Commentary on
The Book of Job

Chapter Nine: Who Can Answer God?

Who Can Answer God?

Who Can Answer God?

Job: chapter 9
¹ Then Job answered and said,

² I know it is so of a truth: but how should man be just with God?
³ If he will contend with him, he cannot answer him one of a thousand.
⁴ He is wise in heart, and mighty in strength: who hath hardened himself against him, and hath prospered?
⁵ Which removeth the mountains, and they know not: which overturneth them in his anger.
⁶ Which shaketh the earth out of her place, and the pillars thereof tremble.
⁷ Which commandeth the sun, and it riseth not; and sealeth up the stars.
⁸ Which alone spreadeth out the heavens, and treadeth upon the waves of the sea.
⁹ Which maketh Arcturus, Orion, and Pleiades, and the chambers of the south.
¹⁰ Which doeth great things past finding out; yea, and wonders without number.
¹¹ Lo, he goeth by me, and I see him not: he passeth on also, but I perceive him not.
¹² Behold, he taketh away, who can hinder him? who will say unto him, What doest thou?
¹³ If God will not withdraw his anger, the proud helpers do stoop under him.
¹⁴ How much less shall I answer him, and choose out my words to reason with him?
¹⁵ Whom, though I were righteous, yet would I not answer, but I would make supplication to my judge.
¹⁶ If I had called, and he had answered me; yet would I not believe that he had hearkened unto my voice.
¹⁷ For he breaketh me with a tempest, and multiplieth my wounds without cause.
¹⁸ He will not suffer me to take my breath, but filleth me with bitterness.
¹⁹ If I speak of strength, lo, he is strong: and if of judgment, who shall set me a time to plead?
²⁰ If I justify myself, mine own mouth shall condemn me: if I say, I am perfect, it shall also prove me perverse.
²¹ Though I were perfect, yet would I not know my soul: I would despise my life.
²² This is one thing, therefore I said it, He destroyeth the perfect and the wicked.
²³ If the scourge slay suddenly, he will laugh at the trial of the innocent.
²⁴ The earth is given into the hand of the wicked: he covereth the faces of the judges thereof; if not, where, and who is he?
²⁵ Now my days are swifter than a post: they flee away, they see no good.
²⁶ They are passed away as the swift ships: as the eagle that hasteth to the prey.
²⁷ If I say, I will forget my complaint, I will leave off my heaviness, and comfort myself:
²⁸ I am afraid of all my sorrows, I know that thou wilt not hold me innocent.
²⁹ If I be wicked, why then labour I in vain?
³⁰ If I wash myself with snow water, and make my hands never so clean;
³¹ Yet shalt thou plunge me in the ditch, and mine own clothes shall abhor me.
³² For he is not a man, as I am, that I should answer him, and we should come together in judgment.
³³ Neither is there any daysman betwixt us, that might lay his hand upon us both.
³⁴ Let him take his rod away from me, and let not his fear terrify me:
³⁵ Then would I speak, and not fear him; but it is not so with me.

Job replies to Bildad's final assertion that “God will not cast away a perfect man” (8:20) by suggesting, “I know it is so of a truth: but how should a man be just with God?” (9:2). He eloquently speaks of the power and the strength of God (9:4-12) concluding, “Behold, he taketh away, who can hinder him,” (9:12)? It is not possible to contend with God (9:3,14-21): “Though I were perfect, yet I would not know my own soul” (9:21). Here, Job is arguing that even if he is perfect, or “blameless” as the NIV suggests, God can brush it aside, even to his not knowing.

By His power God can simply overwhelm a man. Job speaks of God removing mountains (9:5) and causing the earth to quake (9:6). God alone creates all things (9:8), “and treadeth upon the waves of the sea” (9:8). Apparently this refers to doing the impossible. “The Egyptian hieroglyphic for what was not possible to be done, was a man walking on the water” (Barnes, Introduction to Job, note on 9:8; quoted from Burder). Only God can do the impossible.

The Cohorts of Rahab

It is worth pointing out that the ‘proud helpers’ (9:13), are translated the ‘cohorts of Rahab’ in the NIV, which is faithful to the Hebrew (Strong, H7293). The Hebrew word ‘Rahab’ means ‘blusterer’, and can also mean ‘proud’, or ‘strength’. The word is also assigned to a sea monster associated with Egypt (see Isa. 30:7 and accompanying notes: NIV Study Bible). The New Concise Bible Dictionary defines this ‘Rahab’, (spelled differently in Hebrew from Rahab the harlot of Joshua 2) as “The name for a female monster of chaos, associated with LEVIATHAN” (New Concise Bible Dictionary, 73). The imagery of the sea monster is important throughout the book of Job, but tends to get lost in translation. Rahab is mentioned again in chapter 26, verse 12, where Rahab is again ‘proud’. In this case, in the context of the sea.

The association between the deep of the ocean and the depths of a man's soul, as well as the association between the monsters of the deep and pride is particularly potent in the book of Job. The other sea monster, Leviathan, mentioned several times starting in Job 3:8, is described in detail by God Himself in chapter 41 where the significance of the allusion should become clear.

Job's intuition that what God is after comes from the depths is being reinforced. Already he has alluded to Leviathan (3:8), and challenged “Am I the sea, or the monster of the deep” (7:12). He continues by distancing himself from the helpers of Rahab (9:13).

He Destroys the Blameless

At the bottom of Job's argument is a self-confidence in his own righteousness, and a deep pessimism about God. Yes, God will cast away a perfect man (8:20). “If I had called, and he had answered me; yet would I not believe that he had hearkened unto my voice” (9:16). Job correctly states that he being wounded without cause (9:17), that is Job has done nothing to require punishment. Satan would have him believe that God is punishing in a careless manner.

In grief and frustration, Job now begins to accept the devil's argument, ‘to God you are of no consequence’: “This is one thing, therefore I said it, He destroyeth the perfect and the wicked. If the scourge slay suddenly, he will laugh at the trial of the innocent.” (9:22-23). Job has just accused God of frivolously, if not gleefully, destroying the perfect along with the wicked.

This argument has a similar theological underpinning as our modern “Death of God” theology, which suggests that God is no longer active in our history, else why would the holocaust have been allowed, among other things. These theologians solve the confusion by claiming that God is no longer involved. While kinder to God than claiming He doesn't care, “Death of God” theology is no less pernicious.

Job is accusing God of totally disregarding His own justice. “He covereth the faces of the judges thereof; if not, where, and who is he” (9:24)? Justice is made blind. Job contends that because he is righteous, and yet God does not appear to save him from torment, therefore God is obviously preventing justice. Job concludes this line of reasoning by asking, “Even if I washed myself with soap, and my hands with washing soda” (9:30, NIV), what good is it (9:29), if You “plunge me into a slime pit” (9:31, NIV)?

Is There a Mediator for Me?

Like his three friends, Job is locked into the formula that those who do good are blessed and those who do wickedly are tormented. His friends assume Job is hiding some secret sin. Convinced that he has no sin to hide, Job is looking for more creative answers to this theological breakdown. It is appearing to Job that God is hypocritical or perhaps just ignorant.

Job's situation has taken on the appearance of a trial. The three friends feel that Job has been tried and convicted. Job seems to feel the same and demands his day in court. A Canadian lawyer has written a learned discourse on the book of Job as a legal battle (Sutherland, Putting God on Trial). Job is not in a legal trial however. His is a trial of faith. None of Job's arguements or those of his friends will bring him any closer to a resolution. God will come to resolve the trial when Job declines to answer his final accuser, Elihu (33:32-33).

‘Perhaps, even if my case where set before God, given the injustice of my current situation,’ Job reasons, ‘I wouldn't get a fair trial, unless there were an arbitrator or mediator between God and myself’ (9:32-33). Secondly, I could speak without fear, only if God's heavy hand of judgment is withdrawn (9:34-35). So far, Job is having no problem speaking up. If he did not fear greater consequences, would Job bring greater condemnations to God? Satan's purpose, in all of this pain, is to get Job to curse God, to renounce God. Job appears to be edging in that direction.

The next chapter contains Job's legal brief, what he would be saying to God, if he were granted a hearing. Job is not suggesting that he would curse God. He would like to defend himself in person, at the heart of it, Job still believes that God would hear his case and approve of him.

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*All Bible quotes are from the King James Version unless otherwise indicated.

Commentary onThe Book of Job