Hey Bible readers, I'm Tara Lee Cobble and I'm your host for the Bible Recap.

Today as Job continued the speech he began yesterday, he showed us how much he longed for the past,

specifically starting with his relationship with God.

He reflects on a time when he felt the nearness of God in a way that he described as friendship.

In 29-4, he said, the friendship of God was upon my tent.

Knowing about someone is different than having a

friendship with them, and it's certainly different than saying you feel like

their friendship dwells in your home with you. It made me stop and reflect

on how I view God. Do I just know who he is and know about him

from what others say about him? Or do I know him personally? Or do I feel like I have an intimate relationship with him that is a part of my everyday life?

Job not only laments the loss of that nearness, but he also laments the loss of his reputation.

People used to listen when he spoke and be in awe at his wisdom. Now they won't stop advising him and they think he's a fool.

The only thing that changed was the circumstances, his wisdom didn't vanish they were

judging his wisdom and righteousness based on his life circumstances.

Previously Job's friends had accused him of mistreating the poor but here Job tells us about all the ways

he's extended his hands to the needy and fought for justice. Now not only are

his friends not fighting for him, but they're fighting against him and because God revealed his vantage point to us in the first chapter of this book

we know which scenario is true we know who to believe here we know his friends are wrong

This is the lowest point of Job's despair. All along he's been acknowledging that God is responsible for his circumstances, because even though

he isn't the active agent, he's still sovereign over it and allowed it.

So there's some truth to that.

But the question of God's motives remained unknown to Job.

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