ChristadelphianBooksOnline
David Baird
The Education of Job

Chapters 12, 13, 14 - The First Cycle of Speeches - Job

Job's Reply to Zophar

	12:1-5	My knowledge is not inferior to yours
	12:6	The wicked do prosper
	12:7-10	Let Creation teach you the wisdom and power of God
	12:11-25	Job describes God's absolute power
	13:1-12	Job reproves his friends as utter failures

Job Appeals to God

	13:13-19	Job turns to God as his friends cannot help
	13:20-28	Job pleads with God
	14:1-12	Man's lot is hopeless, whereas a tree has hope
	14:13-15	Is there life after death?
	14:16-22	Job's present state - perplexed and distressed

Job's lengthy speech in Chapters 12-14 marks the end of the first round. All three friends have had their say and, despite all good intentions, they have failed miserably. Zophar's words were strong hurtful blows, so Job counterpunches with language that could easily be construed as sarcastic, certainly ironic, in tone. He is accusing and vituperative as he labels his friends as "forgers of lies" and "physicians of no value" (13:4). He wishes that they would display their wisdom by being silent. Yet despite the brusqueness of his words and the despair that leads to the darkness at the end of this speech, his refutation of his friends and his subsequent appeal to God seems more ordered and coherent than his earlier outbursts. Perhaps, in having heard the best his three friends could offer, he is convinced that they are wrong, he is right and only God can give the answers that will vindicate him. However, Job's speech is not perfect and again he lapses into expressions that are inappropriate and possibly incorrect. It is not difficult for us to dissect his speech and detect its flaws but we must always be mindful of the horrendous physical and mental extremities of his circumstances.

Job's Reply to Zophar

12:1-5 My knowledge is not inferior to yours

There is no denying the bitter irony of Job's opening words. Irony is that figure of speech whereby the expression conveys a sense quite different, usually opposite, to its strict meaning. He is bordering on sarcasm and returns scorn with scorn. He says that they are the ones with "wisdom" (hokma) and is honing in on Zophar's assertion that God's "wisdom" sees Job getting off lightly (11:6). "Yes", Job is saying, "You are the people with this wisdom and when you die that wisdom will die with you. The world will obviously lack with your demise." They are so different to the mortal men of Eliphaz's speech (4:21) who die "even without wisdom." Indeed, in Job's irony, his three friends were clearly a cut above the rest of humanity.

Job is clearly upset by Zophar's description of God's "wisdom," because from being a word used just twice in eleven chapters, Job utters it four times in this speech to rebuke his friends. He uses it to:

i)	ironically put his friends in their place (12:2);
ii)	acknowledge the value of the ancients (12:12 compare 8:8) as well as to put them in their correct perspective (i.e. inferior to God - 12:13); and
iii)	to declare that his friends' wisdom would best be exhibited by their silence (13:5).

"But," says Job, "I have a mind (lebab - noun of labab) as well as you; I am not inferior to you" (12:3 NIV). Job is responding to the insulting words of Zophar - "But a witless man can no more become wise (labab) than a wild donkey's colt can be born a man" (11:12 NIV). Job is not witless. He is not an empty man. Actually, as Job continues, Zophar has not spoken anything new or revolutionary. Any person with intelligence knows the majesty of God as described by Zophar in 11:7-12.

Despite his intelligence, despite his obvious strengths ("the just upright man"), despite his previous status before God ("who calleth upon Job, and he answereth him"), Job is now just a joke. A laughing-stock mocked by his neighbours. He is a devout man in disgrace. Zophar accused Job of mocking others (11:3) and Job, using a different expression, exclaims that he is the one being mocked. Yet, unless the tone of their expressions was mocking, the expressions themselves, while hurtful and callous, do not appear to be loaded with ridicule. Again emotions are manifesting themselves in exaggerated accusations and considerable hopelessness.

Job's despair is reflected in the truism of 12:5 which is translated rather floridly as, "'Add insult to injury,' think the prosperous 'strike the man now that he is staggering!'" (JB). Job is a man overtaken with misfortune. He's down and they still rain blows upon him. Instead of attempting to pick Job up off the street, they trample all over him.

12:6 The wicked do prosper

What a contrast to the previous verses. While the just righteous man is laughed to scorn and he who stumbles and falls is trampled on, the wicked prosper. How can Zophar and his companions hold so doggedly to their theory of exact retribution? The contrast is right in front of them. A just man in absolute destitution and the criminal world, whose God is their fist, living in prosperity.

The phrase, "Into whose hand God bringeth abundantly," is quite unclear in the original and the versions are inconsistent. However, the sense appears to be that the wicked deifies his own power. His strength is his god (Hab 1:11). Whether it be that the power he has was supplied by God (NKJV) or is carried in his hand (NIV) or is his two fists (JB), the wicked has no interest in God. He only provokes God. Those that irritate God are "at ease" (Green - battuchowth: plural of batach). Such a contrast to the swelling words of Zophar to Job, "If thou prepare thine heart ... thou shalt be secure (batach)" (11:13,18).

Job was not in the mood for pretty word-panoramas of future bliss. He wanted answers. If he was a sinner being punished why were other patently greater sinners, who have no thought for God, living unpunished? Why were they prosperous? Where were the answers to Job's problems?

12:7-10 Let Creation teach you the wisdom and power of God

12:4-6 is more than likely parenthetical as 12:7 logically continues from 12:3. The parenthetical section is an attempt to quickly hit out at the overall philosophy of Job's antagonists. 12:7 returns to the issue of the relative merits of the wisdom contained by the speakers. Zophar had professed an exalted knowledge of God (11:5-12). Job replies that his knowledge is elementary and even the lower creation could help to educate him. As Job was to discover, he would also be educated by God from the same source (Job 39). No matter who we are, all can gain lessons in the power of God. Awesome, yet simple, instruction is gained from honestly contemplating His creative works.

Indeed much can be gained from a careful consideration of God's creative works but Job's outburst in 12:7 is more designed to blunt the arrogance of Zophar than to extol the positive creative work of God. This is evident particularly when Job continues to declare the power of God later in the chapter. Virtually all reference to God's work is to its destructive side (12:14-25). Job is not breaking from his defence to a sentimental appreciation of birds and beasts. No, he is trying to impress upon the almost purblind Zophar that his knowledge is nothing special. The beasts teach the majesty of God. The birds do. As does the earth with its vegetation and small animals. Even fish are quality educators. If they know about God's majesty then surely Job does and it serves little purpose for his friends to harp on such a theme.

In 12:9 we read, "Who among all these does not know that the hand of the LORD (i.e. Yahweh) has done this" (NKJV). Some commentators dispute the use of "Yahweh" by Job here. Some advise that certain manuscripts read "hand of Eloah" (Gibson, Lovelock). Support for that alternative can be found in the Jerusalem Bible. However, most other Hebrew-based versions support the AV and use "Yahweh" or "LORD". While it is true that this is the only place where "Yahweh" is found in the poetical section of the Book of Job it has a perfectly sound link to 1:21 - the only other time Job uttered the Name, "Yahweh".

Job is coming to the end of the first round of speeches. All his comforters have spoken. Job has not changed. He still believes that "Yahweh gave, Yahweh has taken back" (1:21 JB). God is in control. Nothing has altered Job's overall opinion. No doubt his outlook is gloomy and biased towards considering Yahweh as a destructive force but the very distinctive use of the Name in 12:9 underlines the intractability of Job's viewpoint.

God is in control. In Yahweh's hand is the soul (nephesh), the principle of life, common to all living creation and the breath of all mankind. Again the feeling is that of God's power to snuff out life; to withdraw man's breath.

12:11-25 Job describes God's absolute power

12:11-12 gives every appearance of being out of place. 12:13 would seem to sensibly proceed from 12:10. The New English Bible places 12:11-12 in parentheses. However, these are not necessary as Job is introducing his dissertation on the grandiosity of God. He does so by asking questions in which the answers are axiomatic. Yes, ears do test words as a tongue tests food. Wisdom is with the aged. Long life does bring understanding. Job is giving a restricted degree of approval to Bildad's assertions of 8:8-10 but he goes on to clarify his approval. It does not matter how old you are, how wise you are, how easily your words pass the closest scrutiny, "To God belong wisdom and power; counsel and understanding are his" (12:13 NIV).

Job next proceeds to strip away any credibility that the greatest of mankind may have. What are counsellors (12:17), judges (12:17), kings (12:18), priests (12:19 NIV), the mighty (12:19) the trusty (12:20), the aged (12:20), princes (12:21) and the strong (12:21 JB) compared to God?

Look again at the descriptors used of God in 12:13. With God is "wisdom" (hokma). Hokma is a wide-ranging word connoting "wisdom" and God is the source of it. By His wisdom God numbered the clouds (38:37). He alone knows wisdom in its truest sense (28:20,23). God also has "strength" (gibbor - a popular Bible word often used to describe a mighty warrior) and "counsel" (etzah). Etzah has the implication of planning (Strong) and is translated as "forethought" (Green). It can also carry the meaning "firmness" (NEB). Finally, Job says that God has understanding (tebuna) which is almost a synonym of hokma but has a slight difference. Hokma is moral wisdom - the discernment of right and wrong - whereas tebuna speaks more of intelligence.

Overall, Job has neatly summarised his perception of God. God knows what is right as He is the source of all wisdom. He has the might and power to perform His will. He is working to a plan and has a firm resolve to accomplish it. All His acts are derived from superior intelligence. In other words, there is intelligent purpose in what God does. He does not indulge in capricious acts. God's activities are deliberate, even if man can scarcely determine the reasons for them. This is especially so when one can only see, as Job does at this time, negative destruction.

"Behold," exclaims Job, "God breaks down," and He is so thorough that "What he destroys, none can rebuild; whom he imprisons, none can release" (12:14 JB). When God judges, nobody can stop Him. Not nature or man or the apparent permanency of man's constructions. God is unstoppable. He can cause vast droughts and massive floods. 12:15 could be an allusion to some of God's greatest works - the presentation of dry land on the third day of creation (Gen 1:9) and the overwhelming of the earth with the floodwaters of Noah's day (Gen 7:19).

How powerful and wise is God. "With him is strength (oz) and wisdom (tushiya)." Job after his fourfold description of God in 12:13 uses two additional words in 12:16. It is as if he is searching for as many words as he can to impress on Zophar that he is not the sole repository of knowledge on divine matters. Zophar's knowledge is rudimentary compared to Job's. Job sees God's strength and tushiya. Tushiya means "sound, efficient wisdom, i.e. sound judgment, wisdom that leads to practical success" (TWOT). Tushiya is translated as "victory" (NIV), "resourcefulness" (JB), "prudence" (NKJV), "effectual working" (Gibson), "sound wisdom" (Green, Soncino), "effective wisdom" (Roth) and "success" (NEB). Job's message is very simple; it does not matter what sort of person you are - a deceiver or a person who is deceived (12:16) - you cannot beat God.

The mightiest of men cannot stand against the will of God. 12:17-21 details men mighty in stature, power and authority. None begin to measure up to God. God has control over them as He:

"robs ... counsellors of their wits" (JB - "spoiled" AV. Better as "stripped" NIV. According to Soncino it means to be "stripped of knowledge");
makes fools of judges;
controls kings ("bond" AV - musar means "discipline, control" Soncino. God can end a despot's rule and have him carried away as a captive i.e. bind a rope around his loins);
leads priests (not "princes" AV) away;
overthrows the "mighty" (more appropriately "the perpetual" i.e. men of influential status, inherited from their fathers, which they had regarded as unshakable - Soncino. See also NIV, JB);
silences the lips of trusted advisers;
robs the nations' counsellors, the elders, of their discretion;
pours contempt upon "nobles" (NIV etc - not "princes" AV as it is too narrow a translation); and
disarms the mighty.

Job's catalogue of prestigious men is comprehensive. As Brother Styles notes, Job covers the wise (12:17 - counsellors, judges), the great (12:18 - kings), the honoured (12:19 - priests, men of perpetual status), the knowledgeable (12:20 - advisers, elders) and the powerful (12:21 - nobles, mighty). God's superiority and control over them is accomplished by moral wisdom, might, forethought, intelligence, strength and effectual working.

Job next moves into a slightly more general application of God's supremacy. Nothing is hidden from God. All the deepest secrets of the wicked God can bring to light. It is not so much a matter of man attempting to "fathom the mysteries of God ... and being able to probe the limits of the Almighty" (11:7 NIV), it is the fact that God is always aware, always in control, never fooled. He is the One who makes nations great and destroys them. He is the One who makes fools out of the greatest of men so that they are out of control, groping in darkness, staggering like drunks.

Job has taken hold of Zophar's concept of God and declared it to be inadequate. To Zophar, God is large and unfathomable yet he confidently predicts how God will behave. If Job repents then, in Zophar's opinion, God will, of necessity, do certain things. In declaring this Job's accusers have initially put Job in a box labelled "Sinner." Secondly, they have tagged the Almighty as merely a reactor to man. Man is good, God is nice. Man sins, God is nasty. As Job is at pains to prove, it is not that simple.

Job is more honest with the evidence, more open in his thinking. He is virtually preaching that God is always intervening. His control can be seen in everything. Perhaps Job is overstating his opinions to indicate the shallowness of his friends' opinions, but it does indicate that Job has a faith in God's ability to manipulate events. True, the emphasis is on God's destructive outworkings but 12:23 shows a flicker of hope. Perhaps Job's faith extends to a belief in God's ability to save.

13:1-12 Job reproves his friends as utter failures

Job knows all about the absolute power of God so it seems pointless for him to continue. His experience, both in seeing and hearing, means he understands the might of God. He has, at least, the same amount of knowledge as his friends and he repeats 12:3 in stressing, "I am not inferior to you." In his estimation he is their intellectual equal.

However, this is not good enough. He must know the truth. His friends have failed. Job, while adept at refuting what is wrong, is at a loss to understand what is right. He must go to God for answers. But Job seems a little forthright in his request for an audience with the Almighty - "But I desire to speak to the Almighty and to argue my case with God" (13:3 NIV - the AV is a bit conservative).

Did Job expect to convince or change God? While the expression has links to the settlement of a legal dispute, the phrase can imply the establishment of justice. Job wanted to find out exactly what was going on. In 13:23 he wants to know what his transgressions, if any, were. If God declared to him his faults, Job would at least know.

The word yakach ("reason" AV, "argue" NIV etc) appears in a number of places in the Book of Job and the vast majority of its uses are on the lips of Job (11 out of its 17 usages). Most stress Job's desire for the needed explanation that is not forthcoming from his friends. For example:

"What does your arguing (yakach) argue (yakach)" (6:25 Green)
"If only there was someone to arbitrate (yakach) between us" (9:33 NIV)
"He will surely reprove (yakach) you" (13:10)
"I will defend (yakach) my own ways before Him" (13:15 NKJV).

Cruelly, Eliphaz in the following speech picks up Job's labouring of yakach and casts it back at him - "Would [a wise man] argue (yakach) with useless words" (15:3 NIV).

Yes, Job's friends were not of value to him and he heaps reproaches on them. They were "plasterers of lies" (13:4 Soncino) and useless physicians. They attempted to plaster over Job's problems with layers of lies. Their solution was convenient but incorrect as they stubbornly clung to a theory of exact retribution that was trenchantly unsustainable. As physicians or healers (surely their intention - 2:11) they were hopelessly incompetent. As Andersen writes, "They cover their ignorance by diagnosing an imaginary illness in Job (his hidden, dreadful sin) and prescribing a worthless cure (repentance, and so on)."

If this was the best they could do, they would best display their wisdom by reverting to the silence that followed their arrival (2:13). True, Job was depressed in Chapter 3 when he uttered his opening lamentations, but the words of his friends had been extremely unhelpful, hurtful and frustrating to the tormented Job. They had not lifted Job out of the pits of Chapter 3. Job's feelings at this time could be summarised by Proverbs 17:28, "Even a fool, when he holdeth his peace, is counted wise: and he that shutteth his lips is esteemed a man of understanding."

Instead Job requests that his friends hearken to his "reasonings" (towkachath from yakach - "reproof" Soncino; "chastisement" Strong) and pleadings as he appeals to his friends to be very careful in what they are saying. It is as if the shoe is on the other foot as Job turns to accuse his accusers. Do they dare to speak on God's behalf? Zophar had certainly done so in 11:6. Job is aghast. He is concerned about this presumptuous, dangerous development. Rotherham has correctly captured the emphasis of the Hebrew when he translates 13:7-8:

"Is it for GOD ye would speak perversely?
And for him ye would speak deceit.
Even for him ye would be partial?
Or for GOD would ye so plead?

"For God" stands at the beginning of the Hebrew and is thereby emphasised. They spoke on behalf of the pioneers (8:8), and from their depth of experience (4:8) but to speak on God's behalf is frightening to Job. Yet how easy it is, on matters where there is no clear Scriptural injunction, to presume what God would or would not approve.

Job in his play on yakach says, "I desire to reason (yakach) with God" (13:3), then, "You, my friends, need to listen to my reasoning (towkachath)" (13:6), because if you are not careful, "God will surely reprove (yakach) you" (13:10).

Job has clearly refuted their reasonings. They are plainly wrong yet they claim to be championing God's point of view. Job has no compunction in declaring that they are representing God with unrighteousness and deceit. Did God need them as His advocates? Job's question is meant for only one answer, "No!"

"No", is the only correct answer for the next two questions. "Would it turn out well if he examined you? Could you deceive him as you might deceive men?" (13:9 NIV). Imagine them squirming in anger and/or embarrassment as Job fires question after question at them. They have clearly overstepped the mark and Job wants them to be fully aware of their folly. "Yes," Job continues, "They would surely be rebuked." Ironically, Job is ever so slightly speaking on God's behalf but his basis is more sound and his application less specific.

The statement, "If you do secretly accept persons" (13:10) is better translated, "If ye are secretly partial" (Roth) and refers to a partiality or favouritism towards God or on His behalf. One wonders what the problem is. Throughout Scripture we are commanded to honour and worship God and the comments of some commentators on this expression seem somewhat odd (e.g. "He must reject worship based on favouritism, even when that worship is worship of Him.")

The point seems to be that partiality towards God when one does not correctly understand Him is favouritism without substance. It borders on flattery (John 16:2-3). This was Zophar's mistake in 11:6. He speaks emotionally and without evidence yet believes his opinions represent God's thoughts.

Job is not finished with Zophar as he fires two more questions at him; "Why aren't you terrified of God? Doesn't the fear of God fall on you?" Job had already confessed how frightened he was of God (7:14; 9:34) and he is astonished that his friends are so casual about God. They make Him more an object of intellectual contemplation rather than fearful subordination.

The warning is strong. They cannot dupe God, either openly (13:9) or in secret (13:10). God will deal with them. Their confidently stated maxims would be like ashes ("proverbs of ash" JB) and their "defences" (NKJV, NIV - preferred over "bodies" AV), that is the arguments they have erected to support their maxims, would be as clay. "Clay" was used by Eliphaz to describe the inferiority of man to angels (4:19) and by Job when acknowledging his dependence on God (10:9). Job is reminding his listeners that not only is their case unsound but it is man-made. It will not withstand higher scrutiny.

Therefore, it is to that higher scrutiny Job next submits himself to.

Job Appeals to God

13:13-19 Job turns to God as his friends cannot help

This is not the first time that Job, dissatisfied with the reasonings of his visitors, turns to God. His first was after the speech of Eliphaz (7:11), his second after Bildad's speech (10:1) and now this appeal after Zophar's oration. All his friends are, in his opinion, hopelessly ineffectual. He brusquely commands them to hold their peace and he intrepidly speaks out to God. His speech will be forthright and maybe even life-threatening. He is prepared to accept the consequences of his appeal.

He articulates his position dramatically in 13:14 as, "I put my flesh between my teeth, I take my life in my hands" (JB). The Authorised Version rendition of this verse as a question may be correct but Gibson, quoting the Septuagint, seems to think that a statement is more appropriate (see also Roth, NEB, RSV). What does it mean to "put my flesh between my teeth"? It is a parallel expression to "take my life in my hands." It is not found anywhere else in Scripture and is paraphrased a number of different ways ("neck in the noose" NEB; "in jeopardy" NIV). Essentially, Job is prepared to expose himself to death but, as he continues in 13:15, he will not, under any circumstances, despite the perceived inevitability of his sudden destruction, fail to argue his case or lose hope.

The interpretation of 13:15 is disputed. Gibson is adamant that the Authorised Version is wrong and Delitzsch wrestles with the text to determine the meaning. It is not saying that Job has placed himself entirely at the mercy of God and will do so without further discussion. The meaning is more likely the sense conveyed by the Jerusalem Bible when it translates 13:15-16 as, "Let him kill me if he will; I have no other hope than to justify my conduct in his eyes. This very boldness gives promise of my release, since no godless man would dare appear before him."

The sense does convey a degree of positiveness and faith. Job, convinced of his innocence, believes that such could save him. If he were a godless individual he would not seek divine vindication. He is not saying, "I have no hope." He is saying, "My only hope is God's recognition of my godly character." Job is also using a term that was spoken by Bildad in 8:13 - "the hypocrite's (chaneph) hope shall perish." Chaneph means to be "profane, impious" (Ges), "soiled with sin" (Strong). The hope of the profane may indeed perish with him but Job is confident that such is not his destiny as he is not a godless man.

Instead, he tells his friends (not God as 13:17 is addressed to the plural) to witness his declaration before God. There is a new note of confidence in Job's speech. Zophar began with a rebuke - "Should not the multitude of words be answered? and should a man full of talk be justified (tzadak)?" (11:2). Job cleverly turns this around by saying that he has ordered his cause. He has carefully prepared his case and as he continues, "I know that I shall be justified (tzadak)" (13:18). Job is not rabbiting on, hoping that the quantity of his words would compensate their lack of quality. He is so confident that he challenges his friends to find somebody who can advance solid arguments against his defence. He can "contend" (Delitzsch, Gibson, NKJV) with Job or "bring charges" (NIV) against him.

If anybody could prove an accusation against him and effectively refute Job's protestations of innocence he would hold his peace and die. "For now" (13:19 AV) is better rendered, "For then" (Soncino) or, "If so" (NIV). Even here there seems to be a chink in Job's confidence. In 13:18 his confidence takes on an air of superiority - "I know that I shall be justified." In 13:19 he is reluctantly admitting to the possibility, although remote, that an accusation could well stick and Job would be guilty. Such oscillation is to be expected of Job. At times the swing from hope to despair is massive. Here it is more of an errant fluctuation.

It is not surprising, with the magnitude of Job's suffering, both physical and mental, that Job's speech lacks uniformity. It rarely follows a steady pattern. His friends, with homes to return to and not even a pimple to scratch, can offer crafted, articulate dissertations.

13:20-28 Job pleads with God

Job having challenged his friends now speaks directly to God. He has his case prepared. He is ready to attest to his innocence. But he still feels things are a little lopsided against him. He needs some changes to enable a fair trial. If Job's conditions are met he will not hide himself from God (13:20). Has Job hidden himself from God? It is hard to believe so. This utterance baffles most commentators, especially in the context of 13:24 where Job accuses God of hiding His face from Job.

In fact the expression goes all the way back to the Garden of Eden where, in shame and guilt, Adam and Eve hid themselves from the presence of the Elohim (Gen 3:8). We also witness Cain's lament that because of his crime he would be hidden from God's face (Gen 4:14). Job's outburst is not an admission of sins as blatant as Adam's and as gross as Cain's. It is more a fear that God does not look with favour on Job. His speaking is confused but Job is saying that if God grants him the conditions he requires then he will appear before God as vindicated. The barrier that seems so apparent between God and Job will be removed and harmony restored.

The conditions are virtually synonymous:

i)	Let God give Job some relief from his bodily sufferings; and
ii)	May Job not be mentally tortured by God's omnipotence.

This is not the first time Job has asked for these conditions (see 9:34) but if they were granted Job would, in his opinion, be better able to present his case. After requesting two conditions, Job presents two options as his pleading takes a legal turn. In what looks like a call to a lawsuit, he says to God, "You make the choice. You can speak first or I can." Such is the desperation of the afflicted Job. But Job has overstepped the mark. God does not answer to anybody and He makes that very clear early in His opening speech - "Gird up now thy loins like a man; for I will demand of thee, and answer thou me" (38:3).

Job, not waiting for an answer, proceeds to ask God a series of questions. He wants to know the magnitude of his "iniquities" (avon), "sins" (chattaah) and "transgressions" (pesha). He uses three words in close proximity as he covers all the angles of his possible deviation from godly ways. Avon speaks of, "perversity, depravity" (Ges), chattaah signifies, "sins of weakness" (Ges), "to miss the mark" (Girdlestone), whereas pesha denotes, "to revolt or refuse subjection to rightful authority" (Girdlestone), that is, "wickedness which designedly estranges itself from God" (Delitzsch).

Job is thorough. Has he been guilty of a depraved action? Has he wilfully sought to rebel against God's authority? Has he committed a gross sin of ignorance? He wants to know. Job has protested his innocence but he does not claim perfect sinlessness. Maybe he is being punished for sins he has committed but his conscience is clear. Perhaps Job considers that he is the subject of retribution for sins past. This does not mean that Job was of the same mind as his friends.

Many commentators attest that Job had always accepted the "orthodox" doctrine of exact retribution but it seems discrepant that Job, after effectively demolishing the doctrine and demonstrating a vastly different outlook as early as 1:21, should be endorsing his friends' concepts. He simply wants to know if there is any connection between sin and his present condition. God does punish specific sin but it is not a law whereby every sin will have a corresponding punishment.

But God does not tell Job why he is suffering or what, if any, his sins were. Job's next question declares his frustration and sorrow. "Why do you hide your face and look on me as your enemy (oyeb -the root word for "Job")?" (13:24 JB). God has failed to give him the desired respite (13:20-21) nor supplied the answers to his questions. Job feels more than rejected. He is being treated as God's enemy in spite of Job's dependence on Him (13:15-16). Job is being a bit dramatic here. This was not evidence that God was treating Job like an enemy (Psa 94:12; Heb 12:6 - Elihu picks this up in 33:10). But why is God investing such an effort on a person who is like a withered leaf or a piece of dry stubble (13:25)?

Job compares himself to two of the weakest things of nature. So weak that they are helplessly at the mercy of the lightest zephyrs. Surely Job is not worthy of such attention. Maybe, suggests Job, his situation is a punishment for perversities (avon - see 13:23) he had committed during his youth. Job can only recall such misconduct occurring during his youth and perhaps Job's punishment is an inheritance from that time ("possess" 13:26 AV - better rendered as "inherit" NIV, Gibson, Soncino, RV etc). We could suggest that Job's sins of his youth inspired his regular offerings on behalf of his children (1:5).

Whatever the case, Job's plea in 13:26 is reflected by the words of the Psalmist: "Remember not the sins of my youth, nor my transgressions: according to thy mercy remember thou me for thy goodness' sake, O LORD" (Psa 25:7).

This forgiveness has not, by Job's assessment, occurred. He senses that he is like a prisoner whose feet are immobilised in stocks. He seems to be as a criminal whose steps are closely guarded. He cannot move beyond the narrowest of boundaries set for him by God. Green translates the end of 13:27 as, "You set a limit on the soles of my feet." All three figures in 13:27 imply restrictive arrest and the impossibility of escape. Again all these analogies were picked out for special attention by Elihu (33:11) indicating that Elihu was shocked by the substance of Job's words. Has God shackled Job as decisively as Job intimates? How is Job restricted? What sort of freedom does Job desire? Freedom from God's scrutiny or freedom from his affliction?

The last verse of Chapter 13 is another of those conundrums that riddle the poetical parts of this Book. Who is "he"? Some say it is anybody other than Job. For others it refers to Job (thus addressing himself in the third person), or man in general (e.g. NKJV, NIV) The context supplied by 13:27 would have us regard "he" as Job, yet the context of 14:1 points clearly to "man". Whatever the answer, and I lean towards its application to Job, the verse indicates just how helpless man is, and certainly a man as oppressed as Job, before the might of God. He "wastes away like something rotten, like a garment eaten by moths" (NIV). In saying this Job is going beyond the language of Eliphaz (4:19). Eliphaz's allusion relates to wicked men. An allusion that is manifestly inaccurate. Job's allusion incorporates all, including the righteous, but in doing this Job is being limited in his consideration of the character of God. If Job is right then nobody has any hope. This seems to be the point of view Job advocates early in Chapter 14.

14:1-12 Man's lot is hopeless, whereas a tree has hope

Job oscillates between hope and despair and it is difficult to determine his mood; his frame of mind. Even in this chapter, as he brings this lengthy speech to a conclusion, a shaft of light juts through the gloom at 14:14-15. But the first six verses constitute a poem declaring the universal misery and brevity of humanity. 14:7-12 is a comparison with the workings of the plant kingdom. Even a tree has more hope than a man. This is a monstrous extrapolation yet it is so strikingly balanced by a later swing to hope in the resurrection. Again powerful statements of truth are in evidence.

There is no doubting the correctness of 14:1. Man born of a woman is certainly of few days and full of trouble. Such a condition was instituted way back in Genesis 3:17-19. We are born into a constitution of sin (Psa 51:5; Rom 5:18-21). We are destined to die (Rom 6:23) and our days are days of trouble. We are frail like a flower withered by the sun and insubstantial like a shadow (14:2). These sentiments are dotted throughout Scripture (Psa 90:5-6, 102:11; Isa 40:6-8; 1Pet 1:24). Job has returned to his notions of 9:25. Yet, surprisingly God opens his eyes on such a one! But even in this the despairing tone of Job is to the fore. God does not open His eyes to save. No, God opens His eyes "to scrutinize in order to punish" (Soncino). The interpretation fits the remainder of 14:3, "And bringest me into judgment with thee?"

Most modern versions render "me" as "him" citing support from the Syriac, Septuagint and Vulgate versions. But there is no reason to discard the Hebrew. The Hebrew fits Job's state of mind as he leaps from a general statement to a "Why me?" outburst. He realises that as a frail mortal man born into sin he is impotent before the Almighty. He is terrified. Besides, is it fair?

"Who can bring a clean thing out of an unclean? not one" (14:4). Some claim that this is best rendered in the form of a wish, "Would that a pure one would come from an impure!" (Delitzsch) and this may be correct but the point is Job despairs at such an event. Nobody can produce cleanness from uncleanness. No pure thing will emerge from impurity. Therefore, how can man stand before God? What prospect does he have, other than death, in a legal sitting with God as the judge?

But is Job right in saying, "Not one"? This hardly seems a satisfactory answer to his question or wish. Perhaps the Jerusalem Bible is closer to the sense when it translates the expression as, "No man alive!" Man cannot do it. Only God can bring a clean thing out of the unclean, and this He did with His Son (Rom 8:3). As Brother Thomas wrote about Jesus in "Elpis Israel", "Sin could not have been condemned in the body of Jesus if it had not existed there. His body was as unclean as the bodies of those for whom he died" (p128). But Christ was raised by the Father and given glory (1Pet 1:21) and the Father has made it possible for the worst of men to be cleansed (1Cor 6:9-11).

Yes, the human existence is one of misery. The human mind is naturally inclined to selfishness, but God has provided a way out of wretchedness and sin. Job was still to learn that God is not only perfect, powerful and "a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart" (Heb 4:12), He is also just and merciful (42:7-8). Job while essentially correct in what he said about God was not complete in his knowledge. He uttered statements that he later acknowledged as insufficient (42:3).

Furthermore, man's days are determined (14:5). God knows our lifespans. Despite our best efforts, we live a short, frail, mortal life that is terminated at death. So why does God subject man to such close scrutiny? "Wouldn't it be better," appeals Job, "That God 'look away from him that he may rest'?" (NKJV), or as other versions have it, "Leave him alone" (JB, NIV). Job's sentiments are similar to those of the Psalmist, who after discussing the brevity and vanity of life states, "LORD make me to know mine end, and the measure of my days, what it is, that I may know how frail I am. Behold thou hast made my days as a handbreadth; and mine age is as nothing before thee: verily every man at his best state is altogether vanity" (Psa 39:4-5).

The Psalmist concludes with a prayer, using words that are reminiscent of Job's (e.g. 7:19, 10:20, 14:6): "Look away from me, that I may know gladness, before I depart and be no more!" (Psa 39:13 RSV).

These verses accurately mirror the condition of Job's mind. He just wants to experience the satisfaction a day labourer does. Such a person works hard, toiling through the day, under the commanding gaze of his supervisor, yet he gains relief when he returns home at night satisfied he has put in a good day's effort and able to enjoy comfort and recover his strength.

Job claims he has not experienced such a cycle. He feels overwhelmed by harsh, divine scrutiny. There is no relief, no feedback, just more pain and suffering. "Man's life is hard enough as it is," implores Job, "Why overburden it with still more suffering." Surely God would attempt to ease the burdens on mankind. But Job did not realise that what he was undergoing was for the development of his character (Heb 12:10-11) and for the education and redemption of his comforters. In this Job foreshadowed the work of Christ (Heb 4:15-5:2). Job did not appreciate this and therefore his trials were even more difficult to endure.

In Job's eyes a tree was better off than a man. Cut the tree down and it will sprout again. Perhaps Job is still niggled by Bildad's reference to the luxuriant growth (8:6) that is ripped out of its place of prominence to wither and die. "No," says Job, "Trees may look dead then new life will appear." A dead-looking tree just has to get a trickle of water and it will bud and bring forth branches. "But man (geber) dies, and is laid low; man (adam) breathes his last, and where is he? ... so man (ish) lies down and rises not again" (14:10,12 RSV).

Job is rock bottom. What hope is there for man. Even "at the height of its power ... at its most competent and capable" (geber - TWOT) man is laid down. Even man created "in God's image" (adam - TWOT) expires, and then what? He's finished. Man (ish - common word for individual man) lies down and rises not. Is Job denouncing the resurrection? The commentators battle with this because in the next verses (14:13-15) Job invigorates himself with a reflection on the resurrection. Certain Christadelphian authors play around with the words in 14:12 to try and say that Job was not referring to "the" resurrection but was repudiating a resurrection in his generation. I don't think so.

In 14:11 he compares man to a lake that dries up and a river that no longer flows. His utterance in 14:12 that man does not rise is attached to one exception - "till the heavens be no more." Surely an event he did not believe possible. Surely an expression equivalent to us saying, "Not in a million years." Furthermore, he states his non-resurrection feeling two more times - "they shall not awake, nor be raised out of their sleep." So why is Job saying this? And why does he immediately contradict himself?

It is a telling demonstration of the tormented state of Job's mind. His physical sufferings are clearly manifested but the pain in his mind is embodied in his fluctuating emotions and confused speech. In 14:12 he has hit the bottom. To him it is all over. But in the following verses he struggles to the surface obviously realising that it is not all over. God has provided a way. Job's highs and lows are not to be scorned or even pitied.

He was experiencing what we all experience - those doubts that we will not be in the Kingdom, or that the Kingdom will ever come followed by a swing to the inexpressible joy that comes from considering the power of God to save us. Job is to be observed and admired because his ability to endure and survive extreme circumstances of life enabled him to experience the mercy of God.

14:13-15 Is there life after death?

From his lowest ebb, Job lifts his thoughts as he gathers the threads of faith scattered throughout his earlier utterances. He constructs a short, intense precis of desire, maybe even a statement of faith. Oh that God would let Job die and when His anger has past and Job's time has arrived, God would raise Job from the dead. We should not be surprised by Job's knowledge of resurrection as it is an Old Testament doctrine (Exo 3:15 with Matt 22:31-33; Psa 16:10 of the Messiah; Psa 17:15; Isa 26:19; Dan 12:2). And Job, whose sufferings have caused him to doubt his future, now says that he will, "Wait (yahal) till my change (halipa) come." Halipa is sourced in halap the word translated "sprout" in 14:7, and yahal is translated "trust" in 13:15 - a verse where Job is placing his hope in God's recognition of his character. Job is going beyond that statement by saying that even if he dies he will still wait in hope. He can be renewed like that sprout that brings life to an apparently dead tree.

Job still believes that God is angry with him but his readiness to face death with hope is a transformation from the earlier gloominess so evident in 7:6-10 and 10:20-22. He reiterates his belief in a time of "hard service" (see 7:1 NKJV) but his tone is less depressed than that of 7:1.

Yes, when God calls Job from the grave Job will answer Him (14:15). Job has taken his pledge in 13:22 a step further. He reaches, at the conclusion of 14:15, what is for him, his crowning argument as to why God would not cast off His creation - "You shall desire the work of Your hands" (NKJV). This is a positive development from the perplexity of 10:8-12. In those verses Job could not understand why God would destroy something He had so intricately fashioned and unmistakably cared for.

Job now moves the feeling around. There must be a purpose to God's handiwork. He does not intend to destroy man. Job believes that God will resume His care for him. If not soon, certainly after the resurrection. After His anger was spent, God would yearn after the work of His hands and everlasting kindness will prevail (Isa 54:8).

14:16-22 Job's present state - perplexed and distressed

Job reconsiders his present state. He revisits the allusion of 13:27 where God is said to keep tight, constant observation of Job, and remembers all his sins. But there is a difference. 14:16-17 is more optimistic as it follows on from a consideration of the resurrection. While commentators tend to support a gloomy interpretation (e.g. Gibson, Reichert, Delitzsch), Andersen and most modern versions agree with the New King James Version: "For now You number my steps, but do not watch over my sin. My transgression is sealed up in a bag, and You cover my iniquity" (also NIV, RSV, JB).

Job does not believe he is without sin. Rather, the very activities he questions in 13:27 - sins (chattaah), transgressions (pesha) and iniquities (avon) - he admits to in 14:16-17. But the mood is different. God does watch over him but He is not the type of being who will produce a tally of every indiscretion to harm Job. No, God seals up Job's transgressions in a bag. Not so He can produce them like a conjuror to humiliate Job further. The intention is to hide those transgressions, cover them up, through mercy and forgiveness.

The word translated "sewest" (tapal) means to "smear or plaster over" (TWOT) and was used by Job in 13:4 when describing his friends as "plasterers of lies" (Soncino). They failed. They attempted to plaster over Job's problems with layers of sins. God, Job felt, would plaster over Job's sins, not trump them up for the world to see, as his friends seemed intent on doing. God's tenderness and mercy must soon shine through. This cannot go on. But it does, as Job spirals down into hopelessness again.

Job describes in 14:18-19 a process of decay. A process which leads him to the conclusion, "Thou destroyest the hope of man." Yes, man (enosh - weak, mortal man) does have a hope. Job has already declared that. But because of the discouragements, the humiliations, the privations of life, circumstances that could be attributed to divine intervention, this hope is destroyed. A mountain is an imposing majestic sight: a symbol of permanence and security (Psa 121:1) but still subject to a principle of decay. Every winter when the snows melt, the mountains are slowly eroded. It may be a slow, virtually indiscernible process, but the mountains are reduced. With earthquakes and landslides, large rocks are split off the mountains and spilt into the valleys below.

The process does not stop there. "But as a mountain erodes and crumbles and as a rock is moved from its place" we observe a further diminution of substance, "As water wears away stones" (NIV). Mountains to rocks. Rocks to stones. Stones to dust - "the cloudburst erodes the soil" (JB). Just as mountains are reduced to topsoil that is swept away in a rainstorm, so is hope reduced by permanent affliction.

Job so desperately wants to hope. He believes in the resurrection. He believes in God's forgiveness. But even these last threads that hold his allegiance to God together are frayed and wearing as he sees interminable affliction as his lot in life.

The Jerusalem Bible best conveys the sense of 14:20-21 when it translates it as, "You crush him once for all, and he is gone; you mar him, and then you bid him go. Let his sons achieve honour, he does not know of it, humiliation, he gives it not a thought."

God overpowers man. Man dies and the result is oblivion (Ecc 9:5-6). His misery alters his appearance then he is taken away by death. His sons could be achieving greatness but he does not know. He is dead. Maybe their lives are brought low, they are humiliated. He does not know. There is no consciousness in the grave.

But how do we interpret 14:22? The three schools of thought prevail:

i)	The soul lives on and experiences pain in the grave;
ii)	Job is speaking about a pre-death experience; and
iii)	"Flesh" and "soul" can be linked to relatives and associates left behind to mourn him.

All interpretations have problems. i) besides being completely unsupported by Scripture would seem to contradict 14:20-21 and no amount of adjustment can rectify those shortfalls. ii) while making sense does not flow logically from 14:21. iii), a possibility, is tenuous and unsupported by Bible versions.

I support the second interpretation as it constitutes the final words of Job's lengthy speech. After he bemoans the oblivion of death, he quickly switches to his theme of 14:19. All he feels is pain.

His whole existence is now one of mourning for himself. He is being worn away. He who was once the greatest man of the east feels like topsoil being dragged away by a cloudburst of affliction. His hope is being destroyed.

Can Eliphaz lift Job out of this mire of self-pity?