Topical Bible: Children: Job

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Introduction to Job

The Book of Job is one of the poetic books of the Old Testament and is considered a profound piece of literature that addresses the themes of suffering, faith, and divine justice. Job is a central figure in this book, known for his unwavering faith and patience amidst severe trials. The account of Job is often used to teach lessons about perseverance, trust in God, and the nature of human suffering.

Job's Character and Life

Job is described as a man of great integrity and righteousness. He is introduced as "blameless and upright, fearing God and shunning evil" (Job 1:1). Job was a wealthy man, blessed with a large family, numerous servants, and vast possessions, including livestock and land. His life was marked by prosperity and respect in his community.

The Trials of Job

The narrative begins with a heavenly scene where Satan challenges Job's integrity, suggesting that Job is faithful only because of his prosperity. God permits Satan to test Job, but with the condition that Job's life be spared. Job's trials begin with the loss of his wealth, the death of his children, and the affliction of painful sores on his body.

Despite these overwhelming losses, Job remains steadfast in his faith. He mourns deeply but does not sin by blaming God. Instead, he expresses his grief and confusion, famously stating, "Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked I will return. The LORD gave, and the LORD has taken away. Blessed be the name of the LORD" (Job 1:21).

Job's Friends and Their Counsel

Three of Job's friends—Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar—come to comfort him. However, their counsel is based on the assumption that Job's suffering must be a result of some hidden sin. They argue that if Job repents, God will restore his fortunes. Job, maintaining his innocence, insists that he has not sinned against God and seeks to understand the reason for his suffering.

Job's Dialogue with God

In the latter part of the book, God speaks to Job out of a whirlwind, challenging Job's understanding of divine wisdom and the complexities of creation. God does not provide a direct answer to Job's suffering but instead reveals His sovereignty and the limitations of human understanding. Job responds with humility and repentance, acknowledging, "I know that You can do all things and that no plan of Yours can be thwarted" (Job 42:2).

Restoration and Blessing

After Job's dialogue with God, he is commended for speaking rightly about God, unlike his friends. God instructs Job's friends to offer sacrifices and asks Job to pray for them. Following this, God restores Job's fortunes, granting him twice as much as he had before. Job's family and friends return to comfort him, and he is blessed with more children and a long, prosperous life.

Lessons from Job's Story

The account of Job teaches important lessons about faith, endurance, and the mystery of God's ways. It encourages believers to trust in God's wisdom and goodness, even when circumstances are difficult to understand. Job's unwavering faith and ultimate restoration serve as a testament to the belief that God is just and compassionate, rewarding those who remain faithful through trials.

Nave's Topical Index

Job 29:4
As I was in the days of my youth, when the secret of God was on my tabernacle;
Nave's Topical Index

Library

Here Followeth the History of Job
... smote the four corners of the house, which falling oppressed thy children, and they
be all dead, and I only fled for to tell it to thee. Then Job arose, and ...
/.../wells/bible stories and religious classics/here followeth the history of.htm

Get the Key to Job.
... He gave Job double what he had and gave him ten children besides, so that
he should have ten in heaven besides his ten on earth. ...
/.../moody/moodys anecdotes and illustrations/get the key to job.htm

The Story of Job
... If your children sinned against him, He has let them suffer the penalty; But you
should earnestly seek him, And devoutly beseech the Almighty. ... Then Job answered ...
//christianbookshelf.org/sherman/the childrens bible/the story of job.htm

Men, Being by Nature the Children of Wrath, Needed a Mediator. In ...
... human race was lying under a just condemnation, and all men were the children of
wrath ... years as a tale that is told." [1140] Of which wrath also Job says: "Man ...
/.../augustine/the enchiridion/chapter 33 men being by nature.htm

Grace Before Meat.
... After every meal, be careful of thyself and family, as Job was for himself and his
children (Job 1:4), lest that, in the cheerfulness of eating and drinking ...
//christianbookshelf.org/bayly/the practice of piety/grace before meat.htm

Job's Sure Knowledge
... a very little one, and the parents have many others left; but it is a far worse
bereavement when the children, who are taken away, are grown up, as Job's were. ...
/.../spurgeon/spurgeons sermons volume 50 1904/jobs sure knowledge.htm

Blessed Adversity.
... And, as if this were not sufficient, even the very children of Job, his seven sons
and three daughters"children of so many prayers"were swept away at one ...
//christianbookshelf.org/taylor/a ribband of blue/blessed adversity.htm

The Voice of Job.
... different from his own; a God to deal ungenerously with his poverty-stricken children;
a God to make severest demands upon his little ones! Job is confident of ...
//christianbookshelf.org/macdonald/unspoken sermons/the voice of job.htm

Job --Groping
... My brethren, be no longer children in understanding; but in understanding be men ...
Oh, ye sons and daughters of captive Job, seek Him whom ye have lost, and seek ...
//christianbookshelf.org/whyte/lord teach us to pray/vii jobgroping.htm

Letter vi. Temptation.
... furnishes satisfactory answers. (1.) It is to try the faith of his children.
This was the case with Job. The devil had slandered ...
/.../a practical directory for young christian females/letter vi temptation.htm