Job 16:1-22
Miserable Comforters
1 Then Job replied:
2 “I have heard many things like these;
you are miserable comforters, all of you!
3 Will your long-winded speeches never end?
What ails you that you keep on arguing?
4 I also could speak like you,
if you were in my place;
I could make fine speeches against you
and shake my head at you.
5 But my mouth would encourage you;
comfort from my lips would bring you relief.
6 “Yet if I speak, my pain is not relieved;
and if I refrain, it does not go away.
7 Surely, God, you have worn me out;
you have devastated my entire household.
8 You have shriveled me up—and it has become a witness;
my gauntness rises up and testifies against me.
9 God assails me and tears me in his anger
and gnashes his teeth at me;
my opponent fastens on me his piercing eyes.
10 People open their mouths to jeer at me;
they strike my cheek in scorn
and unite together against me.
11 God has turned me over to the ungodly
and thrown me into the clutches of the wicked.
12 All was well with me, but he shattered me;
he seized me by the neck and crushed me.
He has made me his target;
13 his archers surround me.
Without pity, he pierces my kidneys
and spills my gall on the ground.
14 Again and again he bursts upon me;
he rushes at me like a warrior.
15 “I have sewed sackcloth over my skin
and buried my brow in the dust.
16 My face is red with weeping,
dark shadows ring my eyes;
17 yet my hands have been free of violence
and my prayer is pure.
18 “Earth, do not cover my blood;
may my cry never be laid to rest!
19 Even now my witness is in heaven;
my advocate is on high.
20 My intercessor is my friend
as my eyes pour out tears to God;
21 on behalf of a man he pleads with God
as one pleads for a friend.
22 “Only a few years will pass
before I take the path of no return.
Job had great friends but they could not comfort him...They are searching for Job's hidden sin, that he cannot remember or has forgot...Job's answer back to Eliphaz, seems to be a complaint to those who are trying to help him...The reason they could not comfort him, is that some questions in life and on earth, we are not able to answer...There are some things that happen to us, that we just can't understand or find the answer...When Job asks why his pain cannot be relieved, he sees that it cannot be helped or healed by Eliphaz, Bildad, or Zophar...They did not have the wisdom of why Job was in pain and suffering...They do not really know why he is suffering...They try to help him, and he listens and hears their many answers...Sometimes, when one is in so much pain, we can only be miserable comforters...We are often empty in our words and cannot give out great words of wisdom when a good friend or family member is suffering...We often say "call me if you need anything." or "if I can help, let me know."...Job was suffering greatly and was looking for the reason and purpose of his pain...His three friends words were hollow to him...Job wants some real answers to his real pain and why he is suffering so much...
Job tells God that You assail me and tear me in anger and You gnash Your teeth at me; my Opponent fastens on me with his piercing eyes...Men open their mouths to jeer at me...God has turned me over to evil men and in the clutches of the wicked...When we suffer like this, we often think God is unfair and seems to be treating us unfairly...We ask God why are You doing this to me, help me understand?...
When we suffer on earth, we sometimes get completely fatigued, eyes hurts, anxiety levels get high, and the pain can seem endless...Job is searching for the answers and wisdom to his sufferings...He asks God for a way to plea his case to Him, like the way a man would plead for his friend...Job is persistent and some say patient...But, again, there are some answers to questions we do not know on earth...Even the wisest and greatest of friends cannot answer all our questions...They can help by being there for support...Being there (as a friend) with Job for this support means much when you are suffering...
Only God has all the answers to all questions...And Job says he pours out his tears to Him...Job knows that God is the One that allows these things (verse 9) to happen, he also knows that God is his only hope...All Job's family and blessings were taken away and Job still is seeking God...Job is doing His best to trust in the LORD...Job's friends in their wisdom cannot help or answer Job's questions...God alone is wise in these matters...God's mercy saves Job...