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
God's address to Job is challenging: "Who is this that obscures my plans with words without knowledge?" The words call us to enter this week on a note of humility. Job has been feeling bad for himself and not without cause! Friends have been giving him advice, too—but not without a hint of self-interest. They're the ones "without knowledge." Somewhere in Job's suffering, it would seem to them and perhaps to us, are God's plans. Or maybe not. God's words invite caution. Let's not fall into the same trap Job's friends do. We don't know everything. That's the point! Like the seas and the waves we get to go only "this far" and "no farther." How frustrating is that?!
Well, we'll just have to watch for the unsettling wind and the waves this week. It's not the first time they'll appear. And we'll have to reign in some of our questions, too. They may or may not get answered. And meanwhile the morning stars keep singing and the angels shout for joy. Music has a way of blending both our praises and our uncertainties.
Prayer
Lord of sea and sky, blow in my life this day. May the music of confusion and the song of stars become a symphony of understanding and awe. In Jesus' Name. Amen.