Bible Reading Challenge Blog

For today we only have Psalm 47 since we have already read together James 1-5.   Ironically, providentially, by God’s grace, I find myself today here at Universal Studios at a Starbucks enjoying some quiet time as the kids are off with the leaders doing their leader things.  But Psalm 47 is without a doubt one of the most powerful and energetic of Palms of praise.  “Shout to God with cries of joy.”  That’s what we are doing pretty much all week this week.  What a trip it has been.  Every single day the kids have shown resilience, hard work, determination, not a word of complaint or anger.  We have a group that is absolutely amazing and have done some significant work, to the point where those with whom they have worked have remarked on their cohesion and their work ethic.  

Praise be to God for them, their parents who raised them that way, and for the leaders who are instilling in them a desire to love and follow God with all of their heart, mind, soul, and strength.

We come to the end of another one of Solomon’s books.  He also wrote Proverbs and probably wrote Song of Solomon, hence the name of the book.  But this book of the Bible really focuses on not putting too much weight on your own planning for the future.  The verse that really struck me in this reading can be found in 9:11ff – “Again, I saw that under the sun the race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong, nor bread to the wise, nor riches to the intelligent, nor favor to the skillful; but time and chance happen to them all.  For no one can anticipate the time of disaster.  Like fish taken in a cruel net, and like birds caught in a snare, so mortals are snared at a time of calamity, when it suddenly falls upon them.”

We can prepare all that we want, but like Job, we can never predict what will happen in the future.  Our clean living does not translate into blessings of protection.  Solomon does encourage the young to rejoice in their youth.  The book then ends with this somewhat ominous, but true, saying.  “For God will bring every deed into judgment, including every secret thing, whether good or evil.”

Ecclesiastes is thought to have been written by King Solomon.  The description of himself is such that he can say in vs.12: “I the teacher, when king over Israel in Jerusalem, applied my mind to seek and to search out wisdom.”  We know that God provided Solomon with the type of wisdom that was godly.  No one else ever had the type of wisdom that Solomon had.  It also states that he had more wealth and more pleasure, and more concubines, and more of basically everything than any other king, yeah, that fits Solomon’s bill.

There are a few significant passages in these first 6 chapters.  The one that everyone knows is found in Ecclesiastes 3, to everything there is a season.  Think about what that means.  To everything there is a season, everything.  There are certainly some things that we would prefer would be eternally out of season, but that simply is not the case according to Solomon, and I’ll take his word for it.  

In chapter 4 we have Scriptures that Stacy and I used for our wedding and you heard the words: “Two are better than one…”  It continues and it provides a wonderful background for friendship and companionship and even marriage if you want to take that metaphor that far.  When it speaks about a threefold cord it isn’t much of a leap to talk about the three cords being the bride, groom, and Jesus.  Now that is a threefold cord.  

Now we begin to get some action.  God speaks out of a whirlwhind.  He addresses Job, but I think he also addresses Job’s friends.  Just think of how you might feel if you are decrepit and have just lost everything and God speaks to you out of a whirlwind.  You would be relieved either way.  Either because your suffering is over or because God is going to bring relief.  He asks Job a bunch of questions that have to do with the Providence of God and which only God can answer.  

Job answers briefly in 40 when he states that he is small and cannot compare with God.  God then lays into him again.  Job answers in 42 and states clearly: “I have uttered what I did not understand, things too  wonderful for me, which I did not know. ”  This posture of humility does wonders.  God then speaks and castigates Job’s friends telling them that Job was right all along and they were so terrible to him that Job has to offer a sacrifice to God because God will not accept one from them, only from Job.

Job offers that sacrifice and God rewards him with double of what he had before.  That isn’t the motivation to pursue righteousness, but it doesn’t hurt.

We pretty much hear from Elihu in this section.  Elihu comes down hard, really hard on Job.  At one point he says: “Those who have sense will say to me, and the wise who hear me will say: ‘Job speaks without knowledge, his words are without insight.'”  Talking about adding insult to injury.  Elihu continues for these 4 chapters plus a couple before them just pounding Job and his statement that he is innocent.  We don’t get a response from Job here at all.  In fact, the next person to speak, but that is for our next day, is God Himself.

In Proverbs we hear the wise one, that would be Solomon, who speaks about the Providence of God.  On the one had we hear: “When justice is done, it is ajoy to the righteous, but dismay to evildoers.”  This would make us think that he is kind of working the line of reasoning that in Job goes against Job.  But then he pulls out “No wisdom, no understanding, no counsel, can avail against the Lord.  The horse is made ready for battle, but the victory belongs to the Lord.” 

We find ourselves in a bit of a transition in these verses.  Job continues his defence and states that the way of God is bigger than we could ever predict or understand.  The ways of the bird of prey no one knows, the place of gold and silver to be mined is a mystery, wisdom is a fickle creature whom no one can nail down.  But God knows all of these things and God has established them. 

Job then lays out his righteousness and described how the tables have turned on him.  He describes specific sins like adultery, turning a blind eye to the causes of the poor or the orphan.  He states pretty clearly that this was not his way, he did not sin in this way.  Then we get this phrase: the words of Job ended.  That isn’t exactly the truth, but we do now get the words of Elihu.

Elihu again speaks strongly against Job and states that he has not been righteous.  That is the only explanation for his current condition is his unrighteousness.  He states that God delivers those who are righteous and pursue wisdom so surely he is unrighteous.  We have heard this line of reasoning before.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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There is some pretty vivid imagery here that both Job and his “friends” use to describe who God is and who the wicked are.  Job’s friends would describe Job as being wicked because his punishement is proof of his wickedness.  Eliphaz starts us off by asking Job if he thinks that he can at all contribute to God and to God’s plans?  He blames Job for chasing after gold as opposed to chasing after God. 

Job responds and challenges Eliphaz to show when he did that.  In fact, Job continues, he argues that wicked are the ones who benefit and receive rewards because they prey on the weak, the orphan and the widow.  The wicked, Job states: “are exalted a little while, and then are gone.”  Bildad responds and states bluntly that no one can be righteous before God.  Job responds that this may be true, but we cannot lay at the feet of God success as a result of righteousness.  

This goes back and forth somewhat ad nauseum.  

We do have a verse in Job that has become a song, and one that I really love.  Look at vs.25 and we read: “For I know that my Redeeer lives.”  It should take your mind to this:

 I think that is good enough for Job, but let’s move on to the end of Romans.  We find in 14 that declaration that one day every knee shall bow and every tongue shall confess…That comes from Isaiah 45:23.  

We find a similar argument with Job and his “friends”.  As he states after the last salvo of Eliphaz in 15: “miserable comforters are you all!”  In his current state he is not in a position to be taught the facts of life.  When we face tragedy it is nearly impossible to receiving teachings, verses that are blessings in other times of life, such as all things work for good for those who trust in the Lord, are actually curses when we find ourselves crushed by the Lord in these times.  Job is experiencing that now with his friends.

In Romans we have some very important reminders about the nature of God and about our nature as well.  We find the very familiar verses in 12:17 where we read: “Do not repay anyone evil for evil…”  I say that every Sunday in my benediction.  Paul’s primary point in these chapters is found 11:11 where we read: “because of their transgression (the Jews), salvation has come to the Gentiles.”  As a result of Israel’s disobedience the door was opened for gentiles, for us, to have a relationship with God.

Another one of Job’s friends speaks and this time he is not very diplomatic.  Basically he asks aloud who is going to stop this Job from speaking lies in regards to his current state.  Everyone knows that God punishes the wicked and rewards the good.  The deduction from this then, of course, is that Job is wicked and must confess his wickedness and then everything will go back to normal.  

Job counters and says you have said nothing new.  But who doesn’t know that God can do whatever God wants to do.  He can stop the water and there will be drought.  He can make the water come and there will be flooding.  All things are in the hands of God and we are not able to dictate, good or bad, according to our actions, good or bad.  It is God’s perogative to act and decide how God wants.  Not according to our actions as if God is somehow tethered and limited by what we do and what we don’t do.  

In Romans there is a bit of a more sophisticated argument in regards to faith and the Israelites.  Paul says a few times a similar theme to what we hear in Job which is found especially in 9:15: I will have mercy on whom I have mercy and  I will have compassion on whom I have compassion.  This points to the fact that God has chosen to act according to His will, and not our desires.  Look at vs.16 in that same chapter:  It does not, therefore, depend on man’s desire or effort, but5 on God’s mercy.  I’ll be happy to rely upon and count on God’s mercy as opposed to my effort.