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42 Then Job answered the LORD and said:
“I know that you can do all things,
and that no purpose of yours can be thwarted.
‘Who is this that hides counsel without knowledge?’
Therefore I have uttered what I did not understand,
things too wonderful for me, which I did not know.
‘Hear, and I will speak;
I will question you, and you make it known to me.’
I had heard of you by the hearing of the ear,
but now my eye sees you;
therefore I despise myself,
and repent in dust and ashes.”
After the LORD had spoken these words to Job, the LORD said to Eliphaz the Temanite: “My anger burns against you and against your two friends, for you have not spoken of me what is right, as my servant Job has. Now therefore take seven bulls and seven rams and go to my servant Job and offer up a burnt offering for yourselves. And my servant Job shall pray for you, for I will accept his prayer not to deal with you according to your folly. For you have not spoken of me what is right, as my servant Job has.” So Eliphaz the Temanite and Bildad the Shuhite and Zophar the Naamathite went and did what the LORD had told them, and the LORD accepted Job’s prayer.
And the LORD restored the fortunes of Job, when he had prayed for his friends. And the LORD gave Job twice as much as he had before. Then came to him all his brothers and sisters and all who had known him before, and ate bread with him in his house. And they showed him sympathy and comforted him for all the evil that the LORD had brought upon him. And each of them gave him a piece of money and a ring of gold.
And the LORD blessed the latter days of Job more than his beginning. And he had 14,000 sheep, 6,000 camels, 1,000 yoke of oxen, and 1,000 female donkeys. He had also seven sons and three daughters. And he called the name of the first daughter Jemimah, and the name of the second Keziah, and the name of the third Keren-happuch. And in all the land there were no women so beautiful as Job’s daughters. And their father gave them an inheritance among their brothers. And after this Job lived 140 years, and saw his sons, and his sons’ sons, four generations. And Job died, an old man, and full of days.
(ESV)
Without…
Without knowing answers to all of his deepest questions, Job bowed his knee in humility to the Lord. Without understanding how everything works together, he repented. It’s no coincidence this happened. While so many of us only want to bow the knee when we get what we want, Job retracted his questions and accepted that God is sovereign over all things.
Then Job answered the LORD. 2 I know, LORD, that you are all-powerful; that you can do everything you want. 3 You ask how I dare question your wisdom when I am so very ignorant. I talked about things I did not understand, about marvels too great for me to know. 4 You told me to listen while you spoke and to try to answer your questions. 5 In the past I knew only what others had told me, but now I have seen you with my own eyes. 6 So I am ashamed of all I have said and repent in dust and ashes.
Job 42:1-6 GNB
This is a weighty profession. Not only was Job still diseased but his misery was intense. He had not healed from all he had lost, yet, he trusts God anyway. Without knowing. Without understanding. Without even a guarantee that God would restore him. Nothing changed except the fact that Job came to know God in a new and personal way. He feared the Lord, and the Bible tells us that the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. Just consider, without that healthy fear, Job thought he had God figured out. With that fear, He realized he knew nothing.
Again… without.
What does this mean for us? Have we become so comfortable with God that we feel we can slap Him around when we feel wronged? Have we ever considered, like Job, that we will never fully grasp the ways of God and the mystery of His will?
If we are not repenting for belligerently questioning God, what does that say of our relationship with Him? It’s good to be honest with God, but it’s also good to realize when we have crossed a boundary.
Job’s perspective of God was bigger than his perspective of his problems even while he was still suffering. It’s an amazing feat to consider. On top of that, Satan’s plan was thwarted. He was proven, once again, to be a liar and deceiver – powerless to stop the plans of God for those who possess true saving faith.
We must ask ourselves, who was right in the end? Other than God… none of the above. Job’s friends were rebuked, Satan was proven a liar, and even Job himself (a truly upright and conscientious man) was wrong in his questioning.
The overall lesson is simple and consistent throughout Scripture. People who truly repent are forgiven and restored with riches far greater than they ever sacrificed to begin with. This is true of The Gospel. We know that Jesus asks for our life (and sometimes we hesitate to give Him everything) but Job is a great example of where true sacrifice leads to abundant riches. And I’m not talking about anything on this Earth, but the glory that awaits us in Heaven.
The other lesson to consider here is the fact that Job trusted God in his suffering without a full understanding. That’s called faith and it should be the mark of every person who calls themself a believer. Unfortunately, that’s not the case. The question we must ponder is where are we trusting God in the “without?”