Job 18

It’s so hard to give more time to Bildad. But God allows him this space to say what he said, to accuse Job yet again. And if I am weary of the words Bildad utters, how much more was Job weary! And if Job was weary of Bildad’s inane diatribe, how much more God, Who knows all things?

Notice that Bildad says less and less as the book progresses. He is truly the one who is on a hunt for words. He’s running out of ideas, lacking creative ways to incriminate his friend. We will hear from Bildad once more in the story, in chapter twenty-five. His final words are a mere six verses. His accusations are losing air like a leaky balloon.

“How long will you hunt for words? Consider, and then we will speak. Why are we counted as cattle? Why are we stupid in your sight? You who tear yourself in your anger, shall the earth be forsaken for you, or the rock be removed out of its place?”

Job 18:1-4

Bildad questions if Job feels he is so important that the whole earth should be affected by his complaint or by his suffering. Yes, actually. Job may have understandably thought this. When we suffer or experience loss, it seems as though everything should stop and grieve with us, grieve for us. Yet, life is determined to go on around us as if nothing has changed – flowers bloom, rain falls, cars zip past; our hearts keep beating even, steady and solemn. I have often looked at grief as a step outside of time, just for a bit. Just long enough to catch our breath, notice the loss, experience the sorrow, and then step back into the swiftly-flowing stream. I understand why some hold to the tradition of stopping the clocks in a household when a family member dies – a tangible way to express this feeling of stopping the world for our grief.

Bildad seems confident that Job has committed sin and is being punished for it. He describes what happens to the unrighteous man, implying this is what is coming for Job. Bildad is missing the truth again, or rather, misapplying the truth. God does punish the wicked, but He also shows mercy, allowing time for them to repent. Here are some nuggets of truth in Bildad’s description of the unrighteous man:

• He lives in darkness (v. 5-6).
• He falls into his own traps (v. 7-10).
• He lives in constant fear (v.11).
• His strength fails (v.12).
• Death comes for him (v. 13-16).
• His name and legacy are erased (v. 17-19).
• He becomes an object lesson of what not to do (v. 20).
• He experiences all of this because he does not know God (v. 21).

The takeaway? Bildad doesn’t know everything he thinks he knows – about God, about Job, about himself. God is just and will judge the wicked in His determined time. Job is suffering, imperfect, and in need of compassion and encouragement. Bildad has once again missed the mark in his accusation of Job. Are we surprised? Not at all. All three of Job’s friends have been wrong in their assessment from day one. At least they’re consistent.

But here is the truth I want to grab hold of and really consider: The unrighteous do not know God. Though He has declared Himself in all of creation (Psalm 19), though His wisdom cries out to the simple to follow her (Proverbs 1-3), though He has come and lived with us as Immanuel (Isaiah 7-8; Matthew 1), the unrighteous have closed their eyes and stopped their ears to His beautiful call. We have no excuse. He has revealed Himself to us and has shown us His righteousness (Romans 1-3). Those who continue in wickedness do so by personal choice. They live in darkness, fall into their own traps, fade away, lose strength, and die in their unrighteousness by choice. Failure and fear, darkness and death are decisions with eternal impact.

“Surely such are the dwellings of the unrighteous, such is the place of him who knows not God.”

Job 18:21