, that perhaps we cannot explain, but that we can neither refute.

And Then…

It might be argued that this would be a very good place for the Book of Job to close: the question has been variously, unrelentingly asked, and finally answered. If you have been reading ahead you will have realized that, in fact, we are far from finished. Leaving Job in this lesson having succinctly uttered the sum and limit of human knowledge, we will find him in the next lamenting at length on his pitiful condition, which would seem to have no cause, no cure, nor even any explanation.

How fortunate are we, that with such witness from the saints before us, we need never hear, yeah, even speak the very word of God, without having ourselves the slightest understanding of that word.

Of course, I am being facetious – perhaps inappropriately so. But is not this the nature of our human interaction with the Devine? For the briefest of moments we are open to the revelation of God, but almost immediately we plunge ourselves back into our preoccupation with ourselves. It is our advantage that we are not limited to the brief moments of our own existence, but may prayerfully return again and again to the experiences of Job, Isiah, and many others that have come before us.

1As I must admit my ignorance of the original language, I must admit that in fact I do not know what has or what has not been preserved. Given that, it might be better for me to proclaim it simply the best example of poetry, but I do have faith that the current excellence is true to the original inspiration.

My Redeemer Liveth!

My Redeemer Liveth!

or

“Worms Cover Them Both”

Job Chapters 15-21

 

Structure

As just one evidence of the beautiful, powerful writing of the Book of Job, the narrative structure of the book is easily analyzed. There is the prelude, which takes place alternately in the court of heaven and in the earthly life of Job. This is followed by a series of dialogues, which are followed by a postlude. The dialogues themselves are separated into sections. In the first section, Job interacts with his friends Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar; in the middle section he debates with Elihu; finally, he comes into the manifest presence of God. The first set of dialogues is also grouped into thirds, as Job is accosted by each friend in turn, and then utters a response to the charge. As each friend has had a turn, the cycle is repeated once and once more. In the current lesson, we find ourselves in the second of these three exchanges.

To provide a different viewpoint from the previous lesson, instead of a linear progression through each cycle of charge and response, we will cut across each cycle to analyze the common themes which run through them all.

The Wisdom of the Friends

Though in the first cycle Job vigorously defended himself (13:17-19) and you and I, as readers, have even the testimony of the Lord that Job was blameless (2:3) the three friends continue to address Job from the viewpoint of their transactional ontology, which sees every aspect of our lives, including our relationship with God, as cause and effect. From this vantage, the effect of Job's suffering demands the cause of his sin. The friends address this sin both directly, with open accusations, and indirectly, by describing the plight of the wicked as the very suffering that Job endures.

Eliphaz leads the group with the direct charge that Job is motivated by his sin (15:5-6) and then through an inferential charge, in which Eliphaz describes the just recompense of the wicked man in words that mirror the suffering of Job (15:32-34).

Bildad follows with an unrelenting series of calamities that come upon “the wicked man”. This series starts with the simple statement that “his lamp is snuffed out” and continues through an escalating series of metaphors for an escalating progression of suffering. This tragic, though beautifully written passage culminates with the accusation “such is the place of one who knows not God.” (18:5-6, 20-21)

Zophar is not to be outdone. He begins with a very earthy description of the plight of the wicked. This he expresses as a prehistoric truth known even to Job himself (20:4-8). Zophar continues with an insightful description of the way God repays the wicked: their great hunger for worldly things only leads to more hunger, and is never satisfied (20:20-22).

The Patience of Job

The “patience of Job” is proverbial, but anyone using the phrase in any way other than the ironic has not made a very careful study of the book. The impatience of Job with his friends rings throughout the book, and is certainly evidenced in this section. In response to Eliphaz, Job denounces his friends as “miserable comforters” and vows that he would do better if the roles were reversed (16:1-5). Before Bildad begins, Job resignedly tells his friends “Try again!” though it is clear that he does not expect any good to come of it (17:10-12). After Bildad, we can hear the great impatience of Job spill over from his brimming ire towards his friend to his mounting frustration with God, who without any provocation (from Job's point of view) has a burning anger against him (19:1-11). After Zophar, Job declares that the one comfort his friends might offer is simply to listen to him. Immediately having stated this, Job dismisses his earthly adversaries and turns the full measure of his impatience towards God (21:1-4).

You Even Undermine Piety

Certainly, however, there is more going on here than simple bickering. The friends, as we have seen, continually accuse Job of the sin that must explain his suffering, but they are perhaps more alarmed with Job's attack on the other side of the transactional equation. Eliphaz speaks for the group when he says to Job “You even undermine piety (15:4a NIV, KJV reads “Yea, thou castest off fear”). And it is true that Job has questioned the value of piety in a way that directly challenges any cause and effect view of existence, when he says that God would surely punish him if he were guilty, but is absolutely unbound by any fair-mindedness that would reward him for his devotion (10:13-15).

In this cycle of dialogue, Job even questions the issue of punishment. In response to Bildad (18:5) Job wonders “how often is the lamp of the wicked snuffed out?” And in response to Zophar (20:29) he wonders how often the wicked receive “the fate God allots” (21:17). Job has previously wondered what the nature of humanity could be, that God should take such an active interest in our existence (7:17). Here, he asks through the mouths of his hypothetical “wicked” men, what the nature of God might be that deserves our reverence. From this point he goes on to speak of the nature of God, which is not only unknown, but unknowable, and in whose dominion we may have a good life, or a bad life, but in the end are covered in worms, each alike (21:22-26).

My Redeemer Liveth!

Though Job's attitude towards this earthly life is ultimately cynical, and though (we might evens say) that attitude is merited by his situation, the book is not completely without hope. Many of these expressions of hope are couched in the irony through which Job understands his life. When Job desires an arbiter “who might put his hand on both of us” (9:32-33) he prefigures for us the intercessor who brings us, not into the court of accusation, but into the court of redemption (Romans 8:31-34). When Job admits that he cannot bring anything of value that might be used as collateral in his imagined conflict with God, and ironically asks God to provide that “pledge” or “security” on his behalf (17:3-5) he foreshadows the one who will be the propitiation for our sin (1 John 2:2). When Job yearns for a witness in the presence of God who might present his case (16:19-21) he speaks of the one who constantly intercedes between us and God (Hebrews 7:23-25).

Finally, though he loathes this life (7:17) in which he cannot fathom either his role, or the role of the Almighty God (21:15) – in the face of all we do not know, Job confesses the one thing that is known:

For I know that my redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the earth: And though after my skin worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall I see God: (Job 19:25-26 KJV)

Few Days and Full of Trouble

Few Days and Full of Trouble

Job Chapters 4-14

 

Worse than Death

As Chapter 3 begins, we find Job, who after suffering a series of calamities, has been sitting for seven days in the company of his friends who have come to comfort him. As the chapter opens he begins to speak. Without addressing anyone in particular, he begins to curse the day of his birth (3:1-4). This seems only slightly different from the suggestion of his wife, who had instructed him to “curse God and die” (2:9) but it is a difference that is important to Job, for reasons we will later discuss.

Among Biblical characters, Job is not alone in his desire, as Jeremiah also curses the day he was born (Jeremiah 15:10; 20:14-18). The idea that there is a fate worse than death (or is it worse than life?) has been taught to us by our Lord. Speaking of his betrayer, Christ says it would be better for his betrayer that he had never been born (Matthew 26:24). As I, myself, have been that betrayer, this is a statement that causes me great concern.

Eliphaz

Following Job's soliloquy, his friend Eliphaz begins the first of several cycles of dialogue. In his speech, Eliphaz challenges Job with the deuteronomic logic that was widely accepted in that day, as it is today: you reap what you sow (4:7-9). This common wisdom is repeated by Paul, who states it as a simple rule (Galatians 6:7). In contrast, we have the Parable of the Talents (Luke 19:20-26) which does not directly contradict the rule, but reinforces the sovereignty of God that will not submit to any human idea of justice.

Eliphaz goes on to encourage Job to accept the discipline of God (5:17-20) which is another idea we sometimes call upon to explain what we might otherwise understand as the arbitrary nature of our lives. We speak of the trials of this life, which the Lord intends to our benefit (James 1:2-4) and there is certainly Biblical precedent for the idea that discipline is an expression of God's love for us (Jeremiah 30:11; Revelation 3:19-20).

Job responds in a manner that is formulaic of this dialogues, not only in direct rebuttal of his earthly accuser, but also with entreaty to the Lord. In this case, the entreaty is split into two parts. In the rebuttal that comes between the two (6:24-30) Job declares that he would accept any wisdom his friends might have, but charges his friends with the request: “look at me.” Eliphaz had offered common wisdom, but had not considered either the plight or the character of the man whom he accused. This accusation is one that we should carefully consider whenever we seek to council or console.

In the first part of his address to God, Job makes a request that betrays his own sense of values (6:8-10). It is not clear what it would mean to “deny the words of the Holy One” but we must note the importance Job has placed upon it, as earlier evidenced by his refusal to curse God. This issue of piety (the “fear” of the Lord) and the role that it plays in our theology is but one of the aspects of the central theme of the book of Job, which is the Problem of Evil.

In another address to this question, one that originates from the idea that God “tries” or “tests” us, Job asks “What is man?” The Psalmist asks this question in response to the majestic generosity of God (Psalm 8:4-9) but Job, without denying that generosity, wonders why our Creator ever bothered with us (7:17-20). What does God get out of our existence? One might be so bold as to ask what God needs from us.

Bildad

Bildad finds these questions outrageous, and castigates Job as a blasphemer who challenges divine justice (8:1-6). For Bildad, the logic of this justice is unquestionable, and the conclusion of Job's suffering requires the premise of his sin. Job does not dispute this logic, but again questions the role of humanity in the plan of God (9:1-2).

It is helpful to remember that irony is the prevailing literary device in the book of Job. Job responds to his friends with irony that depicts his wearied exasperation, and the author of Job uses irony to explore the paradox of the human condition. It is with considerable irony that Job prefigures the intercession of Christ in the judgment of God (Romans 8:33-34) with his suggestion of an extra-divine court in which he and God might confront each other on equal terms (9:32-35).

In the court of his imagination, Job would not only requires of God an account of the charges held against him, but would question the very nature of the God who created the world which we perceive (10:2-7). In the eyes of Job this world is not beyond reason, or even without reason, but is actively unreasonable. Eliphaz and Bildad have charged that Job's punishment is evidence of his sin. Job's charge to God is that, had he sinned, God would surely punish him, but that punishment could be no worse than the reward he had received for his piety (10:13-15).

Zophar

Zophar is relatively brief in his charge against Job, perhaps because he has nothing new to add to the conversation, other than to pursue former ideas to further extremes as he tells Job that God has in fact been lenient with him and forgotten some of his transgression (11:1-6).

Job's response is extensive. With characteristic irony he declares his friends the epitome of human excellence who hold the complete store of human knowledge (12:1-3). He then shatters this ironic image by characterizing them as worse than useless – a people who would be wise to be silent, and who could never achieve the standard they had set for him (13:1-9).

Having found no reason and certainly no consolation from his friends, Job returns to his address towards God, from whom he seeks an injunction from retribution until the charges against him have been declared (13:20-23). Expanding on this idea of injunction, Job observers that our lives are short to begin with, and trouble enough without the relentless intervention of an unappeasable god (14:1-6).

It is my custom to close a lesson with some uplifting and hopeful resolution, but such a closing would not be true to our text. We must, ourselves, consider the nature of the one in whom we find our faith.

Remember the former things, those of long ago;
I am God, and there is no other;
I am God, and there is none like me.

I make known the end from the beginning,
from ancient times, what is still to come.
I say: My purpose will stand,
and I will do all that I please.

(Isaiah 46:9-10 NIV)

Why not?

Why not?

Job Chapters 1&2

 

The Land of Uz

There are a number of questions we generally ask when we begin to study a book of the Bible. We want to know the setting of the book: the original author, the time and place in which it was written, and the theological and sociological forces of that time and place which would have some influence on the authorship of the book. The opening passage of the book (1:1-3) tells us almost everything we are going to know in answer to these questions. It does not tell us who the author was, and therefore we do not know. It does tell us that Job lived in Uz, but we do not know for certain where Uz might have been. It does not tell us anything about the time in which it was written, but the theology of the book, which addresses a very personal relationship between God and a man, rather than God and a nation, is generally seen in the exilic and post-exilic periods. The reference to Job in Ezekiel (Ezekiel 14:13-14) would seem to place the story earlier than the exile, but the chronology of Ezekiel itself is somewhat difficult to follow.

While we might wish for more information, the passage does introduce the primary character: Job, a man of earthly wealth and godly comportmant. As we all know, because we all know the essential points of the story, the predicament that Job finds himself in is timeless. The basic structure of this familiar story is in three parts, an introductory narrative that establishes Job's plight, an extended section of dialogue, and a narrative conclusion. The section of dialogue can be further divided into three subsections. In the first, Job interacts with his three “friends” Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophor. This is followed by a lengthy dialogue with the young man Elihu. Finally, there is an exchange between Job and the Lord God Almighty.

Before we leave this passage, it may be worthwhile to consider the name “Job”. Two etymologies have been suggested. The first is that it is a shortened form of a Hebrew name meaning “where is the Father?” Another suggestion is that is from a Hebrew word meaning “persecuted”. Either interpretation would apply to the story of Job, and the idea that both might have been intended would be in keeping with the use of irony which is pervasive in the story.

Jehovah and Satan

From the land of Uz we go to the kingdom of Heaven where the angels (according to the NIV) with Satan among them are in attendance of the Lord (1:6). The phrase that the NIV translates “angels” literally means “sons of God.” Elsewhere In both the Old and New Testaments, the word that is translated “angel” means “messenger”. In the Old Testament, the phrase “sons of God” is used only in one other place, a very enigmatic passage in Genesis (Genesis 6:1-6).¹ In the New Testament, the phrase is used to describe the standing as children of God which is offered to us through Jesus Christ (e.g. John 1:12-13).

It is interesting to note that the book of Job uses five names for God. The first three are related: El, Eloh, and Elohim. These are all translated “God” in English, which loses the progress emphasis of the three Hebrew words. The name Jehovah or Yahweh is also used frequently in Job and in other places in the Bible. This name is generally translated as “Lord”. Finally, Job uses the name Shaddai, which is generally translated “Almighty God”. The use of these varied names attests to the complex, poetic language of Job.

In the Old Testament, the name “Satan” means “adversary”, and the word is used several times in this way (1 Kings 5:4). As a name, it is used in only two places besides the Book of Job: in the Chronicles and in Zechariah. In this latter passage (Zechariah 3:1-2) we see Satan in the presence of the Lord, just as he appears in our passage. In Zechariah, however, Satan is receiving rebuke, where in our passage Satan and the Lord seem to be on friendly terms (1:6-12).

In the Chronicles we are told that Satan entices David to take a census (1 Chronicles 21:1). It is not clear why the census was a sin, perhaps it is because David was motivated by pride. Whatever the reason, the importance of this passage to our study is seen through the parallel passage from Samuel (2 Samuel 24:1) where it is the anger of the Lord which incites David to command the census. We find this apparent ambiguity in Job, as well. When the Lord and Satan interact for the second time (2:1-7), the Lord takes ownership of the trials of Job, though we have been told that they came to him by the hand of Satan. Of course, it is this paradox of the existence of evil in the presence of God that is the single subject of the Book of Job.

Why Not?

While we have been considering the interaction in heaven, there have been dramatic developments below, drama which has been well captured by the anonymous author of Job. The relentless nature of the first “test” (1:13-19) is captured by the repeated chain of “I am the only one who escaped” linked with “while he was still speaking.” Job's response (1:20-22) has engendered two of our most common platitudes, but the suggestion is that they were not empty words for Job. After the second the second “test”, Job shows us his proverbial patience, as he simply sits down in the middle of his devastation, and begins to nurse his wounds (2:7-8).

In a precursor to the more extended dialogues, Job's wife comes to him in his affliction and suggests that his integrity has failed him. It appears that she has little regard for her husband or her Lord, she suggests that Job “curse God and die” (2:9-10). The equanimity with which Job responds is astounding: “What? shall we receive good at the hand of God, and shall we not receive evil?”

We might find the idea blasphemous, that both good and evil are of God, but why would we? If we ask ourselves why bad things happen to good people, then why not? We know that our God brings both prosperity and destruction (Isaiah 45:7) sends rain on the just and the unjust (Matthew 5:43-45) and has mercy on whom he will have mercy (Exodus 33:19).

God's ways are not our ways (Isaiah 55:8). This is a truth that at times comforts us, at times terrifies us, and at times infuriates us. If our study of Job teaches us nothing else, it should teach us that our God, and our relationship with God, can withstand our questions and our anger.

What if God, choosing to show his wrath and make his power known, bore with great patience the objects of his wrath – prepared for destruction? What if he did this to make the riches of his glory known to the objects of his mercy, whom he prepared in advance for glory – even us, whom he also called, not only from the Jews but also from the Gentiles? (Romans 9:22-24 NIV)

¹Some texts have the phrase “sons of God” in Deuteronomy 32:8 where other texts read “sons of Israel”.