Homiletic Review Job 1:21 And said, Naked came I out of my mother's womb, and naked shall I return thither: the LORD gave, and the LORD has taken away… All heaven must have kept holiday when this calm, intelligent, and believing utterance was made. Over against Cicero, with his culture, philosophy, and eloquence, when mourning as those who have no hope in the decease of a beloved daughter, may we gladly set the Chaldean patriarch who, in the deprivation of health, wealth, and children; in the swerving counsel of an uncongenial wife; in the oil of vitriol which self-righteous friends poured into his gaping wounds, could still honour God and possess his soul in patience. Successive inundations, which would have swept others into hell, only raised this grand old hero on their mountain billows to higher altitudes of faith, self-conquest, and endurance. I. THE NATURE OF CHRISTIAN RESIGNATION. 1. Implies belief in a wise and loving Providence. 2. Contentment with our allotments. 3. Calm yielding to the will of God. No retaliation, no resistance, and no flight, like Adam or Jonah, is attempted. 4. Deep sense of our mercies God leaves more than He takes. Lot's property lost, yet family spared; himself saved. If Isaac must die, yet Ishmael lives. If Joseph is devoured, Benjamin and the other sons survive. 5. A strong confidence in God. "Though He slay me, yet will I trust in Him." II. THE MANNER IN WHICH IT IS SHOWN. 1. It is sincere (31). 2. It is cheerful (Job 2:10). 3. It is immediate (Job 1:20). 4. It is constant (Job 42:7, 8). III. PROOFS OF ITS REASONABLENESS. 1. Perfections of God require it (Isaiah 40:26-31). 2. The Word of God demands it (James 5:11). 3. The honour of religion closely related to it (1 Peter 2:20). 4. The example of Christ sanctions it (Hebrews 12:3). 5. Our present and future felicity depends on it (1 Peter 5:10). (Homiletic Review.) Parallel Verses KJV: And said, Naked came I out of my mother's womb, and naked shall I return thither: the LORD gave, and the LORD hath taken away; blessed be the name of the LORD. |
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