Today's Reading: Job, Chapter Thirty-one
Job is going to make sure that we know just how innocent he is by listing all of the various violations that he might see his neighbors doing. Of course, these are all listed in various places within the law of the Hebrew Bible.
He starts out with two of the 10 Commandments in that he has not coveted (Commandment 10) relationships outside his marriage or followed through with these illicit desires (no adultery, Commandment 7).When Job speaks of abstaining from falsehood, he is covering Commandment 9 in bearing false witness. Leviticus 19:35-36a mentions specifically, "“You shall not cheat in measuring length, weight, or quantity. You shall have honest balances, honest weights" which would also take care of "do not steal (Commandment 8).
It is good to see that he doesn't mistreat his slaves. Notice, that there is no question on the moral failing of slavery at this juncture. This seemed so ingrained in society. Exodus 21:20-21 limits the abuse that one can inflict upon one's slaves - you can beat them, just not to death. While this seems barbaric, it was forward movement in that for some it would seem ridiculous that slaves would have any rights at all. This would be a subtle reference that Job did not violate "Thou Shall Not Kill" (Commandment 6). Notice that we begin to see a turn in thinking in Job 31:15, "Did not he who made me in the womb make them? And did not one fashion us in the womb?" This is an onset of egalitarianism for human beings. As people in Exile, the Hebrews may begin to question status as they used to be self-determining and would now be under foreign domination.
Next, Job adheres to the many laws concerning the care of the poor, the widows and the orphans. As Job speaks of raising the orphan like a father and caring for the widow from his mother's womb (an exaggerated point), it may be that he's attempting to follow Commandment 5 in honoring his father and mother by mentioning them in terms of respect.
Job then turns to the first Commandment of having no other gods and possibly the second with no graven images, whether they be heavenly bodies or made of gold.
Finally, Job encapsulates the third Commandment by not taking God's name in vain through cursing his enemies. He welcomes the stranger and the foreigner as God asks us to do in various places within the Law. One might say that he observes keeping the sabbath (Commandment 4) by not overworking the land and letting it lie fallow every 7th year.
Once again, we can see how Job could represent the totality of God's people in Exile. While they did miss the mark from time to time, they certainly kept the commandments more than their neighbors who didn't observe them as Law from God.
The author seems to be asking, where does mercy come into play from God? If you smite the faithful (even when they mess up), how does this help them to retain their faith? Job leads us to conclude that maybe the exile wasn't a punishment from God but rather happenstance.
The difficulty becomes holding one another accountable while recognizing the grace we all need from time to time.
Prayer for the day:
As the rain hides the stars, as the autumn mist hides the hills, as the clouds veil the blue of the sky, so the dark happenings of my lot hide the shining of your face from me. Yet, if I may hold your hand in the darkness, it is enough. Since I know that, though I may stumble in my going, you do not fall. Amen.
Prayer is from a traditional Celtic prayer.
Photo by Levi Meir Clancy on Unsplash
New Revised Standard Version, Updated Edition. Copyright © 2021 National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.