Job 2 - Job's Trials Intensify

Job 2
Again there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan also came among them to present himself before the Lord. ² The Lord said to Satan, “Where have you come from?” Then Satan answered the Lord and said, “From roaming about on the earth and walking around on it.” ³ The Lord said to Satan, “Have you considered My servant Job? For there is no one like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man fearing God and turning away from evil. And he still holds fast his integrity, although you incited Me against him to ruin him without cause.” ⁴ Satan answered the Lord and said, “Skin for skin! Yes, all that a man has he will give for his life. ⁵ However, put forth Your hand now, and touch his bone and his flesh; he will curse You to Your face.” ⁶ So the Lord said to Satan, “Behold, he is in your power, only spare his life.”
⁷ Then Satan went out from the presence of the Lord and smote Job with sore boils from the sole of his foot to the crown of his head. ⁸ And he took a potsherd to scrape himself while he was sitting among the ashes.
⁹ Then his wife said to him, “Do you still hold fast your integrity? Curse God and die!” ¹⁰ But he said to her, “You speak as one of the foolish women speaks. Shall we indeed accept good from God and not accept adversity?” In all this Job did not sin with his lips.
¹¹ Now when Job’s three friends heard of all this adversity that had come upon him, they came each one from his own place, Eliphaz the Temanite, Bildad the Shuhite and Zophar the Naamathite; and they made an appointment together to come to sympathize with him and comfort him. ¹² When they lifted up their eyes at a distance and did not recognize him, they raised their voices and wept. And each of them tore his robe and they threw dust over their heads toward the sky. ¹³ Then they sat down on the ground with him for seven days and seven nights with no one speaking a word to him, for they saw that his pain was very great.


Message: Job's Trials Intensify

Time: The time of Job is unclear and commonly debated. Often the language of the book can give clues. It seems to be that Job had a lifespan of close to 200 years as Job 42:16 says he lived 140 years after the events in the book.

What the Lord is Saying:

You would think the last chapter's events were enough, losing your children and all your possessions, but now once again, Satan is roaming around and the Lord trusts his children. The big line in this passage is "Shall we indeed accept good from God and not accept adversity." This verse is a great reminder and one that I just don't think we really comprehend. I was thinking about this yesterday as I was praying for my kids and adversities I see them going through. I know Megan is dealing with a thorn in the flesh in her life, but I am thankful that she is wanting to follow God all her days. 

I also read through and receive prayer request after prayer request and every request is really "get me out of the tough life and get me into the good life." It is obviously normal to request this in life because there is always something we feel like we need in order to make better. As I read through the Psalms the overriding message is for a clean heart, to be free from the grip of enemies in our lives, and to live a life of obedience with God our father. God is more concerned about our heart than our wallet. 

Even with Job here is the reality that all of his comforts and possessions and even his health can be taken away, but he still has his relationship with God. His strength is still in the Lord. My friend always reminds me of this. I've watched him go through bad cancer this past year and through it all he remains committed to God. 

Job had integrity. He was whole and undivided. His allegiance was to God. He had strong moral principles. Those attributes didn't change despite his circumstances. 

I need to work on this in my life. There is just a general desire to think that everything in life should be good and adversities should be minimized.

Promise: Suffering is a part of life and we need to use that time to think about what God is teaching us.