Job 6:1-1-30
The Arrows of our Almighty
1 Then Job replied:
2 “If only my anguish could be weighed
and all my misery be placed on the scales!
3 It would surely outweigh the sand of the seas—
no wonder my words have been impetuous.
4 The arrows of the Almighty are in me,
my spirit drinks in their poison;
God’s terrors are marshaled against me.
5 Does a wild donkey bray when it has grass,
or an ox bellow when it has fodder?
6 Is tasteless food eaten without salt,
or is there flavor in the sap of the mallow?
7 I refuse to touch it;
such food makes me ill.
8 “Oh, that I might have my request,
that God would grant what I hope for,
9 that God would be willing to crush me,
to let loose his hand and cut off my life!
10 Then I would still have this consolation—
my joy in unrelenting pain—
that I had not denied the words of the Holy One.
11 “What strength do I have, that I should still hope?
What prospects, that I should be patient?
12 Do I have the strength of stone?
Is my flesh bronze?
13 Do I have any power to help myself,
now that success has been driven from me?
14 “Anyone who withholds kindness from a friend
forsakes the fear of the Almighty.
15 But my brothers are as undependable as intermittent streams,
as the streams that overflow
16 when darkened by thawing ice
and swollen with melting snow,
17 but that stop flowing in the dry season,
and in the heat vanish from their channels.
18 Caravans turn aside from their routes;
they go off into the wasteland and perish.
19 The caravans of Tema look for water,
the traveling merchants of Sheba look in hope.
20 They are distressed, because they had been confident;
they arrive there, only to be disappointed.
21 Now you too have proved to be of no help;
you see something dreadful and are afraid.
22 Have I ever said, ‘Give something on my behalf,
pay a ransom for me from your wealth,
23 deliver me from the hand of the enemy,
rescue me from the clutches of the ruthless’?
24 “Teach me, and I will be quiet;
show me where I have been wrong.
25 How painful are honest words!
But what do your arguments prove?
26 Do you mean to correct what I say,
and treat my desperate words as wind?
27 You would even cast lots for the fatherless
and barter away your friend.
28 “But now be so kind as to look at me.
Would I lie to your face?
29 Relent, do not be unjust;
reconsider, for my integrity is at stake.
30 Is there any wickedness on my lips?
Can my mouth not discern malice?
Job is the classic book on pain and suffering...Job tells us that the arrows of the Almighty are in me...This is not a pretty picture...To have God shooting arrows at us is not a good thing...Job talks about his woes and says his food makes him ill...He tells us that God would crush him, and should loosen his hand and to cut him off...During Job's pain and suffering, he has not denied the words of the Holy One...Job seems to believe God has judged him and found him guilty and God is punishing him with arrows of suffering...Job is suffering greatly, but still does not deny His God...
Suffering seems to have two doors...There maybe good suffering and maybe we have a bad type of suffering...We know some sufferings build and strengthen character...Jesus suffered greatly when He was beaten before His death...Then He was put on the cross...He was on the cross for us for many hours, and suffered tremendously...While His suffering was terrible for Him and makes that day a very sad day...But His suffering (and then His death) saves us from our personal sins, and in that sense makes the day He suffered, a glorious day...So while we are suffering, it maybe hard to distinguish the two kinds of good and bad suffering...After Jesus' great suffering, He would ascend to His Father...He gets to go back and see His Father...
Job suffered...The suffering of Job was what brought about the Presence of God (for him)...Job's suffering was like a door to His Presence...Job did not deny the words of God or God Himself...Jesus never denied the words of God...Maybe we need some suffering to get closer to God...When we suffer, maybe we pray more, or realize we need His Presence...Jesus teaches us that blessed are those who weep now (Luke 6:21) in His Great Sermon on the Plain...And in His Great Sermon of the Mount, He teaches us, blessed are those who mourn (Matthew 5:4)...We sometimes cry when we suffer...Maybe He is teaching us that some types of suffering are good for the soul...