Bible interpreters have long observed that the third cycle of speeches in Job is more difficult to understand than the preceding two. In the first two cycles, each friend spoke in turn and Job responded to each one. In the third, only Eliphaz and Zophar speak, and Job’s responses appear more convoluted than his earlier responses. Some have suggested that the text has been corrupted and have tried hard to reconstruct it to fit the pattern of the earlier speeches.
There is no good reason to force a reconstruction. It is perfectly plausible that Zophar had nothing more to say. As for Job, it appears perfectly consistent with the human experience for reason to become more convoluted the longer one suffers.
Yesterday, we considered Eliphaz’s manipulative accusations against Job (chapter 22). In response (chapters 23–24), as we will see this morning, while there are parts of his argument that are difficult to follow, Job responded by expressing ultimate hope that, in the end, God’s kingdom will come.
Jesus instructed us to pray for God’s kingdom to come (Matthew 6:10). There is a sense in which we see his kingdom coming every time a sinner bows to Christ in repentance and faith. But there is also an ultimate sense in which his kingdom will come in its fullness at the resurrection. With the fullness of the kingdom, God’s people will be vindicated and his enemies judged. In the chapters before us, Job appears to be expressing his longing for God’s kingdom to come in its fullness for we see his longing for the righteous to be vindicated (chapter23) and the godless punished (chapter 24).
Job longed to see God face to face so he could lay out his case before him (23:1–7). He felt as if God was not hearing him at the moment, though he was confident that he would hear and vindicate him if he could but lay his case before him in person. Even though it seemed as if God was ignoring him, and while he longed for God to step in sooner, Job was persuaded that God would, in the end, vindicate him (23:8–12). His confidence lay in God’s unchanging, holy character (23:13–17).
That same confidence in God’s unchanging, holy character (23:13–17) led Job to believe that God would not only vindicate the righteous but punish the godless. The punishment of the wicked would further vindicate him. God would never ultimately pervert justice (even though he had accused God of doing so more than once in his own experience!). If God was who he believed him to be, he would necessarily judge righteously. The holy God he served would show himself concerned for victims of injustice (24:1–12) and angry at those who disregarded and rebelled against his order (24:13–17). That meant that the wicked would certainly face judgement (vv. 18–25), though perhaps not as immediately as his friends suggested.
Sceptics of Christianity often point to the problem of evil as evidence against the truth of the Bible. They imagine that the problem is insurmountable and pretend that other worldviews do not wrestle with the same. In truth, every worldview must grapple with the problem of evil. Evil is a reality of the world in which we live and, one way or another, everyone must ask and answer some tough questions. The Christian faith has an ultimate answer to this problem, though we are often far too impatient to wait for the ultimate. That ultimate answer rests in God’s unchanging, holy character. Because he is unchangingly holy, we can be confident that he will ultimately vindicate his people as he punishes his enemies.
It is not always easy to live with the tension created by the problem of evil. Most of us will admit that, if we had the power, we would relieve far more suffering than God appears inclined to do. But when we cannot understand why he allows evil to persist, we need a fresh focus on his unchangeable holy character, which will drive us to rest in the truth that, in the end, the problem of evil will be no more.
As you meditate on Job 23–24 this morning, ask God to give you the patient wisdom you need to rest in his unchanging holy character as you wrestle with the problem of evil in the world.
