Bad theology is never the answer to man’s troubles. Most religions today offer bad theology. They offer a humanistic answer to a spiritual need. Many people are looking for some feel good messages. They are not interested in real answers. The devil knows how to make sinners think they feel good. God knows how to forgive sinners and give them His peace.
Job was not a lost sinner. He was a man who eschewed evil and feared God. He was under attack by the devil. He needed to learn to trust God more in his life. His three friends were false friends. They distorted the truth and they tried to put Job on a guilt trip and get him to confess to something that was not real.
God never tries to get man to confess to something that is not true. God is just and He watches over His child, even when he or she is under severe attack by the devil. God will be with His child and He will bring him or her safely home one day. In the meantime, He provides all the comfort that His child needs through His truth.
In verse 10 Zophar asked who had the power to interfere with God’s plans. If God chooses to punish a person, who can stop Him? The answer is obvious. The problem was that Zophar assumed that God was after Job. He was wrong.
In verse 11 Zophar accused Job of being a vain man. He accused him of being a wicked man. In verse 12 he went further and accused Job of being like a wild ass’s colt. He accused Job of being undisciplined and wild. Zophar was certainly out of order and was demonstrating his arrogance and pride.
In verses 13-14, Zophar encouraged Job to reach out to God and acknowledge his sin to God. He encouraged Job to not allow sin to dwell in his heart. It is true that no person should live in sin. No child of God should harbour sin in their heart and life. The reality is that Job was not harbouring sin in his heart. He was confused as to what God was doing. He assumed that God must not have considered his heart. He believed it would have been better if he had never been born. Job needed to learn some things, but he was not guilty of sin and thus being punished by God. Zophar was wrong in his assessment. He was guilty of sin himself, but he accused Job of being the guilty person.
Zophar believed that if Job would repent and confess his sin, that God would forgive him and restore him. It is true that a person should not harbour sin in their heart and life. It is also true that God will restore the repentant sinner. The problem was that Job was not harbouring sin in his heart. He was not an unrepentant sinner. We know the problem was Satan’s attack against Job and God. Satan is given some room to do his evil deeds. He had the liberty to fill Zophar’s mind and heart with lies. Zophar was a willing servant of the devil. He was being used by the devil to try to inflict mental and spiritual anguish upon Job. He would not succeed.
In verses 16-17 Zophar stated that if Job would listen to him, then he would forget his misery because God would restore him. Job would soon forget his misery, but not because of Zophar’s bad counsel. He would be restored by God, because God would not allow the devil to torment him any further.
Job’s hope was in God, but not for the reasons that his friends were suggesting. They were the ones who were in trouble with God and they would soon find that out.
Zophar wrongly assumed that those who walk faithfully with the Lord do not face trouble. He would fit in well with the Charismatics of our day. They teach that if a person has enough faith in God they should never be sick and never face any difficulties in life. They are liars just as Zophar was. Many people fall for the lies of these people. They live miserable lives as they try to drum up more faith and they have to lie and try to make it seem as if all is going well for them when they know it is not. Most of them are unsaved people who live with a false hope.
Job was a man of God and he was suffering because the devil had permission from God to test him for a time. God is always there for His child. He never drops him or her out of His protective hand. He does allow the devil to attack His child at times, but He is always there to provide the hope and comfort that His child needs.
Job did not need to be afraid. He could trust in God.
In verse 20 Zophar stated that the eyes of the wicked shall fail and they will not escape God’s judgment. The wicked only have judgment to face. They have no hope. Zophar ended his tirade by insisting that Job was this wicked person. He would not listen and thus he would have no hope and would continue to face God’s judgment.
As the saying goes: “with friends like this, who needs enemies.” Job had a friend in God. He was having trouble seeing that at the moment but he would soon see this more clearly. He was given the opportunity to see that these men were not his friends. They were of no help to him.
We need good friends. We need friends who walk in the fear of the Lord and who can give wise counsel to us. Choose your friends carefully and be sure you know the Lord and have Him as your first and primary Friend.
Pastor Bartel