Translation

Notes

(1) So Job answered and said,

(2) Today indeed my complaining is bitter,

My hand has become heavy from my groaning.

(3) Who will grant me knowledge, so that I might find him?

So that I could get to his dwelling place.

(4) I would lay out my case before him,

and fill my mouth with arguments.

(5) I would understand the words he gave me in reply,

And understand what he had to say to me.

(6) Would he contend with me by his great strength?

No!  He would just pay attention to me!

(7) There an upright man could dialogue with him,

So I would be rescued forever from the one who condemns me.

(8) If I go forward, he's not there!

If I go back, I don't perceive him.

(9) Leftward, where he is working, I can't get sight of him.

He covers himself, so I can’t see him to the right!

(16) But God has made my heart weak,

The almighty has terrified me.

(17) But I will not be terrified in the face of darkness,

When all before me is covered with thick darkness.

ASV reads “rebellious” vice “bitter” but I would suggest that is out of character with what Job is

trying to say here.

Literally “who will give that I might certainly find him”

Job’s desire is to take his complaint to God.  If God will just hear him, he knows he is in the right.  I believe this is one of Job’s positive attributes, and one that is commonly lost in Christianity, the conviction of innocence.  We have the conviction of sin, we have the feeling of self-righteousness, of overbearing judgmentalism, but we need to find that feeling of innocence.

Did Job change his mind after chapters 38-41?  Did God not at least present his strength as an argument?

This is a beautiful depiction of the search for God when one feels that God is absent.  I hope that I have managed to translate without too much violence to the Hebrew here, which is very concise.

There are several ways to read verse 17.  I have chosen to read it as a statement of determination.

Translation (Hebrew Verse #s)

Notes

(1) To the leader, to the "Hind of Dawn," a Psalm for David.

(2) My God, My God!  Why have you abandoned me?

Why are you too far away to save me, to hear my groaning words?

(3) My God!  I call out by day, but you don't hear!

I call out by night, but there is no rest for me.

(4) Yet you are holy!

You are sitting on the praises of Israel!

(5) Our ancestors trusted in you!

They trusted, and you rescued them.

(6) They cried out to you, and they were delivered!

They trusted in you, and they were not ashamed.

(7) But as for me, I'm a worm and not a man.

I'm a shame to humanity, and despised by people.

(8) Everyone who sees me mocks me.

Thy open their mouths, they shake their heads,

(9) "He trusted in YHWH, so let Him save him!

Let Him save him, since He takes delight in him!"

(10) Yet you are the one who dragged me from the womb,

You were the one I trusted in at my mother's breast.

(11) I was cast upon you from the womb,

and from my mother's belly you have been my God.

(12) Don't be far from me, because trouble is near,

because there is nobody to help.

(13) Many bulls have surrounded me,

Mighty stallions of Bashan have encompassed me.

(14) They have opened their mouths against me.

A lion, tearing prey and roaring!

(15) I have been poured out like water,

All my bones have been separated,

My heart was like wax,

melted away in the midst of my abdomen.

(16) My strength is dried up like a potsherd,

My tongue clings to my palate,

You have placed me in the dust of death.

Words also attributed to Jesus on the cross.

Note the honesty.  God should be near, he appears to be far, let’s go ahead and say that!

I see this as part of the complaint.  “Look God,” says the psalmist, “we’re praising you all the time.  Our ancestors trusted you.  You didn’t leave them on their own to be ashamed.”  The obvious question, asked more loudly because it isn’t spoken, is “What are you up to now?  What’s wrong with you?”

This is the contrast between what the psalmist thinks God should do and what God is actually doing.  God’s reputation is subtly brought in, by the implication that one who is known to trust in YHWH is being left unheard.

I see verse 10 as both a complaint and a basis for further petition.  “God, you’re the one who brought me into the world.  I was feeding at my mother’s breast, but you’re the source.”  Again we have the unvoiced, but very obvious question, “What’s wrong now?”

The psalmist is under attack.  It’s possible that this is an attack by enemies or a disease.  He believes that he is about to die.

And throughout, the question, “Where is God?”

Translation

Notes

(6) Seek YHWH so you may live,

Lest he burst forth like a fire in the house of Joseph,

which would eat, and nobody could quench, in Bethel.

(7) Those who turn justice to wormwood,

And throw righteousness down to the ground.

(10) They hate a reprover in the gate,

And the regard one who speaks uprightly as an abomination.

(11) Therefore since you trample on the poor,

And take from him his portion of grain,

You have built pretty houses, but you would live in them,

You've planted fruitful vineyards, but you won't drink their wine.

(12) Because I know how many are your transgressions,

and how mighty are your sins!

You are enemies of the righteous, and bribe takers,

And you turned aside the poor at the gate.

(13) Therefore those who are wise in this time are silent,

Because it is a wicked time.

(14) Seek good, and not evil, so that you may live!

And so that YHWH, God of hosts may be with you, just as you claim.

(15) Hate evil, and love good, and put justice in the gate!

Maybe YHWH God of hosts will show mercy to the remnant of Jacob.

There is a clear parallel here between seeking YHWH, life, and the carrying out of the call to justice.  Frequently we see seeking God and “spirituality” opposed to the seeking of justice and of life in this world, but here they are all in parallel.  God makes it clear that trouble is coming if justice is not done.  It is the ones who turn justice in “wormwood” (read bitterness) who are bringing on the judgment.  Note here that the indictment is not theological—it is not about failure to adhere to correct doctrine, but rather is about action.  Now doctrine leads to action, and correct doctrine will likely lead to correct action, but it is the fruit that provides the test.

The one who reproves or speaks uprightly challenges the surrounding culture.  Sometimes that will be the culture outside the church, but very frequently it will be the culture inside—and sometimes there will be no difference.

In this case we have specifically economic justice cited.  In the church we have split social issues from issues of faith.  But our faith should drive both redemptive activity (seeking those who need redemption) and activity in support of social justice.  Because we understand the radical nature of who Jesus is and what he has done, we understand the need for a radical ministry to peoples’ needs—both spiritual and social.  The Bible does not divide these; neither should we.

What about pretty churches with artistic chandeliers when people were starving?  There is a balance here.  Buildings are needed, but do we really consider the mission of the church when we make decisions about facilities, or are we just working for our comfort.

When there is nobody to listen, the wise often must be silent.

When we should mercy to others, God will show mercy to us.  See Matthew 7:1 & 2, and 6:14 & 15.

Translation

Notes

(12) Let us understand how to order our days,

So that our minds might come to wisdom.

(13) Turn, Oh Lord!  How long will it be?

When will you show compassion to your servants?

(14) We are satiated in the morning with your lovingkindness,

And we sing for joy and are joyful in all our days.

(15) Make us rejoice according to the days when we were afflicted.

According to the years in which we saw disaster.

(16) Let your works appear to your servants, and your wonder to their children.

(17) And let the beauty of the Lord our God be upon us,

Establish the work of our hands,

Yes, the work of our hands, establish it!

Order  Hebrew manah, which has as its most basic definition “count” but was used in the census and in decisions about groupings and so forth.  I would suggest that the idea of military organization is behind this word.  When we count our days, we can use them wisely and appropriately.  (Tie to Hebrews 4:13, giving an account, and also the concept of accountability.)

This is the petition part.  Note that this prayer is much more upbeat than Psalm 22.  Comparing the two might make an interesting study on prayer.  Psalm 90 gets around to praise much more quickly.

Now we praise God for the response, though the continuation of the prayer doesn’t suggest an answer.  Rather, this praise suggests confidence.

A proportional restitution is a common theme in scripture.

Seeing and testifying to God’s works is part of building an experience with God.

Letting God’s beauty work in and through us.

We don’t just wait for God to act, we act ourselves.

Translation

Notes

¹²For God’s underlying message

 is alive and active,

sharper than any two edged sword, piercing to the division of the soul and spirit, bones and marrow, and judging the desires and thoughts of the mind.

¹³There is no creature he can’t see, for everything is naked and laid bare to before the eyes of the one to whom we must render an account.

¹⁴Since we have such a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the son of God, let us grab hold of our confession.  ¹⁵For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, since he has been tested in all things in the same way we have, but without sinning.

¹⁶Let us approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we might receive mercy and find grace when we need it.

God’s underlying message  one of many translations I’ve used for “word (Logos) of God.”  It’s more than that.  Read 1:1-3, and John 1:1-18, and then come up with your own expression of this idea to present to your congregation.

God’s message is not merely embodied in words on paper, but in lives, in creation, and in the life of Jesus.  If it isn’t active, if it isn’t alive, it’s not God’s word.  A slight spasm on Sunday morning doesn’t qualify!

God’s word tests us, but only when words of paper come into the heart.  How do you stand up?  This passage can be related to the prophetic call of Amos to justice, for example.  Is it our desire as a church to see justice for all?

We can’t get away from God.  If we are bearing the name of Jesus without having the attitude of Jesus, we’re going to get caught.  For most of us, we don’t need anything like the living and active Word to catch us.  Everybody can pick out a hypocrite!

This presents the human side of the incarnation (except for the “without sinning” part!) and makes it clear that Jesus has gone through what we have to go through.  Consider this fact when you tend to present Jesus as too “godlike” to relate.  He had to deal with decisions and even the attack of doubts.  Just look at this prayer (Psalm 22 can come in here.)

This is the key point of the passage.  God sent Jesus. He’s willing to cross he gap, so we can cross back in return.

But while we’re considering the call to discipleship, and particularly the prophetic call, let’s consider this.  If God, who is much more different from us than we are from our neighbors of different races, creeds, religions, nationalities, or any difference possible within the human race can cross that gap and become able to sympathize with us, what are we called to do about all those little differences we see a so big?

Translation

Notes

(17) And as he was going out on the road, someone ran up to him and knelt before him, and asked him, "Good teacher, what must I do so that I may inherit eternal live?"

(18) But Jesus said to him, "Why do you call me 'good'?  There is nobody good, except one, that's God! (19)  You know the commandments, "Don't murder, don't commit adultery, don't steal, don't bear false witness, don't defraud, honor your father and your mother."  (20) He said to him, "Teacher, I have abided by all these commands since I was a youth!" 

(21) Jesus, when he had looked at him intently, loved him, so he said to him, "You lack one thing.  God, sell whatever you have, and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven, come, follow me."  (22) But the man became very sad when he heard this word, and he went away grieving, because he had many possessions.

(23) Then Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, "How difficult it is for those who have possessions to enter into the kingdom of God."  (24) Now his disciples were amazed at his words, so Jesus answered them again, "Children, how difficult it is to enter into the kingdom of God!  (25) It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God."  (26)  They were even more amazed, saying to one another, "Then who can be saved?" 

(27) But Jesus, gazing at them, said, "For men it is impossible, but not for God.  For all things are possible with God."

(28) Peter began to say to him, "Behold, we have left everything and we have followed you.  (29) And Jesus said, "Truly I tell you, There is nobody who has left household or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or fields for my sake, and for the sake of the good news, (30) who will not receive a hundredfold now in this time, households and brothers and sisters and mothers and children and fields with persecution, and in the coming age, eternal life.  (31) But many who are first will be last, and those who are last will be first.

There are minor variations in this story in the gospels (Matthew 19:16-30, Luke 18:18-30) but the major thrust of the story remains the same.  Someone who is generally doing good things is asked for a total commitment and is not willing to make it.  In our passage, someone who has followed the negative commands (along with the positive one to honor parents) is unwilling to go further.

Don’t be so anxious in preaching this passage to protect the doctrine of justification by faith that you blunt the message of Jesus.  Jesus is talking about total, radical discipleship.  Preachers like to make sure they’re not accused of talking about righteousness by works.  But notice that Jesus doesn’t protect himself from the radical nature of the message.

Is it possible that “looking at him and loving him” Jesus saw something great that he could be as a more radical disciple?  We’re not told.  In this case, the bar was possessions.  Each person needs to ask what is barring me from accomplishing what I need to accomplish.  Is it reputation, fame, authority, comfort?

This again was very radical.  It was a common view that those who are rich are blessed.  The disciples’ perspective is simply that if it is impossible for the rich, how can it be possible for anyone.

Jesus says that with God all things are possible.  Note the context.  God can change peoples’ lives and bring forth in them radical discipleship.  With such radical discipleship, coupled with the prophetic call to justice, Christians could change the world, for the better.  Notice that Jesus didn’t convert his questioner to a doctrine. He didn’t tell his disciples, “Well, if they put their faith in me, then they can manage it.”  He simply said, “With God, all things are possible.”  Many times we as Christians are tempted to write someone off.  We are often seen as more, rather than less judgmental.  But we should be the ones who are able to see the redeemable in the worst person, the one with the most barriers.  We should be the ones who believe in and practice redemption.

Peter wants to make sure that the good stuff is coming, that there is a reward for this giving up of stuff.  And Jesus assures him that there is.  I’d like to call attention to the statement of Jesus that there is a reward in this life as well as in the next.  Often we emphasize merely the value of Christianity as a “get out of hell free” card. In fact, Jesus taught that his message had value for the here and now as well.