You Are the One: God is God (Job 38:1-11)

“You're the one, who made the Heavens. You're the one, who shaped the earth.” – Lincoln Brewster 🌌

Dear dark deliberator,

I’m talking to the depressed Job in you (and me, too), to the one facing hardship that made them blue, to the one who asks God, “Why did You allow this for me to go through?”

Let’s hear what He has to say.

Job 38:1-11 (NASB)

Then the Lord answered Job from the whirlwind and said,

² “Who is this who darkens the divine plan

By words without knowledge?

³ Now tighten the belt on your waist like a man,

And I shall ask you, and you inform Me!

⁴ Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth?

Tell Me, if you have understanding,

⁵ Who set its measurements? Since you know.

Or who stretched the measuring line over it?

⁶ On what were its bases sunk?

Or who laid its cornerstone,

⁷ When the morning stars sang together

And all the sons of God shouted for joy?

⁸ “Or who enclosed the sea with doors

When it went out from the womb, bursting forth;

⁹ When I made a cloud its garment,

And thick darkness its swaddling bands,

¹⁰ And I placed boundaries on it

And set a bolt and doors,

¹¹ And I said, ‘As far as this point you shall come, but no farther;

And here your proud waves shall stop’?

The chapter starts with God answering out of the whirlwind. This storm was what Elihu saw coming at the end of chapter 36 and throughout chapter 37. After Job’s and his friends’ speeches, Elihu speaks up in chapter 32. He let them finish speaking because they’re older than him. He says Job spoke wickedly when he said that he’s without wrongdoing yet he has become God’s enemy (Job 33:9-10) and that it’s useless to be God’s friend (34:9).

After Elihu's reproach of Job, God inserted speeches of His own. God grants Job’s wish for Him to answer. He starts by asking Job who he is to dare darken with dumb words how God’s government works. God then gives him a long quiz of 77 questions on cosmology, oceanography, meteorology, and astronomy no human can answer (Yeshua Elohim Bible Church).

Is this what Job was expecting? He got God to answer Him, and he got God to tell him that he did do something wrong. Job made the rule of God "appear dark, and severe, and unjust in the view of his friends." (Barnes, 1847). However, that wrongdoing is caused by his calamity and not the other way around. Remember in Job 2, the Lord said Job’s destruction is “without cause”? It shows that bad things can happen to good people. That’s one thing we see in the book of Job. In our life here on earth, we’ll face trouble even when we live right. The punishment or reward for our deeds comes in the afterlife, but I don’t mean we’ll go to heaven based on our own righteousness. What I mean is we’ll be rewarded according to our works when Christ comes again (Matthew 16:27). The way to heaven is Jesus. I blogged about that here:

https://therhymingepistles.blogspot.com/2021/05/one-way-john-141-6.html

We can get rewards on earth, too, but they don’t last forever. We see God giving Job back twice of what he had before in the final chapter of the book. He lived to see his grandchildren for four generations. If we can see how God can be so generous for earthly things, how much more in eternal heaven?

One notable takeaway I got from Through the Word’s audio guide on Job is that we should ask “Who?” instead of asking “Why?” in the things happening in life (Adams). The song I’m featuring in this epistle is You Are the One because it answers “Who?” I searched for a song about creation, as the chapter I’m discussing is on God asking about it, and I found this, which fits perfectly. It answers who made everything, who all things are for, who is worthy of worship.

I’ll ask a different set of “who” questions in response to how we should reflect on the book of Job:

Who are we to question our Creator on what happens in this life we didn’t create? Who are we to be ungrateful and on the circumstances we live in, to hate? Who are we to think what happens to us shouldn’t be happening? Who are we to demand God to do some explaining?

We’re just but dusts in this universe. We don’t see the whole picture. Job didn’t know he was being tested because God was proud of him. We can’t know it all, so instead of wanting to know why, let’s get to know Who, the One life is for. As we learn of God more, we wouldn’t care for the whys. We wouldn’t even dare ask Him to explain exactly why He does what He does. Just know one thing: It’s all for His glory.

God is God. He’s in charge. We’re puny; He’s large. He’s the Boss, yet He took our form and died on the cross. That’s His plan. It’s not in our hands. His resurrection proves why we should follow His commands. God is God. Jesus testifies it. If we believe, who are we to defy it?

With love,

Celina <3

References

Adams, S. (n.d.). Job 13. Job | Making Sense of Suffering. Westminster, California, United States of America: Through the Word.

Barnes, A. (1847). Job 38 Commentary - Albert Barnes' Notes on the Whole Bible. Retrieved from Truthaccordingtoscripture.com: https://www.truthaccordingtoscripture.com/commentaries/bnb/job-38.php#.YPU0jOgza02

Yeshua Elohim Bible Church. (n.d.). Job 38-39 God's 77 Questions. Retrieved from YEBC.net: https://yebc.net/yebc-study-bible/.../job/1090-job-38-39-god-s-77-questions 

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