Text: Job 23:1-17

Then Job answered and said:

2 “Today also my complaint is bitter;

my hand is heavy on account of my groaning.

3 Oh, that I knew where I might find him,

that I might come even to his seat!

4 I would lay my case before him

and fill my mouth with arguments.

5 I would know what he would answer me

and understand what he would say to me.

6 Would he contend with me in the greatness of his power?

No; he would pay attention to me.

7 There an upright man could argue with him,

and I would be acquitted forever by my judge.

8 “Behold, I go forward, but he is not there,

and backward, but I do not perceive him;

9 on the left hand when he is working, I do not behold him;

he turns to the right hand, but I do not see him.

10 But he knows the way that I take;

when he has tried me, I shall come out as gold.

11 My foot has held fast to his steps;

I have kept his way and have not turned aside.

12 I have not departed from the commandment of his lips;

I have treasured the words of his mouth more than my portion of food.

13 But he is unchangeable, and who can turn him back?

What he desires, that he does.

14 For he will complete what he appoints for me,

and many such things are in his mind.

15 Therefore I am terrified at his presence;

when I consider, I am in dread of him.

16 God has made my heart faint;

the Almighty has terrified me;

17 yet I am not silenced because of the darkness,

nor because thick darkness covers my face.

-Job 23:1-17 ESV

HE KNOWS THE WAY THAT I TAKE

Job expressed his efforts to find God. Even with how dire his situation was, he

‘Oh, that I knew where I might find him,

that I might come even to his seat!

4 I would lay my case before him

and fill my mouth with arguments.’[v.3,4]

He was full of confidence to present and win his case but God was silent. He said,

‘ I would lay my case before him

and fill my mouth with arguments.

5 I would know what he would answer me

and understand what he would say to me.’[v.4,5]

In v.8-9, Job had been searching for God..forward..backward..everywhere but to no

‘But he knows the way that I take;

when he has tried me, I shall come out as gold.

My foot has held fast to his steps;

I have kept his way and have not turned aside.

I have not departed from the commandment of his lips;

I have treasured the words of his mouth more than my portion of food. [v.10-12]

Definitely, Job argued his innocence. But, he lamented that God, in His sovereignty, hasn’t

‘Therefore I am terrified at his presence;

when I consider, I am in dread of him.

16 God has made my heart faint;

the Almighty has terrified me;

17 yet I am not silenced because of the darkness,

nor because thick darkness covers my face.[v.15-17]

Clearly, Job had been trying to hang on to God despite the pieces of evidence being to

Lead me to the rock that is higher than I.’[Psa 61:2]

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Text: Job 22:1-30

Then Eliphaz the Temanite answered and said:

2 “Can a man be profitable to God?

Surely he who is wise is profitable to himself.

3 Is it any pleasure to the Almighty if you are in the right,

or is it gain to him if you make your ways blameless?

4 Is it for your fear of him that he reproves you

and enters into judgment with you?

5 Is not your evil abundant?

There is no end to your iniquities.

6 For you have exacted pledges of your brothers for nothing

and stripped the naked of their clothing.

7 You have given no water to the weary to drink,

and you have withheld bread from the hungry.

8 The man with power possessed the land,

and the favored man lived in it.

9 You have sent widows away empty,

and the arms of the fatherless were crushed.

10 Therefore snares are all around you,

and sudden terror overwhelms you,

11 or darkness, so that you cannot see,

and a flood of water covers you.

-Job 22:1-11 ESV

IS NOT GOD HIGH IN THE HEAVENS?

In this response of Eliphaz, he started the futility of Job to plead his case

‘“Can a man be profitable to God?

Surely he who is wise is profitable to himself.

3 Is it any pleasure to the Almighty if you are in the right,

or is it gain to him if you make your ways blameless?

4 Is it for your fear of him that he reproves you

and enters into judgment with you?[v.2-4]

He strongly believed that God was afflicting Job, although he was pious, but

‘Is not your evil abundant?

There is no end to your iniquities.[v.5]

and stripped the naked of their clothing.

7 You have given no water to the weary to drink,

and you have withheld bread from the hungry.

8 The man with power possessed the land,’

and the favored man lived in it.

9 You have sent widows away empty,

and the arms of the fatherless were crushed.[v.6-9]

There was no group of people he did not mistreat, his brothers…the weary…the hungry…

‘“Is not God high in the heavens?

See the highest stars, how lofty they are!

But you say, ‘What does God know?

Can he judge through the deep darkness?[v.12-13]

He urged Job to return to God. [v.21-24] in order to get the desirable results of

“Agree with God, and be at peace;

thereby good will come to you.[v.21]

‘Eliphaz’s error was one who was preaching to somebody who already knew God. Job knew God.

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God’s Word for Today

Text: Job 21:1-34

Then Job answered and said:

2 “Keep listening to my words,

and let this be your comfort.

3 Bear with me, and I will speak,

and after I have spoken, mock on.

4 As for me, is my complaint against man?

Why should I not be impatient?

5 Look at me and be appalled,

and lay your hand over your mouth.

6 When I remember, I am dismayed,

and shuddering seizes my flesh.

7 Why do the wicked live,

reach old age, and grow mighty in power?

8 Their offspring are established in their presence,

and their descendants before their eyes.

9 Their houses are safe from fear,

and no rod of God is upon them.

10 Their bull breeds without fail;

their cow calves and does not miscarry.

11 They send out their little boys like a flock,

and their children dance.

12 They sing to the tambourine and the lyre

and rejoice to the sound of the pipe.

13 They spend their days in prosperity,

and in peace they go down to Sheol.

-Job 21:1-13 ESV

WHY DO THE WICKED LIVE?

Again, Job in his defence, had argued with wit against Zophar and the others' view.

However, Job differed. Based upon his observations, he built his case that the wicked

The problem of evil has been felt and wrestled with since the earliest times of Job

‘Keep listening to my words,

and let this be your comfort.

Bear with me, and I will speak,

and after I have spoken, mock on.’[v.2,3]

Like Asaph, Job expressed his dismay, saying;

‘When I remember, I am dismayed,

and shuddering seizes my flesh.

Why do the wicked live,

reach old age, and grow mighty in power?[v.6,7]

They prosper in life. Their livestock increase and enjoy life until they go down to

‘They say to God, ‘Depart from us!

We do not desire the knowledge of your ways.

15 What is the Almighty, that we should serve him?

And what profit do we get if we pray to him?’[v.14,15]

Upon seeing these things, he chided his friends, saying;

‘“Behold, I know your thoughts

and your schemes to wrong me.

For you say, ‘Where is the house of the prince?

Where is the tent in which the wicked lived?’[v.27,28]

How then will you comfort me with empty nothings?

There is nothing left of your answers but falsehood.”[v.34]

Yes, the wicked prosper here in this world at the expense of the righteous. God

‘Surely the wrath of man shall praise you;

the remnant of wrath you will put on like a belt.’[ Psa 76:10]

He allowed Pharaoh to oppress the Jews so that the ten plagues displayed the glory

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Text: Job 20:1-29

Then Zophar the Naamathite answered and said:

2 “Therefore my thoughts answer me,

because of my haste within me.

3 I hear censure that insults me,

and out of my understanding a spirit answers me.

4 Do you not know this from of old,

since man was placed on earth,

5 that the exulting of the wicked is short,

and the joy of the godless but for a moment?

6 Though his height mount up to the heavens,

and his head reach to the clouds,

7 he will perish forever like his own dung;

those who have seen him will say, ‘Where is he?’

8 He will fly away like a dream and not be found;

he will be chased away like a vision of the night.

9 The eye that saw him will see him no more,

nor will his place any more behold him.

10 His children will seek the favor of the poor,

and his hands will give back his wealth.

THE JOY OF THE GODLESS IS FOR A MOMENT

Upon hearing Job, Zophar was itching with inward rage to rebuke him;

‘2 “Therefore my thoughts answer me,

because of my haste within me.

3 I hear censure that insults me,

and out of my understanding a spirit answers me. (v.2,3).

His hasty and nasty reply was intended to hurt Job by reminding him that the wicked

‘4 Do you not know this from of old,

since man was placed on earth,

that the exulting of the wicked is short,

and the joy of the godless but for a moment?

This is where Zophar is suggesting that Job's evil was. The wealth he once had were

he has seized a house that he did not build.’[v.19]

And it will not save him, and his early death will be a fitting punishment (see v.8-11).

Zophar insisted that the wicked fed on evil or sin, savoring it in their mouths as

The wicked joy is really for the here and now. Hereafter, there are just sorrows.

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Text: Job 19:1-29

23 “Oh that my words were written!

Oh that they were inscribed in a book!

24 Oh that with an iron pen and lead

they were engraved in the rock forever!

25 For I know that my Redeemer lives,

and at the last he will stand upon the earth.

26 And after my skin has been thus destroyed,

yet in my flesh I shall see God,

27 whom I shall see for myself,

and my eyes shall behold, and not another.

My heart faints within me!

28 If you say, ‘How we will pursue him!’

and, ‘The root of the matter is found in him,’

29 be afraid of the sword,

for wrath brings the punishment of the sword,

that you may know there is a judgment.”

-Job 19:23-29 ESV

MY REDEEMER LIVES

Job, once more, repudiated their relentless accusations, saying;

‘“How long will you torment me

and break me in pieces with words?

3 These ten times you have cast reproach upon me;

are you not ashamed to wrong me?

4 And even if it be true that I have erred,

my error remains with myself.’[v.2-4]

He argued that it’s all God’s doing. He said;

‘know then that God has put me in the wrong

and closed his net about me.’[v.6]

He lamented once again his condition in a powerfully emotional descriptive picture

‘Oh that my words were written!

Oh that they were inscribed in a book!

24 Oh that with an iron pen and lead

they were engraved in the rock forever!’ [v.23,24]

But, he ended this chapter with a high note of hope in verses 25-27. Even in this

There is a stronger sense that this refers to the Messiah. The word itself supports the

Moreover, Job had a strong expectation of seeing God in the flesh after his physical

‘ whom I shall see for myself,

and my eyes shall behold, and not another.

My heart faints within me!’[v,27]

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Text: Job 18:1-21

“Indeed, the light of the wicked is put out,

and the flame of his fire does not shine.

6 The light is dark in his tent,

and his lamp above him is put out.

7 His strong steps are shortened,

and his own schemes throw him down.

8 For he is cast into a net by his own feet,

and he walks on its mesh.

9 A trap seizes him by the heel;

a snare lays hold of him.

10 A rope is hidden for him in the ground,

a trap for him in the path.

11 Terrors frighten him on every side,

and chase him at his heels.

-Job 18:5-11 ESV

THE LIGHT OF THE WICKED IS PUT OUT

Zophar, fuming with anger and impatience, he asked with a tone of sarcasm, saying;

‘“How long will you hunt for words?

Consider, and then we will speak.

3 Why are we counted as cattle?

Why are we stupid in your sight?

4 You who tear yourself in your anger,

shall the earth be forsaken for you,

or the rock be removed out of its place?’[v.2-4]

In view of the recent calamities in Job’s household, Bildad further elaborated on

As an inescapable punishment, he is an animal caught in a trap (see v.8-10). He is

Bildad was right in his belief about wicked people. But, he has no compassion for Job.

‘ You who tear yourself in your anger,

shall the earth be forsaken for you,

or the rock be removed out of its place?’[v.4]

God knows the heart of Job more than anybody. Nobody else, even more than Job knows

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Text: Job 17:1-16

the graveyard is ready for me.

2 Surely there are mockers about me,

and my eye dwells on their provocation.

3 “Lay down a pledge for me with you;

who is there who will put up security for me?

4 Since you have closed their hearts to understanding,

therefore you will not let them triumph.

5 He who informs against his friends to get a share of their property—

the eyes of his children will fail.

13 If I hope for Sheol as my house,

if I make my bed in darkness,

14 if I say to the pit, ‘You are my father,’

and to the worm, ‘My mother,’ or ‘My sister,’

15 where then is my hope?

Who will see my hope?

16 Will it go down to the bars of Sheol?

Shall we descend together into the dust?”

-Job 17:1-5, 13-16 ESV

WHERE THEN IS MY HOPE?

‘“My spirit is broken; my days are extinct;

the graveyard is ready for me.’[v.1]

He even asked, “who is there who will put up security for me?[v.3b]

‘ If I hope for Sheol as my house,

if I make my bed in darkness,

if I say to the pit, ‘You are my father,’

and to the worm, ‘My mother,’ or ‘My sister,’[v.13,14]

‘where then is my hope?

Who will see my hope?’[v.15]

The answer is God. We should always rest upon the mercies of God, should we not?

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Text: Job 16:1-22

“6 “If I speak, my pain is not assuaged, and if I forbear, how much of it leaves me?

7 Surely now God has worn me out; he has made desolate all my company.

8 And he has shriveled me up, which is a witness against me,

and my leanness has risen up against me; it testifies to my face.

9 He has torn me in his wrath and hated me;

he has gnashed his teeth at me; my adversary sharpens his eyes against me.

10 Men have gaped at me with their mouth;

they have struck me insolently on the cheek;

they mass themselves together against me.

11 God gives me up to the ungodly and casts me into the hands of the wicked.

BEHOLD, MY WITNESS IS IN HEAVEN

Job calls his friends ‘miserable comforters’. Instead of comfort, they add more insult to his pain, saying; I

I could join words together against you

and shake my head at you.’[v.2] He continued, in v.10

‘Men have gaped at me with their mouth;

they have struck me insolently on the cheek;

they mass themselves together against me.’

He wondered what their motives were, saying,

‘Shall windy words have an end?

Or what provokes you that you answer? [v.3]

Yes, he was ‘windy’ to express his pain. Bridgeway commentary says, ‘He feels like a helpless victim that wild

His pleadings with God may not have brought relief from his pain, but neither has his silence. In fact, his

Job was mistaken to assume that God was an enemy. But, he was in a middle of an unbearable ordeal. He wished to die

and let my cry find no resting place. 19 Even now, behold, my witness is in heaven,

and he who testifies for me is on high.

20 My friends scorn me; my eye pours out tears to God,

21 that he would argue the case of a man with God, as a son of man does with his neighbor.

22 For when a few years have come I shall go the way from which I shall not return.’[v.18-22]

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Text: Job 15:1-35

“Are you the first man who was born?

Or were you brought forth before the hills?

8 Have you listened in the council of God?

And do you limit wisdom to yourself?

9 What do you know that we do not know?

What do you understand that is not clear to us?

10 Both the gray-haired and the aged are among us, older than your father.

11 Are the comforts of God too small for you,

or the word that deals gently with you?

12 Why does your heart carry you away, and why do your eyes flash,

13 that you turn your spirit against God and bring such words out of your mouth?

14 What is man, that he can be pure?

Or he who is born of a woman, that he can be righteous?

15 Behold, God puts no trust in his holy ones,

and the heavens are not pure in his sight;

16 how much less one who is abominable and corrupt,

a man who drinks injustice like water!

WHAT IS MAN?

Eliphaz’s tone changed noticeably. He accused Job one filled with windy knowledge as a baloon with hot air, one with

“Your own mouth condemns you, and not I; your own lips testify against you.”[v.5]

He accused Job of being arrogant as better than themselves, saying;

‘Are you the first man who was born?

Or were you brought forth before the hills?

8 Have you listened in the council of God?

And do you limit wisdom to yourself?

9 What do you know that we do not know?

What do you understand that is not clear to us?’[v.7-9]

Again, Eliphaz expressed a rhetorical

In this lengthy speech, Eliphaz concluded that the wicked man will suffer a terrible fate.[v.20] This Job had

“The tents of robbers are at peace, and those who provoke God are secure,

who bring their god in their hand.”

Job differed. That God won’t uniformly reward the righteous and punishes the unrighteous as he observed and

‘ The wicked man writhes in pain all his days,

through all the years that are laid up for the ruthless.

Dreadful sounds are in his ears;

in prosperity the destroyer will come upon him.”[v.20,21]

Once again, the belief of Eliphaz and his three friends was leaning toward retributive theology. If a person is a

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Text: Job 14:1-22

7 “For there is hope for a tree,

if it be cut down, that it will sprout

8 Though its root grow old in the

9 yet at the scent of water it will

10 But a man dies and is laid low;

man breathes his last, and where is

11 As waters fail from a lake

and a river wastes away and dries up,

12 so a man lies down and rises not

or be roused out of his sleep.

13 Oh that you would hide me in Sheol,

that you would conceal me until your

14 If a man dies, shall he live again?

All the days of my service I would

-Job 14:7-14 ESV

In v 7-17, Job rehearsed the finality

man breathes his last, and where is

and a river wastes away and dries up,

so a man lies down and rises not

or be roused out of his sleep.

Yet, Job expressed a glimmer of hope

‘Oh that you would hide me in Sheol,

that you would conceal me until your

that you would appoint me a set time,

Yes, he asked the question, ‘If a man

No matter how dismal our situation is we should remember the words of Jesus. He said, “I am the resurrection and the

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