Daily Scripture Reading Job 18:1 - 19:14

Modern society is having a loneliness epidemic. Despite modern communication technology which allows us to communicate with any person anywhere on the globe almost instantaneously, it is probably accurate to say that 21st century people feel more disconnected with their fellow humans than at any time in human history. Perhaps that is because too much communication with too many people dilutes the positive effects of companionship so much that we don’t have any companionship. It may also simply be that our devices allow so many intrusions into our lives that we spend all our time connecting with something out on the internet while ignoring the people with whom we are face to face.

Job also experienced loneliness. His loneliness obviously was not the result of technology. Nevertheless, he felt lonely even while he was having an extended conversation with three supposed friends. Understanding the cause of his loneliness can help us understand how to avoid loneliness in our lives.

Yesterday, we finished reading section 10 which was Job’s response to Eliphaz.

Job 18:1 ¶ Then Bildad the Shuhite answered and said,

Notice the name “Bildad”. This verse begins section 11.

This section is Bildad’s response to Job’s response to Eliphaz.

Job 18:2 “How long until you put an end to your words?

Show understanding and then we can talk.

Job 18:3 Why are we regarded as beasts,

As dense in your eyes?

Job 18:4 O you who tear yourself in your anger—

For your sake is the earth to be forsaken,

Or the rock to be moved from its place?

Job 18:5 ¶ “Indeed, the light of the wicked goes out,

And the flame of his fire gives no light.

The art of Hebrew poetry is not rhyme. Instead, it is finding multiple ways to say the same thing. Verses 5-21 are multiple expressions of Bildad’s belief that wicked people do not prosper.

Job 18:6 The light in his tent is darkened,

And his lamp goes out above him.

Job 18:7 His vigorous stride is shortened,

And his own counsel brings him down.

Job 18:8 For he is thrown into the net by his own feet,

And he steps on the netting.

Job 18:9 A snare seizes him by the heel,

And a device snaps shut on him.

Job 18:10 A rope for him is hidden in the ground,

And a trap for him on the path.

Job 18:11 All around terrors frighten him,

And harass him at every step.

Job 18:12 His vigor is famished,

And disaster is ready at his side.

Job 18:13 The firstborn of death eats parts of his skin;

It eats parts of him.

Job 18:14 He is torn from the security of his tent,

And they march him in step before the king of terrors.

Job 18:15 There dwells in his tent nothing of his;

Brimstone is scattered on his abode.

Job 18:16 His roots are dried below,

And his branch is cut off above.

Job 18:17 Memory of him perishes from the earth,

And he has no name abroad.

Job 18:18 He is driven from light into darkness,

And chased from the inhabited world.

Job 18:19 He has neither offspring nor posterity among his people,

Nor any survivor where he sojourned.

Job 18:20 Those in the west are appalled at his fate,

And those in the east are seized with horror.

Job 18:21 Surely such are the dwellings of the unjust,

And this is the place of him who does not know God.”

Verse 21 is an emphatic summary of chapter 18, which was Bildad insisting that those who do not know God will not prosper.

Job 19:1 ¶ Then Job answered and said,

Notice the name “Job”. This verse begins section 12 which is Job’s response to Bildad’s long description of the supposed fate of the wicked.

Job 19:2 “How long will you torment my soul

And crush me with words?

Look at the words “torment” and “crush”. This was Job’s description of what his supposed friends were doing to him.

Job 19:3 These ten times you have dishonored me;

You are not ashamed that you wrong me.

Notice the words “dishonored” and “wrong”. These were also words Job used to describe the three men, his supposed friends, who were with him.

Job 19:4 Even if I have truly erred,

My error lodges with me.

Job 19:5 If truly you magnify yourselves against me

And argue my disgrace to me,

Job 19:6 Know then that God has wronged me

And has closed His net around me.

Job believed God was the One who had oppressed him. Job was wrong, it was Satan who destroyed Job, but Job did not know that, and it is understandable why Job thought God was the One who was afflicting him.

Job 19:7 ¶ “Behold, I cry, ‘Violence!’ but I get no answer;

I shout for help, but there is no justice.

Job 19:8 He has walled up my way so that I cannot pass,

And He has put darkness on my paths.

The pronoun “He” refers to God.

Verses 8-13 are a variety of different ways Job’s expressed his belief that God was reducing him.

Job 19:9 He has stripped my honor from me

And removed the crown from my head.

Job 19:10 He breaks me down on every side, and I am gone;

And He has uprooted my hope like a tree.

Job 19:11 He has also kindled His anger against me

And counted me as His adversary.

Job 19:12 His troops come together,

And build up their way against me

And camp around my tent.

Job 19:13 ¶ “He has removed my brothers far from me,

And my acquaintances are completely estranged from me.

Look at the word “brothers”. Job probably meant this literally. When Job lost everything, he also lost connection with his brothers.

Notice the word “acquaintances”. When Job went from riches to poverty, his acquaintances no longer wanted to have anything to do with him.

Job 19:14 My relatives have failed,

And my familiar friends have forgotten me.

Job’s relatives did not help him. Take note of the words “familiar friends”. The people Job interacted with on a regular basis suddenly did not bother with Job.

Job expressed this loneliness while he was having an extended conversation with three supposed friends. These three friends had sat with Job in silence for seven days and seven nights before they began their long dialogue (see Job 2:13). Job felt lonely while he was having a conversation because his three friends were making false accusations. In other words, loneliness it not just the absence of people, it is the absence of people who understand, support, and encourage you.

Washington Psychological Wellness says “A true friend is someone who provides unconditional support, loyalty, and honesty, standing by your side through life’s challenges. They are someone who is dependable, trustworthy, and caring, offering empathy and understanding in both good times and bad.” Job did not have such friends when he lost his health and wealth; therefore, he was lonely.

Modern society has a loneliness epidemic. This is happening even though modern technology gives us the ability to be more connected to other people than at any time in human history. True friendship is not just communicating with other people and staying abreast of what they are doing, it is having a relationship with someone who will provide unconditional support.

Do you have any true friends? If you lost everything, would you still have any friends?

Are you a true friend? If any of your friends lost everything, would you still be a friend?

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“Scripture quotations taken from the (LSB®) Legacy Standard Bible®, Copyright © 2021 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. Managed in partnership with Three Sixteen Publishing Inc. LSBible.org and 316publishing.com.”