The Second Sunday in Lent.
The
Collect.
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LMIGHTY God,
who seest that we have no power of ourselves to help ourselves; Keep us both
outwardly in our bodies, and inwardly in our souls; that we may be defended
from all adversities which may happen to the body, and from all evil thoughts
which may assault and hurt the soul; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
The first day of Lent, commonly called
Ash Wednesday.
Ash Wednesday.
The
Collect.
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LMIGHTY and
everlasting God, who hatest nothing that thou hast made, and dost forgive the
sins of all those who are penitent; Create and make in us new and contrite
hearts, that we, worthily lamenting our sins and acknowledging our
wretchedness, may obtain of thee, the God of all mercy, perfect remission and
forgiveness; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
¶ This Collect is to be said every day in Lent, after the
Collect appointed for the day, until Palm Sunday.
1 Moreover
the LORD answered Job, and said, 2 Shall he that contendeth with the
Almighty instruct him? he that reproveth God, let him answer it. 3 Then
Job answered the LORD, and said, 4 Behold, I am vile; what shall I answer
thee? I will lay mine hand upon my mouth. 5 Once have I spoken; but I will
not answer: yea, twice; but I will proceed no further. 6 Then answered the
LORD unto Job out of the whirlwind, and said, 7 Gird up thy loins now like
a man: I will demand of thee, and declare thou unto me. 8 Wilt thou also
disannul my judgment? wilt thou condemn me, that thou mayest be righteous? 9 Hast
thou an arm like God? or canst thou thunder with a voice like him? 10 Deck
thyself now with majesty and excellency; and array thyself with glory and
beauty. 11 Cast abroad the rage of thy wrath: and behold every one that is
proud, and abase him. 12 Look on every one that is proud, and bring him
low; and tread down the wicked in their place. 13 Hide them in the dust
together; and bind their faces in secret. 14 Then will I also confess unto
thee that thine own right hand can save thee. 15 Behold now behemoth,
which I made with thee; he eateth grass as an ox. 16 Lo now, his strength
is in his loins, and his force is in the navel of his belly. 17 He moveth
his tail like a cedar: the sinews of his stones are wrapped together. 18 His
bones are as strong pieces of brass; his bones are like bars of iron. 19 He
is the chief of the ways of God: he that made him can make his sword to
approach unto him. 20 Surely the mountains bring him forth food, where all
the beasts of the field play. 21 He lieth under the shady trees, in the
covert of the reed, and fens. 22 The shady trees cover him with their
shadow; the willows of the brook compass him about. 23 Behold, he drinketh
up a river, and hasteth not: he trusteth that he can draw up Jordan into his
mouth. 24 He taketh it with his eyes: his nose pierceth through snares. (Job
40:1-24)
It may appear to the casual observer that all of the misery of this account of
Job is on Job's part; however, what of His Lord who has watched Job fall
pitifully short in his arguments with Satan, and Satan's vicegerents, after
being a close friend of God? God has chosen His choicest gladiator to go
against Satan, but Job has taken the field with a broken Sword. He has acknowledged
the greatness of God and His Power, but he has also alluded to his own
righteousness implying that God is not just. He was correct in the first
instant, but miserably amiss in the second. Job and his friends have been
claiming the high truths of God without acknowledging His perfect righteousness
and justice. In fact, they have denied it. God has now, in the last two
chapters, levied a barrage of unanswerable questions from the Coastal Batteries
of Heaven. The four men remain absolutely silent to these questions for they
are not equipped to answer even ONE. They are beginning to feel as the fools
which they are in making such claims against God. Isaiah describes the Being of
God in God's own Words: I am the LORD, and there is none else,
there is no God beside me: I girded thee, though thou hast not known me: That
they may know from the rising of the sun, and from the west, that there is none
beside me. I am the LORD, and there is none else. (Isaiah 45:5-6 )
Please note that there are NONE other gods. Allah is NOT God. The Being of God
is defined in terms that transcend His Name – He is exclusive. He has an only
Begotten Son. He has a Holy Spirit. He has a Holy Book called the Bible – not
the Koran! If Allah lacks any of these, obviously Allah is not God – period!
End of statement, end of argument!
We see in the first two verses that God asks Job a direct question? It is not a
question of one slip of the tongue of Job, but of Job's whole attitude and
argument in previous chapters: 1 Moreover the LORD answered Job,
and said, 2 Shall he that contendeth with the Almighty instruct
him? he that reproveth God, let him answer it. God has made
Job and his three friends to appear as the fools that they are in trying to
speak for God and even in demeaning His mercy, grace, justice, and
righteousness. None of those questions asked in chapter 38-39 can be answered
by any man. So Job is thrown off-balance by such questions, but there is
yet a glimmer of prideful presumption not confessed in his present response to
God. 3 Then Job answered the LORD, and said, 4 Behold, I am
vile; what shall I answer thee? I will lay mine hand upon my mouth.
5 Once have I spoken; but I will not answer: yea, twice; but I will
proceed no further. This answer falls short of a full
repudiation of his former presumptiveness. Job is saying, "Look, Lord, I
made a mistake and overstepped my bounds" and "I said SOME things
that weren't quite consistent with your character." Job does realize how
vile he has been. That is a starting point, but not the finish line. He is so
over-awed by God's questions that he places his hand over his mouth. But
silence is not the response God seeks when He speaks to us. He desires a broken
and a contrite heart when we have presumed against His Divine Majesty. At a
later, point; Job will come to a better and fuller answer to God in chapter
42:1-5. This is the response God attempts to evoke in the heart of Job now, but
Job is short of a full realization of his need to repent.
6 Then answered the LORD unto Job out of the whirlwind, and said,
7 Gird up thy loins now like a man: I will demand of thee, and declare
thou unto me. A true man will recognize when he is in the
wrong. God demands this of every man and woman. God is telling Job, "I
want more than a puny acknowledgment that you were wrong, Job. I want a
confession and the evidence of repentance. You do not disagree with the
Almighty and simply say, `I was wrong.'" God answers, moreover, again
from the Whirlwind. God always answers from a place of power – even from the
flames of fire if need be. 8 Wilt thou also disannul my judgment?
wilt thou condemn me, that thou mayest be righteous? Mr.
Job, you are a man conceived in sin, and God fashioned every detail of your
person in the darkness of the womb; yet you presume to cancel out the character
and nature of God in your foolish babblings? Do you, Mr. Job, have the temerity
to claim a higher stake in righteousness than the Almighty? Does any man
condemn God when he cannot even condemn another man? Have you ever disagreed
with God? If so, you are saying that6 the judgment of God is less than your
own. God will forgive your foolish piety if you will repent of it.
Mr. Job, would like you like to join the Lord in the tornado-like whirlwind to
see if your frail voice can be heard over the thunder? 9 Hast
thou an arm like God? or canst thou thunder with a voice like him?
Can your strong and outstretched arm part the waters of the sea, Mr. Job, or
command the fountains of the great deep to be broken up by the power of your
word? Or, is that a function that only God can satisfy? Can you whisper in
Eternity Past and have that whisper manifested as a thundering Voice in
Eternity future? Maybe not? Then keep silence before Him and pay Him reverence due
His sovereignty and Might.
God issues a heavy challenge to Job: 10 Deck thyself now with
majesty and excellency; and array thyself with glory and beauty. 11 Cast
abroad the rage of thy wrath: and behold every one that is proud, and abase him.
12 Look on every one that is proud, and bring him low; and tread down
the wicked in their place. 13 Hide them in the dust together; and
bind their faces in secret. Can you claim a high royalty for
your namesake; can you prove your perfection in all things…never a mistake,
never a misstep? Can you paint the beauty of a morning sunrise, or the glorious
solitude of the evening sunset? Can you wear the robes of the wind, and array
yourself with the heavenly constellations? Maybe not? Can you cause your petty
rage to be broadcasts across the expanse of space and time? Can you cause to
fade in fear the contempt and pride of kings, rulers, and even brute beasts?
Can you destroy, with a whisper, the wicked that hurt men, women, and small
children? Can you cause the proud to be covered with the desert dust of time
and cause there only memories to be by-words and not proud memories? Maybe not?
Then heed the Voice of the Lord and dispute it not! If you were able to do
those things, Mr. Job and Mr./Mrs. Reader, then God will grant you the claim of
your own righteousness to salvation. 14 Then will I also confess
unto thee that thine own right hand can save thee. But every reader
of this devotion knows full well that he lacks the merit, the righteousness,
the perfection to save himself and that he, therefore, needs to lay claim upon
the righteousness of Christ in order to be saved.
Now, the Lord God will describe some one of the beasts of His Creation which is
beyond the power of man to subdue. I will not speculate on what this creature
is except to say that its particular of its characteristics are shared by some
creatures existent today: 15 Behold now behemoth, which I made
with thee; he eateth grass as an ox. 16 Lo now, his strength is in
his loins, and his force is in the navel of his belly. 17 He moveth
his tail like a cedar: the sinews of his stones are wrapped together. 18 His
bones are as strong pieces of brass; his bones are like bars of iron. 19 He
is the chief of the ways of God: he that made him can make his sword to
approach unto him. 20 Surely the mountains bring him forth food,
where all the beasts of the field play. 21 He lieth under the shady
trees, in the covert of the reed, and fens. 22 The shady trees
cover him with their shadow; the willows of the brook compass him about. 23 Behold,
he drinketh up a river, and hasteth not: he trusteth that he can draw up Jordan
into his mouth. 24 He taketh it with his eyes: his nose pierceth
through snares. The extinct dinosaur may answer to this
description, but I do not know if the dinosaur was extant after the flood. This
creature, in some respects is like a rhinoceros, or a crocodile, or a
hippopotamus. Many have speculated on the exact identity of this
creature, but none have spoken with specific proof. So let us just conclude
that this is a creature of incomparable strength and character among the beasts
of the field. God is stating the nature of the beast in order to draw a
conclusion from Job in the next chapter. Of course, the exact nature is not
necessary for us to completely fathom for this beast is far greater than the
great guerrilla, the lion, the tiger, the grizzly bear, etc. none of which can
man subdue much less create as God has done. The example of this creature puts
Job, and you and me, in a better perspective to the power of God who made it.
If you now feel small compared to God and His wisdom, we shall proceed tomorrow
to chapter 41.
