faith

A hard lesson

God sent the people of Israel into captivity to teach them a very hard lesson about his sovereignty over their lives. God had delivered the descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob out of slavery in Egypt so that they could be his treasured possession (Deuteronomy 7:6). Moses explained to them, “It was not because you were more in number than any other people that the LORD set his love on you and chose you, for you were the fewest of the peoples, but it is because the LORD loves you and is keeping the oath that he swore to your fathers, that the LORD brought you out with a mighty hand and redeemed you from the house of slavery, from the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt” (Deuteronomy 7:7-8). In spite of everything the LORD did for them, the Jews refused to give up their idolatry. God said, “Yet I persistently sent to you all my servants the prophets, saying, ‘Oh, do not do this abomination that I hate!’ But they did not listen or incline their ear, or turn from their evil and make no offerings to other gods. Therefore my wrath and my anger were poured out and kindled in the cities of Judah and in Jerusalem, and they became a waste and a desolation, as at this day” (Jeremiah 44:4-6).

While they were in exile in Babylon, the Jews were once again forced to choose between being obedient to God or following the idolatrous practices of their captors. Daniel and his companions, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego fought against the temptation to relinquish their right to serve the living and true God by refusing to adapt to the Babylonian culture (Daniel 1:8-16). When King Nebuchadnezzar exercised his authority by making everyone in his kingdom bow down to the huge golden image that he had made, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego paid no attention (Daniel 3:12). This act of rebellion enraged the king and resulted in a confrontation between the king and Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. Daniel 3:13-15 tells us that Nebuchadnezzar gave the men two choices, they could bow down and worship the image he had made or be cast into a burning fiery furnace. Nebuchadnezzar taunted the men by asking, “And who is the god who will deliver you out of my hands?”

Nebuchadnezzar had the furnace heated seven times more than it usually was (Daniel 3:19). Because of this, the men who were tasked with throwing Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego into the furnace were killed by the flame of the fire (Daniel 3:22). And yet, the fire had no power over the bodies of the three men (Daniel 3:27). After Nebuchadnezzar told Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego to come out of the furnace, everyone saw that “the hair of their heads was not singed, their cloaks were not harmed, and no smell of fire had come upon them” (Daniel 3:27).

Nebuchadnezzar acknowledged that there was no other god who was able to rescue the way God had rescued Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego (Daniel 3:29), but he was not willing to accept God’s sovereignty over everything, especially his kingdom. Nebuchadnezzar had a second dream which Daniel interpreted for him (Daniel 4:4-16). After informing Nebuchadnezzar that his mind was going to be changed from that of a man to the mind of a beast, Daniel concluded, “The sentence is by the decree of the watchers, the decision by the word of the holy ones, to the end that the living may know that the Most High rules the kingdom of men and gives it to whom he wills and sets over it the lowliest of men” (Daniel 4:17).

A year later, Nebuchadnezzar was walking on the roof of his palace, thinking about his accomplishments, when his dream came true. Daniel 4:29-33 tells us:

At the end of twelve months he was walking on the roof of the royal palace of Babylon, and the king answered and said, “Is not this great Babylon, which I have built by my mighty power as a royal residence and for the glory of my majesty?” While the words were still in the king’s mouth, there fell a voice from heaven, “O King Nebuchadnezzar, to you it is spoken: The kingdom has departed from you, and you shall be driven from among men, and your dwelling shall be with the beasts of the field. And you shall be made to eat grass like an ox, and seven periods of time shall pass over you, until you know that the Most High rules the kingdom of men and gives it to whom he will.” Immediately the word was fulfilled against Nebuchadnezzar. He was driven from among men and ate grass like an ox, and his body was wet with the dew of heaven till his hair grew as long as eagles’ feathers, and his nails were like birds’ claws.

After his sanity was restored, Nebuchadnezzar reflected on his experience and told Daniel, “At the end of the days I, Nebuchadnezzar, lifted my eyes to heaven, and my reason returned to me, and I blessed the Most High, and praised and honored him who lives forever, for his dominion is an everlasting dominion, and his kingdom endures from generation to generation; all the inhabitants of the earth are accounted as nothing, and he does according to his will among the host of heaven and among the inhabitants of the earth; and none can stay his hand or say to him, ‘What have you done?’” (Daniel 4:34).

Nebuchadnezzar learned a hard lesson during the time that he lived among the beasts of the field and ate grass like an ox (Daniel 4:32). According to the Apostle James, Nebuchadnezzar’s religion was worthless because it was merely a form of self-deception that resulted in him becoming proud and defiant toward God (James 1:9-10, 26). On the other hand, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego’s faith was genuine and it resulted in everyone knowing that they were “perfect and complete, lacking in nothing” (James 1:3).

James encouraged believers to embrace the testing of their faith (James 1:2). James didn’t see trials as something to be avoided, but opportunities for growth. James said, “Blessed is the man who remains steadfast under trial, for when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life, which God has promised to those who love him” (James 1:12). “God may allow those who belong to him to be tested, but he will never place inducements before them to lead them into temptations greater than they can bear” (note on Genesis 22:1, 2).

Paul told believers in his letter to the Corinthians, “No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape that you may be able to endure it” (1 Corinthians 10:13). When King Nebuchadnezzar commanded everyone in his kingdom to fall down and worship the golden image, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego could have done so to avoid being thrown into the fiery furnace and justified the fiery furnace as something that they were unable to endure, but they didn’t do that. Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego instead chose to believe that God was able to and would deliver them from the fiery furnace because he did not want them to practice idolatry (Daniel 3:17).

James encouraged believers to be “doers of the word, and not hearers only” (James 1:22). The word of God is intended to change our behavior. It’s not enough for us to just agree with the Bible’s principles. We must put them into practice. James said, “For if anyone is a hearer only and not a doer, he is like a man who looks intently at his natural face in a mirror. For he looks at himself and goes away and at once forgets what he was like. But the one who looks into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and perseveres, being no hearer who forgets but a doer who acts, he will be blessed in his doing” (James 1:23-25). James described the gospel as the law of liberty, something that gives us the freedom to do as we please. Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego weren’t compelled to worship Nebuchadnezzar’s golden image. His threat of death meant nothing to them. These three men’s courage demonstrated to everyone around them their resolve to remain unstained from the world (Daniel 1:8; James 1:27) and contributed to Nebuchadnezzar’s change of heart toward God (Daniel 4:37).

A mystery revealed

God’s promise to give Abraham the land of Canaan forever (Genesis 13:15) implied that his ownership would extend beyond this temporal sphere. God did not explain to Abraham how his promise would be fulfilled, but we are told in Hebrews 11:19 that Abraham believed God was able to raise people from the dead, implying that life after death and eternal life were a part of God’s plan for the nation of Israel.

The fulfillment of God’s promise to Abraham became clearer after the people of Israel began to occupy the land of Canaan. During the reign of King David, God said he would raise up one of David’s offspring, a physical heir to David’s throne who would establish the throne of his kingdom forever (2 Samuel 7:13). Second Samuel 7:8-16 “is both an explanation and a clarification of God’s promise to Abraham. It represents an unconditional promise to David that he would be the father of an everlasting kingdom (v. 16)” (note on 2 Samuel 7:4-16), but it does not specifically state how this was going to be accomplished.

Things began to unravel for the nation of Israel when the northern kingdom was sent into exile because of idolatry. It says in 2 Kings 17:21-23, “When he had torn Israel from the house of David, they made Jeroboam the son of Nebat king. And Jeroboam drove Israel from following the LORD and made them commit great sin. The people of Israel walked in all the sins that Jeroboam did. They did not depart from them, until the LORD removed Isreal out of his sight, as he had spoken by all his servants the prophets. So Israel was exiled from their own land to Assyria until this day.” The Assyrians resettled Samaria, the capital of the northern kingdom, with “people from Babylon, Cuthah, Avva, Hamath, and Sepharvaim” (2 Kings 17:24).

The prophet Jeremiah warned the people of the southern kingdom about the impending disaster for Jerusalem, but no one believed him. When Jeremiah announced, “Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, behold, I am bringing upon this city and upon all its towns all the disaster that I have pronounced against it, because they have stiffened their neck, refusing to hear my words” (Jeremiah 19:15), it says in Jeremiah 20:1-6:

Now Pashhur the priest, the son of Immer, who was chief officer in the house of the Lord, heard Jeremiah prophesying these things. Then Pashhur beat Jeremiah the prophet, and put him in the stocks that were in the upper Benjamin Gate of the house of the Lord. The next day, when Pashhur released Jeremiah from the stocks, Jeremiah said to him, “The Lord does not call your name Pashhur, but Terror on Every Side. For thus says the Lord: Behold, I will make you a terror to yourself and to all your friends. They shall fall by the sword of their enemies while you look on. And I will give all Judah into the hand of the king of Babylon. He shall carry them captive to Babylon, and shall strike them down with the sword. Moreover, I will give all the wealth of the city, all its gains, all its prized belongings, and all the treasures of the kings of Judah into the hand of their enemies, who shall plunder them and seize them and carry them to Babylon. And you, Pashhur, and all who dwell in your house, shall go into captivity. To Babylon you shall go, and there you shall die, and there you shall be buried, you and all your friends, to whom you have prophesied falsely.”

Jerusalem was captured just as Jeremiah predicted (2 Kings 24:10-17). The king of Judah was taken prisoner, and it says in 2 Kings 24:14 that Nebuchadnezzar “carried away all Jerusalem and all the officials and all the mighty men of valor, 10,000 captives, and all the craftsmen and the smiths. None remained except the poorest people of the land.”

Among the people that were taken captive were four youths: Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah; who were both of the royal family and of the nobility that were “of good appearance and skillful in all wisdom, endowed with knowledge, understanding learning, and competent to stand in the king’s palace, and to teach them the literature and language of the Chaldeans” (Daniel 1:3-4). “Scholars suggest three possible reasons for taking the youths of nobility and royal family into captivity: (1) to hold them as hostages, thereby ensuring the loyalty of their families; (2) to develop men who already had some education to serve in Nebuchadnezzar’s rapidly expanding bureaucracy; (3) and to indoctrinate them with Babylonian ideals in the hope of employing them as liaisons between Babylon and the province of Judea” (note on Daniel 1:4, 5).

Daniel 1:8 tells us that “Daniel resolved that he would not defile himself with the king’s food, or with the wine that he drank.” And it also says of Daniel and his companions in Daniel 1:20 that, “in every matter of wisdom and understanding about which the king inquired of them, he found them ten times better than all the magicians and enchanters that were in all his kingdom.” God used this situation to reveal mysteries about his plan for the nation of Israel. Nebuchadnezzar had a dream and threatened his magicians, enchanters, and sorcerers, “if you do not make known to me the dream and its interpretation, you shall be torn limb from limb, and your house shall be laid in ruins” (Daniel 2:5), Daniel went to his companions Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah “and told them to seek mercy from the God of heaven concerning this mystery so that Daniel and his companions might not be destroyed with the rest of the wise men of Babylon” (Daniel 2:18).

Daniel believed that God could reveal King Nebuchadnezzar’s dream to him and also provide him with an interpretation of the dream. The fact that Daniel and his companions were in exile in Babylon didn’t seem to affect Daniel’s faith or his reliance upon God for deliverance from King Nebuchadnezzar’s threat of death. The Aramaic word that is translated seek conveys the idea of praying to God or seeking out a person, asking a person for something (A1156). Daniel’s reliance upon God was based on his belief that God was compassionate and still had affection for his chosen people.

It says in Daniel 2:19 that the mystery was revealed to Daniel in a vision of the night. In other words, Daniel received a direct revelation from God, similar to the one John received and recorded in his book of Revelation. The Aramaic word that is translated vision signifies a literal sense of sight, the observation of something with the eye. Daniel 2:31 suggests that Daniel saw the same thing in his vision of the night that Nebuchadnezzar did in his dream. When Daniel interpreted the dream, he told Nebuchadnezzar, “You saw…As you looked…” (Daniel 2:31-35).

The mystery that was revealed through Nebuchadnezzar’s dream had to do with four world empires that would lead to a kingdom being set up by God that would never be destroyed (Daniel 2:44). Daniel told King Nebuchadnezzar that his kingdom was the first of the four world empires and that the final kingdom would “break in pieces all these kingdoms and bring them to an end, and it shall stand forever, just as you saw that a stone was cut from a mountain by no human hand, and that it broke in pieces the iron, the bronze, the clay, the silver, and the gold. A great God has made known to the king what shall be after this. The dream is certain, and its interpretation sure” (Daniel 2:44-45).

King Nebuchadnezzar’s reaction to the mystery being revealed to him showed that he recognized God was more powerful than the gods whom he worshiped in Babylon (note on Daniel 2:46, 47). Daniel 2:46-47 states, “Then King Nebuchadnezzar fell upon his face and paid homage to Daniel, and commanded that an offering and incense be offered up to him. The king answered and said to Daniel, ‘Truly, your God is God of gods and Lord of kings, and a revealer of mysteries, for you have been able to reveal this mystery.’” “The king bowed before Daniel in recognition that Daniel was the servant of the true God” (note on Daniel 2:46, 47). In spite of the king’s recognition that Daniel was a servant of the true God, Nebuchadnezzar was not yet willing to submit himself to God’s authority (Daniel 3).

Restoration from a state of shame

Jeremiah’s numerous warnings about the destruction of Jerusalem were repeatedly ignored by the Jews and led to the prophet of God being tortured and imprisoned on multiple occasions. Jeremiah identified the problem as the Jews refusing to repent. Jeremiah asked, “O LORD, do your eyes look for truth? You have struck them down, but they felt no anguish; you have consumed them, but they refused to take correction. They have made their faces harder than rock; they have refused to repent” (Jeremiah 5:3).

Jeremiah grieved for his people and expressed his concern about the spiritual condition of their hearts. Jeremiah admitted, “’The harvest is past, the summer is ended, and we are not saved.’ For the wound of the daughter of my people is my heart wounded; I mourn and dismay has taken hold” (Jeremiah 8:20-21). The Hebrew word that is translated dismay, shammah (sham-mawˊ) was being used by Jeremiah to describe the extreme dismay he felt at seeing the destruction of Jerusalem, a horror that filled him with deep sorrow.

God’s intention was to consume the Jews completely using the military power of the Chaldean army (Jeremiah 9:16). God said, “I will scatter them among the nations whom neither they nor their fathers have known, and I will send the sword after them, until I have consumed them” (Jeremiah 9:16). The Hebrew verb that is translated consumed, kalah (kaw-lawˊ) describes the transitory reality of fallen human nature. God knew what it would take to awaken the Jews to their need for salvation and was committed to bringing them to that point.

The Jews preferred to worship the idols of the nations around them. They had forsaken the one true God, the living God “who made the earth by his power, who established the world by his wisdom, and by his understanding stretched out the heavens” (Jeremiah 10:12). Jeremiah acknowledged his dependence on God and asked him to make things right. Jeremiah prayed, “I know, O LORD, that the way of man is not in himself, that it is not in man who walks to direct his steps. Correct me, O LORD, but in justice; not in your anger, lest you bring me to nothing. Pour out your wrath on the nations that know you not, and on the peoples that call not on your name, for they have devoured Jacob; they have devoured him and consumed him, and have laid waste his habitation” (Jeremiah 10:23-25).

God’s response to Jeremiah’s request was harsh, but it reflected God’s commitment to bring his chosen people to the point where their relationship with him could be restored. Jeremiah recorded, “The LORD said to me: ‘Do not pray for the welfare of this people. Though they fast, I will not hear their cry, and though they offer burnt offering and grain offering, I will not accept them. But I will consume them by the sword, by famine, and by pestilence” (Jeremiah 14:11-12). The LORD was concerned because false prophets were prophesying lies to the people, making them think that they would not be overtaken by war and famine (Jeremiah 14:14). God told Jeremiah, “Though Moses and Samuel stood before me, yet my heart would not turn toward this people. Send them out of my sight and let them go!” (Jeremiah 15:1).

God prepared Jeremiah for what was coming and warned him not to try to live a normal life because the devastation of war was going to permeate every aspect of the Jews’ lives. God specifically told Jeremiah “not to marry because of the horrors that families with children would endure during the siege of Jerusalem” (note on Jeremiah 16:2-5). Jeremiah recorded, “The word of the LORD came to me. ‘You shall not take a wife, nor shall you have sons or daughters in this place. For thus says the LORD concerning the sons and daughters who are born in this place, and concerning the mothers who bore them and the fathers who fathered them in this land: They shall die of deadly diseases. They shall not be lamented, nor shall they be buried. They shall be as dung on the surface of the ground. They shall perish by the sword and by famine, and their dead bodies shall be food for the birds of the air and for the beasts of the earth’” (Jeremiah 16:1-4).

Because he was a fallen human and had a sin nature like everyone else, “Jeremiah was subject to the wide range of emotions that are common to all men. He complained that God had deceived him (Jeremiah 20:7), sang praises to God (Jeremiah 20:13), then wished he had never been born (Jeremiah 20:14). Through it all, however, Jeremiah continued to preach God’s message (Jeremiah 20:8) because he was compelled by God’s call (Jeremiah 20:9; cf. 1 Corinthians 9:16)” (note on Jeremiah 20:7-18). At a point when he seemed to have lost all hope for the future, Jeremiah asked God, “Why did I come out from the womb to see toil and sorrow, and spend my days in shame?” (Jeremiah 20:18).

Near the end of his ministry, Jeremiah was threatened with death. The LORD told Jeremiah, “You shall say to them, ‘Thus says the LORD: If you will not listen to me, to walk in my law that I have set before you, and to listen to the words of my servants the prophets whom I send to you urgently, though you have not listened, then I will make this house like Shiloh, and I will make this city a curse for all the nations of the earth. The priests and the prophets and all the people heard Jeremiah speaking these words in the house of the LORD. And when Jeremiah had finished speaking all that the LORD had commanded him to speak to all the people, then the priests and the prophets and all the people laid hold of him, saying, ‘You shall die!’…Then the priests and the prophets said to the officials and to all the people, ‘This man deserves the sentence of death, because he has prophesied against this city, as you have heard with your own ears’” (Jeremiah 26:4-11).

Jeremiah was also accused of lying to the Jews. After he warned the people against going to Egypt (Jeremiah 42:1-22, it says in Jeremiah 43:1-3, “When Jeremiah finished speaking to all the people all the words of the LORD their God, with which the LORD their God had sent him to them, Azariah the son of Hoshaiah and Johanan the son of Kareah and all the insolent men said to Jeremiah, ‘You are telling a lie. The LORD our God did not send you to say, ‘Do not go to Egypt to live there,’ but Baruch the son of Neriah has set you against us, to deliver us into the hand of the Chaldeans, that they may kill us or take us into exile in Babylon.”

The LORD made it clear that the Jews were being punished because of their idolatry (Jeremiah 44:3). “The group of Jews who had fled to Egypt were still involved in idolatry. These people somehow thought their well-being depended upon their worship of the ‘queen of heaven’ (Jeremiah 44:17, 18). It took seventy years in exile to finally cure Israel of idolatry. The Jews had problems with legalism and Pharisaism after the exile, but never again did idolatry become prevalent” (note on Jeremiah 44:8). Jeremiah told the Jews who were dwelling in the land of Egypt, “Behold, I have sworn by my great name, says the LORD, that my name shall no more be invoked by the mouth of any man of Judah in the land of Egypt, saying, ‘As the Lord GOD lives.’ Behold I am watching over them for disaster and not for good. All the men of Judah who are in the land of Egypt shall be consumed by the sword and by famine, until there is an end of them” (Jeremiah 44:26-27).

Jeremiah wrote about the devastation that he witnessed in his book of Lamentations. Jeremiah said, “Those who once feasted on delicacies perish in the streets; those who were brought up in purple embrace the ash heaps” (Lamentations 4:5). Jeremiah went on to lament, “For the chastisement of the daughter of my people has been greater than the punishment of Sodom, which was overthrown in a moment, and no hands were wrung for her” (Lamentations 4:6).

Jeremiah also stated, “Happier were the victims of the sword than the victims of hunger, who wasted away, pierced by lack of the fruits of the field. The hands of compassionate women have boiled their own children; they became their food during the destruction of the daughter of my people” (Lamentations 4:9-10). “The famine in the land was so severe that the people resorted to eating their own children. A similar occurrence took place during the siege of Samaria by the Assyrians (2 Kings 6:25-29).

Jeremiah’s final plea to the LORD included an acknowledgment by him that God’s people were living in a state of shame. Jeremiah prayed, “Remember, O LORD, what has befallen us; look, and see our disgrace!” The Hebrew word that is translated disgrace, cherpah (kher-pawˊ) is “a feminine noun meaning reproach, scorn, taunt” (H2781). Despite the desperation of their situation, Jeremiah’s prayer reflected “the hope that the people of Jerusalem would return to a proper relationship with God” (note on Lamentation 5:21). Jeremiah said, “The joy of our hearts has ceased; our dancing has been turned to mourning. The crown has fallen from our head; woe to us, for we have sinned!” (Lamentation 5:15-16). Jeremiah then pleaded, “Restore us to yourself, O LORD, that we may be restored!” (Lamentations 5:21).

“The process called conversion or turning to God is in reality a re-turning or a turning back again to Him from whom sin has separated us, but whose we are by virtue of creation, preservation and redemption” (H7725). Jeremiah was referring to this process when he prayed, “Restore us to yourself, O LORD” (Lamentations 5:21) because regeneration is an act of God. Romans 3:23-25 tells us that “there is no distinction: for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by his grace as a gift. through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God’s righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins.”

God spoke of Jesus when he told Jeremiah, “Behold the days are coming, declares the LORD, when I will raise up for David a righteous Branch, and he shall reign as king and deal wisely, and shall execute justice and righteousness in the land” (Jeremiah 23:5). The LORD promised to turn the Jews mourning to joy and said, “With weeping they shall come, and with pleas for mercy I will lead them back…For the LORD has ransomed Jacob and has redeemed him from hands too strong for him” (Jeremiah 31:9, 11). God promised to “restore the fortunes of Judah and the fortunes of Israel, and rebuild them as they were at first” (Jeremiah 33:7). God compared the security of his promises with the constancy of day and night when he said, “If I have not established my covenant with day and night and the fixed order of heaven and earth, then I will reject the offspring of Jacob and David my servant and will not choose one of his offspring to rule over the offspring of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. For I will restore their fortunes and will have mercy on them” (Jeremiah 33:25-26).

Complaining to God

The book of Job teaches us that trials should be expected to be a part of people’s lives who have placed their faith in Jesus Christ. “The purpose of the book is to show the unfathomable wisdom of God’s providence, and the benevolence of God even in the trials brought upon his children. It also explains why God allows righteous people to suffer: to expose their frailty and sinfulness, to strengthen their faith, and to purify them. The spiritual perspective of the account and the fact that God exercised total control over Satan promotes complete trust in God. Throughout the book, Job’s friends relentlessly accused him of committing some great sin. Although he questioned God’s actions in the midst of these onslaughts, it should not be assumed that his queries were motivated by a resentful self-seeking attitude. On the contrary, they confirm his determination to hold on to his faith in God despite the circumstances that providence had brought upon him” (Introduction to Job).

Job reached a point in his suffering when he seemed to have lost all hope (Job 7:6). Job said, “Therefore, I will not restrain my mouth; I will speak in the anguish of my spirit; I will complain in the bitterness of my soul” (Job 7:11). The Hebrew word that is translated complain, siyach (seeˊ-akh) is “a verb meaning to ponder, to converse, to utter, to complain, to meditate, to pray, to speak…In Job, the word denotes the action that Job took against the bitterness in his soul, that is, his complaints (Job 7:11)” (H7878). Job’s complaints were intended to keep him from becoming bitter toward God.

In the midst of his misery, Job asked some honest questions of God (note on Job 7:17-21). Job asked in verses 7:17-21:

“What is man, that you make so much of him,
    and that you set your heart on him,
visit him every morning
    and test him every moment?
How long will you not look away from me,
    nor leave me alone till I swallow my spit?
If I sin, what do I do to you, you watcher of mankind?
    Why have you made me your mark?
    Why have I become a burden to you?
Why do you not pardon my transgression
    and take away my iniquity?
For now I shall lie in the earth;
    you will seek me, but I shall not be.”

Job wondered why his redemption was not having the same effect as it had before. Job asked, “Why do you not pardon my transgressions and take away my iniquity?” (Job 7:21). The phrase take away my iniquity has to do with Jesus’ substitutionary death on the cross (H5374). Job understood this to be the only way a person’s sins could be forgiven (Job 19:25).

Psalm 77 provides a similar glimpse into the heart of a suffering believer. The psalmist said of God, “You hold my eyelids open; I am so troubled that I cannot speak” (Psalm 77:4) and then, continued, “I consider the days of old, the years long ago. I said, ’Let me remember my song in the night; let me meditate in my heart.’ Then my spirit made a diligent search: ‘Will the Lord spurn forever, and never again be favorable? Has his steadfast love forever ceased? Are his promises at an end for all time? Has God forgotten to be gracious? Has his anger shut up his compassion?” (Psalm 77:5-9). Asaph thought about his circumstances in the context of what he knew to be true about God’s character and concluded that he needed to take his complaint to God. Asaph said, “I will appeal to this; to the years of the right hand of the Most High” (Psalm 77:10). Asaph was grieved because God wasn’t treating him the way he had in the past.

Jeremiah’s complaint in Lamentations 2 was that the Lord had destroyed without pity. Jeremiah said:

How the Lord in his anger
    has set the daughter of Zion under a cloud!
He has cast down from heaven to earth
    the splendor of Israel;
he has not remembered his footstool
    in the day of his anger.

The Lord has swallowed up without mercy
    all the habitations of Jacob;
in his wrath he has broken down
    the strongholds of the daughter of Judah;
he has brought down to the ground in dishonor
    the kingdom and its rulers.

He has cut down in fierce anger
    all the might of Israel;
he has withdrawn from them his right hand
    in the face of the enemy;
he has burned like a flaming fire in Jacob,
    consuming all around. (Lamentations 2:1-3)

Jeremiah was having a hard time seeing the point of God’s wrath being poured out against his people. “God in his providence, permitted foreign invaders to destroy his temple so that the people could no longer offer their vain sacrifices and worship false gods there” (note on Lamentations 2:4, 6).

God’s mercy involves much more than just taking pity on those who are suffering. The Hebrew word cheçed (khehˊ-sed) “is one of the most important in the vocabulary of Old Testament theology and ethics. In general, one may identify three basic meanings of the word, which always interact: ‘strength,’ ‘steadfastness,’ and ‘love.’ Any understanding of the word that fails to suggest all three inevitably loses some of its richness. ‘Love’ by itself easily becomes sentimentalized or universalized apart from the covenant. Yet ‘strength’ or ‘steadfastness’ suggests only the fulfillment of a legal or other obligation. The word refers primarily to the mutual and reciprocal rights and obligations between the parties of a relationship (especially Yahweh and Israel). But checed is not only a matter of obligation; it is also of generosity. It is not only a matter of loyalty, but also of mercy. The weaker party seeks protection and blessing of the patron and protector, but he may not lay absolute claim to it. The stronger party remains committed to his promise, but retains his freedom, especially with respect to the manner in which he will implement those promises” (H2617).

God told the people of Judah that he would bring them back to their land after being in captivity in Babylon for 70 years (Jeremiah 29:10-11) and said their mourning would be turned into joy (Jeremiah 31:8-12). God’s plan was to establish a new covenant in which he would forgive the people’s sin and remember it no more (Jeremiah 31:31-34). The new covenant would result in God’s chosen people not being plucked up from their land or overthrown anymore forever (Jeremiah 31:38-40), but that did not prevent God from judging the Jews for their idolatry (Jeremiah 44:1-6). “It took seventy years in exile to finally cure Israel of idolatry. The Jews had problems with legalism and Pharisaism after the exile, but never again did idolatry become prevalent” (note on Jeremiah 44:8). After Jeremiah recounted the fall of Jerusalem (Jeremiah 52:1-11); complaining to God, he stated, “The LORD has done what he purposed; he has carried out his word, which he commanded long ago; he has thrown down without pity; he has made the enemy rejoice over you and exalted the might of your foes” (Lamentations 2:17).

Living by faith

The prophet Habakkuk began his divinely inspired message with a complaint about the way God was dealing with the Jews’ sin. Habakkuk asked, “Why do you make me see iniquity, and why do you idly look at wrong?” (Habakkuk 1:3). Habakkuk thought God was indifferent to his situation, but discovered he had a plan in motion that was going to result in a much more severe punishment than Habakkuk expected. God explained, “For I am doing a work in your days that you would not believe if told. For behold, I am raising up the Chaldeans, that bitter and hasty nation, who march through the breadth of the earth, to seize dwellings not there own” (Habakkuk 1:5-6).

Habakkuk thought it was wrong for God to punish the Jews using a nation that was more wicked than they were. The thing that Habakkuk wasn’t considering was that God had a plan that went beyond the Jews immediate situation. God was preparing his chosen people for the role they were expected to play in the birth of his Son, Jesus Christ.

A critical piece of God’s plan of salvation was its dependence on faith. God’s plan was initiated based on Abraham’s demonstration of faith and required all who followed in his footsteps to demonstrate that same belief in God. It says in Genesis 15:6 that Abraham “believed the LORD, and he counted it to him as righteousness.”

Righteousness is the result of being justified by God. It says in Romans 3:24 that believers are justified freely by God’s grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus. Paul explained justification by faith in his letter to the Romans. Referring to Abraham believing God and it being counted to him as righteousness, Paul said, “Now to the one who works, his wages are not counted as a gift but as his due. And to the one who does not work but believes in him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is counted as righteousness, just as David also speaks of the blessing of the one to whom God counts righteousness apart from works: ‘Blessed are those whose lawless deeds are forgiven, and whose sins are covered; blessed is the man against whom the LORD will not count his sin'” (Romans 4:4-8).

Living by faith means that we don’t try to get to heaven on our own merit. The only way a person can avoid the penalty that must be paid to God for his sin is to accept the free gift of salvation that Jesus made available to everyone by dying in our place on the cross. Justification is the acquittal of a guilty person. Paul said, “Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Through him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God. Not only that, but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us” (Romans 5:1-5).

Paul linked faith to the gospel and indicated it was the power of God for salvation (Romans 1:16-17). Paul said in the gospel, “the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith, as it is written, ‘The righteous shall live by faith” (Romans 1:17). Paul’s citation of Habakkuk 2:4 made it clear to everyone that the gospel existed prior to Jesus’ birth. God used Habakkuk’s message to ignite the faith of the Jews who had returned to Jerusalem after being exiled in Babylon.

Jesus set the example for living by faith through his perfect obedience to his Father’s will. It says in Hebrews 11:1 that faith is “the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.” Jesus told his disciples shortly before his death, “A little while, and you will see me no longer; and again a little while, and you will see me” (John 16:16). Jesus wanted his disciples to know that his resurrection was certain because of his obedience to his Father’s will.

Paul explained in his letter to the Galatians, “I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me” (Galatians 2:20). Paul’s statement connected living by faith to a believer’s union with Christ. Living by faith is not something that believers can do on their own. It is through the filling of the Holy Spirit that we are able to obey God just as Jesus did.

God’s unbelievable plan

The prophet Isaiah was the first among many who revealed God’s plan for saving the world. The theme of the book of Isaiah is expressed in the meaning of the name Isaiah, “the LORD saves” or “The LORD is Savior. The book of Isaiah contains more prophecies about the Messiah than any other book in the Old Testament. In fact, the plan of salvation is so comprehensively revealed in Isaiah’s work that Augustine called it the fifth gospel, and others have referred to it as ‘the Bible in miniature’” (Introduction to Isaiah). Near the end of his book, Isaiah talked about such things as God’s eternal covenant of peace, the compassion of the LORD, and salvation for foreigners. In the midst of this discussion, Isaiah quoted the LORD directly, stating, “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the LORD. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts” (Isaiah 55:8-9). God’s thoughts and ways are incomprehensible to humans because we have finite minds that are incapable of comprehending the infinite wisdom that goes into the decisions that God makes on our behalf. This was the case with Habakkuk when he asked God why he tolerated the wickedness and injustices of the people of Judah without some sort of punishment (Habakkuk 1:2-4). God told Habakkuk he was going to do a work in his days that he would not believe if it was told to him (Habakkuk 1:5).

The unbelievable plan that God was in the process of carrying out was to raise up the Chaldeans to punish the people of Judah by taking them into captivity and destroying Jerusalem (Habakkuk 1:12-17). Habakkuk was so stunned by the news that he stood in disbelief, waiting for God to explain to him his incomprehensible decision. Habakkuk said, “I will take my stand at my watchpost and station myself on the tower, and look out to see what he will say to me, and what I will answer concerning my complaint” (Habakkuk 2:1). Habakkuk’s argument was that it wouldn’t make sense for God to use an unholy and ruthless nation to punish men who were more righteous than they were (note on Habakkuk 1:12-2:4). The only explanation Habakkuk received from God was that all would be understood at the appointed time. Habakkuk 2:2-3 states:

And the Lord answered me:

“Write the vision;
    make it plain on tablets,
    so he may run who reads it.
For still the vision awaits its appointed time;
    it hastens to the end—it will not lie.
If it seems slow, wait for it;
    it will surely come; it will not delay.”

God’s communication with Habakkuk was intended to be understood at a future point in time that he described as its appointed time. Guiding communication from the LORD is often restricted when certain people are under judgment (Lamentations 2:9; Ezekiel 7:26; Micah 3:6). Even though Habakkuk was given the vision, God did not give him an interpretation of the vision. Habakkuk was told to engrave the vision on tablets, “so he may run who reads it” (Habakkuk 2:2). The idea was that the warning would be there for anyone who was paying attention to what God was doing in the moment. God said of the vision, “It hastens to the end—it will not lie” (Habakkuk 2:3). At the time when Judah was being attacked by the Babylonians and their exile was imminent, there were many false prophets who were telling Israel’s leaders that everything was going to be fine, that God would deliver them from their enemy, but this was a lie that was hastening or bringing about God’s purpose of sending his people into captivity to punish them for their idolatry. The few people who were paying attention to what God was doing and realized that the end was near were able to cooperate with God’s plan and eventually returned to Jerusalem when the 70 years of captivity was over (Ezra 3:8-13).

God distinguished between those who were being punished and those who would be strengthened through the experience of being taken into captivity when he said, “Behold, his soul is puffed up; it is not upright within him, but the righteous shall live by faith” (Habakkuk 2:4). The Hebrew word that is translated live, chayah (khaw-yawˊ) is used in the sense of flourishing…Psalm 119 employs this word to say that God’s Word preserves life (Psalm 119:25, 37, 40, 88)” (H2421). Living by faith means that you live according to God’s Word, the Bible. When Jesus was tempted by Satan to command the stones to become loaves of bread, he answered him, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God’” (Matthew 4:4). The point that Jesus was making was that spiritual nourishment is more important than physical nourishment. If you are dead on the inside, nothing else really matters.

Paul used the phrase in Habakkuk 2:4, “the righteous shall live by faith” in explaining that justification is by faith alone, not by works (Romans 1:17; Galatians 3:11). Paul said in his letter to the Galatians that just as Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness, so we must hear with faith the good news of the gospel (Galatians 3:1-9). After stating that the righteous shall live by faith in his letter to the Romans, Paul went on to explain that God’s wrath on the unrighteousness of man cannot be avoided. Paul said, “For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse. For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking and their foolish hearts were darkened. Claiming to be wise, they became fools, and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things” (Romans 1:20-23).

Paul linked the unrighteousness of man with claiming to be wise, or in other words, thinking that you have everything figured out. God’s unbelievable plan of salvation is not something that human beings can figure out. God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise. “God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are, so that no human being might boast in the presence of God” (1 Corinthians 1:27-29). Habakkuk’s message to the people of Judah stated:

“Woe to him who builds a town with blood
    and founds a city on iniquity!
Behold, is it not from the Lord of hosts
    that peoples labor merely for fire,
    and nations weary themselves for nothing?
For the earth will be filled
    with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord
    as the waters cover the sea.” (Habakkuk 2:12-14)

The knowledge of the glory of the LORD filling the earth indicates there will eventually be a worldwide experiential understanding of God’s plan of salvation. Because of this, Habakkuk prayed that in the midst of his people’s suffering, God would revive their faith (Habakkuk 3:1-2). In reference to God taking vengeance on their enemies, Habakkuk stated, “You marched through the earth in fury; you threshed the nations in anger. You went out for the salvation of your people, for the salvation of your anointed. You crushed the head of the house of the wicked, laying him bare from thigh to neck” (Habakkuk 3:12-13).

Habakkuk concluded his prophetic message with a statement of faith in God in spite of his unfavorable circumstances. Habakkuk said, “Though the fig tree should not blossom, nor fruit be on the vines, the produce of the olive fail and the fields yield no food, the flock be cut off from the fold and there be no herd in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the Lord; I will take joy in the God of my salvation. God, the Lord, is my strength; he makes my feet like the deer’s; he makes me tread on my high places” (Habakkuk 3:17-19). Habakkuk referred to the LORD as the God of my salvation. In spite of God’s unbelievable plan of salvation still being somewhat of a mystery to him, Habakkuk believed he would rejoice in the LORD and one day take joy in the God of his salvation. Habakkuk anticipated Jesus’ victory over sin and death (1 Corinthians 10:50-57) and by faith claimed for himself an inheritance among the Old Testament saints (Hebrews 11:13-16).

God’s accounting system

In his letter to the Romans, Paul used Abraham’s faith to illustrate how justification works. Quoting from Genesis 15:6, Paul said, “Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness” (Romans 4:3). The Greek word that is translated counted, logizomai (log-idˊ-zom-ahee) means “to reckon or count to someone, particularly: to put to one’s account (Romans 4:4); hence figuratively: to impute, to attribute: generally, of God’s imputing righteousness (Romans 4:6, 11)” (G3049). The thing that caused righteousness to be imputed or attributed to Abraham was him believing God. Believing God has to do with confiding belief in the truth, being persuaded of the truthfulness of God (G4102). Paul explained about Abraham’s faith:

In hope he believed against hope, that he should become the father of many nations, as he had been told, “So shall your offspring be.” He did not weaken in faith when he considered his own body, which was as good as dead (since he was about a hundred years old), or when he considered the barrenness of Sarah’s womb. No unbelief made him waver concerning the promise of God, but he grew strong in his faith as he gave glory to God, fully convinced that God was able to do what he had promised. That is why his faith was “counted to him as righteousness.” (Romans 4:18-22)

Paul said that Abraham’s faith did not weaken when he thought about how old he was or the fact that Sarah was not able to conceive a child (Romans 4:19). “No unbelief made him waver concerning the promise of God…That is why his faith was ‘counted to him as righteousness’” (Romans 4:20, 22). Unbelief is not just a lack of belief but can be a turning away from the truth such as in apostasy (G570) or an unwillingness to be persuaded, obstinacy (G543). Abraham grew strong in his faith and was “fully convinced that God was able to do what he had promised” (Romans 4:20-21).

Paul used the word logizomai eleven times in Romans Chapter 4 to emphasize the point that God has an accounting system that is used to consider sins against him. Faith is what gets measured by God to determine our right or wrong standing before him. Paul explained in his letter to the Ephesians that faith is not something that we can produce on our own, it is a gift from God. Paul said, “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast” (Ephesians 2:8-9). Paul indicated that the heart is where faith originates, stating, “For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved” (Romans 10:10). Paul also said, “faith comes from hearing and hearing through the word of Christ” (Romans 10:17). Jesus talked about this in his explanation of the Parable of the Sower. Jesus said:

Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of God. The ones along the path are those who have heard; then the devil comes and takes away the word from their hearts, so that they may not believe and be saved. And the ones on the rock are those who, when they hear the word, receive it with joy. But these have no root; they believe for a while, and in time of testing fall away. And as for what fell among the thorns, they are those who hear, but as they go on their way they are choked by the cares and riches and pleasures of life, and their fruit does not mature. As for that in the good soil, they are those who, hearing the word, hold it fast in an honest and good heart, and bear fruit with patience. (Luke 8:11-15)

Matthew’s version of Jesus’ explanation of the Parable of the Sower included a statement about the amount of fruit that could be produced by holding God’s Word fast in an honest and good heart. Matthew said, “As for what was sown on good soil, this is the one who hears the word and understands it. He indeed bears fruit and yields, in one case a hundredfold, in another sixty, and in another thirty” (Matthew 13:23). Matthew indicated that the key to bearing fruit was understanding God’s Word. The Greek word that is translated understands, suniemi (soon-eeˊ-ay-mee) means “to comprehend; by implication to act piously.” When suniemi is used figuratively, it means “to bring together in the mind, to grasp concepts and see the proper relation between them. Hence, to comprehend, understand, perceive” (G4920).

James emphasized the point that faith without works, or the producing of fruit, is useless to us in God’s accounting system. James reasoned, “What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him? If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, and one of you says to them, ‘Go in peace, be warmed and filled,’ without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that? So also faith by itself, if it does not have works is dead” (James 2:14-17). James argued that it was the acting out of one’s faith that God counts to him as righteousness. James asked, “Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered up his son Isaac on the altar? You see that faith was active along with his works, and faith was completed by his works; and the Scripture was fulfilled that says, ‘Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness’—and he was called a friend of God” (James 2:21-23).

Paul cautioned the Corinthians against boasting about outward appearances rather than what is in the heart (2 Corinthians 5:12). Paul made it clear that being reconciled to God was the primary objective of God’s justification of sinners. Paul said, “So we have stopped evaluating others from a human point of view. At one time we thought of Christ merely from a human point of view. How differently we know him now! This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun! And all of this is a gift from God, who brought us back to himself through Christ. And God has given us this task of reconciling people to him. For God was in Christ, reconciling the world to himself, no longer counting people’s sins against them. And he gave us this wonderful message of reconciliation. So we are Christ’s ambassadors; God is making his appeal through us. We speak for Christ when we plead, “Come back to God!” For God made Christ, who never sinned, to be the offering for our sin, so that we could be made right with God through Christ” (2 Corinthians 5:16-21, NLT).

No excuse

Paul introduced his gospel message to the Romans with a declaration that was intended to get their attention and to motivate them to pay close attention to what he was about to explain to them. Paul declared:

For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth. For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse. For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened. Claiming to be wise, they became fools, and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things. (Romans 1:18-23)

Paul said unbelievers have no excuse for not believing in God because his eternal power and divine nature have been clearly perceived since the creation of the world (Romans 1:20). Paul went on to say that unbelievers knew God, but they did not honor his as God or give thanks to him (Romans 1:21). The Greek word that is translated knew in Romans 1:21, ginosko (ghin-oceˊ-ko) means “to know, in a beginning sense: that is, to come to know, to gain or receive a knowledge of” (G1097).

The Greek word ginosko is sometimes translated as perceived (Matthew 16:8; 21:45: 22:18), as well as, aware of (Matthew 24:50). Jesus used the word ginosko in his response to Philip’s request, “Lord, show us the Father” (John 14:8). Jesus asked, “Have I been with you so long, and you still do not know me, Philip?” Jesus was surprised that Philip hadn’t been able to figure out who he was. Jesus’ explanation suggests that ginosko may refer to spiritual perception. Jesus told Philip, “Whoever has seen me has seen the Father…The words that I say to you I do not speak on my own authority, but the Father who dwells in me does his works” (John 14:9-10), but Jesus also made it clear that the works he was taking about were associated with results that were obvious to the senses (John 14:12-14). Paul indicated that unbelievers know the truth about God, but choose to suppress it, “For what is known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them” (Romans 1:18-19). “Romans 1:18 is probably to be understood as possessing a knowledge of the truth, but living in unrighteousness” (G2722). In other words, unbelievers know some of the things they do are right and other things are wrong and choose to do those things that they know are wrong.

Paul linked God’s invisible attributes, his eternal power and divine nature, with the creation of the world (Romans 1:20). The Greek word that is translated Creator in Romans 1:25, ktizo (ktidˊ-zo) means “to bring under tillage and settlement. In the New Testament: to establish, to create, produce from nothing” (G2936). “God called the universe into being of his own free will and by his absolute power, creating everything out of nothing…There are many concepts (such as creation) that the finite mind cannot completely grasp, and man must accept them by faith (Hebrews 11:3, 6)” (note on Genesis 1:1).

Paul told the Romans that the “righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith” (Romans 1:17). The Greek word that is translated revealed, apokalupto (ap-ok-al-oopˊ-to) means “to take off the cover…in the passive, of things which become known by their effects” (G601). Paul stated in his greeting to the Romans that the gospel message he was going to share with them had been promised beforehand by the prophets (Romans 1:2). Jesus coming into the world was not an unexpected event. It was the fulfillment of prophecies that the people of Israel were aware of for hundreds of years. Pagan priests came from Persia to Jerusalem, saying, “Where is he who has been born king of the Jews?” (Matthew 2:2). When King Herod asked the chief priests where the Christ was to be born, “They told him, ‘In Bethlehem of Judea, for so it is written by the prophet’” (Matthew 2:5).

It says in Hebrews 11:1 that “faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.” Conviction has to do with the certainty of something. The Greek word elegcho (el-engˊ-kho) means “to prove one in the wrong and thus to shame him” (G1651). After Job made his final appeal to his three friends Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar, another man named Elihu joined the conversation. It says in Job 32:1-3, “So these three men ceased to answer Job because he was righteous in his own eyes. Then Elihu the son of Barachel the Buzite, of the family of Ram, burned with anger. He burned with anger at Job because he justified himself rather than God. He burned with anger also at Job’s three friends because they had found no answer, although they had declared Job to be in the wrong.” Elihu later asserted God’s justice, stating, “Of a truth, God will not do wickedly, and the Almighty will not pervert justice” (Job 34:12). The Hebrew word that is translated justice, mishpat (mish-pawtˊ) refers to “a legal decision” (H4941). “God stands in absolute, essential opposition to sin, so he must judge and punish sin.” [1]

Justification is the sovereign declaration of God that the righteousness of Jesus Christ has been imputed to those who have trusted in his sinless obedience and his substitutionary atonement on the cross for their salvation. When God justifies a person, he no longer treats him as a sinner but reckons him to possess that righteousness which Jesus Christ earned on his behalf. The declaration of justification does not come through any past, present, or future merit in the sinner. Justification is based exclusively on the merits of Jesus Christ and is received through faith alone. [2]

Paul used the example of Abraham’s justification to explain that righteousness is a gift and that it is counted to us or imputed by believing that God’s Word is true (Romans 4:1-12). God’s accounting system is based on imputation, which means “to take an inventory, i.e. estimate” (G3049). Imputation is a thinking process that results in God reaching a conclusion about an individual’s sin (Romans 14:12). God only imputes righteousness to people who believe that Jesus died on their behalf to pay the penalty for their sin.

Paul argued that unbelievers have no excuse because they judge others for things they do themselves (Romans 2:1-2). Paul asked, “Do you suppose, O man—you who judge those who practice such things and yet do them yourself—that you will escape the judgment of God?” (Romans 2:3). The judgment that Paul was talking about was “the act of judging in reference to the final judgment, as the day of judgment (Matthew 10:15; 11:22, 24; 12:36; Mark 6:11; 2 Peter 2:9; 3:7; 1 John 4:17)” (G2920). It says in Romans 14:12 that “every one of us shall give account of himself to God. The Greek word that is translated account, logos (logˊ-os) means “something said” (G3056). John used the word logos to refer to Jesus. John said, “In the beginning was the Word (logos), and the Word (logos) was with God, and the Word (logos) was God” (John 1:1). John went on to say:

He was in the world, and the world was made through him, yet the world did not know him. He came to his own, and his own people did not receive him. But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God. (John 1:10-13)

Paul explained in his letter to the Romans that we must publicly confess or openly acknowledge that we believe in Jesus in order to be saved. Paul said, “If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved” (Romans 10:9-10). Jesus confirmed this requirement when he said, “Whosoever therefore shall confess me before men, him will I confess also before my Father which is in heaven, but whoever denies me before men, I also will deny before my Father who is in heaven” (Matthew 10:32-33).

Paul concluded his argument about there being no excuse for rejecting Christ with a statement that summarized God’s intent when he sent his Son Jesus to us to die for the sin of the world. Paul asked, “Do you suppose, O man—you who judge those who practice such things and yet do them yourself—that you will escape the judgment of God? Or do you presume on the riches of his kindness and forbearance and patience, not knowing that God’s kindness is meant to lead you to repentance? Repentance is necessary for justification to take place. A person that has not truly repented is not considered to be free from guilt and is at risk of being excluded from God’s kingdom, even if he has been born again. In his illustration of the final judgment, Jesus said all the nations will be gathered before him, “and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats” (Matthew 25:32). To those who had not demonstrated the characteristics of sanctification, or holiness, in their daily life (Matthew 25:42-44), Jesus said, “these will go away into eternal punishment,” but the ones who were justified, or made righteous by placing their faith in Christ, entered “into eternal life” (Matthew 25:46).

[1] John Macarthur and Richard Mayhue, Biblical Doctrine: A Systematic Summary of Bible Truth, p. 184.

[2][2] Statements and Affirmations – Association of Certified Biblical Counselors, Doctrine of Justification

Arguing with God

Job’s suffering made him want to argue with God. Job told his friends, “Oh that my vexation were weighed, and all my calamity laid in the balances! For then, it would be heavier than the sand of the sea; therefore my words have been rash, For the arrows of the Almighty are in me; my spirit drinks their poison; the terrors of God are arrayed against me” (Job 6:2-6). Job continued, saying, “Therefore, I will not restrain my mouth; I will speak in the anguish of my spirit; I will complain in the bitterness of my soul” (Job 7:11). Job described his inner struggle as the anguish of my spirit and the bitterness of my soul. Man is viewed as consisting of two parts (or substances), material and immaterial, with the body being the material and spirit and soul denoting the immaterial. “Animals are not said to possess a spirit; this is only in man, giving him the ability to communicate with God” (G5590).

Job’s friend Zophar believed that Job was suffering because he had committed some horrible secret sin for which he was being punished (note on Job 11:1). Job denied that he had done anything wrong, indicating “that the hand of the LORD has done this” (Job 12:9), and then, Job stated, “Look, I have seen all this with my own eyes and heard it with my own ears, and now I understand. I know as much as you do. You are no better than I am. As for me, I would speak directly to the Almighty. I want to argue my case with God himself” (Job 13:1-3, NLT). “Job was deeply discouraged. He felt like God was against him (Job 13:21), was intentionally silent (Job 13:22), had turned away from him (Job 13:24), and was dredging up past sins (Job 13:26). Further contributing to his discouragement, Job’s friends became misguiding voices (Job 42:7). Attempting to defend God they actually misrepresented him, speaking lies (Job 13:4), using faulty arguments (Job 13:7-8), and talking in clichés (Job 13:12). They should have kept quiet (Job 13:15; cf. 2:13) and simply listened. Job felt as worthless as rotting wood or a moth-eaten coat (Job 13:28). Job didn’t realize God was aware of his suffering (Job 40:2), yet he stayed hopeful (Job 13:15). [1]

God wants us to be honest with him. “It takes faith to pray when you are in pain. Belief in God creates challenging questions, and lament provides the opportunity to reorient your hurting heart toward what is true.” [2] Many of the psalms that David wrote were laments. David poured out his heart to God with desperate candor, giving believers an example of what it looks like for us to truly lament. David began with a confession of his faith, stating, “To you, O LORD, I lift up my soul. O my God, in you I trust; let me not be put to shame; let not my enemies exult over me. Indeed, none who wait for you shall be put to shame; they shall be ashamed who are wantonly treacherous” (Psalm 25:1-3). David’s argument for God being gracious to him was that he took refuge in the LORD. David said:

Turn to me and be gracious to me,
    for I am lonely and afflicted.
The troubles of my heart are enlarged;
    bring me out of my distresses.
Consider my affliction and my trouble,
    and forgive all my sins.

Consider how many are my foes,
    and with what violent hatred they hate me.
Oh, guard my soul, and deliver me!
    Let me not be put to shame, for I take refuge in you.
May integrity and uprightness preserve me,
    for I wait for you. (Psalm 25:16-21)

David asked the LORD to forgive all his sins. The Hebrew word that is translated forgive, nasa (naw-sawˊ) means “to lift…especially in reference to the bearing of guilt or punishment of sin (Genesis 4:13; Leviticus 5:1). This flows easily then into the concept of the representative or substitutionary bearing of one person’s guilt by another (Leviticus 10:17; 16:22). David understood that he needed a redeemer, someone who could pay the penalty for his sin on his behalf. David lamented, “Remember your mercy, O LORD, and your steadfast love, for they have been from of old. Remember not the sins of my youth or my transgressions; according to your steadfast love remember me, for the sake of your goodness, O LORD…For your name’s sake, O LORD, pardon my guilt, for it is great” (Psalm 25:6-7, 11).

The concept of the substitutionary bearing of one person’s guilt by another was established in the Passover when the LORD passed over the houses of the Israelites that had the blood of a lamb on the lintel and two door posts during their Exodus from Egypt (Exodus 12:21-23). When John the Baptist saw Jesus for the first time, he announced to the people around him, “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!” (John 1:29). Jesus acknowledged his role as the redeemer of Israel when he told his disciples, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them. It shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, and whoever would be first among you must be your slave, even as the Son of Man came not to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many” (Matthew 20:26-28). The Greek word that is translated ransom, Lutron (looˊ-tron) means “something to loosen with, i.e. a redemption price (figurative, atonement)” (G3083).

John explained in his first letter that we must confess our sins in order to be forgiven by God. John said, “If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us” (1 John 1:8-10). John went on to explain Jesus’ role as our advocate. It says in 1 John 2:1-2, “My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. He is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world.” A propitiator is one who appeases anger and brings reconciliation with someone who has reason to be angry with us (G2434). Jesus did this when he paid the penalty for our sin by shedding his blood on the cross.

The Greek word that is translated advocate in 1 John 2:1, parakletos (par-akˊ-lay-tos) means “an intercessor…one who pleads the cause of anyone before a judge” (G3875). Jesus used the word parakletos when he told his disciples shortly before his death, “I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever” (John 14:16). In the same way that Jesus is our advocate with the Father, the Holy Spirit helps us by interceding on our behalf through prayer. Jesus identified the Holy Spirit as the Spirit of truth, and said the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. And then, Jesus said, “You know him for he dwells with you and will be in you” (John 14:17).

Job wanted to speak directly to the Almighty. Job said, “I want to argue my case with God himself” (Job 13:1-3, NLT). Job later stated, “God might kill me, but I have no other hope. I am going to argue my case with him” (Job 13:15, NLT). Job’s suffering brought him to the point where he was willing to risk his own life in order to be justified before God. It says in Hebrews 4:16 that we should, “With confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need,” because “we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin” (Hebrews 4:15). Jesus’ sinless perfection wouldn’t mean much if he were only God, but Jesus Christ came to earth and lived as a human so that his death on the cross would fulfill our need for a human sacrifice, someone like us with a human nature, who was able to live his life according to God’s standard, complete submission and perfect obedience to God’s Word (Matthew 5:48).

Job’s internal conflict reached its highest point after his friend Eliphaz accused him of not having a relationship with God (Job 15:4) and Bildad implied he was going to hell (Job 18:14-21). Job pleaded, “Have mercy on me, have mercy on me, O you my friends, for the hand of God has touched me!” (Job 19:21). Job had “yet to realize that sorrow and trials in the lives of believers come from the hands of a loving God” (note on Job 19:8-22). Job finally cried out in desperation:

“Oh that my words were written!
    Oh that they were inscribed in a book!
Oh that with an iron pen and lead
    they were engraved in the rock forever!
For I know that my Redeemer lives,
    and at the last he will stand upon the earth. (Job 19:23-25)

Job had been arguing with God and his friends because he believed he had a redeemer, but up until this point, Job wasn’t aware that his Redeemer was God (note on Job 19:25-27). The Hebrew word that is translated Redeemer, ga’al (gaw-alˊ) means “to be next of kin” or “to act as a redeemer for a deceased kinsman…this word is used to convey God’s redemption of individuals from spiritual death” (H1350). Jesus’ ability to act in the role of the kinsman redeemer was based on his relationship to King David (Matthew 1:1-17) to whom God promised, “When your days are fulfilled and you lie down with your fathers, I will raise up your offspring after you, who shall come from your body, and I will establish his kingdom. He shall build a house for my name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever” (2 Samuel 7:12-13).

When the LORD answered Job (Job 38-41), he pointed out that “no man has any authority to judge God” (note on Job 40:8). God asked Job, “Do you still want to argue with the Almighty? You are God’s critic, but do you have the answers?” (Job 40:2, NLT). Job responded, “I am nothing—how could I ever find the answers? I will cover my mouth with my hand. I have said too much already. I have nothing more to say” (Job 40:4-5, NLT).

[1] The Spiritual Growth Bible, Dealing with Discouragement, p. 495.

[2] Mark Vroegop, Dark Clouds Deep Mercy: Discovering the Grace of Lament, p. 38.

A spiritual attack

The Apostle Paul talked about spiritual warfare in the context of the armor that Christians need to wear in order to overcome their enemy, the devil. Paul said in his letter to the Ephesians, “Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places” (Ephesians 6:10-12). The spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places that Paul was referring to were angels that rebelled against God, who will one day be cast into a lake of fire where they will spend eternity (Revelation 20:10). Until that time, God has allowed these fallen angels to remain a part of the world we live in, and sometimes he gives them permission to attack believers.

The story of Job is an example of Satan being permitted to test the faith of one of God’s servants. Satan is not free to act in the affairs of mankind; he has to ask God to remove the protection he provides and submit himself to whatever God chooses to do (note on Job 1:6-12). We are told in Job 1:6-7, “there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the LORD, and Satan also came among them. The LORD said to Satan, ‘From where have you come?’ Satan answered the LORD and said, ‘From going to and fro on the earth, and from walking up and down on it.’” Satan’s interest in mankind has to do with his objective of disrupting God’s plan of salvation. The Apostle Peter warned Christians about their enemy, the devil. Peter told believers they need to, “Be soberminded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion seeking someone to devour. Resist him firm in your faith, know that the same kinds of suffering are being experienced by your brotherhood throughout the world” (1 Peter 5:8-9).

Peter described the devil as an adversary. The Greek word that is translated adversary, antidikos (an-tidˊ-ee-kos) means “an opponent (in a lawsuit); specially Satan (as an arch-enemy)” (G476). Satan is the accuser of men before God. In Job’s case, Satan “challenged the motive behind Job’s reverence for God. Satan claimed that Job lived as he did because God had blessed him” (note on Job 1:9-12). Peter said the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour (1 Peter 5:8). What I believe Peter meant by this is that Satan feeds on the negative emotions that get stirred up when people are suffering. The Hebrew word ʿatstsebeth (ats-tsehˊ-beth), which is translated suffering in Job 9:28, refers to “the grief that comes from being brokenhearted (Psalm 147:3)…or grief that causes the spirit to be broken (Proverbs 15:13)…this term clearly refers to emotional suffering and not physical pain or injury” (H 6094).

Job’s suffering was linked to the hopelessness of his situation. Job explained to his friends:

“Has not man a hard service on earth,
    and are not his days like the days of a hired hand?
Like a slave who longs for the shadow,
    and like a hired hand who looks for his wages,
so I am allotted months of emptiness,
    and nights of misery are apportioned to me.
When I lie down I say, ‘When shall I arise?’
    But the night is long,
    and I am full of tossing till the dawn.
My flesh is clothed with worms and dirt;
    my skin hardens, then breaks out afresh.
My days are swifter than a weaver’s shuttle
    and come to their end without hope.” (Job 7:1-6)

Job compared his circumstances to hard service because of the struggle he was having making it from day to day. Job said he had been through months of emptiness and nights of misery. The Hebrew word that is translated emptiness, shavʾ (shawv) refers to “desolating evil…The primary meaning of the word is deceit, lie, or falsehood” (H7723).

Jesus told the Jews who had believed in him, “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth and the truth will make you free” (John 8:31-32). One of the key characteristics of God’s word is that it is inerrant, which means “without error.” Paul said in his letter to Timothy, “All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work” (2 Timothy 3:16). Peter also said, “No prophecy of Scripture comes from someone’s own interpretation. For no prophecy was ever produced by the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit” (2 Peter 1:20-21). When Jesus told the Jews that they would know the truth, he meant that they would be able to recognize that which is derived from God and that which is based on false religion or more specifically, the lies of the devil. Jesus told the Jews, “You are of your father the devil, and your will is to do your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks out of his own character, for he is a liar and the father of lies” (John 8:44).

Job described his extreme distress in his response to his friend Eliphaz. Job said:

“Oh that my vexation were weighed,
    and all my calamity laid in the balances!
For then it would be heavier than the sand of the sea;
    therefore my words have been rash.
For the arrows of the Almighty are in me;
    my spirit drinks their poison;
    the terrors of God are arrayed against me.” (Job 6:2-4)

Job continued his complaint by stating:

“Therefore I will not restrain my mouth;
    I will speak in the anguish of my spirit;
    I will complain in the bitterness of my soul.
Am I the sea, or a sea monster,
    that you set a guard over me?
When I say, ‘My bed will comfort me,
    my couch will ease my complaint,’
then you scare me with dreams
    and terrify me with visions,
so that I would choose strangling
    and death rather than my bones.
I loathe my life; I would not live forever.
    Leave me alone, for my days are a breath. (Job 7:11-16)

Job spoke out of the anguish of his spirit and the bitterness of his soul. Job’s trouble was the result of a spiritual attack by an invisible enemy that wanted to destroy his faith in God. Satan had boasted to the LORD, “Skin for skin! All that a man has he will give for his life. But stretch out your hand and touch his bone and his flesh and he will curse you to your face” (Job 2:4-5), but Job didn’t respond as Satan expected. Job said, “I would choose strangling and death rather than my bones. I loathe my life; I would not live forever” (Job 7:15-16).

“In the midst of his misery (Job 7:13-16), Job asked some honest questions of God” (note on Job 7:17-21). Job said:

What is man, that you make so much of him,
    and that you set your heart on him,
visit him every morning
    and test him every moment?
How long will you not look away from me,
    nor leave me alone till I swallow my spit?
If I sin, what do I do to you, you watcher of mankind?
    Why have you made me your mark?
    Why have I become a burden to you?
Why do you not pardon my transgression
    and take away my iniquity?
For now I shall lie in the earth;
    you will seek me, but I shall not be. (Job 7:17-21)

Job’s question, “Why do you not pardon my transgression and take away my iniquity?” (Job 7:21) was based on his understanding of God’s plan of salvation. The Hebrew word that is translated pardon, nasa (naw-sawˊ) means “to bear or to carry and is used especially in reference to the bearing of guilt or punishment of sin (Genesis 4:13; Leviticus 5:1). This flows easily into the concept of representative or substitutionary bearing of one person’s guilt by another (Leviticus 10:17; 16:22). Job wanted God to pardon his transgression and take away his iniquity, which is exactly what Jesus did hundreds of years later when he died on the cross for the sins of the world (Matthew 20:28).

The spiritual attack against Job was possible in part because Christ had not yet redeemed mankind. Job was aware that his redemption had not yet taken place, but he still claimed it as the basis for his right standing before God. Job said, “Though I am in the right, I cannot answer him; I must appeal for mercy to my accuser” (Job 9:20-21). Job understood that he could not be in the right before God without someone to advocate on his behalf. Job said of God, “For he is not a man, as I am, that I might answer him, that we should come to trial together” (Job 9:32). Job, then concluded, “There is no arbiter between us, who might lay his hand on us both” (Job 9:33). Job wanted an arbiter, one who could stand between him and God and decide the outcome of his case, but there was no one at that time who could do it.

Paul encouraged his spiritual son Timothy to pray for all people. Paul said, “This is good and it is pleasing in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. For there is one God and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all, which is the testimony given at the proper time” (1 Timothy 2:3-5). The term mediator means “a go-between” (G3316). Today, when Satan brings an accusation against someone, if the person has placed his trust in Jesus’ redemptive work on the cross, Jesus testifies on his behalf and is able to forestall a spiritual attack; but this does not happen automatically, we must ask for Jesus’ help. Paul said believers must, “be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might” (Ephesians 6:10), and then, he instructed believers who find themselves in the midst of a spiritual attack to rely on “the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God, praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication” (Ephesians 6:17-18). The word of God is a powerful weapon because it contains irrefutable truth. The spiritual attack against Job eventually reached a turning point when he openly declared the truth about Jesus Christ. Job said, “For I know that my Redeemer lives, and at the last he will stand upon the earth. And after my skin has been thus destroyed, yet in my flesh I shall see God, whom I shall see for myself, and my eyes shall behold, and not another” (Job 19:25-27; Revelation 22:4).