[job] unripe grapes / olive blossoms
Dec. 14th, 2022 08:33 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
svnsettiai'm about halfway done reading the book of job and i want to share the verses that resonated with me the most deeply.
naked i came from my mother's womb, and naked i shall return there. the lord gave, and the lord has taken away. blessed be the name of the lord.
job 2:12-13 ➻ and when [job's friends] raised their eyes from afar, and did not recognize him, they lifted their voices and wept; and each tore his robe and sprinkled dust on his head toward heaven. so they sat down with him on the ground seven days and seven nights, and no one spoke a word to him, for they saw that his grief was very great.
job 15:33 ➻ [man] will shake off his unripe grape like a vine, and cast off his blossom like an olive tree.
lord, as i consider the story of job, i begin to see that there are none that are righteous—not even one, and that only by faith in your dearly beloved son and his righteousness, can we be declared righteous in your sight. thank you that jesus is my redeemer, the one for whom job longed and our sacrifice for sin. thank you for the lessons i can learn from every character in the book of job. help me to make the right choices in my life and to trust you, no matter what circumstances may arise. keep me from speaking foolish words when faced with adversity and thank you that your grace is always sufficient. help me to live by faith in your word and not to be swayed by sight or feelings, even when i don't understand. this i ask in jesus' name, amen [source].
2023-01-04 update: this is all from the nkjv, but i switched to niv after that. that's why the bible study tag says niv! everything else under that tag will be from niv.
naked i came from my mother's womb, and naked i shall return there. the lord gave, and the lord has taken away. blessed be the name of the lord.
— job 1:21
job 2:10 ➻ but [job] said to [his wife], "you speak as one of the foolish women speaks. shall we indeed accept good from god, and shall we not accept adversity?" in all this job did not sin with his lips.job was an upright and blameless man. he was rich and well-loved. he had everything he deserved. one day, job suddenly lost his wealth, his possessions, and people who were closest to him. on this day he fell to the ground and praised god. later he grew boils on his skin, and he still held onto his integrity. his wife didn't know how he could still remain faithful, and she suggested that he should curse god's name and kill himself. this was his response to her.
when things are good, people are happy, and it's easy to love god. but when bad things happen, we question god. we look at all the bad things that happen to us, and we try to make sense of why they might happen, but we do not do the same when good happens to us. we take our blessings for granted, and we lose our trust in god's plan when bad things happen to us.
job never did anything wrong, and no human knew why job was suddenly cursed. after this, he spends most of the book of job miserable, and losing his faith. he was just a man, and there was only so much he could take. he wished he could argue with god and make a case for his redemption, but he knows that compared to god, we are nothing. his friend eliphaz said to him in job 4:17, "can a mortal be more righteous than god? can a man be more pure than his maker?" we can never be more pure than god. all of our righteousness can't save us, because we can never be anything but filthy compared to god's greatness.
even though jesus was pure like god, he suffered more than any of us. he stayed humble because he trusted in god's plan, as should we. jesus makes us righteous because he saves us from our sins. with him, we can stand before god and he will help us reconcile.
when things are good, people are happy, and it's easy to love god. but when bad things happen, we question god. we look at all the bad things that happen to us, and we try to make sense of why they might happen, but we do not do the same when good happens to us. we take our blessings for granted, and we lose our trust in god's plan when bad things happen to us.
job never did anything wrong, and no human knew why job was suddenly cursed. after this, he spends most of the book of job miserable, and losing his faith. he was just a man, and there was only so much he could take. he wished he could argue with god and make a case for his redemption, but he knows that compared to god, we are nothing. his friend eliphaz said to him in job 4:17, "can a mortal be more righteous than god? can a man be more pure than his maker?" we can never be more pure than god. all of our righteousness can't save us, because we can never be anything but filthy compared to god's greatness.
even though jesus was pure like god, he suffered more than any of us. he stayed humble because he trusted in god's plan, as should we. jesus makes us righteous because he saves us from our sins. with him, we can stand before god and he will help us reconcile.
job 2:12-13 ➻ and when [job's friends] raised their eyes from afar, and did not recognize him, they lifted their voices and wept; and each tore his robe and sprinkled dust on his head toward heaven. so they sat down with him on the ground seven days and seven nights, and no one spoke a word to him, for they saw that his grief was very great.
after job's body was covered in boils from sole to crown, he stripped himself and tried scraping them all off with the edge of a pot. then his friends came to visit him, and they mourned alongside him. i don't have much to say about these verses aside from expressing how inspired i am by such a deep friendship.
job 15:33 ➻ [man] will shake off his unripe grape like a vine, and cast off his blossom like an olive tree.
an unripe grape will become sweet and plump, and a blossom will become fruit. if we give up and cut off all that is bitter or unprofitable, we will never be able to see the great things they become. those who trust god's plan and bring things to completion will prosper.
lord, as i consider the story of job, i begin to see that there are none that are righteous—not even one, and that only by faith in your dearly beloved son and his righteousness, can we be declared righteous in your sight. thank you that jesus is my redeemer, the one for whom job longed and our sacrifice for sin. thank you for the lessons i can learn from every character in the book of job. help me to make the right choices in my life and to trust you, no matter what circumstances may arise. keep me from speaking foolish words when faced with adversity and thank you that your grace is always sufficient. help me to live by faith in your word and not to be swayed by sight or feelings, even when i don't understand. this i ask in jesus' name, amen [source].
2023-01-04 update: this is all from the nkjv, but i switched to niv after that. that's why the bible study tag says niv! everything else under that tag will be from niv.