Job 2:1-10 (NLT)
One day the members of the heavenly court came again to present themselves before the Lord, and the Accuser, Satan, came with them. 2 “Where have you come from?” the Lord asked Satan.
Satan answered the Lord, “I have been patrolling the earth, watching everything that’s going on.”
3 Then the Lord asked Satan, “Have you noticed my servant Job? He is the finest man in all the earth. He is blameless—a man of complete integrity. He fears God and stays away from evil. And he has maintained his integrity, even though you urged me to harm him without cause.”
4 Satan replied to the Lord, “Skin for skin! A man will give up everything he has to save his life. 5 But reach out and take away his health, and he will surely curse you to your face!”
6 “All right, do with him as you please,” the Lord said to Satan. “But spare his life.” 7 So Satan left the Lord’s presence, and he struck Job with terrible boils from head to foot.
8 Job scraped his skin with a piece of broken pottery as he sat among the ashes. 9 His wife said to him, “Are you still trying to maintain your integrity? Curse God and die.”
10 But Job replied, “You talk like a foolish woman. Should we accept only good things from the hand of God and never anything bad?” So in all this, Job said nothing wrong.
Explanation:
After we are born again, we like to think that nothing bad will happen to us now because we belong to God, and the Bible promises He will protect us from all harm (Psalm 121:7). Today’s passage is proof that bad things happen to good people. The same God who protects us under the shadow of His wings also allows us to experience enough affliction and heartache to crush our spirits.
Notice in verse three, it is God who points out Job and offers him up for the enemy’s attacks. It may take years of faithfulness to Christ before we understand that God’s plan for our lives is not to continually bless us with comfort and security, but to bring glory to Himself. And if taking us through some grief-stricken events will magnify His name, we have to trust that He knows what is best for our lives, even when we can’t comprehend it.
The story of Job underscores the fact that nothing comes our way—whether blessings or calamity—without God’s approval. If you’ve ever heard someone say that God will never allow us to suffer more than we can handle, here is the reality we must come to terms with: our capacity for suffering does not depend on how much we can bear, it depends on God’s infinite supply of grace to walk us through it, so that our response glorifies His name (v.10). In other words, God will not allow us to suffer more than He can handle.
Application:
Think back to when you accepted Christ as your Savior. What was your understanding of God’s protection over your life?
How has your understanding changed as you’ve matured in your faith?
In verses four and five, how does Satan’s response to God reflect the attitude of some Christ followers?
Where do you think people got the idea that God will never allow us to suffer more than we can bear? The Bible doesn’t say that. Do you think Job would agree with that statement? Do you agree with it?
Devo Plus:
Read Job 1 and 42. How do the events in both chapters glorify God?
Prayer:
Heavenly Father, I lift up everyone who is going through a season of suffering and ask that You surround them with Your comfort on every side. Give them a measure of grace above and beyond what they need to persevere faithfully in their afflictions. In Jesus’s name. Amen.