Job 13:20 - 14:22, Valentine's Day Hints for Men Included*

Hint 1: Clean these.

*Yes, I know it's after Valentine's Day. I was trapped in a house for a week with three children because of snow. You try getting anything done under those circumstances. 

Last time Job was confronted by Zophar, who told him he deserved worse than he was getting from God because he was such a sinner. He told him to repent and God would make everything okay. Job knew he had not sinned against God. He also had enough of the counsel of his friends, so he rebuked them in chapters 12 and 13. He then announced he would present his case directly to God, even if such bold action put his life in danger. He trusted in his integrity and he would rather deal with God directly than his foolish friends.

We're picking up where we left off last time, (a brilliant journalistic move, I know), at Job 13:20 where Job will turn his attention to God. He asks God directly why he would permit such suffering and injustice in his life and in the lives of those he cared about. He has seen injustice and pain from a God who he believed to be merciful and just. He just can't make sense of the contradiction between what he knows about God and what he's experienced in his life. (Perhaps you can relate). Please read along in your Bible, at a Bible website, or on your highly educated phone. Once again, we're in Job 13:20-14:22.

Hint 2: Buy these.

Job 13:20-28, Job wants to know WHY God is treating him this way. Job needs to know the reason why God is doing these things in his life. He asks God to take away the fear of judgment for speaking openly to him. "Withdraw your hand far from me, and stop frightening me with your terrors. Then summon me and I will answer, or let me speak and you reply." This would be like saying to your wife/girlfriend, "Can I tell you something if you promise not to get mad at me?" Has that every worked for any guy, anywhere?

Job is begging God to show up and explain why all of these things have happened to him. If it's because of sin, then Job asks God to make it known, "How many are my iniquities and my sins? Make me known my transgression and my sin," (23). God has done horrible things to him and he can't understand why. "Why do you hide your face and count me as your enemy? For you write bitter things against me and make me inherit the iniquities of my youth. You put my feet in the stocks and watch all my paths," (24-27).

Hint 3: Deal with these people. Babysitter, tranquilizer, whatever it takes.

This is a perfect example of why people can relate to Job and his story. Every person who has had to live with God has asked "Why?" You have found yourselves in situations where life didn't make sense and you want to understand what God is doing. You have felt like God was deliberately rejecting you. What he was doing in your life made no sense at all! It seemed as what you were experiencing did not match up with what you had heard about the love and goodness of God. Why would he allow your divorce? Why wouldn't he answer your tearful prayers? Why wouldn't he heal your child from cancer? "Why do you hide your face and count me as your enemy?" Why would he allow such a good man/woman to die in that horrible accident? Job mirrored those same feelings in his cries to the Lord.

In 14:1-6, Job despairs at God's judgment of men so small and short lived. Job's cries and questions to God now lead him to despair and depression over the smallness of man. "Man who is born of a woman is few of days and full of trouble. He comes out like a flower and withers; he flees like a shadow and continues not," (1-2). Man's life is brief, so why does God judge one so pitiful and small? "And do you open your eyes on such a one and bring me into judgment with you? Who can bring a clean thing out of an unclean? There is not one." Why does God punish men who are inherently sinful? Men are so weak and pitiful. When then does God judge them so harshly?

Hint 4: Women like shiny things.

Job 14:7-17, Job hopes for an afterlife where God will answer his questions.
Job starts out by showing that a tree may be destroyed, but will yet have hope for a new life. "For there is hope for a tree, if it be cut down, that it will sprout again, and that its shoots will not cease," (7). A tree may be cut down, but still grow again. It may be resurrected, (so to speak), to new life even after its destruction. Unfortunately, Job is not sure of the same for himself. "But a man dies and is laid low; man breathes his last, and where is he? (10-12). Job had no assurance that one day he would stand before God and get the answers he was seeking. To him it seemed he would die without understanding God's purposes for his suffering. Yet he hoped that was not the case. "If a man dies, shall he live again? All the days of my service I would wait, till my renewal should come. You would call, and I would answer you; you would long for the work of your hands," (14-15). Job's hope is that one day he would stand before God and the Lord would be able to make sense of his suffering and sorrow.

However, in Job 14:18-22 Job's ultimate expectation is that God will wipe him out completely. He makes note that the flow of nature is to wear down and erode itself. "But the mountain falls and crumbles away...the waters wear away the stones; the torrents wash away the soil of the earth; so you destroy the hope of man," (18-20). Therefore it is Job's expectation for God to wear him down into death as well. "You prevail forever against him, and he passes; you change his countenance, and send him away," (20). Job hoped he would have a chance to stand before God and get an explanation, but ultimately he expected a death with no resolution to his questions of "Why God?" He had no revelation to teach him of life after death, so his expectation was that he must have all the answers in this life, or have none at all.

Hint 5: Women dig Chocolate. 

I hope you're enjoying our study of the book of Job. If you're like me, you probably have had to start eating large amounts fast food or chocolate just to keep your spirits up. I know, I know. It's a depressing book. But in some weird way that's actually an encouragement. God chose to include this horribly depressing book in the Bible. He included the story of a man who expressed great doubt towards and disappointment in God. This account of Job's life shows a man struggling with deep and hurtful questions of the soul. God could have chosen to not allow Job's story to be included in the Bible. I certainly would if I wanted to encourage people to believe in me. I mean seriously, who wants to read such a depressing story where a guy spends 30 chapters asking "Why God?" "Why God?" "Why God?" all over again. I get enough repetitive questions with my children every day. Why would I want to read that in the Bible? But what's encouraging is the Lord included this story of struggle, despair, doubt, and depression. He allows himself to be questioned and doubted. He knew men would struggle with the "why" questions.

So hold on. In the meantime, don't eat too much chocolate or fried food. Happy post Valentine's Day.