Prosperity of the wicked, adversity of the righteous

Text Job 20, 21 Time 09/07/00 Place Childs Hill Baptist Church
Asaph appears to be the name of a Levite who was one of the chief musicians in the Temple in the time of David. He is the author of some 12 psalms including Psalm 73. In that psalm Asaph explains how (2) my feet had almost slipped; I had nearly lost my foothold. The problem began, he says (3) when he envied the arrogant, when he saw the prosperity of the wicked. Asaph though to himself (4, 5) They have no struggles; their bodies are healthy and strong. They are free from the burdens common to man; they are not plagued by human ills. They just carry on in their wickedness unchecked. They say, (11, 12) How can God know? Does the Most High have knowledge? This is what the wicked are like - always carefree, they increase in wealth. Asaph, on the other hand, was a godly man but he had his troubles. That led him to think (13, 14) Surely in vain have I kept my heart pure; in vain have I washed my hands in innocence. All day long I have been plagued; I have been punished every morning.

However, having started to think like this Asaph came to see that he had been quite wrong in his thinking. The psalm has been preserved for us to help us to see how to deal with such negative thoughts. Similarly we have in the Book of Job further help in this area, the matter of why the innocent suffer and the wicked seem to get away with it.

We come this week to the final part of the second of the three rounds of speeches between Job and his three friends found in the book. In the first cycle of speeches the friends argued that in this life God always blesses the righteous and punishes the wicked, therefore as Job is suffering he must have done something wrong. Although Job speaks directly after each friend it is only in his third response that he actually says anything about their arguments. We see the same thing in the second cycle too. It is only in Job’s third reply, in Chapter 21, that he directly responds to what his so called friends have to say. After Eliphaz’s second speech and after Bildad’s he spoke of God being his enemy, but after Zophar’s he directly replies to the arguments that are used against him. Perhaps it was the stinging nature of Zophar’s assault that made Job want to reply directly (he uses you singular). It was certainly harsh.
This morning we will concentrate mainly on Job’s answer to Zophar in Chapter 21 rather than Zophar’s speech in Chapter 20. One writer has summarised Zophar as saying

"Job, you make my blood boil! You’re insulting and arrogant. What I am saying is known by everyone - except you it seems! Evil people perish quickly. They get what they ask for in the end. They may prosper for a little while, but eventually it catches up with them. God judges people like that. That’s all I have to say."

So concentrating on Job’s reply in Chapter 21 there are three main things we want to say.

1. Some reminders for would be counsellorsNegatively Do not1. Ignore words of faith from those who are suffering

In verse 19 Job makes a great statement of faith. See 19:25-27 I know that my Redeemer lives, and that in the end he will stand upon the earth. And after my skin has been destroyed, yet in my flesh I will see God; I myself will see him with my own eyes - I, and not another. How my heart yearns within me! And what does Zophar have to say in response to that? Absolutely nothing! He does not even refer to it. There are no words of appreciation or encouragement at all. It is a great mistake on Zophar’s part. Why did it happen? Was Zophar too pre-occupied with winning the argument or did he lack a real interest in the Saviour himself? We do not know. We must not make the same mistake. When people begin to talk about the Saviour, we should immediately be ready to respond with suitable responses. There is so little talk about the Saviour, how sad when we miss opportunities to speak about him.
2. Care too much about your own honour

The very beginning of Zophar’s speech is a disappointment. It is not about the Redeemer but about his own honour. See 20:2, 3 My troubled thoughts prompt me to answer because I am greatly disturbed. I hear a rebuke that dishonours me, and my understanding inspires me to reply. He is concerned not to defend God or speak for the Saviour but rather to preserve his own reputation! Such attitudes will never help us to counsel those who need our help. We need to forget about ourselves and our own honour. That must be laid on one side for a moment. If there is a burning building and you rush in to rescue someone the last thought on your mind will be ‘How do I look? Will this make me look good?’ In a similar way, when we speak to others to counsel them we must forget our own honour. The vital thing is to help them! We must not forget this.
Positively Remember1. To listen carefully

In the opening remarks of Job’s speech we get some more positive advice on counselling. Listen carefully to my words; says Job let this be the consolation you give me. Bear with me while I speak, and after I have spoken, mock on (2, 3). Job pleads that they will at least listen to what he has to say, which they haven’t really done so far. Surely that is the very least they could do. It is the most basic element in good counselling. If we do not listen how can we possibly help anyone? For all that is wrong with psycho-analysis and modern psychiatry they get one thing right when at the beginning of a session they announce ‘I’m listening’. Proverbs 18:13 warns He who answers before listening - that is his folly and his shame.2. That those who question why they suffer are arguing with God not with you

Job goes on Is my complaint directed to man? Why should I not be impatient? Now whether Job can excuse his impatience by saying he is arguing with God not men is debatable but the point he makes about arguing with God not with his friends is an important one to note. We must never get the idea that any argument we have with someone who is suffering is really with us. No, if someone suffers and is unhappy about it, his argument is not with any man but with God. It is important that we remember that. Otherwise we will be so eager to defend ourselves that we will forget what is really going on. When someone says they reject Christianity because of all the suffering in the world then they are not in dispute with me or with Christians in general but with God himself. It is with him that they are arguing, whether they accept his existence or not.
3. The suffering that those you try to help are going through

One of the reasons the friends had fallen into this leisurely debating style where they simply defended themselves was that they had forgotten just what Job was going through. He reminds them (5, 6) Look at me he says (perhaps they had been averting their eyes) and be astonished; clap your hand over your mouth. When I think about this, I am terrified; trembling seizes my body. It made Job tremble to see himself but they just prattle on as if they are talking to someone who has not been touched by these things. How very insensitive they were. All insensitivity is a great drawback in counselling. We really must put ourselves in the other persons shoes and remember what it is like to be in such a position. If we forget how they are suffering we will make all sorts of mistakes.
4. That you will do no real good if what you say is nonsense or untrue

At the very end of his speech, after he has given his counter arguments Job says (34) So how can you console me with your nonsense? Nothing is left of your answers but falsehood! This is pretty much true. What the friends were saying made no sense. It was based on a great falsehood. They lacked many skills as counsellors. They were self-centred, insensitive, harsh, unsympathetic. However, the biggest mistake that they made was to base their diagnosis of Job’s problems on a false view of the world. They were working from a fundamental misconception and so even if they had been the most sympathetic and thoughtful counsellors the world has ever known they still could not have given Job any lasting help. This is the bottom line, as it were. If when we are seeking to help people what we say is not based on truth then what real and lasting comfort can we give? If a child is to have an injection and you say it won’t hurt you will comfort the child for a while but when he has the injection you will have a whole new set of problems. So there are false ways of counselling that give false comfort and appear to work for a while but in the end only the truth can really comfort and the truth is found in the Word. That is why the Bible is the best counselling manual you will ever find.
2. Considerations for those who believe that the wicked are always punished in this life1. Realise that many live long lives in power, safety, happiness, prosperity and peace, despite their godlessness

In verses 7-13 Job argues that the truth is that despite all that his friends say the wicked do live long and happy and prosperous lives. Job begins with the same question Asaph asks Why do the wicked live on, growing old and increasing in power? He has observed that They see their children established around them, their offspring before their eyes. Their homes are safe and free from fear; the rod of God is not upon them. Their bulls never fail to breed; their cows calve and do not miscarry. They send forth their children as a flock; their little ones dance about. They sing to the music of tambourine and harp; they make merry to the sound of the flute. They spend their years in prosperity and go down to the grave in peace.Here Job is directly countering what Zophar has said.
Zophar says (20:5) The mirth of the wicked is brief, the joy of the godless lasts but a moment. And so Job asks (21:7) Why do the wicked live on, growing old?
Zophar says (20:6, 7) Though his pride reaches to the heavens and his head touches the clouds, He will perish for ever, like his own dung; those who have seen him will say, Where is he?

But Job asks why the wicked (20:7b) keep increasing in power?Zophar says (20:11,21) The youthful vigour that fills his bones will lie with him in the dust … total darkness lies in wait for his treasures. A fire unfanned will consume him and devour what is left in his tent.… Nothing is left for him to devour; his prosperity will not endure.…

But Job says (21:8-10) They see their children established around them, their offspring before their eyes. Their homes are safe and free from fear; Their bulls never fail to breed; their cows calve and do not miscarry.Zophar says (20:23, 28) When he has filled his belly, God will vent his burning anger against him and rain down his blows upon him.… A flood will carry off his house, rushing waters on the day of God's wrath.

But Job says (21:9b) the rod of God is not upon them.Zophar says (2:10) His children must make amends to the poor; his own hands must give back his wealth.

But Job says (21:11, 12) They send forth their children as a flock; their little ones dance about. They sing to the music of tambourine and harp; they make merry to the sound of the flute.Zophar says (20:15-18) He will spit out the riches he swallowed; God will make his stomach vomit them up. He will suck the poison of serpents; the fangs of an adder will kill him. He will not enjoy the streams, the rivers flowing with honey and cream. What he toiled for he must give back uneaten; he will not enjoy the profit from his trading. (11 The youthful vigour that fills his bones will lie with him in the dust).

But Job says (21:13) They spend their years in prosperity and go down to the grave in peace.Zophar says (20:27) The heavens will expose his guilt; the earth will rise up against him.

But Job says (21:14, 15, 17, 18) Yet they say to God, Leave us alone! We have no desire to know your ways. Who is the Almighty, that we should serve him? What would we gain by praying to him?' … Yet how often is the lamp of the wicked snuffed out? How often does calamity come upon them, the fate God allots in his anger? How often are they like straw before the wind, like chaff swept away by a gale?Zophar says (20:7-9) He will perish for ever, like his own dung; those who have seen him will say, Where is he? Like a dream he flies away, no more to be found, banished like a vision of the night. The eye that saw him will not see him again; his place will look on him no more.

But Job says (21:32, 33) He is carried to the grave, and watch is kept over his tomb. The soil in the valley is sweet to him; all men follow after him, and a countless throng goes before him.Job observes that despite all the advantages some men have Yet they say to God, Leave us alone! We have no desire to know your ways. Who is the Almighty, that we should serve him? What would we gain by praying to him? (21:14,15). The world does not neatly divide up into blessed people who love God and cursed people who do not. It is all a lot more complicated than Zophar and others want to pretend.
2. To recognise this is not to condone the wicked

Some people fear that if we take this attitude we are somehow condoning the wicked. It is one of the problems, for example, in literature. If you have the good guys always win you are not true to life but if you have the bad guys always win you send out the wrong signals. Job is quick to say (21:16) But their prosperity is not in their own hands, so I stand aloof from the counsel of the wicked. His point still stands though (17, 18) Yet how often is the lamp of the wicked snuffed out? How often does calamity come upon them, the fate God allots in his anger? How often are they like straw before the wind, like chaff swept away by a gale? Sometimes, yes, but, in this life, not always. Certainly not as often as ought to be the case.
3. It is of no use to say that God punishes others instead or that he should do so

In verse 19 Job takes up the argument It is said, God stores up a man’s punishment for his sons. A common argument. Remember the disciples question concerning the man born blind in John 9. This idea is alive and well today. Job answers Let him repay the man himself, so that he will know it! He goes on (20, 21) Let his own eyes see his destruction; let him drink of the wrath of the Almighty. For what does he care about the family he leaves behind when his allotted months come to an end? A wicked man is hardly going to say ‘I won’t do this because my children will be punished after me.’ People find it hard enough to grasp the idea that what you today will affect you tomorrow or in later life, let alone the idea that you will harm a future generation.
4. Death comes to all

Some die at ease, some die in misery. In 21:22-26 Job goes on to speak of the apparently random nature of death. Can anyone teach knowledge to God, he asks since he judges even the highest? The friends had their ideas about how God ought to behave but they did not square with the facts. On the one hand One man dies in full vigour, completely secure and at ease, his body well nourished, his bones rich with marrow. On the other Another man dies in bitterness of soul, never having enjoyed anything good. Side by side they lie in the dust, and worms cover them both. Death is the great leveller. We all die but en route some have a relatively easy life while for others things are very difficult. Some go all their lives with no health problems, others are sick every day of their lives. There are rich and there are poor, very rich and dirt poor. There is simply no way to tell how good a man is by looking at him. A healthy body does not signify a healthy soul; a good bank balance does not mean a man is on his way to heaven. We must realise.
5. If you are sceptical about this you need to do more research

Finally Job says (21:27) I know full well what you are thinking, the schemes by which you would wrong me. He knows that they think Job is a wicked man and he is only saying what he says to defend himself. He goes on You say, Where now is the great man’s house, the tents where wicked men lived? And I would not be surprised of there was someone here who despite all I have said, consciously or unconsciously, believes that in fact the wicked do suffer in this life and things always go well with believers. They do not believe in innocent suffering. Job replies (21:29ff) Have you never questioned those who travel? Have you paid no regard to their accounts - that the evil man is spared from the day of calamity, that he is delivered from the day of wrath? Who denounces his conduct to his face? Who repays him for what he has done? He is carried to the grave, and watch is kept over his tomb. The soil in the valley is sweet to him; all men follow after him, and a countless throng goes before him. You too perhaps need to get out more. You need to find out a little more about what goes on in this world. I assure you there are plenty of wicked people who live lives of ease and who die at a good age but hardly give a thought to God. Meanwhile the godly often suffer. That is a fact of life. The sooner we accept it the better.
3. Things to remember when considering the apparent prosperity of the wicked and adversity of the righteousFinally, we ought to say something more about this as although what Job says is true it is not the whole story. There are at least 3 points to make.
1. God is still in control

See 21:16 But their prosperity is not in their own hands. It is only a hint but Job does remind us that although at times things seem to be out of control that is not truly the case. The wicked can go only so far. God will not let them go beyond that point. It is clear in this book that even Satan can only do what God allows. It is important that we always remember this vital truth. Further, God ha his purposes for this world. For instance his kindness to wards the wicked is intended to bring them to repentance. No-one can turn around at the end and say ‘I didn’t serve god because he was not kind to me’. In fact the very opposite is true.
2. There is a coming day of judgement when all inequalities will be put right

Further, there is a Day of Judgement when every inequality will be set right. If this were not so life would hardly be worth living. It is the quest for justice that keeps many going in this life and it is right that we should strive for justice here on earth. However, it will not happen in this fallen world. However, a day of judgement is fast approaching when everything will be set to rights. Do not forget it. It was this thought that saved Asaph from his slippery slope downwards (Psalm 73:15ff) If I had said, I will speak thus, I would have betrayed your children. When I tried to understand all this, it was oppressive to me till I entered the sanctuary of God; then I understood their final destiny. Surely you place them on slippery ground; you cast them down to ruin. How suddenly are they destroyed, completely swept away by terrors! As a dream when one awakes, so when you arise, O Lord, you will despise them as fantasies. If we keep this perspective on things we will not go far wrong.
3. Until then there will be many things to perplex us

Meanwhile there will be things that take our breath away, that we can hardly imagine. Like Asaph we have to take ourselves in hand, seeking to avoid bitterness and grief, senseless and ignorant thought or lack of it. We need to remind ourselves as believers (23ff) Yet I am always with you; you hold me by my right hand. You guide me with your counsel, and afterwards you will take me into glory. We ought to be able to say Whom have I in heaven but you? And earth has nothing I desire besides you. My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion for ever. Those who are far from you will perish; you destroy all who are unfaithful to you. But as for me, it is good to be near God. I have made the Sovereign LORD my refuge; I will tell of all your deeds.