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Job 30:20 I cry unto thee, and thou dost hear me: I stand up, and thou regardest me not.

As a part of the ongoing theme of the book Job pleads his innocence, that he does not deserve such punishment, that he wants to plead his case face to face, and he expresses his desire to see God and hear from Him. Here, Job complains that God is not answering his prayer. “I know God is real and that He is good, so why doesn’t He talk to me?”

Sometimes God remains silent, even though we pray urgently. How should we respond? We continue to pray, believing that God does indeed hear our prayers. David says, “Answer my prayers, O Lord, for your unfailing love is wonderful. Take care of me,, for your mercy is so plentiful [Psalm 69:16].” And Isaiah 65:24: “I will answer them before they even call to me. While they are still talking about their needs, I will go ahead and answer their prayers.” We continue to pray, believing God hears us, knowing He cares, and watching for His answers.

Jesus gave us access to His ear, and we know He hears us when we pray according to His will, which means through faith in Christ led by the Holy Spirit.

As it turns out in the end, God did hear Job’s cries and gave him an answer, though not the answer he expected. Trust the Lord, even if you don’t understand.

Job 26:2-3 How hast thou helped him that is without power? how savest thou the arm that hath no strength? How hast thou counseled him that hath no wisdom? and how hast thou plentifully declared the thing as it is?

With great sarcasm, Job attacked Bildad’s comments. His friends’ theological explanations failed to bring any relief because his friends were unable to turn their knowledge into helpful counsel. It is more helpful to be present, love, and understand people than to analyze and give advice. Compassion produces greater results than criticism or blame.

Job is already beaten down, sick, weak, and powerless. He doesn’t need any more guilt and blame heaped upon the suffering soul. When people are already feeling down and out they don’t need criticism and advice; they just need compassion and caring. Human response is often advice instead of care.

Jesus used the Word to afflict the comfortable and comfort the afflicted. The Law was spoken to the proud, smug, and self-satisfied Pharisee. The Gospel was applied to the humble, weak, and needy common person. The Godly person has the wisdom to know when to criticize the proud with Law, and when to comfort the humble with the Gospel.

The wise believer knows when hear words of Law and judgment on himself to bring oneself to repentance. Then he knows when to hear words of Gospel and mercy. Hearing the Word is a necessary step, but we also need the Spirit to teach us the situations in our life that need repentance (the Law) or faith (the Gospel). We may all listen to the Word and the Spirit to wisely apply blame or mercy to ourselves at the right time.

Job 25:4 How then can man be justified with God? or how can he be clean that is born of a woman?

Bildad’s final reply ignored Job’s examples of the prosperity of the wicked. Instead of attempting to refute Job, Bildad accused Job of pride because he was claiming that his suffering was not the result of sin. Job never claimed to be without sin, but only that his sin could not have caused his present trouble.

in the middle of his accusations, Bildad speaks a truth with a question that cannot be answered before Christ came. The truth is that no one can be justified with God by himself. And no human being can be clean or make himself clean from sin. However, the NT believer knows the answer to that impossible question: a sinful human being is justified by faith in Jesus Christ alone, and he believes that the blood of Christ cleanses from all sin.

Bildad asked the question presuming there was no answer, but we know that Christ is the answer. And we respond with faith in Christ, and we are justified and cleansed. The OT believer had to trust in the mercy of God which would in love send the Savior Messiah, but he could not yet know who that would be.

Job 24:13 They are of those that rebel against the light; they know not the ways thereof, nor abide in the paths thereof.

Job was cataloging the sins of the wicked, like exploitation, thievery, and murder. He was trying to imply that he is not like them, but is suffering unfairly. The sinner’s problem is that he rebels against the light. He wants to commit all his sins at night and in the darkness, so that no one will know. People rebelling against God prefer darkness to light. They want their sinful thoughts and actions to remain hidden.

Every sinner has secret sins that he tries to keep hidden from others. But Jesus says, “Everything that is hidden will eventually be brought into the open, and every secret will be brought to light [Mark 4:22].” So we live as though all our actions were out in the open. That is why Job was confused as to why God didn’t seem to have noticed, but he had faith that God would vindicate him in the end.

We too are sinners, rebels against God, and rebels against the light. We would prefer that no one finds out how sinful we really are. We all have secret sins that we try to keep from others, so we keep them in the darkness out of the light. We may, however, bring them before God in honest confession. God knows anyway. And in the Final Judgment all sins will be exposed to the light, except for those that have been washed away in the blood of Jesus.

Every day we are confronted with these choices: Rebel and hide, or confess and expose. Therefore, we repent daily.

Job 23:3-4 Oh that I knew where I might find him! that I might come even to his seat! I would order my cause before him, and fill my mouth with arguments.

Job’s response to his suffering and to the accusations of his friends was to ask Why, defend himself, and argue with God: “Why is this happening to me? I don’t deserve this. Come, talk to me so I can present my case.” He is pleading for an audience with God and looking for answers, in essence calling God unjust. God does in the end show up and speak demonstrating His awesome power and mysterious wisdom. Then Job’s response was to shut up. He repented and admitted that he doesn’t know what he is talking about or why he is complaining. He surrenders to God’s will, wisdom, and grace.

But for now his response is totally natural. Pain always produces anger. He argues with God, pleads his case, defends himself, accuses God, and demands an audience to air his grievance. Any time we ask Why? we are in essence accusing God of being unfair. This is the opposite of surrender to His will and trust in His mercy. We are saying that we know better than God. We want to be God instead. It is for this First Sin (“you will be like God”) that the Son of God entered our world to die for us to bring us humbly and thankfully into His Presence.

Job 22:26-27 For then shalt thou have thy delight in the Almighty, and shalt lift up thy face unto God. Thou shalt make thy prayer unto him, and he shall hear thee, and thou shalt pay thy vows.

Several times Job’s friends showed a partial knowledge of God’s truth and character, but they had a trouble accurately applying this truth to life. Such was the case with Eliphaz, who gave a beautiful summary of repentance. He was correct in saying we must ask God’s forgiveness when we sin, but his statement does not apply to Job in this instance, who was innocent.

We may always, any time, all the time delight in God, in His love, in the joy of the Lord, and in the peace of God that passes understanding. Lift up your face to God and stand boldly in His Presence for Jesus earned that spot for you. Then pray to God in Jesus’ name and He will hear you. This is a beautiful description of repentance and faith in Christ.

Repentance, faith, and prayer is our daily response to all the problems and pains of everyday living. No matter what else is going on in life, God is always there with forgiveness and an answer. He hears us and we are so thankful that we keep our promises.

Job 22:21-23 Acquaint now thyself with him, and be at peace: thereby good shall come unto thee. Receive, I pray thee, the law from his mouth, and lay up his words in thine heart. If thou return to the Almighty, thou shalt be built up, thou shalt put away iniquity far from thy tabernacle.

Eliphaz believed that suffering is God’s punishment for evil deeds, so he suggested several sins that Job might have committed. He wanted to restore Job, but first confession and repentance would be necessary. Conventional wisdom said that suffering is a punishment for some sin and physical blessing comes from being good. But Job contended that he was innocent.

This common belief is wrong thinking, of course, but it is the argument underlying the Book of Job. Nevertheless, Eliphaz is speaking a truth here, something that is good for all of us, in good times and in bad: acquaint yourself with God by renewing and strengthening your faith in Christ; receive the law with repentant faith; lay up his words of Law and Gospel in your heart by hearing and believing; return to God, compelled by His love.

The result will be peace and good and being built up. Hearing the Word produces faith which receives forgiveness, life, love, peace, and joy.

Job 21:14-15 Therefore they say unto God, Depart from us, for we desire not the knowledge of his ways. What is the Almighty, that we should serve him? And what profit should we have, if we pray unto him?

Unbelievers ignore, forget, push away, or deny God, intentionally, or even unintentionally. What’s in it for me if I serve God? What good do I get out of believing God? Prayer doesn’t work.

In this chapter, Job refutes Zophar’s idea that evil people never experience wealth and happiness. In the real world wicked people do indeed prosper. In this verse, the response of the wicked to prosperous times is to forget God and to think that they don’t need him. Prosperity is not necessarily a blessing when it leads to an attitude that thinks, “I don’t need God.” Living through good times can be more dangerous than living through bad times. It is too easy to ignore God and leave Him out of our life when things are going well. The heart gets hard, and then it gets harder for a hard heart to come to God when we need Him.

It is better for us to respond to life always with a need for and a dependence on God. The Law reminds us of our guilt and shame, weakness and emptiness, sinfulness and selfishness, no matter how outwardly good our life seems to be. The Law leads us to the Gospel in humility, repentance, and faith in Jesus. When life is hard we need the Good News of Christ. When life is soft we need the word of Law to bring us to Christ. We know there is an answer to the question “What’s in it for me?”

Job 19:25-26 For I know that my redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the earth: and though my skin worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall I see God.

This verse may be one of the most profound expressions of faith spoken in the Bible. In the midst of extreme suffering, loss, and pain, in the face of accusations by friends, and in the middle of suicidal thoughts, Job is enabled by his faith to respond with a powerful statement of faith in the bodily resurrection.

He knows well what anyone can see: the human, physical body decays and is totally eaten up with worms and maggots. But he is given a supernatural faith to see another and a future world, a new life in which he will stand in a new body in the presence of God, his Redeemer who lives. In this very resurrected body he himself will see God.

For the believer in Jesus Christ, this faith response of knowing my Redeemer lives, and I will live with Him, sustains me in all the trials and hardships of life.

Job 16:20 My friends scorn me: but mine eye poureth out tears unto God.

Though friends desert me, offer no comfort, and even scorn me, I will turn to God and turn my problems over to Him. “Do your friends despise, forsake, you, Take it to the Lord in prayer.” The world will disappoint us and let us down in the midst of our human suffering. It is then that we respond by turning to God in prayer. Pour your heart out to the Lord. He will listen.

The words “unto God” is the key. To what else would we turn when in need? This is the point: give it all to the Lord! He will handle it and work it out for good. Only He is the source of true comfort and encouragement. He may speak and comfort through other humans at times, but the He is still the source of comfort. We may turn to the Lord and pour out our tears to Him as a first resort, not as the last resort. He takes our tears and puts them in a bottle. There will come a day when God Himself will wipe away all the tears from our eyes.

After Job learned his lessons God restored to him his former blessings. We also go through life losing people and things, but the hope and promise of the Gospel assures us of Paradise restored.