Job 7:15
Job is continuing to speak and Job
says in Job 7:15-21, So that my soul chooseth strangling,
and death rather than my life.[16] I loathe it; I would not live alway: let me alone; for my days are vanity.[17]
What is man, that thou shouldest magnify him? and that thou shouldest set thine
heart upon him?[18] And that thou shouldest visit him every morning, and
try him every moment?[19] How long wilt thou not depart from me, nor let
me alone till I swallow down my spittle?[20] I have sinned; what shall I
do unto thee, O thou preserver of men? why hast thou set me as a mark against
thee, so that I am a burden to myself?[21] And why dost thou not pardon
my transgression, and take away mine iniquity? for now shall I sleep in the
dust; and thou shalt seek me in the morning, but I shall not be.
In addition to continue to state that he wished he was no longer living, Job
asked several questions. In verse 17 Job asks the question: What is man, that thou shouldest magnify him? and that
thou shouldest set thine heart upon him? King
David asked a similar question in Psalms 8:4, What
is man, that thou are mindful of him? And the son of man that thou visitest him? The verse
in Psalms is also quoted by Paul in Hebrews 2:6. From a human standpoint it is
an understandable question. Compare a mere man to the great infinite
all-powerful all-knowing God. From the far reaches of eternity, a man could be
viewed as less than an atom: a small particle of nothingness. But from the
Bible we know that God has given man great honor, and God will give us even
greater honor in the future. We are made in the image of God. We have been
given the earth and everything that is in it to administer, to protect, and to
use. In the future even more will be subject to us. The Son of God came to die
for us, and we will rule in His kingdom with Him. It is true that we do not
deserve such great honor, but that is exactly what God has done for us.
In verse 18 Job is referring to his
own specific situation with all the sufferings that he has, and Job asks why
God must try him every moment? To Job it seems like he is being
tried every moment especially with all that Job has been going through. In
verse 20 Job asks the question, what shall I do unto thee, O thou
preserver of men? Job is asking God what does God want him to do. Job is thing
that God must be wanting something from Job. Why else are all these things
happening? We all come to the same conclusion sometimes. We also wonder what is
God doing, and what should we do now?
It is kind of humorous to notice how
Job referred to God in verse 20,
O thou preserver of men. Job knew for
sure that God was preserving His life. In the circumstances that Job was in,
Job did not really want to be preserved, but that is what Job knew was
happening: God was preserving Jobs life. God is preserving your life too. You
and everyone that you love will live the entire life that God has determined
that you will live. No one and nothing will keep you from living shorter than
Gods will, and no one and nothing will preserve you longer than Gods will.
Therefore, enjoy the short time that God has given to you, and serve Him in
your few and fleeting days.
In verse 21 Job asks the question: And why dost
thou not pardon my transgression, and take away mine iniquity? Job is
certainly aware of his own sinfulness, as every believer should be who is
honest. It appears that because Job had suffered so many things that he was
thinking that maybe his sufferings were a result of his own sins. Here is a
good way to look at things that we suffer: I am a great sinner. I deserve hell.
I deserve the wrath of God. Therefore, I should not be surprised if bad things
happen to me. I deserve worse than whatever could happen to me in this life.
But because Jesus is my Savior, I am always confident of His love and
forgiveness to me. I will never receive punishment for sin because I am
forgiven. God has a reason for what He has allowed into my life. I may not know
what that reason is now, but I will know eventually. If you have been saved
through faith in Jesus, never doubt your salvation or your forgiveness. Jesus
said in John 10:28-29, And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish,
neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand.[29] My Father, which
gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my
Father's hand.
Jobs second friend named Bildad now
speaks. Bildad says in Job 8:1-6, Then answered Bildad the Shuhite, and said,[2] How long wilt thou speak these
things? and how long shall the words of thy mouth be like a strong wind?[3]
Doth God pervert judgment? or doth the Almighty pervert justice?[4] If
thy children have sinned against him, and he have cast them away for their
transgression;[5] If thou wouldest seek unto
God betimes, and make thy supplication to the Almighty;[6] If thou wert
pure and upright; surely now he would awake for thee, and make the habitation
of thy righteousness prosperous. Bildad speaks against Job right
away. In verse two Bildad belittles Jobs words and calls them strong wind. In verse three
Bildad is saying that God brings justice, and therefore, what happened to Job
must have been just. In verse four Bildad tells Job that Jobs children died
because they deserved to die for their sins and transgressions. In verse five
Bildad is saying that Job is not seeking God like Job should, and that is the
reason that Job lost everything. If only Job had been pure and upright, then
God would have made Job prosperous. And so we see that just like Eliphaz,
Bildad had no sympathy for Job, and Bildad blamed Job for all of Jobs bad
fortune.
Bildad continues speaking and says in
Job 8:7-19, Though thy beginning was small, yet thy latter end should
greatly increase.[8] For inquire, I pray thee, of the former age, and
prepare thyself to the search of their fathers:[9] (For we are but of
yesterday, and know nothing, because our days upon earth are a shadow:)[10]
Shall not they teach thee, and tell thee, and utter words out of their heart?[11]
Can the rush grow up without mire? can the flag grow without water?[12]
Whilst it is yet in his greenness, and not cut down, it withereth
before any other herb.[13] So are the paths of all that forget God; and
the hypocrite's hope shall perish:[14] Whose hope shall be cut off, and
whose trust shall be a spider's web.[15] He shall lean upon his house,
but it shall not stand: he shall hold it fast, but it shall not endure.[16]
He is green before the sun, and his branch shooteth
forth in his garden.[17] His roots are wrapped about the heap, and seeth the place of stones.[18] If he destroy him
from his place, then it shall deny him, saying, I have not seen thee.[19]
Behold, this is the joy of his way, and out of the earth shall others grow.
Bildad is saying in verse 8 that we can just look at history, the forebears,
and see what happened to them. And Bildad is saying that we know that history
repeats itself, and we can look at the lives of others who lived before us. In
verse 13 Bildad states that people who forget God and who are hypocrites are
the ones who suffer. In verse 14 Bildad is saying that sinners like these are
the ones who have no hope. Once again Bildad is saying that Job must be like
the hypocrites who forget God. That is the explanation that Bildad gives for
all the bad things that have happened to Job.
Bildad says in Job 8:20-22, Behold, God
will not cast away a perfect man, neither will he help the evil doers:[21]
Till he fill thy mouth with laughing, and thy lips with rejoicing.[22]
They that hate thee shall be clothed with shame; and the dwelling place of the
wicked shall come to nought. What Bildad says in verse 20 is true generally speaking, but we know this did not apply to
Jobs situation. For one thing Job was not cast away. Jesus said, I will never leave you nor forsake you. Just because you are called to suffer for Him does not
mean that He has cast you away. In the second phrase of verse 20 Bildad said, neither will he help the evil doers. But in reality God blesses all people: both those who
serve Him and those who do not. The rain falls on the evil and on the good. The
evil were also created in the image of God, and have
certain human gifts and abilities that come from God. God is love, and God is
trying to prove His great love to the people who do not know Him. In verse 22
Bildad speaks of the victory that believers will have over unbelievers. This is
true, but it is an ultimate victory. In this life sometimes unbelievers are
given the upper hand. They killed Jesus. They have persecuted and killed many
believers over the centuries. But it is the final and eternal result that
really counts. All the struggle that takes place to control the governments of
the world, and Jesus said in Matthew 5:5, Blessed
are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.
It says to Christians in Second Timothy 2:12, If
we suffer, we shall also reign with him
Rewards that will be given to Christians are called crowns in the New
Testament because a crown symbolizes a position of power and authority. Great
power and authority will be given to believers who serve Jesus faithfully. Some
will lose their rewards, but they will still get to heaven because salvation is
by the grace of God. Jesus said in Mark 10:40, But
to sit on my right hand and on my left hand is not mine to give; but it
shall be given to them for whom it is prepared.
In the last phrase of verse 22 Bildad
said, the dwelling place of the wicked shall come to nought. That is true
in regards to the final judgment of the wicked, but is not always seen in this
life. Jesus spoke of a rich man who fared sumptuously every day in this life,
but then Jesus spoke of the rich mans eternal destiny and said in Luke 16:23,
And in hell he lift up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom.
Job replies to Bildad and Job says in
Job 9:1-11, Then Job answered and said,[2] I know it is so of a
truth: but how should man be just with God?[3] If he will contend with
him, he cannot answer him one of a thousand.[4] He is wise in heart, and
mighty in strength: who hath hardened himself against him, and hath prospered?[5]
Which removeth the mountains, and they know not:
which overturneth them in his anger.[6] Which shaketh the earth out of her place, and the pillars thereof
tremble.[7] Which commandeth the sun, and it riseth not; and sealeth up the
stars.[8] Which alone spreadeth out the
heavens, and treadeth upon the waves of the sea.[9]
Which maketh Arcturus, Orion, and Pleiades, and the chambers of the south.[10]
Which doeth great things past finding out; yea, and wonders without number.[11]
Lo, he goeth by me, and I see him not: he passeth on also, but I perceive him not.
Jobs friends had been accusing him of not being just with God, and that was
why Job was suffering. But Job said in verse two and verse three: but how should man be just with God? If he will contend
with him, he cannot answer him one of a thousand. No human being is just before God because we are all sinners. God is
holy, but we are not. Therefore, that cannot be the reason that Job received
his sorrows and loss. And then Job starts talking about the greatness of God
compared to man: any man. In verse 4 Job says that God is wise and powerful. In
verse 5 Job says that God can remove mountains. Of course, man cannot do that.
Jesus used that same symbolism talking about what believers can do if we trust
in God. Jesus said in Matthew 17:20, If you
have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove
hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible
unto you. In verse 6 Job spoke of earthquakes
when Job said, Which shaketh
the earth out of her place. Jobs point is
that God causes earthquakes. Every believer should know that. God is the great
Cause. He causes everything to happen that happens. God is in charge of the sun
and the stars and the heavens and the waves of the sea. And then in verse 10
Job concludes about God: Which doeth great things
past finding out; yea, and wonders without number. We can see just like Job that God does a great number of
things in this vast world and in our lives, and God also does many other things
that we are not aware of. But in all that He is doing, we do not see Him. Job
said in verse 11, Lo, he goeth by me, and I see him not: he passeth
on also, but I perceive him not. Even though
we cannot see Him, we can know Him through faith in Christ.
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Copyright; 2018 by Charles F. (Rick) Creech
All Rights Reserved