JOB 21
Bildad and Zophar tried to use logic to silence Job, and their reasoning went like this: (a) God blesses the righteous but makes the wicked suffer; (b) Job is suffering; (c) therefore, Job is wicked. How reasonable!
But Job questioned their basic premise. He had often seen the wicked enjoying great blessing: long life, many descendants, peace and safety, riches, success, and days filled with joy. Yes, the wicked die, but even their death is often quick and easy (Ps. 73:1–14).
Job’s friends were looking at the outside of things and ignoring the heart (John 7:24). The test of godly character is not success but what people think about God (vv.
If comfort and wealth are evidences of holiness, our Lord was not holy, for He had little earthly comfort and wealth, and He died a terrible death on the cross. Perhaps you need to examine your own “logic” and see if you are thinking like God or like the devil (Ps. 1:1;
It’s an Illusion
Now we can better understand why the three friends were so hard on Job: they were afraid that trials might come to them as they did to Job. They protected themselves with a false theology that was born in the pit of hell: “If we obey God, He will bless us and protect us from suffering.” Job detected their fear (6:21) and refuted their reasoning, which made them angry. The three friends had a very shallow view of God and of faith and life, while Job penetrated the deep things of God. People who trust a false theology are living a life of illusion that one day will vanish.