Road Trip Series

Job 16: 1 – 22

Road Trip

1 Then Job answered and said: 2 “I have heard many such things; Miserable comforters are you all! 3 Shall words of wind have an end? Or what provokes you that you answer? 4 I also could speak as you do, if your soul were in my soul’s place. I could heap up words against you, and shake my head at you; 5 But I would strengthen you with my mouth, and the comfort of my lips would relieve your grief. 6 “Though I speak, my grief is not relieved; And if I remain silent, how am I eased? 7 But now He has worn me out; You have made desolate all my company. 8 You have shriveled me up, and it is a witness against me; My leanness rises up against me and bears witness to my face. 9 He tears me in His wrath, and hates me; He gnashes at me with His teeth; My adversary sharpens His gaze on me. 10 They gape at me with their mouth, they strike me reproachfully on the cheek, they gather together against me. 11 God has delivered me to the ungodly, and turned me over to the hands of the wicked. 12 I was at ease, but He has shattered me; He also has taken me by my neck, and shaken me to pieces; He has set me up for His target, 13 His archers surround me. He pierces my heart and does not pity; He pours out my gall on the ground. 14 He breaks me with wound upon wound; He runs at me like a warrior. 15 “I have sewn sackcloth over my skin, and laid my head in the dust. 16 My face is flushed from weeping, and on my eyelids is the shadow of death; 17 Although no violence is in my hands, and my prayer is pure. 18 “O earth, do not cover my blood, and let my cry have no resting place! 19 Surely even now my witness is in heaven, and my evidence is on high. 20 My friends scorn me; My eyes pour out tears to God. 21 Oh, that one might plead for a man with God, as a man pleads for his neighbor! 22 For when a few years are finished, I shall go the way of no return.

I am amazed that in today’s society people actually pay others just to listen to them. There is a family here at church that has experienced a lot of issues. To try to overcome these major problems they sought out so called Christian counselors. To date they have shelled out over seventy thousand dollars and things have not improved. What is it about us humans that we will try everything to improve our conditions yet not go to the One Who can heal and fix everything?

This chapter begins Job’s reply to that discourse of Eliphaz which we had in the foregoing chapter; it is but the second part of the same song of lamentation with which he had before bemoaned himself, and is set to the same melancholy tune.

1 Then Job answered and said: 2 “I have heard many such things; Miserable comforters are you all!

We need to remember that it takes two people to tango. We need the insight from Almighty God to avoid doing that dance with someone who wants to argue. I like to think that we all have this line of patience. It is different for each individual. Once that line is crossed by someone hurling comments at us we go on the defensive and its fight time. We undervalue the other persons worth, wisdom, and knowledge. And if anything else comes to mind we throw that also at him or her. The longer we stay in this verbal battle the hotter it grows.

Eliphaz had responded that Job’s discourses were idle, unprofitable, and nothing for any worthwhile purpose; and Job here fires back and gives Eliphaz the same character build down.

I like the movie Smokey and the Bandit when Burt Reynolds says to Little Enos played by Paul Williams, ‘that’s cute [in relation to his insults] why don’t you say something about my mother.’ Little Enos takes up the challenge and is interupted as he begins to say, ‘your momma…” The point here is that those who are free in passing such censures must expect to have them retorted; it is easy, it is endless: but —what good does it do? It will stir up men’s passions, but will never convince their judgments, nor set truth in a clear light.

Job here reproves Eliphaz for needless repetitions: "I have heard many such things. You tell me nothing but what I knew before, nothing but what you yourselves have before said; you offer nothing new; it is the same thing over and over again.’’