Daily Bible Study Tips: Job

Comments on Job 1 to 3
Comments on Job 4 to 11
Comments on Job 12 to 18
Comments on Job 19 to 21
Comments on Job 22 to 27

Job 31:1-15, 35-40, Job speaks once more in his own defense.
Job 32:1-14; 35:1-16, Elihu speaks.
Job 38:1-21, God speaks.

Comments on Job 38:22 to 40
Comments on Job 42

Copyright information, disclaimers, and sponsors
Return to homepage

Job 31:1-15, 35-40 (8/20/10)

Job speaks once more in his own defense. My attitude toward justice and mercy is perfectly balanced: I want justice for you, and mercy for me.

Job, knowing himself to be innocent, wants justice for himself. He says, "I haven't done anything wrong, so God should not do wrong to me. Let God look at me, and if he finds that I have done something wrong, then fine - I'm willing to take the consequences." Having thus completed his argument, the defense rests.

I especially like Job's comment in vss. 13-15. He says, in essence, that since he, as a person, is fair to his servants, he thinks that God, as God, must surely be fair to his servants. This foreshadows Jesus' question, "If you, who are evil, give good things to your children, how much more will God, who is good, give good things to those who ask him?"

Job 32:1-14; 35:1-16 (8/23/10)

Elihu speaks. It turns out after all this time that a fourth person, Elihu, has been listening to all that has been said by Job and his three friends. Elihu finally gets fed up with everything that everybody has been saying. He insists that they are all wrong. His speech goes on for several chapters, but as near as I can tell, the main points are these:

Jobs errs not in saying that he is innocent, but rather in saying that God is treating him unjustly.
Job's friends err not in trying to put all the blame on Job, but rather in inadequately defending God.
God, as creator and owner, can't do anything unjust in any case.
Job errs in thinking his sin or lack of it can affect God (although he seems a little self-contradictory on this point).
Good people are rewarded; bad people are punished (Ch. 36).
God is so awesome that you shouldn't question him (Ch. 37).

Job 38:1-21 (8/24/10)

God speaks. My grandson, age 3 1/2, has been going through a "why?" stage. For about two weeks, every time I said anything to him, he responded, "Why?" About half the time I said, "Because I'm Grandma, and I say so." Sometimes, in an (unsuccessful) effort to get him to say, "Because you're Grandma, and you say so," I would ask him, "Why do you think?" Occasionally I gave him an explanation, which he ignored.

Toward the end of the two weeks, he wanted me to read to him, and he brought out that great American novel, Big Pig, which has a series of drawings of incredibly obese animals. He sat on my lap, and I read the title, very impressively: "Big ... Pig." He turned the page, and I read, still very impressively, "Fat ... Bat."

And he said, "Why?"

I have to admit, I was floored. I had no response. I could think of nothing to say. My grandson's question showed three things:

I realized that this is exactly where God has been for the past 35 chapters of Job. God was floored! He saw that Job didn't understand the situation he was in or the question he was asking, and he wouldn't be capable of understanding the answer. After thinking it over for these 35 chapters, God begins to answer Job. He starts by saying, "You don't understand anything, and you wouldn't be able to understand it if I explained it to you."

Copyright 2010 by Regina L. Hunter. All rights reserved.

Opinions expressed on this page are solely those of the author, Regina Hunter, and may or may not be shared by the sponsors or the Bible-study participants. Thanks to the Holy Spirit for any useful ideas presented here, and thanks to all the readers for their support and enthusiasm. All errors are, of course, the sole responsibility of the author.

Our Sponsors:

St. John's United Methodist Church, "Transforming Lives Through Christ."
2626 Arizona NE, Albuquerque, New Mexico 87110

St. John's Music Ministries now has a YouTube channel, bringing you free concerts and choral music. Check it out!

Traditional worship services are held Sundays at 8:15 and 11:00 a.m. in the sanctuary. Casual worship services are held Sundays at 9:30 a.m. in the Family Life Center. Jazz Vespers are held monthly on the second Saturday at 5:00 p.m. in the sanctuary. St. John's feels especially called to the worship of God and to the service of our neighbors through our music program.

Storm Dragon Software^TM

Ducks in a Row, Inc.

This website is supported in part by the generosity of Mrs. J. Jordan.