This morning my eyes caught the headline from yesterday's WSJ about the scurrilous, ongoing assault against the previous President called impeachment. Reliably, "my" Senator, Susan Collins (R)ino is with the Democrats in yet again another unfounded if not unconstitutional attach. In my reading Job this morning I am lifted up.
""Do you know this from of old, From the establishment of man on earth, That the triumphing of the wicked is short, And the joy of the godless momentary? "Though his loftiness reaches the heavens, And his head touches the clouds, He perishes forever like his refuse; Those who have seen him will say, 'Where is he?' "He flies away like a dream, and they cannot find him; Even like a vision of the night he is chased away. "The eye which saw him sees him no longer, And his place no longer beholds him. "His sons favor the poor, And his hands give back his wealth. "His bones are full of his youthful vigor, But it lies down with him in the dust." (Job 20:4-11)
A lot of people seem not to like the parts of the Bible that underscore the fact that there actually is a Day of reckoning. It means that no one gets away with anything--ultimately. There IS a Day of Judgement before the One Who is perfectly Just. I suppose there may be two reasons for this. The first is that such a sentiment just doesn't ring true with our personal experience of life. The bad advance, the good are punished. How often do we see people of "status" getting away with serial wickedness? The second reason is because of biblical ignorance, most people recoil at the thought (and evidence) of a "GOD" who gets angry much less who vows to right all the wrongs of the world which means severe unpleasantries to those who practice all manner of wickedness. So how does Job fit in here?
The Lord Himself tells us in the opening verse of Job's saga, he "was blameless, upright, fearing God and turning away from evil." (Job 1:1) Never-the-less, all Hell breaks forth against Job--literally--and Job is beside himself unable to figure out what he had done wrong to deserve it. Enter Job's friends who were quick to tell Job in so many words that he needed to own up to his obvious wretchedness and his tragic life would be uprighted.
It's not an uncommon knee-jerk reaction for most of us. "Well he must have asked for it...," "I don't know but I'm sure she deserved it..." So before we're quick to hammer Job's friends, remember they didn't have the Divine revelation telling them at the outset what a stellar individual their friend was.
But what makes me all warm and fuzzy is the irony of Job's colleagues self-righteous ire as they excoriate their afflicted friend--who we are told is blameless--while they are up to their knees in self-righteous crap. God is so annoyed with them that he tells Job to pray for them lest God steps in to shut them up. What's equally amazing is that Job actually does. I'm not sure I'd do that...
So it was good for me to be reminded that all the injustices, which have been piled on the previous POTUS over the past 4 years, will ultimately cave in on the smug accusers who are guilty of all they protest. But also let us be mindful that we too are susceptible to the same myopic view of things.
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