Sermon for March 30th, 2014 - Revision history

Iraneal at 18:57, 29 March 2014

2014-03-29T18:57:23Z

Iraneal: /* Job 11:1-6 */

2014-03-29T18:47:46Z

‎Job 11:1-6

Iraneal at 18:45, 29 March 2014

2014-03-29T18:45:36Z

Iraneal at 18:31, 29 March 2014

2014-03-29T18:31:31Z

Iraneal at 16:10, 29 March 2014

2014-03-29T16:10:54Z

Iraneal at 16:03, 29 March 2014

2014-03-29T16:03:45Z

Iraneal at 15:31, 29 March 2014

2014-03-29T15:31:30Z

Iraneal at 15:07, 29 March 2014

2014-03-29T15:07:18Z

Iraneal at 15:00, 29 March 2014

2014-03-29T15:00:21Z

Iraneal at 14:58, 29 March 2014

2014-03-29T14:58:51Z

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 Right out of the gate, Zophar's words are obviously harsh.  He calls Job a talker, a babbler, and a mocker. This is "tough love" at the very least.  And because Job is the hero of this story; because we want him to be Saint Job the Patient; because we want clear-cut good guys and bad guys in black and white; and because it's so much easier to skim over the words of Job's friends and disregard them if we paint them as evil; because of all these things, we read the words of Zophar (the LAST friend to speak) and finally we can say, "See? Look! Job lost everything and his friends just bash him while he's down and call him names!"
-Not so fast.  I'd like for us to lay aside our preconceptions and ask the question, Is it possible that Zophar, in his assesment of Job...could be right?  Well, let's see.  He calls Job a talker, a babbler.  At this point, there are four people in the conversation--Job, Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar.  Help me keep score here:  Job begins talking in chapter 2, and continues all through chapter 3.  Eliphaz takes chapters 4 and 5, then Job gets 6 and 7.  Bildad gets chapter 8, then Job gets 9 and 10.  Zophar takes 11, then Job gets 12, 13, and 14.
+Not so fast.  I'd like for us to lay aside our preconceptions and ask the question, Is it possible that Zophar, in his assessment of Job...could be right?  Well, let's see.  He calls Job a talker, a babbler.  At this point, there are four people in the conversation--Job, Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar.  Help me keep score here:  Job begins talking in chapter 2, and continues all through chapter 3.  Eliphaz takes chapters 4 and 5, then Job gets 6 and 7.  Bildad gets chapter 8, then Job gets 9 and 10.  Zophar takes 11, then Job gets 12, 13, and 14.
 Eliphaz 15 - Job 16, 17 - Bildad 18 - Job 19 - Zophar 20 - Job 21 - Eliphaz 22 - Job 23, 24 - Bildad 25 - Job 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, and 31.  After Job's six-chapter-long monologue, no wonder his friends stop talking.  At this point, Job's total is 21 chapters.  Job's friends all combined? 9 chapters. Later on, when God speaks, he only gets 4 chapters--but he has to pause in the middle, because Job actually interrupts him!
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 Job's story ultimately has a rather happy ending, and for what it's worth, so does the story I began my sermon with today--the story of my name, and my first day of Hebrew class.  On that day when my professor told me something about myself that I didn't want to hear, something that was true (probably in more ways than one), he wasn't my favorite person.  In fact, I had kind of made up my mind that he was my new enemy.  That professor's name was Dr. C.L. Seow.  In addition to being an onomatologist and a Hebrew expert, it turns out he's also the foremost expert on the Book of Job.  The translation we're using today is his, along with most of the "original ideas" I've been preaching the last few weeks.  He ended up being my favorite seminary professor, the advisor for my (unfinished) senior thesis on the Book of Job, a wise mentor and a constant encourager throughout my time in seminary.
-Like Job, I am a talker.  I have an expert opinion on just about any subject, although (as was the case about the meaning of my name) it's not always the right one.  But I'm thankful that in Dr. Seow's classes (and I took several) I was able to let go of my injured pride, be quiet, and listen to what he had to say.  Because when I did, I heard the voice wisdom.  I heard the voice of God.
+Like Job, I am a talker.  I have an expert opinion on just about any subject, although (as was the case about the meaning of my name) it's not always the right one.  But I'm thankful that in Dr. Seow's classes (and I took several) I was able to let go of my injured pride, be quiet, and listen to what he had to say.  Because when I did, I heard the voice wisdom.  And through a wisdom teacher, I heard the voice of God.
 [https://archive.org/download/ZopharWildAssOfAMan/Zophar2.mp3 Song - Zophar: Wild Ass of a Man]

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 ''11:1Then Zophar the Naamathite responded and said: 2Should an abundance of words go unanswered? Or must a talker be in the right? 3Should your babblings silence people, So that you mock without anyone to expose you? 4You said, “My discourse is pure; And I have been clean in your eyes.” 5But would that God speak, And open his lips with you, 6And tell you the secrets of wisdom - That resourcefulness is double-edged. Then know that God would make you oblivious because of your guilt.''
-So far, I've gone to great lenghts to give Job's friends the benefit of the doubt; to see them as good friends who offer good, helpful, kind, respectful, and biblically sound wisdom.  All three friends sit with Job for seven days and seven nights, just listening to him in silence.  When they finally speak, Eliphaz is complimentary and compassionate.  Bildad is optimistic and encouraging.  They do what good friends are supposed to do.  So far.  Or, should I say...Zophar?
+So far, I've gone to great lengths to give Job's friends the benefit of the doubt; to see them as good friends who offer good, helpful, kind, respectful, and biblically sound wisdom.  All three friends sit with Job for seven days and seven nights, just listening to him in silence.  When they finally speak, Eliphaz is complimentary and compassionate.  Bildad is optimistic and encouraging.  They do what good friends are supposed to do.  So far.  Or, should I say...Zophar?
 Right out of the gate, Zophar's words are obviously harsh.  He calls Job a talker, a babbler, and a mocker. This is "tough love" at the very least.  And because Job is the hero of this story; because we want him to be Saint Job the Patient; because we want clear-cut good guys and bad guys in black and white; and because it's so much easier to skim over the words of Job's friends and disregard them if we paint them as evil; because of all these things, we read the words of Zophar (the LAST friend to speak) and finally we can say, "See? Look! Job lost everything and his friends just bash him while he's down and call him names!"

@@ Line 14: / Line 14: @@
 And there it was.  That was my first day of Hebrew class, etched forever in my mind (and probably the mind of all my classmates, too).  It was a humbling experience.  Later that night, a quick search in the Hebrew dictionary (which is a bit more reliable than those baby name books) revealed that my professor was, in fact, quite correct.  Ira means Ass.  As in "donkey" but also with some of the same additional connotations it has today--stubborn, a little bit pompous, arrogant (no wonder the baby name books felt a need to just fabricate meanings from thin air on this one!).
-Believe it or not, all of this does have a point.  While the name Ira appears a few times in the bible as a proper name (mostly minor characters), there are two notable places where a variant (specifically "wild ass") is used to desribe a person. One is used by God himself, in the book of Genesis.  Abraham has two sons -- Isaac and Ishmael, and he promises to bring forth a great nation from each of them (we tend to focus on Isaac, and forget about Ishmael).  In the promise to Hagar (Ishmael's mother) God also says that Ishmael will grow to be a "wild ass of a man."
+Believe it or not, all of this does have a point.  While the name Ira appears a few times in the bible as a proper name (mostly minor characters), there are two notable places where a variant (specifically "wild ass") is used to describe a person. One is used by God himself, in the book of Genesis.  Abraham has two sons -- Isaac and Ishmael, and he promises to bring forth a great nation from each of them (we tend to focus on Isaac, and forget about Ishmael).  In the promise to Hagar (Ishmael's mother) God also says that Ishmael will grow to be a "wild ass of a man."
 The second place that description is used is in the book of Job.  Zophar, in today's scripture passage, calls his friend Job a "wild ass of a man."  For reasons that I'll get into in just a moment, I think Zophar's description of Job is a good one.  But then, I suppose it takes an Ira to know an Ira.

← Older revision		Revision as of 18:31, 29 March 2014
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	Like Job, I am a talker. I have an expert opinion on just about any subject, although (as was the case about the meaning of my name) it's not always the right one. But I'm thankful that in Dr. Seow's classes (and I took several) I was able to let go of my injured pride, be quiet, and listen to what he had to say. Because when I did, I heard the voice wisdom. I heard the voice of God.		Like Job, I am a talker. I have an expert opinion on just about any subject, although (as was the case about the meaning of my name) it's not always the right one. But I'm thankful that in Dr. Seow's classes (and I took several) I was able to let go of my injured pride, be quiet, and listen to what he had to say. Because when I did, I heard the voice wisdom. I heard the voice of God.
		+
		+	[https://archive.org/download/ZopharWildAssOfAMan/Zophar2.mp3 Song - Zophar: Wild Ass of a Man]

← Older revision		Revision as of 16:10, 29 March 2014
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	Job's story ultimately has a rather happy ending, and for what it's worth, so does the story I began my sermon with today--the story of my name, and my first day of Hebrew class. On that day when my professor told me something about myself that I didn't want to hear, something that was true (probably in more ways than one), he wasn't my favorite person. In fact, I had kind of made up my mind that he was my new enemy. That professor's name was Dr. C.L. Seow. In addition to being an onomatologist and a Hebrew expert, it turns out he's also the foremost expert on the Book of Job. The translation we're using today is his, along with most of the "original ideas" I've been preaching the last few weeks. He ended up being my favorite seminary professor, the advisor for my (unfinished) senior thesis on the Book of Job, a wise mentor and a constant encourager throughout my time in seminary.		Job's story ultimately has a rather happy ending, and for what it's worth, so does the story I began my sermon with today--the story of my name, and my first day of Hebrew class. On that day when my professor told me something about myself that I didn't want to hear, something that was true (probably in more ways than one), he wasn't my favorite person. In fact, I had kind of made up my mind that he was my new enemy. That professor's name was Dr. C.L. Seow. In addition to being an onomatologist and a Hebrew expert, it turns out he's also the foremost expert on the Book of Job. The translation we're using today is his, along with most of the "original ideas" I've been preaching the last few weeks. He ended up being my favorite seminary professor, the advisor for my (unfinished) senior thesis on the Book of Job, a wise mentor and a constant encourager throughout my time in seminary.

−	Like Job, I am a talker. I have an expert opinion on just about any subject, although (as was the case about the meaning of my name) it's not always the right one. But I'm thankful that in Dr. Seow's classes I was	+	Like Job, I am a talker. I have an expert opinion on just about any subject, although (as was the case about the meaning of my name) it's not always the right one. But I'm thankful that in Dr. Seow's classes (and I took several) I was able to let go of my injured pride, be quiet, and listen to what he had to say. Because when I did, I heard the voice wisdom. I heard the voice of God.

← Older revision		Revision as of 16:03, 29 March 2014
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	==Job 11:12==		==Job 11:12==
	''12But a hollow person may be heartened, <> A wild ass of a man may be formed. 13If you direct your heart, And spread your hands to him, 14If trouble is in your hands, remove it, And do not permit malice to dwell in your tent, 15Surely then you will lift up your face without blemish, And you will be made firm and not be afraid. 16Surely you will forget misery; You will remember (it) as waters that have passed. 17And life will appear brighter than noon; And as for (its) flicker, it will be as morn. 18And you will be confident, for there is hope; When you have searched, you will lie down in confidence. 19You will be in repose, with none to disturb (you); Many will implore your favor. 20But the eyes of the wicked will fail, And there will be no escape for them, And their hope will expire.''		''12But a hollow person may be heartened, <> A wild ass of a man may be formed. 13If you direct your heart, And spread your hands to him, 14If trouble is in your hands, remove it, And do not permit malice to dwell in your tent, 15Surely then you will lift up your face without blemish, And you will be made firm and not be afraid. 16Surely you will forget misery; You will remember (it) as waters that have passed. 17And life will appear brighter than noon; And as for (its) flicker, it will be as morn. 18And you will be confident, for there is hope; When you have searched, you will lie down in confidence. 19You will be in repose, with none to disturb (you); Many will implore your favor. 20But the eyes of the wicked will fail, And there will be no escape for them, And their hope will expire.''
		+
		+	Job's story ultimately has a rather happy ending, and for what it's worth, so does the story I began my sermon with today--the story of my name, and my first day of Hebrew class. On that day when my professor told me something about myself that I didn't want to hear, something that was true (probably in more ways than one), he wasn't my favorite person. In fact, I had kind of made up my mind that he was my new enemy. That professor's name was Dr. C.L. Seow. In addition to being an onomatologist and a Hebrew expert, it turns out he's also the foremost expert on the Book of Job. The translation we're using today is his, along with most of the "original ideas" I've been preaching the last few weeks. He ended up being my favorite seminary professor, the advisor for my (unfinished) senior thesis on the Book of Job, a wise mentor and a constant encourager throughout my time in seminary.
		+
		+	Like Job, I am a talker. I have an expert opinion on just about any subject, although (as was the case about the meaning of my name) it's not always the right one. But I'm thankful that in Dr. Seow's classes I was

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 Why is it, then, that Job cannot hear the voice of God?  Why is it that any of us sometimes have difficulty hearing God's voice?  I say this as one talker, one babbler, one wild, stubborn ass speaking for another:  Sometimes we have a hard time hearing God, because we're too busy listening to ourselves.
 ==Job 11:12==
-''12But a hollow person may be heartened, <> A wild ass of a man may be formed. 13If you direct your heart, And spread your hands to him, 14If trouble is in your hands, remove it, And do not permit malice to dwell in your tent,
+''12But a hollow person may be heartened, <> A wild ass of a man may be formed. 13If you direct your heart, And spread your hands to him, 14If trouble is in your hands, remove it, And do not permit malice to dwell in your tent, 15Surely then you will lift up your face without blemish, And you will be made firm and not be afraid. 16Surely you will forget misery; You will remember (it) as waters that have passed. 17And life will appear brighter than noon; And as for (its) flicker, it will be as morn. 18And you will be confident, for there is hope; When you have searched, you will lie down in confidence. 19You will be in repose, with none to disturb (you); Many will implore your favor. 20But the eyes of the wicked will fail, And there will be no escape for them, And their hope will expire.''
 Surely then you will lift up your face without blemish, And you will be made firm and not be afraid.
 Surely you will forget misery; You will remember (it) as waters that have passed. 17And life will appear brighter than noon; And as for (its) flicker, it will be as morn. 18And you will be confident, for there is hope; When you have searched, you will lie down in confidence. 19You will be in repose, with none to disturb (you); Many will implore your favor. 20But the eyes of the wicked will fail, And there will be no escape for them, And their hope will expire.''

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 ==Job 2:11-13==
+''11When the three friends of Job heard of all this misfortune that had come upon him, they came each one from his own place: Eliphaz the Temanite, Bildad the Shuhite, Zophar the Naamathite. They agreed to come together to console him and to comfort him. 12When they lifted up their eyes from afar but could not recognize him, they lifted up their voices and wept. They rent, each one his cloak, and sprinkled dust over their heads towards the heaven. 13They sat down with him on the ground, seven days and seven nights, but no one said a word to him, for they saw that the suffering was very great.''
 When the three friends of Job heard of all this misfortune that had come upon him, they came each one from his own place: Eliphaz the Temanite, Bildad the Shuhite, Zophar the Naamathite. They agreed to come together to console him and to comfort him. 12When they lifted up their eyes from afar but could not recognize him, they lifted up their voices and wept. They rent, each one his cloak, and sprinkled dust over their heads towards the heaven. 13They sat down with him on the ground, seven days and seven nights, but no one said a word to him, for they saw that the suffering was very great.
 In our sermon series on "Job: The Other Voices" today we come to Zophar.  He is the last of Job's three friends, although not the last voice we'll hear from in the series.  Next week we'll hear from Elihu, the young wisdom teacher who is not included in the list of friends we just read about in chapter two, and who appears rather suddenly on the scene after Job's friends have concluded their words.  Elihu is a bit of a mystery, actually...but that's all next week.  This week is Zophar's week.
@@ Line 20: / Line 19: @@
 ==Job 11:1-6==
-:1Then Zophar the Naamathite responded and said: 2Should an abundance of words go unanswered? Or must a talker be in the right? 3Should your babblings silence people, So that you mock without anyone to expose you? 4You said, “My discourse is pure; And I have been clean in your eyes.” 5But would that God speak, And open his lips with you, 6And tell you the secrets of wisdom - That resourcefulness is double-edged. Then know that God would make you oblivious because of your guilt.
+''11:1Then Zophar the Naamathite responded and said: 2Should an abundance of words go unanswered? Or must a talker be in the right? 3Should your babblings silence people, So that you mock without anyone to expose you? 4You said, “My discourse is pure; And I have been clean in your eyes.” 5But would that God speak, And open his lips with you, 6And tell you the secrets of wisdom - That resourcefulness is double-edged. Then know that God would make you oblivious because of your guilt.''
 So far, I've gone to great lenghts to give Job's friends the benefit of the doubt; to see them as good friends who offer good, helpful, kind, respectful, and biblically sound wisdom.  All three friends sit with Job for seven days and seven nights, just listening to him in silence.  When they finally speak, Eliphaz is complimentary and compassionate.  Bildad is optimistic and encouraging.  They do what good friends are supposed to do.  So far.  Or, should I say...Zophar?
@@ Line 33: / Line 32: @@
 ==Job 11:7-11==
-Can you discover the profundity of God, Or reach the limit of Shaddai? 8It is higher than the heavens – what can you do? It is deeper than Sheol – what can you know? 9Longer than the earth in length; Broader than the sea. 10If he sweeps by or delivers up, Or calls an assembly, who can restrain him? 11For he knows the people of delusion; When he sees trouble, will he not perceive it?
+''7Can you discover the profundity of God, Or reach the limit of Shaddai? 8It is higher than the heavens – what can you do? It is deeper than Sheol – what can you know? 9Longer than the earth in length; Broader than the sea. 10If he sweeps by or delivers up, Or calls an assembly, who can restrain him? 11For he knows the people of delusion; When he sees trouble, will he not perceive it?''
 The first part of Zophar's speech was, I think, to get Job's attention.  With a talker, sometimes that's hard enough to do without being impolite.  But in this second part of the speech, Zophar has moved on.  He's no longer criticizing Job, but instead trying to call Job's attention to something bigger than himself and his own problems.  As in...God. In fact, many who take the time to read this passage have noticed that Zophar is saying essentially the same things that God himself will say to Job later on.   Zophar is saying "who are you to question God??  What can you do, what can you know?  And sure enough, in chapter 38, when God finally speaks to Job, he says, "Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth? Tell me, if you have understanding.  Who determined its measurements—surely you know!"
@@ Line 41: / Line 40: @@
 Why is it, then, that Job cannot hear the voice of God?  Why is it that any of us sometimes have difficulty hearing God's voice?  I say this as one talker, one babbler, one wild, stubborn ass speaking for another:  Sometimes we have a hard time hearing God, because we're too busy listening to ourselves.
-==Job 11:12-
+==Job 11:12==
-But a hollow person may be heartened, <> A wild ass of a man may be formed. 13If you direct your heart, And spread your hands to him, 14If trouble is in your hands, remove it, And do not permit malice to dwell in your tent,
+''12But a hollow person may be heartened, <> A wild ass of a man may be formed. 13If you direct your heart, And spread your hands to him, 14If trouble is in your hands, remove it, And do not permit malice to dwell in your tent,
 Surely then you will lift up your face without blemish, And you will be made firm and not be afraid.
-Surely you will forget misery; You will remember (it) as waters that have passed. 17And life will appear brighter than noon; And as for (its) flicker, it will be as morn. 18And you will be confident, for there is hope; When you have searched, you will lie down in confidence. 19You will be in repose, with none to disturb (you); Many will implore your favor. 20But the eyes of the wicked will fail, And there will be no escape for them, And their hope will expire.
+Surely you will forget misery; You will remember (it) as waters that have passed. 17And life will appear brighter than noon; And as for (its) flicker, it will be as morn. 18And you will be confident, for there is hope; When you have searched, you will lie down in confidence. 19You will be in repose, with none to disturb (you); Many will implore your favor. 20But the eyes of the wicked will fail, And there will be no escape for them, And their hope will expire.''

← Older revision		Revision as of 15:00, 29 March 2014
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	15Surely then you will lift up your face without blemish, And you will be made firm and not be afraid.		15Surely then you will lift up your face without blemish, And you will be made firm and not be afraid.
	16Surely you will forget misery; You will remember (it) as waters that have passed. 17And life will appear brighter than noon; And as for (its) flicker, it will be as morn. 18And you will be confident, for there is hope; When you have searched, you will lie down in confidence. 19You will be in repose, with none to disturb (you); Many will implore your favor. 20But the eyes of the wicked will fail, And there will be no escape for them, And their hope will expire.		16Surely you will forget misery; You will remember (it) as waters that have passed. 17And life will appear brighter than noon; And as for (its) flicker, it will be as morn. 18And you will be confident, for there is hope; When you have searched, you will lie down in confidence. 19You will be in repose, with none to disturb (you); Many will implore your favor. 20But the eyes of the wicked will fail, And there will be no escape for them, And their hope will expire.
−
−
−
−
−
−	~~I generally hear Job's friends criticized for one of two different reasons. One view is slightly more charitable than the other, but both still paint the friends in a pretty negative light.~~
−
−	The first (and worst) judgment is that WHAT the friends say is to Job is wrong: Their theology is just bad, flawed, not in line with scripture, wisdom, or good teaching of any sort. The second (slightly better) judgment is that WHAT the friends say is ok, but HOW they say it is wrong. They had good intent, put poor execution. They weren't sensitive enough to Job's situation. They had poor bedside manner. I think both of those arguments disappear when we actually read what the friends have to say, and how they say it.
−
−	The first, that WHAT they say is wrong, is based on God's words at the end of the book, where he tells the friends, "You have not spoken of me what is right, as my servant Job has." But that whole understanding hinges on one little preposition: OF (or in some translations, ABOUT). Prepositions in most languages are pretty ambiguous. This preposition, in Hebrew, is אל. Brown, Driver Briggs Hebrew dictionary defines it as "to, toward, unto, into, in, among, toward, against, in addition to, concerning, in regard to, in reference to, on account of, according to, at, by, in between, and within." I hope you realize by now that Biblical translation isn't an exact science. In any case, I prefer to use the very first definition given here. Not "of" but rather "to." You have not spoken TO me what is right. You spoke to Job what was right, but you ignored me. Job, on the other hand, spoke directly to me, and even though what he said about me (his theology) was completely messed up and wrong (that's why I gave him a four-chapter-long lecture) at least he was addressing me to my face.
−
−	Now, this may seem to actually support the idea it wasn't WHAT Job's friends said, but HOW they said it that was the problem. But remember that God's point is how the friends speak (or do not speak) to God, not Job. We've already seen how Job's friends sat with him in silence and sympathy for seven days and seven nights. We saw last week how Eliphaz, the first of the friends, speaks with gentle, thoughtful concern for his friend, balanced with appropriate reverence for God.