Introduction: Job 1:1-5

Deb and Samuel (never call him Sam) were introduced by friends. If it wasn’t love at first sight, it was close. The new couple wanted to do things right. They followed God’s instruction for dating, became engaged, and planned their wedding. It was a beautiful candlelight ceremony in the country church where Samuel grew up. After the ceremony, the couple jumped in a car surrounded by family and friends and took off for Reno. They would catch an early flight for an island honeymoon. They hardly noticed the rain that had started pouring down.

On a curve ten miles outside Reno, their car hydroplaned off the road and slammed into a tree. Deb escaped with a broken collar bone, but Samuel had internal injuries from the steering wheel. He was life-flighted to a hospital, where he spent six days in ICU. God spared his life, but the injuries left him with chronic pain. However, he was alive, and the thankful couple started their adventure together. In the next five years, three boys were romping around their house. Deb and Samuel raised their boys to love Jesus and were deeply involved in serving at their church.

One morning, Deb felt a lump on the side of her neck. ‘It was nothing,’ she reasoned, and went about her busy day. But the lump grew. The doctor wanted a biopsy, and the results showed a rare form of cancer. Deb had surgery and started treatments. She even tried some experimental drugs. But the side effects were brutal. The couple prayed for healing. The ultimate healing came when Deb passed from death to life.

In his late thirties, Samuel started the journey of single parenting. Three years after Deb passed away, there was one relationship that seemed promising, but never took off. He remained single, pouring his life into work, his boys, and his grandchildren. And now, in his mid-seventies, the chronic pain is getting more intense. As the years go by, he grieves the missed years with Deb more than ever.

Life is difficult. Sometimes, it seems downright unfair. Welcome to the life of Job.

Job had been blessed with a large family, a thriving business, and enjoyed robust health. He loved, worshiped, and faithfully served God. He was the spiritual leader of his home, a businessman of utmost integrity, and an example of what it looks like to live for God.

Then, his life imploded.

One fateful day, Job’s entire wealth was stolen, and his family tragically killed. Still in the state of shock, Job made the preparations to bury ten children. Not long after he walked away from their graves, Job’s health failed. A disease delivered excruciating pain and oozing sores all over his body. The dreadful ordeal changed his appearance to the point where his friends didn’t even recognize him. Job’s wife, whose heart was broken and heavy with grief, couldn’t bear watching her husband suffer. She advised Job to curse God and die.

There were times when Job wished that he had never been born. Friends came to console, but their counsel brought emotional misery and spiritual questioning. Finally, Job met with God and was re-introduced to the One he had been worshiping, serving, and loved for most of his life.

Recently, I asked a Jewish friend his perspective on what the book of Job was about. This man’s parents both lost their families in the Holocaust. Without hesitation, he said, “Faith. The book of Job is about a man who never loses his faith.”[1] Job’s suffering was unimaginable. However, the thrust of this book is how Job responded. The flow of this book weaves in and out of three overarching questions:

Can I trust God when life doesn’t make sense?

Can I trust God during my pain?

Is God enough?

As we begin our journey with Job, let’s start with a brief introduction.

We aren’t told who wrote the book of Job. Some say the author is Elihu, one of Job’s friends that we’ll meet. Jewish tradition holds that Moses penned the words. Others claim that Solomon wrote Job because of its poetic nature. The Scottish writer Thomas Carlyle famously said, “There is nothing written, I think, in the Bible or out of it, of equal literary merit.”^[2]

Many debate the timeframe of Job in relationship to other Old Testament narratives. However, I believe Job lived during the patriarchal era. In his commentary on Job in The Bible Knowledge Commentary, Roy Zuck lists nine factors for concluding that Job was a contemporary of the patriarchs. Here are four of those arguments:

• Job lived to be 210 years old, which corresponds to the lifespan of Abraham’s father, Terah (205), Abraham (175), Isaac (180), and Jacob (147).
• Job’s wealth was measured in livestock. The same was true of Abraham (Gen. 12:16, 13:2) and Jacob (Gen. 30:43, 32:5).
• The Sabeans and Chaldeans were nomadic tribes during Abraham’s time.
• Several personal and location names were consistent with the times of the patriarchs.^[3]

There are several ways to outline the book of Job, but I prefer the way Bible scholar Warren Wiersbe laid it out:

Job’s Distress: 1–3

1. His Prosperity—1:1–5
2. 2. His Adversity—1:6–2:13
3. His Perplexity—3:1–26

Job’s Defense: 4–37

1. The First Round—4-14
2. Eliphaz: 4-5, Job’s reply: 6-7
3. Bildad: 8, Job’s reply: 9-10
4. Zophar: 11, Job’s reply: 12-14
5. 2. The Second Round—15-21
6. Eliphaz: 15, Job’s reply: 16-17
7. Bildad: 18, Job’s reply: 19-20
8. Zophar: 20, Job’s reply: 21
9. The Third Round—22-37
10. Eliphaz: 22, Job’s reply: 23-24
11. Bildad: 25, Job’s reply: 26-31
12. Elihu: 32-37

Job’s Deliverance: 38–42

1. God Humbles Job—38:1-42:6 (see 40:3-5 and 42:1-6)
2. God Honors Job—42:7-17
3. God rebukes Job’s critics—42:7–10
4. God restores Job’s wealth—42:11–17^[4]

The book of Job addresses many questions we will grapple with over the course of our study. Let’s revisit the three questions I offered earlier.

1. Can I trust God when life doesn’t make sense?
   The underlying question is: Who’s in charge? Challenges make us realize we are not in control, but we wonder if God really is. Does a loving God allow the righteous to suffer? Is there a purpose to our pain? How should we respond? Job takes us behind the curtain of heaven to hear an eye-opening conversation between God and Satan.
2. Can I trust God during my pain?
   God is writing our story, but I think we can all agree that we would compose some chapters very differently. Job’s pain caused him to ask questions about himself and his relationship with God. Likewise, in the challenges of life, can I trust God? Is he the One I cling to in times of despair?
3. Is God enough?
   Job addresses the three areas that most people believe will give them contentment: Family, health, and prosperity. We are all tempted to find meaning and purpose in those aspects of our lives. But when they are taken away, is God still enough? We know the correct answer. We also know how hard it is to apply.

PERSONAL TIME WITH GOD
Read Job 1:1-5
Get to know Job. Observe his character, his family, and his wealth.

Talking to God
Ask God to open your heart to this study. What does God want you to learn about him? What does he want you to learn about yourself? 

Have Questions?
Please ask if you have any questions about today’s reading or teaching. Our team is here to assist you as you explore God’s Word. Simply submit your question below, and we will reply soon.

[1] View my conversation with Arie. The Journey with Ron Moore Podcast, Episode 67

^[2] Roy B. Zuck, “Job,” in The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures, ed. J. F. Walvoord and R. B. Zuck, vol. 1 (Wheaton, IL: Victor Books, 1985), 714–715.

^[3] Ibid., 717.

^[4] Warren W. Wiersbe, Be Patient, “Be” Commentary Series (Wheaton, IL: Victor Books, 1996), 11.