Job 10-13

~ Patricia

We know that Job had a wonderful habit of worship, but I wonder if his suffering has brought to the surface true worship.  I reflected on my very weak prayer life this morning.  But when times get tougher, I speak to God more frequently.

Chapter 11 is short because Zophar is blunt.  Zophar- the know it all!  I am going to call my husband Zophar and see if he laughs😂   Zophar is saying, Job actually deserves worse,

5 If only God would speak;
    if only he would tell you what he thinks!
6 If only he would tell you the secrets of wisdom,
    for true wisdom is not a simple matter.
Listen! God is doubtless punishing you
    far less than you deserve! NLT

Zophar is the man with the plan.  He gives Job the “steps” to the solution stating in 11:13

  1. Yet if you devote your heart to him
  2. stretch out your hands to him
  3. you put away the sin that is in your hand
  4. allow no evil to dwell in your tent,

then, free of fault, you will lift up your face;
    you will stand firm and without fear.

Although not bad advice, Zophar assumed he knew “why” this was happening.  No one knew of the interaction God had with Satan.  Not every trial and suffering is from a sin we committed.

What should his friends look like?

Proverb 15:1 says:

A gentle answer turns away wrath,
    but a harsh word stirs up anger.

1 Peter 3:15 says:

Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect

Job’s response to Zophar: 😂 (I love sarcasm)

“You people really know everything, don’t you?
    And when you die, wisdom will die with you!

Job’s description of God in Chapter 12:13-25 gave me chills (and I got to use the preacher’s voice again!).

Again, Job turns his voice away from his “friends” and speaks to the Lord:

22 Now summon me, and I will answer!
    Or let me speak to you, and you reply.
23 Tell me, what have I done wrong?
    Show me my rebellion and my sin.
24 Why do you turn away from me?
    Why do you treat me as your enemy?

Again, I ask: what do we have that Job doesn’t?  We have the Holy Spirit.  Job is sitting in silence on the inside, and hearing false accusations on the outside.

Well, you met the 3 friends.  It’s a good time to reflect on how you counsel others or are being counseled.   Moreover, who is THE Counselor?!

Round 1 is over and I think it is worth noting that all 4 of them do agree on one thing: God is Almighty,  and worthy of our praise, regardless of the circumstances we are in.

Posted in Job

8 thoughts on “Job 10-13”

  1. Thanks for that “audio version in case your in the car headed to work” link! It makes it so simple for me and is one of the main things that helped me stick with the whole read through last year during an extremely hectic, crazy year and work schedule.

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  3. Ch 11:6 “know this: God has even forgotten some of your sin.”

    Never noticed this verse but it’s funny to me because it’s the exact opposite of what he should have said.

    He should have said “hey you can’t even remember all the times you’ve sinned..
    And God NEVER forgets.”

    And that would have made more sense… maybe job did something and didn’t realize it and God was mad.

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  4. It was neat to see the versions side by side! We discussed what we’ve read so far in my Dgroup tonight. We are loving the accountability and this blog has been SUPER helpful. It makes my wheels turn! Today’s reading made me think about how I respond to friends/family. I could be a better listener and just simply be there for them. Pray for them more instead of always trying to fix things for them. I’m a fixer so tell me your problem and I like to come up with a solution! Hopefully one of these days I will remember to just be there, be still, & pray. God’s ways are far better than anything I could drum up!

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  5. I wrote a comment and then accidentally closed the page before I posted, so I’m just going to,say, loved the parallel read and many great lessons here! Trust, faith, my words matter, what am I investing my time in to become mature in my walk, suffering, judgement (good and bad)…I am a fixer too! Being a better listener, absolutely!❤️❤️❤️

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    1. I took a class called “I am not a councilor”. It was “what to say, what not to say” when a person is suffering. The woman teaching it had lost her husband and son in a rock-climbing accident, something else happened that I can’t remember, and as she spoke to us she had only a few weeks to live since she had cancer. She went over all the things her friends said to console her that was wrong. It was eye-opening. The one thing she said she did not want was scripture to “band-aid” the pain. She just wanted a moment to be mad at God and work through it with HIm.

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  6. I admire Job for standing firm in his despair. I mean…he could’ve taken their advice and tried to explain it away, feel better, etc. but he refused. He rebuked them as if to say — none of us know what is going on, so let me plead my case to the One who does. The verse jumping off the page at me is:

    “If only you would be altogether silent! For you, that would be wisdom.”
    ‭‭Job‬ ‭13:5‬ ‭NIV‬‬

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