Explore the Bible Series for June 25: God is present even in his absence

Posted: 6/14/06

Explore the Bible Series for June 25

God is present even in his absence

• Job 22:1-28:28

By James Adair

Baptist University of the Americas, San Antonio

The cycle of speeches between Job and his friends comes to an end in this week’s lesson. After this, we only hear from Job, the enigmatic figure Elihu and, finally, from God. There are some difficulties in figuring out who is saying what in these chapters, perhaps because of some ancient textual problems that affected the transmission of this section of the book.

Bildad’s speech in 25:1-6 is unusually short, but the words attributed to Job in 26:5-14 sound like the logical conclusion to Bildad’s discourse, so many scholars—and some modern translations of the Bible—rearrange the text, joining 26:5-14 to the rest of Bildad’s words, and moving 26:1-4 after verse 14.

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Another problem with this third cycle of speeches is that Zophar does not seem to speak at all. However, 27:7-23 sounds much more like his friends’ words of traditional wisdom than Job’s usual point of view, so many scholars think these verses may be part of a lost speech of Zophar. Another alternative is that Job simply is quoting the sentiments of one of his friends here, without agreeing with them.

As in the previous cycles of speeches, Job maintains his innocence, while his friends insist he must have done something wrong, otherwise God would not be inflicting such punishment on him.

Job 22:2-3

In various ancient Near Eastern creation myths, the gods created humans in order to free themselves of the drudgery of working the earth and so people could offer savory sacrifices to them. It was not that the gods really needed people around; it was they just wanted them to make their lives a little easier.

The first question in the 1647 Westminster Larger Catechism, the official document for instructing people in the Presbyterian faith, asks: “What is the chief and highest end of man?” The answer is: “Man’s chief and highest end is to glorify God, and fully to enjoy him forever.”

A similar sentiment is expressed more briefly in the Second London Baptist Confession of 1689, which says humanity is God’s workmanship, and our good works are to glorify God.

From a Christian perspective, does God really need humans? Strictly speaking, the answer is “no,” since God apparently existed for an eternity before creating human beings. However, the question of whether God really needs people is the wrong question to ask—our very existence implies God wants us around.

Eliphaz asks Job: “Can a human being be of use to God? Can even the wisest be of service to him?” Clearly Eliphaz thinks the answer to his question is “no.”

God does not have any absolute need for people to offer sacrifices or even praise, and so he makes the valid theological point that God’s existence is unconditioned. That is, God—unlike the rest of the universe—exists without need of others. Since God chose to create humanity, though, it evidently is the case that people are, in fact, of use to God in some sense.

God takes note of our existence, and God cares about each of us, from the most powerful ruler and the richest person on the planet to the untold number of people whose lives never will appear in history books, great literature or even on gravestones. Yes, Eliphaz, a man, a woman or a child can be of use to God.

Job 22:21-30

A harried professor rushed into the classroom out of breath, sweating and carrying two large bags full of books and papers. “I’m sorry to be late to our first class,” he said to the men and women assembled in front of him, “but I’m here now, so let’s get started. My first lecture is entitled “Malthus’s Essay on the Principle of Population and Its Implications for the Problem of Human Overpopulation.” He proceeded to describe the problem of human population growth on the earth’s ecosystems, replete with charts, graphs and statistics.

At the end of the hour, he paused and asked, “Are there any questions?” One young woman slowly lifted her hand. “Yes, what’s your question?” the professor asked. “Well, all of the information you gave us was very interesting, but this is supposed to be a Lamaze class.”

Eliphaz concludes his third address to Job with an excursus on how a righteous person should live. “Agree with God, and be at peace; in this way good will come to you,” he says.

This is good advice. Unfortunately, it is not applicable to Job’s situation. Sometimes when we see people in need around us, we offer advice, usually with the best of intentions. However, if we don’t listen carefully to what they are saying, our advice may be completely useless. It always is important to know your audience!

Job 23:1-27

The Bible contains several stories about people who are terrified to find themselves in the presence of the Almighty God. The Israelites at the foot of Mt. Sinai tremble in the presence of God. Isaiah in the temple cries out “Woe is me, for I have seen the Lord of Hosts!”

Rudolf Otto, in The Idea of the Holy, speaks of the mysterium tremendum, the mysterious presence of God that makes one tremble in fear. Job, however, wishes he could confront God and plead his case. He would point out that his righteous behavior does not merit such treatment from God. He would insist he is being treated unfairly.

For Job, the only thing more terrifying than the presence of God is the absence of God. Verses 8 and 9 read like the exact opposite of Psalm 139:7-12, where the psalmist finds God wherever he looks.

Life is like that sometimes. When things are dark, sometimes we can’t sense God’s presence. We seek God, but God is nowhere to be found. We look for reasons why our lives are crumbling, but God gives us no answer. We scream into the dark night, but God doesn’t seem to hear. Why does God hide from us in our hour of need? Why doesn’t he answer our prayers?

Old Testament theologian Samuel Terrien says God’s apparent absence actually is God’s elusive presence. God is present even in his absence.

To quote the Buddhist/Taoist writer known as Wei Wu Wei, “Presence and absence are dual forms of appearance.” God is not at our beck and call. We sometimes feel the presence of God, but often we feel only God’s absence.

In those times, how do we know God still is there? We know because we know whose absence we are seeking. God is such a powerful presence, that even when God is nowhere to be found, we sense God lurking in the shadows. Like Job, we continue to cry out to God, because God’s absence is paradoxically an elusive presence.

In the depths of our despair, when all hope seems lost, we continue to cry out to God. Sometimes we will feel like God is with us, and sometimes we won’t, but in the mysteries of God’s sovereignty, even God’s absence can draw us toward God.

Discussion questions

• In what ways can people be of use to God? What benefit, if any, does God derive from our lives?

• Have you ever had someone offer you advice not really relevant to your situation? Is it more important to give advice or to listen to people’s problems?

• What should we do when we are unable to feel God’s presence with us, despite our desperate attempts to find God? Do you agree that God’s apparent absence is actually God’s elusive presence?