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.
JUNE 1
" My eye also is dim by reason of sorrow." Job 17:7.
The eye is ' the window of the soul ' ( all physicians look there first ), and if you could look inside Job's eye you would see an empty darkness. Inside there was mourning, no movement, no strength or desire for movement. He was only a shadow of what he was before, so far down in the depths that he felt abandoned there. Alas, the eyes usually betray our sorrow, even when the mouth smiles. Tears have puffed and reddened his eyes; they were dim now, not seeing things properly. Sleep deprivation will exacerbate this. If the light of hope was in his eye, only God could see it, it was so hidden away. He was a ' man of sorrows ', grief was his companion in those days ; he reminds us of Another, who had a deeper path." Sorrow has dimmed Job's eyes. It is not easy to see through a veil of tears. The sad soul sits in darkness, and the darkness prevents us from seeing all the truth. It limits our range of vision. Though it does not drive us fully into the darkness of despair, it does lower our vitality, and hinders us from lifting our eyes above earthly misery...In great grief the soul cannot discern the Divine purpose, not the love that is above all." ( W.F.Adeney)It is a time to remember our Ebenezer, : " We have been here before, and God has brought us out of this before.' There shall yet be a new song ( Ps.40).
JUNE 2
" Put me in a Surety with Thee." Job 17:3.
Job prays that God himself would be his Guarantor, that He would ' strike hands ' with Job and enter into a pledge with him that He would act on Job's behalf. ( cf. Gen.43:9) There is no stability in any relation with God apart from Christ. If God had simply repaired us after Adam's fall, we would have fallen again. We need a Surety, One to act and speak for us, to guarantee that sinners would indeed be ever forgiven and reach a place in heaven. none of us can do this for others ( Ps.49:7-9) but Christ is appointed the Surety in God 's Covenant of Grace with sinners. He shall do all that is required to save them and bring them Home to the Father, as Judah promised Jacob regarding Benjamin ( Gen.43:9).When God calls us to fulfil duties as believers, He Himself works in us the abilities for obedience ( Philipp.2:12,13. Job 4:18) ; He does not leave us to ourselves.
" Christ does not only plead our cause for us but pays our debts. He entered into a bond for us, and took all our debts and duties, whatsoever we owe to God, upon Himself. This was to see that all is performed, so that we are free and accepted." ( J.Caryl). Job's desire is to put the matter into God's hands ; he cannot trust anyone else with his deliverance. Little faith limits God, but strong faith, like Abraham's ( Rom.4 ), dares to rely on God, especially in distress. Such faith evidences a high estimation of God, and gives much honour to God." ( J.Durham)
JUNE 3
" The righteous also shall hold on his way." Job 17:9.
Perseverance is promised to those who follow Christ by faith, it is a mark of grace ( Philipp.1:6. 1 John 2:19). The ' fight of faith ' is lifelong and we need a strength greater than our own, for we have ' many adversaries ' ( as Paul said ). They are not only flesh and blood like ourselves, but ' principalities and powers ' to confront ( Ephes.6), besides indwelling sin's power. The source of this power to ' endure to the end ' is God's ( 1 Peter 1:5). Christ is the Author and Finisher of our faith and supports us by His intercession ( Heb.7:25. 12:2), so that we will not go back ( Heb.10:39) when the sifting storms of life come upon us. There are many ' sunshine Christians ' who will soon complain when their own plans do not come to pass. Faith, however, will trust in God's plan, like Job ( 1:21) - not easy, but faith has no alternative, it is always safe to agree and submit to God. Perseverance is God's grace in action ; for the believer it is not simply a walk but a battle to go forward. " Yes, we believe in the perseverance of the saints, if they are saints." ( Spurgeon )
" We hold on our way because Christ holds on to us ; the Holy Spirit abides with us, and His power is greater than all. Perseverance means that God will restore us ( Ps.23), time after time until we reach heaven, where restoration is no longer needed. The greatness and glory of God's power in His people is seen more in the journey of many years than in a journey of a few days. Do not turn away from God in your trial, turn to Him. ( A.Smellie)
David knew the source of his help, do you ? ( Ps.60:11. 2 Sam.8:6).
JUNE 4
" My purposes are broken off, even the thoughts of my heart. " Job 17:11.
' Man proposes, but God disposes.' said Luther. Job's plans for the future had disintegrated ; his plans for his children in particular. But he was not in despair, he knew his children were in a better place. Job accepted that his own plans were not God's and that we are prone to make this selfish mistake. Faith talks to God about the only sure hope He has given us, Christ Jesus. It is not easy to be patient, to await God's timing of events in our lives. However, " when you believe God is in control, you will not resent His timing." ( C.Swindoll) Job's purposes are broken, but God's go forward ( Is.53:10) ; God knows no disappointment ( Is.55:11).Death will break every plan which does not agree with God's. " This is to man one of the most trying things at death - all his plans, projects , ambitions etc are arrested. All is left incomplete and may be taken away just when it is thought to lie within his grasp. How many unfinished plans are caused by death every day ! " ( A.Barnes )
Our hopes may be darkened by circumstances beyond our control, like Job's. In Psalm 42 David was cast down, but faith knows Him and trusts Him, and says defiantly, " I shall yet praise Him !" The journey may be desperate, but the end shall be reached. " All's well that ends well."
JUNE 5
" And where is now my hope ?...Who shall see it ? " Job 17:15.
This question does not arise from despair, but from expectation. Job was struggling to get through the darkness to get to the light on the other side. He trusted God to get him through the suffering, he would not give up his faith. Job and his hope would rise again ( 19:26) ; the grave is near, but Christ is nearer. The hope of so many goes into the grave with them. There is safety in the Ark, but it must be entered before the Judgement comes. If his hope came from himself, he would have lost it. But as Christ gave it to him with Himself ( Coloss. 1: 27), it could not be lost. There was nothing he could find in himself, in his friends ( the ' church ') or in the world to encourage him ; faith, hope and love must look away from self to Another.
" Hope is either a cable or a cobweb. If it is a living hope ( 1 Peter.1:3 ), it shall survive the grave." ( T.Robinson) Job had promises from God ; he knew God, and that He would keep His Word ( 2 Tim.1:12). An old woman died with that hope, saying that God would keep His promise, " He has more to lose than I have ! " Eternal life depends on the answer to Job's question, ' And where is now my hope ? ' If this hope is in Christ alone, you shall ' see it ' fulfilled. At present only God and ourselves see it, but in heaven all shall see it and God shall be glorified.
JUNE 6
" The light of the wicked shall be put out." Job 18:5.
Light is the symbol of life ( vs.18 & ch.3:20). Bildad hoped to terrify Job into submission to their unsubtle accusations ; like many, Bildad had lots of warnings from the Law but no consolation from the Gospel. He was correct in reminding us that we can take nothing out of the world with us, that the world will take back what it gave at death. The wicked's health and wealth shall collapse at death and disappear ( vs.7). The wicked are the Christ-rejecters, and this offence carries the maximum, endless, penalty of the Law, breaking the first commandment in particular. And if the first Commandment is put out of mind, the other commandments cannot be kept either ; the sinner will be put into everlasting darkness.
Bildad adds, ' Terrors shall make him afraid on every side.' ( vs.11). Conscience, God's witness in the soul, can make a sinner afraid when nothing else will.
Many would like to live without a conscience, as it disturbs their pleasures, but it cannot be removed from the soul ; where the soul goes, conscience goes with it. Attempts to escape the terrors of conscience shall be in vain. There is only one way of peace, by the blood of Christ ( Heb.9:14 & 10:22). Whereas the confidence of the wicked, whatever he trusts in, shall be rooted out ( vs.14). Many trust in wealth for prosperity and peace ( Prov.18:11), but not Job ( ch.31:24). The world and its gifts cannot last ( Ps.52:7). To trust in one's own light is to be in danger of eternal darkness ( vs.18), but Job trusted in God's Deliverer ( Heb.2:14,15).
JUNE 7
" The snare is laid for him...a trap for him in the way." Job 18:10.
The ungodly are surrounded by dangers, there is no certain security for them, despite their confidence. Like Nimrod, the devil is a ' mighty hunter ' and has caught millions in his snares, distracting them, blinding them to the pitfalls lying in front of them. He walks into the devil's net " with his own feet " ( vs.8) ; he cannot blame anyone but himself. The Lord said, " Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation." ie. Keep your eyes open, do not walk into it, do not consent to go that way ; if so, it ' will prevail ' against you (vs.9) - you are not stronger than the devil. If we are not leaning on Christ and His strength to come up from this wilderness of a world ( Song of Sol.8:5), then we are leaning on our own strength, which will prove to be our weakness ; as Samson and Peter found.The Word of God tells us how satan works and ( especially in Proverbs ) what wisdom we need in our fight against him. Both believers and unbelievers are being watched by a dangerous enemy, who will spring traps without warning. But what a difference knowing Christ makes for our prospects ( Ps.121). The unbeliever walks on in the darkness of his own natural understanding ( Ps.82:5), and when he falls there is no supernatural power to lift him up. But the believer is being watched and preserved, and when he does stumble and hurt himself, a Helper is at hand ( Micah 7: 7-9).
JUNE 8
" Destruction shall be ready at his side." Job 18:12.
At his side - ie. " it shall follow him at the heels, as a constant companion."
( M.Poole) Destruction is personified as a powerful enemy. " It keeps step with a man who does not know God, watching and waiting for the moment when death shall cause him to halt...For the ungodly death means destruction, the destruction of his hopes, joys and false peace." ( J.Smith) Then all shall be darkness forever, inside and outside." There is no running away from the destruction sent by God. Evils have a commission from Him and never fail to find the offender who does not repent. We cannot outrun the judgements of God, nor can we stand [ alone ] before them."
( J.Caryl) Men may think that they can, but they become weaker every day that they live. Then the body collapses and the soul must leave it behind. Sin has given us a mortal wound and the heart, simply by beating, is running down ; God can stop the heart at any time. " As in Adam all die," but all those in Christ shall live. Destruction is a power inferior to the Creator, and at His command.
JUNE 9
" The firstborn of death shall devour his strength." Job 18: 13.
The end of the wicked is one of ' strength devoured, confidence rooted up ' and to come face to face with ' the king of terrors.' " The firstborn of death is like the disease which is the forerunner of death, gradually eating up the strength, tearing up the hope of health at the roots, bringing the life under the dominion of death." ( J.Smith) In the spiritual realm, the forerunner of death is unbelief, the foretaste of eternal alienation and separation from God. Unbelief takes away the strength to come back to God ( Rom.5:6). It is a spiritual paralysis, a deadening slavery which causes the slave to live in fear of execution. There are ' terrors on every side ' (vs.11). The unbeliever may speak peace to himself, but that is not peace from God's words ; fears shall annihilate any fleeting confidence ( ch. 20:25). " The guilty man's feet are never swift enough to outrun the pursuing justice of God." ( J.Smith ) The sinner's self-confidence is not a sign of strength but of weakness. " All the power of man fails before this messenger of God ( death). No associations or preparations can prevent His judgement coming." ( J. Caryl)
But God has appointed a ' city of refuge ' for those who flee to Christ from the avenger, from the Law's accusations. For the believer, death is no longer ' the king of terrors ' ( vs.14) as it was before. A greater King has conquered it (Isaiah 25:4. 1 Corinth.15:54). " The death of Christ was the death of death." ( J.Owen)
JUNE 10
" His roots shall be dried up...his remembrance shall perish." Job 18:16,17.
The wicked shall die without confidence and in despair, despite appearances. His roots are no in God and, being dried up throughout life, are easily pulled up at death. Looking to self and the world are dried wells ( Malachi 4:1). His ' remembrance shall perish ' because his name is not written in the Lamb's ' Book of Life.' ( Philipp.4:3. Rev.20:15) They cling to this world to the end, as Lot's wife, despite being warned of the danger. Job is subtly profiling Job, and makes a cruel reference to Job's bereavement ( vs.16,19), based on the ' prosperity theology.' " The wicked have a withering doom. Their roots, their sources of life and strength, shall fail. Roots are hidden within and cannot be seen, but the inside is slowly withering away, despite their prosperous public appearance. It is a fatal condition when all internal resources dry up, as creature resources do. There is nothing to fall back upon when the last crisis comes. The external ruin only completes the internal decay." ( W.F.Adeney) Many a tree looks strong on the outside, but falls in the storm because of hidden decay inside. The Bible speaks of men as but grass which shall wither away ( 1 Peter 1:24. Ps.103:15,16). When the end comes it is sudden. Every death is a sudden death, an instantaneous transition from one world to another. Christ the Vine ( John 15:1ff.) can alone give life to the soul, maintenance and growth in that life. How different from a life of gradual ' drying up ' is the life of a believer ( Ps.1:3).
JUNE 11
" This is the place of him that knows not God. " Job 18:21.
To have no saving knowledge of God is synonymous with being ' wicked.' ( Hosea 4:1,2,6) They ' know not God and obey not the Gospel.' ( the one follows the other), writes Paul ( 1 Thess.1:8). Eternal life requires a spiritual knowledge ( John 17:3), not an indifferent ignorance. No wicked man knows God, natural knowledge will not satisfy Him, too much is left unanswered. Without faith they are but ' workers of iniquity ' ( Matt.7) Judas went to this ' place ' ( Acts 1:25 ) despite being a follower of Christ for 3 years - it's how you finish that matters ! Bodies take up space, they go to a ' place ' joined there by the soul. The word ' brimstone ' (vs.15) reminds us of the judgement upon the city of Sodom ; and other cities to come can expect this darkness and misery ( vs.18). To live without an awareness of God in HIs own world is a precursor of everlasting destruction ( 1 Thesss.1:8,9). " Though they may profess to know Him, yet in works they deny Him ; they have no spiritual or experimental knowledge of Him...They do not know Him as to love, fear,worship and obey him." ( John Gill ) How different is the ' place ', of the believer - God knows his address ( Ps.90:1).
JUNE 12
" God has overthrown me and compassed ( surrounded) me with His net." Job 19:7
" Job feels that God has forsaken him. He has no comforts now as this ( lack of ) sense robs him of any ( Ps.77:2). He can see no help coming to him ( vs.13-19). He describes himself as a besieged city, with no way to escape discerned. It is always easy and natural to make false inferences when our suffering appears endless. " Such passages as those of Job, his hard reflections upon God, have sometimes come from good men when under sore afflictions and temptations."( M.Poole). " Even when a sinner is greatly loved by God he can still suffer greatly. The hand of God was sore against Job when His heart was much set upon him. We must beware of drawing a false conclusion." ( Thomas Brooks)
The struggle between faith and sense continued in Job, as it does in every believer. What we want eg. quietness in life and tranquillity, is not necessarily what is best for us in the long run. " A medicine, a remedy, often works contrary to the patient's desire, but it does not work contrary to his good." ( T.Brooks) We must not judge a painting before it is finished, we must trust that the artist knows what he is doing. Sometimes God ' lets loose ' that dog, the devil, upon His sheep. This will not only test our trust but give us helpful experience ; helpful for perhaps something worse in the future, helpful for the encouragement of others. Job's critics forgot that this is not the only world, let us not forget this also ( Rev. 7:14).
JUNE 13
" Behold, I cry out of wrong but am not heard." Job 19:7.
Job felt dreadfully alone, and that prayer made no difference to him. Indeed, he felt that his condition was getting worse ( vs.13-19). His friends seemed to be persecutors and prosecutors. His needs were becoming deeper as he sensed the emptiness inside ; an emptiness which robbed him of being able even to plan the day ahead. There is an anxious sense of vulnerability in being passive, like a candle at the mercy of the wind. Every prayer ought to contain a cry for help, even help to maintain a sense of devoted gratitude to God ( Ps.103:10). When prayer is neglected, self-sufficiency takes its place. For God to hear our prayer and to answer us visibly are two different things. How many answered prayers have been thought to have gone unanswered ? Probably a staggering multitude !
Job was being tempted to think discouragingly, and to judge by what he alone could see happening. Job felt unheard, neglected and wronged. And he was not the last to do so - Psalm 43;2. Lament.3:8. Habakkuk 1:2. Faith must not only struggle against sense, but against impatience. Whatever happened to ' waiting upon the Lord ' ?
JUNE 14
" He has fenced up my way so that I cannot pass...darkness in my paths." Job 19:8.
Job felt trapped, he could do nothing that he wanted to do. Everything he had wished for had failed to happen, quite the opposite, and bitterly so ! God's ways are not our ways ( Is.55:8,9), although we are tempted to think they should be! Job was walking in the dark now. " Job does not know what to say or do. He can see no means and no possibility of getting out of his troubles. In the darkness he cannot discern his way, or what course he should take." ( M.Poole). Spurgeon gave good advice when he said, " If you don't know what to do, don't do it ! " It's easy in a panic to do something just for the sake of doing something. Each day there is a choice, " Shall I trust God today or not ? Shall I submit to God's choices for me or not ? Shall I pray sincerely ' Thy Will be done' or not ? "Job compares his grief and misery to " a traveller, whom nothing so much troubles on his journey as hedges and darkness. God's people are often brought into great distresses...so that they may learn to depend upon the Divine Providence. A child of light may walk in darkness ( Is.50:10), yet he is never without some spark of faith...And just as before the day breaks the darkest is greatest, so for Job and for us." ( J.Trapp )
" Thy choice is best, to rest in Thee ;
Yielding to Thy wisdom, safe inside Thy Will,
Not asking why or how - my soul be still." ( G.Troy)
JUNE 15
" For I know that my Redeemer liveth." Job 19:25.
A cry from the depth, a cry of faith, in defiance of his circumstances. Depressed people like Job have fluctuations in their moods. This was a good day for Job ; something he had known already came back to him with power. Job's friends were finding him ' difficult ', but Job was engaged in a battle, and there is not much peace in a battle. " The hope of the resurrection lies at the heart of Job's faith. He believes he will be vindicated after his death, and expresses his belief in a bodily resurrection.' ( F.Andersen) The patriarchs of Job's era had the same faith. They would be ' gathered to their fathers,' gathered by their Redeemer. " Job's hope was that God would deal more kindly with him later, and he lifted up his eyes to a future immortality. His Redeemer would be with him even as he lay in the tomb." ( John Calvin).
Death would be a door through which he would meet his Redeemer. We must wait until the end of the world's history, and then ' the stage will be swept away and the Author will appear.' Job knew that Christ would return and gather the bodies of His people, He is the Redeemer of the whole person. Knowing that Christ is alive and His people with Him makes all the difference in the world, literally ( John 11:25,26. 14:19). " Death could not hold Him ( Acts 2:24) and it shall not hold us." ( J.A.Blair) Job's confession is not presumption, faith entitles him to say it. To be positive is not presumption, whether it be said with faint or strong faith.
JUNE 16
" My Redeemer." Job 19:25.
" To be a Redeemer is taken in two ways :
Firstly, more largely, for a deliverer or helper. It is one of the names for God ( Ps. 19:14 ), and to redeem is both His work and His honour.
Secondly, more strictly, the title of Redeemer is applied to Jesus Christ, to whom we may apply all those works of redemption which in the OT are ascribed to God. For He was God the Redeemer from the beginning, long before he was ' God manifest in the flesh.' His blood was the price of our redemption ( 1 Corinth.6:20. 1 Peter 1:20).There are 5 things concurring in the office and service of our Redeemer :
1. The Redeemer must be Kinsman, He buys back those who belong to Him. ( Ruth 3:12. 4:4. Heb.2:14)
2. He must redeem upon that ground (of kinship ), as Immanuel.
3. He must deliver those who were under captivity from the hand of their enemies ( Ps.68:18 ).
4. He must not pay any price to the oppressor.
5. He must pay the price to the true Lord, into His hands, to whom the redeemed originally, or of right, do belong.
These five considerations all meet in Christ ; sinners were under the power of satan and also under the justice of God. Faith relies on " my Redeemer, the one Redeemer God has given ( Acts 4:12). " ( J.Caryl)
JUNE 17
" I know that my Redeemer liveth. " Job 19:25.
" Such was the language of Job's faith in his distress. Though to outward appearance he was a spectacle of utter wretchedness, yet in this delightful consciousness he was happy. His children were gone, his riches were lost, he was disfigured by corruptions and overwhelmed with sorrow ; yet in the living Redeemer he finds hope for his soul. Friendless and desolate on earth, his refuge and his portion were on high ( Is.35:9,10). The Redeemer lives, and His life ensures mine. He has ' come that we might have life ', redemption through His blood ( Acts 20:28). Beware of everything that may mar your assurance ; immoral enthusiasts are deluded.
I know that my Redeemer liveth - this blessed inscription remains clear and entire on the gravestones of the faithful, while time defaces the flatteries of grandeur and crumbles into dust the marble on which they were recorded. Lift up your eyes to the throne of the Prince, the Author, of life." ( Henry Belfrage )Job has mentioned this Person before ( ch.16:18-21 ) and also resurrection ( ch.14:14-17). " Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, for He hath visited and redeemed His people." ( Luke 1:68) He will rise to defend Job and those like him.
JUNE 18
" I know ..." Job 19:25
" A heart which holds this resurrection of the dead as certain is a rare bird indeed. For the world learns this article as it does any other piece of history. But that it should risk life and limb and everything it has on this ? - that will never happen, for it is unsure of this article. Concerning this article we must be utterly certain. For a Christian is made when he holds this article for a certain truth, so that he forsakes life and limb for it. That is why we preach this article, so that we may become certain of it, and so that everyone may search his own heart - to examine himself as to whether he too ( with Job ) would die with this belief...The resurrection of the Lord brings with it redemption from sin and death." ( Luther)
Job's confession is the language of faith, hope and love. " There are no ifs, buts and maybes in the faith of New Testament Christians." ( Spurgeon) Job's words are a mighty expression of certainty in a world of doubt and skepticism. The world has nothing to die with, just regrets, but Job knew better, he knew Someone better than any. He had a living Redeemer, he committed all to him before his own death, as Paul did ( 2 Tim.1:12). Job was uncertain regarding the details of his own life, and could find no answers to the mysteries of Providence, but he was certain about the One person who mattered, the ' one thing needful.' So certain was he that he wanted his words on this to be recorded in stone ( vs. 23,24). They now stand written in the Bible. For those, like Job, who have been persuaded, convinced by the Holy Spirit, such conviction is unconquerable !
JUNE 19
" Yet in my flesh shall I see God." Job 19:26.
Job looks beyond death, to the end of time, when body and soul shall be reunited in resurrection. " In his own esteem he is sinking into the grave, with every indication surrounding him of God's relentless ' hostility '. Every possibility of returning to tranquility in this life is, to his own mind, shut out. and yet, so fixed is he in his inward persuasion of the real friendship and redeeming grace of God to him, that he passes through the limits of the visible and tangible and knows that the manifest tokens of the Divine love, which are denied to him here, will be granted him there. " ( W.H.Green)
He looked forward to ' looking out from his flesh ' to see the glory of God in the Face of Jesus Christ ( 2 Corinth.4). ( He would have an unexpected foretaste of this in ch.42). At the resurrection he would still be recognisable as Job, just as Elijah was at the Transfiguration of Christ. Although discouraged, Job was not defeated. The Words of God would guide him through this world and into the next. " He knew where he was going to, and he was ready to go." ( J.A.Blair) The grave is the ' waiting room ' for the body until the call comes ( John 5:28,29). The soul has eyes and the body has eyes, and God has His eyes on both.
JUNE 20
" I shall see God...my eyes shall behold." Job 19:26,27.
Job's desire was to see God first and his loved ones second. His greatest hope had always been the foundation of his greatest joy ( Ps.43:4). The effect of this seeing of God ( Rev.22:4) would be likeness ( 1 John 3:2) and satisfaction ( Ps. 17:15). There is no greater vision which gives greater joy ; the Source is infinite and therefore the joy is everlasting. It is the climax of the believer's experience, it is what we were made for ( John 17:24). " Here is a brightness which can never dim, a glory which can never fade." ( Spurgeon) All of His attributes shall be for our contemplation. " Thine eyes shall see the King in his beauty. " ( Is. 33;17 ) - 'my eyes', says Job, I shall be there myself to see Him. All is promised to those who believe. The world says, See and believe, but the Gospel is, Believe and see." He maintains here the identity of his flesh and body in the resurrection. The self-same particular body which fell shall rise. He that made man at first from nothing, can easily remake him from something." ( J.Trapp) It will be a body adapted for heavenly existence, able to support a ' weight of glory.' " Job shall have a glorified eye to see a glorified Saviour. Souls and bodies in glory shall have no need of natural helps and supports, as here." ( J.Caryl) Job replies to his critics that Christ will defend and own him, as they do not.
JUNE 21
" The root of the matter is found in me. " Job 19:28.
Thedebate was concerning whether Job had ' the root of the matter ' or whether he was an empty hypocrite. The root is below the surface ; Job's friends could not see it, but God did ( 1 Sam.15:7). And where there was root there was fruit ( Galat.5:22ff). The Holy spirit had come, and Job had an eternal root within, forever ( James 1:21). His soul was ' good ground ' now that the Spirit had implanted the seed of the Word there. His doctrine, worship and practice were sound ( 1 Tim.3:9), but their prejudice meant they were looking for something more ie. agreement with their views. Their limited discernment was causing Job trouble.Sincerity characterises every godly man and woman. " He who is upright in what he says and does, need not trouble himself with what others say of him. Christ in the believer is the Root from which all graces come, and true grace carries light to discover itself. Job discovers and asserts it. " ( J.Caryl) Job warns his critics about doubting his sincerity ( vs.29) ; God dealt with these critics in ch.42:7 ! He traced back to God the renewed nature which had been implanted in him, like David ( Ps.115:1). He would not give up the truth in order to please men ( Galat.1:10) - " even if I have to believe it alone ! " ( Spurgeon)
JUNE 22
" seeing the root of the matter is found in me." Job 19:28.
“ In almost every plant it is at the root that disease begins. If a plant is unhealthy, there is something wrong at the root. So it is in religion. If there is anything wrong in a man, it is sure to be something lying at the root. If a man’s religion has no root, or if the root is affected by disease, it will be sure to discover itself in his profession. He cannot have a [spiritually] prosperous soul unless the root be deep in the soil, and unless it be full of motions drawing up secret nourishment ( John 4:32) from that River whose streams make glad ( Ps.46:4. Ps.1:3). ( J.C.Philpot)
When the drought or the winter comes, this root shall survive ( John 17:8). To have a shallow, unstable root makes a man a Pliable, one of Bunyan’s characters in Pilgrim’s Progress ; an unstable character who has the words but not the life, who changes his allegiance according to what company he is in. Job was steadfast in the storm, even if, like Spurgeon, he had to stand against the religious popular tide alone. This happened in the ‘ Downgrade controversy ‘ ; those days have returned. We are often told in the Bible, ‘ Watch the heart.’
JUNE 23
“ That ye may know there is a judgement.” Job 19:29.
There is ! And they should be careful about what they say against Job. Christ is his Judge ( Acts 17:31), and he sides with the Judge. The sword shall be used in the judgement. Firstly to divide from others, and secondly to punish for sins. Many do not believe this and live accordingly, but the people of God, like Job, believe it. Many say they have no fear of death, but have a nagging doubt about what lies beyond death; they can neither prove nor disprove a final reckoning, and so die lacking peace. Job, Jeremiah ( Jerem. 26:15) and others remind us in the Bible of this judgement, but they faced no condemnation, as they had faith in Christ ( Rom.8:1). “ It is easy to make a profession of our belief in a future of this ( or any other truth ) but if it has no influence on our practice, it may be said that we do not ‘ know it.’ ( J.Caryl)“ This sort of persecution [like Job’s] brings the sword. Even though we do not read much of their anger against Job, yet they could not endure that he should maintain the truth against them.” ( J.Durham) Justice is vindication of one party and condemnation of the other ( ch.42;7,8). Job committed his vindication to his Redeemer, but they did not speak of any Redeemer for themselves ! Some people are too busy judging others that they do not judge themselves ( 1 Corinth.11:31) and forget that ‘ justice delayed is not justice denied.’ “ Job gives them this admonition that they may know it in time. It is for their good, that they may seriously consider it and avoid it.” ( M.Poole) It is the goodness of God that He warns sinners in time, before eternity comes.
JUNE 24
“ The triumphing of the wicked is short, and the joy of the wicked is but for a moment.” Job 20:5.
The hypocrite may prosper, all through life here, but not into eternal life. All his joys are temporary, but all his sorrows shall be eternal. The highest profession of religion is empty without the ‘ fruit of the Spirit ‘ ( Galat.5:22ff). The hypocrite and his joy have a precarious existence, both can be removed at any time, suddenly. Unlike David’s joy ( Ps. 32:1,2), his joy is not the consequence of forgiveness. All his towers of Babel shall fall. Zophar tries to cover the two possibilities, that either Job is wicked or hypocritical. He is inacapable of spiritual discernment. Cowper’s words are applicable to him, “ Judge not the Lord by feeble sense, but trust Him for His grace.”
But Zophar could not understand that a man may be full of suffering and full of grace simultaneously ; he thought the one excluded the other. If we are not reconciled to God, then all pleasures in this world are temporary (Heb.11:25). The unreconciled shall finally be dragged into court to hear the verdict they secretly dreaded. Verses 6 to 9 in this chapter describe the future of the hypocrite ; they had no fear of God in them, and thus no grace. Job suspected his own heart, and this proved he was no hypocrite.
JUNE 25
“ His bones are full of the sin of his youth.” Job 20:11.
Zophar is alleging that Job’s sins of youth have caught up with him, affecting him mentally and physically. What he sowed he reaped ! But sins committed in youth, though now forgiven, still lodge in the memory; but with groans and sighs ( Ps.90:8). Zophar thinks only of punishment, but such memories can deepen gratitude, like the Prodigal’s memory, the Publican's or Paul's.“ Man is born in sin and a transgressor from the womb, and the youthful age is addicted to many sins ; pride, passion,lust, selfishness, intemperance. These sins are sometimes brought to mind in repentance at a more advanced age.” ( John Gill) But the sense of guilt from these sins committed on earth is left behind on earth at death. Zophar is still looking for smoke when there is no actual fire, Job is not being punished for earlier sin. “ It is only regarding the unrepentant that these sins follow them to the other side of death.” ( M.Henry) But for those who continue in the sins of youth unrepentant, there is only one thing worse than ‘ living in sin ‘, and that is dying in it !
JUNE 26
“ He does not spare it or forsake it, but keeps it still within his mouth.” Job 20:13.
Something may be sweet to the taste but deadly in its effect ; such is sin. ( cf. the devil’s temptation in Eden). Like a little snake, if it is spared it will grow up to strangle you. Something which you are told is poison, should be spat out strongly and not ‘ kept still within the mouth.’ Some sins are difficult to give up, a sin is habitual by nature, a kind of addiction. If love to Christ does not keep you from it, then you may be subject to aversion therapy ie. You will feel the painful effects of it. But this pain is an early warning system. It is far better than to be slowly poisoned and not know it. The worst thing that can happen to a sinner is to be given up to continue in sin ( Rom.1).
Sin is done by choice, and therefore the battle is in the Will, in the decision to consent to it. It is a daily, necessary battle ( Heb.12:1. Proverbs 20:13). Self-denial means saying NO. Fighting or cherishing sin is a choice - all sin is voluntary. Those who still enjoy their sin say that God is true strict ( and if the Christian gets such a thought, it is a sign of backsliding - we must not trivialise sin). However, no Christian is sinless or perfect in her practice while in this world. How then do we persevere ? By remembering we are soldiers as well as pilgrims. In addition to self-watch, Rutherford advised Christians to target one specific sin ( in the life ) each day. Each day we pause in repentance, but then go forward in faith !
JUNE 27
“ In the fulness of his sufficiency he shall be in straits [distress].” Job 20:22.
At the height of his prosperity he shall suddenly be brought down.The more a person collects from this world, the more his anxiety to preserve it; it is a burden on the mind. The elements of nature are not under man’s control ( vs,28) and God also brings about many ‘ reversals’ in life, riches do not always enrich. “ No matter how much a man may have of the world’s honours and riches, he shall be in final ruin if he has not the ‘ one thing needful - a personal saving knowledge of God. “ ( J.Smith) A sufficiency of worldly things does not meet our eternal needs ( Luke 12:16-21). Darkness is laid up for his treasures (vs.26 ). “ Disaster is secretly lurking in the future for him, his treasures are not in heaven.” ( J.Smith)
A life without Christ is darkness, and leads to a death in deeper darkness. The covetousness man never has enough. When Esau and Jacob used the same words,” I have enough,” their meanings were quite different ( Gen.33:9,11) cf. 1 Tim.6:6. Philipp.4:11. “ Zophar is showing that the oppressor shall be ruined when at his highest point, and when he is least looking for it ( Rev.18:7,8)..Many emperors were slain in their own palaces ! “ ( J.Trapp)
JUNE 28
“ The heaven shall reveal his iniquity, and the earth shall rise up against him.” Job 20:27.
Iniquity shall be revealed ; this implies that it has been hidden. It is hidden because not perceived or done in secrecy ; ignorance and indifference can keep it hidden. But God shall look for it, and always finds it for us. There is no hiding from God ( Ps.139).For believers, all of it was completely laid upon Christ, no sin excepted or missed in its punishment ( Isaiah 53:6). We have more sins than we can count but God assures the believer throughout the Bible that all that was necessary for our salvation was done, ‘ finished’ by Christ. There is nothing more for us to do ( by works) but it is all given for us to receive ( John 1:10-12). The earth groans under the rebellious unrepentant, who refuse to see what God sees, about sin and about Christ. “ Only the confession of sin will prevent its later revelation.” ( W.F.Adeney)
Sinners must repent in time as there is no repentance in eternity, neither in heaven nor in hell. Sins must be forgiven while we are still on earth, and God does not forgive sin without our repentance. The blood of Christ alone will blot out sin and give peace ( Coloss.2:14). In the Gospel God gives not only invitations but also warnings. “ Flee from the wrath to come…Behold the Lamb of God.”
JUNE 29
“ In the day of His wrath…this is the portion.” Job 20:28,29.
“ This is the wicked man’s inheritance ; he has a right to it, God has appointed it and decreed it for him.” ( J.Durham). Prosperity hardens the heart ( Rom.2:5) ; materially rich but spiritually bankrupt. Zophar agrees with Bildad ( 18:21), that Job is a hypocrite and his friends have come to warn him of his danger ! “ Never was any doctrine better explained or worse applied than this by Zophar.” ( M.Henry) The day of wrath is certain, yet hardly thought upon. And if it is fleetingly considered, then it is usually applied to persons who are outwardly worse than yourself. There is always an interval between sowing, growing and harvest - but harvest does come! “ All things may seem unjust for a while, but justice will eventually prevail. The wicked will one day go down as far as they were lifted up.” ( K.Dell) And every unbeliever is wicked ; to disbelieve God is insulting to Him. Can He not be trusted to keep His Word ? “ Sinners are in the hands of an angry God.” ( Jonathan Edwards)
But Zophar, in his theology, ignores the possibility of repentance before death. “ The dying thief was snatched from hell’s gate.” ( Spurgeon) God has graciously intervened to change the inheritance of some of Adam’s descendants. But Zophar, in verses 28 and 29, seems to have made up his mind that Job is a lost cause, and probably has given up praying for him. But it is not our persuasion that saves a sinner, it is God’s - this is something that preachers, in particular, ought to remember ( 2 Tim.1:12).
JUNE 30
“ As for me, is my complaint to man ? “ Job 21:4.
Job accuses his friends of shallow thinking about God’s retribution, and also about human suffering. Fallible humans are not the infallible final Judge. “ Judge nothing [absolutely] before the time.” Said Paul. Despite his circumstances, Job did not believe that God was eternally against him ; suffering and perplexity was something confined to time only ; there is none in heaven. God is the righteous Judge, and Job appeals to Him ; His is the only view and verdict which matters. His friends would not listen to him, but God would, and would understand. Moreover, God would not deal with us as other people do, God makes no mistakes ( vs.22).
Job’s friends were not having a discussion, they were making dogmatic speeches. They had a system of thinking, and resisted and resented any attempt by Job to change it. They were also feeling insecure as they could give no satisfying answers to Job. They were not being accepted, it hurt their pride! Justice can fail, and does sometimes, in courts, including ecclesiastical courts. The Lord Jesus found no truth in the Sanhedrin or in Pilate, and He appealed to His Father ( as David did, 2 Samuel 24:14). Every believer is a priest, has access to God’s court, and submits his conscience to God alone.