Posted by Lisa Laree to Beer Lahai Roi
Hoo, boy, it's been a minute. Back from Vacation, but with the Big Data Fix project still hanging over my head I'm just about maxed out. Not to mention...Christmas looms and I have, um, Projects that are moving rapidly up the priority ladder...
And Psalms is still intimidating me, lol.
But I'm going to do my best to get through all the verses dealing with 'heart/hearts' in the last 11 chapters of Job; the NIV exhaustive concordance lists 5.
In chapter 32, we find that Eliphaz, Bildad and Zophar finally give up arguing with Job, as they were getting nowhere. A fourth friend, Elihu, who showed up at some point (probably before the arguing started), has patiently listened to all the discussion but grew increasingly frustrated as NO ONE seemed to make any valid points: Job just justified himself, and the other three guys couldn't pull out any solid evidence against Job but judged him nonetheless. Elihu admits to being younger than all the others, and, out of courtesy, listened to them until they quit arguing, then had to make the points that no one else made. "...I am like bottled-up wine, like new wineskins ready to burst. I must speak and find relief;" he says in Job 32:19-20a.
"My words come from an upright heart; my lips sincerely speak what I know." -- Job 33:3; 'Heart' is the familiar Leb, Strong's H3820. Elihu spends a bit of time explaining why he feels like he should speak, then begins his discourse on the righteousness of God and Job's presumption to argue against him, and is especially scornful of Job's statements that living righteously has no real reward.
"The godless in heart harbor resentment; even when he fetters them, they do not cry for help." -- Job 36:13; 'Heart' is H3820 again.
As Elihu is speaking, a huge thunderstorm blows up and is threatening; he uses it as an illustration
"At this my heart pounds and leaps from its place." - Job 37:1, "heart" is once again H3820.
He finally concludes
"The Almighty is beyond our reach and exalted in power; in his justice and great righteousness, he does not oppress. Therefore, men revere him, for does he not have regard for all the wise in heart?" --Job 37:23-24...H3820 once more.
Then, what happened next had to be stupifyingly awesome, God actually spoke audibly to the group from the storm (Job 38:1), asking Job question after question that he clearly couldn't answer. God did not tell Job why all the suffering happened, but he did lay out his knowledge and wisdom, basically saying 'I know what I'm doing."
The final mention of 'heart/hearts' in the book is God speaking:
"Who endowed the heart with wisdom or gave understanding to the mind?" - Job 38:36
My NIV has a footnote on 'heart' in this verse, stating that its meaning is uncertain. King James translates it 'Inward Parts'; it is Stong's H2910 - tuha; another word which can be translated 'reins'; it's only used one other time in the Old Testament in Ps. 51:8, and actually has the connotation of being covered over or layered with fat, and implies the seat of the mind and thoughts. No one mentions this, but it would make sense to consider this 'who taught the organs how to function?' as that fits right in with the litany of things only God can do. In either case...Job clearly had no grounds to accuse God of not knowing/ not understanding any aspect of his creation...including Job and all his problems.
Job repents of his earlier rash words in chapter 42; God, pleased with Job, instructs him to make a sacrifice and pray for his friends. There is suddenly sympathy from Job's neighbors and family, and they took up a collection for him, which he invested, once more receiving God's favor and protection on all he did, becoming even more wealthy than he was in the beginning (AND...he had 10 more kids. Bless his wife; there's no mention of other wives or concubines anywhere).
His story wasn't over when the hardship hit; he lived 140 MORE years and saw his great-great-grandchildren before he died "old and full of days." (Job 42:16-17)
God is a bit like Mary Poppins...never explaining anything. But he does nothing without a purpose and we need to remember that purpose exists...even if we never see it and can't understand it.
Someone we know nothing of may be watching...
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