Job 9:8-11
Read Job 9:8-11
Helpful Background Information:
The life of Job and the events described in the Book of Job likely occurred after the events of Babel (Gen. 11:1-9), but before or at the same time as the life of Abraham (Gen. 11:22 and onward). The reasons for this are as follows: (1) Job’s life spanned nearly 200 years, similar to the patriarchal period (for reference, Abraham lived 175 years). (2) The Chaldeans, the ethnic group who would form the Babylonian Empire, are depicted as traveling nomads and have not yet become city dwellers. (3) Job appeared to know about the Noahic flood (see Job 12:15), yet the book is silent on matters such as the covenant of Abraham, Israel, the Exodus, and so on.
In the first two chapters of the book, God permits Satan to test Job, a faithful and upright man who fears God and avoids evil. Satan first attacks Job’s family and property, but Job grieves without sinning or blaming God (Job 1:6). God then allows Satan to afflict Job physically, yet Job remains faithful, refusing to sin. Job’s friends, Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar, come to comfort him but offer flawed advice, highlighting the contrast between God’s perfect wisdom and human misunderstanding of Job’s suffering.
In our passage today occurs in a dialogue between Job and his friend, Bildad. Bildad insisted that Job must have sinned by doubting or dishonoring God for the tragedies to have occurred. However, Job maintains that he is innocent and that God is just in his sovereignty. For our purposes, Job gives a beautiful description of God. God can do what humanity cannot do; his wisdom and power are beyond compare, and his miraculous works cannot be explained by human rationality. In verses 9:8-11, Job says that God “treads on the waters” and if God were to pass him by, “ I cannot see him… I cannot perceive him.”
Reflection Questions:
Compare Mark 6:45-52 with Job 9:8-11. What similarities do you see? What do these similarities show us about who Jesus is? How does this passage help you glorify Christ and recognize Christ’s power, majesty, and greatness?
Unlike the description of God in the Book of Job, when Jesus passes by, he does ultimately reveal himself to his followers. The God of Israel, who was unknowable face to face, is now “passing by” believers in the second person of the Trinity: Jesus of Nazareth. What does this show us about what Jesus came to do? (If you need help answering, read John 1:14-17, John 14:1-7, and Hebrews 10:19-22).
In Job 9:8–11, Job acknowledges God's immense power and mysterious ways, even in the midst of his suffering. How does recognizing God's sovereignty, especially when His actions are beyond our understanding, shape your response to personal trials?