Job

Job Chapter 9

Job Replies: There Is No Arbiter

Job 9:1 Then Job answered and said,
2 I know it is so of a truth: but how should man be just with God?
3 If he will contend with him, he cannot answer him one of a thousand.

We must remember here that Job existed long before the coming of Jesus our Christ. He asks, "How can a man be justified with God. Man may have thousands of sins." He thought is was an impossible task to be justified in the sight of God.

Actually Job was right. That is the whole reason Jesus came. He became a man that did not sin and was justified. Jesus was perfect without fault. Death was the penalty for sin. When Jesus was killed He paid the price of sin but did not sin in any way, so He and He alone could reverse the curse caused by Adam's sin. He was the second Adam who was the only sinless human man ever to live upon the earth. His death can count on our behalf. The body will still die but at the resurrection, those who died in Christ shall will live again with new bodies that can never die.

We might say what about those that died before Christ came? That was the reason for animal sacrifices. Those that obeyed the law of sacrifices to God was exercising faith in God to provide their future salvation. Animal sacrifices are no longer needed now. Through faith in Jesus Christ man could be justified before God.

Job 9:4 He is wise in heart, and mighty in strength: who hath hardened himself against him, and hath prospered?

No one that hardens himself against God will prosper in the long run. God is mighty in strength and wise.

Job 9:5 Which removeth the mountains, and they know not: which overturneth them in his anger.
6 Which shaketh the earth out of her place, and the pillars thereof tremble.

This is a discription of earthquakes and volcanoes that cause the earth to change and tremble. It causes mountains to explode.

Job 9:7 Which commandeth the sun, and it riseth not; and sealeth up the stars.
8 Which alone spreadeth out the heavens, and treadeth upon the waves of the sea.

This could be in reference to the flood in Noah's day where they were in total darkness but safe on the Ark.

Many verses in the Psalms describe these things. Here is part of one passage written by David:

Psalm 18:2 The LORD is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; my God, my strength, in whom I will trust; my buckler, and the horn of my salvation, and my high tower.
3 I will call upon the LORD, who is worthy to be praised: so shall I be saved from mine enemies.
4 The sorrows of death compassed me, and the floods of ungodly men made me afraid.
5 The sorrows of hell compassed me about: the snares of death prevented me.
6 In my distress I called upon the LORD, and cried unto my God: he heard my voice out of his temple, and my cry came before him, even into his ears.
7 Then the earth shook and trembled; the foundations also of the hills moved and were shaken, because he was wroth.
8 There went up a smoke out of his nostrils, and fire out of his mouth devoured: coals were kindled by it.
9 He bowed the heavens also, and came down: and darkness was under his feet.
10 And he rode upon a cherub, and did fly: yea, he did fly upon the wings of the wind.
11 He made darkness his secret place; his pavilion round about him were dark waters and thick clouds of the skies.
12 At the brightness that was before him his thick clouds passed, hail stones and coals of fire.
13 The LORD also thundered in the heavens, and the Highest gave his voice; hail stones and coals of fire.
14 Yea, he sent out his arrows, and scattered them; and he shot out lightnings, and discomfited them.
15 Then the channels of waters were seen, and the foundations of the world were discovered at thy rebuke, O LORD, at the blast of the breath of thy nostrils.
16 He sent from above, he took me, he drew me out of many waters.
17 He delivered me from my strong enemy, and from them which hated me: for they were too strong for me.
18 They prevented me in the day of my calamity: but the LORD was my stay.
19 He brought me forth also into a large place; he delivered me, because he delighted in me.
20 The LORD rewarded me according to my righteousness; according to the cleanness of my hands hath he recompensed me.
21 For I have kept the ways of the LORD, and have not wickedly departed from my God.
22 For all his judgments were before me, and I did not put away his statutes from me.
23 I was also upright before him, and I kept myself from mine iniquity.
24 Therefore hath the LORD recompensed me according to my righteousness, according to the cleanness of my hands in his eyesight.
25 With the merciful thou wilt shew thyself merciful; with an upright man thou wilt shew thyself upright;

Jesus says the same thing about mercy:

Matthew 5:7 Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy.

Continuing with Job chapter 9.

Job 9:9 Which maketh Arcturus, Orion, and Pleiades, and the chambers of the south.
10 Which doeth great things past finding out; yea, and wonders without number.

Stars and constellations had names even in the days where they supposedly didn't have telescopes, and outer space ships. It is said that the chambers of the south is the southern hemisphere. We really don't know how advanced civilization was before the flood and what equipment they might have had. Noah may have had things to help him build the ark even greater than we have today. We don't really know. I'm sure they preserved writings and scrolls to tell of some many things we needed to know but they might have just included necessary things from the Lord and not all things that were used or invented.

The book of Enoch which was written before the flood had to be brought on the Ark and it was preserved and probably other writings also. Moses had to have known about the creation by writings brought on the Ark unless God revealed everything to him when he spent 40 days up on the mountain with God.

Job 9:11 Lo, he goeth by me, and I see him not: he passeth on also, but I perceive him not.
12 Behold, he taketh away, who can hinder him? who will say unto him, What doest thou?
13 If God will not withdraw his anger, the proud helpers do stoop under him.
14 How much less shall I answer him, and choose out my words to reason with him?
15 Whom, though I were righteous, yet would I not answer, but I would make supplication to my judge.

Job says that even though God can pass by him and he would not see Him or know He was there, he (Job) will still speak to Him and pray to Him.

This reminds me of the verse:

John 20:29 Jesus saith unto him, Thomas, because thou hast seen me, thou hast believed: blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed.

Some see dreams and visions from the Lord and some have other gifts of the Spirit. Most of believers in Jesus today have never seen Him with their natural eyes but we see Him by the eyes of faith. We know He is real by the witness of His Holy Spirit. Back around 1968, God baptized me in the Holy Spirit and I began to speak in another language I didn't know or understand but it was beautiful. I never could have done that on my own. I believed in Christ before this and was saved by faith in Him as a child but when this wonderful gift was given to me, it was proof that all I was taught from the bible was true, God was real and Jesus was who He said He was. The only way of salvation. I believed before this experience but God gave me proof although I've never seen visions or dreams of Him or seen Him in person.

Job 9:16 If I had called, and he had answered me; yet would I not believe that he had hearkened unto my voice.
17 For he breaketh me with a tempest, and multiplieth my wounds without cause.
18 He will not suffer me to take my breath, but filleth me with bitterness.
19 If I speak of strength, lo, he is strong: and if of judgment, who shall set me a time to plead?
20 If I justify myself, mine own mouth shall condemn me: if I say, I am perfect, it shall also prove me perverse.

Poor Job at this time in his suffering; He still believes his suffering is caused by God for some reason. He doesn't yet know that Satan is causing this. Jesus said something once that hints of Satan causing sicknesses and infirmaties and so does Paul the apostle.

Luke 13:16 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?

Then Paul's comment to the Corinthian church when someone among them was openly living in sin and they were doing nothing to stop him but allowed him to continue. Paul says to correct him by not praying for him and allowing Satan to destroy his flesh with some disease or suffering hopefully to bring him to repentance. There are some religious sects that use shunning to correct one that joins their church and then sins:

1Corinthians 5:3 For I verily, as absent in body, but present in spirit, have judged already, as though I were present, concerning him that hath so done this deed,
4 In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, when ye are gathered together, and my spirit, with the power of our Lord Jesus Christ,
5 To deliver such an one unto Satan for the destruction of the flesh, that the spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus.

This has to be done by the will of the Holy Spirit as a church body. Everyone that gets mad at someone can't just go around delivering them to Satan. I'm only including this to show that Satan is the one that brought this trouble to Job, not God.

Job 9:21 Though I were perfect, yet would I not know my soul: I would despise my life.
22 This is one thing, therefore I said it, He destroyeth the perfect and the wicked.
23 If the scourge slay suddenly, he will laugh at the trial of the innocent.
24 The earth is given into the hand of the wicked: he covereth the faces of the judges thereof; if not, where, and who is he?

Sometimes it may seem as if God is allowing the wicked to rule and be victorious over innocent people. Although this is temporary and we do not understand why many times, we know there is hope in those who remain faithful to God our creator and now after the coming of His son Jesus, to remain faithful to Him until He returns. We have to be determined. I believe it is the mercy of God that allows the wicked more time to repent and get right with Him. God also uses believers to share the message of the gospel. If we do not many may be lost. Yes our message may cause many to hate us but in eternity, all this doesn't matter.

Only those who remain in Christ and remain faithful to Him will survive. God may allow things like we see in the case of Job but He is not the one doing this to Job and He also knows Job's final end when He (God) stops Satan's attacks and delievers Job out of all his sufferings. His kingdom will come, His will is going to be done on earth as it is in Heaven.

Job 9:25 Now my days are swifter than a post: they flee away, they see no good.
26 They are passed away as the swift ships: as the eagle that hasteth to the prey.
27 If I say, I will forget my complaint, I will leave off my heaviness, and comfort myself:
28 I am afraid of all my sorrows, I know that thou wilt not hold me innocent.

King David went through some of what Job is going through when Saul began to chase after him to destroy Him.

Job 9:29 If I be wicked, why then labour I in vain?

Job still defends himself to his friends saying if he is wicked why do anything to keep laboring. If he washes himself in snow water it is for nothing. It was once believed the water from snow was a way to become clean. It does look so white and clean on the surface.

Job 9:30 If I wash myself with snow water, and make my hands never so clean;
31 Yet shalt thou plunge me in the ditch, and mine own clothes shall abhor me.
32. For he is not a man, as I am, that I should answer him, and we should come together in judgment.
33 Neither is there any daysman betwixt us, that might lay his hand upon us both.
34 Let him take his rod away from me, and let not his fear terrify me:
35 Then would I speak, and not fear him; but it is not so with me.

Psalm 73 is a good one to read to help us understand the end of evil ones of which Job is not but his friends seem to think he has done some great sin and caused these things to happen to him. I will include a section of Psalm 73:

Psalm 73:12 Behold, these are the ungodly, who prosper in the world; they increase in riches.
13 Verily I have cleansed my heart in vain, and washed my hands in innocency.
14 For all the day long have I been plagued, and chastened every morning.
15 If I say, I will speak thus; behold, I should offend against the generation of thy children.
16 When I thought to know this, it was too painful for me;
17 Until I went into the sanctuary of God; then understood I their end.

Sometimes there is a season of seeking and waiting, sometimes God delivers quickly in emergencies or when He (God) is using someone that is filled with the Holy Spirit and ministering though the gifts of the Spirit and people are healed instantly. We don't always knew why prayers are not answered immediately but those of us who read Job until the end of the book, do know his ending is good and God did not forsake him at all even though Job thought God was the one who caused all this. We see the mercy and grace of God when we study this whole book but right now, Job doesn't know his ending and neither do we when bad happens to us. It is not easy which is why we must pray for one another and have compassion. DC

Job Chapter 10