Job

Job Chapter 2

Satan Attacks Job's Health

Job 2:1 Again there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the LORD, and Satan came also among them to present himself before the LORD.
2 And the LORD said unto Satan, From whence comest thou? And Satan answered the LORD, and said, From going to and fro in the earth, and from walking up and down in it.
3 And the LORD said unto Satan, Hast thou considered my servant Job, that there is none like him in the earth, a perfect and an upright man, one that feareth God, and escheweth evil? and still he holdeth fast his integrity, although thou movedst me against him, to destroy him without cause.

Again we see that the sons of God mentioned here where the angels. It would seem that both the fallen and good angels came before God at times.

Satan again isn't satisfied and wants to steal, kill and destroy Job because he is upright and refuses to sin against God. Now he wants to attack Job in the flesh with disease. Notice that he is limited unless God removes His hand of protection.

One day this will end for all who trust in the Lord. This is why Jesus came to become one of us and suffer pain, death and temptation that we humans go through. Jesus overcame and did not sin. When evil hands killed Him, He was able to rise again, declare victory over death ushering in a way out for all mankind.

The only way to be part of this great kingdom that is everlasting is to first believe, repent of sin and receive Jesus our Christ into our lives. We too, will have a day of victory, eternal life with a new body that cannot die or suffer pain.

In the days of Job, we see pain and suffering and it's hard to understand all this from his time to when the gospel is preached, but now we see that all this will end. God sees the future, we don't. We don't always understand but God sees our end. For now we stay faithful resisting the sin and evil that is in the world. Job resisted, now we must. The end will be a new beginning and it will be glorious.

Job 2:4 And Satan answered the LORD, and said, Skin for skin, yea, all that a man hath will he give for his life.
5 But put forth thine hand now, and touch his bone and his flesh, and he will curse thee to thy face.
6 And the LORD said unto Satan, Behold, he is in thine hand; but save his life.

We must remember that God was going to heal Job in the end of this temptation. Job did not know he would be healed but he stayed faithful anyway.

The Lord does not allow Satan to give him a disease that will kill him but only to show that Job will not sin against God.

Job 2:7 So went Satan forth from the presence of the LORD, and smote Job with sore boils from the sole of his foot unto his crown.
8 And he took him a potsherd to scrape himself withal; and he sat down among the ashes.

This again proves that Satan causes diseases, not God. A potsherd is a piece of pottery that Job was using to comfort himself probably the boils where itching or perhaps painful.

Job 2:9 Then said his wife unto him, Dost thou still retain thine integrity? curse God, and die.
10 But he said unto her, Thou speakest as one of the foolish women speaketh. What? shall we receive good at the hand of God, and shall we not receive evil? In all this did not Job sin with his lips.

Job like many of us assume God directly causes disease but the scriptures in many places show us otherwise. Here is one example:

Luke13:10 And he was teaching in one of the synagogues on the sabbath.
11 And, behold, there was a woman which had a spirit of infirmity eighteen years, and was bowed together, and could in no wise lift up herself.
12 And when Jesus saw her, he called her to him, and said unto her, Woman, thou art loosed from thine infirmity.
13 And he laid his hands on her: and immediately she was made straight, and glorified God.
14 And the ruler of the synagogue answered with indignation, because that Jesus had healed on the sabbath day, and said unto the people, There are six days in which men ought to work: in them therefore come and be healed, and not on the sabbath day.
15 The Lord then answered him, and said, Thou hypocrite, doth not each one of you on the sabbath loose his ox or his ass from the stall, and lead him away to watering?
16 And ought not this woman, being a daughter of Abraham, whom Satan hath bound, lo, these eighteen years, be loosed from this bond on the sabbath day?

Satan bound the woman, Jesus heals the woman.

Here is another word from Jesus Himself:

John 10:10 The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.

Peter sums it all in these words:

1Peter 5:8 Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour:
9 Whom resist stedfast in the faith, knowing that the same afflictions are accomplished in your brethren that are in the world.

There is a song that we use to sing in church: "We will understand it better by and by." However, James says this:

James 1:2 My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations;
3 Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience.
4 But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing.
5 If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.
6 But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed.
7 For let not that man think that he shall receive any thing of the Lord.
8 A double minded man is unstable in all his ways.

Job is suffering a trial of faith. Hard to understand yes, but we shall see how he endures to the end but without the help of his friends.

Job's Three Friends

Job 2:11 Now when Job's three friends heard of all this evil that was come upon him, they came every one from his own place; Eliphaz the Temanite, and Bildad the Shuhite, and Zophar the Naamathite: for they had made an appointment together to come to mourn with him and to comfort him.

Eliphaz was from the people of Esau. He was the first to speak to Job about his trouble. Bildad was second and maybe one of Abraham's descendant from Keturah. Zophar was from southern Judah. I wonder many times how word got around in the days before the news media and now the Internet.

Job 2:12 And when they lifted up their eyes afar off, and knew him not, they lifted up their voice, and wept; and they rent every one his mantle, and sprinkled dust upon their heads toward heaven.
13 So they sat down with him upon the ground seven days and seven nights, and none spake a word unto him: for they saw that his grief was very great.

Although these three tried to help and tried to speak for God giving the wrong advice and did not have the answers, it is amazing to see them come and stay for seven days speaking not a word. I don't know of any friends that would do that today. One thing I do notice a mistake many make and that is to take their words and quote it as scripture. That is kind of dangerous because we could be taking scripture out of context when we do that. Their words are not the words of God but man. In fact even Job's words cannot be taken as the words of God or God's commandments. So in writing these studies, I'm hoping to be careful to bring out the fact that their words are not, "Thus saith the Lord," but their own opinion whether it is right or wrong. DC

Job Chapter 3