Chapter 19 - Job's Reply
Does Job have hope?!?! What did you think about verse 25? "I know that my Redeemer/defender lives, and that in the end he will stand upon the earth/my grave." It sounds hopeful to me!
And verses 26 and 27 are neat, too. "I myself will see him with my own eyes..."
Chapter 20 - Zophar shares some additional totally unhelpful thoughts
Oh my. Zophar just doesn't get it. He seems to be saying that terrible things only happen to terrible people. God punishes people who are wicket. So it seems he's saying Job must be wicked, or at least partially wicked. Zophar, you are way off!
Well, folks, we're in the middle of Lent! Way to go! :) Our journey continues. I can't wait to get to the chapters where God talks!
I haven't read Chapter 20 yet, but will share my thoughts on Ch 19. I found most of this chapter confusing. I am unsure what most of it means. Verse 6, "know then that God has put me in the wrong, and closed his net around me". Is he blaming God for all his troubles? He says he has "no justice". Verse 17 he seems to have forgotten that his family is dead. And then in verse 25, "I know that my redeemer lives." I too thought it sounded hopeful, but then read the notes in my study bible. They state, "Redeemer, an avenger of blood, who, accordidng to Num 35:19 and Duet 19:6 would vinidicate Job's death by punishing the the guilty, in this instance, God. The issue here is revenge, for Job has abandoned any notion of justice." Any ideas?
ReplyDeleteOK I just read Chapter 20. More of the same it seems from Zophar. As I was reading this I thought why is Zophar trying so hard to convince Job that what he says is true? Maybe he is trying to convince himself. "If this can happen to Job who is good, could it happen to me too?" It might be too scary not to believe it.
ReplyDeleteI'm behind on my posts, ch's 19 and 20 I was starting to think that it was going from bad to worse, the bickering and arguing back and forth between job and his "friends". It seemed to me that Job felt very alone...Ch19 v4 "If it is true that I have gone astray, my error remains my concern alone." That verse I could really feel his despair and alienation. He goes on to describe how he feels God has left him completely. Ch 20 is more condemnation from Zophar...how can Job stomach more of this ? I think about my own friends and just our society today...why do we sometimes surround ourselves with people who may not always be the best of friends, who aren't truly "there" for us..physically, emotionally, spiritually. Are we desperate to not feel alone when we do have those feelings like Job had that even God had turned his back on him (which we know wasn't truly the case)? Feeling alone and alienated is very scary, perhaps Job is so far at his bottom point he is clinging to any hope of support he could find, unfortunately he's not getting what he was looking for.
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