PREFACE

The Book of Job is an excellent Book to study to get insight, comfort and spiritual strength to get through the rough days on the way to Heaven. Job's experience tells us how bad things can get on the journey. We are living on earth, not in heaven, and earth is a battleground. Job got through the days of suffering and the nights of sorrow - how ? This Book tells us how. We learn from it not only how to understand and help others, but also how to get help from God for ourselves. Perhaps the greatest lessons of the Book are to prove that Christians can have a ' disinterested faith ' ( contrary to Satan's sneer in ch.1:9) and that God's promise will be kept, the promise to keep them enduring to the end ( Heb. 7:25). - Someone prays for us, and His prayer never fails ( John 17:24).

My thanks again to my friend Harry Woods for all the technical aspects of putting this book together.

James Clark. MA MSc MEd MTh.

MAY 1

" He increases the nations and destroys them.  Job 12:23.

" He has entire control over them, and at His pleasure He can visit them with famine, pestilence or war, diminish their numbers and arrest their prosperity." ( A.Barnes) The nations grow and develop, but none have God's blessing ( as a nation) ; there are no national conversions in Scripture, only individual ones ( John 1:11-13). Governments continue to oppose God and society thinks they can manage without Him or they regard Him as useless to help their problems , self-made problems. Without faith in Christ all continue under the wrath of God ( John 3:36). Cain rebelled against God and built a city ( Gen.4), ignoring God as much as he could. The same principle of rebellion was enacted in the building of the Tower of Babel ; society has not changed its nature. " Mankind has been trying to build and manage things without God and the end has always been failure and judgement. " ( W.Wiersbe) The result is judicial blindness," God gave them up." ( Rom.1:28)" If He justly does this to whole nations, why should it seem so strange that he permits particular persons, though wicked, to prosper for a season ? " ( J.Trapp) He shall in time bring the mighty low ( Luke 1;51,52. Ps.107:40). How many today believe in a real God at work in the world ? ( ch.12:9). Job's friends reduced God to what we know about Him in theological textbooks, but God is always greater than our knowledge. The more we know God, the more we shall engage in worship according to His Word ; this is the mark of true knowledge, a knowledge the world does not have. ( John 4:23,24)

MAY 2

" They grope in the dark without light." Job 12:25

" Like blind men, as the men of Sodom struck with blindness,they grope as the Egyptians did when the darkness was so gross that it might be felt. They stagger like drunken men who have lost their sight, senses and feet. They know not where they are , or the way to go. All this is said as the consequence of their hearts ( understanding) being taken away, and so left destitute of wisdom and strength. " ( John Gill) They have reason and philosophy but no Christ. They can discuss God but it is the " unknown god ' of Athens ( Acts 17). It was the most educated city in the world, but did not know the depth and danger of their own ignorance. A world without accepting the reality of the Son of God is a fantasy world. The natural man must interpret the data of reality by natural methods ; the supernatural, the Holy Spirit, the Infallibility of Scripture, faith, are all excluded from his methodology. The result is that the world doesn't know where it came from, what it is here for or where it is going. Educated guesses are no answer to life's greatest questions.( Ps.82:5)

Light has come into the world, but the world prefers its darkness, its own systems, its euphemisms about death. ' Live while you can,' they say...but they shall die when they must. Sadly, all they that live in darkness, shall see no light beyond death either. But the Lord has found his people here,and still does. ( Matt.4:16).

MAY 3

" You are physicians of no value." Job 13:4.

They may have intended to come to heal, but they wounded and deepened wounds of Job which were already there. Despite good intentions, some people just make things worse. Job's friends were not qualified to counsel ; all they had were platitudes ( vs.2), and Job excelled them in knowledge. His knowledge could not heal himself, but he was already praying to 'Jehovah Rophi '. His soul-wounds troubled him more than his body ; his heart was pierced, and they seemed to be keeping the wound open by their words. True, they were trying to defend God's character but it was unjustly at the expense of Job's character. Their diagnosis was wrong ( Jerem.6:14.8:11), and thus their projected remedy was also. Truths can be, and often are,wrongly applied ; especially when self-interest is the motive. Job appeals from them to the Supreme Court ( vs.3). Their words were not wise ( Prov.10:19) and added more wounds ( Job 16:2)." Instead of giving him the cordials of the Gospel, they gave him the corrosives of the Law. Instead of pointing out to him the gracious promises of God for the support of his afflicted soul, they loaded him with charges of sin...They were physicians of no value. Such people are ignorant of the nature and causes of a disease, and therefore make wrong prescriptions." ( J.Gill) They applied to him a preconceived ' label ' instead of admitting their ignorance and calling for higher Help. When we speak, let it be words ' seasoned with grace.'

MAY 4

" He will surely reprove ( rebuke and correct) you."  Job 13;10.

Job tells them that ' this is the only thanks they will get from God for their defence of Him, confidently determining things they do not understand.' (J.Trapp)They knew neither God's mind, their own, or Job's.They were confident, but did not have the right kind of experience in order to help Job. If all these friends wanted was justice, they would get it, personally! They seemed to have no reluctance to be examined by God ( vs.9,11), and yet they had a feeble defence (vs.12). They were deceived, but could not deceive God, He knew them. Job knew them also, and felt he could not trust them ; their advice was unreliable and detrimental to his state of mind. Christ always discerned people perfectly, eg. Judas, whereas it may take a long time for us to ' know what is in a man.'

God does rebuke people as they go through this world. He may do it privately in a sinner's conscience, or publicly in the reading or preaching of the Word, or finally and publicly on the Day of Judgement ( Matt.7. Matt.25). The worst thing is to be without rebuke from God. Contrast the abandonment of Ephraim, " Leave him alone," to himself, and David's gladness that God corrected him ," It was good for me." ( Hosea 4:17. Ps.119:71).

MAY 5

" Though He slay me, yet will I trust in Him ! " Job 13:15.

In the midst of his darkness there is a defiant outburst of light.Job cries that he will trust Christ with his life. He would not lose his hope at death, this sole hope would bring him through ( Ps.16). Christ has taught us how to hope, as we had no hope until He met us. He will die at Christ's feet, like Stephen ( Ps.73:26). His faith, hope and love will continue through death. He had come through much tribulation, and he knew he wasn't through it yet, but he had hope. By faith " the soul is raised above all fears and discouragements ; the evil will be removed and the good will be obtained." ( J.Caryl) " Hope is the bird that sings, while it is still dark." ( German saying) Trusting without understanding, but waiting upon God, is a characteristic of faith ; it waits to be told. Constant questioning God's Providence will exhaust us.Job is saying that, " the hypocrite will not trust in God when He is angry with him, he will not lay out his cause before God as I do ( vs.16). Nor will he trust his soul to Him as his breath is going out, as I do. " ( J.Durham). Faith in God will bring resignation to His Will ; Job declares this faith publicly in the midst of dreadful circumstances. The world regards such trust in God as foolishness, but what is their hope ? Shall it survive death, like Job's ?

MAY 6

" Then call Thou ( me ) and I will answer. "  Job 13:22.

Job's desire is for God to call him and then shall Job respond in more prayer. Some think Job wants God to summon him to court, but Job wants a call to peace and not a call in anger (21). It was his friends who wanted God to deal with him severely ( for a good purpose, they thought ). Job acknowledges that God must take the initiative in calling, his own prayers cannot force God into doing anything. Prayer does not change God's mind but is to agree with it, and then it becomes a struggle to, when we are suffering ( 1 Peter 1:6,7). Job in his suffering prays for peace with God, to be in harmonious communion, because he was troubled and afraid ( vs.23,24). He was struggling to approach God, tempted to hesitancy because it did seem that God was angry with him for some reason ; a reason yet beyond his knowledge. Nevertheless, faith must approach God, it is born to seek its Author ( Heb.12:2) ; faith gives life to prayer (Rom.4:18,20). Job is perplexed and afraid, but he must pray.

When we are called to appear in God's court at death ( Heb.9: 27,28 ) we shall have our answer ready, and, like Job it has nothing to do with self-righteousness ( Philipp 3:9 ) - we want nothing to do with that fatal delusion. Peter reminds us that we must have our answer ready, our reason for trust ( 1 Peter 3:15). An outward keeping of the Ten Commandments or a strict keeping of the government's law may give us a sense of protection here, but it will not avail in the final Court. God will only accept those clothed in the righteousness of His Son - this is the ' wedding garment.' The only righteousness which God will accept is the One He gave - justification by faith in Christ.

MAY 7

" Make me to know my transgression and my sin."  Job 13:23.

The true believer does not wish each day to leave any sin unconfessed, but prays against repeating it and for strength to forsake it ( which is more difficult than confessing it). Job is praying to have his conscience informed ; self-flattery is a daily temptation. Like faith, repentance requires knowledge. Many do not confess sin because they have not experienced conviction of sin ( Ps.19:12). As the years go on, we may realize that we know ourselves less and less, and use Job's prayer here more. We need help to know ourselves and our sins, and also to know Christ more ( Philipp.3:10). We also need increasing strength against sin in our hearts, before it comes up from the heart ( Matt. ) for the last battle before we die. Like Job, we pray that God may teach us ( Ps.139:23,24), as He has promised ( John 6:45).

We must examine ourselves in the mirror of the Word of God ( James 1), not by the church's pronouncements or by a false standard of what sin actually is. His friends were emphasizing Job's alleged open sins, but Job was more concerned about the hidden ones, the ones carried about in the heart ; sins which, by ignorance or insensitivity, mght grow into a habit. " While the recollection of sin fills him with shame and sorrow, he at the same time makes it a foil to show the brightness of mercy ." ( Spurgeon) John Newton's answer to the accusations of the devil was," I have sinned, but Christ has died ! "

MAY 8

" Thou makest me to possess the iniquities of my youth." Job 13:26.

Job did not expect to have this ' inheritance ' in his old age, but old age does bring back early memories, and this is not by chance. It can,in some cases, deepen a sense of despair, but in Job's case it moved him to pray. And he prayed, not only about his sins, but also for those ' sinned against.' These were bitter thoughts to Job, he wondered how far the ripples of these sins went out over the years ; sadly, our sins do often affect others beyond ourselves, as David and many have seen. Job wanted comforting thoughts but these did not come to him as desired. Instead of consoling thoughts he was driven to confess more sins - but is that not how comfort comes, after repentance ?

There is much emotion in youth, and therefore much sin ; emotion does not consider the consequences of actions, it often has a selfish motive. When we see the sins of young people, we should remember our own, and pray for them. Job believed in forgiveness also, as did David ( Ps.25:7). The sins of youth cannot be undone, and although forgiven, we must live with some of the consequences in this world ( only). But sin can be forgiven ; God can change the natural consequences and overrule them by supernatural power. " Youth is a slippery age," says John Trapp.

Suffering has the effect on the mind to dwell on sad things, and Satan will be at hand to accuse, as always. But although Job, David and others, remembered the sins, God has said, " Their sins and iniquities I will remember no more." ( Heb. 8:12). This is His promise, and hope is glad.

MAY 9

" Man that is born of a woman is of few days, and full of trouble."  Job 14:1.

In verses 1-12 of this chapter we read of Job's thoughts regarding life and death, thoughts which we all share, whether we admit it or not. All born after the fall of Adam and Eve ( all who have an earthly father ) find life here hard to bear. A sinner must bear " trouble, afflictions, miseries and death." ( J.Gill), and we are all sinners, whether we live a long or short life here. Satan regards the whole world as his work area and targets all those who belong to Christ, those marked out as bearing their cross as they follow Him. " Few and evil have been the days of my pilgrimage," said old Jacob ( Gen.47:9) The way of man is a weary way ; misery - ' sin has done all this.' ( Spurgeon). We do come to oases as we travel through this wilderness of a world, but they are soon left behind, and we are not sure when we will reach the next one for relief. We are troubled in ourselves, and also troubled when we see the troubles of others on the journey. Many do not think of their mortality, and when a funeral is announced they continue to think that ' all are mortal except ourselves.' We all have an appointment with death, and we don't know the time. We dare not meet death alone, but Christ has promised to be at the meeting too ! ( Ps.23:4 )

MAY 10

" Man... is of few days and full of trouble." Job 14:1.

" Man is short-lived. ' Few and evil have the days of my life been,' said Jacob to Pharaoh. His days are ' full of trouble ' ; troubles of body, mind and state come upon the back of one another, like wave upon wave. Some of you are angry that I speak so much of conversion, but when I stand beside these open graves, I am ashamed of myself for speaking so little ! Learn the folly of living in pleasure. There is no net by which the devil catches more souls than the silken one of worldly pleasure. And it is common for worldly people to take it for granted that there is no harm in these things. Are your days not numbered ? Are we to have no pleasure, then ? Yes, in Christ. I have tasted all the pleasures of time, and they are not worth one drop of Christ's sweet love. Ah, there is no place for teaching Ministers how to speak like the deathbed !

In the time of health and strength, it is common for men to boast against God. But when they are brought to the brink of the grave...! Friends, flee from the wrath to come - you cannot bear it. Man is of few days, but ' Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever.' You who are in Christ, prize Him. How safe we are in Jesus ! " ( R.M. McCheyne)

MAY 11

" Who can bring a clean thing out of an unclean ? Not one. "  Job 14:4.

" As a historical record this passage proves that the doctrine of Original Sin was early held in the world." ( A.Barnes) " There is none good," said the Lord ( Ps. 14:3 ), who also said, " That which is born of the flesh is flesh." ( John 3:6 ) " The hereditary copy cannot be better than the original, the child of the Ethiopian will be Ethiopian. Man begets a son in his own image ( Gen.5:3). All the water in the ocean cannot wash out this uncleanness, it abides, and is powerfully active against the holy Will of God. it takes away man's beauty and becomes his ruin as well as his dishonour." ( J.Caryl)

Nothing that we can do can make us good, perfectly pure, or carry out perfect duty towards God. " The impurity of our nature is a matter of inheritance, a fallen man becomes the father of fallen children." ( Spurgeon) We shall have to look outside of ourselves for beauty, purity, perfect obedience and indeed forgiveness for what we are - we must look to Christ Jesus ( 1 Corinth. 1:30). This doctrine of Original Sin is repugnant to man's pride, a pride founded on self-ignorance. It would be easy to blame Adam for all our troubles, but part of us was in Adam, we were all involved ( Acts 17:26. Heb.7:9 ). " We were that man ! " ( Augustine)

MAY 12

" For there is hope of a tree, if it be cut down, that it will sprout again. "   Job 14:7.

There was hope for a fallen tree, that it would grow again, but Job had no hope for improvement in his own condition - not in this world anyway, but his hope went beyond this world. His body would fall into the ground (vs.11), it would disappear from view. But the root of life in the soul would remain, spiritual life is the root. " As a tree cut down sprouts again, so though a man dies, he shall revive and rise again." ( J.Caryl )" If only..." is often the language of a person who has lost hope. They spend their lives wishing it away, instead of getting on with the only life we have. Job didn't have much hope for happiness in this world, but he prayed and went through each day with his eyes on the next. Faith has eyes ( Ps.16:8. Heb.2:9) ; the soul has eyes as well as the body ( Ephes.1:18).

When a tree is felled, it looks final. but patience has a work to do ( James 1:3,4 ). Job, instead of looking at himself as a rootless tree, believes that he shall rise out of the depths of his emptiness ( vs.12). Hope can be revived by the God who gave it, and hope's inheritance is not fully received until we cross over death to receive it. Job's winter was long,but it would soon be over, and spring would follow - the time when hidden things grow again. He is learning, as Rutherford did, that " grace grows best in winter."

MAY 13

" But man dies, and where is he ? "  Job 14:10.

We are often reminded of this question in the Bible ( Zech.1:5 ). The statistics that we shall all die are impressive - 100% correlation. The current euphemism for death is, " He has passed " - but where has he passed to ? Where is he now ? Our minds ought to become familiar with this truth, that we must move on at death to a destination, instead of banishing it from our mind ; and the world will certainly help us to do this. This world does not like to be seen as a preparation for another world, and will oppose the concept. The world is happy to live with uncertainties, (Biblical dogmatism and absolutes are repugnant to them ), but the believer is not happy unless hoope has something definite to focus on. How can doubt and uncertainty make anyone feel happy or secure ?" Death enters every abode, closed doors cannot keep him out. He comes uninvited, often unexpected. We live on the borders of the grave, on the margin of eternity.Eternal things should have in our hearts the constant pre-eminence." ( J.Burns) The time is appointed ( Heb.9:27 ), we cannot go past it, no matter the strength of our will or desire. Death shall humble us with its power. it is God's messenger, but with what message does it come to the individual ? " Where is he " after death ? It all depends on where he was before death. Was he in Christ, following Him on the road to heaven ? Then we know where he is !

MAY 14

" Oh that Thou would hide me in the grave...and remember me." Job 14:13.

Job, in his depression, finds his thoughts switching frequently between life and death. " Hide me as a treasure kept by its Possessor." ( Spurgeon) His hope, like the dying thief's , is that God will remember him when he ' goes the way of all flesh ' into the grave. The world may forget him but that does not matter ; Job knew what mattered ! None of God's people are lost when they die, God knows where to find them. They are dead to the world, but not to him. Job will not see wrath, as others on the surface will ; God's people are precious to Him, in life and death ( Ps.116:15). There is a time to enter the grave and a time to come out ( twice in the case of Lazarus ). God has His timetable, and no one knows the time of Christ's return ( for the universal resurrection ) except Himself - although some ' prophecy experts ' think they know His timing. We believe God, that only He knows.

The ultimate horror must be a ' Christless grave.' The body alone in the grave, not united to Christ, and the soul in the worst possible company while it awaits reunion with the body ! But if we desire to be remembered by Christ, " Lord, remember me." - then, we have all we need, all we desire. It will not be a barren remembrance, we are more than a name to Him ; we are joined to Him, forever.

MAY 15

" I will wait, until my change comes."  Job 14:14.

Job tells his soul to be patient, and the more trust the more patience. He would not pass this way again, his journey ' through much tribulation ' would only happen once. The change would come, and he would never know pain again. This future state is something to look forward to, something Job mentions often. It would be strange if you were not thinking about the place you are travelling to. And yet we are tempted to travel through this world aimlessly, looking at our feet, so to speak, instead of looking ahead. Job was answering a question asked since almost the beginning of time, 'After death, shall I live again ? ' He answers positively, but it is not to live here and not to live in the same manner. He also knows that God's power alone can accomplish this ( ch.19). Our life here is a warfare, a spiritual warfare which many do not discern. One can only fight if one recognises the enemy. The enemy is sin, which brings to death ( 1 Corinth.15:26) ; sin takes many forms, human and ( fallen) angelic. Job feels he is always on his guard in this world and looks forward to the rest which follows release from the battle. We must all be changed, adapted for eternal existence. ' Flesh and blood ' ( 1 Corinth.15:50) can neither endure eternal glory or eternal punishment ; the power of God is needed ( Matt.22:29).

MAY 16

" My change... "  Job 14:14.

" Job's life was a weary monotony at the time when he thus spoke. Day after day, there was the same repressing presence of pain, reproach and temptation. How regularly they came ! How tardily they withdrew, even for an hour. What a gospel rang out in the word " change " in the ear and heart of Job. Let us cheer our own hearts with the meditation on the certain change which awaits us all. The grace casts a shadow over all our lives, but Jesus came to save us from the fear of death as well as from other fears ; death is robbed of its sting. Much shall be left behind, but more shall be entered Into at death. Many things shall be new and different but every believer shall feel heaven to be her home. It may be a sudden death, of unexpected timing, and so ' we should treat every day as if it were our last day.' ( Augustine). We may die without any company attending us, alone, but alone with God. We know that angels also watch us. It will be the final change. We have only one life, heading in one direction, and there is no going back, no reversing of our course when the end of our time here comes. It will be the ' final transition.' Here a separation often brings a sense of insecurity, but this final separation will give us the opposite sense." ( S.A.Twigs)

MAY 17

"Man that is born...man...man...shall mourn."  Job 14:1,10,14,22.

This chapter has a lot to say about man ; he seems to be born to mourn. He comes into the world ' brimful of trouble ' (vs.1). The complication of his troubles is beyond description, and saving him out of them is something only God can do. Man passes through this world like the shadow of a cloud ( vs.2), he has no continuing city here ; the city shall go on without him. Man is reminded that his days are numbered ( vs.5) ; he may not know his limits, but God does. His physical and mental powers weaken and he ' wastes away ' (vs.10) ; he has barely come to maturity when he begins to decline. His body must yield up the soul ( vs.10 ) when God calls for it ; and what was in that soul when it departed ? Man shall rise again, when the heavens ( and earth ) pass away ( vs.12). This seemed a long way off in Job's days, but it is nearer now ( 1 Thess.4:14-16), and shall come suddenly. Man shall live again, live on, if he is alive in Christ. Without Christ, he shall but exist without end. When the earth ends we shall all continue ( Rev.20 12 ). By faith, we may be ' sorrowful, but always (have ground for ) rejoicing ' also, as Paul said.

MAY 18

" Thou shalt call and I will answer...the work of Thy hands."  Job 14:15.

This is the final call to the supreme court, when all wrongs shall be put right and all God's justified people shall be sinless at last. Christ shall be satisfied to see His work ( Is.53:11. Ephes.2:20 ) and we shall be satisfied also ( Ps.17:15). He shall not need to call twice, we shall all come. We know what God has prepared for us ; the body shall rest in the grave, while the soul continues active, until this final reunion. The body of the believer shall be raised in honour, and conformed to Christ's glorious body ( ! Corinth.15:42,43. Philipp.3:21). They are ' God's workmanship ' ( Ephes.2:20), and God desires them for His nearest company ( John 17:24) ; this is their desire also ( Ps.84:2).

' There is a time coming when God, who seems to forget us now, will call for His work. He will not leave a grain of their dust in the grave but will raise it up again, because He made it and renewed it. There are many difficulties in man's life, in our time, but there will be a time of change in the condition of God's people, and of His enemies also. It is coming, wait for it, and comfort yourselves in it." ( J. Durham )

MAY 19

" And Thou destroyest the hope of man." Job 14:19.

To have one's hope disappointed is a common experience, and not a happy one. We shall not be in this world very long before it happens to us ; and it shall happen again. We all have hopes and expectations which are never realized, and often reversed. The depth of disappointment depends on the value placed on our hopes. But nothing happens by chance ; we may be disappointed but God is not taken by surprise by His own Providence ! While we know our duties towards God, we do not know how well we shall do them here ; imperfection in sanctification is ours until death comes to perfect it. We do therefore need to pray for harmony and obedience ( Ps.119:35 ), because while we have the desire for it, we do not have the power for it.

" When God breaks a man's earthly ideas, it is that he may find nobler ones in heaven, so that, turning away his heart from worldly things, he may seek those things which are above (Coloss.3:1-4). " ( T.Whitelaw) We have to believe that God has something better for us when He says ' No ' to us. It is a matter of trust. Moreover, looking back, have we not reason to thank God for our disappointments? Who knows what it saved us from ' further down the line ' ?

Disappointments help make us what we are. There is only one Hope( 1 Tim.1:1) ' which does not fade away ' and that is Christ Himself ( 1 Peter 1:3,4). God does not frustrate every hope, He always fulfils the ones that He gives.

MAY 20

" His flesh upon him shall have pain, and his soul within shall mourn."  Job 14:22.

" This is evidently the state of a man after death; he would be taken away from his hope and from his friends." ( A.Barnes ) His flesh, after the ravages of the grave, will have worse sufferings now at the resurrection. The soul beyond death shall know no happiness ; the fleeting joys of earth are but a memory, a vain memory now. He must now bear his sorrows alone, with no supports ( cf.Jonathan Edwards on Ezekiel 22;14). The old testament does not teach annihilation at death, and the Lord Jesus confirmed by His own teaching the doctrine of endless punishment for ( unrepented ) sin. The soul and the body are joined together in pain ( Luke 16:24). Hell is a place of 'wailing', of mourning.The mourning is not only for irremediable pain but out of despair also. Those in hell are absorbed in the thought of their own suffering ; the essence of sin is in the self ( Augustine ). They do not think of others there ( vs. 21). Their consciences, memories, regrets, folly are what they think upon. But anger is there also, ' gnashing of teeth.' They are like their father, the devil, said the Lord ( John 8). But God's children shall bear the image of His Son ( Rom.8:29), and 'God shall wipe away all tears from their. eyes .' 

( Rev.21:4 ) All their weeping is left outside the gates of heaven, there is no weeping inside, only joy.

MAY 21

" Should a man utter vain knowledge ? "  Job 15:2.

Job had spoken the truth about his experience and how it contradicted the teaching of his friends. This made Eliphaz angry, and he called Job a ' bag of wind ' because Job would not agree with him, or with his friends. We live in an age when there are always talks going on, between nations, governments and churches. For the churches, it is usually about whether to adopt some new innovation or not. " A new Decalogue has been adopted by the neo-Christians of our day, the first of which reads, ' Thou shalt not disagree.' There is a new set of Beatitudes too, which begins, ' Blessed are they that tolerate everything, for they shall not be made accountable for anything.' " A.W.Tozer wrote these words in the 1960s, but decades later things in the visible church are a lot worse. There is a contemporary powerful movement to promote unity at the expense of truth and righteousness ; the lowest common denominator is eagerly sought out by the ecclesiastics. But to Whom does the church belong ?" What fellowship has light with darkness ? " asks the Apostle Paul. But they say,' Let us meet in the middle, in the grey area.' But when did the things of God become negotiable ? Job was asserting the truth, and it was causing division. Rather, it was bringing to the surface a division which was already there ! Better to stand with Job and Paul, no matter what ' vain knowledge ' they accuse us of. ( Galat.4:16).

MAY 22

" Thou restrainest prayer before God." Job 15:4.

Job's three friends now make a second attempt to convince him to agree with them. Eliphaz is not so polite this time, and attacks Job's devotion to God ; Jeremiah and others suffered the same kind of criticism when they stood against the religious tide, Likewise Luther, " Here I stand." Job actually was much in prayer to God, He was hardly out of his thoughts, but he was struggling to draw comfort from his meditations. The Psalmist said, ' I thought of God, and was troubled.' - perhaps alarmed by how little effect it had on him ! Eliphaz tried to catch Job in his words, but the words of Eliphaz himself show what kind of man he himself is ! Can this charge of prayerless be brought against us, ? When the pleasure of prayer is lost, and it becomes a task; many give up the attempt, but Job continues through the barren season. " Never let us wait for a better frame of mind or ' a more convenient season '. But let us go as we are, and whenever an opportunity arises, to the Throne of grace. " ( J.Smith) If we lack prayer we shall soon lack life ; and carelessness usually follows coldness of heart. " Restraining prayer is directly opposed to God's Word, is yielding to Satan, is grieving the Spirit and must end in mischief." ( J.Smith) Such a drought of prayer will dry up and impoverish the soul. How can a soul grow in grace by staying away from the Throne of grace ? " Lord, teach us to pray."

MAY 23

" Thy mouth utters thy iniquity."  Job 15:5.

Eliphaz still maintains that God's blessing comes on account of our works, and not by His grace. Thus he accuses Job of arguing sinfully, because Job refuses to accept that the Covenant of Works is still in operation. ( But it only took one sin to break that covenant, for Adam and all those he carried inside him, and that sin occurred). He accuses Job of undermining our motive to serve God i.e. he denied we are to serve for the reward given to a good life. He thought Job had invented a new doctrine ( vs.8), because Job ( like Paul ) opposed the doctrine that ' godliness must be used for gain.' The works-reward doctrine of Eliphaz was just a form of legalistic selfishness ; such servants were serving themselves, not God. ( This was the devil's argument too in ch.1 and 2). Our works do not put God under an obligation to benefit us. For ' unprofitable servants ', God's blessing is all of grace ( Ps.103:10). " Their religion was only a pious system for promoting selfishness, and not for glorifying God." ( W.Wiersbe) The Lord and His Prophets and Apostles opposed this false doctrine also ( Deut.6:4-6. Rom.12:1). It is love that fulfils the law ( Rom.13:10). Eliphaz, as many do, when he was struggling for arguments. he attacked Job's character ( vs.7-10 ) and said Job should respect the words of his elders. But age is no guarantee of wisdom ( ch.32:9. Ps.119:97-104). Eliphaz was also foolish in trying to interpret what God did not reveal ; the truly wise are also humble.

MAY 24

" Are the consolations of God small with thee ? " Job 15:11.

God is the " God of all comfort " for those who are cast down ( 2 Corinth.1:3 & 7:6). Without hope given from God Himself, the world would only have despair and fantasy. Even in the midst of emptiness, the believer has God's Word to remind her of promises made to those who trust Him who made the promises. We must beware of trying to get more kinds of assurance from God than He had given. Some need signs and wonders, feelings and excitements, or they think they have small consolation. But where is the place of faith in all this ? Is hope only dependent on the things which you can see and not of what God has promised ? ( much of which is not yet seen ). Was Noah's consolation for 120 years just based on what he saw or what he felt ? Or did he have God's words echoing within to remind him of how much he had with and from God ? 

Those who follow Christ are promised tribulation, but also consolation.These consolations are suitable for all conditions of the soul or body ( Heb.6:18). It is a candle in the darkness. Christ has a hospital for the broken and the wounded ( Ps.147:3) - some take a long time to recover, but they do recover. They do not lose all hope, because Christ will not lose them ( Ps.138:8). He was wounded so that we might be healed. Let us not be tempted to look elsewhere first for comfort, and thus devalue ( make small ) the consolations which God gives.

MAY 25

" Man, who drinks iniquity like water."  Job 15:16.

" It is as natural for man to commit sin as to drink water... The abundance of sin committed is like large draughts of water, repeated again and again." 

( J.Gill) Sin has an appetite, a thirst in fallen human nature for more. It shall always rebel, unless the Holy Spirit ' invades the soul ' and Christ then reigns as King there. Then a new hunger and thirst appears ( Matt.5:6). The sinner cannot overpower sin by his own strength ( only God's power is greater than sin's), nor can she even restrain sin by human effort ; the human will shall fail us, with its inconstancy. Sin is in the heart, and that is where the battle is won or lost. Rejecting God's truth in this matter of ' total depravity ' is self-destructive ; it means we are still depending on ourselves and not on ' outside help.' ( John 15:5) The strength of our will comes from His strength, to empower us ( Philipp.4:13), to enable us to make the right choices. 

" We are sinners by nature and by practice." ( M.Henry) Only the Holy Spirit can quench sin's thirst, and so we must be careful not to ' quench the Spirit.' Only God can separate this alien element from us at death ; He shall deliver us ( Rom. 7:24, 25). " Soon shall the cup of glory wash down earth's bitterest woe." ( Rutherford)

MAY 26

" The wicked man travails ( toils ) with pain all his days." Job 15:20.

The expression of sin in a life is like a birth ( James 1:14,15), but, like thorns, it pierces those who handle it. Man cannot live without sin ; he sees the commission of it as essential to his happiness on earth. As he is, without Christ, he could never therefore enjoy heaven. However, Job's experience ( and ours) contradicts the view that the wicked experience a life of pain with sin. No, they are happy in its company, they find pleasure in it ( Rom.1:32 Heb.11:25 ). Like madmen they are happy on Death Row, but eventually they will find that " It's not worth being wicked." ( K.Dell) 

The pain of sin is suppressed by the wicked, as it would mean accepting God and His character. The church itself preaches hedonism nowadays and not the spiritual struggle with sin in its personal and global effects. Death and judgement are two thoughts that come to everyone at some time - they escape into the mind from the media's distractions and the world's ridicule of spiritual concern. Without Christ no one has anything to look forward to at the end of life here, but the world is skilful to mask this painful thought and fearful doubt. Eliphaz was implying that Job was hiding his despair, but Job, though perplexed, was not in despair ; there was a power in Job to hope on ( 2 Corinth.4:7,8 ). He knew that his Redeemer lives, and this thought dampened the pain.

MAY 27

" For he stretches out his hand against God. " Job 15:25.

Eliphaz expressed a truth here, man does shake his fist against God, but wrong to apply this truth to Job. Job was shaking, but with the strain ; perhaps the strain of resisting the temptation to be angry. In the rest of the chapter Eliphaz expands on the consequences of defying God ( as Psalm 2). Amos spoke to the religious of his day that they were not reconciled to God, they were still defying and contradicting Him ( Amos 4:12). " The aim of unbelief is Deicide," said Dr. Duncan. They wish Him out of existence, and oppose or deny any trace of Him in His world ( Rom.8:7). A harmless God is no threat to them, but the God revealed in the Bible is !" Sin runs against reason, and causes us to act, not only wickedly but foolishly. Sin begins with turning the heart from God, and sin ends with turning the heart against God. The first step in sin is a neglect of God, the second is contempt of God, the third and last is a war with God... Sins are committed in contempt of God ; they sin presumptuously and with a high hand, with a command shining in their eye and a threat sounding in their ear. They send a defiance to heaven and bid God do His worst." ( Joseph Caryl)

MAY 28

" For the congregation of hypocrites shall be desolate...their belly prepares deceit."  Job 15:34,35.

The hypocrite's heart is a ' factory of deceit ' and false appearances ( Ps.7:14). The real ' me ' is kept carefully hidden, but not from God. To mix with such people is abarren experience ; their words are ambiguous and their sincerity depends on the company they are in, on which way the wind blows. " There are many posing as the followers of God. They go to church, some of them even teach there...Although they are religious, they have never had a real heart-experience with God...It is better that we look into our own hearts first, as Eliphaz should have done, rather than into someone else's." ( J.A.Blair)

" The hypocrite internally prepares to deceive and ensnare ; making nets to entangle others. Eliphaz uses the present tense( 'prepares'), as if they are always doing it ; it is a continued act ( Gen.6:5). There. is alove for sin, carrying him into new experiments. " ( J.Caryl)

The repenting sinner comes out from behind the mask, spreads arms and heart before God and asks God for deliverance from sinful dishonesty - from our self ! God promises to deliver such ( Rom.7:24 & 8:1), and so we do not despair of ourselves. " Christians are not perfect, only forgiven." 

MAY 29

" Miserable comforters are you all. " Job 16:2.

Looking at Job's friends, we understand how NOT to comfort people. We learn from the good examples in the Bible and also from the bad examples. These friends looked upon him as a case study for their theories ; they were all head and no heart. They came to a wrong diagnosis and therefore their treatment was unsound, and hurtful. Job needed comfort and he was not finding it anywhere ; he sensed none from God either ( 9:14). But a silent God is not an absent God. There was no encouragement in their speeches. They were like doctors who refuse to listen to their patients' experiences of pain. They were ' armchair theologians, ' who used words ( and perhaps prayers ) as a substitute for practical living. Instead of rubbing in oil like the Good Samaritan, they sprinkled salt on his wounds. The effect of their words was not comforting, but they would blame Job for this too, that he was resisting the treatment ! Job said that he would not treat them this way if they were down ( vs.5). Christ was also ' wounded in the house of His friends '.( vs.10) 

If we know all the facts about someone we would be more careful in how we assess them. Only the lawgiver can be the infallible Judge ( James 4:12). And only the Physician who sees all things inside can be the effective Healer in spiritual matters ( Heb.4;15,16). He knows all the facts about His individual patients and assigns remedies appropriately. NB We must remember that Job's friends had problems too, ( to which they were yet blind) and they would be remedied in the last chapter also.

MAY 30

" My Witness is in heaven, and my record is on high. " Job 16:19.

This was the verse which comforted John Bunyan as he fought against despair as he himself started out on the Christian journey. We need someone to appear for us in God's court (vs.21), to be our Advocate and speak on our behalf ( Heb.9:24) - and no one was doing this for Job on earth below. In the final analysis it is only God's opinion that matters ( Rom.8:34). Job was aware that he had an unseen Witness and Watcher in heaven, and that He was not an idle spectator. It was a comfort to Job ( and to us ) to know that He knows. He Himself was misunderstood on earth, especially in His suffering, by all except His Father, and those whom His Father enlightened ( Matt.16:17). Job suffered, but the Son of Man would suffer more on earth then anyone ; and therefore He knew what it was to suffer ( although He suffers no more ) cf Heb.4:15. 

Satan will tempt us to think that Christ is doing nothing for us ; he is an expert in hiding truth, especially comforting truths. We have an ' Advocate with the Father ', our hearts and conscience tell us that we need Him. The faith given to us tells us that we can trust Him. Our faith must reach up more to meditate upon Christ's present heavenly activity as well as His past earthly activity for us.

Job was living among a cruel people ( vs.20 ), but clung to God, as a frightened child to his Father. The Son would protect Him and the Spirit would comfort him - this is to have in Christ all that we need.

MAY 31

" When a few years are come, then I shall go the way whence I shall not return. "  Job 16:22.

Job's constant hope in his troubles was, ' It won't be long now.' He was getting nearer Home each day ( Rom.13:11), and then he could rest. At present it was getting through the day that mattered. Faith must balance the present with the future, and not just be absorbed with the former. Our years are few, few enough to number them ; but we shall not be returning here ( ch.7:10). At the resurrection there shall be no world to return to , as it shall be dissolved in fire ( 2 Peter 3:12,13); there shall only be ' righteousness' in heaven and so no more pain. It is righteousness that makes peace and happiness, and it is not our own, but given to us graciously. The believer lives with the thought of death ( Gen.49:18. Joshua 23:15. Ps.39:4.), but soon he shall live without it ( Ps.116:9). 

Job was anticipating the final steps on the journey, the return to God ( Eccles.12:7). The departure is certain; frail human nature cannot prevent it or change the time of it ( James 4;14). " We should live every day as if it may be our last." ( Augustine) But does it make us watchful ? Are we rehearsing that day ? ( as Rutherford recommended to a nobleman). Many have ' set their house in order ', but not their souls. Would it not be strange if we were going to heaven, and yet not thinking about our destination ?