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Commentary on Job 9 verses 25–35
Job here grows more and more querulous, and does not conclude this chapter with such reverent expressions of God's wisdom and justice as he began with. Those that indulge a complaining humour know not to what indecencies, nay, to what impieties, it will hurry them. The beginning of that strife with God is as the letting forth of water; therefore leave it off before it be meddled with. When we are in trouble we are allowed to complain to God, as the Psalmist often, but must by no means complain of God, as Job here.
I. His complaint here of the passing away of the days of his prosperity is proper enough (Job 9:25, Job 9:26): "My days (that is, all my good days) are gone, never to return, gone of a sudden, gone ere I was aware. Never did any courier that went express" (like Cushi and Ahimaaz) "with good tidings make such haste as all my comforts did from me. Never did ship sail to its port, never did eagle fly upon its prey, with such incredible swiftness; nor does there remain any trace of my prosperity, any more than there does of an eagle in the air or a ship in the sea," Pro 30:19. See here, 1. How swift the motion of time is. It is always upon the wing, hastening to its period; it stays for no man. What little need have we of pastimes, and what great need to redeem time, when time runs out, runs on so fast towards eternity, which comes as time goes! 2. How vain the enjoyments of time are, which we may be quite deprived of while yet time continues. Our day may be longer than the sun-shine of our prosperity; and, when that is gone, it is as if it had not been. The remembrance of having done our duty will be pleasing afterwards; so will not the remembrance of our having got a great deal of worldly wealth when it is all lost and gone. "They flee away, past recall; they see no good, and leave none behind them."
II. His complaint of his present uneasiness is excusable, Job 9:27, Job 9:28. 1. It should seem, he did his endeavour to quiet and compose himself as his friends advised him. That was the good he would do: he would fain forget his complaints and praise God, would leave off his heaviness and comfort himself, that he might be fit for converse both with God and man; but, 2. He found he could not do it: "I am afraid of all my sorrows. When I strive most against my trouble it prevails most over me and proves too hard for me!" It is easier, in such a case, to know what we should do than to do it, to know what temper we should be in than to get into that temper and keep in it. It is easy to preach patience to those that are in trouble, and to tell them they must forget their complaints and comfort themselves; but it is not so soon done as said. Fear and sorrow are tyrannizing things, not easily brought into the subjection they ought to be kept in to religion and right reason. But,
III. His complaint of God as implacable and inexorable was by no means to be excused. It was the language of his corruption. He knew better, and, at another time, would have been far from harbouring any such hard thoughts of God as now broke in upon his spirit and broke out in these passionate complaints. Good men do not always speak like themselves; but God, who considers their frame and the strength of their temptations, gives them leave afterwards to unsay what was amiss by repentance and will not lay it to their charge.
1.Job seems to speak here, (1.) As if he despaired of obtaining from God any relief or redress of his grievances, though he should produce ever so good proofs of his integrity: "I know that thou wilt not hold me innocent. My afflictions have continued so long upon me, and increased so fast, that I do not expect thou wilt ever clear up my innocency by delivering me out of them and restoring me to a prosperous condition. Right or wrong, I must be treated as a wicked man; my friends will continue to think so of me, and God will continue upon me the afflictions which give them occasion to think so. Why then do I labour in vain to clear myself and maintain my own integrity?" Job 9:29. It is to no purpose to speak in a cause that is already prejudged. With men it is often labour in vain for the most innocent to go about to clear themselves; they must be adjudged guilty, though the evidence be ever so plain for them. But it is not so in our dealings with God, who is the patron of oppressed innocency and to whom it was never in vain to commit a righteous cause. Nay, he not only despairs of relief, but expects that his endeavour to clear himself will render him yet more obnoxious (Job 9:30, Job 9:31): "If I wash myself with snow-water, and make my integrity ever so evident, it will be all to no purpose; judgment must go against me. Thou shalt plunge me in the ditch" (the pit of destruction, so some, or rather the filthy kennel, or sewer), "which will make me so offensive in the nostrils of all about me that my own clothes shall abhor me and I shall even loathe to touch myself." He saw his afflictions coming from God. Those were the things that blackened him in the eye of his friends; and, upon that score, he complained of them, and of the continuance of them, as the ruin, not only of his comfort, but of his reputation. Yet these words are capable of a good construction. If we be ever so industrious to justify ourselves before men, and to preserve our credit with them, - if we keep our hands ever so clean from the pollutions of gross sin, which fall under the eye of the world, - yet God, who knows our hearts, can charge us with so much secret sin as will for ever take off all our pretensions to purity and innocency, and make us see ourselves odious in the sight of the holy God. Paul, while a Pharisee, made his hands very clean; but when the commandment came and discovered to him his heart-sins, made him know lust, that plunged him in the ditch. (2.) As if he despaired to have a fair hearing with God, and that were hard indeed. [1.] He complains that he was not upon even terms with God (Job 9:32): "He is not a man, as I am. I could venture to dispute with a man like myself (the potsherds may strive with the potsherds of the earth), but he is infinitely above me, and therefore I dare not enter the lists with him; I shall certainly be cast if I contend with him." Note, First, God is not a man as we are. Of the greatest princes we may say, "They are men as we are," but not of the great God. His thoughts and ways are infinitely above ours, and we must not measure him by ourselves. Man is foolish and weak, frail and fickle, but God is not. We are depending dying creatures; he is the independent an immortal Creator. Secondly, The consideration of this should keep us very humble and very silent before God. Let us not make ourselves equal with God, but always eye him as infinitely above us. [2.] That there was no arbitrator or umpire to adjust the differences between him and God and to determine the controversy (Job 9:33): Neither is there any days-man between us. This complaint that there was not is in effect a wish that there were, and so the Septuagint reads it: O that there were a mediator between us! Job would gladly refer the matter, but no creature was capable of being a referee, and therefore he must even refer it still to God himself and resolve to acquiesce in his judgment. Our Lord Jesus is the blessed days-man, who has mediated between heaven and earth, has laid his hand upon us both; to him the Father has committed all judgment, and we must. But this matter was not then brought to so clear a light as it is now by the gospel, which leaves no room for such a complaint as this. [3.] That the terrors of God, which set themselves in array against him, put him into such confusion that he knew not how to address God with the confidence with which he was formerly wont to approach him, Job 9:34, Job 9:35. "Besides the distance which I am kept at by his infinite transcendency, his present dealings with me are very discouraging: Let him take his rod away from me." He means not so much his outward afflictions as the load which lay upon his spirit from the apprehensions of God's wrath; that was his fear which terrified him. "Let that be removed; let me recover the sight of his mercy, and not be amazed with the sight of nothing but his terrors, and then I would speak and order my cause before him. But it is not so with me; the cloud is not at all dissipated; the wrath of God still fastens upon me, and preys on my spirits, as much as ever; and what to do I know not."
2.From all this let us take occasion, (1.) To stand in awe of God, and to fear the power of his wrath. If good men have been put into such consternation by it, where shall the ungodly and the sinner appear? (2.) To pity those that are wounded in spirit, and pray earnestly for them, because in that condition they know not how to pray for themselves. (3.) Carefully to keep up good thoughts of God in our minds, for hard thoughts of him are the inlets of much mischief. (4.) To bless God that we are not in such a disconsolate condition as poor Job was here in, but that we walk in the light of the Lord; let us rejoice therein, but rejoice with trembling.
63. For the holy man, because he beholds the Redeemer of the world coming in meekness, does not assume fear towards a Master, but affection towards a Father. And he looks down on fear, in that through the grace of adoption he rises up to love. Hence John says; There is no fear in love, but perfect love casteth out fear. [1 John 4, 18] Hence Zachariah says, That we being delivered out of the hand of our enemies might serve Him without fear. [Luke 1, 74] Therefore fear had no power to raise us from the death of sin, but the infused grace of meekness erected us to the seat of life. Which is well denoted by Elisha when he raised the child of the Shunamite. [2 Kings 4] He, when he sent his servant with a staff, never a whit restored life to the dead child; but upon coming in his own person, and spreading himself upon the dead body, and contracting himself to its limbs, and walking to and fro, and breathing several times into the mouth of the dead body, he forthwith quickened it to the light of new life through the ministering of compassion. For God, the Creator of mankind, as it were grieved for His dead son, when He beheld us with compassion killed by the sting of iniquity. And whereas He put forth the terror of the Law by Moses, He as it were sent the rod by the servant. But the servant could not raise the dead body with the staff; because, as Paul bears witness, The Law made nothing perfect. [Heb. 7, 19] But when He came in His own Person, and spread Himself in humility upon the dead body, He contracted Himself to match the limbs of the dead body to Himself. Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God; but made Himself of no reputation, and took upon Him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men; and found in fashion as a man. [Phil. 2, 6—8.] He ‘walks to and fro’ also, in that He calls Judaea nigh at hand, and the Gentiles afar off. He breathes upon the dead body several times, in that by the publishing of the Divine gift, He bestows the Spirit of sevenfold grace upon those that lie prostrate in the death of sin. And afterwards it is raised up alive, in that the child, whom the rod of terror could not raise up, has been brought back to life by the Spirit of love. Therefore let him say in himself, and in the voice of mankind, Let Him take His rod away from me, and let not His fear terrify me. Then would I speak, and not fear Him. Where it is fitly added,
For I cannot respond whilst I fear.
64. We are said to respond to any one, when we pay back deeds worthy of his doings. Therefore to ‘respond’ to God, is to render back our services in return for His previous gifts. And hence it is that certain of the Psalms, in which holy practice is set forth for imitation are prenoted as written ‘to respond.’ Thus God created man upright, and bore with him in long-suffering, when he let himself out to do froward deeds. Every day He beholds sin, and yet does not quickly cut off the periods of life. He lavishes His gifts in loving-kindness, and exercises patience towards evildoers. Man ought to respond to so many benefits, yet ‘he is not able to respond whilst he fears,’ in that everyone that continues to dread with a slavish fear the Creator of mankind, assuredly does not love Him. For we then only render real services to God, when we have no fear of Him through the confidence of our love, when affection, not fear, directs us to good works, when sin is now no longer pleasing to our mind, even if it were allowed us. For everyone that is restrained by fear alone from the practice of evil, would gladly do evil things if liberty were given him. He then is in no whit really righteous, who is still not free from the hankering after evil; and so it is well said, For I cannot respond while I fear. In that we do not render real service to God, so long as we obey His commandments from fear, and not much rather from love. But when the love of His sweetness is kindled in our mind, all desire of the present life goes for little, fondness is turned into weariness, and the mind endures with sorrow this same, which she formerly served, under the dominion of an accursed love.
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SUMMARY
Job's lament in Job 9:35 encapsulates his profound despair and sense of injustice in the face of God's overwhelming power. He articulates a desperate longing for a scenario where he could present his case without being paralyzed by terror, a condition he acknowledges is currently impossible for him. This verse highlights Job's perceived inability to engage God on equal terms, underscoring his isolation and the perceived futility of defending his innocence before an omnipotent, unchallengeable deity.
CONTEXT
EXPOSITION AND ANALYSIS
Key Word Analysis
Verse Breakdown
Literary Devices
Job 9:35 employs several powerful literary devices to convey Job's anguish and despair. The primary device is a Hypothetical Statement, where Job posits a desired, but currently unattainable, condition ("Then would I speak, and not fear him"). This is immediately followed by a stark Antithesis or Contrasting Statement ("but it is not so with me"), which brutally negates the preceding wish and grounds it firmly in his painful reality. This juxtaposition amplifies Job's despair and highlights the insurmountable chasm between his longing for justice and his perceived inability to achieve it. The verse also powerfully uses Pathos, evoking deep sympathy for Job's emotional state—his fear, frustration, and profound sense of powerlessness in the face of divine omnipotence. The language is direct and unadorned, contributing to its raw emotional impact, acting as a concise Lament that encapsulates his broader argument in Job 9 regarding God's unchallengeable might and his own vulnerability.
THEOLOGICAL AND THEMATIC CONNECTIONS
Job's cry in Job 9:35 resonates deeply with the universal human experience of feeling overwhelmed by circumstances or by the vastness of God's power. It highlights the profound theological problem of human suffering and the perceived inaccessibility of a just God. Job's longing for a fearless audience with God underscores the inherent human desire for accountability and fairness, even from the divine. The verse implicitly raises critical questions about divine justice, the nature of human-divine interaction, and the possibility of reconciliation when one feels wronged by an omnipotent being. It sets the stage for a deeper exploration of God's character and the ultimate solution to the chasm Job perceives, a solution that only God Himself could provide.
REFLECTION AND APPLICATION
Job's raw honesty in Job 9:35 offers a profound model for our own spiritual lives: it is permissible, even necessary, to voice our deepest fears, frustrations, and sense of injustice to God. The book of Job validates expressing genuine human anguish, even when we do not understand God's ways or feel Him to be distant or overwhelming. This verse challenges us to consider the nature of our own "fear" before God—is it reverent awe that draws us closer, or a paralyzing dread that pushes us away? It invites us to acknowledge our limitations and vulnerability before the Almighty, yet also to recognize that God invites us into relationship, not just judgment. Our journey of faith often involves grappling with seemingly unanswerable questions and feeling overwhelmed, but Job's persistent, albeit anguished, dialogue with God demonstrates the importance of continuing to engage with Him, even in our darkest moments, trusting that He hears and cares.
Questions for Reflection
FAQ
Why did Job feel such fear towards God, rather than reverence?
Answer: Job's fear in Job 9:35 is distinct from reverent awe. It stems from his perception of God as an unchallengeable, overwhelming power who is seemingly acting against him without cause or explanation. He feels like a defendant before an omnipotent judge who is also his accuser, making any attempt at self-defense futile and terrifying. This is not the "fear of the Lord" that leads to wisdom, but a paralyzing dread born of his intense suffering and his inability to comprehend God's actions or to receive a fair hearing. He longs for a neutral ground where he could present his case without being intimidated into silence by God's sheer might, a scenario he explicitly states is "not so with me."
Did Job believe God was unjust?
Answer: Job certainly wrestled with the appearance of injustice from God. He consistently maintained his own innocence and could not reconcile his blameless life with the immense suffering he endured. He perceived God as his adversary, striking him down without cause, as he laments in Job 9:17, and felt that God was not providing him with a fair opportunity to defend himself. While he never fully denied God's existence or ultimate sovereignty, his lamentations throughout the book reveal a profound struggle with God's perceived fairness and justice in his specific situation. He longed for a way to "contend" with God, implying a deep desire for a just resolution to his inexplicable suffering.
What is the significance of Job's desire for an "umpire" or "mediator" in this context?
Answer: Job's desperate longing for an "umpire" or "mediator" (explicitly stated in Job 9:33, just before Job 9:35) highlights his perception of an unbridgeable gap between himself and God. He needs someone to stand between them, to lay a hand on both, to ensure a fair hearing and to prevent God's overwhelming power from silencing him. This desire underscores his sense of helplessness and his inability to approach God on equal terms. It's a cry for an impartial third party to facilitate justice, a concept that finds its ultimate theological fulfillment in the New Testament, where Christ serves as the perfect mediator.
CHRIST-CENTERED FULFILLMENT
Job's anguished cry in Job 9:35, expressing his desire to speak without fear before God but acknowledging his inability to do so, finds its ultimate and glorious fulfillment in the person and work of Jesus Christ. Job longed for an "umpire" or "mediator" (Job 9:33) who could bridge the infinite gap between a holy God and a sinful, suffering human. The New Testament reveals that Jesus Christ is precisely this mediator, "for there is one God and one mediator between God and mankind, the man Christ Jesus" (1 Timothy 2:5). Through His atoning sacrifice on the cross, Christ has removed the barrier of sin and the condemnation that would otherwise cause us to fear God's judgment. He has opened a new and living way for us to approach God's throne not with terror, but with confidence and boldness, knowing that we have an advocate with the Father (Hebrews 4:16; 1 John 2:1). What was impossible for Job—to speak to God without paralyzing fear—is now made possible for every believer by the grace of God in Christ, transforming paralyzing dread into reverent awe and confident communion, allowing us to draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith (Hebrews 10:22).