Bible Study

*Just for your thoughts.*

**The Book of Job*
*Expository Commentary on the Book of Job*

Bible Study – 3*

The Period in Which Job Lived
Many scholars believe that Job lived sometime between 2100–1800 BC. During his lifetime, there is no indication that he saw God in a vision, heard God's voice directly, or received divine revelations through dreams. He did not possess the Mosaic Law or any written form of biblical revelation. Yet he believed in God according to the testimony of his conscience.
Unlike Abraham, he was not a man who received direct divine appearances. Nevertheless, Job was a man who correctly understood that there is a God and grasped, to a remarkable extent, who God is, what He is like, and how He governs His creation.
Because Job possessed this deep understanding of God and remained steadfast in his faith amid severe suffering, he stands in Scripture as one of the greatest examples of enduring trials. Job maintained his integrity to the very end.
He was the most prominent and wealthy man in his region. He was blameless and upright, a man who feared God and turned away from evil. Yet God permitted Satan limited authority and allowed Job to be tested.
The respected Bible scholar J. Sidlow Baxter summarized Job’s losses as follows:
His wealth
His children
His health
The fellowship and support of his wife
The sympathy and comfort of his friends
His sense of self-worth and dignity
His sense of fellowship with God
His appreciation of the goodness and justice of God's government
In summary, Job did not merely lose his possessions and children. He also lost his health, the support of his wife, the sympathy of his friends, his self-respect, his sense of nearness to God, and even his understanding and appreciation of God's righteous rule.
Many people in the Bible experienced suffering. However, there is a significant difference between their sufferings and Job's. In many cases, their trials extended over a long period of time. Among the people recorded in Scripture, Job appears unique in experiencing such a wide variety of devastating losses within such a short span of time.
Apart from Jesus Christ, if we were to point to a biblical model of suffering, Job would stand as one of the foremost examples. The depth of his suffering and his endurance despite not knowing the reason behind it are truly unique in Scripture.
Today, we live in a time when we hold the Bible in our hands. Every day of the year, we are continually given greater understanding and knowledge of God. The Holy Spirit has been poured into our hearts to guide us. He speaks to us through the Scriptures, and at times He may reveal Himself to some through dreams and visions. We also have the fellowship of the church to encourage and comfort us.
Yet, despite all these blessings, how we endure suffering is known fully only to God and to ourselves. Only God sees clearly how we receive and respond to our trials.
When we experience suffering, we must honestly examine ourselves. Are patience, endurance, praise, submission to God's sovereignty, honest questioning without abandoning Him, and steadfast devotion to Him evident in our lives?
Job received no clear divine revelation and possessed none of the biblical truths available to us today. Yet he knew God through the witness of his conscience and endured suffering in a truly remarkable manner. Though he asked many questions, God did not reject him. We should remember that.
We often desire to remain in a comfortable place where everything we want is available to us at all times. Rather than reading the Book of Job merely as a story or historical account, may God grant us grace to read it as a manual for learning how to endure suffering.
Every person's suffering is different. The nature and weight of suffering cannot be measured. We do not need to convince the world of how much we have suffered, nor do we need to advertise our pain.
One lesson I personally learn from Job's life is that suffering can often be endured quietly without publicizing it. It was only because his friends came to him that Job felt compelled to express his anguish. Otherwise, I imagine that he would have remained quietly on the outskirts of the city, waiting for God to deliver him in His own time.
At the same time, we see in Scripture that David, Jeremiah, Paul, and others openly expressed their sorrows and sufferings. Therefore, sharing our pain is not wrong. However, it is a noble quality to avoid turning suffering into self-promotion or seeking self-pity.
Handling suffering wisely is one way. Refusing to advertise our suffering or seek self-pity is another.