TO TURN THEM BACK FROM THE PIT

Job 33:1-33 / Keywords 33:29-30

God does all these things to a man--twice, even three times--to turn back his soul from the pit, that the light of life may shine on him.

 

33:1 “But now, Job, listen to my words;

    pay attention to everything I say.

2 I am about to open my mouth;

    my words are on the tip of my tongue.

3 My words come from an upright heart;

    my lips sincerely speak what I know.

4 The Spirit of God has made me;

    the breath of the Almighty gives me life.

5 Answer me then, if you can;

    stand up and argue your case before me.

6 I am the same as you in God’s sight;

    I too am a piece of clay.

7 No fear of me should alarm you,

    nor should my hand be heavy on you.

8 “But you have said in my hearing—

    I heard the very words—

9 ‘I am pure, I have done no wrong;

    I am clean and free from sin.

10 Yet God has found fault with me;

    he considers me his enemy.

11 He fastens my feet in shackles;

    he keeps close watch on all my paths.’

12 “But I tell you, in this you are not right,

    for God is greater than any mortal.

13 Why do you complain to him

    that he responds to no one’s words[a]?

14 For God does speak—now one way, now another—

    though no one perceives it.

15 In a dream, in a vision of the night,

    when deep sleep falls on people

    as they slumber in their beds,

16 he may speak in their ears

    and terrify them with warnings,

17 to turn them from wrongdoing

    and keep them from pride,

18 to preserve them from the pit,

    their lives from perishing by the sword.[b]

19 “Or someone may be chastened on a bed of pain

    with constant distress in their bones,

20 so that their body finds food repulsive

    and their soul loathes the choicest meal.

21 Their flesh wastes away to nothing,

    and their bones, once hidden, now stick out.

22 They draw near to the pit,

    and their life to the messengers of death.[c]

23 Yet if there is an angel at their side,

    a messenger, one out of a thousand,

    sent to tell them how to be upright,

24 and he is gracious to that person and says to God,

    ‘Spare them from going down to the pit;

    I have found a ransom for them—

25 let their flesh be renewed like a child’s;

    let them be restored as in the days of their youth’—

26 then that person can pray to God and find favor with him,

    they will see God’s face and shout for joy;

    he will restore them to full well-being.

27 And they will go to others and say,

    ‘I have sinned, I have perverted what is right,

    but I did not get what I deserved.

28 God has delivered me from going down to the pit,

    and I shall live to enjoy the light of life.’

29 “God does all these things to a person—

    twice, even three times—

30 to turn them back from the pit,

    that the light of life may shine on them.

31 “Pay attention, Job, and listen to me;

    be silent, and I will speak.

32 If you have anything to say, answer me;

    speak up, for I want to vindicate you.

33 But if not, then listen to me;

    be silent, and I will teach you wisdom.”

Footnotes

a. Job 33:13 Or that he does not answer for any of his actions

b. Job 33:18 Or from crossing the river

c. Job 33:22 Or to the place of the dead

1. Elihu begins his speech quite boastfully (3). He seems to have misunderstood what Job was saying. He thinks that Job is boasting about his righteousness and claiming to be without sin (9). Job defended his integrity against his friends’ accusations, but he never claimed to be sinless.

 

2. In spite of this, Elihu teaches correctly that God speaks to people through their life situations to lead them to repentance. God may speak to us in a subtle way, perhaps in a dream, but more often through his word, to steer us away from wrongdoing (14-18). God lets people taste the fruit of their sin so that they can realize their sinfulness and come to him before it is too late (19-22). This is part of God’s salvation grace.

 

3. Elihu’s message prefigures the gospel. What people who are suffering in sin need most is a messenger to preach the gospel to them (23), telling them how Christ has paid the ransom for all their sins (24). Then they can pray and accept God’s grace, their lives will be restored, and they can share their testimony of how God delivered them from destruction (27-28).

 

Prayer Father, thank you for the messengers who brought me the gospel when I needed it. Help me give the good news to turn others from destruction.

One Word Be a messenger of restoration

A YOUNG MAN SHARES WISDOM

Job 32:1-22 / Keywords 32:8

But it is the spirit in a man, the breath of the Almighty, that gives him understanding.

 

Elihu

32:1 So these three men stopped answering Job, because he was righteous in his own eyes. 2 But Elihu son of Barakel the Buzite, of the family of Ram, became very angry with Job for justifying himself rather than God. 3 He was also angry with the three friends, because they had found no way to refute Job, and yet had condemned him.[a] 4 Now Elihu had waited before speaking to Job because they were older than he. 5 But when he saw that the three men had nothing more to say, his anger was aroused.

6 So Elihu son of Barakel the Buzite said:

“I am young in years,

    and you are old;

that is why I was fearful,

    not daring to tell you what I know.

7 I thought, ‘Age should speak;

    advanced years should teach wisdom.’

8 But it is the spirit[b] in a person,

    the breath of the Almighty, that gives them understanding.

9 It is not only the old[c] who are wise,

    not only the aged who understand what is right.

10 “Therefore I say: Listen to me;

    I too will tell you what I know.

11 I waited while you spoke,

    I listened to your reasoning;

while you were searching for words,

12     I gave you my full attention.

But not one of you has proved Job wrong;

    none of you has answered his arguments.

13 Do not say, ‘We have found wisdom;

    let God, not a man, refute him.’

14 But Job has not marshaled his words against me,

    and I will not answer him with your arguments.

15 “They are dismayed and have no more to say;

    words have failed them.

16 Must I wait, now that they are silent,

    now that they stand there with no reply?

17 I too will have my say;

    I too will tell what I know.

18 For I am full of words,

    and the spirit within me compels me;

19 inside I am like bottled-up wine,

    like new wineskins ready to burst.

20 I must speak and find relief;

    I must open my lips and reply.

21 I will show no partiality,

    nor will I flatter anyone;

22 for if I were skilled in flattery,

    my Maker would soon take me away.

Footnotes

a. Job 32:3 Masoretic Text; an ancient Hebrew scribal tradition Job, and so had condemned God

b. Job 32:8 Or Spirit; also in verse 18

c. Job 32:9 Or many; or great

1. After Job’s three friends can find no further way to reply to him, a fourth and younger person speaks up—Elihu. Though he held his tongue at first because he was in the presence of elders, he became so angry that he could not help but speak (5). It is good that he first listened carefully before replying.

 

2. Elihu rebukes Job’s friends for condemning him even though they could find no way to refute his arguments (12-13). We should not condemn someone when we don’t have true knowledge of what they are going through. It is better to withhold judgment altogether.

 

3. Elihu claims to have genuine wisdom and to speak without partiality (21). When the Holy Spirit inspires someone with insight, they deserve to be listened to, whether they are young or old. Let’s pray for discernment of when the Spirit is leading us to speak out.

 

Prayer Father, help me always listen and pray before speaking. Give me true wisdom and understanding from your Spirit.

One Word Speak words of understanding

JOB’S LIFE OF INTEGRITY

Job 31:1-40 / Keywords 31:1

I made a covenant with my eyes not to look lustfully at a girl.

 

31:1 “I made a covenant with my eyes

    not to look lustfully at a young woman.

2 For what is our lot from God above,

    our heritage from the Almighty on high?

3 Is it not ruin for the wicked,

    disaster for those who do wrong?

4 Does he not see my ways

    and count my every step?

5 “If I have walked with falsehood

    or my foot has hurried after deceit—

6 let God weigh me in honest scales

    and he will know that I am blameless—

7 if my steps have turned from the path,

    if my heart has been led by my eyes,

    or if my hands have been defiled,

8 then may others eat what I have sown,

    and may my crops be uprooted.

9 “If my heart has been enticed by a woman,

    or if I have lurked at my neighbor’s door,

10 then may my wife grind another man’s grain,

    and may other men sleep with her.

11 For that would have been wicked,

    a sin to be judged.

12 It is a fire that burns to Destruction[a];

    it would have uprooted my harvest.

13 “If I have denied justice to any of my servants,

    whether male or female,

    when they had a grievance against me,

14 what will I do when God confronts me?

    What will I answer when called to account?

15 Did not he who made me in the womb make them?

    Did not the same one form us both within our mothers?

16 “If I have denied the desires of the poor

    or let the eyes of the widow grow weary,

17 if I have kept my bread to myself,

    not sharing it with the fatherless—

18 but from my youth I reared them as a father would,

    and from my birth I guided the widow—

19 if I have seen anyone perishing for lack of clothing,

    or the needy without garments,

20 and their hearts did not bless me

    for warming them with the fleece from my sheep,

21 if I have raised my hand against the fatherless,

    knowing that I had influence in court,

22 then let my arm fall from the shoulder,

    let it be broken off at the joint.

23 For I dreaded destruction from God,

    and for fear of his splendor I could not do such things.

24 “If I have put my trust in gold

    or said to pure gold, ‘You are my security,’

25 if I have rejoiced over my great wealth,

    the fortune my hands had gained,

26 if I have regarded the sun in its radiance

    or the moon moving in splendor,

27 so that my heart was secretly enticed

    and my hand offered them a kiss of homage,

28 then these also would be sins to be judged,

    for I would have been unfaithful to God on high.

29 “If I have rejoiced at my enemy’s misfortune

    or gloated over the trouble that came to him—

30 I have not allowed my mouth to sin

    by invoking a curse against their life—

31 if those of my household have never said,

    ‘Who has not been filled with Job’s meat?’—

32 but no stranger had to spend the night in the street,

    for my door was always open to the traveler—

33 if I have concealed my sin as people do,[b]

    by hiding my guilt in my heart

34 because I so feared the crowd

    and so dreaded the contempt of the clans

    that I kept silent and would not go outside—

35 (“Oh, that I had someone to hear me!

    I sign now my defense—let the Almighty answer me;

    let my accuser put his indictment in writing.

36 Surely I would wear it on my shoulder,

    I would put it on like a crown.

37 I would give him an account of my every step;

    I would present it to him as to a ruler.)—

38 “if my land cries out against me

    and all its furrows are wet with tears,

39 if I have devoured its yield without payment

    or broken the spirit of its tenants,

40 then let briers come up instead of wheat

    and stinkweed instead of barley.”

The words of Job are ended.

Footnotes

a. Job 31:12 Hebrew Abaddon

b. Job 31:33 Or as Adam did

1. Job’s friends had been telling him that he was being punished because of secret sins he had committed. So here, Job gives a detailed defense of his own integrity. He didn’t just talk about a holy life; he did what was necessary to live one.

 

2. Job understood what kind of commitment is needed to resist sinful desires, so to keep himself from adultery, he made “a covenant with his eyes” (1). He provided justice to anyone who came to him with a grievance (13). He gave to support those less fortunate than himself (16-20). He was careful not to idolize money or anything else (24-28). He even practiced love of his enemies, as Jesus taught (29). He lived this way because he kept God’s glory in his mind (23). This doesn’t mean that Job lived a perfect or sinless life. But Job’s integrity gave him confidence when facing false accusations (35-37).

 

3. We cannot fully measure up to Job’s example. But Job’s principles are a standard for us to aim at, with Jesus’ grace as a starting point. We do it not for an earthly reward, but because we live before God.

 

Prayer Father, thank you for teaching me to fight hard against sinful desires. Help me keep my integrity before you even if there seems to be no reward for it.

One Word A life of integrity

WHEN GOD DOESN’T ANSWER

Job 30:1-31 / Keywords 30:20

I cry out to you, O God, but you do not answer; I stand up, but you merely look at me.

 

30:1 “But now they mock me,

    men younger than I,

whose fathers I would have disdained

    to put with my sheep dogs.

2 Of what use was the strength of their hands to me,

    since their vigor had gone from them?

3 Haggard from want and hunger,

    they roamed[a] the parched land

    in desolate wastelands at night.

4 In the brush they gathered salt herbs,

    and their food[b] was the root of the broom bush.

5 They were banished from human society,

    shouted at as if they were thieves.

6 They were forced to live in the dry stream beds,

    among the rocks and in holes in the ground.

7 They brayed among the bushes

    and huddled in the undergrowth.

8 A base and nameless brood,

    they were driven out of the land.

9 “And now those young men mock me in song;

    I have become a byword among them.

10 They detest me and keep their distance;

    they do not hesitate to spit in my face.

11 Now that God has unstrung my bow and afflicted me,

    they throw off restraint in my presence.

12 On my right the tribe[c] attacks;

    they lay snares for my feet,

    they build their siege ramps against me.

13 They break up my road;

    they succeed in destroying me.

    ‘No one can help him,’ they say.

14 They advance as through a gaping breach;

    amid the ruins they come rolling in.

15 Terrors overwhelm me;

    my dignity is driven away as by the wind,

    my safety vanishes like a cloud.

16 “And now my life ebbs away;

    days of suffering grip me.

17 Night pierces my bones;

    my gnawing pains never rest.

18 In his great power God becomes like clothing to me[d];

    he binds me like the neck of my garment.

19 He throws me into the mud,

    and I am reduced to dust and ashes.

20 “I cry out to you, God, but you do not answer;

    I stand up, but you merely look at me.

21 You turn on me ruthlessly;

    with the might of your hand you attack me.

22 You snatch me up and drive me before the wind;

    you toss me about in the storm.

23 I know you will bring me down to death,

    to the place appointed for all the living.

24 “Surely no one lays a hand on a broken man

    when he cries for help in his distress.

25 Have I not wept for those in trouble?

    Has not my soul grieved for the poor?

26 Yet when I hoped for good, evil came;

    when I looked for light, then came darkness.

27 The churning inside me never stops;

    days of suffering confront me.

28 I go about blackened, but not by the sun;

    I stand up in the assembly and cry for help.

29 I have become a brother of jackals,

    a companion of owls.

30 My skin grows black and peels;

    my body burns with fever.

31 My lyre is tuned to mourning,

    and my pipe to the sound of wailing.

Footnotes

a. Job 30:3 Or gnawed

b. Job 30:4 Or fuel

c. Job 30:12 The meaning of the Hebrew for this word is uncertain.

d. Job 30:18 Hebrew; Septuagint power he grasps my clothing

1. When he lost everything he had in the world, Job also lost the respect he once had from people in his community. Job describes how people that he used to consider unworthy of any respect (2-8) were now mocking and disrespecting him (1, 9-14). To be despised and considered worthless by others is one of the most painful types of suffering. Jesus underwent this kind of suffering on the cross.

 

2. As he continues to struggle with the depths of his suffering, Job is no longer speaking to his friends but to God directly. He asks God why he has seemingly not answered his prayer (20). He paints a picture of how God seems to be personally attacking him (18-22). When Job put his trust in God, he hoped for good things from God. But it seems he got the opposite (26).

 

3. We may think it is not reverent to complain to God like this. But when we are in such deep distress, it is better to struggle with God honestly than to try to blame people. If we feel that God is responsible for our suffering, then we can also remember that he has power to help us overcome it.

 

Prayer Father, help me to respect others as I want to be respected. Thank you that I can bring my agony to you. Help me be patient in waiting for your answer to my prayer.

One Word Take my struggles to God

REMEMBERING TIMES OF GOD’S BLESSING

Job 29:1-25 / Keywords 29:4

Oh, for the days when I was in my prime, when God's intimate friendship blessed my house,

 

Job’s Final Defense

29:1 Job continued his discourse:

2 “How I long for the months gone by,

    for the days when God watched over me,

3 when his lamp shone on my head

    and by his light I walked through darkness!

4 Oh, for the days when I was in my prime,

    when God’s intimate friendship blessed my house,

5 when the Almighty was still with me

    and my children were around me,

6 when my path was drenched with cream

    and the rock poured out for me streams of olive oil.

7 “When I went to the gate of the city

    and took my seat in the public square,

8 the young men saw me and stepped aside

    and the old men rose to their feet;

9 the chief men refrained from speaking

    and covered their mouths with their hands;

10 the voices of the nobles were hushed,

    and their tongues stuck to the roof of their mouths.

11 Whoever heard me spoke well of me,

    and those who saw me commended me,

12 because I rescued the poor who cried for help,

    and the fatherless who had none to assist them.

13 The one who was dying blessed me;

    I made the widow’s heart sing.

14 I put on righteousness as my clothing;

    justice was my robe and my turban.

15 I was eyes to the blind

    and feet to the lame.

16 I was a father to the needy;

    I took up the case of the stranger.

17 I broke the fangs of the wicked

    and snatched the victims from their teeth.

18 “I thought, ‘I will die in my own house,

    my days as numerous as the grains of sand.

19 My roots will reach to the water,

    and the dew will lie all night on my branches.

20 My glory will not fade;

    the bow will be ever new in my hand.’

21 “People listened to me expectantly,

    waiting in silence for my counsel.

22 After I had spoken, they spoke no more;

    my words fell gently on their ears.

23 They waited for me as for showers

    and drank in my words as the spring rain.

24 When I smiled at them, they scarcely believed it;

    the light of my face was precious to them.[a]

25 I chose the way for them and sat as their chief;

    I dwelt as a king among his troops;

    I was like one who comforts mourners.

Footnotes

a. Job 29:24 The meaning of the Hebrew for this clause is uncertain.

1. Job returns to expressing the suffering he has experienced since Satan’s testing began. He thinks about the joy of his past life, when he was visibly blessed. He calls it a time of God’s intimate friendship (4). He was blessed to have his children around him (5), and he was honored and respected by all his neighbors (7-11, 21-25). Job did not use his blessings selfishly. He was genuinely worthy of the respect he received because he took care of the poor and needy (12-17).

 

2. Job thought these good circumstances would continue until his death, but they did not (18-20). In the next chapter, Job will contrast these days of blessing to his current suffering and misery.

 

3. If we feel we have lost God’s blessing compared to earlier times in our life, it may be good to examine ourselves to find the spiritual cause. But we should not fall into unspiritual nostalgia or self-pity. In all circumstances, let us be thankful because of how God has blessed us and used us so far, not because of our own goodness but because of his grace in Jesus. In Jesus we can be friends of God.

 

Prayer Father, thank you for all the ways you have blessed me and used me. Help me not compare these times to the past too much, but just keep myself pure before you.

One Word Thank God for his friendship

WHERE CAN WISDOM BE FOUND?

Job 28:1-28 / Keywords 28:28

And he said to man, 'The fear of the Lord--that is wisdom, and to shun evil is understanding.

 

Interlude: Where Wisdom Is Found

28:1 There is a mine for silver

    and a place where gold is refined.

2 Iron is taken from the earth,

    and copper is smelted from ore.

3 Mortals put an end to the darkness;

    they search out the farthest recesses

    for ore in the blackest darkness.

4 Far from human dwellings they cut a shaft,

    in places untouched by human feet;

    far from other people they dangle and sway.

5 The earth, from which food comes,

    is transformed below as by fire;

6 lapis lazuli comes from its rocks,

    and its dust contains nuggets of gold.

7 No bird of prey knows that hidden path,

    no falcon’s eye has seen it.

8 Proud beasts do not set foot on it,

    and no lion prowls there.

9 People assault the flinty rock with their hands

    and lay bare the roots of the mountains.

10 They tunnel through the rock;

    their eyes see all its treasures.

11 They search[a] the sources of the rivers

    and bring hidden things to light.

12 But where can wisdom be found?

    Where does understanding dwell?

13 No mortal comprehends its worth;

    it cannot be found in the land of the living.

14 The deep says, “It is not in me”;

    the sea says, “It is not with me.”

15 It cannot be bought with the finest gold,

    nor can its price be weighed out in silver.

16 It cannot be bought with the gold of Ophir,

    with precious onyx or lapis lazuli.

17 Neither gold nor crystal can compare with it,

    nor can it be had for jewels of gold.

18 Coral and jasper are not worthy of mention;

    the price of wisdom is beyond rubies.

19 The topaz of Cush cannot compare with it;

    it cannot be bought with pure gold.

20 Where then does wisdom come from?

    Where does understanding dwell?

21 It is hidden from the eyes of every living thing,

    concealed even from the birds in the sky.

22 Destruction[b] and Death say,

    “Only a rumor of it has reached our ears.”

23 God understands the way to it

    and he alone knows where it dwells,

24 for he views the ends of the earth

    and sees everything under the heavens.

25 When he established the force of the wind

    and measured out the waters,

26 when he made a decree for the rain

    and a path for the thunderstorm,

27 then he looked at wisdom and appraised it;

    he confirmed it and tested it.

28 And he said to the human race,

    “The fear of the Lord—that is wisdom,

    and to shun evil is understanding.”

Footnotes

a. Job 28:11 Septuagint, Aquila and Vulgate; Hebrew They dam up

b. Job 28:22 Hebrew Abaddon

1. In this chapter, Job takes a break from his arguments to give a profound poem about wisdom. He starts by describing how skilled people are at digging out silver, gold, and precious stones from the earth, even though they are hidden in dark places far below the ground. Working hard, people can dig deep into the rock and extract all kinds of valuable materials (1-11).

 

2. Wisdom can similarly be seen as a hidden treasure, and our spiritual search for wisdom is like digging or mining. But wisdom is much more valuable than any earthly treasure (15-19), and also more difficult to find (20-22). Because sinful people do not understand its value and only seek material wealth, wisdom is rarely seen in this world (13).

 

3. True wisdom comes from God. The created world shows us the vastness of God’s wisdom (23-27). We cannot attain to the level of God’s wisdom. But God said that for us human beings, real wisdom is to fear him and to shun evil (28). If we think we are wise, we have missed the wisdom God intended for us. But if we humbly acknowledge that we are not God and live before him in reverent fear, then our lives are on the right track. The wisest people are the most humble.

 

Prayer Father, thank you for displaying your awesome and unfathomable wisdom. Help me have the right kind of wisdom by fearing you.

One Word The fear of the Lord is wisdom

REJOICING OVER ONE REPENTANT SINNER

Luke 15:1-10 / Keywords 15:10

In the same way, I tell you, there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.

 

The Parable of the Lost Sheep

15:1 Now the tax collectors and sinners were all gathering around to hear Jesus. 2 But the Pharisees and the teachers of the law muttered, “This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.”

3 Then Jesus told them this parable: 4 “Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them. Doesn’t he leave the ninety-nine in the open country and go after the lost sheep until he finds it? 5 And when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders 6 and goes home. Then he calls his friends and neighbors together and says, ‘Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep.’ 7 I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent.

The Parable of the Lost Coin

8 “Or suppose a woman has ten silver coins[a] and loses one. Doesn’t she light a lamp, sweep the house and search carefully until she finds it? 9 And when she finds it, she calls her friends and neighbors together and says, ‘Rejoice with me; I have found my lost coin.’ 10 In the same way, I tell you, there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.”

Footnotes

a. Luke 15:8 Greek ten drachmas, each worth about a day’s wages

1. Jesus’ high-level discipleship did not chase people away. On the contrary, tax collectors and sinners were all gathering around to hear him. They knew he received them as they were and was working to heal them (5:31-32). Even though Jesus had explained it to them, the Pharisees still could not understand why Jesus welcomes tax collectors and eats with them. Jesus tried another angle: three parables to help them understand God’s perspective towards sinners.

 

2. Losing one sheep out of a hundred seems like a small loss. But to a shepherd each one is precious. The shepherd does anything to find the lost sheep. The joy of finding it elicits a celebration worthy of sharing with all. God’s joy for each of his righteous ones is immeasurable. Yet, his joy over one sinner who repents is ninetynine times greater!

 

3. The woman’s loss of one coin out of ten is tragic. Yet she does not despair. She overturns everything, cleaning from top to bottom until that one lost coin is found. The joy of finding it outweighs all the labor of searching and is so great that it must be shared. Likewise, God’s rejoicing overflows from heaven when we repent.

 

Prayer Father, I’m amazed at your joy at one repentant sinner. Help me to be quick to repent, and quick to share your joy when others do.

One Word Rejoice with God when the lost are found