The Bible Recap - Day 012 (Job 32-34) - Year 6

Episode Date: January 12, 2024

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Hey Bible readers, I'm Tara Lee Cobble and I'm your host for the Bible Recap. Today for the first time in almost a week of reading, someone new showed up on the scene. And what we know about him right away is that he's very angry. Elihu, this new angry man, is angry not only at Job, but also at Job's three friends, because they were all kind of self-righteous. Chapter 32, verse 4, makes it sound like Elihu had been there all along, listening to the whole

back and forth from everyone and had been holding his tongue, perhaps out of some humility since he was younger than everyone else, but also out of fear of man, as we find out in verse six. But then after listening to them all talk, it turned out that these three older men had nothing good to say, so he spoke up. Age doesn't always equal wisdom

and youth doesn't always equal foolishness. Elihu points out in verse eight that it's God, not time, who grants wisdom. It doesn't only come via time and life experience. Sometimes those are the means God uses, but sometimes he just dispenses wisdom at will. And for Elihu, he believed God had advanced his wisdom beyond his years.

And we'll have to wait a little longer to see if we think he was right. He starts out by rebuking Job's three friends and telling them that in all their speeches, they were never able to offer a proper rebuttal to what Job said. Then in chapter three, he goes on to rebuke Job, even though he approaches it initially with a little more gentleness than the other three did. He says, my pressure will not be heavy on you.

I too was pinched off from a piece of clay. He seems to stay humble in his approach to rebuking Job, unlike Job's other friends. Elihu gets a few stay humble in his approach to rebuking Job, unlike Job's other friends. Elihu gets a few things wrong in his rebuke of Job, though. In verse 9, he says Job had claimed to be without transgression, and Job never actually claimed that. The very fact that Job offered sacrifices meant he knew that he wasn't innocent before God. If he sat before God as judge, he knew there would be claims against him. In verse 29 through 30, Elihu points out that sometimes God brings hardship in the temporary

in order to bring healing in the eternal. He says, behold, God does all these things twice, three times with a man to bring back his soul from the pit that he may be lighted with the light of life. Elihu is basically saying here that God plays the long game. his soul from the pit, that he may be lighted with the light of life. Elihu is basically saying here that God plays the long game. God's eternality allows him a vantage point that you and I don't have. And it also solidifies his patience toward us

when we're going through trials. It's easier to be patient when you can guarantee the process and outcome will be worth it. God has that kind of guarantee because of his eternality, because of his sovereignty, because of his omniscience, which is just a big word meaning that he knows everything. But here's the thing about all of that. It's true that God sometimes does allow hardship

to turn people's hearts back to him. But by adding this idea to his speech, Elihu starts to take on the same themes that Job's friends presented repeatedly, basically saying God let all this happen to bring back Job's soul from the pit, or in more direct terms, so Job would turn from his transgression. I'd hoped it would play out differently this time around, honestly. I thought Job had finally found a friend who understood, but it's all starting to sound very familiar.

He starts to accuse Job of walking with the wicked men, of being foolish and not only of sinning, but also rebelling against God. Are you guys exhausted of the ways Job is misunderstood? Imagine you just lost your job and your home and your family was killed and God feels distant and your friends all just keep rebuking you and you can't for the life of you,

think of what you might need to repent of. And on top of that, you're covered in boils. I do not envy Job, but I'm so glad his story is recorded in scripture because I think we've all experienced seasons of life that feel like this to some small degree. And if you haven't yet, you will. Tomorrow, we'll finish up Elihu's speech. But as for today, what was your God shot?

For me, it was the part where Elihu was talking about how God plays the long game. Much of what these men say about God is true. It's when they talk about Job that they really get it wrong. So when Elihu points out that God will allow us to struggle in our lives as it serves to turn our hearts from darkness to light, it made me grateful. Maybe this feels cruel to you, but isn't that what all good parents do? If you're a parent, don't you let your child learn the lessons the hard way sometimes, especially if you know that the long-term consequences of learning something are less

detrimental than the short-term consequences of the lesson. I want the kind of parent who lets me suffer through doing my homework so that I can learn to read, or who lets me suffer through swim lessons so that I can enjoy our trips to the pool. I love that God isn't always lined up with my desires in the moment and that he can see further than I can. It makes me trust him more. It reminds me that I might only be right here in the pain and uncertainty of the moment,

but if I can connect to him and learn to trust him in that, then I can access something more than my current emotions. In fact, that's when I selfishly want to connect with him most, because I know he's where the joy is. Are you following us on social media? We're on Instagram and Facebook and TikTok. You can find it all linked in the show notes. We post content related to the reading plan, and we'd love to stay connected with you to help encourage you along the way. We also

have a great discussion going on over at the official Facebook group for our ReCaptains. If you want to join that, all you have to do is opt into our Facebook discussion tier for ReCaptains. Honestly, I don't even really like Facebook, but I love being a part of those conversations. It's worth being on Facebook for. And I'd love for you to be a part of those conversations, too. All of our socials and the ReCaptains info is linked at TheBibleRecap.com or click the link in the show notes.

Did you know the word rest is mentioned over 400 times in the Bible? So rest is kind of a big deal to our Father. Show Notes.