Latest / Faith by annm2705 / 912. Bible Study: Job 27 - 31 (Job's final defense, the Value of Wisdom)
Transcript
- 0:00Next up is Job chapter 27. I'm going to try to go through 4
- 0:05chapters. I don't have a lot to say about
- 0:07this so I'm just going to read through the chapters and then go
- 0:12through the Bible study or the study Bibles questions and
- 0:18answers to cover those. So these are Job's final words
- 0:22to his friends. That's why I'm going to read
- 0:24through all the chapters because the next 4 chapters consist of
- 0:28his word to his friends. So it says first let's pray.
- 0:33Dear Lord, please be with us as we read through these chapters
- 0:37and help us to have insight and wisdom from the Holy Spirit.
- 0:42We ask this in Jesus name, Amen. And Job continued his discourse.
- 0:48As surely as God lives, who has denied me justice, the Almighty
- 0:53who has made my life bitter, as long as I have life within me,
- 0:57the breath of God in my nostrils, my lips will not say
- 1:02anything wicked. Right there.
- 1:04I want to pause, though my lips will not say anything wicked.
- 1:08You know, despite all of Job's hardships, he was strong.
- 1:12He remains strong. And there's something else that
- 1:15we will see later on about his He has friendship with God, and
- 1:19that's why he remains strong. Like he truly knows God.
- 1:23He just doesn't know of him, but he has a relationship.
- 1:27We'll see that a little bit later.
- 1:28And this shows strength. And obviously, when the Holy
- 1:31Spirit, God does not give us a spirit of a timid spirit, but
- 1:36one of courage and strength and power, and that's what comes
- 1:40from the Holy Spirit. So you can see that in a
- 1:43relationship with God, we have those things in our lives.
- 1:48We have those qualities, I guess to say.
- 1:51So going back to his his statement, he said my lips will
- 1:55not say anything wicked and my tongue will not utter lies.
- 1:59I will never admit you are in the right till I die.
- 2:02I will not deny my integrity. I will maintain my innocence and
- 2:07never let go of it. My conscience will not reproach
- 2:10me as long as I live. May my enemy be like the wicked,
- 2:15my adversary like the unjust. For what hope have the godless
- 2:19when they are cut off, when God takes away their life?
- 2:22Does God listen to their cry when distress comes upon them?
- 2:26Will they find delight in the Almighty?
- 2:29Will they call on God at all times?
- 2:32I will teach you about the power of God.
- 2:35The ways of the Almighty I will not conceal.
- 2:39You have all seen this yourselves.
- 2:41Why then this meaningless talk? Here is the fate God allots to
- 2:47the wicked. The heritage a ruthless man
- 2:50receives from the Almighty. However many his children, their
- 2:54fate is the sword. His offspring will never have
- 2:58enough to eat. The plague will bury those who
- 3:01survive him, and their widows will not weep for them, though
- 3:05he heaps up silver like dust and clothes like piles of clay.
- 3:11What he lays up the righteous will wear, and the innocent will
- 3:16divide his silver. The house he builds is like a
- 3:20moth's cocoon, like a Hut made by a watchman.
- 3:24He lies down wealthy, but will do so no more.
- 3:28When he opens his eyes all is gone.
- 3:32Terrors overtake him like a flood.
- 3:35A Tempest snatches him away in the night.
- 3:39The east wind carries him off, and he is gone.
- 3:42It sweeps him out of his place. It hurls itself against him
- 3:46without mercy. As he flees from its power.
- 3:50It clasps his hands in derision and hisses him out of his place.
- 3:56That's the end of chapter 27. I'll read what the Study Bible
- 3:59says next with questions and answers.
- 4:01Why would a just God deny justice?
- 4:04Ultimately, God does not deny justice, though he sometimes
- 4:08delays it. Job desperately wanted God to
- 4:12establish his innocence in the sight of his friends, which God
- 4:16later did, and restore his losses, which God later did.
- 4:21But Job had to wait for God's timing.
- 4:25While he waited, Job, in his despair could not see how God
- 4:30could be just. But Job did not completely
- 4:34abandoned faith in God. Later he affirmed that God will
- 4:38judge the wicked. I think that's something we can
- 4:41all learn is that no matter what is going on in our life that we,
- 4:45if we have a relationship with God, we just need to trust Him
- 4:48and know that He will work it out for good.
- 4:50If we have, if we examine ourselves and we realize that we
- 4:54are not doing anything wrong and there's nothing that our
- 4:56conscience convicts us of or the Holy Spirit convicts us of, then
- 5:00we just have to know that this is something that's coming from
- 5:03an evil 1 and God is allowing it for some reason.
- 5:06It's some sort of testing and that we just need to stay strong
- 5:10and stay, be committed to God and eventually God will restore.
- 5:14I mean, there's proof of that all throughout the Bible.
- 5:18And you know, sometimes it's not in this life.
- 5:23I think there's the delay. I mean, we look at many of the
- 5:26Israelites, for example, Moses, he didn't get to crossover to
- 5:29the promised land, but in the end he will be in the Kingdom of
- 5:34God. So it's a delayed answer to his,
- 5:40to the covenant that God gave God is God will always remain
- 5:44true and faithful. So this is where we have our
- 5:47hope. And it's not hope like I hope it
- 5:49happens, but hope that, you know, we're looking forward to
- 5:53that day when the restoration does occur because God promised
- 5:57it. And God does not change his mind
- 6:01about his promises. He is faithful, not like human
- 6:04beings, but God is faithful and we can that's the one person we
- 6:07can trust is God. What is the breath of God?
- 6:12This refers to life itself. Job was in effect saying as long
- 6:16as I live. The creation account tells us
- 6:18God breathed into Adam the breath of life.
- 6:21If God withdrew his life sustaining breath from creation,
- 6:25it would perish at once. Is it OK to pray against our
- 6:29enemies? Not for their harm?
- 6:32Not everything a Bible character setter did is to be imitated.
- 6:36The psalmist and others prayed against their enemies, but that
- 6:39doesn't mean we should. Jesus taught that we should love
- 6:44our enemies and pray for them. Will the will the righteous get
- 6:50riches of the wicked? Yes, although not always
- 6:54immediately or personally. Job was describing a general
- 6:58principle, a way that God's justice operates in a life.
- 7:02A wicked person often engages in conduct that brings about his
- 7:07own death or destruction. The righteous who do not engage
- 7:11in such conduct usually do not experience early death or
- 7:15destruction. Of course, general rules don't
- 7:19apply in every case. What's so bad about an east
- 7:23wind? The east wind are Scirocco.
- 7:27I don't know if that's saying it right, but is a blistering wind
- 7:30off the desert. It was the mighty wind that
- 7:33collapsed the house where Job's children were feasting.
- 7:38That's kind of interesting too, because when we looked up the
- 7:43prior chapter about the wind, there are different words in
- 7:48Hebrew. One could be like a Tempest
- 7:50wind, and another one is like the same word that's used for
- 7:53the Holy Spirit or a spirit. And it was Ruah, a mighty ruah
- 7:59head Ruah. I know I'm not saying it right,
- 8:02but had devastated the house. And so I wonder, you know, was
- 8:08this a spiritual thing that happened in, you know, that
- 8:12actually took away Job's children because God allowed
- 8:17Satan to do that. And so maybe that mighty wind
- 8:23was that mighty Rua was an evil 1.
- 8:28I don't know, but just something to keep in mind.
- 8:32OK Chapter 28, it's continuing and it says an interlude where
- 8:37wisdom is found. So chapter 28 says there is a
- 8:41mine. This is Job continuing.
- 8:42There is a mine for silver and a place where gold is refined,
- 8:46iron is taken from the earth, and copper is smelted from ore.
- 8:51Mortals put an end to the darkness.
- 8:54They search out the farthest recesses for ore in the blackest
- 8:58darkness. Far from human dwellings, they
- 9:01cut a shaft in places untouched by human feet.
- 9:05Far from other people, they dangle and sway.
- 9:08The earth from which food comes is transformed below as by fire.
- 9:14Lapis lazuli comes from its rocks.
- 9:18I'm going to pause for a minute because lapis lazuli, I don't
- 9:21know if it if other people are aware of that in other areas,
- 9:26but that's like not a common, I don't know material that I hear
- 9:33often, but I do hear it see it in the Bible when it refers to
- 9:38God's throne, which is kind of interesting.
- 9:42In the Book of Revelation, lapis lazuli is mentioned.
- 9:46So just a side note, it lapis lazuli comes from its rocks, and
- 9:52it's dust contains Nuggets of gold.
- 9:56No bird of prey knows that hidden path, no falcon's eye has
- 10:01seen it. Proud beasts do not set foot on
- 10:04it, and no lion prowls there. People assault the flinty rock
- 10:08with their hands and lay bare the roots of the mountains.
- 10:12They tunnel through the rock, their eyes see all its
- 10:16treasures. This is kind of like worldly
- 10:19treasures that they're searching for, that humans are searching
- 10:22for. They search the sources of the
- 10:24rivers and bring hidden things to light.
- 10:27But where can wisdom be found? Where does understanding dwell?
- 10:34No mortal comprehends comprehends its worth.
- 10:38It cannot be found in the land of the living.
- 10:44The deep says it's not in me. The sea says it's not with me.
- 10:49It cannot be bought with the finest gold, nor can its price
- 10:53be weighed out in silver. It cannot be bought with the
- 10:57gold of ofer, with precious Onyx or lapis lazuli.
- 11:02Neither gold nor crystal can compare with it, nor can it be
- 11:06had, for jewels of gold, coral and Jasper are not worthy of
- 11:11mention. The price of wisdom is beyond
- 11:15rubies. The Topaz of Cush cannot compare
- 11:18with it. It cannot be bought with pure
- 11:21gold. Where then does wisdom come
- 11:25from? Where does understanding dwell?
- 11:29It is hidden from the eyes of every living thing, concealed
- 11:33even from the birds in the sky. Destruction and death say only a
- 11:39rumor of it has reached our ears.
- 11:43God understands the way to it, and He alone knows where it
- 11:48dwells. For he views the ends of the
- 11:50earth. He sees everything under the
- 11:53heavens. When he established the force of
- 11:56the wind and measured out the waters, when he made a decree
- 12:00for the rain and a path for the thunderstorm, then he looked at
- 12:04wisdom and appraised it. He confirmed it and tested it.
- 12:08And he said to the human race, the fear of the Lord that is
- 12:14wisdom and to shun evil is understanding.
- 12:19So here is probably the most important.
- 12:22I mean, if you think about it, this chapter is just saying that
- 12:27there's all these treasures, earthly treasures, worldly
- 12:30treasures that we go after. But who seeks wisdom?
- 12:34And what is wisdom and where can it be found?
- 12:37And God is the only source to find wisdom.
- 12:42And then he said to the human race, this is verse 28, the fear
- 12:48of the Lord. That is wisdom.
- 12:51And to shun evil is understanding.
- 12:55So if we have fear of the Lord, we have wisdom.
- 13:00And that's repeated throughout so many different books in the
- 13:03Bible. And to shun evil is
- 13:06understanding. So we need to keep from evil,
- 13:11shun it, not support it. That's understanding what wisdom
- 13:16is, the fear of the Lord. I think this is a very it's a a
- 13:21very important verse in Scripture.
- 13:24So we're in chapter Job, chapter 28, verse 28.
- 13:28And here's an interesting thing that I did find was that
- 13:33Ecclesiastes chapter 12, verse 13.
- 13:38Now Ecclesiastes was written by Solomon.
- 13:41Now the book of Job was way before the book of Solomon.
- 13:45This I've I've heard or read that the book of Job was
- 13:50considered one of the oldest books of the Bible.
- 13:53And so this was the first statement about the fear of the
- 13:58Lord that is wisdom and to shun evil is understanding.
- 14:01So I find this really interesting that Solomon, when
- 14:04he prayed to God, he asked for wisdom.
- 14:09And so that was like the greatest thing he could have
- 14:11ever asked for. And God in addition gave him
- 14:14wealth, wealth and other things. But he blessed him because he
- 14:20just was seeking wisdom. He wasn't seeking the material
- 14:23things, he was seeking wisdom. And that is like the the most
- 14:27valuable thing that we can seek. And what is wisdom?
- 14:32The fear of the Lord. So what's interesting is Solomon
- 14:36in his latter years he wrote the book of Ecclesiastes.
- 14:40And in chapter 12 he comes up with a summation, and his
- 14:43summation sounds just like Job. So chapter 12, verse 13, this is
- 14:49what Solomon wrote. Now all has been heard.
- 14:52Here is the conclusion of the matter.
- 14:56Fear God and keep His commandments, for this is the
- 15:02duty of all mankind. For God will bring every deed
- 15:07into judgment, including every hidden thing, whether it is good
- 15:12or evil. So that is the words of the most
- 15:19wise man because God blessed him in that way and that's what he
- 15:23said. His thing is fear God and keep
- 15:25his commandments. That's our duty.
- 15:27So we do have a purpose there and it does involve keeping the
- 15:30commandments of God. Despite some churches that teach
- 15:35that doesn't matter anymore. It does matter.
- 15:38God's word, every single word remains.
- 15:41Jesus said that he didn't come to take away any of the words of
- 15:44the prophets or any of the words of Scripture, but only to
- 15:47fulfill it. So we can't reject the words
- 15:51that were in the Old Testament because they still hold true
- 15:55today. If you do, you don't have
- 15:56wisdom, you don't have the fear of God because God is
- 15:59unchanging. And this is very important to
- 16:03understand. So let's see.
- 16:07I want to read the question and answer for this chapter 28.
- 16:11It says why this lecture on mining ore?
- 16:13Job was making a comparison. He was saying in effect, though
- 16:17it is extremely difficult to mine iron or copper.
- 16:21Humans have managed it, but it is much harder to mine wisdom
- 16:25and understanding. Only God can do that.
- 16:29Job was pointing out how hard it is to become wise, and that
- 16:33wisdom can be found only with God.
- 16:37Interestingly, archaeologists have discovered that mining
- 16:40operations were conducted in the regions throughout the Middle
- 16:43East as far back as 4500 BC. So that's really interesting.
- 16:49I forgot when the book of Job was indicate that.
- 16:55Let's see what it says here. The historical setting of Job
- 17:00was around 1900 to 1700 BC. So it was quite some time ago.
- 17:08And then I'm going to look for comparison purposes about
- 17:11Ecclesiastes when that was written.
- 17:14The book of Ecclesiastes was written about 970 to 930 BC.
- 17:19So yeah, the book of Job was a little bit before the book of
- 17:23Ecclesiastes. OK, so now we have chapter 29.
- 17:31We'll continue and see if we can get through all this.
- 17:33Job continued his discourse. How I long for the months gone
- 17:37by, for the days when God snatched me sorry, for the days
- 17:43when God watched over me, when His lamp shone on my head and by
- 17:49His light I walked through darkness.
- 17:51Oh, for the days when I was in my prime, when God's intimate
- 17:56friendship, this is what I was talking about before, when God's
- 17:59intimate friendship blessed my house, when the Almighty was
- 18:05still with me. So Job had an intimate
- 18:09friendship with God. It's very apparent here.
- 18:14So oh, for the days when I was in my prime, when God's intimate
- 18:18friendship blessed my house, when the Almighty was still with
- 18:22me and my children were around me, when my path was drenched
- 18:27with with cream and the rock poured out for me streams of
- 18:31olive oil. When I went to the gate of the
- 18:34city and took my seat in the public square, the young men saw
- 18:38me and stepped aside, and the old men rose to their feet.
- 18:42The chief men refrained from speaking and covered their
- 18:45mouths with their hands. The voices of the nobles were
- 18:47hushed and their tongues stuck to the roof of their mouths.
- 18:51Whoever heard me spoke well of me, and those who saw me
- 18:55commended me, because I rescued the poor who cried for help, and
- 18:59the fatherless who had none to assist them.
- 19:02The one who was dying blessed me.
- 19:04I made the widow's heart sing. I put on righteousness as my
- 19:08clothing, just as was my robe and my turban.
- 19:13I was eyes to the blind and feet to the lame.
- 19:16I was a father to the needy. I took up the case of the
- 19:19stranger. I broke the fangs of the wicked
- 19:22and snatched the victims from their teeth.
- 19:25I thought I will die in my own house, my days as numerous as
- 19:29the grains of sand. My roots will reach to the water
- 19:32and the dew will lie all night on my branches.
- 19:35My glory will not fade. The bow will never, will be ever
- 19:40new in my hand. People listened to me
- 19:43expectantly, waiting in silence for my counsel.
- 19:47After I had spoken, they spoke no more.
- 19:49My words fell gently on their ears.
- 19:52They waited for me As for showers, and drank in my words
- 19:55as the spring rain. When I smiled at them, they
- 19:59scarcely believed it. The light of my face was
- 20:02precious to them. I chose the way for them and sat
- 20:06as their chief. I dwelt as a king among his
- 20:09troops. I was like one who comforts
- 20:13mourners. That's the end of chapter 29, so
- 20:17I will read what the study Bible says.
- 20:19Does God ever stop watching over us?
- 20:22Job thought so. He longed for the days when God
- 20:24watched over him. But God always watches over
- 20:26those who love and trust Him, even when they are not aware of
- 20:31His care. We are tempted during extended
- 20:34suffering to think, as Job did, that God has turned His back on
- 20:37us. We can resist that temptation
- 20:40only by choosing to trust the Word of God in spite of
- 20:44appearances. Who would want cream on their
- 20:47path? In Job's day, cream was a scarce
- 20:51luxury. The phrase is a poetic way of
- 20:53saying that God had once blessed Job so abundantly that even
- 20:57life's sweetest luxuries were as common as the dirt he walked on.
- 21:03Why would someone sit on in the public square?
- 21:06In the ancient Middle Eastern cities, the public square was
- 21:09the place of official government business.
- 21:12It compares to a courthouse or City Hall.
- 21:14Today, Job's seat indicated his position of influence.
- 21:18Why was silence a sign of respect?
- 21:20Some ancient cultures required people to literally hold their
- 21:24hands over their mouths to show respect and honor for the ruler.
- 21:28It was the custom and Job's day to remain quiet until the
- 21:31leading official had spoken. We follow much the same protocol
- 21:35today when a president. When a presiding judge enters A
- 21:41courtroom or the President of the United States appears to
- 21:44make a public statement, silence recognizes the importance of the
- 21:49authority figure. Was Joe bragging about his good
- 21:53deeds? Joe was not boasting, but
- 21:55explaining why, why he used to be honored and lamenting what he
- 22:00lost. He had used his power and
- 22:03influence to help people in need.
- 22:04While other officials may have used their position to pad their
- 22:08wallets or power their base, Job had used his office to serve.
- 22:14What was Job's glory? The word glory here refers to
- 22:17the honor given to an individual.
- 22:20Job had been considered the greatest man among all the
- 22:23people of the East, and he thought he would enjoy that
- 22:26honor for a long time. OK, now we're going to go to
- 22:30Chapter 30. But now they mock me, men
- 22:34younger than I, whose fathers I would have disdained and put
- 22:38with my sheepdogs. Of what use was the strength of
- 22:42their hands to me, since their vigor had gone from them?
- 22:45Haggard from runt and hunger, they roam the parched land in
- 22:48desolate wastelands. At night in the brush they
- 22:50gathered salt, herbs, and their food was the root of the broom
- 22:53brush. They were banished from human
- 22:55society, shouted at as if they were thieves.
- 22:59They were forced to live in the dry stream beds, among the
- 23:02rocks, and in the holes of the ground.
- 23:05They braid among the bushes and huddled in the undergrowth, A
- 23:09bathe and a base and nameless brood.
- 23:12They were driven out of the land.
- 23:14And now those young men mock me in song.
- 23:19I have become a byword among them.
- 23:21They detest me and keep their distance.
- 23:24They do not hesitate to spit in my face.
- 23:28Now that God has unstrung my bow and and afflicted me.
- 23:32They throw off restraint in my presence.
- 23:35Oh, Oh my right, the tribe. Oh wait, on my right the tribe
- 23:42attacks. They lay snares for my feet.
- 23:44They build their siege ramps against me.
- 23:47They break up my Rd. They succeed in destroying me.
- 23:50No one can help him, they say. They advance as as through a
- 23:55gaping breach amid the ruins. They come rolling in.
- 23:59Terrors overwhelm me. My dignity is driven away as by
- 24:03the wind. My safety vanishes like a cloud.
- 24:06And now my life ebbs away. Days of suffering grip me.
- 24:11Night pierces my bones. My gnawing pains never rest.
- 24:15In His great power, God becomes like clothing to me.
- 24:19He binds me like the neck of my garment.
- 24:22He throws me into the mud, and I am reduced to dust and ashes.
- 24:26I cry out to you, God, but you do not answer.
- 24:29I stand up, but you merely look at me.
- 24:32You turn on me ruthlessly with the might of your hand.
- 24:34You attack me. You snatch me up and drive me
- 24:37before the wind. You toss me about in the storm.
- 24:40I know you will bring me down to death, to the place appointed
- 24:44for all the living. Surely no one lays a hand on a
- 24:47broken man when he cries for help in his distress.
- 24:50Have I not wept for those in trouble?
- 24:52Has not my soul grieved for the poor yet when I hope for good,
- 24:56evil came. And when I look for light, then
- 24:59dark, then came darkness. The churning inside me never
- 25:02stops. Days of suffering confront me.
- 25:05I go about blackened, but not from the sun.
- 25:08I stand up in the assembly and cry for help.
- 25:10I have become a brother of jackals, a companion of owls.
- 25:14My skin grows black and peels. My body burns with fever.
- 25:19My leer is turned, turned, tuned to mourning and my pipe to the
- 25:24the sound of wailing. So that concludes chapter 31 or
- 25:2930, I mean. And so I will read questions and
- 25:31answers for chapter 30. Who was Job attacking the
- 25:35outcast of society? Now even they taunted and
- 25:38humiliated poor Job, adding further insult to all his
- 25:42bearable injuries. What are salt, herbs and the
- 25:46root of the broom brush? These are barely edible leaves
- 25:50and roots that the outcasts of society were first forced to eat
- 25:54because they were too poor to afford better food.
- 25:57The fact that people who had to eat such terrible things were
- 26:00mocking Job as inferior to them is a measure of how low Satan's
- 26:06trials had brought Job in the eyes of others.
- 26:11Why call them a base and nameless brood?
- 26:14This refers to the ancestry of Job's new tormentors.
- 26:18Perhaps the worst insult of Job's day was to put down a
- 26:22person's family or ancestry. Job was saying that his new
- 26:25tormentors were so low that they even that they lacked even the
- 26:31dignity of a family name. It's also possible that Job was
- 26:35simply referring to an unnamed mob or tribe of people.
- 26:40How had God unstrung Job's bow? The bow and arrow, a premier
- 26:45weapon and hunting tool in Job's time, was a symbol of strength.
- 26:49A bow without a bowstring was useless.
- 26:52So this phrase means that God allowed Job to become weak and
- 26:56humiliated. All the former trappings of
- 26:59Job's might, reputation, and honor had been stripped from
- 27:03him. How had God become like
- 27:05clothing? Here Job was talking about how
- 27:08he couldn't escape the many miseries that afflicted him.
- 27:10Since God had allowed these miseries to happen.
- 27:13It was is, it was if as if God was all over him like clothing
- 27:19is over 1's body, giving him no chance of relief or escape from
- 27:23his suffering. Does God refuse to answer a
- 27:26helpless person's cry? Job was not the only person to
- 27:29feel that God did not answer his prayer.
- 27:31But God does not ignore the cries of the afflicted.
- 27:35He does here and will answer. As Job discovered later, God's
- 27:41answer was wait. God's timing is different than
- 27:45ours, and often when we think he is saying no, he is saying not
- 27:51yet. In what way was Job blackened?
- 27:56Job may have had some kind of wasting disease accompanied by a
- 28:01fever that changed his normal complexion to an unnatural
- 28:04pigment, or perhaps the scabs from his sores had changed his
- 28:08coloring. All right, now, I think chapter
- 28:1231, that's going to be the last one of Job's discourse.
- 28:18So it starts with Job says I made a covenant with my eyes not
- 28:23to look lustfully at a young woman.
- 28:27For what is our lot from God above our heritage from the
- 28:31Almighty on high? Is it not rune for the wicked,
- 28:35disaster for those who do wrong? Does He not see my ways and
- 28:39count my every step? If I if I have walked with
- 28:44falsehood, or my foot has hurried after deceit, Let God
- 28:49weigh me in on a scales, and He will know that I am blameless.
- 28:54If my steps have turned from the path, if my heart has been led
- 29:00by my eyes, or if my hands have been defiled, then may others
- 29:06eat what I have sown, and may my crops be uprooted.
- 29:11If my heart has been enticed by a woman, or if I have lurked at
- 29:16my neighbor's door, then may my wife's grind another man's
- 29:22grain, and may other men sleep with her.
- 29:25For that would have been wicked, a wicked sin to judge, to be
- 29:29judged. It is a fire that burns to
- 29:32destruction. It would have uprooted my
- 29:35harvest if I had have denied justice to any of my servants,
- 29:40whether male or female, when they have had a grievance
- 29:43against me. What will I do when God
- 29:46confronts me? What will I answer when called
- 29:48to account? Did not he who made me in the
- 29:55womb make them? Did not the same one form us
- 29:59both within our mothers? If I have denied the desires of
- 30:04the poor, or let the eyes of the widow grow weary, If I have kept
- 30:09my bread to myself, not sharing it with the fatherless?
- 30:13But from my youth I reared them as a father would, and from my
- 30:17birth I guided the widow. If I had seen anyone perishing
- 30:21for lack of clothing or needy without garments, and their
- 30:25hearts did not bless me for a for warming them with the fleece
- 30:29from my sheep. If I have raised my hand against
- 30:33the fatherless, knowing that I had influence in court, then let
- 30:37my arm fall from the short shoulder, let it be broken off
- 30:40at the joint. For I dreaded destruction from
- 30:44God, and for fear of His splendor.
- 30:48I could not do such things if I had put my trust in gold, or
- 30:53said to pure gold. You are my security.
- 30:56If I had rejoiced over my great wealth, the fortune my hands had
- 31:00gained, if I had regarded the sun and its radiance, or the
- 31:03moon moving in splendor so that my heart was secretly enticed
- 31:07and my hand offered them a a kiss of homage, then these would
- 31:13would be sins to be judged for. I would have been unfaithful to
- 31:17God on high if I had rejoiced and my enemies misfortune or
- 31:22gloated over the trouble that came to him.
- 31:25I have not allowed my mouth to sin by invoking a curse against
- 31:30their life. If those of my household have
- 31:34never said who has not been filled with Joe's meat?
- 31:37But no stranger had to spend the night in the street, for my door
- 31:42was always open to the traveler. If I have concealed my sin as
- 31:46people do, by hiding my guilt in my heart, because I feared the
- 31:50crowd and so dreaded the contempt of the clams, that I
- 31:54kept silent and would not go outside.
- 31:58Oh, that I had someone to hear me.
- 32:01I sign now my defense. Let the Almighty answer me.
- 32:05Let my accuser put his indictment in writing.
- 32:09Surely I would wear it on my shoulder.
- 32:11I would put it on like a crown. I would give him an account of
- 32:14my every step. I would present it to him as a
- 32:17ruler. If my land cries out against me
- 32:21and all of its furrows are wet with tears, if I have devoured
- 32:26its yield without payment or broken the spirit of its
- 32:29tenants, then let the Breeders come up instead of wheat and
- 32:33stink wheat instead of barley. The words of Job are ended, so
- 32:39that is his last discourse and I will read the questions and
- 32:45answers for chapter 31 and that'll wrap up this podcast
- 32:48today. So how did Joe make a covenant
- 32:52with his eyes? Job has sworn A solemn promise
- 32:55not to use his eyes to feed lust in his life.
- 32:59He wisely recognized that resisting temptation involves
- 33:04the an act of the will. Why did Job ask for judgement?
- 33:10Job invoked the most serious oath a person in his time could
- 33:13swear if he had lied, cheated someone, or stolen.
- 33:18Job said God should judge him without mercy and allow terrible
- 33:21consequences to befall him. Other if, then statements follow
- 33:26and were Job's last desperate attempt to prove his innocence.
- 33:31Was Job willing to let another man take his wife?
- 33:33Job did not want that at all. The In the ancient world, one
- 33:37type of feared curse was the loss of beloved family members
- 33:42as punishment. Job was saying here that if he
- 33:46were guilty of serious sin against God, as his comforters
- 33:49has suggested, then he might be. He might in theory be subject to
- 33:55a curse, such as losing his wife.
- 33:59What was Job saying here about social classes?
- 34:02Job had always cared for the needy and the lowly.
- 34:05He had already been practicing Jesus's future command to love
- 34:10your neighbor as yourself. This meant he treated his
- 34:13employees fairly and even handedly because he knew they
- 34:17were fellow creatures of God. They were no different than he
- 34:20was in God's eyes, regardless of their earthly social status.
- 34:26Question, is it OK to swear an oath against ourselves through
- 34:31this? Through this entire chapter, Job
- 34:34called down great harm on himself, broken arms, farm
- 34:38calamities, even death. If if he had sinned, should we
- 34:43follow his example? The answer can be found if we
- 34:47understand something of Job society and Job's era.
- 34:51They did not have lie detector text, lie detector test, or
- 34:57contracts written in triplicate. Triplicate.
- 35:00The only way they could prove their innocence was to swear an
- 35:03oath. Thus, oath taking was permitted
- 35:06and even God said, and even God's was said to swear oaths.
- 35:13But the Old Testament strictly warns against abusing oaths.
- 35:18Since some people said I swear by God when they weren't telling
- 35:22the truth, God warned not to swear falsely by His name.
- 35:28Other passages warn people to either fulfill the vows they
- 35:32make or not make vows at all. Ecclesiastes 5, verses 4 through
- 35:376. In the New Testament, Jesus
- 35:40raised the stakes. We should live lives of such
- 35:43integrity that we shouldn't have to use our oaths to prove our
- 35:47truthfulness. Instead, we should be able to
- 35:51simply say yes or no and leave it at that.
- 35:56Following these passages, some Christians refuse to take oaths
- 36:00in court. Other Christians permit such
- 36:03oaths. As long as their statements are
- 36:05truthful. Today there is no reason to call
- 36:08down harm upon ourselves in order to prove that we are
- 36:12telling the truth. Is fear of punishment a good
- 36:18motivator? While love for God is a powerful
- 36:21enticement to live a godly life, so is the sobering truth that
- 36:26God is holy and just. God is a holy and just God who
- 36:32does not leave sin unpunished. Do not be deceived.
- 36:37God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows.
- 36:42Galatians 6 verse 7. It is better to to do good out
- 36:48of fear than not to do it all at all, although ideally once
- 36:53motivations should be positive. Why did Job connect the sun and
- 36:58the moon with wealth as something to be judged?
- 37:01Putting trust in either one is idolatry.
- 37:04If we base our security on either our wealth or our
- 37:09horoscope, we are unfaithful to God on high.
- 37:13God alone deserves our faith and trust, and He will not share His
- 37:17glory with either gold or the galaxies.
- 37:22What was a kiss of homage? Job was referring to the ancient
- 37:26worship of the entities of the heavens in Western Asia.
- 37:30Sun worship including included offering a kissed with the hand,
- 37:36what we would call throwing a kiss to the sun.
- 37:40That's interesting. Did Job put his defense in
- 37:42writing? Job may have actually put his
- 37:46signature to a document that detailed the arguments for his
- 37:49innocence, but more probably he was speaking symbolically.
- 37:53Why didn't Joe blame Satan for his suffering?
- 37:56The challenge between God and Satan was hidden from Job.
- 38:01Furthermore, Job understood that God is sovereign, and thus from
- 38:05God comes all good and all pain. Job was convinced that he had
- 38:10done nothing to merit such unspeakable loss, so he demanded
- 38:15an explanation from the only one who could give it God.
- 38:20Who was Job's accuser? The context suggests Job was
- 38:23referring to God. God had not actually accused Job
- 38:27of anything. In fact, only Satan, the
- 38:29adversary, had accused Job. He had charged that Job followed
- 38:34God only because it benefited him.
- 38:38Therefore, Job's faith in God was really self-serving.
- 38:42But in his pain, Job assumed that God was against him.
- 38:47Why else would God have allowed these calamities?
- 38:51How do you pay farmland for its yield?
- 38:55Payment does not go to the land itself, but to those who have
- 38:58worked to produce its harvest. Job claimed that he had never
- 39:01sinned by underpaying labourers for their hard work.
- 39:06So this is the end of those chapters up through 31 where the
- 39:13words of job are ended. So that concludes this podcast.
- 39:17If you found this beneficial, please share it with others.
- 39:19If you are not subscribed, please do so.
- 39:21If you want to stay in the word every day, most often.
- 39:26Thank you.