Bible in one year 8/1/2022 Job Chapter 22-26 Job’s third debate to his friends’ speech
By Rev. Katherine
Liu Bruce
Christian Arts
Ministries : Biblical precepts & Gospel music; Pastoral ministry &
Counseling
Chapter 22 Eliphaz’ Third
Eliphaz accuses
Job of gaining his now lost wealth by robbing the poor(20:19). Naked. Without
the outer garment which could be taken as a pledge but not kept overnight (Ex;25-27
and Amos 2:8) Eliphaz presumes to accuse
Job of secretly thinking that God is so exalted and removed that wicked man has
nothing to fear from Him. He said,
Can a man be benefit to God? Can even a wise
man benefit him? What pleasure would it give the Almighty if you were righteous?
Is it for your piety that he rebukes you and brings charges against you? Is not
your wickedness great? Are not your sins endless? You demanded security from your brothers for no reason; you stripped
men of their clothing, leaving them naked. You gave no water to the weary and
you withheld food from the hungry. Though you were a powerful man , owning land
and honored man, living on it and you sent widows away empty-handed and broke
the strength of the fatherless. That is why snares are all around you, why it
is so dark you cannot see, and why a flood of water covers you.(vv.2-11).
Is not God in the heights of heaven? And see how lofty
are the highest stars! Does he judge through such darkness? Thick clouds veil
him, so he does not see us as he goes about in the vaulted heavens. (vv.12-14).
Will you keep to the old path that evil men
have trod? They were carried off before their time, their foundations washed
away by a flood. They said to God, ‘ Leave us alone! What can the Almighty do
to us? Yet it was he who filled their houses with good things, so I stand aloof
from the counsel of the wicked. The righteous see their ruin and rejoice; the
innocent mock them, saying, ‘Surely our foes are destroyed, and fire devours
their wealth.’ (vv.15-20).
“Submit to God and be at peace with Him; in this way prosperity will
come to you. Accept instruction from His mouth and lay up His words in your
heart. (vv.21-22).
You will pray to Him, He will hear you, and you will fulfill your
vows. What you decide on will be done, and light will shine on your way.
When men are brought low and you say, ‘Lift them up!’ then He will save the
downcast. He will deliver even one who is not innocent, who will be delivered
through the cleanness of your hands.(vv.27-30).
Chapter
23 Job’s third reply to Eliphaz
Job declares his longing
for God and asserts once again his innocence. Job claims to have kept God’s
law, commands and instruction (vv.11-12). He acknowledges that his sufferings
are in the will of God, though the thought trouble him.(vv.14-16) The way that I take (v.10). Lit., the way
that is in me., my conduct. The last part of the verse does not refer to the refining
effect of suffering, but to his innocence. When the Assayer tries him, he will
find not secret dross cleverly concealed from men ( as his friends charged),
but gold. Job replied,
Even today my complaint is bitter; his hand
is heavy in spite of my groaning. If only I knew where to find Him; If only I
could go to His dwelling! I would state my case before him and fill my mouth
with arguments. I would find out what He would answer me, and consider what he
would say. Would he oppose me with great power? No, He would not press charges
against me. There an upright man could present his case before him, and I would
be delivered forever from my judge. (vv.1-7).
But he stand alone, and who can oppose him? He does
whatever He please. He carries out His decree against me, and many such plans
He still has in store. That is why I am terrified before Him; when I think of
all this, fear Him. God has made my heart faint; the Almighty has terrified me.
Yet I am not silenced by the darkness, by the think darkness that covers my
face. (vv.13-17)
Chapter
24 Job’s reply to Eliphaz
Job complains that God does not have
fixed times for the punishment of evildoers (v.12) and describes the rampant
evil in the world, which God apparently tolerates. Job challenges his friends
to disagree with him. Job replied,
“ Why does the Almighty
not set times for judgment?
Why must those who know him look in vain for such days? Men move boundary
stones; they drive away the orphan’s donkey and take the widow’s ox in pledge.
They thrust the needy from the path and force all the poor of the land into
hiding. Like wild donkeys in the
desert, the poor go about their labor of foraging food; the wasteland provides
food for their children. They gather fodder in the fields and glean in the
vineyards of the wicked. Lacking clothes, they spend the night naked; they have
nothing to cover themselves in the cold. They are drenched by mountain rains
and hug the rocks for lack of shelter. The fatherless child is snatched from
the breast; the infant of the poor is seized for a debt. Lacking clothes, they
go about naked; they carry the sheaves, but still go hungry. They crush olives among the terraces, they
tread the winepresses, yet suffer thirst. The groans of the dying rise from the
city, and the souls of the wounded cry out for help. But God charges no one
with wrongdoing.(vv.1-12).
There
are those who rebel against the light, who do not know its ways or stay in its
paths. When daylight is gone, the murderer rises up and kills the poor and
needy; in the night he steals forth life a thief. The eye of the adulterer
watches for dusk; he thinks, ‘ No eye will see me,’ and he keeps his face
concealed. In the dark, men break into houses, but by day they shut themselves
in; they want nothing to do with the light.
For all of them, deep darkness is their morning they make friends with the
terrors of darkness. Yet they are foam on the surface of the water; their
portion of the land is cursed, so that no one goes to the vineyards. As heat
and drought snatch away the melted snow, so the grave snatches away those who
have sinned. (vv. 13-19).
The womb forgets them, the
worm feasts on them; evil men are no longer remembered but are broken like a
tree. They prey on the barren and childless woman, and to the widow show no
kindness. But God drags away the mighty by his power; though they become
established, they have no assurance of life. He may let them rest in a feeling of security, but his eyes are on
their ways. For a little while they are exalted, and then they are gone; they
are brough low and gathered up like all others; they are cut off like all
others; they are cut off like heads of grain. If this is not so, who can prove
me false and reduce my words to nothing? (vv.20-25).
Chapter
25 Bildad’s third speech
Bildad does not attempt to prove Job
wrong but simply declares that Job is presumptuous in thinking he can argue
with God.(v.4). He said,
“ Dominion and awe belong
to God; He establishes order in the heights of heaven. Can His forces be
numbered? Upon whom does His light not rise?
How then can a man be righteous before God? How can one born of woman be pure?
If even the moon is not bright and the stars are not pure in His eyes, how much less man, who is but a maggot a son
of man, who is only worm!” (vv.1-6).
Chapter
26 Job’s Third reply to Bildad
Job sarcastically accuses
Bildad of not having an original though in his head! (vv.1-4). A remarkable
description of what we now know to be a scientifically accurate description of
the earth (v.7). Full moon (or
throne).(v.9). The meaning is that God veils the heavens with clouds. Rahab(v.12) A figurative expression for
pride. By his breath (v.13) the wind
blew away the storm clouds so that the skies became fair. Job magnificent conclusions this: How much knowledge of God there is beyond what we can see and
hear. (v.14). He replied,
“ How you have helped the powerless! How you
have saved the arm that is feeble! What advice you have offered to one without
wisdom! And what great insight you have displayed! Who has helped you utter
these words? And whose spirit spoke form your mouth? (vv.1-4).
The dead are in deep anguish, those
beneath the waters and all that live in them. Death is naked before God;
Destruction lies uncovered. He spreads out the northern skies over empty space;
He suspends the earth over nothing. He wraps up the waters in His clouds, yet
the clouds do not burst under their weight. He covers the face of the full
moon, spreading his clouds over it. He marks out the horizon on the face of the
waters for a boundary between light and darkness. (vv.5-10). The pillars of the heavens quake, aghast at his rebuke. By his power
he churned up the sea; by His wisdom He cut Rahab to pieces. (vv.11-12)
By His breath the skies became fair; His hand pierced
the gliding serpent. And these are but the
outer fringe of His works; how faint the whisper we hear of Him ! Who then can understand
the thunder of His power? (vv.11-14).
Bibliography,
Ryrie, Charles C. The Ryrie study Bible (NIV).Chicago,
IL: The Moody Bible Institute, 1986
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