You are here: Home / Archives for Bible Reading Notes

Notes: Job 38-39

English Language Bible Study Guide for January 24, 2008

Here the Lord answers Job and asks what Job knows about creation. Apparently Elihu wasn’t too far off in his last comments.

Job 38

1: Out of the whirlwind. A grand entrance for a grand God.

2-3: Is the Lord speaking of Elihu, Job’s friends, or Job? For sure, to “darken counsel by words without knowledge” is a bad thing.

An encyclopedia of nature follows. At every turn Job is asked what he knows about the subject, and what part he had in it’s creation. What do you know about these subjects?

  • 4: the foundations of the earth
  • 5: the dimensions of the earth
  • 6: how the earth hangs in space
  • 7: when the universe began
  • 8: how oceans work
  • 9: clouds and darkness
  • 12: daytime
  • 16: the source of ocean water
  • 17: death
  • 19: the source of light
  • 22: snow, hail
  • 24: wind
  • 25: lightning, thunder
  • 26: rain and plant growth
  • 28: why it rains
  • 29: why it snows or frosts
  • 31: stars, constellations
  • 34: commanding the clouds
  • 35: sending lightning
  • 37: count the clouds
  • 38: draught
  • 39: feeding lions
  • 41: feeding ravens

(Job 39)

  • 1: how goats reproduce
  • 5: how animals survive in the wild
  • 9: taming unicorns
  • 13: peacocks and ostriches
  • 19: horses
  • 26: hawks and their flight patterns
  • 27: eagles and their nests

And how much more is there that could be mentioned!

As God has created and governs His creation, we should bow before our Maker.

 

[print_link]

Notes: Job 36-37

English Language Bible Study Guide for January 23, 2008

These chapters present Elihu’s fourth and final discourse. Here he counsels Job to consider the works of God–always good advice.

Job 36

1-4: Introductory remarks

5-15: God uses various means at various times for various purposes concerning various people

16-25: Job’s sin has prevented him from being aware of this; and if Job had not behaved badly he would have been able to recognize God’s hand in Job’s affairs, and Job’s situation would be quite different now.

26-33: God is great

  • as seen in thunder and lightning (37:1-5)
  • as seen in frost, wind, snow, rain and clouds (37:6-13)

37:14-22- If Job cannot understand God’s sovereignty over His creation, namely weather, how can Job presume to understand God’s work in providence?

37:23-24- God is great

If Elihu really believed what he said about God and weather, surely he never complained about temperature or precipitation not being to his liking…

 

[print_link]

Notes: Job 34-35

English Language Bible Study Guide for January 22, 2008

What do you think of Elihu? Is he to be admired or pitied?

In today’s reading we find him continuing to attack Job and to present a defense of the Almighty. Yet when did Job claim to be without sin? And when did Job accuse God of injustice?

Job 34

1-4: Elihu prefaces this series of comments with a call for his audience to listen carefully.

5-9: Job has lived and spoken carelessly, if not maliciously and foolishly.

10-30: Let us remember who God is and what He has done.

  • He is just (10-12, 17, 19,23)
  • He is sovereign (13-15)
  • He is powerful (20, 24)
  • He is omniscient (21-22, 25)
  • He is strict with sinners (26-28)
  • He governs His creation (29-30)

(Credit for this succinct listing goes to Matthew Henry who mined it from the treasure of God’s Word)

Elihu is right about this. We give honor to earthly rulers and authorities; why not more honor to the King of Kings and Lord of Lords?

31-33: How Job should address God

34-37: Why Job’s friends should agree with Elihu

 

Job 35

Elihu addresses two errors which he perceives in Job’s thinking.

1-8: Religion is for God’s sake alone, and has no benefit to man

9-13: God is deaf to the cries of the oppressed

After this Elihu explains why God may delay His merciful deliverance (14-15), and concludes (16) by repeating the oft-spoken lie that Job’s comments are vain and foolish.

[print_link]

Notes: Job 32-33

English Language Bible Study Guide for January 21, 2008

Job’s friends have given up hope of correcting Job; and Job has declared that he found their counsel to be worthless.  But the book doesn’t end here.

Job 32

Elihu speaks to Job’s friends.

2: Although we are told a bit about his family tree, we don’t know how long this young man has been listening.

2-3: Elihu is angry with Job because he justified himself rather than God; and Elihu is angry with Job’s friends because they didn’t have a satisfactory answer to Job’s questions.

4-7: He had been quiet throughout the previous discourses because of his age, and his hope that the elders would have been able to teach Job why these things had happened to him.

8: Elihu alludes to inspiration; later we understand that he was alluding to his being inspired.

9-11: Age does not guarantee wisdom.

14-22: I will not use your lame arguments with Job.

 

Job 33

Elihu addresses Job.

1-7: You asked for a representative of God to speak on His behalf; here I am.

8-12: You have spoken badly about God.

13-24: God draws men to Himself by various means

  • 13-15: by dreams and visions
  • 16-18: by quiet inspiration
  • 19-22: by hardship and troubles
  • 23-24: by His messengers, preachers of salvation by ransom

25-28: Consider what God saves man from

29-30: God often uses these methods to save man.

31-33: So you should listen carefully, Job.

 

[print_link]