Job 13

“Behold, my eye has seen all this, my ear has heard and understood it. What you know, I also know; I am not inferior to you. But I would speak with the Almighty, and I desire to argue my case with God. As for you, you whitewash with lies; worthless physicians are you all. Oh that you would keep silent, and it would be your wisdom! Hear now my argument and listen to the pleadings of my lips.”

Job 13:1-6

Job continues his reply to Zophar – I already know all of this! I’ve probably said some of these things to you over the years. I’m not less than you. I’m not stupid. Stop speaking to me like I’m a child. Job calls his friends out for what they are – liars and fakes. You can’t cover this up with a coat of paint. This kind of suffering isn’t hidden by a decorative bow, or by a mound of flowers. You are “worthless physicians,” spiritual hacks. Job wishes they would just stop talking. That they would actually listen to his complaints with a desire to understand. They once sat silently with Job, in his suffering, for seven days. Job longs for that silence again. He warns his friends – they are walking an unstable path. They presume to speak for God, giving Job fake reasons.

“Will you speak falsely for God and speak deceitfully for him? Will you show partiality toward him? Will you plead the case for God? Will it be well with you when he searches you out? Or can you deceive him as one deceives a man? He will surely rebuke you if in secret you show partiality. Will not his majesty terrify you, and the dread of him fall upon you? Your maxims are proverbs of ashes; your defenses are defenses of clay.”

Job 13:7-12

There is a tangible fear that suffering just might be contagious. If I get too close to it in my life, will it jump onto me and sink its talons in, not letting go? Drawing near to someone in their suffering is meaningful and holy. Jesus paved the way for us in this by welcoming the sick, the suffering, sinners and untouchables. There is no fear in that space – love is greater than fear. Much of the advice and counsel Job’s friends offered came from a root of fear: fear of being judged by God, fear of losing everything as Job had, fear of suffering at this same level. They feared the contagion of suffering. To ward off this fear, they built a separation between themselves and Job – He must have sinned grievously for God to punish him like this. This won’t happen to me because I won’t sin like Job has sinned. God won’t judge me like this. Do we not see that this is a vain attempt to make God seem controllable and safe, tied up in a neat box with a tidy little ribbon? Job punches this false teaching in the teeth when he asks, “Will not his majesty terrify you, and the dread of him fall upon you?” He most certainly will search you out, friends.

Job longs to bring his argument before God. His friends have failed him; unable to hear his complaints without accusing him of grave sin. He only wants to take his argument to God, so he can be judged rightly and his sins be revealed, though he maintains his innocence.

“Behold, I have prepared my case; I know I shall be in the right. Who is there who will contend with me? For then I would be silent and die. Only grant me two things, then I will not hide myself from your face: withdraw your hand far from me, and let not dread of you terrify me. Then call, and I will answer; or let me speak, and you reply to me.”

Job 13:18-22

What a bold request! Job is asking God to remove His hand of affliction. He is also asking to stand face to face, on even ground with the Almighty, so that they can have a conversation. Job has questions for God, and desires them to be answered. I relate so much to Job’s description of himself as a “driven leaf” and “dry chaff.” These are hearty descriptors of how suffering and trauma suck the life out of a person and leave nothing but dry twigs behind.

“How many are my iniquities and my sins? Make me know my transgression and my sin. Why do you hide your face and count me as your enemy? Will you frighten a driven leaf and pursue dry chaff?”

Job 13:23-25

Let’s back up a little to verse 15. This has long been one of my favorite verses to quote and consider. I’ve used it as a measure of my own faith – do I trust God in the midst of adversity, suffering, trial, struggle, hardship, calamity? Do I trust God as Job does?

“Though he slay me, I will hope in him; yet I will argue my ways to his face.”

Job 13:15

In the footnotes of my ESV journaling Bible is an alternate translation for this verse. I love footnotes…usually. This one was weird.

“Behold, he will slay me; I have no hope; yet I will argue my ways to his face.”

Job 13:15 note

Is it just me, or do these translations say opposing things? The part that remains the same is well within the context of the whole passage. Job longs to argue his case before God. That is consistent throughout all of Job’s complaints. The alternate phrases for the beginning of the verse have me baffled. Is God going to slay Job? Is there hope for Job? Does Job trust God? This verse variation derailed me in my study for a few days. I had to dig for understanding. Sometimes, it’s so good to ask, “But, what does this MEAN?!” And then, to be frantic for the answer.

But, guess what? I didn’t find an easy answer. So, I zoomed back out on the whole chapter, and ultimately the whole book, to remind myself what the over-arching message is. What is the book of Job about, and why is it important for me to read and understand it? I know, this book is not about a man named Job. Sure, he’s a leading character, along with Bildad, Zophar, Eliphaz, and Elihu (he has a cameo towards the end of the book). The book isn’t about Job’s suffering, or his faith, or his failures, although they are part of the information in the book. This book is ultimately about God, the Almighty, as Job and his friends frequently call Him. This is a book about the character of God, His sovereignty, His goodness, His power over all things, His love for His children. My understanding of God has already been greatly expanded by this book. I’ve been reminded of truths I already knew that needed stronger roots, and I’ve been challenged in my perspective of God’s sovereignty in and through suffering.

Job has had enough of this suffering. In Job 7:1-3, we read that Job had already suffered for months. Months. The days must have blurred together, a gray lake in his mind. Chapter 13 is Job’s cry of complaint against seeming injustice and affliction from the hand of God. He is begging God to just stop. This is familiar ground. Like many others, I can say a hearty “Amen!” to Job’s request that God withdraw His hand of affliction.

Whether we read verse fifteen, “Though he slay me, I will hope in him,” or, “Behold, he will slay me; I have no hope,” we can be certain of the following:

• God decides when we die; our lives are in His hands (Deuteronomy 32:39; Acts 17:24-28; Psalm 39:4-5).
• We cannot hope to escape God’s determined time of our death (Psalm 139). Our lives are not our own (I Corinthians 6:19-20).
• God is completely trustworthy in all things: life and death (Psalm 73). He is our hope and our salvation (Psalm 71).
• When we die, we will be face to face with God at last (II Corinthians 5:6-10).

This past Sunday, our congregation sang together the words of Psalm 23. God provided an answer to my question about Job 13:15 using this Psalm of David. God does not leave us in the midst of our suffering, even if that suffering leads to the “valley of the shadow of death.” God is there, with us in our suffering, guiding, comforting, strengthening, protecting. We are His, and He is good to us.

"The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want.
He makes me lie down in green pastures.
He leads me beside still waters.
He restores my soul.
He leads me in paths of righteousness
for his name's sake

Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil,
for you are with me;
your rod and your staff,
they comfort me.

You prepare a table before me
in the presence of my enemies;
you anoint my head with oil;
my cup overflows.
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me
all the days of my life,
and I shall dwell in the house of the LORD forever."

-Psalm 23

Job’s desire to speak with God face to face to argue his case is echoed in Psalm 13. The final statements in this Psalm are key to living with and through suffering for the glory of God. Lord, may these words not be missing from my heart.

"How long, O LORD? Will you forget me forever?
How long will you hide your face from me?
How long must I take counsel in my soul
and have sorrow in my heart all the day?
How long shall my enemy be exalted over me?

Consider and answer me, O LORD my God;
light up my eyes, lest I sleep the sleep of death,
lest my enemy say, 'I have prevailed over him,'
lest my foes rejoice because I am shaken.

But I have trusted in your steadfast love;
my heart shall rejoice in your salvation.
I will sing to the LORD,
because he has dealt bountifully with me."

-Psalm 13

**When I have questions about what a passage means, I usually seek out commentators I know I can trust. I have found solid, helpful sources in John Stott, John Gill, John Calvin, C. S. Lewis, C. H. Spurgeon, Albert Barnes, and many others. My main source, and usually the first source I ask, is my husband, who also is my pastor. He has a wealth of wisdom and knowledge in the Word of God, and I would be stupid not to ask him for clarity and/or for direction to a good commentary. If you have questions about what you are reading in God’s Word, let me direct you first to your pastor. Second, I would direct you to C. H. Spurgeon. It is easy to simply google his sermons and his expositional comments on the passages he preached from.**