In Job 3, we see Job in a state of deep depression. At this stage,
there seems to be no light at the end of the tunnel. He is in desperate
need of the Lord’s sustaining strength. Where will the Lord’s help come
from? When will his time of suffering come to an end? Job has many
questions. He doesn’t have any answers. This “the dark night of the
soul.”
In Job 4 - 5, we have the first speech of Eliphaz. On the
pretext of bringing comfort to Job, Eliphaz brings a message of
accusation. However much Eliphaz claims to be bringing God’s Word to
Job, we can be sure that he is not God’s messenger. Why? - It’s because
his message conflicts with God’s understanding of Job’s situation (Job
1:8).
In Job 6 - 7, Job replies. There is real pain in Job’s
words. He speaks of his “grief” and “misery” (Job 6:2). There is a real
longing for God to answer his prayer. Sadly, his prayer has become a cry
of despair: “that God would finally be willing to crush me, that He
would reach out to cut me off” (Job 6:9). Even though he is in great
distress, Job retains sufficient clarity of thought to know that his
so-called ‘friends’ have got it wrong - “Please change your mind ...
Change your mind because I am still right about this! ...or is my mouth
unable to tell the difference between right and wrong?” (Job 6:29-30).
There is sadness here - “As a cloud fades away and disappears, so a
person goes into the grave and doesn’t come back again” (Job 7:9). Job
hasn’t broken through this sense of hopelessness to the triumphant
faith, expressed in his confession of confidence in God: “I know that my
Redeemer lives ...” (Job 19:25-26), a tremendous declaration of
Christ’s resurrection and our resurrection in Him. It’s so wonderful
that in a book, filled with so much suffering, there is this marvellous
glimpse of an eternal glory, in which all suffering will be banished
forever.
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