For a full description of the (Y3) reading plan, see the “About” page.
- What attributes of God’s character does this passage reveal?
- How does the passage point to Jesus?
- How should the truth of this passage change me?
- How do the events of today’s reading help you better understand the grand narrative of Scripture?
Job 31
Wow – what a discourse on a Godly life! I see a healthy fear of God keeping Job firmly on the path of righteousness. “For disaster from God terrifies me, and because of His majesty I could not do these things.” (Job 31:32). I also see Job letting God’s character flow through him, loving others just as God loves him. He shared God’s blessings, great or small, and passed on God’s mercy, saying, “Did not the same God form us both in the womb?” (Job 31:32). And I see his faithfulness to a sovereign God. He placed his trust in nothing else, nor did he fear others more than God. Additionally, he never tried to hide his sin from God, did not credit himself for his abundance, and even honored the land God gave him.
I don’t know if Job actually had perfect obedience to God’s law or not, but he certainly understood what the law was all about. His description of his life sounds very much like the kind of life Jesus demonstrated for us, and His apostles carried on teaching to us. It is the type of life that those of us filled with and empowered by the Holy Spirit through Jesus should be living.
Job 32-33
I’m not at all sure what to make of Elihu’s speech thus far. I appreciate that he was not trying to condemn Job, as the other three were. I also agree with him that Job was wrong in saying that God was his enemy. Furthermore, I think there is truth in what he said about God’s disciplining people to turn them back from the pit. However, he still seems to be accusing Job of wrongdoing. If I did not know that at the beginning of this story God Himself vouched for Job’s righteousness, saying, “Have you considered my servant Job? No one else on earth is like him, a man of perfect integrity, who fears God and turns away from evil.” (Job 1:8), I, might agree with Elihu. But I know what Elihu did not. Thus, I stand confused.
This is part of why the book of Job is so hard to make sense of. It feels a little like mixed messages to me. I know that God, who is truth itself, not only doesn’t but can’t contradict Himself. So I am aware that the problem lies with my own understanding. Just like with Job’s friends, I suppose.
Yet I still see Jesus in the story, in more than one way. I see Him in Job, who had perfect integrity, by God’s own words, yet suffered what he did not deserve. And I see Him in many of Job’s words, as I have mentioned along the way. I likewise see Him in some of Elihu’s words in Job 33, where he speaks of a mediator vouching for a person’s righteousness and finding a ransom for him. It is because of Jesus that we can speak Elihu’s words. “I have sinned and perverted what was right; yet I did not get what I deserved. He redeemed my soul from going down to the Pit, and I will continue to see the light.” (Job 33:27b-28). What I am having trouble discerning, though, is how these various visions of Jesus in Job’s story fit together into one cohesive message.