King James Bible Study – [And when he had called the people unto him with his disciples also, he said unto them, Whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me. – Mark 8:34]
Date: Monday, January 15, 2024
Chapters: Job Chapters 40-42
Message: God Knows
Hello My Brother/Sister/Friend,
As I was reading the chapters for today I was thinking about the movie, Bruce Almighty, it is about a man who was given permission to act on God’s behalf, he would get emails with prayer requests and started giving everyone what they wanted. In the end he discovered that giving everyone what they wanted was not always in their best interest. We need to understand that God always has our best interest in mind, there is a very good reason why we are not given everything we want and even why there are evils in this world. And we cannot fault God for everything, as mankind we do a pretty good job of messing things up that God has blessed us with. What we can do is trust that God has a reason and purpose for all things and should we trust Him, he will work it all out for good.
[Romans 8:28-32 And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose. 29 For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren. 30 Moreover whom he did predestinate, them he also called: and whom he called, them he also justified: and whom he justified, them he also glorified. 31 What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us? 32 He that spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things?]
Do you see the key in God working everything out for good? It is given to those who love Him and according to His purpose, in other words, His will for our lives. We may not like it, but the things that are happening to us right now were already known by God, it is how we deal with them today that determines how God deals with us. As we come to the end of the reading of Job, we learn something very important, God, is always watching and listening to us, and shows up when we least expect it. Yesterday, we read how God showed up through a tornado, and started talking directly to Job. As God continues to speak with Job, and demands an answer.
[Job 40:1-8 Moreover the LORD answered Job, and said, 2 Shall he that contendeth with the Almighty instruct him? he that reproveth God, let him answer it. 3 Then Job answered the LORD, and said, 4 Behold, I am vile; what shall I answer thee? I will lay mine hand upon my mouth. 5 Once have I spoken; but I will not answer: yea, twice; but I will proceed no further. 6 Then answered the LORD unto Job out of the whirlwind, and said, 7 Gird up thy loins now like a man: I will demand of thee, and declare thou unto me. 8 Wilt thou also disannul my judgment? wilt thou condemn me, that thou mayest be righteous?]
[I am vile; what shall I answer thee?] Job, reacted like the rest of us do when we have been wallowing in our own self pity, whining about how bad things are, and asking God why all day long, we shut our mouths. There is absolutely nothing that we can say to God to explain why we did not trust Him and just sat there whining about how bad it is when we know how blessed we have been. And the longer you walk with God the more vile you feel when you realize that you did not trust Him to see you though when He never let you down before, [Psalms 119:116-117 Uphold me according unto thy word, that I may live: and let me not be ashamed of my hope. 117 Hold thou me up, and I shall be safe: and I will have respect unto thy statutes continually.]
[Wilt thou also disannul my judgment?] [Disannul; To annul; to make void; to deprive of authority or force; to nullify; to abolish; as, to disannul a law or an ordinance.] God, is asking Job if he will make void of His judgments and the way He deals with man and condemn Him in order to make himself righteous in his own eyes. Job, did not condemn God, but he did add to his affliction when talked of his own righteousness and integrity without giving glory to God. We have every right to proclaim that we are justified, but we are to never question how God deals with each individual, [Romans 2:9-11 Tribulation and anguish, upon every soul of man that doeth evil, of the Jew first, and also of the Gentile; 10 But glory, honour, and peace, to every man that worketh good, to the Jew first, and also to the Gentile: 11 For there is no respect of persons with God.]
Regardless of what people might believe and including many professing Christians, but God does not group everyone together as one human race and judge them all the same. Yes, God is no respecter of persons, but He deals with each person on a one on one basis, as Jesus deals with their souls individually, He deals with the rest of us upon our faith in His Son. Everything that God does for us is and allows is thought out, planned out, and in our best interest. With that in mind, we must not believe that God intended for anyone regardless of whether or not they are His people to be abused, that is pure evil and comes from Satan himself. However, God, will turn every evil situation for good should we trust Him. To prove both of these points, God, continues to ask Job more questions, but somewhat also gives the answer Himself.
[Job 40:9-14 Hast thou an arm like God? or canst thou thunder with a voice like him? 10 Deck thyself now with majesty and excellency; and array thyself with glory and beauty. 11 Cast abroad the rage of thy wrath: and behold every one that is proud, and abase him. 12 Look on every one that is proud, and bring him low; and tread down the wicked in their place. 13 Hide them in the dust together; and bind their faces in secret. 14 Then will I also confess unto thee that thine own right hand can save thee.]
[and behold every one that is proud, and abase him.] [Abase; To cast down; to reduce low; to depress; to humble;] Think about what God is asking Job. He is asking him how he thinks he would handle every person on this earth because we all have some pride in us from time to time that needs to be dealt with. The only way that God can bring us to let go of that pride is to humble us and that often means that we will face some affliction. This is something known as Godly sorrow, [2 Corinthians 7:10-11 For godly sorrow worketh repentance to salvation not to be repented of: but the sorrow of the world worketh death. 11 For behold this selfsame thing, that ye sorrowed after a godly sort, what carefulness it wrought in you, yea, what clearing of yourselves, yea, what indignation, yea, what fear, yea, what vehement desire, yea, what zeal, yea, what revenge! In all things ye have approved yourselves to be clear in this matter.]
[Then will I also confess unto thee that thine own right hand can save thee.] This is why we cannot today nor ever could save ourselves, even if we did have that capability we would ruin heaven by boasting about all the things we did to get there. And I for one would not want to be responsible for every person on this earth as I have enough to deal with in my own life. If we did have that kind of power, we would be condemning people just for looking at us the wrong way and surely saving ourselves, who is just as guilty of sin as those who wronged us, [Ephesians 2:8-10 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: 9 Not of works, lest any man should boast. 10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.]
Yes, we who are saved and living our lives through Christ are often walking in the ways that are written in the commandments that God had given the Jews. Remember though, at this point the Law had not been written, and Jesus said this about the Law, [Matthew 5:17-18 Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil. 18 For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled.]
This is how God made it, and if we choose to believe in Him, then we must come to Him as He instructs us. Now, to illustrate this, God, describes two of the most powerful beasts that He created, beasts that are now extinct, the first one being the behemoth. The King James Bible is the only translation that keeps the name behemoth, other “versions” have changed the word to say that it was hippo, elephant, or an ox, but if we take a look at the description we can see that it is not anything that we have seen.
[Job 40:15-19,23-24 Behold now behemoth, which I made with thee; he eateth grass as an ox. 16 Lo now, his strength is in his loins, and his force is in the navel of his belly. 17 He moveth his tail like a cedar: the sinews of his stones are wrapped together. 18 His bones are as strong pieces of brass; his bones are like bars of iron. 19 He is the chief of the ways of God: he that made him can make his sword to approach unto him. 23 Behold, he drinketh up a river, and hasteth not: he trusteth that he can draw up Jordan into his mouth. 24 He taketh it with his eyes: his nose pierceth through snares.]
[Behold now behemoth, which I made with thee;] This animal was a vegetarian, was large in stature, its strength was in its legs, the force in its belly. It also had a long tail that swung and was able to move things, probably brush, and it was large enough that it could drink up enough water to dry up a river. God, is actually referring to creation here, when He created the land creatures along with man on the sixth day of creation, [Genesis 1:25-26 And God made the beast of the earth after his kind, and cattle after their kind, and every thing that creepeth upon the earth after his kind: and God saw that it was good. 26 And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.]
The very Almighty and living God that made this massive and powerful beast, can make and do anything He wants. Many so called Bible scholars actually question the Book of Job for how He describes these beasts, I for one, since this is God speaking, will take His Word for it. Now, He goes on to describe the leviathan.
[Job 41:1-5,9-12 Canst thou draw out leviathan with an hook? or his tongue with a cord which thou lettest down? 2 Canst thou put an hook into his nose? or bore his jaw through with a thorn? 3 Will he make many supplications unto thee? will he speak soft words unto thee? 4 Will he make a covenant with thee? wilt thou take him for a servant for ever? 5 Wilt thou play with him as with a bird? or wilt thou bind him for thy maidens? 9 Behold, the hope of him is in vain: shall not one be cast down even at the sight of him? 10 None is so fierce that dare stir him up: who then is able to stand before me? 11 Who hath prevented me, that I should repay him? whatsoever is under the whole heaven is mine. 12 I will not conceal his parts, nor his power, nor his comely proportion.]
[who then is able to stand before me?] The most powerful beast on earth cannot compare to the power of God, even Satan is stopped in his tracks as soon as God gives the command. God is God, He does not have to explain Himself, and yet He does give us what we need to know about Him through His Word. What He does not explain He expects us to trust and have a little faith in Him to understand what is going on, [Evil men understand not judgment: but they that seek the LORD understand all things.- Proverbs 28:5]
[whatsoever is under the whole heaven is mine.] Think about it, everything up in the heavens, down in the depths of hell, and here on earth is God’s so He will do with it what He wants. Regardless of where we end up, God is there, [Psalms 139:7-10 Whither shall I go from thy spirit? or whither shall I flee from thy presence? 8 If I ascend up into heaven, thou art there: if I make my bed in hell, behold, thou art there. 9 If I take the wings of the morning, and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea; 10 Even there shall thy hand lead me, and thy right hand shall hold me.]
God, sends no one to hell, or heaven for that matter, we must make the choice where we want our soul to end up. Those whom believe in and accept Christ as their Saviour make the choice of their souls going to heaven, those whom reject Him make their own beds in hell. Now, as God continues to describe the second beast, He describes is a very large, strong, fish-like, serpent that lives in and out of the water. Many have come to believe it to be a crocodile or whale, but neither of these make sense. The entire description proves it to be something much greater in strength and size than any animal that we have seen with our own eyes.
[Job 41:14-15,18-23,33-34 Who can open the doors of his face? his teeth are terrible round about. 15 His scales are his pride, shut up together as with a close seal. 18 By his neesings a light doth shine, and his eyes are like the eyelids of the morning. 19 Out of his mouth go burning lamps, and sparks of fire leap out. 20 Out of his nostrils goeth smoke, as out of a seething pot or caldron. 21 His breath kindleth coals, and a flame goeth out of his mouth. 22 In his neck remaineth strength, and sorrow is turned into joy before him. 23 The flakes of his flesh are joined together: they are firm in themselves; they cannot be moved. 33 Upon earth there is not his like, who is made without fear. 34 He beholdeth all high things: he is a king over all the children of pride.]
[he is a king over all the children of pride.] I believe this beast is a reference to Satan, after all, it was Satan who started all this. The Book of Revelation actually describes Satan as a dragon, and he certainly is king over the children of pride, it also says God will not conceal his power, [And there appeared another wonder in heaven; and behold a great red dragon, having seven heads and ten horns, and seven crowns upon his heads. And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him. – Revelation 12:3,9]
Since God created everything, that means that He created Satan too, but he was not known as Satan at the time, he was an archangel, by the name of Lucifer, [Isaiah 14:12 How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! how art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations!]
When being the highest ranked messenger from God tried to be God, that was when he lost that title and was cast down to earth, and now, God uses him to handle the reprobates with the occasional temptations sent to His people. When God created man, whom He made in His image, He chose to give us a conscious, a freewill, and a choice in whether or not we want to follow Him. Why? Because He is God, and He wants us to be able to make our own decisions. Now, Job answers God, admitting that His ways are way too wonderful to him.
[Job 42:1-6 Then Job answered the LORD, and said, 2 I know that thou canst do every thing, and that no thought can be withholden from thee. 3 Who is he that hideth counsel without knowledge? therefore have I uttered that I understood not; things too wonderful for me, which I knew not. 4 Hear, I beseech thee, and I will speak: I will demand of thee, and declare thou unto me. 5 I have heard of thee by the hearing of the ear: but now mine eye seeth thee. 6 Wherefore I abhor myself, and repent in dust and ashes.]
[I will demand of thee, and declare thou unto me.] Job, is like, “Kill me now.” he was very ashamed of himself as he realized that not only was God listening the whole time, it was not for him to know the answers to everything. God, accepted Job’s sincere repentance, but is not done, Job’s three friends were next.
[Job 42:7-9 And it was so, that after the LORD had spoken these words unto Job, the LORD said to Eliphaz the Temanite, My wrath is kindled against thee, and against thy two friends: for ye have not spoken of me the thing that is right, as my servant Job hath. 8 Therefore take unto you now seven bullocks and seven rams, and go to my servant Job, and offer up for yourselves a burnt offering; and my servant Job shall pray for you: for him will I accept: lest I deal with you after your folly, in that ye have not spoken of me the thing which is right, like my servant Job. 9 So Eliphaz the Temanite and Bildad the Shuhite and Zophar the Naamathite went, and did according as the LORD commanded them: the LORD also accepted Job.]
[lest I deal with you after your folly,] Do you see how merciful God is? And I imagine they were quite fearful and ashamed of the way they had treated Job. I bet they ran to that altar, but notice something else, God, did not change Job’s situation until he prayed for the very friends who accused him.
[Job 42:10-11 And the LORD turned the captivity of Job, when he prayed for his friends: also the LORD gave Job twice as much as he had before. 11 Then came there unto him all his brethren, and all his sisters, and all they that had been of his acquaintance before, and did eat bread with him in his house: and they bemoaned him, and comforted him over all the evil that the LORD had brought upon him: every man also gave him a piece of money, and every one an earring of gold.]
[turned the captivity of Job, when he prayed for his friends:] Remember, we must forgive those who trespassed against is if we want to be forgiven of our trespasses, [Matthew 6:12-15 And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. 13 And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen. 14 For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you: 15 But if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.]
We cannot possibly understand everything we go through, that is, unless God wants to reveal it to us, because our minds can only comprehend so much. Our prayers will not be accepted if all we do is murmur and complain. They will not be accepted if all we do is come to Him feeling sorry for ourselves. They will be accepted if we one; praise Him, two; repent of sin, three; ask Him, four; pray for and forgive those who wrong us. That is exactly what Job did, and not only was he cured, he was blessed with even more than he had, including ten more kids.
[Job 42:12-13 So the LORD blessed the latter end of Job more than his beginning: for he had fourteen thousand sheep, and six thousand camels, and a thousand yoke of oxen, and a thousand she asses. 13 He had also seven sons and three daughters. 14 And he called the name of the first, Jemima; and the name of the second, Kezia; and the name of the third, Kerenhappuch. 15 And in all the land were no women found so fair as the daughters of Job: and their father gave them inheritance among their brethren. 16 After this lived Job an hundred and forty years, and saw his sons, and his sons’ sons, even four generations.]
[]
[Romans 3:3-4 For what if some did not believe? shall their unbelief make the faith of God without effect? 4 God forbid: yea, let God be true, but every man a liar; as it is written, That thou mightest be justified in thy sayings, and mightest overcome when thou art judged.]
[Psalms 73:16-17 When I thought to know this, it was too painful for me; 17 Until I went into the sanctuary of God; then understood I their end.]
Jesus Christ Revealed/Magnified: [Job 41:11-12 Who hath prevented me, that I should repay him? whatsoever is under the whole heaven is mine. 12 I will not conceal his parts, nor his power, nor his comely proportion.]
Today’s Prayer: God, I know that your hand is in everything and I am trusting You to get me through every affliction I face. I admit that instead of handing things over to You I get impatient and prolong things with my self pity and depressing attitude. Lord, give me Your power to let go of the fight to try to handle my afflictions on my own and just hand them over to You. Give me patience to wait for You and let me not get weary in well doing. Give me the peace that passes all understanding, just like You have before, and remind me to pray for everyone You place on my mind and to be forgiving as You are forgiving to me. I love You, and ask these things in Your name, Jesus. Amen.
God Bless You, I am praying for you,
Christina
Are You 100% Sure You Are Going To Heaven?: https://imfollowingjesus.com/Biblestudy/ready-to-follow-jesus/
Receive The KJB Daily Devotions In Your Email: http://eepurl.com/2WMzT
Read Previous Devotions: https://imfollowingjesus.com/Biblestudy/
Read The Bible: http://kingjamesbible.imfollowingjesus.com/
Visit I’m Following Jesus: http://imfollowingjesus.com/index.html
Like I’m Following Jesus On Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/byhisstrength
Copyright © 2024 I’m Following Jesus, All rights reserved.