Reading from Tuesday, August 31

Reading for August 31
Job 37:1-39:30
Here is where God finally speaks, although I gotta say he lays it on a little thick here. He comes right out the gate with a zinger:

 2 "Who is this that darkens my counsel
with words without knowledge?
3 Brace yourself like a man;
I will question you,
and you shall answer me.
4 "Where were you when I laid the earth's foundation?
Tell me, if you understand.
5 Who marked off its dimensions? Surely you know!

I love verse five. The sarcasm is so thick, and it really shows an aspect of God we rarely see - humor. I often hear the expression "God has a sense of humor" when ironic things happen or when people look at my Bulldog, but I can just picture God throwing his hands in the air and rolling his eyes, saying "Who marked its dimensions? Surely you know!"

But then he goes on for two chapters like that. And while there is some beautiful imagery in here that makes you consider all that God does, it feels like a lecture that goes on way too long. Like, OK, we get it. Just for funzies though, here are some of the things God asks Job:

12 "Have you ever given orders to the morning,

or shown the dawn its place,
13 that it might take the earth by the edges
and shake the wicked out of it?

I love this. It's so complex and nuanced and yet so straightforward. When you think of something as routine as "the morning" you don't consider the design of "morning" that went into place in the creation of the world.

-- -- --

17 Have the gates of death been shown to you?
Have you seen the gates of the shadow of death?

This also has some really interesting connotations. To me this seems like "the gates of death" are something that were made outside of God's creation, as they were only "shown" to him. This also conjures imagery of the relationship between God and Satan as the beginning of this book shows. I imagine Satan showing God these gates of death and God seeing them and shuddering.

-- -- --

22 "Have you entered the storehouses of the snow
or seen the storehouses of the hail,
23 which I reserve for times of trouble,
for days of war and battle?

Again, just beautiful, mind expanding imagery. I imagine the storehouses of snow like those big salt storehouses for the snowplows. Two identical structures, one containing material that melts the material in the other. I also love the idea that God reserves snow for times of trouble. It reminds me of that Simpsons episode where Bart prays for something to come along to cancel his history test so he can have an extra day to study. The next morning he wakes up that his prayer was answered - finding a blanket of school cancelling snow on the ground outside.

Again, all this stuff is incredible - and obviously nothing that God does should be trivialized, but you just get the sense that its a little overkill. Plus, he does not answer the question that is on everyone's lips: "why?" He only condemns Job for assuming too much about him.

2 Corinthians 4:13-5:10
This whole reading is focused on the two worlds in the Christian faith - this world and the afterlife. Paul uses all sorts of descriptions and literary images to make this point.

18So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.

6Therefore we are always confident and know that as long as we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord.

7We live by faith, not by sight.

I really like verse 6. The idea that our only true home, our body - where we keep all of our ideas and wishes and secrets and dreams is purely a temporary shell. This is one of those things like thinking about eternity and the tree falling in the woods bit. It makes your mind swim in its complexity.

Psalm 44:9-26
Again we see someone (David, I think) in just as bad a situation as Job:

13 You have made us a reproach to our neighbors,
the scorn and derision of those around us.

15 My disgrace is before me all day long,
and my face is covered with shame  

But then we see what Job didn't do - ask for help:

23 Awake, O Lord! Why do you sleep?
Rouse yourself! Do not reject us forever.
24 Why do you hide your face
and forget our misery and oppression?
25 We are brought down to the dust;
our bodies cling to the ground.
26 Rise up and help us;
redeem us because of your unfailing love.

Proverbs 22:13
Oh, those sluggards...

13 The sluggard says, "There is a lion outside!"
or, "I will be murdered in the streets!"