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Curse God and Die - The Book of Job · Bible in a Year with Jack Graham

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  Speaker 1: Then said his wife unto him, Dost thou still retain
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  Speaker 1: thine integrity? Curse God, and die. Job 2.9 My Lord,
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  Speaker 1: today marks the day that I will begin to prequalify
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  Speaker 1: who gets to speak into my life. I will not
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  Speaker 1: allow the length of time that I've known a person
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  Speaker 1: to be the reason why I keep them close, if
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  Speaker 1: they continue to speak against you and what you've commanded.
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  Speaker 1: Holy Spirit, help me to protect my ears so that
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  Speaker 1: the only things I allow in are the words that
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  Speaker 1: are in alignment with what you have spoken to me
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  Speaker 1: about my future and destiny. Satan, you will not break me.
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  Speaker 1: You will not destroy me, no matter how many times
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  Speaker 1: you try to inflict me with pain. Lord, I decree
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  Speaker 1: and declare that you are my Redeemer. and I know
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  Speaker 1: that you live. Whatever may come, I will not stop
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  Speaker 1: praising your name. Redemption and favor follow my life, and
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  Speaker 1: I know this to be true. In Jesus' name, amen.
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  Speaker 1: Thanks for making prayer a priority in your life. To
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  Speaker 1: hear the Bible come to life, stay tuned for The
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  Speaker 1: Bible in a Year, brought to you by BibleInAYear.com.
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  Speaker 2: Click the link in the description to grow closer to God. There,
• 1:36
  Speaker 2: you'll find daily prayers, Bible plans, sleep stories, and so
• 1:39
  Speaker 2: much more, all on the Pray.com app. Click the link
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  Speaker 2: in the description to get started.
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  Speaker 3: Curse God and die. In our last story, we learned
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  Speaker 3: about the righteousness of Job. The Lord showcased Job to
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  Speaker 3: Satan as an example of uprightness, integrity, and love. Job
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  Speaker 3: was truly unmatched in riches, familial bliss, and devotion. Satan,
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  Speaker 3: in an attempt to expose Job's shallow faith, destroyed his property, riches,
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  Speaker 3: and family. Job stood over the corpses of his children,
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  Speaker 3: breathing in the ash from his burning fields, yet still
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  Speaker 3: praised God. His faith was unwavering. Now we learn of
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  Speaker 3: Satan's second attempt to break Job. Satan removes his health
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  Speaker 3: and Job is faced with his wife and friends who
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  Speaker 3: tragically fail to comfort Job as inspired by the book
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  Speaker 3: of Job.
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  Speaker 4: Hello, I'm Jack Graham with today's episode of the Bible
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  Speaker 4: in a Year podcast. But before we begin, I want
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  Speaker 4: to let you know about a unique e-book That's yours
• 2:57
  Speaker 4: to download absolutely free today. It's called Breaking Free from Stress.
• 3:03
  Speaker 4: And my prayer is that it will help you conquer
• 3:05
  Speaker 4: the daily tasks and pressures and burdens that bring stress
• 3:08
  Speaker 4: in your life. Download your free copy of Breaking Free
• 3:12
  Speaker 4: from Stress today by visiting jackgram.org slash stress. That's jackgram.org
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  Speaker 4: slash stress. In yesterday's reading, we learned how God allowed
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  Speaker 4: Satan to take away Job's riches and even his children.
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  Speaker 4: Satan had challenged God, saying that if he took away
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  Speaker 4: what Job had, that Job would curse him, Job would
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  Speaker 4: no longer serve him. But when Job lost everything, his
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  Speaker 4: response was surely grief, but through the tears, there was worship.
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  Speaker 4: Never once did he accuse or curse God. Satan had
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  Speaker 4: underestimated this man's heart and the power of God to
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  Speaker 4: be faithful to his servant. Today, we'll see God remove
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  Speaker 4: another layer of protection, allowing the enemy to attack Job himself,
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  Speaker 4: leaving him without his health, but still alive. He'll be
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  Speaker 4: joined by his friends and his wife, those closest to him,
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  Speaker 4: who should offer him comfort and encouragement. But how will
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  Speaker 4: they respond to Job's challenges? Let's listen to today's reading
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  Speaker 4: to find out.
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  Speaker 3: Satan stood again before the presence of God. The sound
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  Speaker 3: of Job's praises filled the accuser with more hatred and contempt.
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  Speaker 3: Again the Lord asked, From where have you come? Satan
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  Speaker 3: gazed upon the Lord and said, Walking up and down
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  Speaker 3: the earth, seeking souls that may be deceived and corrupted.
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  Speaker 3: The Lord once again showcased Job before him, saying, Have
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  Speaker 3: you seen the faithfulness of my servant Job? His integrity
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  Speaker 3: and love towards me endures even after your vain attempts
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  Speaker 3: to destroy him. Satan snapped as he spoke, saying, Skin
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  Speaker 3: for skin, Job would give away his property and children
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  Speaker 3: to save his own life. But if you allow me
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  Speaker 3: to touch his bones and flesh, I promise you that
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  Speaker 3: he shall curse your name. So the Lord allowed it.
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  Speaker 3: He could harm Job and take his body, but he
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  Speaker 3: could not kill him. So Satan descended upon Job once again.
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  Speaker 3: Hell bent on killing the spirit within him. Job awoke
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  Speaker 3: in the morning from his bed. The room was filled
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  Speaker 3: with ash from the fire outside his home. He coughed
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  Speaker 3: for minutes and then rose up from the bed. A
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  Speaker 3: sharp pain shot out from the soles of his feet.
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  Speaker 3: Job fell back onto his bed, looking at his feet
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  Speaker 3: and legs. They were covered in disgusting sores. Job felt
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  Speaker 3: around the rest of his body to realize he was
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  Speaker 3: covered in oozing boils. They were tender to the touch
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  Speaker 3: and filled his entire body with pain. He felt poisoned
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  Speaker 3: unless he got rid of them, but he had to
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  Speaker 3: scar his body to do so. Job's silent weeping could
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  Speaker 3: be heard from his room as he took a broken
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  Speaker 3: piece of pottery to scrape off the sores. He sat
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  Speaker 3: there alone in his room, wincing in pain. Job's wife
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  Speaker 3: peeked her head in from the hall. She looked at
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  Speaker 3: her husband with glazed eyes. They were red from weeping
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  Speaker 3: throughout the night. Job, who had been praising God over
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  Speaker 3: the dead bodies of her children, was now covered in
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  Speaker 3: sores and pus. She stood at the entrance of the
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  Speaker 3: room and said, Do you still feel joy now, Job?
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  Speaker 3: Job looked at her. He was in too much pain
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  Speaker 3: to respond to her. She did not cry. She could
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  Speaker 3: spare no more tears. She scoffed at him and said,
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  Speaker 3: You should curse God and die. Her words stung more
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  Speaker 3: than the sores. Job raised himself from the ground and
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  Speaker 3: walked past her. He limped down the hall and said,
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  Speaker 3: Shall we only receive good from God and not bad?
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  Speaker 3: So Job left to go sit outside and pray. Job
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  Speaker 3: sat beside the wall of his home, overlooking the darkness
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  Speaker 3: and ash of his land. He did not smile. Instead,
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  Speaker 3: he closed his eyes and sought any semblance of comfort
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  Speaker 3: from God he could. Occasionally, he would look to the
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  Speaker 3: direction of his son's house and cry, Job's friends Eliphaz, Bildad,
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  Speaker 3: and Zophar heard of his hardship and made plans to
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  Speaker 3: go and mourn with him. The three friends approached his
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  Speaker 3: home and saw Job sitting on the floor outside. They
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  Speaker 3: could barely recognize him. His face was dirty with ash,
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  Speaker 3: his cheeks were covered in small sores, and his eyes
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  Speaker 3: were red from crying. Job sat there, wet with the
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  Speaker 3: pus oozing from his boils. His friends said nothing. Instead,
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  Speaker 3: they sat with Job, looking into the nothingness. Their silent
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  Speaker 3: presence was a comfort to Job. There they remained for
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  Speaker 3: seven days and seven nights. They would eat and sleep,
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  Speaker 3: but say nothing out of respect for Job. They saw
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  Speaker 3: that his suffering was truly great. The silence was palpable,
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  Speaker 3: and none of the friends dared to speak first. Then,
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  Speaker 3: after seven days of complete silence, Job spoke. Cursed be
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  Speaker 3: the day I was born, Job yelled. His friends were
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  Speaker 3: startled by Job's statement. Job beat the wall behind him, saying,
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  Speaker 3: Let gloom and darkness consume my life. I pray that
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  Speaker 3: the thickness of night would drown me. Why did I
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  Speaker 3: not die at birth? To experience joy only increases the
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  Speaker 3: pain of loss. Why even give life to a bitter
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  Speaker 3: soul like mine? My soul knows no rest, no comfort,
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  Speaker 3: and no peace. Job's words cut deep into his soul.
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  Speaker 3: He lamented in front of his friends. For a while
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  Speaker 3: they sat in silence. Then, one by one, Eliphaz, Bildad,
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  Speaker 3: and Zophar began a barrage of explanations as to why
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  Speaker 3: God could have possibly allowed Job to suffer such a loss.
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  Speaker 3: Eliphaz suggested that God wanted Job to have a greater
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  Speaker 3: understanding of how to comfort others, and that sorrow gives
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  Speaker 3: him a greater depth of empathy. Bildad and Zophar chimed
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  Speaker 3: in with the possibility that Job must be partaking in
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  Speaker 3: some tremendous sin. Surely Job is under the judgment of God,
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  Speaker 3: or else he would not be suffering. Bildad contemplated the
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  Speaker 3: possibility of Job's children being the real sinners, and thus
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  Speaker 3: bringing their deaths upon themselves. Their voices continued to shake
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  Speaker 3: in Job's brain. Their explanations offered him no peace, no resolution,
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  Speaker 3: and no respite from his suffering. The bickering rang in
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  Speaker 3: Job's ears. His heart began to beat fast as he
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  Speaker 3: listened to their quarreling and speculations. You are worthless friends
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  Speaker 3: and poor physicians, Job screamed. You think I have somehow sinned?
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  Speaker 3: Tell me, what crimes have you witnessed in my life?
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  Speaker 3: I have made a covenant with my eyes that no
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  Speaker 3: evil thing shall enter into the world. Job's friends insisted
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  Speaker 3: that his claims to righteousness came from a skewed image
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  Speaker 3: of God's justice and character. Job sighed deeply, and tears
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  Speaker 3: once again began to fall from his face. There is
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  Speaker 3: only one who will speak for me. Job stood to
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  Speaker 3: his feet and brushed the dust off of his clothes.
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  Speaker 3: He took a deep breath and looked to heaven. I
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  Speaker 3: know that my Redeemer lives. I know I shall witness
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  Speaker 3: his faithfulness still. After more bickering and visiting from more
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  Speaker 3: friends to discuss the philosophical reasons for suffering, Job departed
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  Speaker 3: on a walk to sit in his own sorrow. What
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  Speaker 3: he knew of God's goodness did not align with his experiences.
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  Speaker 3: and he beat his chest in.
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  Speaker 1: Pain over it.
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  Speaker 3: In the quiet of the evening, Job wrestled with his
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  Speaker 3: faith in God and sought answers to the question of
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  Speaker 3: suffering and God's sovereignty.
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  Speaker 4: In today's scripture, we see another meeting between God and Satan.
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  Speaker 4: The accuser, Satan, has failed to prove that Job's faithfulness
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  Speaker 4: is conditional upon God's blessings. And God points this out
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  Speaker 4: to Satan, reminding him that Job still worshiped even when everything,
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  Speaker 4: his possessions, even his family was taken away from him.
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  Speaker 4: He tells God that if Job were to feel his
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  Speaker 4: own health failing, if God were to allow Satan to
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  Speaker 4: touch him or harm him, Job's attitude would change. He
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  Speaker 4: says this righteous man would show his true colors and
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  Speaker 4: curse God to his face in the midst of personal pain.
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  Speaker 4: This exchange, as the one from yesterday, show us some
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  Speaker 4: profound truths. First, God is always in control. That means
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  Speaker 4: God is sovereign. Satan answers to God. And even though
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  Speaker 4: there is an eternal battle between good and evil now,
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  Speaker 4: God is still on his throne and he commands the
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  Speaker 4: powers of the devil himself. There may be times when
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  Speaker 4: it seems the devil is getting the upper hand, but
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  Speaker 4: he is restrained by God's own will and God's own purposes. Secondly,
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  Speaker 4: God did not himself cause the harm to Job. Satan
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  Speaker 4: attacked him. And soon we're going to see that Job's
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  Speaker 4: friends will claim that this was somehow God's punishment. But
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  Speaker 4: nothing could be further from the truth. God allowed Satan
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  Speaker 4: to do physical harm to Job, but he was not
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  Speaker 4: permitted to kill him. And Satan once again leaves and
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  Speaker 4: gets to work on Job. He strikes Job with illness,
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  Speaker 4: painful boils. Can you imagine the pain that he must
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  Speaker 4: have felt as these boils raging across his body? He
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  Speaker 4: was scraping his skin with broken clay just to remove
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  Speaker 4: the sores. He was in intense pain. Job's wife then
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  Speaker 4: enters the scene. And rather than being a comfort to
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  Speaker 4: her diseased and distraught, pain-ridden husband, she challenges him. Why
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  Speaker 4: is he still holding on to God? He should just
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  Speaker 4: curse God and die, she says. He rebuked his wife.
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  Speaker 4: reminding her that God is to be praised not only
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  Speaker 4: in good times, but in the bad times, even in
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  Speaker 4: the tragedies of life. Job was, at this point, all
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  Speaker 4: alone in his suffering humanly. But then three of his
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  Speaker 4: friends come to him. They see his pain. And in
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  Speaker 4: Job 2.13, we see what their first response is. And
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  Speaker 4: they sat with him on the ground seven days and
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  Speaker 4: seven nights. And no one spoke a word to him,
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  Speaker 4: for they saw that his suffering, was very great. It
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  Speaker 4: would be good if we could just stop right there.
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  Speaker 4: Sometimes the very best response to someone who is grieving,
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  Speaker 4: hurting in intense pain is just to be present, just
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  Speaker 4: to be there. No attempt to explain the pain, to
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  Speaker 4: make sense of the suffering that is inexplicable and unexplainable,
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  Speaker 4: just to be there. Job needed his friends to sit
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  Speaker 4: with him in these moments of suffering. After this silence
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  Speaker 4: and suffering, Job gave voice to his feelings. He deeply
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  Speaker 4: lamented his pain and he was not blaming God. He
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  Speaker 4: was simply pouring out his honest hurt and sorrow. His
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  Speaker 4: friends listened and then they tried to offer explanations. I
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  Speaker 4: suppose their intentions were good at first, but they weren't helpful.
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  Speaker 4: They certainly weren't comforting. What begins are musings and questionings
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  Speaker 4: that become accusations against Job. Job must have sinned in
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  Speaker 4: some way so that this pain and judgment has come
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  Speaker 4: upon him. He should just confess and own up to
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  Speaker 4: his mistakes. That's what his friends said. Some kind of friends, huh?
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  Speaker 4: They assumed that blessings were a sign of favor and
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  Speaker 4: suffering was a sign of sin. But Job knows something
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  Speaker 4: that his friends don't. That God is a redeemer and
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  Speaker 4: that God redeems our suffering. And in the midst of
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  Speaker 4: pain and And problems that we can't understand or explain,
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  Speaker 4: God's presence is enough. So Job leaves his friends behind
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  Speaker 4: and goes to talk with God himself. There he will
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  Speaker 4: ask God what is happening and why. And we'll hear
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  Speaker 4: that conversation tomorrow. Let's pray. Dear God, help us to
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  Speaker 4: know how to comfort those who suffer and are in pain.
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  Speaker 4: Help us to show up and sit with people who hurt.
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  Speaker 4: and to give them your word, not our own. May
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  Speaker 4: we always trust you in the plans and purposes that
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  Speaker 4: we may not understand, and may we never, ever doubt
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  Speaker 4: your love for us, because we know your love is
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  Speaker 4: an everlasting love, that you've promised never to leave us
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  Speaker 4: or forsake us. In Jesus' name, amen. Thank you for
• 16:02
  Speaker 4: listening to today's Bible in a Year podcast. Before we go,
• 16:06
  Speaker 4: I want to let you know about a unique e-book
• 16:08
  Speaker 4: that's yours to download absolutely free today. It's called Breaking
• 16:13
  Speaker 4: Free from Stress. And my prayer is that it will
• 16:16
  Speaker 4: help you conquer the daily tasks and pressures and burdens
• 16:19
  Speaker 4: that bring stress into your life. Download your free copy
• 16:23
  Speaker 4: of Breaking Free from Stress today by visiting jackgram.org slash stress.
• 16:30
  Speaker 4: That's jackgram.org slash stress.
• 16:35
  Speaker 2: If today's reading moved you, the Pray.com app is where
• 16:37
  Speaker 2: you can go deeper with daily prayers, Bible plans, and more.
• 16:41
  Speaker 2: Download it free. Link in the description.