JOB EXPRESSES HIS MISERY

Job 3:1-26 / Keywords 3:23

Why is life given to a man whose way is hidden, whom God has hedged in?

 

Job Speaks

3:1 After this, Job opened his mouth and cursed the day of his birth. 2 He said:

3 “May the day of my birth perish,

    and the night that said, ‘A boy is conceived!’

4 That day—may it turn to darkness;

    may God above not care about it;

    may no light shine on it.

5 May gloom and utter darkness claim it once more;

    may a cloud settle over it;

    may blackness overwhelm it.

6 That night—may thick darkness seize it;

    may it not be included among the days of the year

    nor be entered in any of the months.

7 May that night be barren;

    may no shout of joy be heard in it.

8 May those who curse days[a] curse that day,

    those who are ready to rouse Leviathan.

9 May its morning stars become dark;

    may it wait for daylight in vain

    and not see the first rays of dawn,

10 for it did not shut the doors of the womb on me

    to hide trouble from my eyes.

11 “Why did I not perish at birth,

    and die as I came from the womb?

12 Why were there knees to receive me

    and breasts that I might be nursed?

13 For now I would be lying down in peace;

    I would be asleep and at rest

14 with kings and rulers of the earth,

    who built for themselves places now lying in ruins,

15 with princes who had gold,

    who filled their houses with silver.

16 Or why was I not hidden away in the ground like a stillborn child,

    like an infant who never saw the light of day?

17 There the wicked cease from turmoil,

    and there the weary are at rest.

18 Captives also enjoy their ease;

    they no longer hear the slave driver’s shout.

19 The small and the great are there,

    and the slaves are freed from their owners.

20 “Why is light given to those in misery,

    and life to the bitter of soul,

21 to those who long for death that does not come,

    who search for it more than for hidden treasure,

22 who are filled with gladness

    and rejoice when they reach the grave?

23 Why is life given to a man

    whose way is hidden,

    whom God has hedged in?

24 For sighing has become my daily food;

    my groans pour out like water.

25 What I feared has come upon me;

    what I dreaded has happened to me.

26 I have no peace, no quietness;

    I have no rest, but only turmoil.”

Footnotes

a. Job 3:8 Or curse the sea

1. So far, Job has been incredibly strong in enduring his sufferings and still giving glory to God. But now, after seven days, he reveals his true struggle with an outpouring of words. He still doesn’t accuse God of wrongdoing, but he curses the day of his own birth (1). He wishes it could disappear from the calendar (6). In other words, he thinks it would be better if he had never been born. This is the lowest point of human despair.

2. In verses 11-19, Job asks why God let him be born if it was only to suffer. From verse 20, he phrases the question more generally. Why does God give life to people who cannot find any relief from their suffering? We may ask these questions when our faith is tested, because we cannot see the end of our own story (23). But if we struggle honestly before God, God will lead us through to a better place.

Prayer Father, thank you for showing me Job’s struggle. It helps me know that you fully understand. Even though my way may be hidden to myself, I trust your leading.

One Word Wait on God when the way is hidden