MAY 30
Four other men are involved in this drama–all of them
friends of Job. Keep in mind that the events of this book cover
several months, and that friends and neighbors discussed Job’s case.
Eliphaz, from Teman, was the first speaker, and he based all
his ideas on a spiritual experience he had one night (see chapter
4:12-16). Bildad was a traditionalist who knew some wise sayings and
tried to build a case on them. Like Eliphaz, he was certain Job was
a hypocrite. Zophar was very dogmatic, and certain that he knew more
about God than anyone else. Each of these men argued with Job, and
Job argued with them. At the very end of the argument Elihu speaks.
He was younger than the others and had waited until his elders had
finished before he expressed his ideas. While the three older men
insisted that God blessed the righteous and judged the wicked, Elihu
said that God sometimes chastened–not punished–the righteous in
His own will. He asked Job to submit to God and trust Him, but his
attitude was still that of a judge and critic. When God did appear,
He made no reference to Elihu’s great speech.
Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar all follow the same line of
thought in their discussions with Job. They believe that all
suffering is the result of the justice of God and therefore is
punitive. So they preached to Job that whenever a Christian suffers,
it is because of sin. A careful study of the Word of God proves
their opinions to be definitely wrong. Many of God’s greatest
servants have suffered all through life. Even Paul had a thorn in
the flesh which he carried to his grave.
We do not need to understand why troubles come to us. We
simply need to understand that all troubles to the Christian come
from the hand of God for his own good. We also need to learn how to
rejoice in tribulation, and how to serve God faithfully, in spite of
our circumstances. There is no place for a quitter in the family of
God. Job is unquestionably one of God’s greatest giants in the Old
Testament era.