- He was righteous. We see this in verse 1: “This man was blameless and upright; he feared God and shunned evil.”
- He was rich. In verse 2-3 we read that “He had seven sons and three daughters, and he owned seven thousand sheep, three thousand camels, five hundred yoke of oxen and five hundred donkeys, and had a large number of servants. He was the greatest man among all the people of the East.”
- He was religious. In verse 4 we discover that Job “sacrificed a burnt offering” for each of his children and we read that this was his “regular custom.”
By the world’s standards, Job was successful and by God’s standards he was a spiritual man. And then Satan receives God’s permission to put Job to the test. Job’s brokenness comes as a result of four big bombshells. First, his livestock is stolen and his servants are killed. Second, a fire “from God” destroys his sheep. Third, his camels are confiscated. The fourth messenger of misfortune follows quickly on the heels of the other three when all of his children are killed. In the space of a few minutes, Job lost everything that was dear to him. It was bad and then it got worse and then it got terrible and then it became unbearable. This all left him broken…and then his health was taken from him as well. On top of that, he had to listen to the advice of “friends” who were more like enemies to him.
In verses 20-21, Job’s initial response is to weep: “He got up and tore his robe and shaved his head.” But he also does something else that is not very common. When faced with all that had happened, Job also worshipped: “Then he fell to the ground in worship…The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away; may the name of the Lord be praised.” His emptiness caused him to exclaim that God is enough. In the midst of his pain, he is able to praise God. He does two things: he weeps and he worships. But he also does not do something in verse 22: “In all this Job did not sin by charging God with wrongdoing.” He refused to say God was wrong! What a good corrective for us.
After leaving chapter one, Job enters another test when he is afflicted with sores and his body begins to break down. He receives another blow and is broken further when his bride urges him to bail on God in 2:9: “Are you still holding on to your integrity? Curse God and die!” Job’s response shows that he understands the character of God when he says, “Shall we accept good from God and not trouble?”
Don’t miss the significance of why the name El Shaddai is used more in the Book of Job than in any other book. As we have established, when we are most empty, God is most evident. Maude Royden has said, “When you have nothing left but God, then you become aware that God is enough.” Let’s do a brief survey of how El Shaddai is referenced several times in the remainder of this book.
- He was righteous. We see this in verse 1: “This man was blameless and upright; he feared God and shunned evil.”
- He was rich. In verse 2-3 we read that “He had seven sons and three daughters, and he owned seven thousand sheep, three thousand camels, five hundred yoke of oxen and five hundred donkeys, and had a large number of servants. He was the greatest man among all the people of the East.”
- He was religious. In verse 4 we discover that Job “sacrificed a burnt offering” for each of his children and we read that this was his “regular custom.”
By the world’s standards, Job was successful and by God’s standards he was a spiritual man. And then Satan receives God’s permission to put Job to the test. Job’s brokenness comes as a result of four big bombshells. First, his livestock is stolen and his servants are killed. Second, a fire “from God” destroys his sheep. Third, his camels are confiscated. The fourth messenger of misfortune follows quickly on the heels of the other three when all of his children are killed. In the space of a few minutes, Job lost everything that was dear to him. It was bad and then it got worse and then it got terrible and then it became unbearable. This all left him broken…and then his health was taken from him as well. On top of that, he had to listen to the advice of “friends” who were more like enemies to him.
In verses 20-21, Job’s initial response is to weep: “He got up and tore his robe and shaved his head.” But he also does something else that is not very common. When faced with all that had happened, Job also worshipped: “Then he fell to the ground in worship…The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away; may the name of the Lord be praised.” His emptiness caused him to exclaim that God is enough. In the midst of his pain, he is able to praise God. He does two things: he weeps and he worships. But he also does not do something in verse 22: “In all this Job did not sin by charging God with wrongdoing.” He refused to say God was wrong! What a good corrective for us.
After leaving chapter one, Job enters another test when he is afflicted with sores and his body begins to break down. He receives another blow and is broken further when his bride urges him to bail on God in 2:9: “Are you still holding on to your integrity? Curse God and die!” Job’s response shows that he understands the character of God when he says, “Shall we accept good from God and not trouble?”
Don’t miss the significance of why the name El Shaddai is used more in the Book of Job than in any other book. As we have established, when we are most empty, God is most evident. Maude Royden has said, “When you have nothing left but God, then you become aware that God is enough.” Let’s do a brief survey of how El Shaddai is referenced several times in the remainder of this book.