A congregational study of the Book of Job. By Pastor Jose Luis
Session Eleven. Read Job Chapter 15.
Eliphaz´s second speech is different now, he has heard Job´s answers and shows his disagreement and openly accuses him of false spirituality, 15, 4-5:
“you are doing away with the fear of God,
and hindering meditation before God.
For your iniquity teaches your mouth.”
Eliphaz reaffirms that suffering is a consequence of sin. He doesn’t accept Job´s idea that suffering can have a different origin and is not necessarily linked to wrongdoing and sinful behavior.
Eliphaz´s faith is expressed with his narrow retribution doctrine that he defends at all cost. He also uses the tradition of the elders to support his idea of God 15, 10-11:
“The gray-haired and the aged are on our side,
those older than your father.
Are the consolations of God too small for you,
or the word that deals gently with you?”
Here we have on one side the traditions of the elders and their idea of a retributive God, and on the other hand Job´s idea that God can allow suffering to take place in certain circumstances and not necessarily as a punishment, but as a test and an opportunity to discover the mystery of God.
How do you feel when people use the traditions of the elders to justify the suffering or other people? How do you answer when your experience of God is questioned or considered invalid because it does not align with the mainstream theological ideas?
Tell me your impressions. pastor@lcostampa.org