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How Delightful to Study the Bible with Middle Schoolers

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At my church, I have been teaching Sunday school for the middle schoolers (ages 10-13) so far this academic year. Now I am not the world’s most creative teacher, and there are many others in our church who do a better job with activities, puzzles, and other creative ways to keep the kids engaged. But I have really enjoyed simply doing Bible study with these young people.

Photo by cottonbro from Pexels

We don’t use a snazzy curriculum. I just ask everyone to bring their Bibles so we can teach them how to use them. We have been studying the book of Job together. While we haven’t covered every chapter, we have made sure to cover every major section and phase of the book’s argument.

A few weeks in chapters 1 and 2 set the stage. Then we dwelt on Job’s private lament in chapter 3 before launching into the arguments with his three friends. That’s where we didn’t cover every passage, but I made sure to select certain chapters to study instead of giving them a generalized, disembodied summary of what I thought was taking place. As we read select speeches of Eliphaz, Zophar, and Job, the kids had to wrestle through a number of issues: What is the primary conclusion of this speech? How does the speaker support his argument? What is he saying that is more specific than “you are are suffering because you have sinned,” or “No, I haven’t”? Is this speaker right or wrong? Partially right and partially wrong? How so?

The goal has always been to wrestle with the text itself, giving them the skills they need to read the Bible’s poetry.

My favorite class so far had to be the one on chapter 28, which is probably the most important chapter in the book. I told them of its importance, and they knew we had already reached the end of the first set of debates with friends. But I didn’t give them any hints about the message of chapter 28. So we read it out loud, one stanza at a time, and I just asked them “What is he saying here?” I would not allow them to stare at the sky and tell me how they felt. I required them to stare at the text and show me specific lines and phrases that captured the text’s meaning or argument.

And they did it. They really did it!

With only a few questions from me, they were able to nail down the train of thought: Humanity can dig out of the earth treasures (Job 28:1-6) of which the animals are oblivious (Job 28:7-11). But the treasure of wisdom (Job 28:12) cannot be dug up from the earth (Job 28:13), dived for in the ocean (Job 28:14), bought with money (Job 28:15-16), or traded for jewels (Job 28:17-19). You can’t find it among the living (Job 28:20-21), nor will you find it in the realm of the dead (Job 28:22). God alone knows the way to it (Job 28:23-27) and grants it to those who fear him and turn away from evil (Job 28:28). The kids came up with all of these ideas; I just helped them to put them in words they could remember.

We then discussed what this poem has to do with the rest of the book to this point, drawing connections to the description of Job in chapter 1 as one who feared God and turned away from evil. We spoke of how Jesus shows us such wisdom, and we discussed applications for our own search for wisdom, especially when life falls apart on us.

In short, we had a fabulous study. Believe it or not, 10-to-13-year-old kids can learn how to do really great Bible study, even in strange parts of the Old Testament.

Wrestling With the God Presented in the Book of Job

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Not long ago, John Piper received a very challenging question over how to grapple with the God presented in the book of Job:

Pastor John, my 14-year-old daughter read through the book of Job for the first time this year, and she is really struggling with how God is portrayed in that book. She has heard all of her life that God is loving and just, and cannot understand why God would allow Job and his children, wife, and servants to suffer such devastation. She’s deeply disturbed by the fact that God pointed Job out to Satan intentionally, thus drawing his attention to this righteous man, allowing Satan to take away nearly everything Job had. And for what purpose? Merely to prove a point to Satan and the host of heaven that Job’s reverence for God was unshakable.

Piper masterfully walks through the process of learning to define just and unjust, right and wrong, not from our own perspectives but as creatures of Almighty God who defines such things for us. And this Almighty God always acts on behalf of his own supreme glory and the good of his people.

Piper’s response is a helpful example of how to wrestle through difficult texts in light of the message of the Scriptures. Check it out!

Job: How to Fear the Lord When Everything Falls Apart

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The book of Job is difficult, like Shakespeare is difficult: It’s old, it’s a play, and it’s poetry. But drink deeply from its fountain, and the refreshment will astonish you.

Literary Markers

There is a clear shift from narrative (chapters 1-2) to poetry (chapters 3-41) and back again (chapter 42). Therefore the lengthy poetic speeches serve as the book’s body, with the narratives playing the role of prologue and epilogue.

The poetic units of thought are clearly marked by narrative statements regarding who is speaking. Make a simple list of the order of speeches, and a shape will emerge:

  • Narrative prologue: Job 1:1-2:13
  • Job – Job 3:1
  • Eliphaz – Job 4:1
  • Job – Job 6:1
  • Bildad – Job 8:1
  • Job – Job 9:1
  • Zophar – Job 11:1
  • Job – Job 12:1
  • Eliphaz – Job 15:1
  • Job – Job 16:1
  • Bildad – Job 18:1
  • Job – Job 19:1
  • Zophar – Job 20:1
  • Job – Job 21:1
  • Eliphaz – Job 22:1
  • Job – Job 23:1
  • Bildad – Job 25:1
  • Job – Job 26:1
  • Job – Job 27:1
  • Job – Job 29:1
  • Elihu – Job 32:6
  • Elihu – Job 34:1
  • Elihu – Job 35:1
  • Elihu – Job 36:1
  • Yahweh – Job 38:1
  • Yahweh – Job 40:1
  • Job – Job 40:3
  • Yahweh – Job 40:6
  • Job – Job 42:1
  • Narrative epilogue – Job 42:7-17

So a cursory glance at the list shows us that Job interacts with three friends: Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar. Then Job monologues on his own. Then a fourth friend, Elihu, monologues. Then Yahweh interacts with Job.

Let’s walk through these sections.

The Setup

The thing that gets Job into this mess is that he fears God and turns away from evil (Job 1:1). For that reason, when Satan goes looking for trouble in all the wrong places, God draws a bull’s-eye on his main man (Job 1:7-8, 2:2-3). Make no mistake: God draws Satan’s attention to Job, because Job fears God. If that fact doesn’t terrify you, I don’t know what will.

Consider what’s at stake here. Both the narrator (once) and God (twice) unequivocally assert Job’s fear of God (Job 1:1, 8; 2:3). And this fear is the very thing Satan calls into question: “Does Job fear God for no reason?” (Job 1:9). Satan places his bet: “Job doesn’t really fear God; he just loves the nice things God gives him. Take those things away, and his ‘fear of God’ will melt into face-to-face cursing of God” (paraphrase of Job 1:10-11, 2:4-5). God goes all in: “Game on” (Job 1:12, 2:6).

The narrator’s key question is this: Will Job still fear God when he loses everything he loves?

Job’s Fear

Job takes up his lament in chapter 3 with his own key question: Why is this happening to me? He knows nothing of God’s bet with Satan. He has no explanation for his loss, his bereavement, or his pain. He curses the day of his birth and the night of his conception (Job 3:1-7). He even asks others to join him in cursing that day and that night (Job 3:8).

But when he turns to consider God, he has no curse. He has only questions filled with dread (Job 3:20-26).

Dialogue with Three Friends

Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar then speak in turn, for three cycles, and Job responds to every one of their speeches. Eliphaz and Bildad both speak three times, but Zophar does not speak in the third cycle and so gives only two speeches.

It is clear that the three friends believe Job to be suffering because he must have some secret sin of which he has not yet repented (Job 4:7, 8:3-7, 11:4-6, etc.). It is likewise clear that Job believes himself to be innocent of sin (Job 6:10, 9:21-22, 13:18, etc.).

But whether Job sinned or not is only on the surface of the debate. The subsurface debate—and the reason for so many speeches—is the question of how to respond to suffering. In particular: What does it mean to fear the Lord in your suffering? The three friends believe that if Job really feared God, he would confess his secret sins (Job 4:6-7, 15:4, etc.). And Job believes that if they really feared God, they wouldn’t say such stupid things (Job 6:14, 12:2-6, etc.). Job argues time and again that fearing God means holding fast to him even when it looks and feels as though he has turned against you (Job 13:15-16).

We should also see that Job’s thinking changes, while the friends’ thinking doesn’t. Compare the friends’ first speech (Job 4:17) with their last speech (Job 25:4), and you’ll hear the wheels spinning and the broken record player turning and turning and turning and turning. Yet Job begins in league with them (Job 4:2-5), moves to a dark place (Job 7:7-8), and ends in a very different, yet still dark, place, knowing full well that his God will still see him when he dies (Job 26:5-6).

How does Job get from point A (God won’t see me) to point B (God will see me)? In chapter 14, Job realizes that his suffering would have a purpose if he could be resurrected; but he quickly discards that hope. In chapter 16, he discovers that his suffering would have a purpose if he had a mediator; but he quickly discards that hope as well. Then in chapter 19, he puts the two hopes together—envisioning a resurrected mediator—and he absolutely freaks out. In the next few speeches he discards even that hope as being too good to be true, yet the possibility of it changes him forever.

Job’s Closing Arguments

Job completes his dialogue with these friends in chapter 27, where he draws three conclusions:

  1. I have not sinned – Job 27:2-6
  2. My friends have become my enemies – Job 27:7-12
  3. Wicked men (like my enemies) deserve God’s devastating judgment – Job 27:13-23

Chapter 28 stands apart, with a very different tone and style than any other speech in the book. This poem’s “voice” is more like that of the playwright than that of any characters in the play. This chapter celebrates the fact that humanity will never find God’s wisdom through their own devices. Only by fearing the Lord can any person be able to find wisdom.

Job’s last major speech is directed at God, not the three friends, and makes three arguments:

  1. My best days are lost and gone – Job 29
  2. My worst days have come upon me – Job 30
  3. I dare God to speak up and challenge my innocence – Job 31

One More Friend

A new character named Elihu shows up quite suddenly in Job 32:2, and interpreters have widely diverging opinions on whether we ought to affirm Elihu’s speeches (like God’s) or reject them (like the other three friends). The most viewed post in the history of this blog takes up this matter, so I direct your attention there for a deeper dive. But here is a summary of the evidence:

  • Elihu’s argument is different. Where they argued, “Before Job began suffering, he must have sinned,” Elihu argues, “Since Job began suffering, he has sinned.” He doesn’t focus on the cause of Job’s suffering, but the response to it.
  • Elihu brings not platitudes, but concrete evidence of sin on Job’s part (Job 33:8-11, 33:13, 34:5-6, 35:2-3, 36:23).
  • Elihu speaks more times (4) than any of the other friends. Job never issues a rebuttal, despite Elihu inviting him to do so (Job 33:32-33).
  • Elihu distances himself and his arguments from the other three (Job 32:3, 11-18). He clearly believes he is in a different category than they are.

Elihu’s four speeches ring with incredible truth desperately needed by any innocent sufferer:

  • God has not been silent; he speaks through your pain (Job 32-33).
  • God is not unjust; he will eventually strike the wicked (Job 34).
  • Righteous living is not pointless, though we are insignificant next to God (Job 35).
  • You’re in no place to criticize God; remember to fear him (Job 36-37).

The Whirlwind

Just as Elihu completes his arguments, Yahweh shows up in a whirlwind to affirm them.

In his first speech (and the tag to it in Job 40:1), Yahweh employs the natural creation to show how Job has acted as a faultfinder. In his second speech, Yahweh employs the supernatural creation to show how Job has misplaced his fear and ought to recenter it on his God.

Narrative Epilogue

In the closing narrative, Yahweh sets things straight between Job and the first three friends. Though he called Job to repent of his arrogance (Job 42:6), he simultaneously commends Job’s faith in holding fast to Yahweh and his righteousness in judgment (Job 42:7).

And then Yahweh does something no other god of any other nation would ever do: He puts himself in the place of a thief, and he returns twofold restitution to Job for all he lost. A God of such grace cannot ever be manipulated or controlled. May we all learn to fear the one who sent his own son to die like a criminal, then resurrected him as mediator of a new covenant, for the salvation of the world.

If this God would allow the innocent Job (and Jesus) to be treated as though he were guilty, perhaps he can also make it so the guilty (like us) could be treated as though we were innocent (2 Cor 5:21).

Conclusion

This book’s main idea is not so much about suffering in itself, but about how to respond to suffering in the fear of the Lord.

Interpretive Outline

  • Narrative Prologue: One who fears God chosen to suffer – Job 1-2
    • Act I: Cursing one’s life while still fearing God – Job 3
      • Act II: Why we must respond to suffering in fear of God – Job 4-26
        • Act III: Informed judgment of those who refuse to fear God — Job 27
          • Act IV: The beginning of wisdom is the fear of God – Job 28
        • Act V: Uninformed judgment of him who needs to deepen in the fear of God – Job 29-31
      • Act VI: How to respond to suffering in fear of God – Job 32-37
    • Act VII: Reaching new heights in the fear of God – Job 38:1-42:6
  • Narrative Epilogue: Our dangerous Deity puts the fear of God in people, in part by taking the blame for their suffering – Job 42:7-17

For more interpretive walkthroughs of books of the Bible, click here.

29 Things Job Taught Me About the Fear of God

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Steve Day (2009), Creative Commons

Steve Day (2009), Creative Commons

Of course, Job has much to say to help those who suffer. But the book’s main point is more focused: What does it mean to fear the Lord when you suffer?

So how would I answer that question? In the interest of describing a wide range of potential application from this theatrical masterpiece, here are 29 things I’ve learned from the book of Job about the fear of God:

  1. It’s more than respectful reverence. It should have a good dose of holy terror (Job 23:14-17).
  2. Of course, such terror begins with recognizing God’s hatred of my sin (Job 14:16-17).
  3. But the truly terrifying thing about God is not that he crushes sinners indiscriminately, but that he will go to any length to rescue some by destroying their flesh so they can see him face to face (Job 19:25-27).
  4. Therefore, God’s work in my life will sometimes make me wish for death (Job 3:20-26, 6:8-10, 7:16).
  5. Some people mistakenly think their fear of God, and not God himself, gives them confidence (Job 4:6).
  6. Fearing God does not require me to try fixing everyone’s problems. It’s not my job to correct every sin I can see in others (Job 6:14, 21-23).
  7. I will rarely understand why God does what he does (Job 9:11-12).
  8. The fear of God doesn’t depend on sensing God’s presence or blessing in my life (Job 23:8-13).
  9. If I fear God, I will have nothing to hide. I will be open to instruction and exposure (Job 6:24).
  10. I must allow God to have his way with me. Whatever the cost (and however terrifying), I will hold fast to him and him alone (Job 13:15).
  11. I won’t be surprised when God appears to act unjustly (Job 9:19-24), but I won’t simply put on a happy face (Job 9:27-29) or trust my own righteousness (Job 9:30-31).
  12. Fearing God means realizing I can do nothing to help myself. I must have a mediator come between God and me (Job 9:32-33, 16:19). (Spoiler: His name is Jesus – Acts 4:12, 1 John 2:1.)
  13. When I fear God, I will know death is inevitable but not unstoppable (Job 16:7-17, 19:26-27).
  14. Those who value their traditions more than God will interpret my fear of God as irreverence (Job 15:4-6).
  15. Such detractors will get themselves in big trouble if they don’t change (Job 19:28-29, 27:7-23). They’ll learn to fear God whether they like it or not (Job 13:7-12, 42:7-9).
  16. When I fear God, I can say, “I don’t know” (Job 26:14).
  17. The only court of opinion that matters is God’s (Job 23:2-7).
  18. The fear of God will transform me into something truly valuable (Job 23:10).
  19. I can’t find the fear of God anywhere on earth. I’ll never be able to look inside and find it in my heart. It must come from God (Job 28:12, 20-21, 23-28).
  20. The process of gaining and growing in the fear of God will not be fun (Job 1-2, 38-41), but it will be more than worth it (Job 28:12-19). “Through many tribulations we must enter the kingdom of God” (Acts 14:22).
  21. God is always speaking to me (Job 33:13-14): sometimes through words (Job 33:15-18) but usually through pain (Job 33:19-28). Though he speaks not to accuse but to deliver (Job 33:29-33), it still sure hurts a lot.
  22. To grow in the fear of God, I need to remember that God has:
    1. The authority to do whatever he wants with me, whenever he wants to do it (Job 36:5-16).
    2. The ability to to do whatever he wants with me, whenever he wants to do it (Job 36:22-37:13).
  23. In other words, God is always behind my affliction — not because he’s out to get me, but because he loves me. This is why men fear him (Job 37:14-24).
  24. God has all knowledge and power, and I do not (Job 38:1-39:30).
  25. I cannot bring evil to an end (Job 40:8-14), but God can (Job 40:19, 41:10-11). He hasn’t yet chosen to do so; thus I can’t predict how he will use deep suffering in my life.
  26. I can’t stop God (Job 42:2).
  27. I will never understand my suffering (Job 42:3).
  28. If I find myself growing bitter toward my suffering, it may be appropriate to hate what I’ve become and turn it around (Job 42:4-6).
  29. This God who stands over and above the suffering in my life — and who thus is beyond reproach in any way — chooses to take the blame for what is wrong (Job 42:10). How terrifying and unpredictable is that?

How has the book of Job deepened your fear of God? In the next post on Job, I’ll pull everything together into a comprehensive walkthrough.

Identifying Behemoth and Leviathan in the Book of Job

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Kevin (2007), Creative Commons

Kevin (2007), Creative Commons

In Job 40-41, God introduces Job to two new characters. Behemoth is a powerful beast with strong legs (Job 40:16), a stiff tail (Job 40:17), and a carefree riverside existence (Job 40:20-23). Leviathan dwells in the sea (Job 41:1, 7), breathes fire (Job 41:18-21), and crushes hunters (Job 41:25-29). Who are these two creatures?

  • I grew up hearing that these chapters prove both 1) the existence of dinosaurs, and 2) the co-habitation of humans with them. The Bible shows that archaeology and paleontology are worthwhile pursuits. Hurrah!
  • Later I discovered that many interpreters in church history have considered Behemoth and Leviathan to be poetic exaggerations of the hippopotamus and the crocodile. Some translations even footnote the titles as such (for example, NASB, NRSV).

Both identifications miss the point of the text. Take note of God’s train of thought over both of his speeches:

Job, you’ll never understand the behavior of mountain goats or ostriches. And you will never domesticate the lion, the wild ox, or the war-horse. Stop justifying yourself…And by the way, you can’t control the hippo or crocodile, either. But I can.

That one certainly doesn’t work. The dinosaur interpretation does a little better:

Job, you’ll never understand the behavior of mountain goats or ostriches. And you will never domesticate the lion, the wild ox, or the war-horse. Stop justifying yourself…And by the way, you can’t control these two dinosaurs, either. But I can.

Both interpretations, however, miss a few key facts:

  1. God’s first speech covers the entire natural creation (Job 38:4). Reading from the beginning, you’ll notice a remarkable similarity to the order of things in Genesis 1. The resemblance is complete enough not to warrant revisiting the created order in the second speech.
  2. The main question in God’s second speech is whether Job can not merely be angry at his suffering but actually bring it to an end (Job 40:9-13). If so, that would justify Job’s putting God in the wrong and saving himself from his own situation (Job 40:8, 14). Of course, Behemoth and Leviathan show this idea to be ludicrous.
  3. Job’s final response comes from a completely blown mind. “You can do all things…No purpose of yours can be thwarted…I have uttered what I did not understand…Now my eye sees you…I despise myself…” (Job 42:1-6).

The second speech advances the first, giving Job (and us) a picture of God’s supreme control, not only over the natural creation, but even over supernatural suffering and evil. Behemoth and Leviathan represent these things in Job’s life. Unlike Job, God can, in fact, bring suffering and evil to an end. Satan could not snap a thread of Job’s garment without God’s explicit permission (Job 1:12, 2:6). And Satan cannot resist the snapping of his own neck if God wills it.

Let him who made [Behemoth] bring near his sword! (Job 40:19)

Who then is he who can stand before me? Who has first given to me, that I should repay him? Whatever is under the whole heaven is mine. (Job 41:10-11)

God gives Job a taste of this power when he brings Job’s earthly suffering to an end (Job 42:12-17). And when God gives Job exactly twice what he lost (compare with Job 1:2-3), he plays the part of a thief who must repay double (Ex 22:7-9). Not that God is a thief, mind you; but he takes the place of a thief along with his blame.

Sort of like another divine warrior who had power to bind Satan (Mark 3:27) and triumph over the rulers and authorities through the cross (Col 2:13-15). And he did it, playing the part of a thief (Mark 15:27). He will one day destroy every ferocious beast (Rev 19:20-21), Satan (Rev 20:9-10), and death itself (Rev 20:14).

When Paul runs out of words to describe God’s unsearchable justice and unfathomable wisdom, he turns to the speech about Leviathan in Job 41 (Romans 11:33-36). Paul must have realized that speech was getting at something bigger than hippos and crocodiles.

Job, you’ll never understand the behavior of mountain goats or ostriches. And you will never domesticate the lion, the wild ox, or the war-horse. Stop justifying yourself…And by the way, you can’t ever bring your suffering to an end. But I can.

Why God Speaks to Job Twice

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Behold, I am of small account; what shall I answer you? I lay my hand on my mouth. I have spoken once, and I will not answer; twice, but I will proceed no further. (Job 40:4-5)

With these famous words and a pregnant hand-to-mouth gesture, Job begins backing away from the God of all creation. In severe suffering, Job has accused God of doing wrong and of remaining silent. But God arrives, speaking out of the whirlwind, to put Job in his place. Job 38:1-39:30 records God’s first speech, recounting the wildness, inscrutability, and uncontrollable power of God’s creation. Duly humbled, Job tries to slink away like an amateur diver whose loosely tied trunks slipped off at surface impact.

But God will have nothing of the sort. “Oh no, you don’t. I’m not done with you yet”:

Then the LORD answered Job out of the whirlwind and said: “Dress for action like a man; I will question you, and you make it known to me.” (Job 40:6-7)

Thus begins a second tirade from the LORD against his servant Job (Job 40:6-41:34), whom God will coerce into speaking one last time (Job 42:1-6).

Why? Why the second speech from God? Why isn’t God willing to let it go when Job humbles himself?

Comparing Job’s Responses

Undoubtedly, Job’s first response (Job 40:3-5) is one of humility and self-degradation. “I am small…I’m shutting up now…” But Christopher Ash observes that Job says nothing about God. While God’s first speech properly demotes Job’s self-esteem, it does not yet promote God’s gargantuan superiority.

In other words, Job has justified himself (Job 31:1-40) and not God (Job 16:7-17); this is Elihu’s chief critique (Job 32:2). And God must get Job not only to stop justifying himself but also to begin justifying God.

So Job releases his self-justification after God’s first speech. But it’s not until after the second speech that he confesses God “can do all things” (Job 42:2a), no purpose of his “can be thwarted” (Job 42:2b), and that “I had heard of you by the hearing of the ear, but now my eye sees you” (Job 42:5).

How does God get him there?

Comparing God’s Speeches

God’s first speech focuses on the natural creation. It begins with an obvious question: “Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth?” (Job 38:4). It continues with a tour of the heavens and the earth (Job 38:5-38). And it ends with a litany of wild creatures beyond Job’s capacity either to understand or to domesticate: lion, raven, mountain goat, wild donkey, wild ox, ostrich, war-horse, hawk (Job 38:39-39:30). In conclusion, God identifies Job as a faultfinder and dares him to justify himself any further (Job 40:1-2).

Seeing his minuscule role in the natural creation, Job properly humbles himself and shuts up (Job 40:3-5).

But God’s second speech must blow Job’s mind even further, and to do so it focuses on the supernatural creation. If Job is to begin justifying God, he must clearly see that he’ll never see clearly. Though he knows how much it hurts to suffer, he’ll never know why God would appoint such suffering in the lives of his beloved people. In short, God must appear bigger, more powerful, and more mysterious than ever before.

So God’s second speech targets the heart of the matter:

Have you an arm like God, and can you thunder with a voice like his? Adorn yourself with majesty…Pour out the overflowings of your anger…Look on everyone who is proud and bring him low and tread down the wicked where they stand. Hide them all in the dust together; bind their faces in the world below. Then will I acknowledge to you that your own right hand can save you.” (Job 40:9-14)

In other words: “Can you do more than get angry at suffering and evil, Job? Can you actually bring them to an end?”

jaci XIII (2010), Creative Commons

jaci XIII (2010), Creative Commons

He follows up with two case studies, Behemoth (Job 40:15-24) and Leviathan (Job 41:1-34). These ancient but legendary storybook creatures poetically embody all that is wrong with the world and with Job’s life. They seem tame (Job 40:20-23), but really are not (Job 40:24). They will not play nice (Job 41:1-9). They cannot be defeated (Job 41:12-34).

Such is the problem of evil. It will not go away, and Satan ever wanders to and fro looking for someone to devour (Job 1:6-12, 2:1-7). Job can do nothing about this. Not ever. “No one is so fierce that he dares to stir [Leviathan] up” (Job 41:10a).

But someone else can. God asks, “Who then is he who can stand before me?” (Job 41:10b).

And this God will send his Son to wage war on the beast from the land and the beast from the sea (Rev 13). He is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he judges and wages war (Rev 19:11). He will finally capture these beasts and hurl them into the lake of fire (Rev 19:20-21), along with both Satan (Rev 20:10) and death itself (Rev 20:14).

Please remain steadfast in Christ and persevere to the end, Job (James 5:11). God will bring a day with no tears or death, no mourning, nor crying, nor pain (Rev 21:4). Come quickly, Lord Jesus.

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Why Elihu is So Mysterious

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At a recent pastor’s conference on the book of Job, a leader asked the attendees whether the speeches of Elihu (Job 32-37) should be trusted, like God’s (Job 38-41), or discarded, like those of Job’s three friends (Job 4-5, 8, 11, 15, 18, 20, 22, 25). The show of hands was evenly divided. I couldn’t believe my eyes; every attendee was fully committed to studying and explaining God’s word carefully, and yet there was a widespread and fundamental disagreement on how to read a significant part of the book of Job.

Have you wondered how to read Elihu? Can we get to the bottom of the mystery?

Let Me Introduce Elihu

Anirban Ray (2013), Creative Commons

Anirban Ray (2013), Creative Commons

He pops on the scene out of nowhere: “Then Elihu the son of Barachel the Buzite, of the family of Ram, burned with anger” (Job 32:2). He speaks a few times and then vanishes. God clearly vindicates Job and condemns Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar (Job 42:7-8), but he says nothing about Elihu.

Casual readers of Job barely notice Elihu. If they have the guts not to skip from chapter 2 to chapter 38, their eyes glaze over long before they meet Elihu in chapter 32. They sink in a bog of poetry; words swirl together into an indistinguishable mire, and Elihu comes and goes while readers are still gasping for air. Some don’t realize he’s not one of the “three friends.”

In addition, we’re clearly told that Elihu is young (Job 32:4, 6), raving mad (Job 32:2, 3, 5 – four times!), and full of criticism for Job (Job 33:12, 34:7-8, 34:35-37, etc.). Yet God clearly claims that Job has “spoken of me what is right” (Job 42:7-8). What’s all the fuss? This case should be closed.

Why Elihu is Just Like the Other Three

Here is the main challenge: Elihu draws the same conclusion as Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar. That’s why many interpreters think Elihu is just like them.

Eliphaz: “Job has sinned” (Job 4:7, 15:4-6, 22:5).

Bildad: “Job has sinned” (Job 8:5-6, 18:4).

Zophar: “Job has sinned” (Job 11:6, 20:29).

Elihu: “Job has sinned” (Job 34:7, 37; 35:16).

Of course, the reader knows Job has not sinned: “There is none like [Job] on the earth, a blameless and upright man, who fears God and turns away from evil” (Job 1:8, 2:3). But Elihu charges him with sin, just as the other three do. What’s all the fuss? This case should be closed.

Why Elihu is Just Like God

Though God clears Job of all charges (Job 42:7-8), notice that his declaration comes after Job repents in dust and ashes (Job 42:6). Before this repentance, God calls Job a faultfinder (Job 40:2) who speaks without knowledge (Job 38:2) and puts God in the wrong (Job 40:8).

Elihu also desires to justify Job of all charges (Job 33:32). He accuses Job of finding fault with God (Job 33:9-11), speaking without knowledge (Job 34:35), and putting God in the wrong (Job 34:5-6, 36:23).

Why Elihu is Not Like the Other Three

Though their conclusion is the same, their arguments are completely different. Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar perpetually argue: “Before you began suffering, you must have sinned.” Elihu’s case is different: “Since you began suffering, you have sinned.” The three concern themselves with Job’s hidden conduct; Elihu concerns himself with Job’s present speech.

We can see the difference in the evidence they bring. Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar have no evidence, only presumption, though Job begs them for the merest shred (Job 6:28-30). Elihu, however, constantly brings specific evidence to support his charges: “You say…You say…You say…You say…” (Job 33:8-11, 33:13, 34:5-6, 35:2-3, 36:23).

The poet signals a difference in the number of speeches and responses he gives to each character. Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar get no more than three speeches apiece, with the speeches growing shorter as the book progresses. Elihu gets four speeches. Job refutes every speech of the three with eight speeches of his own; Job never responds to Elihu’s speeches, though Elihu asks for a response (Job 33:32-33).

Elihu himself distances himself from the other three. Furious at the stalemate and their inability to answer Job, Elihu promises he has something new to say: “[Job] has not directed his words against me, and I will not answer him with your speeches” (Job 32:14). The poet likewise distances Elihu from the other three. In one of the few narrative and evaluative statements of the book, he declares that Elihu “burned with anger also at Job’s three friends because they had found no answer, although they had declared Job to be in the wrong” (Job 32:3).

Conclusion

Confusion abounds over Elihu because he sounds like Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar, drawing the same conclusion: Job has sinned. But as we penetrate the poetry, we see that what Elihu means by his conclusion is not what they mean by it. His four speeches ring with incredible truth desperately needed by any innocent sufferer:

  • God has not been silent; he speaks through your pain (Job 32-33).
  • God is not unjust; he will eventually strike the wicked (Job 34).
  • Righteous living is not pointless, though we are insignificant next to God (Job 35).
  • You’re in no place to criticize God; remember to fear him (Job 36-37).

And God reinforces Elihu’s fourth point with some of his most aggressive and fear-inducing words in all the Bible (Job 38-41). May we all repent of justifying ourselves and remember to fear him.

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The Complexity of Applying the Speeches of Job’s Friends

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The closing stanza of Eliphaz’s third speech (Job 22:21-30) is one of the loveliest poems in the book. If you didn’t know who said it, or under which circumstances, you might stencil it on your wall or post it on your bathroom mirror. And this raises an important question when studying the book of Job: What are we supposed to do with the speeches of Job’s “miserable comforters” (Job 16:2)?

Job suggests that silence will be their best wisdom (Job 13:5), and he sarcastically proclaims they have a corner on the market of godly wisdom (Job 12:2). Elihu burns with anger at their failure to answer to Job’s defense (Job 32:3). Yahweh declares they have not spoken of him what is right (Job 42:7). Does this mean we ought to simply discard their speeches, or that we ought to treat them as examples of folly or wickedness to be avoided?

Image by Robin Higgins from Pixabay

Paul Didn’t Get the Memo

Apparently the Apostle Paul didn’t get the memo.

Let no one deceive himself. If anyone among you thinks that he is wise in this age, let him become a fool that he may become wise. For the wisdom of this world is folly with God. For it is written, “He catches the wise in their craftiness,” and again, “The Lord knows the thoughts of the wise, that they are futile.” So let no one boast in men.” (1 Cor 3:18-21a)

That first citation Paul uses? Right from Eliphaz’s first speech:

As for me, I would seek God,
and to God would I commit my cause,
who does great things and unsearchable,
marvelous things without number:
he gives rain on the earth…
he sets on high those who are lowly…
He catches the wise in their own craftiness,
and the schemes of the wily are brought to a quick end…
But he saves the needy from the sword of their mouth…
So the poor have hope,
and injustice shuts her mouth. (Job 5:8-16)

As R.B. Hays asserts, “Paul cites Job 5:13 here [in 1 Cor 3:19] as an authoritative disclosure of the truth about God’s debunking of human wisdom” (quoted by Ciampa & Rosner in Commentary on the New Testament Use of the Old Testament, 704).

So Paul doesn’t ignore or contradict Eliphaz. He doesn’t qualify the citation in any way. He appears to use it straightforwardly in support of his point that God views the world’s wisdom as folly.

More to It

And yet, Paul’s argument in 1 Cor 1-3 is remarkably layered and clever. He keeps equivocating on his terms, defining them in different ways so he can play off the differences for didactic effect. For example, he uses the words “wisdom” and “folly” in at least two ways each: As defined by the world, and as defined by God.

So his point in 1 Cor 3:18 seems to be that if you think you are wise (by the world’s definition), you ought to become a fool (by the world’s definition) in order to become wise (by God’s definition). Paul keeps turning things upside-down and inside-out in order to play the terms “wisdom” and “folly,” or “wise” and “foolish,” off each other.

In light of this equivocation, it is altogether possible that Paul quotes Eliphaz as a matter of irony. In other words, Eliphaz presents himself as “wise,” but he’s really a “fool” (in the context of the book of Job). But God then does a “foolish” thing and takes the fool’s “wisdom” and makes it his own, but with an unexpected twist—in order to catch the wise in his own craftiness. In so doing, Paul declares that Eliphaz spoke even better than he knew, perhaps akin to John’s ironic use of Caiaphas’s prophecy that Jesus must die to rescue the nation and gather together God’s scattered children (John 11:49-53). Like Caiaphas, perhaps Eliphaz spoke that which was true from God’s perspective, but not in the way Eliphaz himself intended it.

Eliphaz thereby plays right into the part of the crafty who would be caught by his own craftiness.

Principles for Applying the Speeches of Job’s Friends

So how does this affect the way we read—and especially seek to apply—the speeches of Job’s three assailants? I propose the following principles:

  1. Because the same Holy Spirit who inspired Job also said somewhere that “all Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable,” we must read the speeches of Job’s antagonists with the assumption that they are profitable for teaching, reproof, correction, and/or training in righteousness.
  2. The point of those speeches must be something more than “suffering is a result of prior sin.” If that were all the Lord wanted us to see in those speeches, he could have done it with one speech instead of eight. We wouldn’t need pages of dialogue that only repeat precisely the same thing over and over again. Therefore, we must read those eight speeches of Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar with the assumption that each speech riffs on the theme in a nuanced way. Those three men clearly thought they were advancing the argument each time, so we ought to identify which particular angle each speech takes on the larger topic. Don’t skip over the speeches or lump them all together under the same vague interpretive heading.
  3. Once we do that, we can compare any speech’s particular angle on suffering with the rest of Scripture. Following Paul’s example, we must read the speeches with the assumption that they might simply be speaking truth in the wrong setting. They might be saying something that was false in Job’s circumstance but would be true in a different circumstance. In other words, Eliphaz, Bildad, or Zophar might be saying something better and truer than even he realizes.

Back to Chapter 22

And so, circling back to Eliphaz’s third speech in Job 22, there is nothing wrong with seeing some truth mixed in with the error and the daft inconsiderateness. In many situations, it is true that someone will only find peace if they begin agreeing with God (Job 22:21, Prov 3:2). Many who reconsider their money and possessions in light of eternity will find the Almighty to be far more valuable (Job 22:24-25, 1 Tim 6:17). God does actually hear the prayers of the penitent (Job 22:27, Prov 15:29), and he delights to exalt the humble (Job 22:28-30, 1 Pet 5:6).

Conclusion

So if you’d like to stencil portions of Job 22 on your wall, I say have at it. Just be prepared for the unconsidered criticism of a few curmudgeons to come your way from time to time. But you’ll have your retort loaded for bear: “I offer my humblest apologies on behalf of both myself and the Apostle Paul, neither of whom got your memo.”

The Cost of Withholding Kindness

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Most people don’t walk around with nails in their heads, but that doesn’t stop us from having this sort of conflict.

Have you felt this tension between fixing problems and listening with kindness? I have such conversations often, and I’m confident I’m not alone. In fact, Job 6-7 takes up this very matter in great detail.

Context

Job was the greatest of all the people of the east, but he fell prey to a wager between God and Satan. The Accuser is convinced Job doesn’t fear God but merely loves the good things God has given him. The Creator disagrees, and he lets Satan ruin Job’s whole life to prove it. Job, of course, knows none of this. He knows only how much it hurts when he loses possessions, servants, and children all in a day, and then develops a debilitating skin condition to boot.

Job stews for seven days before unleashing a bitter curse against the day of his birth and a series of agonized questions: Why did I not die? Why do I have to endure this? Why is this happening to me? (See Job 3:1-26.)

In chapters 4-37, a few friends try to help by answering Job’s questions. People commonly skip these chapters, boiling them down to a moral or two, and rush to the juicy bits where God speaks in chapters 38-42. But in studying these chapters lately, I’ve discovered how much the Lord has for me to learn about what it looks like to fear God in extreme situations, while processing (or helping others) through extreme emotions.

For example, Job’s response (Job 6-7) to Eliphaz’s first speech (Job 4-5) highlights the weighty costs of withholding kindness out of a wish to fix the person’s problem. The key verse:

He who withholds kindness from a friend forsakes the fear of the Almighty. (Job 6:14)

What are the costs of withholding such kindness?

1. We inflame volatile emotions

The video above portrays it perfectly with its closing shots of mutual exasperation. After Job 3, I didn’t think Job’s sorrow could get any worse, but apparently I was wrong.

“You think I’m vexed [referring to Eliphaz’s accusation in Job 5:2]? I must not have been clear. My words have been rash. My vexation can’t be weighed!” (Job 6:2-3, my paraphrase)

“God’s hand in my life is like bitter poison and indigestible food” (Job 6:4-7).

“I hope God kills me now before I say anything truly stupid. Better to die without having denied the words of the Holy One, than to go on living in such pain” (Job 6:8-13).

2. We forsake the fear of the Almighty

Job makes this very accusation in Job 6:14. His friends are like a temporary stream bed resulting from the springtime thaw from the mountains. When he’s thirstiest in the heat of summer, it has dried up and offers no refreshment. “For you have now become nothing” (Job 6:21). Job never asked for their help; he doesn’t want them to fix his problems (Job 6:22-23). He just wants some kindness.

Why does withholding kindness cause one to forsake the fear of the Almighty? Because fixing the problem is the work of God. Trying to fix a problem—against a sufferer’s will—means trying to take God’s place. Fearing God means trusting him to work in his timeline. And such fear empowers us to turn aside from fixing (Job 6:29) and focus instead on listening (Job 6:14, 28).

3. We raise defenses

Job has open ears. He’s willing to hear any specific charges of wrongdoing his friends might bring (Job 6:24). But if they do nothing but reprove his words, they are reproving the wind (Job 6:25). Extending kindness means not taking everything said by sufferers at face value. It means giving them the freedom to process extreme emotions without being corrected at every point.

If we don’t listen, they won’t think we’re listening. If they don’t think we’re listening, they won’t think we understand. If they don’t think we understand, they won’t trust our advice anyway. So why do we rush so quickly into offering unsolicited advice, when kindness demands we zip our lips and lend our ears? Withhold this kindness, and the sufferer’s defenses will rise tall and impenetrable.

4. We fuel hopelessness

At this point in the book, Job still trusts his friends. (By chapter 27, he’ll wish God’s eternal judgment on them.) So he lets them in. He’s honest about how he truly feels. And so far, they’ve only made it worse.

He has no hope in life (Job 7:1-6), and he predicts imminent death (Job 7:7-10). By day, he toils without respite, and by night, he tosses endlessly until dawn.

His perspective has gotten worse, not better, since chapter 3. The lack of kindness from his friends has not helped.

5. We miss the real issue

In his pain, Job feels lonely. There is nobody to share the pain, nobody who extends him kindness. And this loneliness leads to the greatest cost of all.

Job removes all restraint and speaks the fullness of his anguish (Job 7:11). He directs his anguish toward the “watcher of mankind” who has made of Job a target (Job 7:20). He speaks to the one who terrifies him with visions (Job 7:14) and who alone has the power to pardon his transgression (Job 7:21). Clearly Job speaks no longer to Eliphaz but to God.

And he has two prayer requests (Job 7:16):

  1. That I would not live forever.
  2. That you would leave me alone!

Job shows us that what matters the most is his relationship with God. The good news is that his suffering, so far, is taking him closer to God and not farther from God. He goes directly to God with his pain, his feelings, and his requests. This is true faith and a true fear of God.

But the 3 friends who focus on fixing Job’s problems have missed the opportunity to help Job draw near to his God. They are just like Jesus’ 3 friends who failed to show him kindness (falling asleep in Gethsemane!) when he most needed it. But Jesus paid the cost of their withheld kindness, and he did it so God could never withhold his kindness from us.

6 Key Questions about the Book of Job

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Christopher Ash, author of a new book on the Book of Job, answers 6 key questions on the book of Job.

  1. Is the book of Job about suffering?
  2. What are we to make of Job’s comforters?
  3. Did Job deserve his sufferings?
  4. Why is the book of Job so long?
  5. Who or what is Leviathan?
  6. Is there any hope in the book of Job?

I haven’t read Ash’s new book yet, but his commentary on Job is one of the best commentaries I have read on any book of the Bible. My understanding of Job has been shaped profoundly by Ash’s insights. I commend his brief blog article for your consideration to get a quick overview.

Check it out!