Laying in his hospital room in St. AshHeap, Job must have felt like closing the blinds, hanging a “No Visitors Allowed!” sign on the door, disconnecting the phone, turning out the lights and pulling the covers up over his head.
These are some of the words and phrases found in verses 1-10 of chapter 3: Cursed, let the day perish, may that day be darkness, let not God above care for it, let darkness and black gloom claim it, let a cloud settle on it, let the blackness of the day terrify it, let darkness seize it, let no joyful shout enter it, let the stars…be darkened.
A “stoic” is a person who believes that people should be free from passion, unmoved by joy or grief, and who should submit without complaint to their circumstances. They are people who exhibit calm acceptance of all occurrences as the unavoidable result of the divine will and who repress feelings. (Definitions gleaned from www.dictionary.com).
We were not created to be stoics or to repress all of our feelings. We definitely should exhibit self-control in our lives, but God does not want us to show an unmoved aloofness in the face of life destroying tragedies. We are not robots. When life was difficult for King David, he poured out his heart to God in passionate prayer. And the book of Hebrews reminds us that Jesus prayed “with strong crying and tears!” Verse 24 of this chapter speaks to the intensity of Job’s cries, “For my groaning comes at the sight of my food, and my cries pour out like water.” The word “groaning” is more than just sighing – it could be translated “shrieks.” Hartley says that “groaning” is far too gentle in meaning. And the word “cries” is literally “roar” and refers to the roaring of the lion. Job’s cries were from the depths of his heart and may cause us in the Westernized church to feel a little uncomfortable. In times of deep darkness and distress it is not wrong to cry out to God, “Why is this happening to me?”
Note these questions in the middle and end of this chapter:
11 "Why did I not die at birth, come forth from the womb and expire?”
12 "Why did the knees receive me?” (This refers to the custom of placing the newborn on the knees of the father for the blessing)
12 “Why the breasts, that I should suck?”
20 "Why is light given to him who suffers, and life to the bitter of soul?”
23 “Why is light given to a man whose way is hidden, and whom God has hedged in?”
Note this ironic twist in verse 23…"Why is light given to a man whose way is hidden, and whom God has hedged in?" Do you notice something remarkable when you compare this verse with 1:10 “Hast Thou not made a hedge about him?” Satan complains in chapter one that God has put a hedge of protection around Job so that no evil can touch him. Yet in chapter 3 Job is complaining about the exact opposite; that God has him surrounded so that he can’t escape his problems!” FIA states, “The Satan saw God’s hedge as a protection; Job finds it a restriction. He feels trapped.” At times our perspective on our circumstances and troubles is not correct!
Is Job’s fear in verse 25 an indication of a lack of faith and the reason for his suffering? The verse reads, "For what I fear comes upon me, and what I dread befalls me.” The first part of the verse literally reads, “The fear that I fear is come upon me…” We could translate the whole verse this way, “For what I dread has come upon me, and what has haunted me has struck.” This verse has oft been pointed to as a reason why the ferocious calamites struck Job and his family. But let me just point out a couple of things. Three times in chapters 1-2 Job’s fear of God is pointed to as something commendable (twice by God Himself to Satan!); and once in chapter two God says to Satan, “You incited me against him to ruin him without cause.” To point to this verse and say that Job’s dread and fear was an indication of his lack of faith and the reason for his sufferings seems to me to be a superficial and overly simplistic view of this verse (and book).
And just before the first of the Three Amigos begins to speak: Verse 26 states, "I am not at ease, nor am I quiet, and I am not at rest, but turmoil comes." Job’s ash heap circumstances are the exact opposite of the Hebrew “Shalom” (peace). FIA writes, “This verse is emphatic and is presented in four segments:”
I cannot relax! (I cannot find quietness or happiness)
I cannot settle! (I am so disturbed)
I cannot rest!
And agitation keeps coming back! (Trepidation and turmoil keep on assaulting me!).
I would like to close by giving a couple of suggestions on how to get out of a pit of depression. Volumes and volumes have been written on this subject. But let me just touch on a couple of things from the spiritual side. (We are, after all, spiritual beings.)
Before I do though, let me insert this note (from www.christianadvice.net): “Be Careful Not To Oversimplify: Depression is more than feeling blue. Be careful not to reduce someone's pain to a flippant version of a bad day. While I was in the depth of the pit I called a minister for prayer and was told, "Hey I feel blue everyday. So what! I just get up and make myself do what I have to do." I felt worse than before I called. What was wrong with me? Why was I unable to "just make myself snap out of it?" I sunk even deeper.”
There are definitely physiological reasons for depression. If I don’t watch what I eat I can suffer from “the sugar blues” (my wife and daughters are wonderful cooks and I don’t have any self-control when it comes to rhubarb and cherry pie and spritz cookies :>).
If you are afflicted with depression and can’t seem to get out of the pit, you should perhaps seek help from a good Christian psychologist.
But a couple of suggestions. First, feed your mind on the Word of God regularly. On occasion we don’t need another pill from the doctor; we simply need to memorize the Word. At times it’s just a matter of reshaping our thinking. I realize I am taking this a little out of context, but Paul said in Acts 26:2, “I think myself happy…”
Secondly, somehow get involved in helping other people. We naturally tend toward focusing on ourselves and our problems. Visit a nursing home or a homeless shelter…stop thinking about yourself all the time.
Thirdly, there are times when you may be facing a Satanic black cloud of oppression. I am absolutely convinced that “we wrestle not against flesh and blood but against spiritual powers of darkness (Ephesians 6:10ff).” My story of the revival that took place in Elgin ND (on transformationthroughintercession.blogspot.com) touches on this aspect of depression/oppression.
Fourthly, you have to be brutally honest and ask yourself these questions (gleaned from a seminar by Christian counselor Ray Brock):
What have I done wrong? (Guilt) – Is there some sin in my life that needs to addressed/confessed?
What am I afraid of? (Fear) – Ask the Lord to help you face your fears. Ask other people to pray for you.
Who am I mad at? (Anger & Bitterness) – In no way do I want to oversimplify things, but I think that a major cause of depression lies right here. We hang on to hurts and slights and resentment. Clinging to those things can cause depression. Simply put, people who forgive are happier people. Did you ever think that one of the reasons why the Lord wants you to put into practice the principles of the Lord’s Prayer (…as we forgive our debtors…) is that He wants you to be joyful?
And finally, one of the reasons Job was depressed is because of what had happened to him in the past year or two and how bleak his future looked. He faced what he thought was an incurable disease and incurable circumstances (his kids were dead, his businesses were burned to the ground, his doctors gave him no hope and his health insurance ran out). But remember…God is going to show up! Never negate the “God-Factor.” Don’t forget that God “is able to do exceeding abundantly beyond all that we ask or think!” (Ephesians 3:20)
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