Job 1

12 We should keep in mind certain things about Satan. First, he is not all-powerful; God could have destroyed him right back in the Garden of Eden.¹⁰ Second, Satan is not all-knowing; Satan didn't know Job's heart, but God did. Third, although Satan continues to be in rebellion against God, God is still able to use him for His purposes—one of which is to test the FAITH of men and women. So God agreed to let Satan take away all the blessings that Job had been enjoying, except for one: his health. “. . . on the man himself do not lay a finger.” Satan is like a lion on a leash; he can do great harm, but only within the limits God sets for him. God will never let Satan test us beyond what we can bear (see 1 Corinthians 10:13).

If God knew that Job was righteous, why did He need to test him? He didn't test Job for His own sake, but for ours. How else could we—and the angels (verse 6)—really know Job's character without its being tested? How can we know our own character without being tested? (see Matthew 7:24–27). Satan had attacked Job's character; only Job could prove that Satan's attack was false. Far from abandoning Job, God was in fact giving him the highest honor possible: the honor of suffering for God's sake (Acts 5:41; 1 Peter 4:12–13). God had total confidence in Job and knew that he would triumph in the end.

But for this great test to work, Job could not be allowed to know the reason for it. We, the readers, have been let in on the secret, but not Job. If Job had known the reason for the test, he could easily have passed it; it would have been no test at all. And this is why the book of Job has such value for us: when we ourselves face suffering, we are like Job; we don't understand the reason for it. Job, in a sense, represents all of us. As Job was tested, so shall we be tested—though hopefully less so! As Job wrestled with God, so shall we “wrestle” with God. And as Job prevailed, so shall we prevail. The book of Job is written for our encouragement. Let us never think that this book is just an ancient myth; it is a living and vital word from God that is applicable to every one of us today.

13–19 In these verses, the writer describes how Satan took away Job's blessings, one after another: his oxen (verses 14–15), his sheep (verse 16), his camels (verse 17), and finally his sons and daughters (verses 18–19). Satan used both human beings—Sabeans and Chaldeans—and also elements of nature—fire of God (lightning) and wind—to carry out his destructive work.

We can understand from this that Satan is behind most of the evils in our world; he even uses morally neutral occurrences like bad weather to carry out his plans. Many people today scoff at the idea of a devil; they keep trying to make the world better through education and political reform. But these things, while good in themselves, can never overcome the spiritual power of Satan, which is behind the world's ills. Only through faith in Christ can the evil in the world be finally overcome.

20–22 When Job heard about the loss of his children and his livestock—not to mention his servants—he tore his robe and shaved his head in mourning (verse 20). Then Job uttered one of the most important statements in all of Scripture: “The LORD gave and the LORD has taken away; may the name of the LORD be praised”¹¹ (verse 21).

Job was right: it was indeed the Lord who had “taken away.” There was no use blaming the Sabeans or the wind; there was no use blaming Satan. God is ultimately responsible for our suffering—He allows it, He ordains it—and so we need to take the matter up with Him. And we should do so the way Job did, with resignation, trust and praise. Job may have lost almost everything, but He had not lost God; and God is to be cherished more than all His gifts.

Thus, so far, Job had triumphed over Satan. Instead of cursing God, as Satan had expected, Job praised God! When suffering comes our way, let us pray for grace to do the same.

Job did not sin by charging God with wrongdoing (verse 22). To charge God with wrongdoing is, in effect, to curse Him. God is never unjust and never wrong. We can question God; we can even argue with Him, as Job later did; but we must never charge Him with wrongdoing.