Most scholars translate the text in verse-13 to say: “he (God) is one…” vis-à-vis of one mind or purpose (Job23:13), then going on to say that the Lord is unchangeable. However, I think the better rendering is, according to the minority reading, “he is alone…” (so the Vulgate) and even, “it is he, himself, alone” (so Coverdale). The idea seems to be that no one is with God! That is to say, he has no partner, who would be powerful enough to disagree with him and thereby influence his will or purpose for mankind. Certainly, man is unable to change the Lord’s mind or will, but more to the point, neither is there anyone with God who would be able to do so. Thus, the Lord is unchangeable! Whatsoever he proposes to do is what he does, and no one is able to prevent that from occurring (Job 23:13-14; cp. Isaiah 55:8-11).
Job seems to conclude that death without vindication is inevitable, for he understands that his fate is not designed for him, alone. Rather there are many other instances that he could point to, whereby the innocent suffer and die without a favorable judgment on the part of the Lord – “…and many such things are with him” (Job 23:14). Job’s conclusion is given with a kind of moaning, wishing it weren’t true, but yielding to what he knows is true!
Therefore, Job says he is troubled at God’s presence, because the inevitable truth of the matter isn’t encouraging. Job feels helpless, in that the Lord is silent when he prays. God is immovable, unchangeable, and there is absolutely nothing Job is able to do to cause him to reconsider what he has done. So, he’s afraid of God. Job’s inner strength has been melted, and he finds himself troubled in the presence of this Almighty and relentless Authority (Job 23:15-16).
Job isn’t afraid of death, but he laments the fact that the Lord had not taken him in the midst of his prosperity. There, he had been known to be the friend of God, the one whom the Lord had blessed abundantly. Before his trials, Job was honored by men. He was a figure sought after in the gates of the city, and his name was unblemished. Now, however, the friends had labeled him as the chief of sinners (Job 4:7-8; 15:5-6; 22:5; cp. 1Timothy 1:15). Even he didn’t know why the Lord had treated him so terribly. Although he protested that he was righteous, appearances denied his words, according to the popular traditional beliefs, and he would go to his death with everyone believing he was a great sinner.
Hope had faded, as Job sought to remain above the dark waters of the Lord’s purpose for him. It was disheartening for him to be unable to see the order that must be in the chaos that is ever present before him (Job 23:17). He, therefore, concludes that his obedience to moral responsibility, and his sense of justice and truth were no more than worn out tools that don’t avail much in attaining the answers he seeks. With nothing left but a sigh of despair for life and vindication, Job must, finally, admit that the Lord is that Unknown God (cp. Acts 17:23), who was yet to be fully revealed in Christ. While it is true that God could be known to exist through the things he had created (Romans 1:20), the deep things about him, the unknowable things, the things not revealed in his creation, can only be taught us by the Spirit of God, which was yet to be given man (1Corinthians 2:10), because Christ had not yet come and was not yet glorified (John 7:39; 1Corinthians 3:17).
Smoodock's Blog 
38 responses to “It Is He, Himself, Alone!”
Have explained things with clarity. Mussar its never easy to accept. But mussar defines T’NaCH prophesy. The Holy Writings contained within the Hebrew T’NaCH (and not within the Xtian bible abomination) share a relationship exactly diplicated by the inductive common law logic format contained within the Mishna/Gemarah Talmud. To what does the opposing stands (warp & weft) of Holy Writings to Books of Prophets … Halacha to Aggadah? To understand this sealed kabbalah requires the wisdom of understanding the Oral Torah פרדס logic system. Its forbidden to teach kabbalah to Goyim.
Well its a very fine thing that you reject the 325 ce Nicene council creed abomination. The Yerushalmi Gemara on the Mishna codified in around 350 ce. The anarchy of post Jewish revolts against the Romans forced Jewish scholars living in Judean conquered lands which the Romans renamed Palestine, forced this Gemarah scholarship on the 6 Orders of the Mishna to terminate prematurely. Hence the scholars in Iraq/Babylon took up the yoke and codified the more developed Babylonian Talmud in about 450 ce. This scholarship due to the anarchy of those times in Iraq also terminated the scholarship on Mishnaic common law prematurely. But the Bavli serves as a vast improvement over the Jerushalmi common law codification. For the next 150 years the Sovaraim scholars edited the Talmud Bavli. The from about 600 to 950 the Gaonim scholarship delved into understanding the kabbalah of the Aggadic portions of the Talmud. This scholarship collectively known as Midrashim. Alas Iraq went into almost total anarchy in about 950, which terminated the Age of the Gaonim scholarship on the Talmud. The Reshonim scholars 950 to 1450 took up Jewish common law baton.
The end of the Reshonim period witness the public burning of the Talmud in Paris in 1442, consequent to the Jewish assimilation which once again Spanish Jewry lead the avoda zarah charge of embracing the rediscovered ancient Greek logic philosophies of Plato and Aristotle.
Aristotle rode with Alexander the Great when that mighty general conquered the Persian empire. The lights of Hannukka represent the dedication to learn the Talmud based only upon פרדס Oral Torah logic. If you look in the after meal blessing as found in the Siddur, you will see the blessing said during Hannukka wherein Jews validate the attempt made by the Syrian Greek empire to replace the Oral Torah logic system with the Greek logic system.
When Constantine 425 or there abouts seized power he made the Catholic church the dominant religion of Rome. The church placed all the ancient Greek writings into a ghetto like prison. Only monks permitted to read these ancient texts. This policy initiated the Dark Ages.
The Muslim invasion of Spain, the Muslims re-discovered the concealed writings of the Ancient Greek philosophers. The church, which stood totally unchallenged then embraced the publication of ancient Greek texts! An amazing about face.
The Jews of Spain who translated these rediscovered ancient Greek texts likewise assimilated to their powerful influence. These Spanish rabbis, known as the Golden Age of Spanish Jewry. What a terrible misnomer. Just the opposite. Ibn Ezra’s son converted to Islam! Virtually all the Jews of Spain “converted” to embrace Greek logic over the פרדס kabbalah of logic taught by Rabbi Akiva!!!
The Rambam originally came from Spain. But due to Muslim anarchy and chaos in Spain he fled at point of the Muslim dictate: convert or die to Egypt. That Jewish scholar, a totally assimilated Jew. Something like a Jews for JeZeus today.
He organized a halachic codification based upon Aristotle’s logic format rather than Rabbi Akiva’s logic Oral Torah. That damned assimilated Jew called his famous halachic code: The Mishna Torah! Bunk. That assimilated fool did not grasp that Mishna Torah, the Name for the 5th Book of the Torah, means “Common Law”. The Rambam’s perversion halachic code assimilated and switched Talmudic common law unto Roman statute law!!!!! Ouch.
Rambam published his statute law halachic abomination in about 1185ce. He died in 1205. Then the shit hit the fan. Rabbeinu Yonah court in Spain put the Rambam into נידוי charem in about 1215 and burned his assimilated statute law perversion of Talmudic common law.
During this time people did not travel much. A man might travel 10 miles distant from his home within his life time!!! But the fires of Jewish Civil War spread from Spain to France pretty fast. In 1242 the Pope and King of France burned all the Talmudic manuscripts. An unprecedented disaster, comparable to the destruction of the Temple by the Romans! The Zohar popped onto the masoret scene to attempt to repair the mesoret damage of the Goyim destroying all Talmudic manuscripts. (The discovery of the printing press, still 2 centuries into the future.)
Jewish civil war anarchy spread across all Western Europe. In 1290 England expelled all Jews. In 1305 France did the same. This expulsion destroyed the Rashi/Tosafot common law scholarship on the Talmud!!! The destruction of this central pillar of Jewish common law scholarship, the Rambam’s statute law perversion won. The opposite when Yechuda Maccabee defeated the assimilated Tzeddukim/Sadducee House of Aaron priests about 1000 years earlier. The Rambam Civil War succeeded in blowing out the lights of Hannukah. An absolute disaster. Jews forgot the פרדס Oral Torah logic system. Lighting the lights of Hannukah became an empty religious ritual for children to play with their dreidels.
The German kingdoms imposed taxation without representation upon Jewish exile/g’lut populations there. Having totally impoverished the g’lut Jewish communities across Germany, in about 1415 ce the Roman church imposed the Ghetto war crimes which lasted for about 3 Centuries till Napoleon gutted the Roman church and freed the Jews from our ghetto imprisonment. The Nazis about 1 Century later would again throw Jews into crushing ghetto environments to facilitate the 75% destruction of European Jewry in less than 3 years —- the Shoah.
Throwing German Jews and all Western European Jews into ghetto imprisonment. This Catholic decree cause Jews to flee this terrible criminal oppression, Jews fled to Poland and the Ukraine. A huge population transfer from Western to Eastern Europe occurred. In 1492 Spain made a mass expulsion of all Jews living in Spain. In 1648, in the same year which terminated the 30 years Reformation Catholic Protestant wars, (About as many Goyim murdered in this war as killed in WWI. Europe’s population size was about 1/3rd the size that lived during WWI!!!! In the same year as the Peace of Westphalia in 1648, exploded the 9 year Cossack revolt in the Ukraine and Poland! Jews who fled the Western ghetto decree obliterated in the Khmelnytsky Uprising!!! About 1.5 million Jews brutally murdered in that Cossack revolt.
If I seem hostile to you, perhaps you should bone up upon what and how Goyim treated my People.
Thank You. I have attempted to communicate clearly, as best as I know how.