Friday, October 9, 2009

Job 23

Job

1 Then Job replied:

2 "Even today my complaint is bitter;
his hand is heavy in spite of my groaning.

3 If only I knew where to find him;
if only I could go to his dwelling!

4 I would state my case before him
and fill my mouth with arguments.

5 I would find out what he would answer me,
and consider what he would say.

6 Would he oppose me with great power?
No, he would not press charges against me.

7 There an upright man could present his case before him,
and I would be delivered forever from my judge.

8 "But if I go to the east, he is not there;
if I go to the west, I do not find him.

9 When he is at work in the north, I do not see him;
when he turns to the south, I catch no glimpse of him.

10 But he knows the way that I take;
when he has tested me, I will come forth as gold.

11 My feet have closely followed his steps;
I have kept to his way without turning aside.

12 I have not departed from the commands of his lips;
I have treasured the words of his mouth more than my daily bread.

13 "But he stands alone, and who can oppose him?
He does whatever he pleases.

14 He carries out his decree against me,
and many such plans he still has in store.

15 That is why I am terrified before him;
when I think of all this, I fear him.

16 God has made my heart faint;
the Almighty has terrified me.

17 Yet I am not silenced by the darkness,
by the thick darkness that covers my face.

Side Notes:

Vs. 23:1 – 24:25 Job continued his questioning, saying that his suffering would be more bearable if only he knew why it was happening. If there was sin for which he could repent, he would! He knew about the wicked and the fact that they would be punished; he knew God could vindicate him if he so chose. In all his examples of the wicked in the world, his overriding desire was for God to clear his name, prove his righteousness, and explain why he was chosen to receive all this calamity. Job tried to make his friends see that questions about God, life, and justice are not as simple as they assumed.

Vs. 10 In chapter 22, Eliphaz had tried to condemn Job by identifying some secret sin which he may have committed. Here Job declares his confidence in his integrity and God’s justice. We are always likely to have hidden sin in our lives, sin we don’t even know about because God’s standards are so high and our performance is so imperfect. If we are true believers, however, all our sins are forgiven because of what Christ did on the cross in our behalf (Romans 5:1; 8:1). The Bible also teaches that even if our hearts condemn us, God is greater than our hearts (1 John 3:20). His forgiveness and cleansing are sufficient; they overrule our nagging doubts. The Holy Spirit in us is our proof that we are forgiven in God’s eyes even though we may feel guilty. If we, like Job, are truly seeking God, we can stand up to others’ accusations as well as our own nagging doubts. If God has forgiven and accepted us, we are forgiven indeed.

2 comments:

Brittney said...

Sorry I've been gone for a few posts! Something really hit me at the Beth Moore study last Tuesday that I really see through Job, not just this passage, but here too. Beth said that you have to base your faith on who God IS, not what He is doing.

It seems so simple, but I think too often I fall into the trap of trusting God for what He does or can do - I really struggled with that when the twins were born.

This just hit me though, and now I'm trying to read my Bible and pray with a purpose of praising Him for WHO He is, regardless of what life brings. Because as Job found out, many of life's problems stem from Satan's interference, not from God's absence.

Unknown said...

I think the thing I found interesting was that Job didn't sense God's presence. He didn't know where He was. I would guess that is something everyone experiences. There are times when we praya and our prayers are answered and we just sense God's presence and then there are times when we just don't know where God is. And one of the things that I find so frustrating is that when that's the case....it is so hard to know what God wants me to do. And yet, Job gives us the example of what our response is supposed to be.....that we choose to believe God is God whether we sense Him or whether we don't.

Still praying Ali..........Yeah Anna.............every day...........is a precious gift that you get to spend with your baby. My first born is celebrating his 28th Birthday today. I couldn't wait for him to be born........now I would give anything to go back and slow time down just a little bit.