Job 38-42
The Righteous
Reap Rewards

This is almost identical to the last verses of Psalm 40. In distress from enemies who wish him harm David prays for God to help, and quickly.

Two quick verses about turning the tables on the bad guys.

A couplet asking God to answer the prayers of those who seek and trust Him.

A restatement of the first plea, adding that he is poor and needy and only has God as a helper (as if God didn't know).

The righteous call out to God, and His name (expression of His character and power) protects them. The rich can sometimes deceive themselves into thinking that their wealth is their protection, and not depend upon God. They are just setting themselves up for destruction and dishonor, but those who are righteous, and trust in the power and might of Yahweh, rather than their own resources, will be protected and honored.

Job's been asking God “why?”, now God asks him “who?”, “where?”, and “how?”. Who are you to dim/diminish my designs/plans with unwise words?

God gives Job the world's toughest physical science exam, most of the answers to which most scientists and theologians are still scratching their heads about. Underlying the poetry are some fascinating facts about our world. God gives him an equally impossible biology exam in the next chapter, to help him learn that God knows what He's doing, and Job doesn't. God is both creator and sustainer of the world in which Job lives, so Job can trust Him to be in control of what's going on.

Job responds with “Whoops, small potatoes here, keeping silent.”

Having established that neither Job, nor any human understands the bigger picture apart from God revealing it, God then gets on Job's case for questioning His judgment for the purpose of justifying himself. Job didn't sin in his words, but edged towards doubt by saying the problem must be with God. Actually Job was right in that his affliction was from God, but not as an unjust consequence for his sin.

God says that if Job can perform one of God's key jobs of humbling the proud, then he would be in the position to deliver himself out of his distress. Although Job didn't step over the line into sin, he was tiptoeing pretty close to pride, in wanting to be in control of his life. God is the one who saves from trouble when we humbly depend upon Him and His grace (Js 4:6).

There's all kinds of speculation about what the Leviathan is (and the Behemoth in the last chapter). Both have characteristics of real animals, with which Job was familiar. Both also have aspects of demonic power in both the verses and extra-biblical literature. One thing to notice, apart from the details in the verses, is that Satan, who figured prominently in the beginning of the book, is absent at the end. Job's wife reappears obliquely in the mention of children in the next chapter. The point of mentioning these beasts is that they are beyond man's ability to control, but under God's control.

Establishes that God owns everything, and owes no one anything, including explanations.

Job pays attention to what God has said (which is more than most commentators and translators do on this passage), and acknowledges that he has spoken beyond his understanding. Most commentators are worse then Job's counselors in their condemnation of Job as a proud sinner. God condemned the counselors for sinning by saying that. The key hinge is verse 42:6, which has multiple translation issues. After Job makes the statement in verse six, everything changes. Note that there is no seeking of pardon for himself, on Job's part, nor granting of forgiveness to Job on God's part, although those actions do occur for those wrongly accusing him of wrongdoing. Taking the most common meanings of the words as used in the book of Job and Scripture, the text reads, (in light of Job hearing and seeing God at work and recognizing his own lack of understanding of the God's greater purposes, in other words, “getting it”): “Therefore I despise/recant (my arguments), and comfort myself above dust and ashes (in God's revelation of Himself).” In other words, Job now takes back his demands for God to answer him (remember, Job still doesn't know about God and Satan in the first two chapters, nor the reason why God has allowed him to be afflicted). Instead of comforting himself in mourning, Job takes comfort “above” ashes, in the revelation God has just given him, of Himself. The root idea of the word translated “repent” is that of “comfort”, “pity”, “being sorry” and “having compassion.” It is not the word for repenting from sin (“turning back” in the OT, “change of mind” in the NT). In the Niphal (passive, reflective stem) it is to “grieve” or “comfort oneself,” and is used most frequently of God being grieved that He made Saul king, or grieved over Israel's sin. The other six times it is used in the book of Job, it is very obviously referring to “comfort”; a different word is used for repent. The word translated “in” ‘al referring to dirt and ashes, means “above,” having a root and connotation of “over, beyond, surpassing.” It is not the usual word for “in”, and is actually the first word of this verse as well, meaning “moreover” or therefore. Verse 6 is an example of incorrect translator bias, because there was no sin of which Job needed to repent. God says that Job didn't sin, and in verse 7, that Job's spoken what's right; and in verse 8, again, that Job spoke what's right; and then in verse 9, God accepts Job's prayer on behalf of his “comforters” (2:11; 16:2). If any repenting needs to be done it is by those who read biases into the text and obscure its meaning. Correctly understood, 42:6 is an affirmation of the trustworthiness of God, as Job discards his need to know, and finds comfort in the revealed truth of God, rather than dirt and ashes.

God rebukes those who were accusing Job of sin (except for Elihu), and affirms Job's innocence as noted above.

When Job, who also manages to remain free of bitterness towards his false accusers, prays for his friends/enemies, God gives Job back double what he had, blessing Him (it's what God does), even more than at the beginning. His gets replacement children (which effectively doubles his kids) and the daughters are total knock-outs. Their names mean something like “Radiant as the Day,” “Sweet and Spicy,” and “Mascara Make-up” which probably alludes to her eyes being gorgeous.

42:postscript in the Septuagint (Greek translation of the OT from the Hebrew, done around 250 BC), references the future resurrection of the righteous (see last post).

PS: Job still doesn't know about the bet between God and Satan (but we do).