Job 22 –
Eliphaz
now talks: He seems to say the Almighty gains nothing by the conduct of the
virtuous man. But then he goes on to accuse Job of iniquity, the kind of iniquity that some think the
rich are always guilty of. Job was, after all, a very wealthy man before he
was struck down:
“You
exact pledges from your fellows without reason, and leave them naked, stripped
of their clothes; you do not give the thirsty water to drink; you deny bread to
the hungry. You probably think the land
belongs to the powerful and only the privileged have a right to it”
(22:6-7). These are all ridiculous charges.
He
also accuses Job of thinking that just because God is remote – high above the
dense clouds – that He cannot see what Job is doing. His advice is advice Job has always lived by: “Be close to Him and
wholehearted; good things will come to you thereby. Accept instruction from His
mouth; lay up His words in your heart” (22:21-22). If he just turns to God, he
will be restored.
Job 23 – But
the intense pains of present, unexplainable suffering cannot be alleviated by
advice from the mouths of others, even when it is “good advice” – it requires
the living presence of the Lord, our God. Job responds: “If only I knew where to
find God, I would go to his court. I would lay out my case and present my
arguments. Then I would listen to his reply and understand what he says to me”
(23:3-5).
But
how can one approach the “throne of God,” the place of His presence? “I go
east, but he is not there. I go west, but I cannot find him. I do not see him
in the north, for he is hidden. I look to the south, but he is concealed”
(23:8-9).
If
He would only test Job, he feels he would be found “pure as gold. For I have
stayed on God’s paths; I have followed his ways and not turned aside. I have
not departed from his commands, but have treasured his words more than daily
food” (23:10-12). But the idea of facing God terrifies him. “When I think of
it, terror grips me. God has made me sick at heart; the Almighty has terrified
me. Darkness is all around me; thick, impenetrable darkness is everywhere”
(23:15-17).
Ignatius to the Romans
5 – He tells them that the
entire trip to Rome has been a great struggle with a detachment of soldiers he
calls “savage leopards” (86). The only advantage of their ill-treatment is that
he has perhaps made “some progress in discipleship” (86). He looks forward to
the real lions. “All I pray is that I may find them swift. I am going to make
overtures to them, so that, unlike some other wretches whom they have been too
spiritless to touch, they may devour me with all speed” (87).
6 – There is no earthly reward
better than that offered by martyrdom. “[S]o far as I am concerned, to die in
Jesus Christ is better than to be monarch of earth’s widest bounds. He who died
for us is all that I seek; He who rose again for us is my whole desire. The
pangs of birth are upon me; have patience with me, my brothers and do not shut
me out from life, do not wish me to be stillborn” (87).
“Suffer me to attain to light, light pure and
undefiled; for only when I am come thither shall I be truly a man” (87).
7 – It is the devil’s hope that
his resolve may be undermined. “Pray let none of you lend him any assistance,
but take my part instead, for it is the part of God. Do not have Jesus Christ on your lips, and the world in your heart” (87).
“Here and now, as I write in the fullness of
life, I am yearning for death with all the passion of a lover. Earthly longings
have been crucified; in me there is left no spark of desire for mundane things,
but only a murmur of living water that whispers within me, ‘Come to the
Father’. There is no pleasure for me in any meats that perish, or in the
delights of this life; I am fain for the bread of God, even the flesh of Jesus
Christ, who is the seed of David; and for my drink I crave that Blood of His
which is love imperishable” (87).
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