Job's Losses (Job 1 - 5)

Background Info

The book of Job is moving. I have read it before but this time I am getting a little more out of it. I have heard that Job was supposed to be poetic. And this time, I hear a few of the poetic techniques used. I believe Moses wrote this book and I did not know he was a poet. Here is the example that I found that makes me believe this to be true. 

The writer tells the story of Satan walking with the angels before God and they are reporting on what they are doing. The exchange between Satan and God repeats itself on both visits. Poets often use repetition as in this passage. Also, Job uses metaphors and similes to make its point. 

I know many people who have read the book of Job over and over because it addresses an issue that many people do not understand. The issues of pain and suffering have been addressed by authors such as C. S. Lewis and Philip Yancey.  They each have books dedicated to the topic but no one seems to come to resolution on the matter. The bottom line is that pain and suffering hurts pretty bad. And no one knows this better than Job. 

Job's Losses

I cannot imagine facing the losses he did. Losing all ten of his children... at one time! My brain would not know where to enter into this suffering. 

When Job learns of his losses, he does three things. He tears his robe. He shaves his head. And he bows down to worship God. Most of us would have cried endless tears. We would probably scream. We would probably fall faint. We would probably ask why, why, and why again. I'm not saying that Job did not do these things. He did. But it was not the first thing that he did. 

Many of us become angry with God when disasters happen. When we lose loved ones, we feel a huge loss. Pain becomes something that we almost cannot bear and yet we carry it in every aspect of our lives. We believe that God is often cut off from us. Some folks have told me that in moments life this, they won't even pray. 

Job did something completely different than what we might do. His response was to worship. For seven days Job sat with his friends who joined him. His first speech says in a nutshell, I wish I had never been born. 

Job makes another interesting statement that I think is worth considering. Basically, this is really God's world. All of us are really a product of his own hand and his heart. And he can do with us as he pleases. 

God can choose to gift us but he can also gift us with pain. When we consider God, we should treat these the same. I think this is hard and tough for anyone to face. However, Job lived this way without hesitation. This is a wow moment for me. I've got to focus less on complaining about what is hard and difficult. 

My Thoughts

Like Job, I need to acknowledge, worship and live to please God in all things. This goes against my human nature but God is in the process of transforming me and all those who choose to surrender everything to him.  

I want to mention something else. Job has a friend named, Eliphaz. He tells Job that his piety and blameless ways should be what he should lean on for strength. However, this is an error. It's sort of goes along with that saying, what goes around comes around. 

Innocent people don't suffer, he tells Job. It is those who do evil that pay a price. He also tells him that people who are not right suffer and lose their family. He says, "you should level with God and deal with the real truth of who you are." At least that is my nutshell version of what he is insinuating about Job. Job will respond to his friend in the next chapter. 

That's it for today.