Friday, December 14, 2012 – Job 1 – This We Do Habitually
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This Job did habitually . . .
This one, short verse sums up Job’s personality. It is why we read about him several thousand years after he lived his story. And it is, I believe, what gives this “exquisite, dramatic poem which treats of the problem of the suffering of the innocent, and of retribution” prime place in the Bible’s collection of wisdom works. It is the message of Job’s life that we need to hear when we suffer: he is faithful to God, relies on God, is patient with God and God’s plan . . . by habit. (Senior 612)
Job is introduced to us a faithful follower one day, when the Sons of God came to present themselves to the Lord, Satan also among them. A discussion ensues in which the devil declares that it is easy for Job to be a happy, righteous man as God protects Job and his family, and has seen to his prosperity. Satan taunts God, to which God replies in a way that might surprise us. He allows the devil to do what he will to Job, save kill him.
What does God know about Job? Why does God allow the architect of evil to enter into Job’s life?
God knows that Job is faithful. God knows that he and Job will be in constant dialog. God knows that even when Job’s children and property are gone, the man will still rely on God. Even when his wife urges him to commit suicide, even when his friends insist that he confess to whatever it is he has done in order to end the pain, Job will remain steadfast in his faith . . . because he does this habitually.
This is a wonderful story of how perseverance in hope and trust in God will eventually bring about a measure of joy greater than we had ever imagined for ourselves. It is a story of how a man with a habit of conversing with God, a habit of reliance on God, and a habit of living through suffering with unending patience will experience serenity and peace. It is a story with a happy ending that – when we read with care – will tell us how we must live . . . and what we must do . . . habitually.
Senior, Donald, ed. THE CATHOLIC STUDY BIBLE. New York, Oxford University Press, 1990.612. Print.
Written on December 4, 2010 and posted today as a Favorite.
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