In this episode, we delve into the heart of Job chapter 19, as Job finds himself amidst despair, yet clinging fiercely to his faith. As we reach the midway point of our journey through the book of Job, we explore Job’s powerful declaration that his Redeemer lives, providing us with remarkable insight into maintaining steadfast faith during life’s harshest trials. Through Alan J. Huth’s reflections, learn how Job’s unwavering trust in God’s sovereignty serves as an unwavering beacon of hope.
Welcome to Add Bible, an audio daily devotion from the Ezra Project. Alan J. Huth shares a Bible passage with comments from over 35 years of his personal Bible reading journals and applies the Word of God to our daily lives.
Today we’ve reached Job chapter 19 and the halfway point of our journey through the book of Job. We’re going to take Job in 30 days and this is day 15. So today we’ll listen to Job’s response about how his Redeemer lives. Let’s listen to Job.
Job 19 Then Job answered and said, How long will you torment me and break me in pieces with words? These ten times you have cast reproach upon me. Are you not ashamed to wrong me? And even if it be true that I have erred, my error remains with myself. If indeed you magnify yourselves against me and make my disgrace an argument against me, know then that God has put me in the wrong and closed his net about me. Behold, I cry out violence, but I am not answered. I call for help, but there is no justice. He has walled up my way so that I cannot pass, and he has set darkness upon my paths. He has stripped from me my glory and taken the crown from my head.” He breaks me down on every side, and I am gone, and my hope has he pulled up like a tree. He has kindled his wrath against me and counts me as his adversary. His troops come on together. They have cast up their siege ramp against me and encamp around my tent. He has put my brothers far from me, and those who knew me are wholly estranged from me. My relatives have failed me. My close friends have forgotten me. The guests in my house and my maid servants count me as a stranger. I have become a foreigner in their eyes. I call to my servant, but he gives me no answer. I must plead with him with my mouth for mercy. My breath is strange to my wife, and I am a stench to the children of my own mother. Even young children despise me. When I rise, they talk against me. All my intimate friends abhor me, and those whom I loved have turned against me. My bones stick to my skin and to my flesh, and I have escaped by the skin of my teeth. Have mercy on me. Have mercy on me, O you, my friends, for the hand of God has touched me. Why do you, like God, pursue me? Why are you not satisfied with my flesh? Oh, that my words were written! Oh, that they were inscribed in a book! Oh, that with an iron pen and lead they were engraved in the rock forever! For I know that my Redeemer lives, and at the last He will stand upon the earth. and after my skin has been thus destroyed, yet in my flesh I shall see God, whom I shall see for myself, and my eyes shall behold, and not another. My heart faints within me. If you say, ìHow we will pursue Him, and the root of the matter is found in Him,î In 1984, I read Job 18 and 19 on the same day, and I wrote Job Continues to Cry Out.
God has wronged me. He has stripped me of my honor. Yet his hope and faith remains as he cries out, I know my Redeemer lives. I shall see God, whom I myself shall behold. And then I wrote, Thank you for the testimony of Job. In 1997, remember I said I read Job chapters 12 through 21 on the same day, but related to chapter 19 I wrote concerning verses 25 and 26. I know that my Redeemer lives, and after my skin is destroyed, this I know, that in my flesh I shall see God. In 2015, I read Job 18 and 19 together on the same day, and concerning chapter 19 I wrote, Job responds to Bildad, You are not helping me, but condemning me. Job goes back to a higher view. God has done this to me. He pleads for mercy from God and from his friends. Verse 23 surely comes to pass, and thousands of years later, I’m reading Job’s words. Job hangs on to God, for I know my Redeemer lives. Verse 25. He believes in the resurrection. And I quoted verse 26. And after my skin has thus been destroyed, yet in my flesh I shall see God. Job understands judgment. And I was referring to verse 29. Thus ends my journal entries concerning Job 19. Job begins the chapter by chastising his friends. Verse 2. How long will you torment me and break me in pieces with words? These ten times you have cast reproach upon me. Are you not ashamed to wrong me? I think he’s saying, I’ve suffered enough and now I’m suffering at your hands. But he knows where all this is coming from. Look at verse 6. Know then that God has put me in the wrong and closed his net about me. Verse 8, He has walled up my way so that I cannot pass, and He has set darkness upon my paths. He has stripped me from my glory and taken the crown from my head. He breaks me down on every side, and I am gone, and my hope has He pulled up like a tree. He has kindled His wrath against me and counts me as His adversary. Job understands where the circumstances he’s facing are coming from. He’s desperate. Look at verse 19 and following. How many times have you used that phrase not knowing you were quoting the book of Job? He continues, In the midst of difficult circumstances, Job takes the high ground. He understands the sovereignty of God Almighty. When we are under the circumstances, do we whine and complain, or do we understand the sovereignty of God? And then he says these amazing things, starting with verse 23. Oh, that my words were written. Oh, that they were inscribed in a book. Little did he know that very fact would come true. We are holding in our hands or listening today the very words that Job was ascribing. His words have been written in a book. They have been engraved forever. Job had no idea we would be reading his words thousands of years later. And why are we reading his words? probably because of the next couple of verses. Job never gives up. He says, For I know that my Redeemer lives, and at the last He will stand upon the earth, and after my skin has been thus destroyed, yet in my flesh I shall see God. How powerful is that! In the midst of all the pain and suffering that he has outlined throughout this book, he never gives up his faith in God Almighty. My Redeemer lives. Hallelujah. Friends, I don’t know what you’re going through, but I know it’s most likely not as tough as what Job has been going through. I hope you’ve gained great encouragement from this book. job is a model to live by he kept his eyes fixed on god in the midst of all his troubles may we do the same almighty god thank you for the lessons in the book of job you certainly put him to the test you probably allowed it because you knew his strength was in his faith in you Lord, if you’re putting us through the test, might we come through like Job and say, my Redeemer lives. Strengthen us from the power of your word. Strengthen us from the power of the example of Job. Strengthen us to remain faithful to you in the test. To God be the glory. Amen. Thanks for listening to AdBible today. According to a recent Barna Research study entitled Bible Reading, A New Year’s Resolution, most Americans are not satisfied with their current level of Scripture reading. A majority express a desire to read the Bible more than they currently do. Born-again and practicing Christians are the most likely to desire more Bible reading in their day-to-day lives. It should not come as a surprise that the majority of Americans wish they read Scripture more than they do, says Roxanne Stone, editor-in-chief of Barna Group. After all, two-thirds of Americans agree that the Bible contains everything you need to know to live a meaningful life. Why wouldn’t you want to read such a book more often? The study continues. However, like other New Year’s resolutions, such as exercising more and eating healthier, Scripture reading is often an aspirational goal. It’s the goal that for most people probably doesn’t feel necessary to survive and so can easily get swamped by the day-to-day demands of a busy life. Scripture reading takes time and focus, two things that feel like scarcities in today’s fast-paced and on-demand culture. Like exercise, like dieting, regular Bible reading does not offer instant payoff. It’s a discipline whose rewards are reaped over the long haul. And the study continues, when people go from feeling they should read the Bible more to needing to read the Bible more, they find the time. Access to the Bible is not the issue in the USA, is it? We all have Bibles. According to another study done a few years ago, 88% of Americans own a Bible. We have 3.5 Bibles in our homes. And this is amazing. 59% of people who have no faith or are atheists even own a Bible, probably just in case. So if you have a smartphone, you have access to the Word of God. My Gideon Bible app has over 2,100 languages. Access to the Bible is not the issue. The issue is changing our beliefs about the Bible to behavior with the Bible. So where are Christians with the Bible today? Christians are well-intentioned when it comes to the Bible. We believe that the Bible is the Word of God. We believe, we just don’t behave. Our belief in the Bible and our behavior with the Bible are inconsistent. The middle ground related to the Bible seems to be disappearing. The decrease of Bible-neutral and Bible-friendly people and the increase of Bible antagonists suggests that more people are picking a side. Which side are you on? Are you a Bible antagonist questioning the Bible? Are you Bible-neutral? I just don’t know. Or are you Bible-friendly? I love the Bible. Wherever you are, pick a side. Because of our neglect of God’s Word, we are becoming biblically illiterate. For example, in a private religious elementary school, kids were asked about the Old and New Testaments. Here are some funny things that they had to say. The first commandment was when Eve told Adam to eat that apple. Lot’s wife was a pillar of salt by day but a ball of fire by night. What kind of man was Boaz before he married? Ruthless. The epistles were the wives of the apostles. Christians have only one spouse. That’s called monotony. So, if we think about Bible literacy or illiteracy, we think about it this way. If God decided to come down from his throne in heaven, become an author here on earth, you’d think his book would be on the bestseller list. And the fact is, the Bible is the number one best-selling book of all time. 2.5 to 5 billion, according to research. It’s also the most read book of all time. Praise the Lord, that alone might be evidence that the Bible, not any other so-called writing, is God’s Word. According to a weekly World News report, here are a few other Bible facts. About 50 Bibles are sold every minute. The Bible is the world’s best-selling book. It’s also the world’s most shoplifted book. That’s interesting. And that doesn’t even count all the Gideon Bibles stolen out of those hotels. So I encourage you to enjoy a portion of God’s Word every day. Make it a daily spiritual habit. And so until next time, I’m Alan J. Huth, and this program is sponsored by The Ezra Project, with support from listeners like you. Visit EzraProject.net to keep AdBible, connecting God’s people to God’s Word, on the air.
