“Though He slay me, yet will I hope in Him; I will surely defend my ways to His face” (Job 13:15).
God had taken everything away from Job and had allowed Satan to send “friends” to torment him. Yet, in the midst of his agony, Job uttered one of the most profound statements of faith. Job said that even if God killed him, he would still trust Him.
The Bible tells us that the just shall live by faith (Habakkuk 2:4). Living by faith does not mean blindly believing something even if you’re not sure whether it’s true or not, but rather it means trusting God to supply every need in your life.
God promises a future for His people, and thus our joy as pilgrims in this world is that God has prepared a place for us. God has promised that a better world will be consummated through the final victory of Jesus Christ. This is not a mere wish but a sure confidence. It is a hope that cannot fail.
Trusting God means having a personal relationship with Him. Job trusted God enough to argue his case before Him. Job realized, however, that he was not adequate to present his own case before God. Thus, he said, “I know that my Redeemer lives, and that in the end He will stand upon the earth” (Job 19:25). Sometimes we read too much into this verse, because the word redeemer does not have the tightly focused meaning in Hebrew that it has in our theology. The word means “kinsman-redeemer” (as in Ruth) and “avenger.” In other words, it means “vindicator.” Job knew that his Advocate was alive and would come to his rescue.
We don’t know the degree of content Job had in his mind, but we do know that he looked for God to vindicate him. He was certain that God would not allow his pain and suffering to be the last chapter. He groaned in the present, but he never lost his confidence in the future that God had planned for him.
In a sense when God appeared to Job at the end of the story, He was presenting Himself as Job’s vindication. God told Job that He was in complete control. While His reasons were inscrutable, He was going to take care of Job just as He takes care of every one of His creatures. Job was right to trust in God, because God is altogether trustworthy.
When we experience pain and grief, we tend to get angry at God, blaming Him for our troubles, and shutting Him out of our lives. Job teaches us that even in the worst situations, there is no place to go but to God Himself. Make Him both your refuge and strength.
