Job 38:1-13
Only God Is God

Then Yahweh answered Job out of the whirlwind,
"Who is this who darkens counsel
      by words without knowledge?
Brace yourself like a man,
      for I will question you, then you answer me!

"Where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth?
      Declare, if you have understanding.
Who determined its measures, if you know?
      Or who stretched the line on it?
Whereupon were its foundations fastened?
      Or who laid its cornerstone,
when the morning stars sang together,
      and all the sons of God shouted for joy?

"Or who shut up the sea with doors,
      when it broke forth from the womb,
when I made clouds its garment,
      and wrapped it in thick darkness,
marked out for it my bound,
      set bars and doors,
and said, 'Here you may come, but no further.
      Here your proud waves shall be stayed?'

"Have you commanded the morning in your days,
      and caused the dawn to know its place;
that it might take hold of the ends of the earth,
      and shake the wicked out of it?"

World English Bible

Let me start by admitting that this is probably my favorite passage in the Bible, although it is an unusual passage. Hang around and see if I can explain…

The story of Job is a "riches to rags to riches" story. At the beginning of the book, Job has it all! He has great herds of cattle and sheep, vast fields of crops, and a wonderful family—but in a day's time, all this is taken away from him. The possessions are destroyed and the family dies, and even Job's health is taken from him.

The friends Job had before these disasters left him, certain that such tragedy was a sign that Job has done something terribly wrong. The few friends that stay around spend most of the chapters of the book telling Job what a bad person he must be. One encourages him to confess and see if God won't forgive him—but Job had done no wrong, and had nothing to confess. Another urged him to give up, to "curse God and die." But Job refused to blame God, and refused to give up.

Instead, Job wanted to understand why all this had happened. He asks his friends for insight, and prays to God for answers. These events were just so unfair! How could this be?

And here, in chapter 38, Job gets the answer from God… sort of. But sort of not.

See God's response? "Job, before I answer your little human questions, please answer a few for me." In the next four chapters, God asks Job to explain his knowledge of the creation of the world, and the continuing operation of the heavens and the earth. "Job, were you there to see Me create the earth? Do you remember who put limits on the sea? Have you made a whale, Job? Do the wild buffalo recognize you as the Source of life?" Don't misunderstand the tone of God's questions. This is not an angry response by God to Job's anguish. It is a patient, loving, even "tongue in cheek" kindness that God shows to this devoted follower.

And Job can do nothing but smile in return. In chapter 42, Job says something like, "You're right, God! I was asking silly little questions, making statements about things far beyond my understanding, and I had forgotten how amazing a God You are! Please forgive me for thinking of You as less than You are."

There are so many lessons for us in this message! We share a cultural value system that emphasizes fairness, and, for the most part, there is nothing wrong with fairness in how we treat other people. We have no business, though, imposing our sense of fairness on God, and passing judgement on God when life doesn't appear to us as "fair." There is great release for us when we stop expecting for life to be fair. There is a peace far greater than we can get from our sense of fairness, and God will fill us with this peace when we accept God as beyond our explanations and our knowledge. We must always remember that only God is God!