Job 9

“You may be as orthodox as the devil, and as wicked.” —J W As the discussion continues, Bildad presents three logical arguments to prove Job is guilty; and Job counters with three painful questions to help his friends understand how perplexed and tormented he really is.

From this point on, the emphasis in the discussion is on the justice of God; and the image that is uppermost in Job’s mind is that of a legal trial. He wants to take God to court and have opportunity to prove his own integrity. A glance at some of the vocabulary indicates this: contend (Job 9:3; 10:2) = enter into litigation answer (9:3, 16) = testify in court judge (v. 15) = an opponent at law, accuser set a time (v. 19) = summon to court daysman (v. 33) = an umpire, an arbitrator reason (13:3) = argue a case order my cause (v. 18) = prepare my case plead (v. 19; 23:6) = dispute in court hear me (31:35) = give me a legal hearing adversary (v. 35) = accuser in court

In Job 9 and 10, Job asks three questions: [1] “How can I be righteous before God?” (9:1–13) [2] “How can I meet God in court?” (vv. 14–35) and [3] “Why was I born?” (10:1–22; see v. 18). You can see how these questions connect. Job is righteous, but he has to prove it. How can a mortal man prove himself righteous before God? Can he take God to court? But if God doesn’t step in and testify on Job’s behalf, what is the purpose of all this suffering? Why was Job even born?

“How can I be righteous before God?” (Job 9:1–13). This is not a question about salvation (“How may I be justified?”) but about vindication (“How can I be declared innocent?”). If a man tried to take God to court, he would not be able to answer God’s questions one time in a thousand! Yet Job doesn’t know any other way to clear himself before his friends.

Most of this section is a declaration focusing on the attributes of God, especially His invincible wisdom and power that control the earth and the heavens. Would anybody dare go to court with an opponent powerful enough to shake the earth, make the stars, and walk on the waves? (See Isa. 44: and Amos 4:13.)

But God is not only invincible, He is also invisible. Job couldn’t see Him or stop Him to give Him a summons to court. God can do whatever He pleases, and nobody can question Him! Even the monster Rahab (Job 9: niv, another mythological creature like Yam and Tannin, 7:12) has to bow before God’s power.

“How can I meet God in court?” (Job 9:14–35). In order to prove himself righteous, Job had to take God to court. But suppose God accepted the summons? What would Job say or do? He discusses this by imagining several situations.

(1) “If God came, what would I say?” (vv. 14–19). How could Job answer God’s cross-examination? How does one reason with God or present one’s case before God? If God should answer, Job would not believe it was really His voice; and if Job should say the wrong thing, God would only afflict him more. When Job finally did meet God (Job 38–41), the Lord asked him seventy-seven questions! And Job couldn’t answer one of them! His only response was to admit his ignorance and shut his mouth in silence.

(2) “If I could declare my innocence, what then?” (vv. 20–24). This is no assurance that God will set Job free. Both Eliphaz and Bildad claimed that God rewards the righteous and judges the wicked, but Job said that sometimes God destroys both the righteous and the wicked. Wicked judges condemn the righteous and help the ungodly, and God apparently does nothing about it. Job is accusing God of injustice, not only toward Job and his family but also toward other innocent people in the land.

(3) “If I try to be happy, what good will it do?” (vv. 25–31). Time was running out for Job, like the king’s messengers who hasten to their destinations, and the papyrus boats in Egypt that skim swiftly down the river, and the eagle that swoops down from the sky. Perhaps Job should take a more positive attitude toward his afflictions, forget his pain, and smile (v. 27). But would that change anything? No! He would still be guilty before God, rejected by his friends, and sitting on an ash heap in sickness and pain. Even if he took a bath and changed clothes as an act of public contrition and cleansing, he would still fear what God might do. Job is convinced that God is against him and that any steps he takes on earth will be nullified by heaven. The defendant can smile and put on a brave front in court, but that doesn’t keep the judge from saying, “Guilty!”

(4) “If only I had a mediator!” (vv. 32–35). If God were a man, then Job could approach him and plead his case. Or if there were a “daysman” (mediator) between God and Job, he could take away the rod of judgment and bring Job and God together. But God is not man, and there is no mediator! This is where Jesus Christ enters the picture! Jesus is God and became man to reveal the Father (John 14:7–11) and to bring sinners to God (1 Tim. 2:5–6; 1 Peter 3:18). He is the “daysman” that Job was pleading for centuries ago (Job 16:21).

“Why was I born?” (Job 10:1–22). Job’s argument here is that God made him and gave him life (vv. 3, 8–12, 18–19), but God was not treating him like one of His own creations. After putting time and effort into making Job, God was destroying him! Furthermore, God was judging Job without even telling him what the charges were against him (v. 2). No wonder Job was weary, bitter, and confused (vv. 1, 15). Note that in this chapter Job speaks directly to God and not to his friends.

God is not a man that He has to investigate things and fight against time (vv. 4–6). God is eternal and can take all the time He needs, and God is all-knowing and doesn’t have to investigate like a private detective. Job had previously yearned for an umpire (9:33), but now he asks for a deliverer (10:7) so he can escape judgment. God was an ever-present Guard, watching Job’s every move (v. 14). He was stalking Job like a lion (v. 16) and attacking him with His army (v. 17). Job was hemmed in, and there was no way out.

So Job’s question seems reasonable: “Why then did you bring me out of the womb?” (v. 18 niv) Job’s existence on the earth seemed so purposeless he begged God to give him a few moments of peace and happiness before his life ended. He could see his life going by swiftly (7:6–7; 9:25–26), and there was not a moment to waste. “Let me alone,” he prays, “so that I can have a little comfort before I go to the world of darkness.”

Job could not understand what God was doing, and it was important that he not understand. Had Job known that God was using him as a weapon to defeat Satan, he could have simply sat back and waited trustfully for the battle to end. But as Job surveyed himself and his situation, he asked the same question the disciples asked when Mary anointed the Lord Jesus: “Why this waste?” (Mark 14:4). Before we criticize Job too severely, let’s recall how many times we have asked that question ourselves when a baby has died or a promising young person was killed in an accident.

Nothing that is given to Christ in faith and love is ever wasted. The fragrance of Mary’s ointment faded from the scene centuries ago, but the significance of her worship has blessed Christians in every age and continues to do so. Job was bankrupt and sick, and all he could give to the Lord was his suffering by faith; but that is just what God wanted in order to silence the devil.

When William Whiting Borden died in Egypt in 1913 while on his way to the mission field, some people may have asked, “Why this waste?” But God is still using the story of his brief life to challenge people to give Christ their all.

When John and Betty Stam were martyred in China in 1934, there were some who asked, “Why this waste?” But The Triumph of John and Betty Stam by Mrs. Howard Taylor has been a life-changing book since it was published in 1935. My girlfriend (now my wife) gave me a copy on my twenty-first birthday, and its message still grips my heart.

When the five missionaries were martyred in Ecuador at the hands of Auca Indians, some called the event a “tragic waste of manpower.” But God thought differently, and the story of these five heroes of faith has been ministering to the church ever since.

Job asked, “Why was I born?” In the light of his losses and his personal suffering, it all seemed such a waste! But God knew what He was doing then, and He knows what He is doing now.

“You have heard of Job’s perseverance and have seen what the Lord finally brought about,” wrote James. “The Lord is full of compassion and mercy” (James 5: niv). If you had told that to Job, he might not have believed it; but it was still true.

It was true for him, and it is true for us today.

Believe it!