Enter the friends
Job 2: They went together to Job to keep him company and comfort him.
Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar, and later on Eliju come to visit poor, miserable Job. I think these guys get a bad rap from most people. The first three, at least, are friends of Job and when they arrive and see the pitiful shape he’s in they’re shocked, speechless and broken hearted. They can hardly bear seeing their friend like this. When they do speak, they do so in response to Job’s complaint and the things they say are the same sort of things Job might have said to them had their places been reversed. The debate that follows isn’t based on Job believing one thing and them believing another. Instead it’s about Job’s insistence that things aren’t working as he and his friends always believed they worked. They say, “Bad things don’t happen to good people, therefore, as surprising as it is, Job must be a bad person.” Job says, “I agree that bad things don’t happen to good people, but I’ve remained faithful to God and bad things have happened to me. Therefore, God isn’t following the rules.” The thing about Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar that needs to catch our attention is that they say all the same things we’ve said at one time or another.
Take Away: Do we trust God even when we don’t understand him?
Tag: Eliphaz
Devotional on Job
How things really are
Job 5: What a blessing when God steps in and corrects you!
If I work my way through the book of Job and pick out various quotes from Eliphaz, Bildad, Zophar, and Eliju and then present them to about any Christian I think they’d find the words quite acceptable. On the other hand, I could pick out many things Job says and those same Christians would shake their heads in dismay. How can it be that this old book which has been available to God’s people for so long be so poorly understood? Eliphaz says the same kind of stuff that we say. He reminds Job of his good life and suggests that he draw on that for hope now, in this day of suffering. He tells Job that everyone knows that for God’s people everything will turn out okay. It’s the bad people who need to worry about what the future holds. He even reminds his friend that human beings are born into trouble. In other words, “that’s life.” Job needs to throw himself on the mercy of God who delights in lifting broken people. So now, Job ought to be thankful that God cares enough about him to discipline him. If Job does that everything will be just fine. Eliphaz concludes, “This is the way things are.” The thing that I find spooky here is that if this speech was, for instance, in the Psalms, I’d read it and not think anything about it, just accepting it as truth. It’s only as I realize who it is who says this and then skip to the end of the story that I realize I need to do some serious sifting through this kind of thinking if I’m to actually know “how things really are.” It isn’t that everything Job’s friends say is wrong. Instead it’s that not everything they say is right. This is a book for people who are willing to think about big issues.
Take Away: Beware of things you’ve easily believed.
Devotional on Job
I wonder which Internet forum Job visited?
Job 15: If you were truly wise, would you sound so much like a windbag?
Eliphaz’s second speech is pretty much a repeat of what’s already been said: people who ignore God’s rules have nothing but trouble. It’s his response to Job’s prayer of complaint that’s interesting to me. Job says that life is unfair and he wonders if there’s something beyond this life where wrongs are made right. As it is, he says, life for both good and bad people has way too much pain and sorrow. Eliphaz hates what Job’s saying so he calls him a “windbag,” and his words just so much “hot air.” I doubt that Job is all that interested in hearing what Eliphaz has to say after that! This isn’t exactly a deep, thoughtful response, but I can’t help but hear some exchanges between Christians in this. Job has raised some valid points, but instead of responding to them, even in disagreement, Eliphaz insults him and then repeats what he’s already said on the topic. That sounds very much like the exchanges I’ve seen on the Internet. In person, we’re usually a bit more polite, but the end result is the same. How do I respond when a fellow Christian brings up a point and comes to a conclusion that I hate? Do I respond by insulting him and repeating what I’ve already said? Do I attempt to understand why he believes as he does? Eliphaz never imagined an Internet forum, but his style is alive and flourishing today.
Take Away: Learning to really listen to people with whom we disagree is an important part of our spiritual journey.
Devotional on Job
False advertising
Job 22: Give in to God…and everything will turn out just fine.
As I read Eliphaz’s third speech I see that he’s hardened during the exchanges with Job. Now, to justify his position he’s telling outright lies about Job. According to this latest version of Job’s life, he’s crushed orphans and exploited the homeless. If Job wasn’t in such misery this would be downright silly. Old Eliphaz isn’t above rewriting the facts if it helps him keep his religious views on track. He even goes so far as to suggest that if a person gives their life to God that everything will turn out just fine! How overboard is that! Wait a minute. I’ve heard people say that. Serve God and have faith and you’ll be healthy and wealthy. I know that if I skip over a few pages I’ll find that it turns out okay for Job, although he’ll live with the memory of his departed children the rest of his days. Since the book of Job is about asking big questions we might as well ask the one before us today. If a person “gives in to God” will “everything turn out just fine”? Since I believe in the existence of heaven, I can answer “yes” in the broadest of terms. However, I don’t think that’s what Eliphaz is thinking about. He says that people who give their lives to God will have a better life here and now. Is that always true? When I think of those who’ve been martyred for their faith, those who’ve been imprisoned and tortured, or those who suffered as Job did I know it isn’t necessarily true. Living for the Lord is a wonderful way to live and the benefits are, well, eternal. However, it’s false advertising to tell people that if they give their hearts to the Lord that everything will be fine this side of eternity.
Take Away: We shortchange the power of the gospel if we sell it as some kind of “get rich” scheme.