Job 1

Job 1:1-2

Prologue – Job 1:1 to Job 2:13 serves as a prologue to the book of Job, providing the setting for the speeches that are to follow. This opening story describes Job’s prosperity and righteous standing before God. Satan comes before God’s throne and challenges God’s standard of righteousness upon the man Job. God allows Satan to take everything away from Job, his possessions and his children, but requires that Satan spare his life. Still, Job exhibits God’s standard of righteousness. In the prologue to the book of Job (Job 1:1 to Job 2:13), God reveals His predestined divine plan and purpose for mankind (Job 1:1-5), which is prosperity for those who walk upright before Him; and God calls Job to demonstrate righteousness and prosperity to his generation (Job 1:6 to Job 2:13).

Regarding God’s predestination, Job’s godly character and prosperity serves as a testimony of mankind’s divine predestination upon earth, which reflects God’s original divine commission in the Garden of Eden (Genesis 1:26-28), which is to be fruitful, multiply, and take dominion upon the earth. Regarding man’s divine calling, after prospering Job, God then called this man to demonstrate to his generation the fact that Job’s prosperity was a result of divine blessings, rather than from Job’s own abilities. Thus, it was necessary for God to remove Job’s prosperity entire, and restore it two-fold as a sign to his generation that Job’s prosperity came from God because of his right standing before God. Job’s suffering and restoration of blessings was intended to establish righteousness in the heart of the men of his generation so that He could prosper them as well. Unfortunately, it was necessary for Job to suffer in order to serve as a testimony to his generation. God reveals His divine destiny and calling to establish righteousness, or full redemption, for mankind through the testimony of Job’s prosperity in every area of his life. However, the method that full, eternal redemption is obtained for mankind will be through suffering, and God called His Son Jesus Christ to suffer loss by divesting Himself of His heavenly prosperity, and taking on the seed of man, born of a virgin, and suffer on the Cross (Philippians 2:5-8), to be resurrected and seated at God’s right hand, and enjoying a greater prosperity by bringing many sons of men to glory (Philippians 2:9-11, Hebrews 2:10). Thus, Job serves as a type and figure of Christ’s redemption for mankind. For this reason, the issue of suffering is immediately presented to the reader in this opening passage of Scripture (Job 1:6 to Job 2:13). Job is called by God to go through a season of intense suffering beyond what any righteous man has endured in the past. However, he will be redeemed by God in the closing scene and be used to redeem his three friends.

Thus, we see Job as a type and figure of Christ, who endured suffering so that He might redeem his generation. As we serve the Lord in this way we become like Christ in that we are used as divine instruments to bring about redemption for our generation. Satan’s Access to God’s Throne – The opening narrative text to the book of Job (Job 1:1 to Job 2:13) tells the story of Satan coming before God’s throne and accusing one of His saints named Job. The question is often asked if Satan still has access to God’s throne today as in the days of Job. Revelation 12:10 tells us that Satan, the accuser of the brethren, spends day and night accusing Christians of their faults before God. Revelation 12:10 And I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, Now is come salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of his Christ: for the accuser of our brethren is cast down, which accused them before our God day and night.” We also find in Romans 8:33-34 a description of how Jesus Christ stands at the right hand of the Father to intercede for those whom Satan has accused. Romans 8:33-34, “Who shall lay any thing to the charge of God’s elect? It is God that justifieth. Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us.” Paul also warned Timothy about the adversary’s opportunities to speak reproachfully against those with sin in the lives (1 Timothy 5:14). We ask the question, “To whom is Satan speaking reproachfully?” The implied answer in this passage of Scripture is that he is speaking to God about the faults of the saints. 1 Timothy 5:14, “I will therefore that the younger women marry, bear children, guide the house, give none occasion to the adversary to speak reproachfully.” This tells us that when we sin, we must be quick to confess our sins so that Jesus Christ is given the authority to intercede in our behalf to the Father. We also have the story in Job 1-2 of how Satan stood before God and accused Job of being unrighteous in his heart. The Lord said, “…and still he holdeth fast his integrity, although thou movedst me against him, to destroy him without cause.” (Job 2:3) Thus, we see that Satan’s accusations have the potential to move God against us. Job cried out for a redeemer to plead for his innocence, but there was none before Jesus’ First Coming (Job 9:33). However, today we have an intercessor. Job 9:33, “Neither is there any daysman betwixt us, that might lay his hand upon us both.” The Work of Satan in Scripture – Job 1:1 to Job 2:13 serves as the prologue to the poetic book of Job. This prologue is written as a narrative, and the actual poetic parallelism does not begin until Job 3:1. Note the destruction caused by the Adversary in chapters 1 and 2 of Job. When comparing this to John 10:10, which refers to Satan as the “thief” that “cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy”, we see that Satan’s works are the same then as they are today. John 10:10, “The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.”

Job 1:13-22

Scene 3 — : Job’s Calamities in land of Uz – Job 1:13-22 gives scene three of the prologue to the book of Job in which Satan is allowed to destroy all of Job’s children and wealth. Note how many people died during this ordeal while Job was being tested and proven righteous by God (Job 1:15-17; Job 1:19 – during all four catastrophes). Examples of Modern-Day Calamities Against God’s Children - In the mid-1980’s stormy winds came thru Panama City, Florida. A friend of mine named Jack Emerson had just purchased a new car, which was parked in his driveway. The strong wind blew a telephone pole on top of the car and damaged it. Earlier that night, the Lord had quickened Jack to get up and pray. He had failed to do so. The next morning, he went out to find his car with a telephone pole laying on top. In frustration, he asked the Lord why the pole fell on his car, and not next door, onto the property of his very, lost and sinful neighbor. The Lord quickly spoke to him these words, “A king does not war against a city that he has already conquered.” The incident was then understood. In March of 1995, Calvary Cathedral Int’l of Fort Worth, Texas launched a 24-hour a day prayer ministry. Two days before the ministry began, a terrible hailstorm came thru that area of town. The hail was as large as a softball. It destroyed cars in the parking lot of the church. It knocked out stained glass windows, and caused much damage through the area. Then, two days later, on a Sunday morning, the prayer ministers went up the tower to the prayer room, but the lock would not work on the door.

The door had to be broken down. For the next five years, this church continued in 24-hour prayer, without ceasing. Then, on 28 March 2000, a tornado hit that part of town and the church building. The walls of the tower were blown off while prayer ministers were in the room in prayer. They hid under a bench as the wall beside them was blown off. No one was killed.

The devil has tried his best to stop this prayer ministry, just as in this passage of Scripture. Job 1:16 While he was yet speaking, there came also another, and said, The fire of God is fallen from heaven, and hath burned up the sheep, and the servants, and consumed them; and I only am escaped alone to tell thee. Job 1:16 — “The fire of God is fallen from heaven” – Comments - The fire of God fell in Elijah’s time (1 Kings 18:38, 2 Kings 1:10). 1 Kings 18:38, “Then the fire of the LORD fell, and consumed the burnt sacrifice, and the wood, and the stones, and the dust, and licked up the water that was in the trench.” 2 Kings 1:10, “And Elijah answered and said to the captain of fifty, If I be a man of God, then let fire come down from heaven, and consume thee and thy fifty. And there came down fire from heaven, and consumed him and his fifty.” Job 1:21-22 — Comments - Job saw God’s hand in every thing that happened to him. 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 hath taken away; blessed be the name of the LORD. Job 1:21 — “the LORD gave, and the LORD hath taken away” – Comments - Had these losses taken place in one event, Job could have wondered if it was by chance. However, the fact that three tragic events happened together in consecutive order testified to divine intervention. There was no doubt in Job’s mind that this was orchestrated by God. Thus, Job could say, “The LORD gave, and the LORD hath taken away; blessed be the name of the LORD.” Although Satan worked this destruction against God’s servant Job, God said that Satan had moved Him against Job (Job 2:3). So, this statement is correct in that God used Satan as an instrument to bring this destruction and loss in Job’s life. Job 2:3, “And the LORD said unto Satan, Hast thou considered my servant Job, that there is none like him in the earth, a perfect and an upright man, one that feareth God, and escheweth evil? and still he holdeth fast his integrity, although thou movedst me against him, to destroy him without cause.” Job 1:22 In all this Job sinned not, nor charged God foolishly.