Job 9-11: The Mystery of God

Thoughts

Job 9

Job begins by agreeing that God is just and that no human can contend with Him.

He describes God’s control over creation (e.g., moving mountains, shaking the earth, commanding the sun, creating the stars).

Job recognizes the impossibility of arguing one’s case before an all-powerful God

Job sees God as unconquerable as even the “helpers of Rahab” (symbolic of chaos) bow before Him. Any human argument will be hopeless. 

Job insists he is innocent but despairs that God destroys both the blameless and the wicked alike.

Job compares his life to something fleeting: faster than a runner, reed boat, or eagle swooping on prey.

He feels that even if he tried to forget his suffering and smile, God would still find him guilty.

Job recognizes that God is not a man he can debate with or reason face-to-face.He wishes for an arbiter or mediator who could stand between them, removing God’s rod of terror so Job could speak freely. (Hinting at a redeemer?)

• For there is one God and one Mediator between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus (1 Timothy 2:5) 

Job 10

Job: “I loathe my life.” He asks God to let him speak freely in his bitterness of the soul, questioning why God seems to despise the work of His own hands.

He wonders if God takes pleasure in despising His own creation and favoring the wicked instead of the righteous.

Job wrestles with the idea that God, who is eternal and not like mortal man, might be looking at him through human eyes

Job insists again on his innocence.

He acknowledges God gave him life, love, and care. Job knows God has the reason for this suffering “hidden in His heart”

He feels trapped:

• If he sins, God punishes him.
• If he is righteous, God still persecutes him.

Job asks why he was even born if this was to be his fate.He longs for a brief moment of peace before dying.

He envisions death as a land of darkness and shadow, a place of no order or light (Sheol)

Job 11 Zophar

Zophar, the third friend (after Eliphaz and Bildad), speaks. He’s frustrated and offended by Job’s speeches, accusing him of being full of empty talk.

Zophar claims Job deserves even worse than what he’s getting (!) “Know then that God exacts of you less than your guilt deserves.”

He wishes God would “open His lips” and reveal Job’s hidden sins. Zophar insists that God’s wisdom is beyond human understanding. He describes God’s knowledge as higher than heaven, deeper than Sheol, longer than the earth, and broader than the sea.

Zophar even mocks Job, calling him “a worthless man” and comparing him to a wild donkey’s colt that needs wisdom.

Zophar tells Job to repent, promising that if he does, everything will be restored. He will be blessed with security ,rest, and renewed hope. 

Questions

What was Job’s view of the afterlife? How does anyone have hope with the view of Sheol?

Application

The mystery of God. Job’s struggle reminds us that the mystery of God is both beautiful and unsettling. We want answers, but God’s wisdom is beyond our human comprehension. We can’t make sense of our suffering. In those dark moments our faith is pushed to its limits. How do we rest in what we don’t know? If we did know what God knows, what is the point of faith? I struggle with this every day. I have to know the “Why” of everything in my life. Letting go completely will be the hardest and most rewarding thing we can do.