Job 38:1-11 (NRSV)
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Chapter 38Then the Lord answered Job out of the whirlwind: Verse 2"Who is this that darkens counsel by words without knowledge? Verse 3Gird up your loins like a man, I will question you, and you shall declare to me.
Verse 4"Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth? Tell me, if you have understanding. Verse 5Who determined its measurements-surely you know! Or who stretched the line upon it? Verse 6On what were its bases sunk, or who laid its cornerstone Verse 7when the morning stars sang together and all the heavenly beings shouted for joy? Verse 8"Or who shut in the sea with doors when it burst out from the womb?- Verse 9when I made the clouds its garment, and thick darkness its swaddling band, Verse 10and prescribed bounds for it, and set bars and doors, Verse 11and said, 'Thus far shall you come, and no farther, and here shall your proud waves be stopped'?
Devotion
My father was a righteous man. He was also a sinner of God’s own redeeming. Three weeks before his death, exactly one year ago today, his wife of 55+ years slipped into a coma and died.
Ironically, the day before my mother’s death, my father asked me to explain the book of Job to him. My father was a faithful man who wasn’t afraid of dying, but he needed reassurance that God had not abandoned him in his suffering.
First, he had endured the debilitating effects of his illness, and then he helplessly watched my mother’s rapid decline and eventual death. It was too much for him and so he had an affinity for Job. Had God abandoned him in these last days? My response: “No, Dad, I think that’s where God meets us... in our suffering.” God never abandoned Job and God will never forsake you or me.
Prayer
Creator God, show us the power of your ways, that we might live with the sure and certain promise that you are with us always, especially in our suffering. To your name be all honor and glory, now and forever. Amen.