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Commentary on Job 13 verses 1–12
Job here warmly expresses his resentment of the unkindness of his friends.
I. He comes up with them as one that understood the matter in dispute as well as they, and did not need to be taught by them, Job 13:1, Job 13:2. They compelled him, as the Corinthians did Paul, to commend himself and his own knowledge, yet not in a way of self-applause, but of self-justification. All he had before said his eye had seen confirmed by many instances, and his ear had heard seconded by many authorities, and he well understood it and what use to make of it. Happy are those who not only see and hear, but understand, the greatness, glory, and sovereignty of God. This, he thought, would justify what he had said before (Job 12:3), which he repeats here (Job 13:2): "What you know, the same do I know also, so that I need not come to you to be taught; I am not inferior unto you in wisdom." Note, Those who enter into disputation enter into temptation to magnify themselves and vilify their brethren more than is fit, and therefore ought to watch and pray against the workings of pride.
II. He turns from them to God (Job 13:3): Surely I would speak to the Almighty; as if he had said, "I can promise myself no satisfaction in talking to you. O that I might have liberty to reason with God! He would not be so hard upon me as you are." The prince himself will perhaps give audience to a poor petitioner with more mildness, patience, and condescension, than the servants will. Job would rather argue with God himself than with his friends. See here, 1. What confidence those have towards God whose hearts condemn them not of reigning hypocrisy: they can, with humble boldness, appear before him and appeal to him. 2. What comfort those have in God whose neighbours unjustly condemn them: if they may not speak to them with any hopes of a fair hearing, yet they may speak to the Almighty; they have easy access to him and shall find acceptance with him.
III. He condemns them for their unjust and uncharitable treatment of him, Job 13:4. 1. They falsely accused him, and that was unjust: You are forgers of lies. They framed a wrong hypothesis concerning the divine Providence, and misrepresented it, as if it did never remarkably afflict any but wicked men in this world, and thence they drew a false judgment concerning Job, that he was certainly a hypocrite. For this gross mistake, both in doctrine and application, he thinks an indictment of forgery lies against them. To speak lies is bad enough, though but at second hand, but to forge them with contrivance and deliberation is much worse; yet against this wrong neither innocency nor excellency will be a fence. 2. They basely deceived him, and that was unkind. They undertook his cure, and pretended to be his physicians; but they were all physicians of no value, "idol-physicians, who can do me no more good than an idol can." They were worthless physicians, who neither understood his case nor knew how to prescribe to him - mere empirics, who pretended to great things, but in conference added nothing to him: he was never the wiser for all they said. Thus to broken hearts and wounded consciences all creatures, without Christ, are physicians of no value, on which one may spend all and be never the better, but rather grow worse, Mar 5:26.
IV. He begs they would be silent and give him a patient hearing, Job 13:5, Job 13:6. 1. He thinks it would be a credit to them if they would say no more, having said too much already: "Hold your peace, and it shall be your wisdom, for thereby you will conceal your ignorance and ill-nature, which now appear in all you say." They pleaded that they could not forbear speaking (Job 4:2, Job 11:2, Job 11:3); but he tells them that they would better have consulted their own reputation if they had enjoined themselves silence. Better say nothing than nothing to the purpose or that which tends to the dishonour of God and the grief of our brethren. Even a fool, when he holds his peace, is accounted wise, because nothing appears to the contrary, Pro 17:28. And, as silence is an evidence of wisdom, so it is a means of it, as it gives time to think and hear. 2. He thinks it would be a piece of justice to him to hear what he had to say: Hear now my reasoning. Perhaps, though they did not interrupt him in his discourse, yet they seemed careless, and did not much heed what he said. He therefore begged that they would not only hear, but hearken. Note, We should be very willing and glad to hear what those have to say for themselves whom, upon any account, we are tempted to have hard thoughts of. Many a man, if he could but be fairly heard, would be fairly acquitted, even in the consciences of those that run him down.
V. He endeavours to convince them of the wrong they did to God's honour, while they pretended to plead for him, Job 13:7, Job 13:8. They valued themselves upon it that they spoke for God, were advocates for him, and had undertaken to justify him and his proceedings against Job; and, being (as they thought) of counsel for the sovereign, they expected not only the ear of the court and the last word, but judgment on their side. But Job tells them plainly, 1. That God and his cause did not need such advocates: "Will you think to contend for God, as if his justice were clouded and wanted to be cleared up, or as if he were at a loss what to say and wanted you to speak for him? Will you, who are so weak and passionate, put in for the honour of pleading God's cause?" Good work ought not to be put into bad hands. Will you accept his person? If those who have not right on their side carry their cause, it is by the partiality of the judge in favour of their persons; but God's cause is so just that it needs no such methods for the support of it. He is a God, and can plead for himself (Jdg 6:31); and, if you were for ever silent, the heavens would declare his righteousness. 2. That God's cause suffered by such management. Under pretence of justifying God in afflicting Job they magisterially condemned him as a hypocrite and a bad man. "This" (says he) "is speaking wickedly" (for uncharitableness and censoriousness are wickedness, great wickedness; it is an offence to God to wrong our brethren); "it is talking deceitfully, for you condemn one whom yet perhaps your own consciences, at the same time, cannot but acquit. Your principles are false and your arguings fallacious, and will it excuse you to say, It is for God?" No, for a good intention will not justify, much less will it sanctify, a bad word or action. God's truth needs not our lie, nor God's cause either our sinful policies or our sinful passions. The wrath of man works not the righteousness of God, nor may we do evil that good may come, Rom 3:7, Rom 3:8. Pious frauds (as they call them) are impious cheats; and devout persecutions are horrid profanations of the name of God, as theirs who hated their brethren, and cast them out, saying, Let the Lord be glorified, Isa 66:5; Joh 16:2.
VI. He endeavours to possess them with a fear of God's judgment, and so to bring them to a better temper. Let them not think to impose upon God as they might upon a man like themselves, nor expect to gain his countenance in their bad practices by pretending a zeal for him and his honour. "As one man mocks another by flattering him, do you think so to mock him and deceive him?" Assuredly those who think to put a cheat upon God will prove to have put a cheat upon themselves. Be not deceived, God is not mocked. That they might not think thus to jest with God, and affront him, Job would have them to consider both God and themselves, and then they would find themselves unable to enter into judgment with him.
1.Let them consider what a God he is into whose service they had thus thrust themselves, and to whom they really did so much disservice, and enquire whether they could give him a good account of what they did. Consider, (1.) The strictness of his scrutiny and enquiries concerning them (Job 13:9) "Is it good that he should search you out? Can you bear to have the principles looked into which you go upon in your censures, and to have the bottom of the matter found out?" Note, It concerns us all seriously to consider whether it will be to our advantage or no that God searches the heart. It is good to an upright man who means honestly that God should search him; therefore he prays for it: Search me, O God! and know my heart. God's omniscience is a witness of his sincerity. But it is bad to him who looks one way and rows another that God should search him out, and lay him open to his confusion. (2.) The severity of his rebukes and displeasure against them (Job 13:10): "If you do accept persons, though but secretly and in heart, he will surely reprove you; he will be so far from being pleased with your censures of me, though under colour of vindicating him, that he will resent them as a great provocation, as any prince or great man would if a base action were done under the sanction of his name and under the colour of advancing his interest." Note, What we do amiss we shall certainly be reproved for, one way or other, one time or other, though it be done ever so secretly. (3.) The terror of his majesty, which if they would duly stand in awe of they would not do that which would make them obnoxious to his wrath (Job 13:11): "Shall not his excellency make you afraid? You that have great knowledge of God, and profess religion and a fear of him, how dare you talk at this rate and give yourselves so great a liberty of speech? Ought you not to walk and talk in the fear of God? Neh 5:9. Should not his dread fall upon you, and give a check to your passions?" Methinks Job speaks this as one that did himself know the terror of the Lord, and lived in a holy fear of him, whatever his friends suggested to the contrary. Note, [1.] There is in God a dreadful excellency. He is the most excellent Being, has all excellencies in himself and in each infinitely excels any creature. His excellencies in themselves are amiable and lovely. He is the most beautiful Being; but considering man's distance from God by nature, and his defection and degeneracy by sin, his excellencies are dreadful. His power, holiness, justice, yea, and his goodness too, are dreadful excellencies. They shall fear the Lord and his goodness. [2.] A holy awe of this dreadful excellency should fall upon us and make us afraid. This would awaken impenitent sinners and bring them to repentance, and would influence all to be careful to please him and afraid of offending him.
2.Let them consider themselves, and what an unequal match they were for this great God (Job 13:12): "Your remembrances (all that in you for which you hope to be remembered when you are gone) are like unto ashes, worthless and weak, and easily trampled on and blown away. Your bodies are like bodies of clay, mouldering and coming to nothing. Your memories, you think, will survive your bodies, but, alas! they are like ashes which will be shovelled up with your dust." Note, the consideration of our own meanness and mortality should make us afraid of offending God, and furnishes a good reason why we should not despise and trample upon our brethren. Bishop Patrick gives another sense of this verse: "Your remonstrances on God's behalf are no better than dust, and the arguments you accumulate but like so many heaps of dirt."
“If he follows your traces,” Job says. Therefore you, who speak so now would have not spoken so, if you were directly involved in the case that is judged. That is, if you were in my place and God were judging your matters with severity, you would have not judged my words as you do now. Or, to say things in a different manner, you, who speak so, would have not been judges of my words. In fact, Job says, even if you speak more, and you do everything to speak in God’s favor, he will not confound you any less and will ask you for explanations.
39. Heretics show God deceit in that they fabricate such things as cannot be pleasing to the very Being, in Whose behalf they say them. And whilst they set themselves as if to defend, they only offend Him, in that they are brought to the ground in [A.B.C.D.M. ‘fall into’] fighting against Him, Whom they appear by preaching to be serving. Hence it is said by the Psalmist, That Thou mightest still the enemy and the defender. [Ps. 8, 2] For every heretic is to Almighty God an ‘enemy and defender,’ for wherein he strives in his way to defend Him, therein he fights against His truth. But because nothing can escape God’s sight, He judges according to that in them, which they think within their heart, but not by their appearing without to be doing Him service. Therefore since by their frauds ‘as a man is deceived, God is not so deceived,’
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SUMMARY
Job 13:9 captures Job's indignant challenge to his three friends, Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar, who have relentlessly accused him of sin as the cause of his suffering. Job questions the integrity of their arguments, suggesting that their attempts to defend God by falsely condemning him are not only misguided but also deeply disrespectful to divine justice and truth. He implies that their own motives and righteousness would not withstand God's penetrating scrutiny, and that their superficial defense of God borders on treating Him with the same insincerity and mockery one human might show another.
CONTEXT
EXPOSITION AND ANALYSIS
Key Word Analysis
Verse Breakdown
Literary Devices
Job 13:9 is rich in Rhetorical Questions, a prominent feature of Job's discourse. These questions are not posed to elicit information but to make a forceful point, challenging the friends' assumptions and exposing the flaws in their logic. The verse also employs Analogy or Simile ("as one man mocketh another"), drawing a parallel between human insincerity and the friends' perceived disrespect towards God. This comparison highlights the depth of Job's indignation, suggesting that their pious pronouncements are no better than common human deception. There is also an element of Irony, as the friends, who claim to be defending God's honor, are accused by Job of actually mocking Him through their misguided and unrighteous arguments. This irony underscores the central conflict of the book: the inadequacy of human wisdom in comprehending divine justice.
THEOLOGICAL AND THEMATIC CONNECTIONS
Job 13:9 profoundly speaks to the nature of divine knowledge and human integrity. It asserts that God's scrutiny is absolute, penetrating beyond outward appearances to the very core of one's being and motives. This challenges any superficial religiosity or attempts to "defend" God through falsehoods or unrighteous judgment. The verse warns against the danger of misrepresenting God's character, even with seemingly good intentions, highlighting that true reverence demands speaking truthfully about Him, acknowledging the limits of human understanding, and refraining from presumptuous claims. It underscores that God does not need our lies or distorted rationalizations to uphold His righteousness; indeed, such actions are an affront to His perfect truth and justice.
REFLECTION AND APPLICATION
Job 13:9 serves as a potent mirror for believers today, prompting us to examine the sincerity and truthfulness of our own faith and words, particularly when we claim to speak on God's behalf or offer spiritual counsel. Are our attempts to defend God truly rooted in an accurate understanding of His character, or are they colored by our own biases, limited perspectives, or even hidden judgmentalism? The verse calls us to profound humility, reminding us that God sees beyond our outward piety and scrutinizes the motives of our hearts. It challenges us to ensure that our theological pronouncements are not merely intellectual exercises or rigid applications of doctrine, but are imbued with genuine compassion, truth, and a deep reverence for the multifaceted wisdom of God. To avoid the "mockery" Job describes, we must strive to speak with integrity, acknowledging our fallibility, and always prioritizing truth and love over the perceived need to "win" an argument or uphold a flawed human framework.
Questions for Reflection
FAQ
Why does Job accuse his friends of "mocking" God?
Answer: Job accuses his friends of "mocking" God not in the sense of outright blasphemy, but by presenting a distorted and ultimately disrespectful view of His character and justice. They rigidly insist that Job's suffering must be due to his sin, thereby implying that God is unjust if He allows an innocent person to suffer. Job sees this as an affront to God's true nature, suggesting that their "defense" of God is built on false premises and unrighteous judgment, akin to a human treating another with insincerity or deception. Their words, though seemingly pious, are a shallow and ultimately insulting misrepresentation of the Almighty, as God Himself later confirms in Job 42:7, stating that they "have not spoken of me what is right, as my servant Job has."
What does "Is it good that he should search you out?" imply about God's nature?
Answer: This rhetorical question implies that God's nature is one of perfect omniscience and absolute integrity. The phrase "search you out" (Hebrew ḥāqar) signifies a deep, penetrating investigation into the innermost being, motives, and hidden thoughts. It suggests that nothing is hidden from God's gaze. For Job's friends, who were making pronouncements about God's justice and Job's sin, this question serves as a stark reminder that God sees the heart, not just outward appearances or pious words. It highlights God's unyielding truthfulness and His inability to be deceived or flattered by human falsehoods, reinforcing the idea that "the Lord searches all hearts and understands every plan and thought" as described in 1 Chronicles 28:9.
How does this verse relate to the broader theme of suffering in Job?
Answer: Job 13:9 is crucial to the book's exploration of suffering because it directly challenges the simplistic retributive theology held by Job's friends, which posits that all suffering is a direct consequence of sin. By accusing his friends of misrepresenting God and even "mocking" Him through their flawed arguments, Job asserts that their understanding of divine justice is inadequate to explain his blameless suffering. This verse highlights that suffering is more complex than a simple cause-and-effect relationship with sin, and it shifts the focus from Job's supposed guilt to the friends' theological errors and the integrity of their own words about God. It prepares the reader for God's ultimate vindication of Job and rebuke of the friends, affirming that God's ways are beyond human comprehension and cannot be confined to rigid theological boxes.
CHRIST-CENTERED FULFILLMENT
Job 13:9, with its emphasis on divine scrutiny and the danger of misrepresenting God, finds profound Christ-centered fulfillment in the person and work of Jesus. While Job's friends failed to speak rightly of God, Jesus perfectly embodied and revealed God's true character, not through rigid theological pronouncements but through incarnate love, truth, and suffering. The "searching out" that Job warns his friends about is ultimately fulfilled in Christ, who perfectly knows the Father and perfectly reveals Him, as confirmed in John 1:18. Jesus Himself faced accusations of blasphemy and misrepresentation, yet He consistently spoke the truth about God, even when it contradicted the prevailing religious frameworks of His day. His life and sacrifice expose the inadequacy of human attempts to justify God through false accusations or legalistic frameworks, demonstrating instead that God's justice is perfectly met in His own Son, who bore the sin of the world. The ultimate "mockery" of God, in a redemptive sense, was when humanity mocked and crucified the very Son of God, yet through this, God's perfect plan of salvation was accomplished, revealing a justice far deeper and more merciful than Job's friends could ever conceive. In Christ, we see that God's integrity is not defended by human arguments, but by His own self-giving love, inviting us to come to Him in truth and sincerity, knowing that He searches our hearts not to condemn, but to redeem and transform, as powerfully expressed in Hebrews 4:12-13.