The Writings of Job

The book of Job was probably the first book ever written for the Bible. This was no accident.  The book of Job presents questions that have been asked and pondered ages ago, and are still asked today. It also shows us a clear picture of the sovereignty of God. Sovereignty is a big word that means total and unlimited control and authority. Sovereignty means God is the supreme ruler and has the final say. 

Imagine losing everything in life.  What questions would that raise in your heart and mind.  Here are a few that Job had: Why do bad things happen to good people? How come people with a pure faith still experience suffering? These are questions people have been asking for a very long time. Have you ever asked yourself these same questions? Have you ever gone through a season in your life where you feel like you’ve lost everything? Then you will find hope and comfort in reading the book of Job. This book tells the story of a good man who experienced some bad times, but who also ultimately kept his faith in God and experienced greater restoration after tragedy. 

Job, unlike other Bible books, shows us a conversation between God and Satan, and conversation between men and a conversation between man and God.  While reading this book we know what is going on in heaven between God and Satan. We know that God saw Job as an upright and blameless man.  We know the challenge that Satan made and the horrible things that happened to Job because of it. But Job and his friends know none of this.  On earth they are trying to understand why something like this happened.  At the end of the book we learn that God sees all their human reasoning as foolishness.   God wants every reader of Job to understand His nature and His sovereignty.  God has ultimate control over all, and human wisdom just can’t understand or explain it all.  

We see this demonstrated when we read conversations that Job had with his friends. It shows us an accurate picture of humanity, how we try and come up with reasons and answers to situations we face that ultimately we may never understand. One of Job’s friends explains the tragedy as being deserved, saying Job’s children brought it upon themselves. Another friend says Job probably deserves worse than what happened to him!  Job responds by telling his friends that they are miserable comforters, but it’s from this that Job turns from having conversations with man and begins to direct his questions and conversation to God. 

Job received earthly wisdom from his friends, but he realized that true wisdom only comes from God. He openly tells God how he’s feeling. He asks questions, holding nothing back. This honest dialogue alarms Job’s friends, and they once again have to share their earthly wisdom, telling Job he was disrespectful to talk to God like that. Job’s friends may have been upset but God wasn’t.  God responds to Job’s questions by asking Job questions.  He corrects Job and teaches Job about God’s power.  He also forgives and restores Job.  But God made it clear that He was not happy about the things Job’s friends stated.  His friends were pushing Job away from God instead of drawing him closer to God, and it isn’t until Job pleads on their behalf that God forgives them.  In the end God gives Job so much more than he had before and restores all that Job had lost.

Job is an unusual story that everyone lives during their lifetime.  This is a story of how followers of God may face hardship and loss, but it never ends there with God. The story shows us how to work through the loss and how to talk with God. It teaches how to discern between wrong counsel from people and Godly counsel. Job’s story teaches that God wants to hear our questions.  He wants us to be vulnerable before Him.  It also teaches us to never lose hope.  Although Job suffered, his story is not about suffering but about victory, faith and restoration.