Bible Version: New International Version (NIV)
Application Notes: Life Application Study Bible (NIV)
JOB 1
Prologue
1 In the land of Uz there lived a man whose name was Job. This man was blameless and upright; he feared God and shunned evil. 2 He had seven sons and three daughters, 3 and he owned seven thousand sheep, three thousand camels, five hundred yoke of oxen and five hundred donkeys, and had a large number of servants. He was the greatest man among all the people of the East.
4 His sons used to hold feasts in their homes on their birthdays, and they would invite their three sisters to eat and drink with them. 5 When a period of feasting had run its course, Job would make arrangements for them to be purified. Early in the morning he would sacrifice a burnt offering for each of them, thinking, “Perhaps my children have sinned and cursed God in their hearts.” This was Job’s regular custom.
6 One day the angels came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan also came with them. 7 The Lord said to Satan, “Where have you come from?”
Satan answered the Lord, “From roaming throughout the earth, going back and forth on it.”
8 Then the Lord said to Satan, “Have you considered my servant Job? There is no one on earth like him; he is blameless and upright, a man who fears God and shuns evil.”
9 “Does Job fear God for nothing?” Satan replied. 10 “Have you not put a hedge around him and his household and everything he has? You have blessed the work of his hands, so that his flocks and herds are spread throughout the land. 11 But now stretch out your hand and strike everything he has, and he will surely curse you to your face.”
12 The Lord said to Satan, “Very well, then, everything he has is in your power, but on the man himself do not lay a finger.”
Then Satan went out from the presence of the Lord.
13 One day when Job’s sons and daughters were feasting and drinking wine at the oldest brother’s house, 14 a messenger came to Job and said, “The oxen were plowing and the donkeys were grazing nearby, 15 and the Sabeans attacked and made off with them. They put the servants to the sword, and I am the only one who has escaped to tell you!”
16 While he was still speaking, another messenger came and said, “The fire of God fell from the heavens and burned up the sheep and the servants, and I am the only one who has escaped to tell you!”
17 While he was still speaking, another messenger came and said, “The Chaldeans formed three raiding parties and swept down on your camels and made off with them. They put the servants to the sword, and I am the only one who has escaped to tell you!”
18 While he was still speaking, yet another messenger came and said, “Your sons and daughters were feasting and drinking wine at the oldest brother’s house, 19 when suddenly a mighty wind swept in from the desert and struck the four corners of the house. It collapsed on them and they are dead, and I am the only one who has escaped to tell you!”
20 At this, Job got up and tore his robe and shaved his head. Then he fell to the ground in worship 21 and said:
“Naked I came from my mother’s womb,
and naked I will depart.
The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away;
may the name of the Lord be praised.”
22 In all this, Job did not sin by charging God with wrongdoing.
Application Notes
1:1-2:13 As we see calamity and suffering in the book of Job, we must remember that we live in a fallen world where good behaviour is not always rewarded and bad behavior is not always punished. When we see a notorious criminal prospering or an innocent child in pain, we say. "That's wrong." And it is. Sin has twisted justice and made our world unpredictable, unfair, and ugly.
The book of Job shows a good man suffering for no apparent fault of his own. Sadly, our world is like that. But Job's story does not end in despair. Through Job's life we can see that faith in God is justified even when a situation looks hopeless. Faith based on rewards or prosperity is hollow and unstable. To be unshakable, faith must be built on the confidence that God's ultimate purpose will come to pass.
1:1 As we read the book of Job, we are given insight that the people in the story do not have. Job, the main figure in the book, loses everything he has through no fault of his own. As he struggles to understand why all this is happening to him, we are shown that he is not meant to know the reasons. Job has to face life with many of the answers and explanations held back. Only then can his faith fully develop. We must experience life as Job did one day at a time and without complete answers to all of life's questions. Will we, like Job, trust God no matter what? Or will we give in to the temptation to say that God doesn't really care?
1:1 The location of the land of Uz is uncertain. We only know that Uz had plentiful pastures and crops (1:3), was located near a desert (1:19), and was close enough to the Sabeans and Chaldeans to be raided by them (1:14-17). Uz is also mentioned in Jeremiah 25:19-20. It is likely that Uz was located east of the Jordan River near Canaan (Israel), where Abraham's family (those to whom God first revealed himself) lived. Job probably knew about God because he knew God's people.
1:5 Job probably lived during the days of the patriarchs (Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob), before God gave his written law or appointed priests to be religious leaders. During Job's day, a father was his family's religious leader. Because there were no priests to instruct him in God's laws, Job acted as the priest and offered sacrifices to God to ask for forgiveness for any sins he and his family had committed. This demonstrated that Job did not consider himself sinless. Job did this out of conviction and love for God, not just because it was his role as head of the house. Do you carry out your spiritual duties because they are expected, or spontaneously from a heart of devotion?
1:5 Job showed deep concern for the spiritual welfare of his children. Fearful that they might have sinned unknowingly, he offered sacrifices for them. Parents today can show the same concern by praying for their children. This means "sacrificing" time each day to ask God to forgive them, to help them grow, to protect them, and to help them please him. Even if some turn away from God when they are older. we must never give up on them. Instead, we should always welcome them home and continue to pray for them.
1:6-12 From this conversation, we learn a great deal about Satan. (1) He is accountable to God. All angelic beings, good and evil, are compelled to present themselves before God (1:6). God knew that Satan was intent on attacking Job. (2) Satan can be at only one place at a time (1:6-7). His demons aid him in his work; but as a created being, he is limited. (3) Satan cannot see into our minds or foretell the future (1:9-11). If he could, he would have known that Job would not break under pressure. (4) Because Satan can do nothing without God's permission {1:12), God's people can overcome his attacks through God's power. (5) God puts limitations on what Satan can do (1:12; 2:6). Satan's response to the Lord's question (1:7) tells us that Satan is real and active on earth. Knowing this about Satan should cause us to remain close to the one who is greater than Satan-God himself.
1:6-7 Satan, originally an angel of God, had become corrupt through his own pride. He has been evil since his rebellion against God (1 John 3:8). Satan considers God his enemy. He tries to hinder God's work in people, but he is limited by God's power and can do only what he is permitted (Luke 22:31-32; 1 Timothy 1:19-20; 2 Timothy 2:23-26). As our enemy, Satan actively looks for people to attack with temptation (1 Peter 5:8-9}, and he wants to make people hate God. He does this through lies and deception (Genesis 3:1-6). Job, a blameless and upright man who had been greatly blessed, was a perfect target for Satan. Any person who is committed to God should expect Satan's attacks. Satan, who hates God, also hates God's people. He wants to prevent us from following God at all costs.
1:6 The Bible also speaks elsewhere of the heavenly council, where God and the angels plan their activities on earth and where angels are required to give account of themselves {see, for example, 1 Kings 22:19-23). Because God created all the angels-both those who serve him and those who rebelled-he has complete power and authority over them.
1:7-12 Some people suggest that this dialogue was made up by the author as a parable or morality play. Certainly, a unique literary format was used here that can be found nowhere else in the Bible. Could this conversation between God and Satan really have happened? Other Bible passages tell us that Satan does indeed have access to God (see Revelation 12:10) He even went into God's presence to make accusations against Joshua the high priest (Zechariah 3:1-2). We have no record of how this event as revealed to the author, but whether through a direct vision from God or an inspiration of creativity, it still reveals what God desires us to understand about his own character and the difficult situation the character of Job was placed in. God uses literature of many kinds in Scripture in order to reveal truth about himself and our situation in this fallen world.
1:8, 12 Job consistently obeyed and trusted in God, yet God permitted Satan to attack him in an especially harsh manner. Although God loves us, believing and obeying him do not shelter us from life's calamities. Setbacks, tragedies, and sorrows strike Christians and non-Christians alike. But in our tests and trials, God calls us to stay faithful and thus proclaim our faith to the world. Ezekiel and James mention Job as an example of extraordinary righteousness and faithfulness (Ezekiel 14:14; James 5:11). When troubles come, will you ask God, Why me? or will you say, Use me?
1: 9-11 Satan attacked Job's motives, saying that Job was blameless and upright only because he had no reason to turn against God. It seemed that because Job was following God, everything was going well for him. Satan wanted to prove that Job worshiped God not out of love but because God had given him so much.
Satan accurately analyzed why many people trust God. They are fair-weather believers, following God only when everything is going well or for what they can get. Adversity destroys this superficial faith. But adversity strengthens real faith by causing believers to dig their roots deeper into God in order to withstand the storms. How deep does your faith go? Put the roots of your faith down deep into God so that you can withstand any storm you may face. (For more on how to do this, see Colossians 2:6-23).
1:12 This conversation between God and Satan teaches us an important fact about God-he is fully aware of every attempt by Satan to bring suffering and difficulty upon us. While God may allow us to suffer for reasons beyond our understanding, he is never caught by surprise by our troubles and is always compassionate.
1:15-17 The Sabeans were from southwest Arabia, while the Chaldeans were from the region north of the Persian Gulf.
1:16 "The fire of God" was likely a poetic way to describe lightning (1 Kings 18:38; 2 Kings 1:10-14). In this case, it had to be unusually powerful to kill 7,000 sheep.
1:20-22 Job did not hide his overwhelming grief. He had not lost his faith in God; instead, his emotions showed that he was human and that he loved his family. God created our emotions, and it is not sinful or inappropriate to express them as Job did. If you have experienced a deep loss, disappointment, or heartbreak, admit your feelings to yourself, to God, and to others, and grieve.
1:20-22 Job had lost his possessions and children in this first of Satan's tests, but he reacted rightly toward God by acknowledging God's sovereign authority over everything God had given him. Satan lost this first round. Job passed the test and proved that people can love God for who he is, not for what he gives.
Taken from Life Application Study Bible - Third Edition - (NIV)