Certainly the fact that he may have come from that region, does not make
him a contemporary of Abram nor does it confirm him as being of that era,
because the Temanite (Eliphaz) was an Edomite (descendent of Esau), and the Shuhite (Bildad) was from a community
of Gad.
The book is written in elegant, sophisticated Hebrew. That
might suggest a Hebrew scribe, but Hebrew scribes only ever have
preserved Hebrew history. As such, the Hebrew canon includes Job, ascribing its
authorship to Moses.
Certainly Job’s friends seem to be theistic, which suggests that they
were all part of a more pious community. If so Job was as much a product of his
community as he informed that community. The robust language used by all,
confirms that.
Stop justifying yourself
Zophar holds course on their general tack, namely that Job has no right
to justify himself. The words “vindicate” and “flawless” (NIV), are used
pejoratively, suggesting that Job had gained an enviable stature in the community
that was now being found out.
In a sense, Zophar wants that to happen and yearns for God to silence
Job. As God doesn’t cooperate, he assumes the moral high ground that I have so
often seen in religious debates. As soon as they run out of sound arguments they
resort to name dropping or surely this and that.
Geocentricism (the earth is the center of the universe) and solipsism (that
we have all the goodies), raged through history as the logical redoubt for
insular men who preferred to pull rank and defer to the heavens than face truth
and its implications.
Thus, like an inquisitor, Eliphaz insists that Job relent and yield to
God, so he can be spared. His philosophical position is akin to sub specie aeterni.
Now hold on a bit
Job hits back tersely. Its delightful. “Doubtless you are the man and the
last word on wisdom is with you”. He adds, “actually I also have a mind and can
think for myself, thanks. After all, who made you so superior?” Its tantamount
to telling Zophar to shut up.
He bemoans that in effect they are mocking him, dishonoring his life and
ridiculing his theology. He then tells them to look around and smell the roses,
that all of creation knows that God has ordered life and that counsel and
understanding are his.
The subtlety though is that he also defers to God, but without accepting that sin explains his condition. He only concedes that
God is God. As such, we need to reason with him.
Thus in Chapter 13 he insists on speaking with God about it all. He
dismisses them as worthless physicians who ought to keep quiet and tries to put
them in his shoes by asking how they would fare in similar circumstances. It’s
a challenge to the idealism so rampant in theology.
He thus insists that his position will be vindicated, not by them, but
by God, so he asks God to reveal the cause for his crisis.
Our time is marked
Chapter 14 sounds like Solomon, that it is tempting to date this after
the wisdom writings of the Jews, but Job’s wisdom is different. Yet I agree
with him that, “Man born of woman is of few days and full of trouble” or as
Abraham said, “few and evil have been my days”.
He therefor makes the argument that we are just a fleeting shadow, bound
to a limit that will bring death, unlike a tree which can sprout again after
being cut down. He therefore petitions God to not make that brief life worse.
Instead, he notes that the
mountains erode, rocks shift, water wears down both and floods wash away the
soil. He uses the analogy to describe the withering of his own life.
Who do you think you are?
Eliphaz returns to the fray, but his soft, pious veneer is gone. The
gloves are off. He lays into Job with intensity, accusing him of undermining
God’s holiness.
That imposes a huge dilemma for Job. I would feel the heat too. The very
idea of “do not tempt God”, cautions me not to get ahead of myself. David would
agree having, repented of presumptuous sin. Philosophically speaking, Job is on
his own and on thin ice.
Epliphaz even questions whether Job feels he can eavesdrop on God’s
council and get the inside story, which clearly is not so. Job really does not
know what is happening to him and is not presuming to know, he just rejects theological
oversimplification of the issues.
Well Epliphaz can only reflect on the grim lot of all men and how we all
tend to shake our first at him at some stage. Life is a great equalizer.
Get real with God
Assuming to get God and have the answers is anathema to Eliphaz, but Job’s
non-fatalistic posture confirms the authenticity of his faith. He is not a
pious, judgmental zealot, but has spent a lifetime inquiring of God and walking
with him.
God help us to not have a secondhand, canned perspective of God, derived
from dogmas or the official view. Walk with God and find out for yourself who
He is. After all the New Covenant says, "I will show you my ways and you will not need others to show you".
Let a real world faith in God, ground you with a resilience and authenticity that rises to moments of great contradiction.
Then you will be a man my son.
