Lenten Study Job Ch 24
It is difficult to watch what we think is an injustice from God happen. When bad people who do bad things have good things happen to them or prosper, we have a hard time with that. So does Job. However, Job understands that God knows what those people have done just like He knows what we have done. It is not our task to bring them to eternal justice. That is God’s task.
"There was a man in the land of Uz" by andrevanb is marked with CC BY-NC-SA 2.0.Caption
1 “Why are times not stored up by the Almighty, And why do those who know Him not see His days?
Job 24:1 (NASB)
Because God is not governed by time. He is outside time. He is alpha and omega, the first and the last. He was there in the beginning before there was anything, He was, and He made everything that is governed by time.
2 “Some remove the landmarks; They seize and devour flocks.
Job 24:2 (NASB)
In modern times we use landmarks to get from place to place, but for Job, landmarks were used for a different purpose. Landmarks marked the boundaries of people’s property, where jurisdictions ended and began, and where kingdoms started and stopped. The usage in this discussion is that someone who wants to claim someone else’s property is moving or removing a landmark to alter how much land someone possesses.
3 “They drive away the donkeys of the orphans; They take the widow’s ox for a pledge.
4 “They push the needy aside from the road; The poor of the land are made to hide themselves altogether.
Job 24:3-4 (NASB)
These are the wicked people taking advantage of the poor or less fortunate.
5 “Behold, as wild donkeys in the wilderness They go forth seeking food in their activity, As bread for their children in the desert.
6 “They harvest their fodder in the field And glean the vineyard of the wicked.
Job 24:5-6 (NASB)
Those people who were taken advantage of go out in their need and seek to fill that need anyway. They know who took advantage of them, but they go to those same people looking for work because they have no other way to survive.
7 “They spend the night naked, without clothing, And have no covering against the cold.
8 “They are wet with the mountain rains And hug the rock for want of a shelter.
Job 24:7-8 (NASB)
They have no home, no place to call their own, nowhere to get out of the weather and try to survive.
9 “Others snatch the orphan from the breast, And against the poor they take a pledge.
10 “They cause the poor to go about naked without clothing, And they take away the sheaves from the hungry.
Job 24:9-10 (NASB)
The wicked once again oppressing those who came to them looking for help.
11 “Within the walls they produce oil; They tread wine presses but thirst.
Job 24:11 (NASB)
They work to produce wealth and the very things they need just to survive, but the rich ignore their situation.
12 “From the city men groan, And the souls of the wounded cry out; Yet God does not pay attention to folly.
Job 24:12 (NASB)
These people pray to God for help but God does not hear them because they are foolish; they lack good sense. That point there, I think, is that if you give a drunk ten dollars if he has a choice between getting a good meal or buying liquor, the drunk will likely buy liquor. That is foolish, especially if you are hungry. God does not bless dumb decisions.
13 “Others have been with those who rebel against the light; They do not want to know its ways Nor abide in its paths.
Job 24:13 (NASB)
This is an inditement of the companions of fools. They are not necessarily foolish themselves, but they have friends who are and do not stop those friends from doing dumb things. This is not walking in God’s ways, His light, or His love.
14 “The murderer arises at dawn; He kills the poor and the needy, And at night he is as a thief.
15 “The eye of the adulterer waits for the twilight, Saying, ‘No eye will see me.’ And he disguises his face.
16 “In the dark they dig into houses, They shut themselves up by day; They do not know the light.
Job 24:14-16 (NASB)
The wicked, evil people devise to do bad things around the clock. They believe no one will know if they plan their activities well. The problem with this way of thinking is it doesn’t take God into account who sees everything.
17 “For the morning is the same to him as thick darkness, For he is familiar with the terrors of thick darkness.
Job 24:17 (NASB)
For the wicked people who plan bad things, it doesn’t matter what time of day it is. They see calamity around every corner because they always plan bad things for someone else. They, in turn, believe bad things are lying in wait for them at every turn.
18 “They are insignificant on the surface of the water; Their portion is cursed on the earth. They do not turn toward the vineyards.
Job 24:18 (NASB)
In the grand scheme of things, the wicked are not significant. While they may appear to be so in the short term, they are not in God’s view of things.
19 “Drought and heat consume the snow waters, So does Sheol those who have sinned.
Job 24:19 (NASB)
Seasons come and go changing our environment. This same change happens concerning the wicked and their ultimate punishment.
20 “A mother will forget him; The worm feeds sweetly till he is no longer remembered. And wickedness will be broken like a tree.
Job 24:20 (NASB)
It is easy to forget those who have wronged us when they are gone because we can now focus on the good things around us even though it may take time. The tree grows slowly, but it is mighty until it grows old and begins to lose limbs due to rot.
21 “He wrongs the barren woman And does no good for the widow.
22 “But He drags off the valiant by His power; He rises, but no one has assurance of life.
Job 24:21-22 (NASB)
Even though the wicked do their evil deeds, they accomplish this all under their power with no assistance from God. Their successful evil deeds grant them no special assurance of continued life, the longevity of life, or even that the unexpected will pass them by.
23 “He provides them with security, and they are supported; And His eyes are on their ways.
24 “They are exalted a little while, then they are gone; Moreover, they are brought low and like everything gathered up; Even like the heads of grain they are cut off.
25 “Now if it is not so, who can prove me a liar, And make my speech worthless?”
Job 24:23-25 (NASB)
God causes the rain to fall on the wicked and the just, but He sees all. That means He knows what they have done. They cannot forestall the inevitable end, and when that end does come for them, they will be taken up just like every other grain of wheat at harvest. Then, God will determine what is to be done.
43 “You have heard that it was said, ‘YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR and hate your enemy.’
44 “But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you,
45 so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven; for He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.
46 “For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same?
47 “If you greet only your brothers, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same?
48 “Therefore you are to be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.
Matthew 5:43-48 (NASB)