In chapter nine we found Job answering Bildad’s argument, which concerned embracing what former scholars had come to believe as truth. He agreed with him that God is, indeed, great, brilliant and a mighty Creator, and it truly would be futile to oppose him. Not only so, but Job also argued that it would be futile to say one understood God well enough to speak for him, as Job’s friends seemed apt to do. In other words, what we think we know about God will fail. We know only in part (cp. 1Corinthians 13:8-12). Therefore, when we come to a fuller knowledge of him, we shall find that, what we thought we knew, must be discarded or amended in favor of what we have come to know in greater depth. In other words, one needs to be careful about judging others by what one sees through the lens of what one thinks he knows about God. In the context of Job’s friends judging him a great sinner, he claimed that, if that were true, God would be unjust, for the Lord had destroyed him for no good reason. That is to say, Job wasn’t so great a sinner that he deserved what the Lord had done to him, and Job struggled to understand why God had done so.
Job continues, now, by saying he is tired of life and simply wishes to die. All the good that life had to offer him is now past, and he tells us that he is unrestrained in his complaining and speaks out of the anguish of his soul (Job 10:1).
He turns to God and complains: don’t merely condemn me. Tell me why you are fighting me (Job 10:2). In other words, Job sees God as acting out of his sovereignty and afflicting Job without explaining why he is doing so. While the Lord certainly has that right as our Creator, Job expected him to act differently. First of all, Job claimed he saw nothing in his behavior that warranted such punishment, as he seems to have received at the hand of God, so he asks for an explanation.
Job wonders about three things, as they pertain to God, and he makes comparisons in an effort to show that the Lord seems to be acting like a mere man. First of all, why would God act like an oppressor? It seems obvious that oppressors treat folks miserably, because they enjoy doing so, but why would God act in this manner, as all appearances seem to indicate him doing? Whoever despised the work of his own hands (Job 10:3)? Yet, not only does God seem to have done so with Job, but he smiles or shines on the works of the wicked (cp. Job 9:24)! Why is that? What could possibly be the reason for such behavior? Men may act this way, but we expect something better from God. Don’t we?
Secondly, Job asks God if he had eyes of flesh that he saw him as men did (Job 10:4)? Doesn’t the Judge of the world look upon men differently than they do of themselves (cp. 1Samuel 16:7; Luke 16:15)? Presuming God’s thoughts are higher than men’s, why would God judge with partiality, punishing one, while letting another go free, although he who is set free is just as or even more wicked than his fellow? Why would God not simply destroy a sinner, instead of treating Job with such severity? Men are cruel, but shouldn’t we expect the Judge of the world to behave differently (cp. Genesis 18:25)?
Finally, Job asked if God’s days were as few as men’s that he was so shortsighted, presuming one’s life experiences produced wisdom (Job 10:5).[1] Does it become so great a God to have no forgiveness? Is God so small that he believes he must tally up and take into account each and every sin Job had ever committed (Job 10:6)? Is nitpicking how God spends his days? Is this what is important to him? If such were true, even before he had begun to count each sin, he must have known Job was a sinner. What’s the point, if no one could deliver himself out of God’s hand (Job 10:7)? Why would God need to go to such extremes, if he could do whatever he wanted, whenever he wanted and however he wanted? No one, not Job or even mankind as a whole, could prevent God from doing that which he intends to do. So, why act like a man, an oppressor? Why judge as a man does, with partiality and severity? Why appear to be so shortsighted, having no mercy or forgiveness. Since no one could ever successfully oppose you, why couldn’t you simply take my life and be done with it?
__________________________________________________
[1] If we consider only 70 years for a man, that would be 25, 550 days for a man, but God is eternal and lived as many years as man had days, and even much longer. Nevertheless, before the Flood men lived over 12 times as many years than men lived afterward, and Bildad thought this was evidence that they certainly were wiser than his generation (cp. Job 8:8-9). Yet, even 12 times as many years wasn’t enough to keep one from being shortsighted on important matters, according to Job.
Smoodock's Blog 