We remember Job as a Godly man whom God allowed Satan to attack without mercy.
Satan could not kill Job but he could devastate him. His 10 children died at a birthday party when a whirlwind destroyed their house. All of Job’s business interests were taken away from him in one day. He was covered with boils from the top of his head to the bottom of his feet. He took broken clay pieces to scrape his sores. Yet he insisted that he was not being punished by God. And in reality God was not punishing him.
Now I would like to turn our attention to his wife, Mrs. Job. She too has lost all of her children. She has gone from riches to rags. Her husband is suffering deep anguish and physical pain which compounds her grief and sorrow. Job 2:9 "Then said his wife unto him, Dost thou still retain thine integrity? Curse God and die."
Apparently, she had told him to confess his sins and get right with God to stop the punishment. But he still retained his integrity.
Now why did Mrs. Job tell her husband to curse God and die? The Bible does not give us the answer so let’s think about why she might have said that.
1. Perhaps she thought her husband was wrong. If he was being punished by God and lying about it perhaps if he cursed God, God would just go ahead and kill him. Showing everyone who heard the story that we are all sinners and if we resist God’s punishment and curse Him He may kill us. I told you so. Perhaps that was her reason.
But I want to look deeper. With the exception of being covered with boils she was in as much shock, depression, grief and anxiety as Job was. How terrible Mrs. Job must have felt. And her husband still maintained his innocence. How Absurd!
2. Perhaps Mrs. Job had so much compassion for her husband she would rather him be dead than suffer so much. True love hurts when loved ones hurt. We can love to the degree that we want our loved one who is in unbearable pain and hopelessness to find rest. Even if it means their passing. Perhaps Mrs. Jobs’ love for her husband was so strong she was willing to say, “I’ll see you on the other side” so that his misery would end.
The fact of the matter is Job refused to curse God and even though his friends tried to make him confess he deserved judgment God still worked things together for good. Job ended up with twice as many business interests plus another 10 children.
And Mrs. Job. She probably had great admiration for her priestly husband, Job, the head of the family. And the pleasure and pain of having 10 more children. Trust the Lord in the bad times and Him in the good times. www.heretheword.com
