Job: Outline
Lessons in ways of God and Satan, sovereignty of God, & futility of questioning God
Basic story of Job: Job is righteous, but Satan appears before God, after roaming on the earth, and God asks him if he has considered his servant Job. Satan challenges God that, if he lets him take Job’s children, animals, and wealth, he will curse him. When God agrees and this happens, Job does not sin or blame God. Satan then challenges God to let him take Job’s health, which he does, but Job still maintains his integrity, even as his wife tells him to “curse God and die.” Three of Job’s friends arrive to comfort him, sitting silently with him for 7 days. When Job finally opens his mouth in lament, his three friends propose that Job is suffering because of some unconfessed wickedness or sin. As Job rebukes them and defends himself, demonstrating with examples that God’s dealings with men while they live are not that simple, Job’s three friends grow increasingly frustrated and angry with him, and their accusations get increasingly harsh. Though Job reveres and trusts God, he escalates in his questioning, accusing, and finally demanding answers from Him for why he has had to suffer despite his integrity. A fourth younger friend, Elihu, then finally speaks, angry at Job for justifying himself before God and angry at Job’s three friends because they condemned Job but could not appropriately answer Job about God and His ways. Job may not have been punished for sin, but Elihu defends God’s sovereignty and greatness, rebuking Job’s accusations of Him. God then speaks to Job, asking him withering questions which demonstrate His knowledge and power over creation. Job repents: “I have declared that which I did not understand, Things too wonderful for me, which I did not know.” God does not rebuke the youngest friend, Elihu, who showed Him unquestioning reverence, but he rebukes the other three friends for not speaking of Him what was right, as Job did. He requires them to make sacrifices and have Job pray for them. He then restores Job’s fortunes.
What I Learned from Job may also be a helpful document.
There is a lot that Job and his friends get right in their discourse, but also a lot that they get wrong, as God’s pronouncement of judgment at the end of the book reveals.
I’ve included a short synopsis of each chapter, followed by longer chapter summaries, which include verses that support the story, with the caution that we must be careful about taking verses out of context to support a point that may be wrong. The whole of the book of Job is necessary to evaluate all of these verses.
CHAPTER SYNOPSES:
Job 1: Satan appears before God after roaming about the earth and God asks him if he has considered his blameless and upright servant Job. Satan challenges Him to let him test test him by taking Job’s children, animals, and riches, but Job does not sin or blame God.
Job 2: Satan again appears before God, challenging that if he is now allowed to take Job’s health, Job will curse Him, but he does not. His wife tells him to curse God and die. His three friends (Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar) come to comfort him and and sit silently with him for 7 days.
Job 3: Job curses the day of his birth and wonders why the suffering still live.
Job 4: Job’s first friend, Eliphaz, speaks, proposing that Job is not innocent and his suffering is the result of his guilt before God.
Job 5: Eliphaz goes on with his thesis that God is disciplining Job for his sin.
Job 6: Job reiterates that he is so miserable he wishes to die and rebukes his friends for their unkindness.
Job 7: Job defends his complaints and begins to question God about his suffering.
Job 8: Bildad answers, speaking truths about God, but mistakenly believing God’s justice plays out on earth, rather than in eternity. He does say that if Job were righteous then God would restore him, and we do know that is what happens in the end.
Job 9: Job answers, acknowledging God’s power and sovereignty.
Job 10: Job begins to challenge God on why he is suffering. (Spoiler alert: While we may understand Job’s desire to argue with God, we learn at the end of the book how God feels about this. Just because Job does it and we sympathize with it does not make it right before the Lord. This is a great lesson in the danger of taking verses out of context to support our viewpoint.)
Job 11: Job’s third friend, Zophar, chimes in, calling Job to repent of his sin that the friends are convinced he is failing to recognize.
Job 12: Job continues to rebuke his friends for their insensitivity, acknowledging that God is sovereign.
Job 13: Job knows and understands God’s greatness, but still wants to argue with Him, feeling dangerously free to make demands of Him.
Job 14: Job accuses God of being unjust to men while they live on earth. This chapter contains one of my favorite verses of hope. Job does not believe it applies to us, but I do: “there is hope for a tree, When it is cut down, that it will sprout again,And its shoots will not fail. Though its roots grow old in the ground And its stump dies in the dry soil, At the scent of water it will flourish And put forth sprigs like a plant.”
Job 15: Job’s first friend, Eliphaz, speaks for the second time, rebuking Job for his words against God and claiming evil men are punished on earth for their deeds.
Job 16: Job rebukes his friends for being sorry comforters. He maintains his innocence. Though he does not understand why God inflicted His suffering, he still appeals to Him.
Job 17: Job rebukes his friends for their lack of understanding, even acknowledging God’s sovereignty in this.
Job 18: Job’s second friend, Bildad, offended by Job’s insults, speaks for the second time, maintaining that the wicked are punished on earth.
Job 19: Job responds, demonstrating that although he does not know why God has wronged him, he still trusts Him. He believes his friends should simply offer him pity and warns they should fear God themselves.
Job 20: Job’s third friend, Zophar, insulted, speaks for the second time, still maintaining that Job is being punished by God for wickedness.
Job 21: Job replies, questioning his friends’ need to attack him, when his question is with God and His ways, and their thesis that the wicked receive justice on earth.
Job 22: Job’s first friend, Eliphaz, speaks for the third time, doubling down in frustration and anger that Job must, in fact, be wicked and deserves what has happened to him.
Job 23: Job replies, defending his innocence and maintaining that God in His sovereignty has afflicted him.
Job 24: Job continues, giving examples of how God allows the wicked to get by with wickedness while they are alive.
Job 25: Job’s second friend, Bildad, speaks for the third time, simply declaring that men cannot be just before God.
Job 26: Job rebukes his friends for not adding anything useful, because he agrees with them about the greatness of God.
Job 27: Job maintains his integrity, and his knowledge that the wicked are without hope when they die.
Job 28: Job explains why “the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom; And to depart from evil is understanding.”
Job 29: Job remembers and pines for his previously magnificent life.
Job 30: Job laments his current life and is bewildered, because he knows it is God’s doing.
Job 31: Job ends his words reflecting on whether he has sinned, maintaining his integrity, and demanding an answer from God.
Job 32: Job’s fourth friend, Elihu, having waited out of respect because he was the youngest man present, finally speaks, realizing it is God, not age, that brings wisdom. He is mad at Job for justifying himself before God and he is mad at Job’s three friends because they could not find an adequate answer to Job but still had condemned him.
Job 33: Elihu asks for Job’s patience as he speaks, as he speaks out of reverence for God. He does acknowledge that God does at times afflict men to bring them to Him, but he is not necessarily saying this is what happened to Job.
Job 34: Elihu does not necessarily think Job sinned before, but he does think his complaining against God is sinful.
Job 35: Elihu believes Job’s previous actions may not have determined God’s dealings with him, but that his accusations against Him are sinful.
Job 36: Elihu believes God deserves reverence, not accusation.
Job 37: Elihu defends God’s sovereignty and greatness, and cautions against any who would speak against Him and His ways.
Job 38: “Then the LORD answered Job out of the whirlwind and said, ‘Who is this that darkens counsel By words without knowledge?’ and then proceeded to ask Job about his knowledge of creation. There are facts we ourselves can learn in the questions God asks Job.
Job 39: God’s questioning of Job regarding his knowledge of creation continues.
Job 40: God gives Job the opportunity to answer all His questions, and Job is speechless: “Will the faultfinder contend with the Almighty? Let him who reproves God answer it.” He then gives Job a series of impossible challenges, saying, “Then I will also confess to you, That your own right hand can save you.”
Job 41: After describing Behemoth in the previous chapter, God describes Leviathan, putting Job in his place with the question, “No one is so fierce that he dares to arouse him; Who then is he that can stand before Me? Who has given to Me that I should repay him? Whatever is under the whole heaven is Mine.”
Job 42: After God’s withering and humiliating questioning of Job, Job repents of his questioning God, God rebukes Job’s three friends for mischaracterizing His ways (excluding any rebuke for Elihu, who defended Him), and God restores Job’s fortunes.
CHAPTER SUMMARIES:
Job 1 (from Day 4)
Job
blameless, upright, fearing God and turning away from evil
had 7 sons and 3 daughters
very rich, “the greatest of all the men of the east”
after his children would feast with each other, Job would offer sacrifices to the Lord on their behalf, in cases they had “sinned and cursed God”
Satan appears before God
“The LORD said to Satan, ‘From where do you come?’”
“Then Satan answered the LORD and said, ‘From roaming about on the earth and walking around on it.’”
“The LORD said to Satan, “Have you considered My servant Job? For there is no one like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man, fearing God and turning away from evil.’”
“Then Satan answered the LORD, ‘Does Job fear God for nothing?…put forth Your hand now and touch all that he has; he will surely curse You to Your face.””
“Then the LORD said to Satan, ‘Behold, all that he has is in your power, only do not put forth your hand on him.’ So Satan departed from the presence of the LORD.”
in one tragic day, Job loses all his children, animals, and servants (except those who came to tell him what happened)
Job arose, tore his robe, shaved his head, and “fell to the ground and worshiped”
“Naked I came from my mother’s womb,
And naked I shall return there.
The LORD gave and the LORD has taken away.
Blessed be the name of the LORD.”
“Through all this Job did not sin nor did he blame God."
Job 2 (from Day 4)
Satan believes that if Job loses his health, then he will curse God, so God gives Satan permission to harm him but not kill him
Satan afflicts Job with boils all over his body so that he scrapes himself with a potsherd while sitting among ashes
His wife says, “Do you still hold fast your integrity? Curse God and die!”
His response: “Shall we indeed accept good from God and not accept adversity?”
“In all this Job did not sin with his lips.”
Job’s three friends (Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar) hear of his adversity and come to sympathize and comfort him
“they sat down on the ground with him for seven days and seven nights with no one speaking a word to him, for they saw that his pain was very great”
Job 3 (from Day 4)
Job curses the day of his birth and wonders why the suffering still live.
Job 4 (from Day 4)
Job’s first friend, Eliphaz, speaks, proposing that Job is not innocent and his suffering is the result of his guilt before God
Job 5 (from Day 4)
Eliphaz goes on with his thesis that God is disciplining Job for his sin
Job 6 (from Day 5)
Job reiterates that he is so miserable he wishes to die
“But it is still my consolation,
And I rejoice in unsparing pain,
That I have not denied the words of the Holy One.”
He rebukes his friends for their unkindness
“For the despairing man there should be kindness from his friend; So that he does not forsake the fear of the Almighty.”
“How painful are honest words!
But what does your argument prove?
Do you intend to reprove my words,
When the words of one in despair belong to the wind?”
Job 7 (from Day 5)
Job defends his complaints and begins to question God
“I will not restrain my mouth;
I will speak in the anguish of my spirit,
I will complain in the bitterness of my soul.”“Have I sinned? What have I done to You, O watcher of men?
Why have You set me as Your target,
So that I am a burden to myself?
Why then do You not pardon my transgression
And take away my iniquity?”
Job 8 (from Day 5)
Job’s second friend, Bildad, answers, speaking truths about God, but mistakenly believing God’s justice plays out on earth, rather than in eternity. He does say that if Job were righteous then God would restore him, and we do know that is what happens in the end.
“Does God pervert justice?
Or does the Almighty pervert what is right?”“If you would seek God
And implore the compassion of the Almighty,
If you are pure and upright,
Surely now He would rouse Himself for you And restore your righteous estate.
Though your beginning was insignificant,
Yet your end will increase greatly.”“the hope of the godless will perish”
“Lo, God will not reject a man of integrity,
Nor will He support the evildoers.”
Job 9 (from Day 5)
Job answers, acknowledging God’s power and sovereignty
“In truth I know that this is so; But how can a man be in the right before God?”
“How then can I answer Him, And choose my words before Him?
For though I were right, I could not answer;
I would have to implore the mercy of my judge.”“If it is a matter of power, behold, He is the strong one!
And if it is a matter of justice, who can summon Him?”“Though I am guiltless, He will declare me guilty.”
“therefore I say, ‘He destroys the guiltless and the wicked’”
“If it is not He, then who is it?”
“For He is not a man as I am that I may answer Him, That we may go to court together.
There is no umpire between us, Who may lay his hand upon us both.”
Job 10 (from Day 6)
Job begins to challenge God on why he is suffering
“I loathe my own life; I will give full vent to my complaint; I will speak in the bitterness of my soul.”
“I will say to God, ‘Do not condemn me; Let me know why You contend with me.
Is it right for You…?”
Job 11 (from Day 6)
Job’s third friend, Zophar, chimes in, calling Job to repent of his sin that the friends are convinced he is failing to recognize
“If you would direct your heart right
And spread out your hand to Him,
If iniquity is in your hand, put it far away,
And do not let wickedness dwell in your tents;
Then, indeed, you could lift up your face without moral defect,
And you would be steadfast and not fear.
For you would forget your trouble”
Job 12 (from Day 6)
Job continues to rebuke his friends for their insensitivity, acknowledging that God is sovereign
“He who is at ease holds calamity in contempt, As prepared for those whose feet slip.”
“Who among all these does not know
That the hand of the LORD has done this,
In whose hand is the life of every living thing,
And the breath of all mankind?”“The misled and the misleader belong to Him.”
“He makes the nations great, then destroys them; He enlarges the nations, then leads them away.”
Job 13 (from Day 6)
Job knows and understands God’s greatness, but still wants to argue with Him
“What you know I also know; I am not inferior to you. But I would speak to the Almighty, And I desire to argue with God.”
“Will you speak what is unjust for God,
And speak what is deceitful for Him?”“Will it be well when He examines you? Or will you deceive Him as one deceives a man?”
“Your memorable sayings are proverbs of ashes”
“Be silent before me so that I may speak;
Then let come on me what may.”“Though He slay me, I will hope in Him. Nevertheless I will argue my ways before Him.”
“a godless man may not come before His presence.”
Job feels dangerously free to make demands of God
“Remove Your hand from me, And let not the dread of You terrify me.
Then call, and I will answer;
Or let me speak, then reply to me.
How many are my iniquities and sins?
Make known to me my rebellion and my sin.”
Job 14 (from Day 7)
Job accuses God of being unjust to men while they live on earth.
This chapter contains one of my favorite verses of hope. Job does not believe it applies to us, but I do:
there is hope for a tree,
When it is cut down, that it will sprout again,
And its shoots will not fail.
Though its roots grow old in the ground
And its stump dies in the dry soil,
At the scent of water it will flourish
And put forth sprigs like a plant.
Job 15 (from Day 7)
Job’s first friend, Eliphaz, speaks for the second time, rebuking Job for his words against God and claiming evil men are punished on earth for their deeds
“Why does your heart carry you away? And why do your eyes flash,
That you should turn your spirit against God
And allow such words to go out of your mouth?”“The wicked man writhes in pain all his days,
And numbered are the years stored up for the ruthless.”
Job 16 (from Day 7)
Job rebukes his friends for being sorry comforters
“I have heard many such things; Sorry comforters are you all.
Is there no limit to windy words?
Or what plagues you that you answer?
I too could speak like you, If I were in your place.
I could compose words against you And shake my head at you.
I could strengthen you with my mouth,
And the solace of my lips could lessen your pain.”
Job maintains his innocence and, though he does not understand why God inflicted His suffering, he still appeals to Him
“I was at ease, but He shattered me”
“Although there is no violence in my hands,
And my prayer is pure.”“Even now, behold, my witness is in heaven,
And my advocate is on high.
My friends are my scoffers;
My eye weeps to God.”
Job 17 (from Day 8)
Job rebukes his friends for their lack of understanding, and even acknowledges God’s sovereignty in this
“Surely mockers are with me, And my eye gazes on their provocation.”
“You have kept their heart from understanding,
Therefore You will not exalt them.”
Job 18 (from Day 8)
Job’s second friend, Bildad, offended by Job’s insults, speaks for the second time, maintaining that the wicked are punished on earth
“Indeed, the light of the wicked goes out”
“Surely such are the dwellings of the wicked,
And this is the place of him who does not know God.”
Job 19 (from Day 8)
Job responds. Although he does not know why God has wronged him, he still trusts Him. He believes his friends should simply offer him pity and warns they should fear God themselves.
“How long will you torment me And crush me with words?”
“Know then that God has wronged me And has closed His net around me. Behold, I cry, ‘Violence!’ but I get no answer;
I shout for help, but there is no justice.”“Pity me, pity me, O you my friends,
For the hand of God has struck me.
Why do you persecute me as God does,
And are not satisfied with my flesh?”“As for me, I know that my Redeemer lives,
And at the last He will take His stand on the earth.”“be afraid of the sword for yourselves, For wrath brings the punishment of the sword, So that you may know there is judgment.”
Job 20 (from Day 8)
Job’s third friend, Zophar, insulted, speaks for the second time, still maintaining that Job is being punished by God for wickedness
“I listened to the reproof which insults me, And the spirit of my understanding makes me answer.
Do you know this from of old,
From the establishment of man on earth,
That the triumphing of the wicked is short,
And the joy of the godless momentary?”
Job 21 (from Day 9)
Job replies, questioning his friends’ need to attack him, when his question is with God and His ways, and their thesis that the wicked receive justice on earth
“Bear with me that I may speak;
Then after I have spoken, you may mock.
As for me, is my complaint to man?”“Why do the wicked still live,
Continue on, also become very powerful?”“They say to God, ‘Depart from us! We do not even desire the knowledge of Your ways.
Who is the Almighty, that we should serve Him, And what would we gain if we entreat Him?’“How often is the lamp of the wicked put out, Or does their calamity fall on them?”
“You say, ‘God stores away a man’s iniquity for his sons.’
Let God repay him so that he may know it.”“One dies in his full strength,
Being wholly at ease and satisfied”“While another dies with a bitter soul,
Never even tasting anything good.”“How then will you vainly comfort me, For your answers remain full of falsehood?”
Job 22 (from Day 9)
Job’s first friend, Eliphaz, speaks for the third time, doubling down in frustration and anger that Job must, in fact, be wicked and deserves what has happened to him
“Is it because of your reverence that He reproves you, That He enters into judgment against you? Is not your wickedness great,
And your iniquities without end?”“Yield now and be at peace with Him; Thereby good will come to you.”
Job 23 (from Day 9)
Job replies, defending his innocence and maintaining that God in His sovereignty has afflicted him
“My foot has held fast to His path;
I have kept His way and not turned aside.
I have not departed from the command of His lips;
I have treasured the words of His mouth more than my necessary food.
But He is unique and who can turn Him? And what His soul desires, that He does.
For He performs what is appointed for me, And many such decrees are with Him.
Therefore, I would be dismayed at His presence;
When I consider, I am terrified of Him.
It is God who has made my heart faint,
And the Almighty who has dismayed me”
Job 24 (from Day 10)
Job continues, giving examples of how God allows the wicked to get by with wickedness while they are alive.
Job 25 (from Day 10)
Job’s second friend, Bildad, speaks for the third time, simply declaring that men cannot be just before God.
Job 26 (from Day 10)
Job rebukes his friends for not adding anything useful, because he agrees with them about the greatness of God.
Job 27 (from Day 10)
Job maintains his integrity
“Far be it from me that I should declare you right;
Till I die I will not put away my integrity from me.
I hold fast my righteousness and will not let it go.
My heart does not reproach any of my days.”
He also knows the wicked are without hope when they die
“For what is the hope of the godless when he is cut off,
When God requires his life?”
Job 28 (from Day 10)
Job explains why “the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom; And to depart from evil is understanding”
Job 29 (from Day 11)
Job remembers and pines for his previously magnificent life
“Oh that I were as in months gone by”
Job 30 (from Day 11)
Job laments his current life
“But now those younger than I mock me”
He knows his current state is God’s doing and he is bewildered by it
“Because He has loosed His bowstring and afflicted me”
“I cry out to You for help, but You do not answer me”
“When I expected good, then evil came;
When I waited for light, then darkness came”
Job 31 (from Day 11)
Job ends his words reflecting on whether he has sinned, maintaining his integrity, and demanding an answer from God
“Let Him weigh me with accurate scales,
And let God know my integrity.”“Oh that I had one to hear me!”
“Let the Almighty answer me!”
Job 32 (from Day 12)
Job’s fourth friend, Elihu, having waited out of respect because he was the youngest man present, finally speaks, realizing it is God, not age, that brings wisdom
“wisdom.…is a spirit in man, And the breath of the Almighty gives them understanding”
Elihu is mad at Job for justifying himself before God and he is mad at Job’s three friends because they could not find an adequate answer to Job but still had condemned him
“there was no one who refuted Job, Not one of you who answered his words”
“I am full of words….Let me speak that I may get relief”
Job 33 (from Day 12)
Elihu asks for Job’s patience as he speaks, as he speaks out of reverence for God
“My words are from the uprightness of my heart,
And my lips speak knowledge sincerely.
The Spirit of God has made me, And the breath of the Almighty gives me life.”“God is greater than man.
Why do you complain against Him That He does not give an account of all His doings?”
He does acknowledge that God does at times afflict men to bring them to Him
“Behold, God does all these oftentimes with men,
To bring back his soul from the pit,
That he may be enlightened with the light of life”
But he is not necessarily saying this is what happened to Job
“O Job, listen to me; Keep silent, and let me speak….for I desire to justify you”
Job 34 (from Day 12)
Elihu does not necessarily think Job sinned before, but he does think his complaining against God is sinful.
“Job has said, ‘I am righteous,
But God has taken away my right;
Should I lie concerning my right?
My wound is incurable, though I am without transgression.’
What man is like Job,
Who drinks up derision like water,
Who goes in company with the workers of iniquity,
And walks with wicked men?
For he has said, “It profits a man nothing
When he is pleased with God.’”“Far be it from God to do wickedness,
And from the Almighty to do wrong.”“His eyes are upon the ways of a man,
And He sees all his steps.
There is no darkness or deep shadow
Where the workers of iniquity may hide themselves.”“Men of understanding will say to me, And a wise man who hears me,
'Job speaks without knowledge,
And his words are without wisdom.
Job ought to be tried to the limit,
Because he answers like wicked men.
For he adds rebellion to his sin;
He claps his hands among us, And multiplies his words against God.’”
Job 35 (from Day 13)
Elihu believes Job’s previous actions may not have determined God’s dealings with him, but that his accusations against Him are sinful
“If you have sinned, what do you accomplish against Him? And if your transgressions are many, what do you do to Him?
If you are righteous, what do you give to Him, Or what does He receive from your hand?
Your wickedness is for a man like yourself, And your righteousness is for a son of man.”“Surely God will not listen to an empty cry,
Nor will the Almighty regard it.
How much less when you say you do not behold Him, The case is before Him, and you must wait for Him!”“So Job opens his mouth emptily;
He multiplies words without knowledge.”
Job 36 (from Day 13)
Elihu believes God deserves reverence, not accusation
“there is yet more to be said in God’s behalf”
“the godless in heart lay up anger;
They do not cry for help when He binds them”“Be careful, do not turn to evil,
For you have preferred this to affliction”“Behold, God is exalted in His power;
Who is a teacher like Him?
Who has appointed Him His way,
And who has said, ‘You have done wrong’?
Remember that you should exalt His work”
Job 37 (from Day 13)
Elihu defends God’s sovereignty and greatness, and cautions against any who would speak against Him and His ways
“Whether for correction, or for His world,
Or for lovingkindness, He causes it to happen.”“Shall it be told Him that I would speak?
Or should a man say that he would be swallowed up?”“The Almighty—we cannot find Him; He is exalted in power
And He will not do violence to justice and abundant righteousness.
Therefore men fear Him; He does not regard any who are wise of heart.”
Job 38 (from Day 14)
“Then the LORD answered Job out of the whirlwind and said, ‘Who is this that darkens counsel By words without knowledge?’ and then proceeded to ask Job about his knowledge of creation. There are facts we ourselves can learn in the questions God asks Job.
“Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth? Tell Me, if you have understanding”
“Or who enclosed the sea with doors…And I placed boundaries on it And set a bolt and doors, And I said, ‘Thus far you shall come, but no farther; And here shall your proud waves stop’?
“have you seen the storehouses of the hail, Which I have reserved for the time of distress, For the day of war and battle?”
“Do you know the ordinances of the heavens, Or fix their rule over the earth?”
“Who has put wisdom in the innermost being Or given understanding to the mind?”
Job 39 (from Day 14)
God’s questioning of Job continues
I love what we learn about the ostrich: “God has made her forget wisdom, And has not given her a share of understanding”
Job 40 (from Day 15)
God gives Job the opportunity to answer all His questions, and Job is left speechless
“Will the faultfinder contend with the Almighty? Let him who reproves God answer it.”
“Then Job answered the LORD and said, ‘Behold, I am insignificant; what can I reply to You? I lay my hand on my mouth. Once I have spoken, and I will not answer; Even twice, and I will add nothing more.’”
God then gives Job a series of impossible challenges, saying, “Then I will also confess to you, That your own right hand can save you”
“Adorn yourself with eminence and dignity, And clothe yourself with honor and majesty. Pour out the overflowings of your anger, And look on everyone who is proud, and make him low. Look on everyone who is proud, and humble him, And tread down the wicked where they stand. Hide them in the dust together; Bind them in the hidden place.”
God then displays His intimate knowledge of the great creature Behemoth
“He is the first of the ways of God; Let his maker bring near his sword”
Job 41 (from Day 15)
After describing Behemoth in the previous chapter, God now describes the great creature Leviathan, putting Job in his place
“No one is so fierce that he dares to arouse him; Who then is he that can stand before Me? Who has given to Me that I should repay him? Whatever is under the whole heaven is Mine.”
“Nothing on earth is like him, One made without fear. He looks on everything that is high; He is king over all the sons of pride.”
Job 42 (from Day 15)
After God’s withering and humiliating questioning of Job, Job repents of his questioning God
“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 declared that which I did not understand, Things too wonderful for me, which I did not know. “Hear, now, and I will speak; I will ask You, and You instruct me.” I have heard of You by the hearing of the ear; But now my eye sees You; Therefore I retract, And I repent in dust and ashes.’”
God rebukes Job’s three friends for mischaracterizing Him and His ways (notice He does not rebuke Elihu, who defended Him)
“the LORD said to Eliphaz the Temanite, ‘My wrath is kindled against you and against your two friends, because you have not spoken of Me what is right as My servant Job has.’”
‘offer up a burnt offering for yourselves, and My servant Job will pray for you. For I will accept him’
“Eliphaz the Temanite and Bildad the Shuhite and Zophar the Naamathite went and did as the LORD told them; and the LORD accepted Job.”
God restores Job’s fortunes
“The LORD restored the fortunes of Job when he prayed for his friends, and the LORD increased all that Job had twofold.”
“The LORD blessed the latter days of Job more than his beginning”
“He had seven sons and three daughters….In all the land no women were found so fair as Job’s daughters; and their father gave them inheritance among their brothers.”
“After this, Job lived 140 years, and saw his sons and his grandsons, four generations. And Job died, an old man and full of days.”