Job 12 - Praying God's Word

Please read Job 12.  Job is speaking.

www.blueletterbible.org/nasb/job/12/1/s_448001

Meditate on verses 1-2.

 

Then Job responded, "Truly then you are the

people, and with you, wisdom will die!”

 

Job responds to being called an idiot with quick wit and cutting sarcasm, referring to his friends being the ones miraculously birthed by a donkey (Job 11:12; 12:2).  It is encouraging to see Job’s smart comeback despite how horrible he feels. 

 

After rebuking his friends, Job describes the amazing power of God.  Pray these truths from Job 12:13-25 and 4 in declaration of who God is as a faithful, prayerful watchman (Isaiah 62:6-7).

 

“LORD, with You are wisdom and might;

to You belong counsel and understanding.

Behold, You tear down, and it cannot be rebuilt;

You imprison a man, and there can be no release.

 Behold, You restrain the waters, and they dry up,

and You send them out, and they inundate the earth.

With You are strength and sound wisdom,

the misled and the misleader belong to You.  

You make counselors walk barefoot and

make fools of judges. You loosen the bond of

kings and bind their loins with a girdle.

You make priests walk barefoot and

overthrow the secure ones. You deprive the

trusted ones of speech and take away the

discernment of the elders. You pour contempt

on nobles and loosen the belt of the strong.

You reveal mysteries from the darkness and

 bring the deep darkness into light.

You make the nations great, then destroy them;

You enlarge the nations, then lead them away.  

You deprive of intelligence the chiefs of the earth's

people and make them wander in a pathless waste. 

They grope in darkness with no light, and You

make them stagger like a drunken man.

LORD, I call on You. 

Please answer me in Your name, Jesus~”

 

The WATCHMAN on the WALL, 4 – Dr. Ron and Marsha Harvell

 

Job 11 - Praying God's Word

 

Please read Job 11.  Zophar is speaking.

www.blueletterbible.org/nasb/job/11/1/s_447001

Meditate on verse 12.

 

An idiot will become intelligent when the foal

of a wild donkey is born a man.

 

Thankfully, Zophar only speaks twice in this book (Job 11; 20) because his arrogant severity is painful.  His assessment of Job’s situation is simple:  God is sovereign and just; Job is sinful and getting less than he deserves (v. 6).  He calls Job an idiot who will be intelligent the day a wild donkey gives birth to a human; in other words, never (v. 12).  Wow, can you imagine having a friend like Zophar; can you imagine being a friend like he is?  “Oh, LORD, make me aware when I am prideful and harsh and shut me up!”

 

Zophar ends his discourse with these promises of prosperity if Job will just straighten up:

 

·      You will forget your troubles (v. 16).

·      Your life will be brighter than noonday (v. 17).

·      You will rest securely (v. 18).

·      No one will disturb you (v. 19).

·      Many will seek your favor (v. 19).

 

But, Zophar asserts if Job chooses to stay wicked, his eyes will fail, there will be no escape for him, and his only hope is to breathe his last (v. 20).  Unbelievable!

 

Learn well from Zophar; there are some things we should NEVER say to others in the midst of their suffering.  Thankfully God recorded his words, so we can know what not to say.  Pray Job 11:2-3 as a faithful, prayerful watchman (Isaiah 62:6-7).

 

“LORD, do not let ______________ and me be talkative

 people with a multitude of words.

Rebuke and silence us when we boast and scoff.

Teach us what to say in Your name, Jesus~”

 

The WATCHMAN on the WALL, 4 – Dr. Ron and Marsha Harvell

Job 10 - Praying God's Word

 

Please read Job 10.  Job is speaking.

www.blueletterbible.org/nasb/job/10/1/s_446001

Meditate on verses 1-2a.

 

I loathe my own life; I will give

 full vent to my complaint;

I will speak in the bitterness of

 my soul.  I will say to God…

 

I love that Job’s complaining prayer is recorded for eternity.  You can complain it, I mean, pray it now, as a faithful, prayerful watchman (Isaiah 62:6-7).  Because, even faithful watchmen have tough seasons in this life.  Pray Job 10:2b-17.

 

“LORD, do not condemn me; let me know why You contend

with me.  Is it right for You indeed to oppress, to reject

the labor of Your hands, and to look favorably on the

 schemes of the wicked?  Have You eyes of flesh? Or do

You see as a man sees?  Are Your days as the days of a mortal,

or Your years as man's years, that You should seek

for my guilt and search after my sin?  According to Your

 knowledge, I am indeed not guilty, yet there is no deliverance

from Your hand.  Your hands fashioned and made me altogether,

 and would You destroy me?  Remember now, that You have made

me as clay; would You turn me into dust again?  Did You not

pour me out like milk and curdle me like cheese; clothe

 me with skin and flesh, and knit me together with bones and sinews?

 You have granted me life and lovingkindness, and Your care

 has preserved my spirit.  Yet these things You have concealed in Your

heart; I know that this is within You: If I sin, then You would take

 note of me, and would not acquit me of my guilt.  If I am wicked,

woe to me! And if I am righteous, I dare not lift up my head. I am

 sated with disgrace and conscious of my misery.  Should my head

be lifted up, You would hunt me like a lion, and again You would

show Your power against me.  You renew Your witnesses against me

and increase Your anger toward me; hardship after hardship is with me.

Help me, Jesus!  For the sake of Your name~”

 

The WATCHMAN on the WALL, 4 – Dr. Ron and Marsha Harvell

 

 

Job 9 - Praying God's Word

 

Please read Job 9.  Job is speaking.

www.blueletterbible.org/nasb/job/9/1/s_445001

Meditate on verses 1-3.

 

Then Job answered, "In truth I know that this is so, but

 how can a man be in the right before God?

If one wished to dispute with Him, He could not

 answer Him once in a thousand times.

 

Unlike Job’s pompous friends, Job figured out he does not have God figured out.  He praises God’s power and wisdom, humbly acknowledging his inability to understand the LORD and His ways.  Job’s friends counsel him to do things to be right with God and garner His favor.  Job asks, “How can I be right with God?  Even if I wash with snow and scrub myself with lye, God will send me to the pit” (vs. 2, 30-31).  Job knows being right with God cannot come from one’s self.  His words sound similar to King David’s:

 

Be gracious to me, O God, according to

Your lovingkindness; according

 to the greatness of Your compassion

blot out my transgressions.

Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity

and cleanse me from my sin.

 Purify me with hyssop, and I shall be clean;

wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.

—Psalm 51:1-2, 7

 

Humbly acknowledge God and your need for Him by praying Job 9:5-8, 10, and 30 as a faithful, prayerful watchman (Isaiah 62:6-7).

 

“God, You remove the mountains when You overturn

them in Your anger.  You shake the earth out of its place,

and its pillars tremble.  You command the sun not to shine

 and set a seal upon the stars.  You alone stretch out the heavens

and trample down the waves of the sea.  You do great things,

unfathomable, and wondrous works without number. 

You did the wondrous work of washing and cleansing me to

be whiter than snow.  Please do the same for ____________.

In Your name, Jesus~”

 

The WATCHMAN on the WALL, 4 – Dr. Ron and Marsha Harvell

Job 8 - Praying God's Word

 

Please read Job 8.  Bildad is speaking.

www.blueletterbible.org/nasb/job/8/1/s_444001

Meditate on verses 1-2.

 

Then Bildad the Shuhite answered, "How long will you say

these things, and the words of your mouth be a mighty wind?”

 

Bildad the Shuhite could be nicknamed Bildad the Blunt.  He speaks with no tact, calling Job a windbag and his children sinners who got what they deserved (vs. 2, 4).  He shows no sympathy for Job, making no acknowledgment of his immense pain and suffering.  Bildad simply states his assumption that if Job was righteous, God would bless him, and since he isn’t being blessed, he is obviously being punished by God because of sin.  He also counsels Job to manipulate God:

 

If you would seek God and implore the

 compassion of the Almighty, if you are

pure and upright, surely now

He would rouse Himself for you and

restore your righteous estate.

—Job 8:5-6

 

Again, God’s Word is so convicting.  How easy it is to be a blunt Bildad, assuming we understand God’s ways and being quick to advise others to pray more, read their Bible more, go to church more, and sin less if they want to be blessed.  Ask God to teach you what not to say and help you not be a spiritual bully like Bildad, using the words from Job 8:3, as a faithful, prayerful watchman (Isaiah 62:6-7).

 

“LORD God Almighty, You do not pervert justice,

and You do not pervert what is right.

Do not let me pervert who You are and what You say.

In Your name, Jesus~”

 

The WATCHMAN on the WALL, 4 – Dr. Ron and Marsha Harvell

 

 

Job 7 - Praying God's Word

 

Please read Job 7.  Job is speaking.

www.blueletterbible.org/nasb/job/7/1/s_443001

Meditate on verse 4.

 

When I lie down, I say, “When shall I arise?” But the

night continues, and I am continually tossing until dawn.

 

Thankfully God gave us the book of Job for sleepless nights and distressful times.  Thankfully, God recorded Job’s prayer of anguish, so we do not have to restrain our mouths; we can speak in the anguish of our spirit and complain in the bitterness of our soul (v. 11). 

 

Pray Job’s prayer from verses 12-21 as a faithful, prayerful watchman (Isaiah 62:6-7).

 

LORD, am I the sea, or the sea monster,

that You set a guard over me?

 If I say, 'My bed will comfort me, my

 couch will ease my complaint,' then

You frighten me with dreams and

 terrify me by visions; so that my

 soul would choose suffocation,

death rather than my pains.

 I waste away; I will not live forever.

Leave me alone, for my days are

but a breath.  What is man that You magnify

him, and that You are concerned

about him, that You examine him every

morning and try him every moment?

 Will You never turn Your gaze

away from me, nor let me alone

until I swallow my spittle?  Have I sinned? What

 have I done to You, O Watcher of men?

 Why have You set me as Your target, so

that I am a burden to myself? 

Why then do You not pardon my transgression

and take away my iniquity?

 For now, I will lie down in the dust, and

You will seek me, but I will not be.

LORD, I need help! 

In Your name, Jesus~”

 

The WATCHMAN on the WALL, 4 – Dr. Ron and Marsha Harvell

 

 

Job 6 - Praying God's Word

 

Please read Job 6.  Job is speaking.

www.blueletterbible.org/nasb/job/6/1/s_442001

Meditate on verse 14.

 

For the despairing man there should

 be kindness from his friend; so that he does

not forsake the fear of the Almighty.

 

Job responds to Eliphaz with, “Be kind!”  Kindness goes a long way and keeps you from doing and saying the regrettable.  It is easy to look at a person, assess their situation, and eagerly tell them what they need to do to fix it.  The holier-than-thou Eliphaz approach is usually met with rebellious disdain.  But, observing others with kindness, infuses your thoughts, words, and actions with Christ, making all the difference. 

 

Seeing the people, He (Jesus) felt compassion

 for them, because they were distressed and

dispirited like sheep without a shepherd.

—Matthew 9:36

 

Ask the LORD to let His kindness govern you, giving you His heart, the heart of a good shepherd, who sincerely loves and cares about others.

 

Do not let kindness and truth leave

 you; bind them around your neck; write

them on the tablet of your heart.

—Proverbs 3:3

 

Pray Job 6:10 and 14 over yourself and those for whom you stand guard as a faithful, prayerful watchman (Isaiah 62:6-7).

 

“Holy One, even in unsparing pain, let it be my

consolation that I never deny Your Words. 

When __________ and I see a despairing person, let

there be kindness from us, so they do not forsake

the fear of You, the Almighty.  When we are in

despair, give us people who are kind, so

 we do not forsake the fear of You.

Because You are the Almighty and Holy One, Jesus~”

 

The WATCHMAN on the WALL, 4 – Dr. Ron and Marsha Harvell