Podcasts about job chapter

  BONDED TO GOD'S JOY We have discussed being bonded to God's love in our mind and in our heart, and last week I shared about being bonded to his peace in times of adversity.  God also bonds us to his joy - not just the joy of having everything going right but getting his joy of overcoming things going wrong. We get God's own joy that he feels when he sees fear and dread and darkness being overcome in our lives. This is God's shout of triumph that resonates in our spirit and our soul as we triumph over these things by his grace. This is the point where there is an inner turnaround and new joyful motivation is found to continue conquering and to conquer and reinforcing our motivation to take on new challenges. Knowing God's love draws us to him, knowing his peace settles us in agreement with him, but knowing God's joy takes us beyond being drawn to his love and settled in his peace. Knowing God's joy makes us move forward confidently in his strength as part of his victory over evil in the world. We were not created to cope with these pressures in our own strength, so the only complete answer is the spiritual joy of God. As David said the joy of the Lord is my strength. Zechariah prophesies of the last days in chapter nine about God blowing the trumpet for battle and being seen over his people. In chapter ten Zecharia says And he will make them as His majestic horse in the battle. (Zechariah 10:3). A powerful picture of this majestic battle horse is seen in the book of Job Chapter 39:19. Have you given the horse strength? Have you clothed his neck with thunder? Can you frighten him like a locust? His majestic snorting strikes terror. He paws in the valley, and rejoices in his strength; He gallops into the clash of arms. He mocks at fear and is not frightened; Nor does he turn back from the sword. The quiver rattles against him, The glittering spear and javelin. He devours the distance with fierceness and rage; Nor does he come to a halt because the trumpet has sounded.  At the blast of the trumpet he says, ‘Aha!' and he smells the battle from afar, hearing the thunder of captains and shouting. We see the same picture of the joy and enthusiasm of the end time Church as Jesus begins riding on a white horse, conquering and to conquer in the book of Revelation Chapter 6. The background to that is that after the Messenger who speaks to John in Revelation Chapter 3 has given John the letters to the seven churches in that region, he makes this prophetic statement in the next chapter. Revelation 4:1 After this I looked, and, behold, a door was opened in heaven: and the first voice which I heard was as it were of a trumpet talking with me; which said, Come up hither, and I will show you things which must be hereafter. That means that everything that is spoken to John from that point on (90 AD) is prophetic for the future of the world in the purposes of God. In Chapter 5 these future events are revealed as the seven seals that only Jesus is worthy to open and as each seal is opened it continues to come to its fullest expression of worldwide, not just local, end time events until Jesus returns and the New Heavens and new earth come into being.  The first four seals are referred to as ‘The four horsemen of the apocalypse'. And these four horsemen speak of present and future worldwide events That first horseman is on a white horse, which speaks of the worldwide Reformation in 1517 of the Church being reformed from dead works into faith and from doing penance into finding repentance at the time of the reformation.  Reading on in Revelation… Revelations 6:2 And I looked, and behold, a white horse. He who sat on it had a bow; and a crown was given to him, and he went out conquering and to conquer. This is seen as a symbol of God's joyful and enthusiastic strength in the battle of his people over the forces of evil. We see Jeus here wearing the crown of authority as head over his Church and with a bow in his hand. Judah, you are my bow! Ephraim, you are my arrow! Both of you will be my sword, like the sword of a mighty soldier brandished against my enemies. (Zechariah 9:13). His bow sends us out as his warriors and from the time this battle horse started riding it will continue until is seen as that same white horse at the return of Jesus coming with his saints.  Revelation 19.11 Now I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse. And He who sat on him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness He judges and makes war. His eyes were like a flame of fire, and on His head were many crowns. He had a name written that no one knew except Himself. He was clothed with a robe dipped in blood, and His name is called The Word of God. And the armies in heaven, clothed in fine linen, white and clean, followed Him on white horses.  King David was a man of battle and had to learn the lesson that it was only by trusting in the Lord who was mighty in battle that he would defeat his enemies. That is why David said The joy of the Lord is my strength. David prayed desperately to God about how his enemies had surrounded him - For I am desolate and afflicted. Bring me out of my distresses! Consider my enemies, for they are many. God hears his prayer and then David says Therefore I will offer shouts of joy in His tabernacle; I will sing, yes, I will sing praises to the LORD and now my head shall be lifted up above my enemies all around me; Psalm. 27 This joy became an active principle of strength for David, and it can become an active principle for our lives also. We can reverse the flow of our life from our helplessness to our faith in God's overcoming strength. It was not God's original plan for us to be on the defensive when it comes to overcoming darkness, but to be on the attack.  (2 Cor. 10:4, Eph. 6:12). Constant defensive behaviours cause people to become emotionally fatigued and depressed and robbed of their joy. Even our body has a part to play in this reversal.  When we get emotionally fatigued and depressed and in a downward spiral a hormone called cortisol floods our system causing more stress. But there is another hormone that counters that called dopamine – the joy and enthusiasm hormone which the brain produces and which motivates enthusiasm and achievement - and its even packaged expensively as a recreational drug in the street marketplace. It was once thought that dopamine was produced in the brain because of the motivation for achievement of a goal. It has now been found that it actually gets released not for a goal to be achieved but for a challenge to be met and overcome. It puts us on our front foot to stir ourselves into action and to overcome difficulties and challenges. So even our body helps our spirit and our soul when we enthusiastically praise God as the Captain of the host. It is what causes the battle horse to sniff the battle and say ‘aha'. We can be transformed from people who avoid life's pressures to those who rejoice and overcome life's challenges by faith in his strength and not in our own strength. And the Bible says that Jesus will sing and will rejoice over us with joy (Zephania 3)- that is his reaction when he sees us wanting to join with him in what he is doing, sharing his joy and exuberance, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross and despised the shame (Hebrews 12) The scriptural theme of joy as a source of strength is echoed throughout the Bible, as seen in the life of King David and all through the New Testament. It is God's joy in us that empowers us to face life's battles with unwavering faith, and when we embrace this divine joy, we harness a powerful force that enables us to rise above our struggles and serve others with a heart full of encouragement and compassion. Paul, in his letters to the Corinthians and Ephesians, underscores the importance of spiritual warfare and the need to be proactive rather than reactive in our battle against darkness. He reminds us that our spiritual weapons are mighty through God for pulling down spiritual strongholds that darkness tries to establish in our minds (2 Cor. 10:4). And he encourages us to stand against the strategies of the devil (Eph. 6:12). In essence, by trusting in God's joy and strength, we can transform our lives from a state of helplessness to one of victorious faith, always ready to meet challenges head-on and overcome them for the glory of God. This profound truth is a testament to the fact that when we are filled with God's joy, we are equipped to fulfill our divine purpose and extend His love to the world. Jesus is teaching us here that God's joy in us is the greatest inspiration to serve and to care for others. God sets this joy before us and knows that when we accept it we get his strength and his endurance to take on the most difficult and challenging tasks.       

The book of Job is wisdom literature, like Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Song of Songs. What can we add to what has already been written on the Book of Job? Is it the oldest book in the canon as its historical milieu would place it, or was it written (down) much later? Is it merely a literary story meant to illuminate the relation between God and man-in-the-created-order, or is it historical? We are not so foolish as to claim that we know any of these answers, or how God has in fact put His word together, but we have learned not to put the plausible stories of man in the place of what He says in His word. We will never go far wrong if we simply trust what God says, being careful readers of scripture. What we do know is that Job is a masterpiece of literature by any metric, and one of (if not) THE greatest works of wisdom literature ever crafted. I cannot help but end with a quote from another such brilliant work: Ecclesiastes 7:23–29 All this I have tested by wisdom. I said, “I will be wise,” but it was far from me. That which has been is far off, and deep, very deep; who can find it out? I turned my heart to know and to search out and to seek wisdom and the scheme of things, and to know the wickedness of folly and the foolishness that is madness.... Behold, this is what I found, says the Preacher, while adding one thing to another to find the scheme of things — which my soul has sought repeatedly, but I have not found.... See, this alone I found, that God made man upright, but they have sought out many schemes. (ESV) Ecclesiastes 12:10–13 The Preacher sought to find words of delight, and uprightly he wrote words of truth. The words of the wise are like goads, and like nails firmly fixed are the collected sayings; they are given by one Shepherd. My son, beware of anything beyond these. Of making many books there is no end, and much study is a weariness of the flesh. The end of the matter; all has been heard. Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man. (ESV)

The book of Job is wisdom literature, like Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Song of Songs. What can we add to what has already been written on the Book of Job? Is it the oldest book in the canon as its historical milieu would place it, or was it written (down) much later? Is it merely a literary story meant to illuminate the relation between God and man-in-the-created-order, or is it historical? We are not so foolish as to claim that we know any of these answers, or how God has in fact put His word together, but we have learned not to put the plausible stories of man in the place of what He says in His word. We will never go far wrong if we simply trust what God says, being careful readers of scripture. What we do know is that Job is a masterpiece of literature by any metric, and one of (if not) THE greatest works of wisdom literature ever crafted. I cannot help but end with a quote from another such brilliant work: Ecclesiastes 7:23–29 All this I have tested by wisdom. I said, “I will be wise,” but it was far from me. That which has been is far off, and deep, very deep; who can find it out? I turned my heart to know and to search out and to seek wisdom and the scheme of things, and to know the wickedness of folly and the foolishness that is madness.... Behold, this is what I found, says the Preacher, while adding one thing to another to find the scheme of things — which my soul has sought repeatedly, but I have not found.... See, this alone I found, that God made man upright, but they have sought out many schemes. (ESV) Ecclesiastes 12:10–13 The Preacher sought to find words of delight, and uprightly he wrote words of truth. The words of the wise are like goads, and like nails firmly fixed are the collected sayings; they are given by one Shepherd. My son, beware of anything beyond these. Of making many books there is no end, and much study is a weariness of the flesh. The end of the matter; all has been heard. Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man. (ESV)

The book of Job is wisdom literature, like Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Song of Songs. What can we add to what has already been written on the Book of Job? Is it the oldest book in the canon as its historical milieu would place it, or was it written (down) much later? Is it merely a literary story meant to illuminate the relation between God and man-in-the-created-order, or is it historical? We are not so foolish as to claim that we know any of these answers, or how God has in fact put His word together, but we have learned not to put the plausible stories of man in the place of what He says in His word. We will never go far wrong if we simply trust what God says, being careful readers of scripture. What we do know is that Job is a masterpiece of literature by any metric, and one of (if not) THE greatest works of wisdom literature ever crafted. I cannot help but end with a quote from another such brilliant work: Ecclesiastes 7:23–29 All this I have tested by wisdom. I said, “I will be wise,” but it was far from me. That which has been is far off, and deep, very deep; who can find it out? I turned my heart to know and to search out and to seek wisdom and the scheme of things, and to know the wickedness of folly and the foolishness that is madness.... Behold, this is what I found, says the Preacher, while adding one thing to another to find the scheme of things — which my soul has sought repeatedly, but I have not found.... See, this alone I found, that God made man upright, but they have sought out many schemes. (ESV) Ecclesiastes 12:10–13 The Preacher sought to find words of delight, and uprightly he wrote words of truth. The words of the wise are like goads, and like nails firmly fixed are the collected sayings; they are given by one Shepherd. My son, beware of anything beyond these. Of making many books there is no end, and much study is a weariness of the flesh. The end of the matter; all has been heard. Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man. (ESV)

The book of Job is wisdom literature, like Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Song of Songs. What can we add to what has already been written on the Book of Job? Is it the oldest book in the canon as its historical milieu would place it, or was it written (down) much later? Is it merely a literary story meant to illuminate the relation between God and man-in-the-created-order, or is it historical? We are not so foolish as to claim that we know any of these answers, or how God has in fact put His word together, but we have learned not to put the plausible stories of man in the place of what He says in His word. We will never go far wrong if we simply trust what God says, being careful readers of scripture. What we do know is that Job is a masterpiece of literature by any metric, and one of (if not) THE greatest works of wisdom literature ever crafted. I cannot help but end with a quote from another such brilliant work: Ecclesiastes 7:23–29 All this I have tested by wisdom. I said, “I will be wise,” but it was far from me. That which has been is far off, and deep, very deep; who can find it out? I turned my heart to know and to search out and to seek wisdom and the scheme of things, and to know the wickedness of folly and the foolishness that is madness.... Behold, this is what I found, says the Preacher, while adding one thing to another to find the scheme of things — which my soul has sought repeatedly, but I have not found.... See, this alone I found, that God made man upright, but they have sought out many schemes. (ESV) Ecclesiastes 12:10–13 The Preacher sought to find words of delight, and uprightly he wrote words of truth. The words of the wise are like goads, and like nails firmly fixed are the collected sayings; they are given by one Shepherd. My son, beware of anything beyond these. Of making many books there is no end, and much study is a weariness of the flesh. The end of the matter; all has been heard. Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man. (ESV)

The book of Job is wisdom literature, like Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Song of Songs. What can we add to what has already been written on the Book of Job? Is it the oldest book in the canon as its historical milieu would place it, or was it written (down) much later? Is it merely a literary story meant to illuminate the relation between God and man-in-the-created-order, or is it historical? We are not so foolish as to claim that we know any of these answers, or how God has in fact put His word together, but we have learned not to put the plausible stories of man in the place of what He says in His word. We will never go far wrong if we simply trust what God says, being careful readers of scripture. What we do know is that Job is a masterpiece of literature by any metric, and one of (if not) THE greatest works of wisdom literature ever crafted. I cannot help but end with a quote from another such brilliant work: Ecclesiastes 7:23–29 All this I have tested by wisdom. I said, “I will be wise,” but it was far from me. That which has been is far off, and deep, very deep; who can find it out? I turned my heart to know and to search out and to seek wisdom and the scheme of things, and to know the wickedness of folly and the foolishness that is madness.... Behold, this is what I found, says the Preacher, while adding one thing to another to find the scheme of things — which my soul has sought repeatedly, but I have not found.... See, this alone I found, that God made man upright, but they have sought out many schemes. (ESV) Ecclesiastes 12:10–13 The Preacher sought to find words of delight, and uprightly he wrote words of truth. The words of the wise are like goads, and like nails firmly fixed are the collected sayings; they are given by one Shepherd. My son, beware of anything beyond these. Of making many books there is no end, and much study is a weariness of the flesh. The end of the matter; all has been heard. Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man. (ESV)

There's a blueprint in the Bible for what it means to be a Godly man—have you seen it?  That's right, the Bible doesn't just tell men to lead—it shows us how! In this week's 10-minute equipping episode, Pastor Jim Ramos discusses what he calls the Proverbs 31 for men, drawn straight from Job Chapter 29.  This episode is a call to action for men who want to walk with purpose, lead with conviction, and reflect Christ in every part of their lives. This message was inspired by by Weldon Hardenbrook. (Using our link to check out the book helps support our ministry - thanks!) Get Jim Ramos' USA TODAY Bestselling book, Dialed In: Reaching Your Full Capacity as a Man of God   This episode is sponsored by MTNTOUGH Fitness Lab, a Christian-owned fitness app. Get 6 weeks free with the code ARENA30! Want access to an ad-free, early-release version of the podcast? Get it with Arena Access on Patreon. Have questions you wish you could ask Jim about life, marriage, men's ministry, or manhood? Join his monthly live Zoom Q&A by joining The Locker Room on Patreon. 

The book of Job is wisdom literature, like Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Song of Songs. What can we add to what has already been written on the Book of Job? Is it the oldest book in the canon as its historical milieu would place it, or was it written (down) much later? Is it merely a literary story meant to illuminate the relation between God and man-in-the-created-order, or is it historical? We are not so foolish as to claim that we know any of these answers, or how God has in fact put His word together, but we have learned not to put the plausible stories of man in the place of what He says in His word. We will never go far wrong if we simply trust what God says, being careful readers of scripture. What we do know is that Job is a masterpiece of literature by any metric, and one of (if not) THE greatest works of wisdom literature ever crafted. I cannot help but end with a quote from another such brilliant work: Ecclesiastes 7:23–29 All this I have tested by wisdom. I said, “I will be wise,” but it was far from me. That which has been is far off, and deep, very deep; who can find it out? I turned my heart to know and to search out and to seek wisdom and the scheme of things, and to know the wickedness of folly and the foolishness that is madness.... Behold, this is what I found, says the Preacher, while adding one thing to another to find the scheme of things — which my soul has sought repeatedly, but I have not found.... See, this alone I found, that God made man upright, but they have sought out many schemes. (ESV) Ecclesiastes 12:10–13 The Preacher sought to find words of delight, and uprightly he wrote words of truth. The words of the wise are like goads, and like nails firmly fixed are the collected sayings; they are given by one Shepherd. My son, beware of anything beyond these. Of making many books there is no end, and much study is a weariness of the flesh. The end of the matter; all has been heard. Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man. (ESV)

The book of Job is wisdom literature, like Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Song of Songs. What can we add to what has already been written on the Book of Job? Is it the oldest book in the canon as its historical milieu would place it, or was it written (down) much later? Is it merely a literary story meant to illuminate the relation between God and man-in-the-created-order, or is it historical? We are not so foolish as to claim that we know any of these answers, or how God has in fact put His word together, but we have learned not to put the plausible stories of man in the place of what He says in His word. We will never go far wrong if we simply trust what God says, being careful readers of scripture. What we do know is that Job is a masterpiece of literature by any metric, and one of (if not) THE greatest works of wisdom literature ever crafted. I cannot help but end with a quote from another such brilliant work: Ecclesiastes 7:23–29 All this I have tested by wisdom. I said, “I will be wise,” but it was far from me. That which has been is far off, and deep, very deep; who can find it out? I turned my heart to know and to search out and to seek wisdom and the scheme of things, and to know the wickedness of folly and the foolishness that is madness.... Behold, this is what I found, says the Preacher, while adding one thing to another to find the scheme of things — which my soul has sought repeatedly, but I have not found.... See, this alone I found, that God made man upright, but they have sought out many schemes. (ESV) Ecclesiastes 12:10–13 The Preacher sought to find words of delight, and uprightly he wrote words of truth. The words of the wise are like goads, and like nails firmly fixed are the collected sayings; they are given by one Shepherd. My son, beware of anything beyond these. Of making many books there is no end, and much study is a weariness of the flesh. The end of the matter; all has been heard. Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man. (ESV)

The book of Job is wisdom literature, like Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Song of Songs. What can we add to what has already been written on the Book of Job? Is it the oldest book in the canon as its historical milieu would place it, or was it written (down) much later? Is it merely a literary story meant to illuminate the relation between God and man-in-the-created-order, or is it historical? We are not so foolish as to claim that we know any of these answers, or how God has in fact put His word together, but we have learned not to put the plausible stories of man in the place of what He says in His word. We will never go far wrong if we simply trust what God says, being careful readers of scripture. What we do know is that Job is a masterpiece of literature by any metric, and one of (if not) THE greatest works of wisdom literature ever crafted. I cannot help but end with a quote from another such brilliant work: Ecclesiastes 7:23–29 All this I have tested by wisdom. I said, “I will be wise,” but it was far from me. That which has been is far off, and deep, very deep; who can find it out? I turned my heart to know and to search out and to seek wisdom and the scheme of things, and to know the wickedness of folly and the foolishness that is madness.... Behold, this is what I found, says the Preacher, while adding one thing to another to find the scheme of things — which my soul has sought repeatedly, but I have not found.... See, this alone I found, that God made man upright, but they have sought out many schemes. (ESV) Ecclesiastes 12:10–13 The Preacher sought to find words of delight, and uprightly he wrote words of truth. The words of the wise are like goads, and like nails firmly fixed are the collected sayings; they are given by one Shepherd. My son, beware of anything beyond these. Of making many books there is no end, and much study is a weariness of the flesh. The end of the matter; all has been heard. Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man. (ESV)

The book of Job is wisdom literature, like Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Song of Songs. What can we add to what has already been written on the Book of Job? Is it the oldest book in the canon as its historical milieu would place it, or was it written (down) much later? Is it merely a literary story meant to illuminate the relation between God and man-in-the-created-order, or is it historical? We are not so foolish as to claim that we know any of these answers, or how God has in fact put His word together, but we have learned not to put the plausible stories of man in the place of what He says in His word. We will never go far wrong if we simply trust what God says, being careful readers of scripture. What we do know is that Job is a masterpiece of literature by any metric, and one of (if not) THE greatest works of wisdom literature ever crafted. I cannot help but end with a quote from another such brilliant work: Ecclesiastes 7:23–29 All this I have tested by wisdom. I said, “I will be wise,” but it was far from me. That which has been is far off, and deep, very deep; who can find it out? I turned my heart to know and to search out and to seek wisdom and the scheme of things, and to know the wickedness of folly and the foolishness that is madness.... Behold, this is what I found, says the Preacher, while adding one thing to another to find the scheme of things — which my soul has sought repeatedly, but I have not found.... See, this alone I found, that God made man upright, but they have sought out many schemes. (ESV) Ecclesiastes 12:10–13 The Preacher sought to find words of delight, and uprightly he wrote words of truth. The words of the wise are like goads, and like nails firmly fixed are the collected sayings; they are given by one Shepherd. My son, beware of anything beyond these. Of making many books there is no end, and much study is a weariness of the flesh. The end of the matter; all has been heard. Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man. (ESV)

The book of Job is wisdom literature, like Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Song of Songs. What can we add to what has already been written on the Book of Job? Is it the oldest book in the canon as its historical milieu would place it, or was it written (down) much later? Is it merely a literary story meant to illuminate the relation between God and man-in-the-created-order, or is it historical? We are not so foolish as to claim that we know any of these answers, or how God has in fact put His word together, but we have learned not to put the plausible stories of man in the place of what He says in His word. We will never go far wrong if we simply trust what God says, being careful readers of scripture. What we do know is that Job is a masterpiece of literature by any metric, and one of (if not) THE greatest works of wisdom literature ever crafted. I cannot help but end with a quote from another such brilliant work: Ecclesiastes 7:23–29 All this I have tested by wisdom. I said, “I will be wise,” but it was far from me. That which has been is far off, and deep, very deep; who can find it out? I turned my heart to know and to search out and to seek wisdom and the scheme of things, and to know the wickedness of folly and the foolishness that is madness.... Behold, this is what I found, says the Preacher, while adding one thing to another to find the scheme of things — which my soul has sought repeatedly, but I have not found.... See, this alone I found, that God made man upright, but they have sought out many schemes. (ESV) Ecclesiastes 12:10–13 The Preacher sought to find words of delight, and uprightly he wrote words of truth. The words of the wise are like goads, and like nails firmly fixed are the collected sayings; they are given by one Shepherd. My son, beware of anything beyond these. Of making many books there is no end, and much study is a weariness of the flesh. The end of the matter; all has been heard. Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man. (ESV)

The book of Job is wisdom literature, like Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Song of Songs. What can we add to what has already been written on the Book of Job? Is it the oldest book in the canon as its historical milieu would place it, or was it written (down) much later? Is it merely a literary story meant to illuminate the relation between God and man-in-the-created-order, or is it historical? We are not so foolish as to claim that we know any of these answers, or how God has in fact put His word together, but we have learned not to put the plausible stories of man in the place of what He says in His word. We will never go far wrong if we simply trust what God says, being careful readers of scripture. What we do know is that Job is a masterpiece of literature by any metric, and one of (if not) THE greatest works of wisdom literature ever crafted. I cannot help but end with a quote from another such brilliant work: Ecclesiastes 7:23–29 All this I have tested by wisdom. I said, “I will be wise,” but it was far from me. That which has been is far off, and deep, very deep; who can find it out? I turned my heart to know and to search out and to seek wisdom and the scheme of things, and to know the wickedness of folly and the foolishness that is madness.... Behold, this is what I found, says the Preacher, while adding one thing to another to find the scheme of things — which my soul has sought repeatedly, but I have not found.... See, this alone I found, that God made man upright, but they have sought out many schemes. (ESV) Ecclesiastes 12:10–13 The Preacher sought to find words of delight, and uprightly he wrote words of truth. The words of the wise are like goads, and like nails firmly fixed are the collected sayings; they are given by one Shepherd. My son, beware of anything beyond these. Of making many books there is no end, and much study is a weariness of the flesh. The end of the matter; all has been heard. Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man. (ESV)

The book of Job is wisdom literature, like Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Song of Songs. What can we add to what has already been written on the Book of Job? Is it the oldest book in the canon as its historical milieu would place it, or was it written (down) much later? Is it merely a literary story meant to illuminate the relation between God and man-in-the-created-order, or is it historical? We are not so foolish as to claim that we know any of these answers, or how God has in fact put His word together, but we have learned not to put the plausible stories of man in the place of what He says in His word. We will never go far wrong if we simply trust what God says, being careful readers of scripture. What we do know is that Job is a masterpiece of literature by any metric, and one of (if not) THE greatest works of wisdom literature ever crafted. I cannot help but end with a quote from another such brilliant work: Ecclesiastes 7:23–29 All this I have tested by wisdom. I said, “I will be wise,” but it was far from me. That which has been is far off, and deep, very deep; who can find it out? I turned my heart to know and to search out and to seek wisdom and the scheme of things, and to know the wickedness of folly and the foolishness that is madness.... Behold, this is what I found, says the Preacher, while adding one thing to another to find the scheme of things — which my soul has sought repeatedly, but I have not found.... See, this alone I found, that God made man upright, but they have sought out many schemes. (ESV) Ecclesiastes 12:10–13 The Preacher sought to find words of delight, and uprightly he wrote words of truth. The words of the wise are like goads, and like nails firmly fixed are the collected sayings; they are given by one Shepherd. My son, beware of anything beyond these. Of making many books there is no end, and much study is a weariness of the flesh. The end of the matter; all has been heard. Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man. (ESV)

The book of Job is wisdom literature, like Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Song of Songs. What can we add to what has already been written on the Book of Job? Is it the oldest book in the canon as its historical milieu would place it, or was it written (down) much later? Is it merely a literary story meant to illuminate the relation between God and man-in-the-created-order, or is it historical? We are not so foolish as to claim that we know any of these answers, or how God has in fact put His word together, but we have learned not to put the plausible stories of man in the place of what He says in His word. We will never go far wrong if we simply trust what God says, being careful readers of scripture. What we do know is that Job is a masterpiece of literature by any metric, and one of (if not) THE greatest works of wisdom literature ever crafted. I cannot help but end with a quote from another such brilliant work: Ecclesiastes 7:23–29 All this I have tested by wisdom. I said, “I will be wise,” but it was far from me. That which has been is far off, and deep, very deep; who can find it out? I turned my heart to know and to search out and to seek wisdom and the scheme of things, and to know the wickedness of folly and the foolishness that is madness.... Behold, this is what I found, says the Preacher, while adding one thing to another to find the scheme of things — which my soul has sought repeatedly, but I have not found.... See, this alone I found, that God made man upright, but they have sought out many schemes. (ESV) Ecclesiastes 12:10–13 The Preacher sought to find words of delight, and uprightly he wrote words of truth. The words of the wise are like goads, and like nails firmly fixed are the collected sayings; they are given by one Shepherd. My son, beware of anything beyond these. Of making many books there is no end, and much study is a weariness of the flesh. The end of the matter; all has been heard. Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man. (ESV)

The book of Job is wisdom literature, like Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Song of Songs. What can we add to what has already been written on the Book of Job? Is it the oldest book in the canon as its historical milieu would place it, or was it written (down) much later? Is it merely a literary story meant to illuminate the relation between God and man-in-the-created-order, or is it historical? We are not so foolish as to claim that we know any of these answers, or how God has in fact put His word together, but we have learned not to put the plausible stories of man in the place of what He says in His word. We will never go far wrong if we simply trust what God says, being careful readers of scripture. What we do know is that Job is a masterpiece of literature by any metric, and one of (if not) THE greatest works of wisdom literature ever crafted. I cannot help but end with a quote from another such brilliant work: Ecclesiastes 7:23–29 All this I have tested by wisdom. I said, “I will be wise,” but it was far from me. That which has been is far off, and deep, very deep; who can find it out? I turned my heart to know and to search out and to seek wisdom and the scheme of things, and to know the wickedness of folly and the foolishness that is madness.... Behold, this is what I found, says the Preacher, while adding one thing to another to find the scheme of things — which my soul has sought repeatedly, but I have not found.... See, this alone I found, that God made man upright, but they have sought out many schemes. (ESV) Ecclesiastes 12:10–13 The Preacher sought to find words of delight, and uprightly he wrote words of truth. The words of the wise are like goads, and like nails firmly fixed are the collected sayings; they are given by one Shepherd. My son, beware of anything beyond these. Of making many books there is no end, and much study is a weariness of the flesh. The end of the matter; all has been heard. Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man. (ESV)

The book of Job is wisdom literature, like Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Song of Songs. What can we add to what has already been written on the Book of Job? Is it the oldest book in the canon as its historical milieu would place it, or was it written (down) much later? Is it merely a literary story meant to illuminate the relation between God and man-in-the-created-order, or is it historical? We are not so foolish as to claim that we know any of these answers, or how God has in fact put His word together, but we have learned not to put the plausible stories of man in the place of what He says in His word. We will never go far wrong if we simply trust what God says, being careful readers of scripture. What we do know is that Job is a masterpiece of literature by any metric, and one of (if not) THE greatest works of wisdom literature ever crafted. I cannot help but end with a quote from another such brilliant work: Ecclesiastes 7:23–29 All this I have tested by wisdom. I said, “I will be wise,” but it was far from me. That which has been is far off, and deep, very deep; who can find it out? I turned my heart to know and to search out and to seek wisdom and the scheme of things, and to know the wickedness of folly and the foolishness that is madness.... Behold, this is what I found, says the Preacher, while adding one thing to another to find the scheme of things — which my soul has sought repeatedly, but I have not found.... See, this alone I found, that God made man upright, but they have sought out many schemes. (ESV) Ecclesiastes 12:10–13 The Preacher sought to find words of delight, and uprightly he wrote words of truth. The words of the wise are like goads, and like nails firmly fixed are the collected sayings; they are given by one Shepherd. My son, beware of anything beyond these. Of making many books there is no end, and much study is a weariness of the flesh. The end of the matter; all has been heard. Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man. (ESV)

After Job spent seven days in silence with his three friends, there came a time when this upright soul succumbed and cursed the day he was born. In poetic form, Job cursed that day, declaring:  Let the day perish wherein I was born; and the Night in which it was said there is a child conceived.  Let that day be darkness, letnot God regard it from above. Neither let the sun come upon it.  Let darkness and the shadow of death stain it. Let the day be purged from the calendar and never see the eyelids of dawn.  Let no joyful noise come from that night. Job's outburst raises the question: Did Satan (or Ha'Satan)  prevail?  While Job did not curse the Almighty, Jobdid curse His wisdom;  as the Lord made such decisions as when Job would be born and the tribulations he would face. Regardless, Job is not cursing the world. He does not wish to destroy everything around him in a fit of wrath. He will contend with what is before him, bringing us through his suffering  in a soul-bearing exercise.  Job calls for those engaged in divination, such as those who would rouse Leviathan (a reference to Canaanite mythology), play their trade and curse his day!  Job voices how he wishes the doors of his mother's womb had been shut and to have perished within or shortly after birth.  He wishes to have long ago reached the destination of stillness. Such would have been a welcome alternative from his suffering. He yearns to be where slave and prisoner are no longer subject to the whips and shouts of the taskmaster. Further, Job proclaims the desire to be among the past Kings and Counsellors of the earth, who built structuresof magnificence that ultimately turned to desolate places, and now lie equal with their subjects.  He brings up the idea,almost as an aside, that we will experience the idle rest of death for a lot longer than we will be active on this earth.  Job is facing a hellish existence.  He ponders why should the Lord give light/life to those bitter in soul.  He laments how God allows him to continue when the Lord's Way has been hidden, after he had walked in it all his life.   He also realizes he lost the Godly hedge of protection he once had.  He is lamenting a perceived broken relationship with God. The loss of his spiritual estate weighs tremendously on Job.  Job closes out the chapter by noting,  For the thing I greatlyfeared has come upon me.  He realized all he had was bestowed on him by God and could be gone in a moment.  He was not naïve, but is explains that he made the proper sacrifices and held the proper reverence, yet tragedy still came.   While Job's sacrificial walk was an unsuccessful attempt to keep such suffering at bay, Job will come to learn that his ordeal is ultimately for a greater, even if it remains unknown,purpose.  

The book of Job is wisdom literature, like Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Song of Songs. What can we add to what has already been written on the Book of Job? Is it the oldest book in the canon as its historical milieu would place it, or was it written (down) much later? Is it merely a literary story meant to illuminate the relation between God and man-in-the-created-order, or is it historical? We are not so foolish as to claim that we know any of these answers, or how God has in fact put His word together, but we have learned not to put the plausible stories of man in the place of what He says in His word. We will never go far wrong if we simply trust what God says, being careful readers of scripture. What we do know is that Job is a masterpiece of literature by any metric, and one of (if not) THE greatest works of wisdom literature ever crafted. I cannot help but end with a quote from another such brilliant work: Ecclesiastes 7:23–29 All this I have tested by wisdom. I said, “I will be wise,” but it was far from me. That which has been is far off, and deep, very deep; who can find it out? I turned my heart to know and to search out and to seek wisdom and the scheme of things, and to know the wickedness of folly and the foolishness that is madness.... Behold, this is what I found, says the Preacher, while adding one thing to another to find the scheme of things — which my soul has sought repeatedly, but I have not found.... See, this alone I found, that God made man upright, but they have sought out many schemes. (ESV) Ecclesiastes 12:10–13 The Preacher sought to find words of delight, and uprightly he wrote words of truth. The words of the wise are like goads, and like nails firmly fixed are the collected sayings; they are given by one Shepherd. My son, beware of anything beyond these. Of making many books there is no end, and much study is a weariness of the flesh. The end of the matter; all has been heard. Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man. (ESV)

The book of Job is wisdom literature, like Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Song of Songs. What can we add to what has already been written on the Book of Job? Is it the oldest book in the canon as its historical milieu would place it, or was it written (down) much later? Is it merely a literary story meant to illuminate the relation between God and man-in-the-created-order, or is it historical? We are not so foolish as to claim that we know any of these answers, or how God has in fact put His word together, but we have learned not to put the plausible stories of man in the place of what He says in His word. We will never go far wrong if we simply trust what God says, being careful readers of scripture. What we do know is that Job is a masterpiece of literature by any metric, and one of (if not) THE greatest works of wisdom literature ever crafted. I cannot help but end with a quote from another such brilliant work: Ecclesiastes 7:23–29 All this I have tested by wisdom. I said, “I will be wise,” but it was far from me. That which has been is far off, and deep, very deep; who can find it out? I turned my heart to know and to search out and to seek wisdom and the scheme of things, and to know the wickedness of folly and the foolishness that is madness.... Behold, this is what I found, says the Preacher, while adding one thing to another to find the scheme of things — which my soul has sought repeatedly, but I have not found.... See, this alone I found, that God made man upright, but they have sought out many schemes. (ESV) Ecclesiastes 12:10–13 The Preacher sought to find words of delight, and uprightly he wrote words of truth. The words of the wise are like goads, and like nails firmly fixed are the collected sayings; they are given by one Shepherd. My son, beware of anything beyond these. Of making many books there is no end, and much study is a weariness of the flesh. The end of the matter; all has been heard. Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man. (ESV)

The book of Job is wisdom literature, like Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Song of Songs. What can we add to what has already been written on the Book of Job? Is it the oldest book in the canon as its historical milieu would place it, or was it written (down) much later? Is it merely a literary story meant to illuminate the relation between God and man-in-the-created-order, or is it historical? We are not so foolish as to claim that we know any of these answers, or how God has in fact put His word together, but we have learned not to put the plausible stories of man in the place of what He says in His word. We will never go far wrong if we simply trust what God says, being careful readers of scripture. What we do know is that Job is a masterpiece of literature by any metric, and one of (if not) THE greatest works of wisdom literature ever crafted. I cannot help but end with a quote from another such brilliant work: Ecclesiastes 7:23–29 All this I have tested by wisdom. I said, “I will be wise,” but it was far from me. That which has been is far off, and deep, very deep; who can find it out? I turned my heart to know and to search out and to seek wisdom and the scheme of things, and to know the wickedness of folly and the foolishness that is madness.... Behold, this is what I found, says the Preacher, while adding one thing to another to find the scheme of things — which my soul has sought repeatedly, but I have not found.... See, this alone I found, that God made man upright, but they have sought out many schemes. (ESV) Ecclesiastes 12:10–13 The Preacher sought to find words of delight, and uprightly he wrote words of truth. The words of the wise are like goads, and like nails firmly fixed are the collected sayings; they are given by one Shepherd. My son, beware of anything beyond these. Of making many books there is no end, and much study is a weariness of the flesh. The end of the matter; all has been heard. Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man. (ESV)

The book of Job is wisdom literature, like Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Song of Songs. What can we add to what has already been written on the Book of Job? Is it the oldest book in the canon as its historical milieu would place it, or was it written (down) much later? Is it merely a literary story meant to illuminate the relation between God and man-in-the-created-order, or is it historical? We are not so foolish as to claim that we know any of these answers, or how God has in fact put His word together, but we have learned not to put the plausible stories of man in the place of what He says in His word. We will never go far wrong if we simply trust what God says, being careful readers of scripture. What we do know is that Job is a masterpiece of literature by any metric, and one of (if not) THE greatest works of wisdom literature ever crafted. I cannot help but end with a quote from another such brilliant work: Ecclesiastes 7:23–29 All this I have tested by wisdom. I said, “I will be wise,” but it was far from me. That which has been is far off, and deep, very deep; who can find it out? I turned my heart to know and to search out and to seek wisdom and the scheme of things, and to know the wickedness of folly and the foolishness that is madness.... Behold, this is what I found, says the Preacher, while adding one thing to another to find the scheme of things — which my soul has sought repeatedly, but I have not found.... See, this alone I found, that God made man upright, but they have sought out many schemes. (ESV) Ecclesiastes 12:10–13 The Preacher sought to find words of delight, and uprightly he wrote words of truth. The words of the wise are like goads, and like nails firmly fixed are the collected sayings; they are given by one Shepherd. My son, beware of anything beyond these. Of making many books there is no end, and much study is a weariness of the flesh. The end of the matter; all has been heard. Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man. (ESV)

And there came a day when the Sons of God once again stood before the Lord; and Satan (or ha'Satan) also.  The Lord again queried: From whence comest though? Satan answered: From roaming the earth and walking up and down in it.  This repetition highlights how Satan shares and asserts some dominion over our space.  Satan's level of access to God is eye-opening and this meeting is more of a curt conversation than epic clash in the sky.  Although brief, this is one of their most substantial interactions in the Biblical corpus.   The Lord inquires: Has thou considered my servant Job? That there are not like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man?   One that feareth God and eschews evil.  Although though movest me to destroy him without  cause, he still holdeth fast to his integrity. Satan answers cryptically, “Skin for Skin!”  We have some sense of the meaning of this cryptic proverb from Satan's next missive… “All that a man has he will give for his life.”   Satan believes man's essence is not sacrificial, so the message is – God has affected all around Job, now let's turn the heat on him and see how much longer he keeps faith.  God was content after Job responded to the initial series of terrible events, so it is worth asking, Was Satan tempting God? And why is the Lord so open to maltreatment of a favorite son? Further, Is Satan's dialogue the posture of a subordinate, or reflective of being on more level terms? Or is God testing both Job and Satan? The relationship fascinates and perplexes.  It has been argued that this Book reveals as much as we, with our limited abilities, can understand of the divine.   As to poor Job, reap & sow doesn't apply; and while that may be a general rule, there are boundless instances of undeserved suffering.  Many tribulations are more than punishment. Some experiences put us through fire to forge us into steel.  In what proportion harsh results are reprimands, we are left to wonder.    Satan continues:  Put forth thine hand now and touch his Bone and flesh and he will curse thee to thy face.  Another question this book spurs: What would it take for you to curse God? And how much less would it be than what Job went through?  The Lord responds: Behold, He is in thine hand, but spare his life.   Once again, Satan gets what he wants, leaves and gets to work.  He smote Job with sores and boils from the sole of his feet unto the crown of his head.  Job was relegated to sitting among those ashes, with a broken piece of pottery -- scraping himself for some comfort. This is a test of physical suffering to weaken Job's resolve. Here, Job's unnamed wife makes her lone appearance.  In most translations her words are few. She tells Job: Dost though still retain thy integrity? Curse curse God and Die.  There is greater exposition in the  Greek Translation, the Septuagint, which explores her plight and how she has become a wanderer waiting for death.  After discussing their devastation, she questions how long Job will hold out expecting deliverance.     Job responds: Thou speakest as one of the foolish women…shall we receive good at the hand of God and shall not we receive evil?  The text implies that while she may have cursed God for the loss of their children and household, Job has not.  With his wife turning on him, Job is closer to breaking down. However:  In all this Job did not sin with his lips.  There comes relief in terms of human bonding. When three of Job's friends heard of his plight, they came to comfort and grieve with Job. They were Eliphaz the Temanite, Bildad the Shuhite, and Zophar the Naamathite.  The horror of Job's presentation shocked the three. They wept, tore their clothes, and sprinkled dust ashes over their heads, then turned their eyes upward.   They sat down with him for seven days. None spoke a word  for they saw the greatness of Job's grief.  This is a wonderful lesson of how to comfort when words will not do.  

The book of Job is wisdom literature, like Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Song of Songs. What can we add to what has already been written on the Book of Job? Is it the oldest book in the canon as its historical milieu would place it, or was it written (down) much later? Is it merely a literary story meant to illuminate the relation between God and man-in-the-created-order, or is it historical? We are not so foolish as to claim that we know any of these answers, or how God has in fact put His word together, but we have learned not to put the plausible stories of man in the place of what He says in His word. We will never go far wrong if we simply trust what God says, being careful readers of scripture. What we do know is that Job is a masterpiece of literature by any metric, and one of (if not) THE greatest works of wisdom literature ever crafted. I cannot help but end with a quote from another such brilliant work: Ecclesiastes 7:23–29 All this I have tested by wisdom. I said, “I will be wise,” but it was far from me. That which has been is far off, and deep, very deep; who can find it out? I turned my heart to know and to search out and to seek wisdom and the scheme of things, and to know the wickedness of folly and the foolishness that is madness.... Behold, this is what I found, says the Preacher, while adding one thing to another to find the scheme of things — which my soul has sought repeatedly, but I have not found.... See, this alone I found, that God made man upright, but they have sought out many schemes. (ESV) Ecclesiastes 12:10–13 The Preacher sought to find words of delight, and uprightly he wrote words of truth. The words of the wise are like goads, and like nails firmly fixed are the collected sayings; they are given by one Shepherd. My son, beware of anything beyond these. Of making many books there is no end, and much study is a weariness of the flesh. The end of the matter; all has been heard. Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man. (ESV)

The book of Job is wisdom literature, like Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Song of Songs. What can we add to what has already been written on the Book of Job? Is it the oldest book in the canon as its historical milieu would place it, or was it written (down) much later? Is it merely a literary story meant to illuminate the relation between God and man-in-the-created-order, or is it historical? We are not so foolish as to claim that we know any of these answers, or how God has in fact put His word together, but we have learned not to put the plausible stories of man in the place of what He says in His word. We will never go far wrong if we simply trust what God says, being careful readers of scripture. What we do know is that Job is a masterpiece of literature by any metric, and one of (if not) THE greatest works of wisdom literature ever crafted. I cannot help but end with a quote from another such brilliant work: Ecclesiastes 7:23–29 All this I have tested by wisdom. I said, “I will be wise,” but it was far from me. That which has been is far off, and deep, very deep; who can find it out? I turned my heart to know and to search out and to seek wisdom and the scheme of things, and to know the wickedness of folly and the foolishness that is madness.... Behold, this is what I found, says the Preacher, while adding one thing to another to find the scheme of things — which my soul has sought repeatedly, but I have not found.... See, this alone I found, that God made man upright, but they have sought out many schemes. (ESV) Ecclesiastes 12:10–13 The Preacher sought to find words of delight, and uprightly he wrote words of truth. The words of the wise are like goads, and like nails firmly fixed are the collected sayings; they are given by one Shepherd. My son, beware of anything beyond these. Of making many books there is no end, and much study is a weariness of the flesh. The end of the matter; all has been heard. Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man. (ESV)

The book of Job is wisdom literature, like Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Song of Songs. What can we add to what has already been written on the Book of Job? Is it the oldest book in the canon as its historical milieu would place it, or was it written (down) much later? Is it merely a literary story meant to illuminate the relation between God and man-in-the-created-order, or is it historical? We are not so foolish as to claim that we know any of these answers, or how God has in fact put His word together, but we have learned not to put the plausible stories of man in the place of what He says in His word. We will never go far wrong if we simply trust what God says, being careful readers of scripture. What we do know is that Job is a masterpiece of literature by any metric, and one of (if not) THE greatest works of wisdom literature ever crafted. I cannot help but end with a quote from another such brilliant work: Ecclesiastes 7:23–29 All this I have tested by wisdom. I said, “I will be wise,” but it was far from me. That which has been is far off, and deep, very deep; who can find it out? I turned my heart to know and to search out and to seek wisdom and the scheme of things, and to know the wickedness of folly and the foolishness that is madness.... Behold, this is what I found, says the Preacher, while adding one thing to another to find the scheme of things — which my soul has sought repeatedly, but I have not found.... See, this alone I found, that God made man upright, but they have sought out many schemes. (ESV) Ecclesiastes 12:10–13 The Preacher sought to find words of delight, and uprightly he wrote words of truth. The words of the wise are like goads, and like nails firmly fixed are the collected sayings; they are given by one Shepherd. My son, beware of anything beyond these. Of making many books there is no end, and much study is a weariness of the flesh. The end of the matter; all has been heard. Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man. (ESV)

The book of Job is wisdom literature, like Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Song of Songs. What can we add to what has already been written on the Book of Job? Is it the oldest book in the canon as its historical milieu would place it, or was it written (down) much later? Is it merely a literary story meant to illuminate the relation between God and man-in-the-created-order, or is it historical? We are not so foolish as to claim that we know any of these answers, or how God has in fact put His word together, but we have learned not to put the plausible stories of man in the place of what He says in His word. We will never go far wrong if we simply trust what God says, being careful readers of scripture. What we do know is that Job is a masterpiece of literature by any metric, and one of (if not) THE greatest works of wisdom literature ever crafted. I cannot help but end with a quote from another such brilliant work: Ecclesiastes 7:23–29 All this I have tested by wisdom. I said, “I will be wise,” but it was far from me. That which has been is far off, and deep, very deep; who can find it out? I turned my heart to know and to search out and to seek wisdom and the scheme of things, and to know the wickedness of folly and the foolishness that is madness.... Behold, this is what I found, says the Preacher, while adding one thing to another to find the scheme of things — which my soul has sought repeatedly, but I have not found.... See, this alone I found, that God made man upright, but they have sought out many schemes. (ESV) Ecclesiastes 12:10–13 The Preacher sought to find words of delight, and uprightly he wrote words of truth. The words of the wise are like goads, and like nails firmly fixed are the collected sayings; they are given by one Shepherd. My son, beware of anything beyond these. Of making many books there is no end, and much study is a weariness of the flesh. The end of the matter; all has been heard. Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man. (ESV)

The book of Job is wisdom literature, like Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Song of Songs. What can we add to what has already been written on the Book of Job? Is it the oldest book in the canon as its historical milieu would place it, or was it written (down) much later? Is it merely a literary story meant to illuminate the relation between God and man-in-the-created-order, or is it historical? We are not so foolish as to claim that we know any of these answers, or how God has in fact put His word together, but we have learned not to put the plausible stories of man in the place of what He says in His word. We will never go far wrong if we simply trust what God says, being careful readers of scripture. What we do know is that Job is a masterpiece of literature by any metric, and one of (if not) THE greatest works of wisdom literature ever crafted. I cannot help but end with a quote from another such brilliant work: Ecclesiastes 7:23–29 All this I have tested by wisdom. I said, “I will be wise,” but it was far from me. That which has been is far off, and deep, very deep; who can find it out? I turned my heart to know and to search out and to seek wisdom and the scheme of things, and to know the wickedness of folly and the foolishness that is madness.... Behold, this is what I found, says the Preacher, while adding one thing to another to find the scheme of things — which my soul has sought repeatedly, but I have not found.... See, this alone I found, that God made man upright, but they have sought out many schemes. (ESV) Ecclesiastes 12:10–13 The Preacher sought to find words of delight, and uprightly he wrote words of truth. The words of the wise are like goads, and like nails firmly fixed are the collected sayings; they are given by one Shepherd. My son, beware of anything beyond these. Of making many books there is no end, and much study is a weariness of the flesh. The end of the matter; all has been heard. Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man. (ESV)

The book of Job is wisdom literature, like Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Song of Songs. What can we add to what has already been written on the Book of Job? Is it the oldest book in the canon as its historical milieu would place it, or was it written (down) much later? Is it merely a literary story meant to illuminate the relation between God and man-in-the-created-order, or is it historical? We are not so foolish as to claim that we know any of these answers, or how God has in fact put His word together, but we have learned not to put the plausible stories of man in the place of what He says in His word. We will never go far wrong if we simply trust what God says, being careful readers of scripture. What we do know is that Job is a masterpiece of literature by any metric, and one of (if not) THE greatest works of wisdom literature ever crafted. I cannot help but end with a quote from another such brilliant work: Ecclesiastes 7:23–29 All this I have tested by wisdom. I said, “I will be wise,” but it was far from me. That which has been is far off, and deep, very deep; who can find it out? I turned my heart to know and to search out and to seek wisdom and the scheme of things, and to know the wickedness of folly and the foolishness that is madness.... Behold, this is what I found, says the Preacher, while adding one thing to another to find the scheme of things — which my soul has sought repeatedly, but I have not found.... See, this alone I found, that God made man upright, but they have sought out many schemes. (ESV) Ecclesiastes 12:10–13 The Preacher sought to find words of delight, and uprightly he wrote words of truth. The words of the wise are like goads, and like nails firmly fixed are the collected sayings; they are given by one Shepherd. My son, beware of anything beyond these. Of making many books there is no end, and much study is a weariness of the flesh. The end of the matter; all has been heard. Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man. (ESV)

The book of Job is wisdom literature, like Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Song of Songs. What can we add to what has already been written on the Book of Job? Is it the oldest book in the canon as its historical milieu would place it, or was it written (down) much later? Is it merely a literary story meant to illuminate the relation between God and man-in-the-created-order, or is it historical? We are not so foolish as to claim that we know any of these answers, or how God has in fact put His word together, but we have learned not to put the plausible stories of man in the place of what He says in His word. We will never go far wrong if we simply trust what God says, being careful readers of scripture. What we do know is that Job is a masterpiece of literature by any metric, and one of (if not) THE greatest works of wisdom literature ever crafted. I cannot help but end with a quote from another such brilliant work: Ecclesiastes 7:23–29 All this I have tested by wisdom. I said, “I will be wise,” but it was far from me. That which has been is far off, and deep, very deep; who can find it out? I turned my heart to know and to search out and to seek wisdom and the scheme of things, and to know the wickedness of folly and the foolishness that is madness.... Behold, this is what I found, says the Preacher, while adding one thing to another to find the scheme of things — which my soul has sought repeatedly, but I have not found.... See, this alone I found, that God made man upright, but they have sought out many schemes. (ESV) Ecclesiastes 12:10–13 The Preacher sought to find words of delight, and uprightly he wrote words of truth. The words of the wise are like goads, and like nails firmly fixed are the collected sayings; they are given by one Shepherd. My son, beware of anything beyond these. Of making many books there is no end, and much study is a weariness of the flesh. The end of the matter; all has been heard. Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man. (ESV)

A study of Job Chapter 42 by Dr. Darrell Tate.

A study of Job Chapter 8 by Dr. Darrell Tate.

Job chapter 3 --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/shirley-cole-el/message

Our first conversation: The Book of Job https://youtu.be/35E-Jy7w0-8?si=iayCd4IqOAI9mMad An Atheist's Reese's Pieces to Jesus. Book of Job Chapter 2 https://youtu.be/CdstezOjspA?si=B2lAs_ZL-HS_Et14 Job 3: Diet, Depression, Jordan Peterson, CS Lewis, NT Wright, Apostle Paul  https://youtu.be/mgfS2J17Tco?si=DKZP_8S2Qqi0BRG- Christopher Alexander - Life in Buildings (Full) https://youtu.be/oKO3vYjZbcs?si=QVVqUo8Ij3REka5q   Paul Vander Klay clips channel https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCX0jIcadtoxELSwehCh5QTg Bridges of Meaning Discord https://discord.gg/JpHtVgXW https://www.meetup.com/sacramento-estuary/ My Substack https://paulvanderklay.substack.com/ Estuary Hub Link https://www.estuaryhub.com/ If you want to schedule a one-on-one conversation check here. https://calendly.com/paulvanderklay/one2one There is a video version of this podcast on YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/paulvanderklay To listen to this on ITunes https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/paul-vanderklays-podcast/id1394314333  If you need the RSS feed for your podcast player https://paulvanderklay.podbean.com/feed/  All Amazon links here are part of the Amazon Affiliate Program. Amazon pays me a small commission at no additional cost to you if you buy through one of the product links here. This is is one (free to you) way to support my videos.  https://paypal.me/paulvanderklay Blockchain backup on Lbry https://odysee.com/@paulvanderklay https://www.patreon.com/paulvanderklay Paul's Church Content at Living Stones Channel https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCh7bdktIALZ9Nq41oVCvW-A To support Paul's work by supporting his church give here. https://tithe.ly/give?c=2160640

A study of Job Chapter 2 by Dr. Darrell Tate.

The Book of Job chapter 2 --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/shirley-cole-el/message

A study of Job Chapter 1 by Dr. Darrell Tate.

A study of Job Chapter 1 by Dr. Darrell Tate.

Continued into chapter 2.

We are bringing it in with Job chapter 1.

Are you searching for wisdom in the world or the Word? Have you been duped by the priest of secular scientism? In this study from Job Chapter 28, Pastor Bunjee Garrett explains how believers can walk in God's wisdom. The post Job 28 appeared first on Calvary South Austin.

What is divine dominion, and how does this affect fallen man? In this study of Job chapter 25, Pastor Bunjee Garrett examines the relationship between a sovereign God and the cursed creation. The post Job Chapter 25 appeared first on Calvary South Austin.

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