Job's Suffering Archives - Expound the Word

Job 40:6 to 42:6 – Behemoth and Leviathan

January 22, 2024Job

God’s speech to Job in Job 38–41 has two main parts. After the first part (chapters 38–39), God challenged Job:”Shall the one who contends with the Almighty correct Him? He who rebukes God, let him answer it” (Job 40:2). Job responded by confessing his insignificance and promising to say no more (40:3–5). But God was…

Job 36 and 37: With God Might is Right

January 8, 2024Job

The last part of Elihu’s long speech, chapters 36 and 37 in Job, has four parts. In 36:1–23 Elihu addresses Job and further defends the righteousness of God. In fact, this is really the theme of all of Elihu’s argument. In 36:24–37:1 (I think we have another bad chapter break here), Elihu exhorts Job to…

Job 32 and 33: Elihu Gets It Right

December 26, 2023Job

There is a lot of judging going on in the first few verses of chapter 34. Job’s friends judge that it is useless to continue to argue with Job because he is righteous in his own eyes. Job judges that he is righteous and his friends are unjust. Elihu judges both Job and his friends;…

Job 25 and 26: What Does the Greatness of God Mean for Men?

December 5, 2023Job

Chapters 25 and 26 are the last interchange between Job and his three friends. Eliphaz has already spoken three times, Bildad now speaks for the third time very briefly, and there is no third speech of Zophar. Clearly the friends are giving up on persuading Job that they are right, that his suffering is due…

Job 22 to 24: How Does God Deal with Oppressors of the Poor?

November 6, 2023Job

Chapters 22 to 24 of Job record the first interchange in the third round of speeches between Job and his friends. Eliphaz speaks first in this round just as in the others (chapter 22), and the length of his speech is about the same as most of the others. But Bildad’s speech in this round…

Job 18 and 19: I Know that My Redeemer Lives

October 24, 2023Job

In Chapter 18 Bildad continues with the same theme that he, Eliphaz and Zophar had been developing all along—the judgment of God that comes on the wicked. And in chapter 19 Job replies in the same manner as before—that unconfessed sin was not the explanation for his suffering. In fact, in chapter 19 he goes…

Job 16 and 17: O Earth, Do Not Cover My Blood

October 16, 2023Job

Chapters 15 to 17 in the book of Job record the second interchange between Eliphaz and Job. In chapter 15 Eliphaz is much more severe with Job than he had been in his first speech. After listening to Job’s protestations of innocence and complaints against God, he became convinced that Job had sinned and even…

Job 13:20 to 14:22: Contending with God

October 5, 2023Job

Job’s answer to the first speech of Zophar, the third of his friends, is found in chapters 12–14. This speech has two main parts. In the first part (12:6–13:19) Job describes for the benefit of his friends some of the destructive and mysterious ways of God. His point is that the wisdom of God (12:13f)…