A friend of Job
Job and his 'friends' - Guy Rowe
It has been a difficult last few months. My old nemesis depression returned with a vengeance. I'm through that now and back in the game.
The book of Job has come alive for me. Francis Andersen's commentary has been a delight. Here's a sample:
It is one of the many excellences of the book that Job is brought to contentment without ever knowing all the facts of his case. In view of the way in which the Satan brought up the matter, something had to be done to rescue Job from his slander. And the test would work only if Job did not know what it was for.
God thrusts Job into an experience of dereliction to make it possible for Job to enter into a life of naked faith, to learn to love God for himself alone. God does not seem to give this privilege to many people, for they pay a terrible price of suffering for their discoveries. But part of the discovery is to see the suffering itself as one of God's most precious gifts.
To withhold the full story from Job, even after the test was over, keeps him walking by faith, not by sight. He does not say in the end, รขโฌหNow I see it all.' He never sees it all. He sees God (42:5). Next to Jesus, Job must surely be the greatest believer in the whole Bible.
