Job 2:1-13
Job's Loses His Health and Suffers
1 On another day the angels came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan also came with them to present himself before him. 2 And the Lord said to Satan, “Where have you come from?”
Satan answered the Lord, “From roaming throughout the earth, going back and forth on it.”
3 Then the Lord said to Satan, “Have you considered my servant Job? There is no one on earth like him; he is blameless and upright, a man who fears God and shuns evil. And he still maintains his integrity, though you incited me against him to ruin him without any reason.”
4 “Skin for skin!” Satan replied. “A man will give all he has for his own life. 5 But now stretch out your hand and strike his flesh and bones, and he will surely curse you to your face.”
6 The Lord said to Satan, “Very well, then, he is in your hands; but you must spare his life.”
7 So Satan went out from the presence of the Lord and afflicted Job with painful sores from the soles of his feet to the crown of his head. 8 Then Job took a piece of broken pottery and scraped himself with it as he sat among the ashes.
9 His wife said to him, “Are you still maintaining your integrity? Curse God and die!”
10 He replied, “You are talking like a foolish woman. Shall we accept good from God, and not trouble?”
In all this, Job did not sin in what he said.
11 When Job’s three friends, Eliphaz the Temanite, Bildad the Shuhite and Zophar the Naamathite,heard about all the troubles that had come upon him, they set out from their homes and met together by agreement to go and sympathize with him and comfort him. 12 When they saw him from a distance, they could hardly recognize him; they began to weep aloud, and they tore their robes and sprinkled dust on their heads. 13 Then they sat on the ground with him for seven days and seven nights. No one said a word to him, because they saw how great his suffering was.
Job 12:12
Wisdom as We Age
12 Is not wisdom found among the aged?
Does not long life bring understanding?
Proverbs 16:31
Gray Hair
31 Gray hair is a crown of splendor;
it is attained in the way of righteousness.
Proverbs 17:6
Grandchildren are a Crown to the Aged
6 Children’s children are a crown to the aged,
and parents are the pride of their children.
Proverbs 20:29
Gray Hair Splendor
29 The glory of young men is their strength,
gray hair the splendor of the old.
Leviticus 19:32
Respect the Elderly
32 Stand up in the presence of the aged, show respect for the elderly and revere your God. I am the Lord.
Psalm 92:12-15
We Will Still Bear Fruit in Our Old Age
12 The righteous will flourish like a palm tree,
they will grow like a cedar of Lebanon;
13 planted in the house of the Lord,
they will flourish in the courts of our God.
14 They will still bear fruit in old age,
they will stay fresh and green,
15 proclaiming, “The Lord is upright;
he is my Rock, and there is no wickedness in him.
Isaiah 46:3-4
God Knows Us All of Our Lives
3 “Listen to me, you descendants of Jacob,
all the remnant of the people of Israel,
you whom I have upheld since your birth,
and have carried since you were born.
4 Even to your old age and gray hairs
I am he, I am he who will sustain you.
I have made you and I will carry you;
I will sustain you and I will rescue you.
Mark 15:33-34
33 At noon, darkness came over the whole land until three in the afternoon. 34 And at three in the afternoon Jesus cried out in a loud voice, “Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani?” (which means “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”).
Isaiah 40:30-31
Throughout Life Always Hope in the LORD
30 Even youths grow tired and weary,
and young men stumble and fall;
31 but those who hope in the Lord
will renew their strength.
They will soar on wings like eagles;
they will run and not grow weary,
they will walk and not be faint.
I have read the statement that everybody suffers sometime in their lives, and I believe that this is true...Some suffer earlier in life and some make it to an older age before they suffer...It seems that as the years advance we quickly for some reason get a little more aged and our memory is lessened (at least for me), we grow weaker and have more issues with inflammation and soreness...The arms, our legs, our tendons and joints, as well as some of our organs (including our brain) do not work as well as they did twenty or thirty years ago...While we may fight the aging process with hopeful memory and strengthening pills, herbs, and helpful things for our joints, exercise, and other measures - we still continue to advance in years...
And as we age, let us grow in wisdom and understanding...Let us to cling to our faith as we age...
I personally marvel at the people who are in their nineties and still can run, exercise, golf, play tennis, and be constantly active...But sooner or later the advancing years seem to make their way to each one of us...Then there seems to be a toll of sorts...And often when we are used to being active and moving about a lot, our mood drops and we become a little depressed, and our positive attitude might change, as we slow down...It seems the years have stretched out its hand and struck our flesh and bones, and time has seemed to have cursed our youthful bodies, our hair, and our looks...And our friends when they have not seen us for a while and then see us years later, and especially seeing us from a distance, they might not recognize us...
And when I think of the lamentations, and sadness in our sufferings, I first think of the book, The Book of Job...Job's health was gone, it had been taken away from Him...Then I think of different Bible verses that give us this hidden hope in our lamentations, as one's life moves on...And as the Great Prophet Isaiah wrote even to your old age and gray hairs I AM He, I AM He who will sustain you...I have made you and I will carry you; I will sustain you and I will rescue you...
Even youths grow tired and weary and old, and as we age we might stumble and fall; but those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength...They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint...
Suffering and aging and lamentations may bring us hope...Let us look for the hidden hope in our lamentations...Like Job we wrestle with God in our sufferings...God knows that suffering leads to comfort and lamentations which move us to praise...We saw His Son's suffering, torture, cry of forsakenness, and then death be followed by His resurrection and new life...