Job
chapter 4 Practice what you preach contains the words of wisdom
spoken to Job by one of his three friends. It reminds me of the song
from The
Sound of Music
that immortalized the common erroneous belief that “somewhere
in my youth or childhood I must have done something good”
(or in Job’s case, “bad”). There is a dangerous doctrine that
says good people are blessed by God and bad people are cursed. This
dual edge sword has been used by the powerful to justify their
actions as well as the downtrodden as an excuse for giving up. The
chapter begins with Eliphaz
the Temanite responding to Job’s anguish. “If
someone ventures a word with you, will you be impatient?“.
This was the last tactful thing he said. From this point, on,
Eliphaz proceeds to tell Job it is time to practice what you preach.
“You
have instructed many, how you have strengthened feeble hands… you
have strengthened faltering knees… But now trouble comes to you,
and you are discouraged… Should not your piety be your confidence
and your blameless ways your hope?“.
He then directly accuses Job of being a hypocrite, “Who,
being innocent, has ever perished?”.
In other words, he believes, since God is judging Job, Job must have
committed a big sin. Sadly, this is how many of us think today.
When we see the outward signs of success, we believe that person is
“living right”.
Eliphaz
continues his assessment of Job’s problem by referring to
scripture. “As I have observed, those who plow evil and those who
sow trouble reap it”. This becomes difficult because this is a
spiritual truth. When we plant an apple seed, an apple tree will
grow.
9
At the breath of God they are destroyed;
at the blast of his anger they perish.
10
The lions may roar and growl,
yet the teeth of the great lions are broken.
11
The lion perishes for lack of prey,
and the cubs of the lioness are scattered.
12
“A word was secretly brought to me,
my ears caught a whisper of it.
13
Amid disquieting dreams in the night,
when deep sleep falls on men,
14
fear and trembling seized me
and made all my bones shake.
15
A spirit glided past my face,
and the hair on my body stood on end.
16
It stopped, but I could not
tell what it was. A form
stood before my eyes, and I
heard a hushed voice:
17
‘Can a mortal be more righteous than God?
Can a man be more pure than his Maker?
18
If God places no trust in his servants,
if he charges his angels with error,
19
how much more those who live in houses of clay,
whose foundations are in the dust,
who are crushed more readily than a moth!
20
Between dawn and dusk they are broken to pieces;
unnoticed, they perish forever.
21
Are not the cords of their tent pulled up,
so that they die without wisdom?’
1
Samuel 16:7 “For
the
Lord
does
not see
as man sees; for man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord
looks at the heart”.
It
is a big mistake to attempt to judge the spiritual condition of
anyone based on outward appearances. danger of trying to judge the
heart of another. We can observe someone’s actions and even their
reactions, but we cannot know their motivation. The dual theme of
the chapter is