It's Bildad's turn to speak, and he doesn't waste time mincing words. At least in the beginning. Something Job said must have angered Bildad, because he starts off pretty strong, calling Job a mighty wind and asking him how long he intends to bluster. By questioning Job, he infers that Job has accused God of perverting justice by bringing this calamity upon him, because surely it would not have happened if only Job were righteous! Bildad appeals to the example of history, reminding Job that they are only of a moment: their lifespan is nothing in the course of history (and they lived to be well over one hundred! Consider people today). Consult the time gone-by: did not the wicked perish and the righteous prevail? Or, look to nature: the wicked are like weak plants that wither easily, or a spider's house that can be batted away by a larger, more powerful hand. He insists that God will not reject a blameless man, that God would not strike down the righteous, but He would the sinner. Hadn't Job's children been struck down because of their sin? So, the same with Job.
It begins to strike me that we will be reading a lot of this similar material as Job's friends accuse him, coming at different angles, badgering him over and over to confess that he is a sinner. And Job, in his blamelessness, will be battered and bruised before he finally encounters God. I admit, the more I read the more angry I become with these "friends" and their arguments. They seem to speak more from stereotype than from understanding. More from assumption than knowledge. God does deal with the wicked and the righteous, and each does meet his just end, but in the interim God does many things in the way we humans wouldn't expect to work out His good purposes.
Which brings in advice from the New Testament. Job is an excellent book to discuss when you're pondering that question: "Why do bad things happen to good people?" The answer is later in the pages of Job. Right now, his friends are taking the stance that bad things don't happen to good people. But passages in Romans , Corinthians, and James suggest otherwise: Consider it all joy, brethren, when we encounter trials of all kinds; we are hard pressed, crushed, but not abandoned or destroyed. Difficulties produce perseverance, character, and hope, and hope never disappoints. (Paraphrases all.) We as Christians should expect difficult times. We should expect calamity and persecution. And use them as opportunities. I know how hard that sounds: I've experienced difficulties and trials recently, and we're still recovering. But you now what? They've also been amazing opportunities to see God work. Even to see some miracles. What will God bring to Job in the midst of his trials?
Tomorrow's Reading: Job 9:1-10:22
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